Wednesday 21 October 2020

AWSUM SERIALS: STAR TREK & NEO- FEMINISM

 


AWSUM SERIALS: 

Star Trek: The Enemy Within 

Spocks Final Line Controversy

in the Age of Neo-Feminism 


In this episode, a transporter malfunction splits our hero Captain into two Captain Kirks, representing Jekyll and Hyde. 

The nice Kirk goes about as his usual (altho dithering) self. His alter ego however has a great time stealing Sarian Brandy off McCoy and trying to rape Yeoman Janice Rand among other things. 

The story is eventually resolved and Kirks halves are put back together again and all is well. Even Spock tries to make light of the situation when he ends the story with the clumsy remark:           "The Imposter had some interesting qualities, wouldn't you say Yeoman?"

Probably not the wisest thing to say to a woman, after she's nearly been raped (and its dated terribly) but lets put that line into context. To begin with, we live in an age where we think we are somehow all knowing and wise

Yet we still point nukes at each other and pulling down statues seems to be the latest fashion. Neo Feminism is part of that whole deal. Im all for equality but I cant be in the same room with a Neo Feminist anymore and heres why: 

NEO FEMINISM & THE WOKE GENERATION 

I once had a conversation about TOS (in the naughties) with a work colleague (at a bar in Brighton). I don't think she ever saw an episode and dismissed it as capitalist propergander. 'Just look at the starship they fly about in...' She said folding her arms. 'Its called ENTERPRISE!' She alluded that Trek was irrelevant in todays society and only evoked a mans future with mens philosophies based on greed. 

She was of course an extreme feminist, part of the 'woke generation', so "woke" that she couldn't tell the difference between Star Trek and that Nazi piece of shit 'Triumph of the Will'. If she even bothered to watch  Star Trek, I imagine it wouldn't have changed her opinion and she'd defo had a field day with the Janice Rand assault scene and Spocks dumb-ass comments about it. A line most likely added at the last minute by Gene but more likely renowned "serial killer" Fred Friedburger.   

But to put Spocks dumbass line into perspective, Kirk and Janice had a 'thing' and this episode was part of a set up to establish this growing relationship. When Kirks evil side is put back, she walks on the Bridge to reconcile things with Kirk and the viewer is left with the impression that she still fancies him, (to which Spocks comment is supposed to be a way of teasing her affections and lighten the mood).

Watched in sequence the entire scene makes sense but in the age of extreme Neo-Feminism, it is easy to make more of this scene than there really is. 

SEXUAL ASSAULT 

However, in real life, actress Grace Lee Whitney was actually sexually assaulted by an executive on the show (probably Roddenbury but could easily have been Friedburger, Shatner or even studio Desilu owner Desi Arnaz) but Grace never divulged his identity anyway and Gene is now dead.           

She would later be written out of the series after just eight episodes. Shatner said it was because she was always drunk but it was most likely because of the 'incident'. So you can take this episode or leave it. Personally I think its one of the best stories on the Jekyll and Hyde theme and thus the attempted rape scenes are valid and altho Spocks final comments are supposed to make you laugh, it kinda backfires especially in light of what happened to Grace Lee Whitney. The scenes were probably not shot in order either, so this shot may have seemed like a good idea at the time but is used as a prime target for so called "woke activists", jumping on the Neo Feminist band wagon. 

FREE LOVE & NUCLEAR HOLOCAUST

Bare in mind also, that the series was overshadowed by the relentless technical (and personal) problems behind camera, (Star Trek struggled to get shot at all).  Bare in mind also that sexual assault walked hand in hand with casual sex, and the line would often be blurred by the cocaine and booze and thus was part of the landscape 1960's America and television even more so. That doesn't make rape ok but these were crazy drug fuelled times, when the world was literally on the brink of Nuclear Holocaust.

Ultimately this was the whole point of Star Trek. For nations to put aside their differences and work towards the exploration of space. Unfortunately its cast and crew were falliblle flawed beings, firmly stuck in the turmoil of the 1960's. 

MOVING FORWARD 

Never the less,  the series has prevailed despite controversy on every level and over decade after the original series had aired, the world still hadn't blown itself up and Star Treks future was assured.  By now all was forgiven, as Grace finally returned for Star Trek Phase II, later to become The Motion Picture.



Friday 3 July 2020

WHAT IF? Daleks - vs Mekons


WHAT IF? 

DALEKS VS MEKONS ! 
The Movie that never was.

In an alternate universe,  the third Dalek film (based on The Chase) was actually made.
This is that story...  

Concept Poster for the 3rd Dalek Movie: 
With deliberate misspelling of the Mechanoids for easy American distribution. 


1960s Dalek Mania was in full throttle Hope was on the horizon that the Mechanoid props might actually return and on the big screen, no less in colour! However, box office receipts for the second Dalek movie proved inconsequential and plans for the third movie were scrapped, sealing the fate of the Mechanoid props forever. But what if this hadn't occurred? 



CHANGING THE COURSE OF HISTORY 
It is somewhat of a small tragedy that the third Dalek movie was never made. In it, Dr Who would have been pitted against not only the Daleks but also one of Terry Nations other monsters: The Mechanoids. Brilliantly realised by Dalek designer Ray Cusick, the Mechanoids were featured in the climax of the third Dalek story The Chase. 

Apparently writer Terry Nation was very pleased with Cusicks design and saw great potential in the Mechanoids as successors to the Daleks. Production crews however couldn’t stand them. BBC attitudes towards science fiction in the 1960’s was luke-warm at best.  

It was bad enough that they had to contend with pepper pots, let alone The Mechanoids. Due to their bulky size also, the three Mechanoid props (painted a light blue) only featured in the final episode of The Chase in a spectacular battle with the Daleks before being ultimately chucked on the scrap heap, much to Terry Nations dismay. So what happened? 

CUMBERSOME PROPS 
Time Space Visualiser: The Planet of Decision (The Chase Episode 6)
The story of their demise went something like this: that the Mechanoid props were far too cumbersome to be used in the small confines of the BBC studios, hence the battle scenes being shot at Elstree. 

However, despite their popularity, BBC staff had quite enough of them jamming up lifts and corridors and were glad to see the back of them, binning all three props on a skip as quickly as possible and used for landfill, (much to Ray Cusick and Shawcrafts dismay I imagine). A rather typical BBC decision, that tended to thwart Dr Who on many occasion.

But wait just a darn minute, is that an alternate Universe I see? Where Milton Subotsky takes up his option to make a third Dalek movie? It was quite possible, that he would have steered it towards a lavish production of the Chase, perhaps even cutting down a lot of the waffle that pads out the story and getting right down to the meat of Daleks vs Mechanoids  or (assuming they stuck with the original script) Daleks vs Mekons! 

Which might have well been shortened to Mekons during the rush to get the script churned out, while Subotsky phones up the artist who tells him - quick make a poster - which of course has the wrong spelling also! 


RISE OF THE MECHANOIDS 
After only one episode of fighting the Daleks,  Writer Terry nation had high hopes for further stories featuring the Mechanoids, who seemed a natural successor to the Daleks in every way except storage. 

It is quite possible that he hoped to feature them further in his stand alone Dalek Tv series that might have mirrored his other Tv series the Avengers in its production values. Director Gordon Flemyng  was also set to be director of this new Tv series but alas things were not coming together.  
MOONBASE CENTRAL: The Rise of The Mechanoids by Andy B

Never the less,  by 1966, the Mechanoids were already being featured as heavyweight opponents in the Dalek comic strips sanctioned by Nation, so much so, that it looked like the Daleks had met their match.  So there is a strong indication that kids wanted to see more Mechanoid action.
    

By this time,  Cherilea  toys were also making Mechanoid merchandise,  things were seemingly building up to a big movie confrontation. Or not as the case maybe. So lets look at the playing field of 1966. 


Dr. Who and the Daleks - Wikipedia

Ok so you maybe familiar with the two Dalek movies made in 1965 and 1966, made by Amicus, Hammers contemporary of the time and produced by a couple of Americans named Milton Subotsky and Max J Rosenburge. These films were based on the first two Dalek adventures (The Mutants, and the Dalek invasion of Earth) with proposals for the third Dr Who film in the pipeline being based on the Chase. 

Invasion Earth 1966 - Contains Moderate Peril 

However, when the box office receipts waned on the second film, the plug was pulled and the concept of Dalek movies as a series was scrapped. So what went wrong ? 

Was Daleks Invasion Earth really that bad ? As far as the critics were concerned, Daleks in movies was going to be anything but Shakespeare and the films were panned for sloppy direction and visible strings on the flying saucers etc. Admittedly the scene with Bernard Cribbins in disguise with the Robomen is a little cringe worthy, but after all, this is a children’s film. For fans of these movies, let us imagine what if Amicus had turned left instead of right. What would that third Dalek movie have turned out like?

It is perhaps a learning curve that many film makers have learned from since, that multiple sequels should always be made back to back: That way subsequent movies can insure that actors and film crews are all involved and contracted to finish the project. A practice utilised by the first two Superman movies and the Back to the Future sequels. Sadly this was not the case for the proposed Daleks Vs Mechanoids movie. Which probably wouldn't have featured either metallic monsters anyway...

AT THE EARTHS CORE 
At any rate, there was some talk that the third movie may simply not have included any Daleks at all, and Dr Who would simply have fought a bunch of dinosaurs etc.  Ultimately this is what eventually happened anyway. Amicus did actually make the 3rd Dr Who movie, except they called it "At the Earths Core" (1976) instead, featuring Peter Cushing as a Dr Who like character but not actually Dr Who. Doug McClure was a natural Ian Chesterton substitute and had a love interest with Carolyn Munro (ironically mirroring the Leela type character to Tom Bakers Doctor in 1977). Oh and the Tardis is replaced by a giant drill called the Mole. But I guess this is all worthy of another essay, I should write another time. Anyway, I digress. 

At the Earth's Core: Book vs Movie | Mana Pop


However, since it was clear that the success of the first movie was due solely to the Daleks and since they had made a Dalek sequel, it follows that another Dalek film made more financial sense to produce. And since the first two movies had been based on the first two Dr Who Dalek tv stories it also followed that, (for the sake of continuity), the third Dalek movie would have been based on the Tv story “The Chase”. 

THE CHASE - A RECAP 
Peter Capaldi steps into the Tardis as the new Doctor | Doctor who ...

If your hoping to see a tons of Mechanoid action in this story forget it. In this six part storey, we see the first doctor, Ian Chesterton, Barbara and newcomer Dodo land in a desert on the planet Aridious and soon catch wind that the Daleks are none too happy with them foiling the Dalek Invasion of Earth. It is not long before a Dalek execution is dispatched to Aridious and so begins the chase across time and space, as our time travellers attempt to evade certain extermination. 
Doctor Who: 34 Dalek pictures from the archives (With images ...

Soon they are hopping across the cosmos, landing on the observation deck of the Empire State Building, the Marie Celeste and even a West World Style Dracula's castle, complete with android Frankenstein monster. However, wherever they land, the Daleks time capsule is not too far behind and so our intrepid travellers must make a stand on the jungle planet of Mechanus... 


Six episodes later,  they finally find themselves prisoners of the large spherical robots that live in a city on stilts. Enter the Mechanoids. Colony robots designed to terraform planets but somehow down the line were forgotten about and evolved into killing machines. Soon these robots would be pitted with the Daleks in the grande finale. All of which lasts less than two minutes ! 

And so, in a nut shell, that is the Tv story. The plot does tend to be all over the place. The Chase at best was considered more an attempt at injecting more comedy into the series but with so much going on, the story tended to suffer for it. There are also too many subplots, such as a robot duplicate Doctor (!) sent out by the Daleks to infiltrate the companions and kill the original Doctor,  but this whole idea, only detracts from what (I suspect) kids really wanted to see, and that was Daleks fighting Mechanoids. Of which there is actually very little. Considering the amount of effort it took to construct three Mechanoids, design their model city on stilts, not to mention all the Mechanoid city interiors built at Ealing, none of this is used for much more than a few seconds here and there, culminating in a mere four or five minutes of screen time at best.  

Perhaps the story is only really worth watching for this short lived and yet glorious moment of Daleks and Mechanoids in battle.  After all, they were immediately popular with the kids and (at least in Terry Nations mind) heralded as the new Daleks.  However, the battle is far too brief and the Mechanoids much ill used. So lets look at what might have happened... 

DALEKS VS MEKONS : SPECULATIONS 
So what would that third instalment have looked like? 
Speculations, still abound to this day but assuming that Dalek-Mania was responsible for the first two movies, its most likely the script would have been based on The Chase - rebranded as Daleks vs Mekons to wet the appetite of overseas buyers. 

  To save money, it would have been a logical step to recycle as  many of the sets from the first and second film as possible, such as the Tardis, its interiors, the Dalek saucer (and its corridors) and possibly even the Robomen costumes. Shawcraft would have most likely been roped in to build more Daleks and Mechonoid props and generally the movie would have had the look and feel of the first two movies.

PRODUCTION BEGINS ON 3RD DALEK MOVIE
Anyway, the third Dalek Movie goes ahead. And so, ignoring the two critics that panned the second movie, producer Milton Subotsky takes a risk and goes hell for leather with the third Dalek movie, throwing everything at it,  so he can re-coop losses on the second film. And so production begins back at Shepparton in the spring of 1967, bringing back nearly all the original production team of the first two films.

       GORDON FLEMYNG
Gordon Flemyng takes the reigns once more, bringing much of the humour of the first film, that was lacking from the second movie. With less Daleks to worry about, he sets about making sure that most of the mistakes he made in the second movie are not repeated, such as not filming enough Dalek action or synchronising the Daleks dome lights to their speech. 

       BILL McGUFFY 
As London's most celebrated pianist, the nine fingered talents of Bill McGuffies crazy piano ensembles and jazzy music score really made the second movie exciting. Subotsky ropes him in to make the opening theme tune for the third movie and several inserts. However, to save money, the majority of the music from the second movie is also re-used, bar the inserts that cover the chase sequences. 

DAVID WHITAKER
Screen time is a commodity like anything else. Scriptwriter David Whitaker would have taken the incentive on this and reviewed the original script, cutting back the padding that made up the laborious six Tv episodes and cut it right down to a tight 82 minute narrative. 


 PRODUCT PLACEMENT 
As was the case in the second movie, it is likely Subotsky employs shots that feature recognisable breakfast cereal products, such as Sugar Puffs, prominently placed on bill boards around the observation tower of the Empire State Building Scenes. 

LOCATIONS USED. 
The majority of the film is likely shot at Shepperton Studios, where the jungles of Mechanus are constructed using the remains of the of the petrified forest set from the first movie and whatever fake trees and bushes they can lay their hands on. A large area is cleared of trees, in order to film a battle between Daleks and Mechanoids, against a large diorama backdrop of the jungles and city on stilts. 

The interiors of the Mechanoid City take up one enormous floor of the studio, where the Dalek Saucer exterior and the Mine Control Room stood the year before. Sections of it are re-used for both the Mechanoid city interiors and the Dalek Emperors throne room and Dalek Time Machine. Surviving sets are also acquired from the Ealing shoot (for the television version) and repainted. 

The Cutty Sark, moored along the River Thames, is hired for the day to double as the Marie Celeste scenes. 

The sandy beaches at Whittering and Moorgate are used to film the scenes on Aridius. A scene involving a Dalek rising from the sand is achieved back at Shepperton by creating an elevator system (inside a fibreglass sand dune) which can raise a Dalek on a platform, covered by sand. The shot is then matted into a larger desert shot background to appear more spectacular. 

MATT SHOTS
Several matt shots are included. In particular a panoramic view of the jungles of Mechanus that includes the Mechanoid City towering above the jungle canopies. The Emperors Throne room and a shot of the Dalek City on Skaro are also used. 

MODEL WORK
Even the Dalek Saucer from the second movie is brought out of moth-balls for the grand finale. However, the massive five foot long model has suffered a dent in its top, due to careless film crews shunting it about in the storage depots at Shepparton. Never the less, its cleaned up and footage of it is carefully shot from low angles to hide the damage. 
Dalek Saucer prop suffering in storage - recycled for the third movie? 

                                  The awesome Mechanoid city on stilts 

Perhaps too the Mechanoid City is re-used or at least an interpretation of it. A large area of the studio is used to make a miniature jungle set in which this model city overlooks. Various pyrotechnic sequences would be used to create ground battle between Daleks and Mekons, while Dalek & Mekon spaceships battle in the heavens above. 

CAST


PETER CUSHING
Peter Cushing returns for a third time. However after suffering ill health in real life, Cushing is no longer the soft approachable Dr Who of the first movie, which had become quite evident by the climax of the second. By now his character is very much in the vain of Van Helsing, of the Hammer Horror Films, and portrays his character as the hardened time traveller, hunted by the Daleks. 

ROBERTA TOVEY
On the insistence again of Cushing,  Roberta Tovey reprises her role as Grand daughter Susan. However, the commitments are taking a strain on her schooling so a private tutor is brought in, while she is on the film set of Daleks Vs Mekons. Much as he had in the first movie, director Gordon Flemyng is obliged to pay her sixpence for every line she gets right in one take. 

JILL CURZON

Jill Curzon reprises her role as Louis, basically filling the role of Barbara in the Tv version. She also insists of having more substance to her character, rather than just a generic replacement for Barbara as she had been in the second movie. 

Thus Script Writer David Whitaker writes several scenes that re-introduce her as Barbaras cousin, Louise standing in for her, as a substitute teacher at Coal Hill school, where she is caught in the affections of fellow teacher Pete Banford - played by Edward Judd.

Edward Judd - IMDb

EDWARD JUDD 
Keeping in line with a starring male lead (or comedy actor), 
Daleks Vs Mekons might well have included new companions (originally filled by Roy Castle and Bernard Cribbins).

Edward Judd would have most likely have played a Ian Chesterton type character and love interest for Louise, probably called Pete Banford, who gives Louise a ride home from work and winds up a reluctant passenger in the Tardis. 

Carry on Screaming! Photos - Carry on Screaming! Images: Ravepad ...
JIM DALE
Other contemporaries such as Jim Dale, might have made a good hapless comedy element, firstly as a tourist who taunts a Dalek on top of the Empire State building and later is re-used and shunted to the back of the story as marooned astronaut Steven Taylor, prisoner of the Mechanoids, who talks to his teddy bear. 


MECHONS, MEKONS AND MECHANOIDS 
The title would probably have been called Daleks Vs Mechons. Because "Mechons" (or Mekons) was what the Mechanoids were originally called in the early drafts of the Tv script. The name would later evolve into Mechanoids because the obvious similarities with the Mekon character from the Dan Dare comic book series.

Never the less, the term "Mekon" is used at least once in the Chase Tv story, probably due to a typo-error that had been duplicated down to the final draft. If the film had gone ahead, Americans would probably have used "Mekons" anyway because it has the same amount of letters as Daleks and would be easier for the kids to read on posters.  




MORE MECHANOID ACTION 


The Mechanoids themselves might most likely have had a more prominent pivotal role in this movie too, as the majority of the Tv version featured them only in the final episode. As a result, the movie version may well have reduced or cut out other aspects of the Tv version to give more Mechanoid screen time, such as binning the robot Dr Who altogether, whilst shortening the plot around Dracula's Castle and the Mary Celeste and cutting down the embarrassing dialogue with the fishy Aridians and just moving the chase along at a much quicker pace. 
           

DALEK EMPEROR CAMEO 

Daleks 2007

So the movie might start with a brief cameo of the Dalek Emperor himself, with his immense gold spheroid head, enraged that Dr Who has foiled the Dalek Invasion of Earth. We may see him barking out orders for the Doctors extermination, in his grand throne room back on Dalek planet Skaro. 

SALVAGED DALEK PROPS


In the third movie, only four to six Dalek props are ever used. Not because of modesty, but because only four props ever survived the pounding that the Daleks endured in the last sequel. However, because they've been left outside on the Shepparton backlot for the past year, (without protection), the props are severely damaged by weather and so several are procured from Terry Nation, who has four in his possession from a stage play. The weather beaten Daleks are only used for stunts and the final battle with the Mechanoids.  

Of course every things Technicolor, so all the props are gathered and re-painted metallic blue with gold collars, slats and red domes. 


GREEN ROBO-MEN
The Dalek Execution squad is assisted by a squad of Robotised green Fish Men from Aridious, using re-cycled Robomen uniforms and biker helmets from the second movie. 

MECHANOIDS RE-USED
The three Mechanoid props are rescued from the scrap heap and given a new paint job, painted a metallic blue and silver much like the Daleks were in the first movie. Their round bases are raised to six inches, in order to look more cinematic on the big screen. Several extra Mechanoid crowd fillers are built by Shawcraft. Who had also recycled the Mechanoid City on stilts.

DALEK TIME MACHINE
The Dalek time machine might have looked like the central spinner from the "War of the Daleks" board game...
 
That spinner thing from the Dalek board game, 
as the Daleks Time machine?


MORE SCREEN TIME ?
In the Tv version, only a few minutes of the last episode is dedicated to the very brief confrontation between the Daleks and of the Mechanoids but in this film, they might be introduced a hell of lot sooner, maybe as soon as the half way point of the movie. Which would have meant a good forty minutes of Mechanoid action, where the execution squad might even summon up the entire Dalek Empire to do battle with the Mechanoids on their own turf. Hence a more satisfying ending than the Tv version.


GRAND FINALE

For the grand final, a spectacular air battle might have occurred above the Mechanoid city, between the Dalek saucer and a Mechanoid battle cruiser. All this is of course, on a par with the model work used in Thunderbirds and reminiscent of the Saucer hovering over the mine workings in the second movie. 

While in the jungle below, Mechanoids fight Daleks one on one before they eventually overrun the Mechanoid city for a final confrontation, similar to the Thals battle at the climax of the first movie. 

Dr Who behind the scenes photos from William Hartnell | Daily Mail ...



But these are all just theory’s. In any event, a movie version of The Chase, (with a larger portion dedicated to the Mechanoids) would have most likely secured the franchise for at least a few more sequels. Who knows, we might have even seen a movie epic of The Dalek Master Plan but thats another story...