The Macra Terror review

The idea of animating a whole, unavailable old Doctor Who story is a step forward from filling in missing episodes and judging from what’s been done here, a fascinating opportunity. Originally shown in 1966 and long since wiped, this 52 year old tale has always been one of the less regarded of the canon. Those who did see it at the time don’t rate it highly, those who have seen telesnap reconstructions or heard audios don’t seem much more enthusiastic either. This release lifts `The Macra Terror` from its foggy origins and gives it a chance to succeed. It can’t be some huge re-make nor can it alter the overall plot but it does take liberties with the original to service a better story and also to make the Macra more memorable for those who only know them from their surprise re-appearance in `Gridlock` and those couple of photos. Purists may carp – and a telesnap version is included for them – but this is as good as `The Macra Terror` can be- and it’s better than you think it will be. 

Just to keep us on our toes the first episode starts with a black and white preview before bursting into a colourised version of the title sequence which looks fantastic complete with the animated second Doctor face. The travellers’ arrival on an unnamed planet coincides with the escape of a supposedly subversive criminal called Medok (Terence Lodge) whom they accidentally apprehend earning the trust of head of security Ola (Gertan Klauber) . However Medok’s subsequent mention that he’s `seen things` alerts the Doctor to the possibilities of something else going on and he covertly helps Medok on no more evidence than that. Meanwhile the quartet are given a welcome into the environment that is part holiday camp and part factory where people are seemingly happy to work. Even when those big crabs are glimpsed by the Doctor we are assured via slightly hysterical announcements from the controller that “There is no such thing as Macra”.

The advantage of the effective clean slate this version of the story has pays dividends making it a far more satisfactory watch than the jarring mix of animation and surviving footage of a partially complete story. Unusually for a 1960s tale matters breeze along with just enough incident to amply fill the four episodes even if a lot of this becomes lengthy runarounds.

The less than two minutes of footage that do exist- collected on the second disc- plus on set photographs suggest a rather cramped environment and awkwardly staged action back in 1967.  The animation is able to rescue these deficiencies to strong effect best realised in the sequence of Polly and Ben’s tussle with a Macra. The original footage looks unconvincing despite the actors’ best efforts whereas the animation allows her to be lifted in the air by a more mobile Macra making the whole scene far more dramatic. Also it’s difficult to imagine the initial first sight of the Macra at the end of part one being any more atmospheric than presented here. Rather than being a clumsy overlarge prop these Macra move freely and seem genuinely dangerous. I know the director Charles Norton hasn’t always reproduced his predecessor John Davies’ camera moves but the handling of the giant crabs certainly does much to merit the story’s title.

The quality of the animation is consistently high. Unlike many examples there are no gaps where the characters do nothing but blink or move slightly and the way the speech matches the soundtrack is spot on. What is especially impressive is the likeness of Patrick Troughton; the animators picking up on every nuance of his performance. The actor’s face is full of expression and this is hard to capture in this medium but they’ve done it so well. This alone is a triumph. Not all the characters’ likenesses are quite so good- though they have Peter Jeffrey’s Pilot and Fraser Hines’ Jamie to a tee – but more importantly they are all well rendered in themselves. There is characterful movement in each face and that’s quite an achievement. This is matched by a three dimensional scope to the canvas so we can believe this environment has depth and scale. Combined with the original soundtrack I’m sure this is how the people who made the broadcast version would want the story to look like.

Of course this re-imaging is mostly confined to the visuals as it takes its soundtrack directly from the original so cannot alter the narrative itself and despite its reputation this aspect comes across more effectively than I’d imagined it would. The story is a familiar one of an apparent utopia with dark undertones an idea prevalent in sci fi  (notably 1984) and revisited by the series itself in `The Happiness Patrol`. It is fair to say the plot is slight, relying on successive characters wandering into places they shouldn’t and facing dangers while the mantra of the faceless controller makes declarations over the tannoy. Yet the story never drags and as the Macra become more and more visible the pace quickens resulting in a well staged final episode.

There’s also a slightly quirky feel to the methods by which the colonists are kept happy. Episode 1 opens with marching majorettes while the colony is prone to catchy jingles that will stick in your head afterwards! Later we get a sort of clapalong half rap! The inhabitants acquiescence comes via gas pumped about the place when they sleep.

What is not clear is how all this originated. There’s no explanation offered so I’m presuming the Macra are indigenous and when the colony was set up they invaded it. However as the gas operation seems entirely for their benefit I wonder how they coped before the colonists arrived. Though it does provide the story’s best sequences you do wonder why the Macra only wander round at night. In fact apart from maintaining the status quo the creatures don’t seem to have a particular purpose. What the story needs perhaps is that classic last episode development when the aliens’ plan involves something more- a jump off point for an invasion of Earth or something. When viewed in their control room in part 4 they just seem to be mooching around without much urgency!

The story makes good use of having three companions, something perhaps the current iteration of the series needs to work harder with. Though there are times when each is in the background they all get to make a significant contribution to the story. Ben’s submission to the will of the Controller is one of the best aspects of the tale adding a friction between the travellers which this era of the series rarely tried. It gives Michael Craze plenty of room to show what a good actor he is and its noticeable how he can switch from chirpy to menacing in a moment. Interesting too that Ben loses his cockney accent when under the control of the Macra. Jamie gets much of the action including an extended sequence in the mines across parts 3 and 4   Polly’s contribution is subtler but she seems a good foil for this Doctor. The latter is often described as an enabler for other characters though here he takes a fair amount of direct action and at this stage the actor gives a more restrained performance than he later did. If the colony’s rulers start off as typical authoritarian types there is enough variation for each to emerge as interesting characters especially the Pilot who seems unusually lenient for someone in his position.

There are not enough big signature moments or unexpected plot shifts for `The Macra Terror` be re-assessed as a classic however there is certainly enough for it to rise from it’s gas filled basement and be seen in a better light in future. In terms of the idea of animated versions of missing stories this is a fantastic example of how it can be done to both respect the tone of the original yet deliver something fresh and compelling. Let’s have some more please!