‘Tis the season for Sea Devils, apparently. Not only is The War Between the Land and the Sea, the Doctor Who spinoff that revolves around the classic monsters, finally set to premiere (at least in the U.K.), but the BBC is also set to release a special version of the original episodes that featured their debut.
The original story, “The Sea Devils,” was a Third Doctor adventure that first aired in 1972 and introduced the franchise to the amphibious creatures who once ruled the Earth before humanity wanted to reclaim it for themselves. It starred Jon Pertwee as the Doctor alongside Katy Manning as companion Jo Grant, and features an appearance by Roger Delgado as infamous villain The Master.
The plot is pretty basic: The Doctor’s investigating some random ship disappearances when he discovers that the Master has not only escaped from the maximum security island prison in which he was being held — just go with it; it’s kind of his thing — but has built a device that allows him to control the Sea Devils and use them as his own personal army to conquer Earth. This all goes haywire in predictable ways that involve the creatures turning on the Master, the Doctor being really clever, and the aversion of nuclear war. (Or at least a nuclear explosion.)
The original six-part serial has been re-edited into a new feature-length format, though whether or not we’re still actually allowed to refer to these creatures as Sea Devils remains to be seen. The new version will feature updated sound design by Mark Ayres and an enhanced score woven together with the original (admittedly, kind of weird) experimental electronic score by Malcolm Clarke.
