63) THE MUTANTS

Perhaps what’s most remarkable about The Mutants is what a colossal creative mess it is. The story is nothing original and shamefully recycles themes from previous seasons, and does nothing to give them a new edge or angle. The final product is generally low-key with a disconjointed plotline and a series of dangers which are dealt with and conquered in the most uninteresting of ways by the main and secondary characters. The direction is uninspiring, with little attention or care, which make the seemingly interesting moments – uninteresting, and the seemingly exciting set-pieces – unexciting.
Despite the tackiness and tired feel of the episodes, there are some fine moments, which give The Mutants some freshness, and bring new ingenious ideas to science-fiction. The Mutts are marvellous creations, and Solos itself actually lends itself to the main narrative, which makes the whole mystery behind the mutations exceedingly interesting as the plot slowly unfolds across the six-episodes. Overall Bob Baker/Dave Martin provide six stronger, more disciplined scripts, but the over ambitious narrative of everything makes for some poor production values and even more questionable science-fiction moments. The extensive advice the writing duo received results in well-grounded, structured characters brought to life by some equally talented artists. However, the silliness of the final episode contradicts the hard work the pair put into their characters; the Marshal is too easily tricked into giving his game away, and some characters appear to be willing to put themselves in harm’s way when they should be doing the exact opposite. 
As another ‘the evils of colonisation’ serial, The Mutants works out ‘fine’ but the production is lacking in energy at times and continually descends into childish gimmicks and games, making it a would-be sleeping giant that could have been so much more.***