Doctor Who (TV Series) The Ark in Space: Part Three (1975) User Reviews

"We'd be happily dead." Decent episode.

[poolandrews · 7/10 · 25 March 2007]

Doctor Who: The Ark in Space: Part 3 starts with the realisation that Commander Noah (Kenton Moore) has been infected by the Wirrn & is slowly being transformed into one, the Doctor (Tom Baker) has worked out that the Wirrn want to literally eat the humans aboard the Nerva & it's up to him to try & stop them...

This Doctor Who adventure was episode 7 from season 9 that aired here in the UK during early 1975, directed by Rodney Bennett this is an improvement over Part 2. The script by Robert Holmes is getting to the business end after a dull Part 2 which makes for a more entertaining 25 minutes, this one has people being taken over by green slime, giant green space slugs, laser battles & the usual quality dialogue which amuses. In fact I'd say maybe there's perhaps a bit too much going on here but the time restrictions these made-for-TV show's have will always result in these sorts of problems.

There's quite a horror element in The Ark in Space, giant slugs, alien creature using us as food for it's young & people being engulfed by green slime & turned into these creatures. However this being Doctor Who the special effects aren't always convincing, it's painfully obvious that the Wirrn larvae & the green stuff that grows on Noah is nothing much more than bubble wrap spray painted green. Most of us Doctor Who fans forgive these shabby looking special effects & just enjoy the series for what it is but I'd be lying if I said the constant poor effects didn't occasionally hurt the show, I suppose it depends on your tolerance level & how much your prepared to forgive.

The Ark in Space is shaping up quite nicely & this as a stand alone episode is an improvement on Part 2.

Plenty happening. It's a total classic.

[Sleepin_Dragon · 9/10 · 18 October 2019]

The crew are told what their fate is, to make the Earth fertile once again. Unfortunately the wirrn have a plan to stop the humans.

The Ark in Space is actually a superb story, a wonderful piece of writing, with a great theme, a group of people selected to repopulate the Earth after a catastrophe has ended life as we know it.

One thing I loved about the DVDs, the special features, one of the best items on any DVD, was the updated CGI special effects here, they enhance the story, they're in keeping, nothing wrong with the original, but the updates look very good.

I don't often watch this, but I should, it's a fantastic story, lots of action, lots of horror. It gets better and better. 9/10

Snail Trails...

[Xstal · 7/10 · 21 June 2022]

The infestation of the Ark, Wirrn riddled and in dark, the human race becoming fodder, entombed within an insect larder, a queen's eye view paints a green picture, not to Noah's prescribed scripture, then transition takes the stage, so let the infestation rage.

Fantastic sci-fi claustrophobia and parasitic alien attacks on humans - a classic forerunner of Alien.

[A_Kind_Of_CineMagic · 10/10 · 18 November 2014]

Review of all 4 episodes:

Whether there is a direct influence from this on Ridley Scott's 'Alien' I do not know but either way it clearly foreshadows ideas seen in that film. It has humans in stasis for space travel, a claustrophobic atmosphere on a space vessel under attack, 'body horror' as aliens attack humans parasitically and a strong and intelligent female crew member taking a lead role. It is striking how this story has many similarities with that famous film which came a few years later and all those similar aspects are really good ones.

This story is top notch Doctor Who. It is intelligent, very entertaining, sometimes very funny, sometimes scary (particularly for children), atmospheric and exciting with brilliant scripts by John Lucarotti, overseen by the show's greatest script editor Robert Holmes. It is superbly acted by the whole cast.

The Doctor, Sarah Jane and Harry arrive by accident on the space station Nerva which is an Ark of human knowledge, Earth history, culture and life. It contains specially selected representatives of the human race sleeping in stasis and being sent out from Earth at a time when the planet was threatened by solar flares. The time in stasis has gone way longer than intended (10,000 years) due to the station being attacked and sabotaged by an alien creature. This creature is a giant insect called a Wirrn. It has laid larvae on board and the Wirrn are multiplying and attacking with the intention of absorbing the humans and gaining all human knowledge into their collective intelligence. The human leader is touched by a Wirrn larvae and begins to slowly metamorphose into a Wirrn.

The space station setting is superbly created and it is a pity that alongside such excellent sets, machinery and backgrounds the creature effects are unable to match that quality. Effects are no worse than any other productions of the day (Doctor Who or many other TV shows). It was hard to make great effects at that time, on that budget and schedule so it is actually not a real criticism and the sets etc are so good that overall the production is great and glosses over these lesser effects.

The story itself is interesting and thoroughly good quality throughout. The guest characters are excellent with the convincing acting and clever characterisation of 'Noah' (Kenton Moore) who is being gradually taken over by the alien parasites as well as the aforementioned strong female guest lead character, Vira, played beautifully by Wendy Williams. When you add this to the wonderful Sarah Jane (Elisabeth Sladen) it gives us two top class strong female roles. As well as the always great Sarah Jane we have Harry Sullivan (Ian Marter) in his second story and first trip in the TARDIS. He is a high quality addition as he is well acted, funny, likable and adds to the story. The technician Rogin is another good character.

This is a top class story and a true classic with Tom Baker really establishing himself as an incredible Doctor in only his second story. He still maintains some wonderful humour but is more serious and deep thinking than in his first adventure. New Showrunners, Hinchcliffe & Holmes, are putting their stamp on the show straight away in a powerful and hugely impressive way and nobody could be better as The Doctor than Tom Baker.

All 4 episodes 10/10.