64) THE TIME MONSTER

The Time Monster is terribly plotted, written and acted which is a right shame because the story has a lot going for it. This is also a very lazy attempt to bring some comedy into the show where every ‘funny’ moment is not funny at all. Silly little dances, Bessie shooting off into the distance and everything in-between are not worthy for even the slightest chuckle or smile. There are some good production values but they are pushed into the background and what little we get to see is rather undermining and underused. The plot seems more focused on silly little set pieces – the Knight, the Roundheads, and the explosion at the end of part three and annoying sound effects than creating entertainment. The first few episodes are very bad which feels like a marathon rather than TV Drama. Atlantis itself looks nice and the last two-episodes slightly improve but that is not saying much. There is very little story which deserves six episodes and the destruction caused by Kronos is more akin to a pantomime rope malfunction. There is constant recycled footage and the whole production is nothing more than a first draft at best. *The Time Monster is terribly plotted, written and acted, which is a shame because the story has a lot of going for it. The mystery behind the destruction of Atlantis had continually been interwoven throughout the show’s history, and it seemed that some answers would finally be revealed; it’s such a shame that no-one seemed that bothered about creating an entertaining piece of television. This is a very lazy attempt to bring some comedy into the show where every ‘funny’ bit is not worthy of even the slightest chuckle, the first major failing to expand the show’s confines and horizons. Silly little dances, poor performances from the cast, and strange sound effects all accumulated to make the first four very bad episodes. The final two episodes, which shift the attention to Atlantis, descend into more awfulness, looking more like an amateurish Shakespeare production, with the final moments being more like a pantomime rope malfunction than a would-be world destroyer causing mayhem and havoc. The rest of plot (before the shift to Atlantis) seems more focused on silly little set pieces – the Knight, the Roundheads, and the explosion at the end of part three. The episodes are plagued with constant recycled footage, and the whole production  is nothing more than a first draft at best.*