Review of The Curse of Peladon (#61)
DVD Release Date: 04 May 10
Original Air Date: 29 Jan – 19 Feb 1972
Doctors/Companions: Three, Jo Grant
Stars: Jon Pertwee, Katy Manning
Preceding Story: Day of the Daleks (Three, Jo, the Brigadier)
Succeeding Story: The Sea Devils (Three, Jo)
As the United Kingdom formalizes its “Brexit” from the European Union, it’s kind of interesting to use this installment in the Hidden Gems series to view things from the other end of the timeline. Back in the early 1970s, Britain was debating whether or not to join the then-European Economic Community in the first place. Doctor Who, never a show to go subtle with its allegorical stories if blatant will do, gave us The Curse of Peladon.
Interestingly enough, the result is actually not terrible. (Contrast this with much of fandom’s opinion of the later Monster of Peladon, which focuses on a miner’s strike, and ranks a full 90 places lower on the io9 list.) Despite some of the expected, rather heavy-handed preaching about how (a) these people aren’t out to get you, they’re here to help and (b) your religious beliefs are all outlandish superstitions, inappropriate in a time of Science and Reason, the story doesn’t feel overly tied to real world politics, at least not at the moment (when there’s a whole different pile of politics to worry us).
Among the many things to enjoy in this story is the fact that Companion Jo Grant—here styled “Princess Josephine of TARDIS,” since non-royal women were not allowed in the Peladonian throne room, and the Doctor had just been mistaken for a Federation delegate—is fabulously competent. Often times Jo is painted as inept and air-headed, but here she is sharp and often takes the initiative to investigate things on her own. Granted, that sometimes gets her into trouble, but not as often as one might think.
Instead, Jo works as a valuable team player for her side (which includes the Doctor, the Federation delegation (for the most part), and a faction of the locals), finding important evidence and swaying opinions. She doesn’t even have to twist her ankle or scream.
Other delightful bits include some classic misdirection that makes it harder for a first-time viewer to predict accurately what all the players want and who to trust; the fuzzy and less-ferocious-than-anticipated sacred creature named Aggedor, which the Doctor manages to befriend (or at least subdue) by singing it a Venusian lullaby; and the ridiculously phallic-looking, kind-hearted, yet cowardly delegate from Alpha Centauri.
While not everything is well done (for example, Jo and King Peladon having a romantic connection—ugh, just why), this is an adventure that maybe deserves a little more love than it usually gets. If you’re looking for sheer enjoyable fluff—maybe something you can put on in the background and give varying degrees of attention as the mood strikes—you can certainly do worse.