“The Claws Of Axos” is an adventure of the eighth season of “Doctor Who” classic series which aired in 1971. It follows “The Mind of Evil” and it’s a four parts adventure written by Bob Baker and Dave Martin and directed by Michael Ferguson.
The story
A spaceship crashes on Earth and the alien crew ask the Earthlings for help to refuel. In return, they offer Axonite, a mineral that can replicate any substance.
The Third Doctor (Jon Pertwee) isn’t convinced of the aliens Axons’ good faith and together with Jo Grant (Katy Manning) investigates the nature of Axonite. However, there are many interests at stake and Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart (Nicholas Courtney) has to face political interference.
Extras
This DVD is rich in extras. There are typical contents such as production subtitles and a gallery of pictures from this adventure.
There are comments in the adventure alternative audio track by protagonista Katy Manning, actor Richard Franklin and producer Barry Letts.
Behind the Scenes. 25 minutes of material recorded during the production of this adventure and in some cases not included in the broadcast version.
Now and Then. A look at the places where this adventure was shot to compare the way they were then and the way they are today.
Reverse Standards Conversion – The Axon Legacy. A 10-minute documentary showing the restoration of this adventure. The tapes of the second and third episode in NTFS format color, the result of a conversion, were converted back.
Directing Who. A 15-minute documentary in which director Michael Ferguson recalls his work in this adventure.
“The Claws Of Axos” is the first adventure of “Doctor Who” written by Bob Baker and Dave Martin. Originally conceived with the Second Doctor, it was adapted for Third Doctor passing through a series of modifications pointed out by producer Barry Letts and script editor Terrance Dicks to stay within the production’s budget.
The story that became “The Claws Of Axos” was initially conceived as a seven parts adventure, then became a six parts story and was eventually reduced to four parts. In the classic “Doctor Who” series there are cases of very long adventures where at times the pace is slow because their contents are limited. In contrast, “The Claws Of Axos” contains many elements to which they added the Master’s presence so probably it could’ve been developed better with a greater length.
There are a number of elements developed in a rushed or only partial way, with a high pace by the standards of that era and plot twists one after the other. First of all, a greater length would’ve allowed them to maintain a longer doubt about the true intentions of the aliens Axons instead of starting showing them so early to the audience.
In the development of the Axons’ plans, the one regarding the distribution of Axonite in the world is increasingly neglected in the second part of “The Claws Of Axos” in favor of the attempt by the Axons to take control of time travel technology.
There’s also the character of Bill Filer, an American who works for unclear reason with UNIT. Unfortunately he’s limited to some stereotypes so I think it would’ve been better to eliminate him and give his scenes to a member of UNIT, for example Captain Yates.
However, “The Claws Of Axos” also contains positive elements. The aliens Axons are interesting and despite the limited budget they’re well made with their organic spaceship. Actor Bernard Holley gives a nice contribution with his performance as the aliens’ spokesperson.
In this adventure the relationship between UNIT and British government becomes clearer. In particular, there’s a conflict caused by a civil servant more concerned with his personal prestige than about doing the right thing.
Although in the end his role is a bit limited, Nicholas Courtney manages to shine once again in his performance as Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. If in previous adventures the Master was a rather one-dimensional villain, Roger Delgado succeeds in giving his character a new depth working really well with Jon Pertwee. In an adventure where the Doctor always seems cranky, the Master brings some humor. At the same time the relationship between the two Time Lords is explored a bit more.
In 2011, Big Finish produced the audio adventure “The Feast of Axos” – available on Amazon UK
Overall, “The Claws Of Axos” is an enjoyable adventure though in my opinion it can’t be considered a classic. The DVD has fair quality extras so it’s a product made especially for “Doctor Who” fans. It’s a good example of UNIT adventure so at a bargain price it can be a good purchase if you’re interested in that kind of story.
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