The Tour continues a mild meander through the Hartnell era with another short story, one even shorter than planned, with the Season 2 premiere Planet of Giants. The second story in succession (following on from last weeks The Edge of Destruction) to have disaster strike when the Tardis doors open prematurely and originally slated to run four episodes but trimmed to three to tighten-up the proceedings, the result is still a rather drab affair but it is notable for a few things:
- The Tardis crew is much more cohesive now, which is something of a shame as it’s the penultimate story for the original crew.
- It’s also the first official credit for Douglas Camfield, who would go on to be one of the classic series most acclaimed directors stretching all the way to The Seeds of Doom.
- Excellent production design (natch) from Raymond Cusick.
American TV would eventually have their own take on Planet of Giants when (schlockmeister) Irwin Allen brought Land of the Giants forward in 1968. That was a drab affair too.
The caps presented here don’t improve the Tour’s stock so much in quantity but in quality. Who knows what cap-acious offering might come next?
