The Mutants [TV/1972.4.8 ~ 5.13]

★★★☆☆

  There must be somebody other than myself who watched (or rewatched, in my case) The Mutants and thought to themselves, 'hang on, this is the serial everyone thinks is bad?'... there must be somebody. I've watched this serial several times now, and my opinion on it has solidified: it's pretty good. The Barry Letts agenda train keeps running here with a South African apartheid critique hidden amongst the crustacean men mutations and political assassinations, and I am all here for it. The sets are elaborate, the commentary is explicit and well-made, and the characters of the Doctor and Jo are dependably good.

  Sure, the effects of some of the scenes here may be naff, but don't they add to the charm? The Solonian civilisation is a fascinating one with an entire cycle documented, the Marshal is a great villain who knows when to be all serious and when to ham things up to high heck. There are a variety of accents here as well, something I appreciate as time goes on; BBC English gets a bit tiring when the twentieth serial in a row has one single accent amongst all aliens. Yes, this possibly could've benefited more from a shorter duration (a five-parter, maybe... even a four-parter?), but the fleshed-out alien culture and the social commentary make it a worthwhile watch. Plus, I never knew Earth Empire guards could be so amicable.