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All three classic battles with the Silurians and the Sea Devils! Doctor Who and the Silurians Exiled to Earth and now working for UNIT as their scientific advisor, the Doctor is summoned to an underground research center at Wenley Moor to investigate a series of inexplicable power losses. Initially suspecting sabotage, he soon discovers that the nearby cave system conceals a colony of an ancient race called the Silurians. Awaking from a hibernation which has lasted millions of years, they are now planning to reclaim the Earth from humankind. The Sea Devils Arrested: After the events at Devils End, the Master has been incarcerated at a top security prison on a remote island off the south coast of England. When the Doctor and Jo Grant pay a visit to their old enemy, they find him a reformed character. But can the spate of mysterious shipping accidents and garbled reports of sea monsters in the local area really be a coincidence? The Doctor soon finds himself pitted against the Sea Devils, an ancient race of reptile intent on eliminating humankind and reclaiming the Earth for themselves. Warriors of the Deep Earth, 2084: Two global superpowers hover on the brink of war. When the TARDIS is forced to make an unplanned visit to Sea Base Four, the Doctor, Tegan and Turlough find themselves accused of being enemy agents. Quickly embroiled in a deadly game of paranoid intrigue, it becomes clear that others on the base have sabotage and murder in mind. However, there is a greater threat to humankind: the Silurians and Sea Devils, prehistoric reptiles seeking to reclaim the Earth. Can the Doctor prevent them from implementing their "final solution" and triggering a war that could wipe out the entire human race?
Customer Reviews
Most Helpful Customer Reviews
36 of 39 people found the following review helpful
I have been a huge fan of the original Doctor Who series since I was a boy. My local PBS station used to run Doctor Who on Saturday night, and it was a highlight of my boyhood weekends. As a boy, the episodes being released in this set were among my favorites because I loved sea monsters and the Silurians and Sea Devils were great looking creatures.
As an adult, I now have a special appreciation for the unique nature of the Silurians and Sea Devils in the history of Doctor Who creatures. Most of the antagonists that the Doctor encounters in the series are evil aliens and monsters bent on destruction and conquest. But the Silurians and Sea Devils aren't. Instead, they were the original inhabitants of the Earth during pre-historic times, and they want their planet back from the "ape-descended primitives" who now occupy it, i.e. humans. If you see it from their point of view, they just want their home back. The Doctor does see it, and several times seeks to negotiate a peace between them and humanity, pointing out that both species can share the planet since the reptilian Silurians can live in environments that humans avoid.
In "the Silurians", the Doctor (Jon Pertwee) makes his first attempt at negotiated settlement between humanity and the Silurians. But he is thwarted by closed minded individuals among both the Silurians and Humans. In many ways, the humans look more evil than the Silurians in this storyline, although some of the Silurians do take monstrous steps to try to wipe out humanity. In the end, human fear takes advantage of the Doctor's success in countering the destructive plans of the rogue Silurians. The Doctor finds himself disgusted by humanity and even by the actions of his friend, the Brigadier. By the way, for fans of the Brigadier, this story represents some of Nicholas Courtney's best work on the series.
In "the Sea Devils," a cousin species of the Silurians begins to pop up off the coast of Britain and strike out against the humans who once again have invaded their territory. Once again, the Doctor (Pertwee) attempts a negotiated settlement. But this time his plans are thwarted by the Master, who wishes to use the Sea Devils and their superior technology to conquer humanity.
Fast forward in time a decade to the years of Peter Davidson as the Doctor. The Silurians and Sea Devils, together, return in a future Earth time period for the magnificent Doctor Who story "Warriors of the Deep." This time, the Silurians and Sea Devils will not hear the Doctor's entreaties for a negotiated settlement with humanity. Their previous experience with humans has taught them that the human race can not be trusted. They decide they have no alternative but to wipe out humanity once and for all in order to reclaim the world they once called home.
To do so, they assault and take over an undersea missile base to start a nuclear war that will destroy the "ape-primitives" with their own weapons. The Doctor is forced to make a choice-either destroy the Silurians and Sea Devils or let them slaughter all of humanity? In the Doctor's own simple, yet heartbreakingly spoken words, "there should have been another way." This compelling story gives Peter Davidson a chance to shine as a dramatic actor, with the Doctor not sure who he is more angry with-the Silurians or the humans. Especially since in a sub-story, human agents from a rival power have also infiltraited the sea base and unleash murder and treachery even amongst the Silurian and Sea Devil onslaught.
I am so pleased that these stories that span two Doctors and two decades are being released as a set. The stories of the Doctor's encounters with the Silurians and Sea Devils I think will become all the more compelling when taken as a whole. If the DVD quality is as good as the other Doctor Who releases have been so far, especially in terms of the commentaries and special features, this set will be a must have for Doctor Who fans.
As an adult, I now have a special appreciation for the unique nature of the Silurians and Sea Devils in the history of Doctor Who creatures. Most of the antagonists that the Doctor encounters in the series are evil aliens and monsters bent on destruction and conquest. But the Silurians and Sea Devils aren't. Instead, they were the original inhabitants of the Earth during pre-historic times, and they want their planet back from the "ape-descended primitives" who now occupy it, i.e. humans. If you see it from their point of view, they just want their home back. The Doctor does see it, and several times seeks to negotiate a peace between them and humanity, pointing out that both species can share the planet since the reptilian Silurians can live in environments that humans avoid.
In "the Silurians", the Doctor (Jon Pertwee) makes his first attempt at negotiated settlement between humanity and the Silurians. But he is thwarted by closed minded individuals among both the Silurians and Humans. In many ways, the humans look more evil than the Silurians in this storyline, although some of the Silurians do take monstrous steps to try to wipe out humanity. In the end, human fear takes advantage of the Doctor's success in countering the destructive plans of the rogue Silurians. The Doctor finds himself disgusted by humanity and even by the actions of his friend, the Brigadier. By the way, for fans of the Brigadier, this story represents some of Nicholas Courtney's best work on the series.
In "the Sea Devils," a cousin species of the Silurians begins to pop up off the coast of Britain and strike out against the humans who once again have invaded their territory. Once again, the Doctor (Pertwee) attempts a negotiated settlement. But this time his plans are thwarted by the Master, who wishes to use the Sea Devils and their superior technology to conquer humanity.
Fast forward in time a decade to the years of Peter Davidson as the Doctor. The Silurians and Sea Devils, together, return in a future Earth time period for the magnificent Doctor Who story "Warriors of the Deep." This time, the Silurians and Sea Devils will not hear the Doctor's entreaties for a negotiated settlement with humanity. Their previous experience with humans has taught them that the human race can not be trusted. They decide they have no alternative but to wipe out humanity once and for all in order to reclaim the world they once called home.
To do so, they assault and take over an undersea missile base to start a nuclear war that will destroy the "ape-primitives" with their own weapons. The Doctor is forced to make a choice-either destroy the Silurians and Sea Devils or let them slaughter all of humanity? In the Doctor's own simple, yet heartbreakingly spoken words, "there should have been another way." This compelling story gives Peter Davidson a chance to shine as a dramatic actor, with the Doctor not sure who he is more angry with-the Silurians or the humans. Especially since in a sub-story, human agents from a rival power have also infiltraited the sea base and unleash murder and treachery even amongst the Silurian and Sea Devil onslaught.
I am so pleased that these stories that span two Doctors and two decades are being released as a set. The stories of the Doctor's encounters with the Silurians and Sea Devils I think will become all the more compelling when taken as a whole. If the DVD quality is as good as the other Doctor Who releases have been so far, especially in terms of the commentaries and special features, this set will be a must have for Doctor Who fans.
19 of 19 people found the following review helpful
5.0 out of 5 stars
"These creatures aren't just animals, they're an alien life form, as intelligent as we are."
June 21, 2008
By Crazy Fox
Amazon Verified Purchase
Doctor Who can be a pretty deep show sometimes. And that goes for the three stories in this aptly named box-set both in the usual figurative sense and quite literally as well. That is, the unifying element in "Doctor Who and the Silurians" (1970), "The Sea Devils" (1972), and "Warriors of the Deep" (1984) is one of the most creatively imaginative set of antagonists the show has seen in its long history, and they antagonize from the depths of the earth and sea. The eponymous Silurians, that is, along with their equally eponymous semi-aquatic branch, the Sea Devils--a highly advanced and civilized race of reptilians that evolved on Earth long before we did, went into suspended animation underground and undersea to weather what they predicted to be a global catastrophe, and then overslept a bit until the technological advances of the mammalian hominids who evolved in their absence awoke them again. All three times they seek to retake the planet that once was theirs, each time the Doctor tries to broker a peaceful compromise between the two feuding sets of Earthlings, and each time mutual suspicion, xenophobia, and itchy trigger fingers prevail over the Doctor's voice of reason and compromise. Each story too invokes this complicated moral dilemma with cold war allegorical overtones within the confines of a thoroughly enjoyable science fiction thriller.
Each also has its own particularities too, of course. "Doctor Who and the Silurians" gets the whole concept going and is the strongest of the three storywise. Only the second story of the third Doctor's tenure (as expertly played by Jon Pertwee), it also starts establishing several key motifs of that era, including the Earthbound Doctor's characteristically eccentric vintage car. "The Sea Devils" takes the concept two years later and jazzes it up with more action and greater scale while complicating matters with the presence of the Doctor's Time Lord nemesis, the Master, who seeks to foment strife and discord quite as much as the Doctor seeks to defuse it. All of this has the slight drawback of simplifying the story to a slight degree, but the overall result is a delightfully quintessential sample of the Pertwee era. "Warriors of the Deep" attempts more than a decade later to update the concept and develop it further--a valiant attempt that due to a few errors of judgment as well as circumstances beyond anyone's control ends up falling far short. This is definitely the weakest link of the three, but it has some redeeming qualities (the model work and set design for the Silurian submarine and Sea Devil hibernation chamber are superb, for instance) and in any case it's one of those the fans love to hate, which is a distinction of sorts anyway.
Extras are never the deal-breaker with me (I consider them indeed extra), but the ones on these discs deserve special mention. The "Silurians" includes "What Lies Beneath", a highly informative and interesting look at the social history underlying the story as well as an examination of the manner in which it met the expectations of its time and addressed issues of immediate concern, considerably deepening the contemporary viewer's appreciation of this classic in the process. There is also an intriguing behind-the-scenes take on the extremely experimental music featured in the two Pertwee stories--Doctor Who was pioneering the real future sound of London, playing with bizarre soundscapes and electronic harmonies way ahead of its time. For its part, "Warriors" includes "The Depths" wherein everybody from the writer and the key actors onwards has a good time ripping on this poor beleaguered tale--most extras include nothing but hype and hyperbole, only the Doctor Who crew has the guts to reflect at length on their own fumbles and have a good laugh doing so.
In any case, this is overall a fine DVD set of classic Doctor Who storylines scattered in time but highlighting one of the show's more inventive concepts together with its later permutations. And for the obsessive-compulsive fans such as myself, each of the three stories is in a separate, self-contained case so that they can be taken out of the box and placed in chronological order with one's other Doctor Who DVDs if one so chooses. Getting them together as a set is still the more convenient and frugal option, of course, unless one has a particular interest in only one of the three. In that case, they can be purchased singly as well:
1. Doctor Who and the Silurians (Episode 52)
2. Doctor Who - The Sea Devils (Episode 62)
3. Doctor Who: Warriors of the Deep (Story # 131)
Each also has its own particularities too, of course. "Doctor Who and the Silurians" gets the whole concept going and is the strongest of the three storywise. Only the second story of the third Doctor's tenure (as expertly played by Jon Pertwee), it also starts establishing several key motifs of that era, including the Earthbound Doctor's characteristically eccentric vintage car. "The Sea Devils" takes the concept two years later and jazzes it up with more action and greater scale while complicating matters with the presence of the Doctor's Time Lord nemesis, the Master, who seeks to foment strife and discord quite as much as the Doctor seeks to defuse it. All of this has the slight drawback of simplifying the story to a slight degree, but the overall result is a delightfully quintessential sample of the Pertwee era. "Warriors of the Deep" attempts more than a decade later to update the concept and develop it further--a valiant attempt that due to a few errors of judgment as well as circumstances beyond anyone's control ends up falling far short. This is definitely the weakest link of the three, but it has some redeeming qualities (the model work and set design for the Silurian submarine and Sea Devil hibernation chamber are superb, for instance) and in any case it's one of those the fans love to hate, which is a distinction of sorts anyway.
Extras are never the deal-breaker with me (I consider them indeed extra), but the ones on these discs deserve special mention. The "Silurians" includes "What Lies Beneath", a highly informative and interesting look at the social history underlying the story as well as an examination of the manner in which it met the expectations of its time and addressed issues of immediate concern, considerably deepening the contemporary viewer's appreciation of this classic in the process. There is also an intriguing behind-the-scenes take on the extremely experimental music featured in the two Pertwee stories--Doctor Who was pioneering the real future sound of London, playing with bizarre soundscapes and electronic harmonies way ahead of its time. For its part, "Warriors" includes "The Depths" wherein everybody from the writer and the key actors onwards has a good time ripping on this poor beleaguered tale--most extras include nothing but hype and hyperbole, only the Doctor Who crew has the guts to reflect at length on their own fumbles and have a good laugh doing so.
In any case, this is overall a fine DVD set of classic Doctor Who storylines scattered in time but highlighting one of the show's more inventive concepts together with its later permutations. And for the obsessive-compulsive fans such as myself, each of the three stories is in a separate, self-contained case so that they can be taken out of the box and placed in chronological order with one's other Doctor Who DVDs if one so chooses. Getting them together as a set is still the more convenient and frugal option, of course, unless one has a particular interest in only one of the three. In that case, they can be purchased singly as well:
1. Doctor Who and the Silurians (Episode 52)
2. Doctor Who - The Sea Devils (Episode 62)
3. Doctor Who: Warriors of the Deep (Story # 131)
16 of 21 people found the following review helpful
By The Cougar
This would be a perfect DVD boxset were it not for the awful Warriors of the Deep. Although my favourite Who stories are mostly on the comedy side of things, I do like the dramatic ones as well, and Silurians highlights everything good about Pertwee's first season.
Individual rankings:
The Silurians- 5 stars
The Sea Devils- 4 stars
Warriors of the Deep- 1 star.
On average is 3.33 stars, hence the rating. The Silurians feels like you've been through a war, roughly three hour epic of a species that came here on the earth first, and now want to claim the earth for themselves. Unlike later stories like Curse of Fenric where they basically hit you over the head with what they want you to believe, this one is more up for debate, and you can basically think what you want to think. And people credit Spearhead with the most iconic Pertwee image of mannequin's coming to life, but the image of people dying from the Silurian virus all over London sticks even more in my mind. It's a disease that is seemingly unstoppable...
The Sea Devils is a good escapist adventure, but it gets knocked down a star for basically being a remake of the same adventure. It's done well, with the Doctor-Master rivalry making for some good moments, and again, it's a good epic that sticks in your mind, but it feels a bit too much like a retread to give it 5 stars.
Warriors of the Deep is just plain annoying. It's one thing to not judge Doctor Who by it's budget limitations, but it's another when the character of the monster is really brought down. The slowed-down speech of the Silurians and the Sea Devils alone grate on the nerves. It takes forever to get into the story, the first episode feeling more like two hours rather than twenty five minutes. Tegan and Turlough may as well be any other companion, and the storyline. Not to mention trying to make the Fifth Doctor way too moralistic with him condenming the human base for trying to destroy the Silurians and Sea Devils (when they've destroyed half their crew) It worked in Silurians and Sea Devils because you could genuinely believe there was a chance to share the earth, but not in this atmosphere. The only thing that serial got right was the classic line "There should've been another way." Too right.
Individual rankings:
The Silurians- 5 stars
The Sea Devils- 4 stars
Warriors of the Deep- 1 star.
On average is 3.33 stars, hence the rating. The Silurians feels like you've been through a war, roughly three hour epic of a species that came here on the earth first, and now want to claim the earth for themselves. Unlike later stories like Curse of Fenric where they basically hit you over the head with what they want you to believe, this one is more up for debate, and you can basically think what you want to think. And people credit Spearhead with the most iconic Pertwee image of mannequin's coming to life, but the image of people dying from the Silurian virus all over London sticks even more in my mind. It's a disease that is seemingly unstoppable...
The Sea Devils is a good escapist adventure, but it gets knocked down a star for basically being a remake of the same adventure. It's done well, with the Doctor-Master rivalry making for some good moments, and again, it's a good epic that sticks in your mind, but it feels a bit too much like a retread to give it 5 stars.
Warriors of the Deep is just plain annoying. It's one thing to not judge Doctor Who by it's budget limitations, but it's another when the character of the monster is really brought down. The slowed-down speech of the Silurians and the Sea Devils alone grate on the nerves. It takes forever to get into the story, the first episode feeling more like two hours rather than twenty five minutes. Tegan and Turlough may as well be any other companion, and the storyline. Not to mention trying to make the Fifth Doctor way too moralistic with him condenming the human base for trying to destroy the Silurians and Sea Devils (when they've destroyed half their crew) It worked in Silurians and Sea Devils because you could genuinely believe there was a chance to share the earth, but not in this atmosphere. The only thing that serial got right was the classic line "There should've been another way." Too right.
Most Recent Customer Reviews
4.0 out of 5 stars
A mixed bag, but still satisfactory.
This is an interesting boxed set. As far as I know, it's the only one containing Doctor Who stories that aren't in order, so it gives you a chance to compare stories from... Read more
Published 2 months ago by Patrick Correa
4.0 out of 5 stars
BBC Packaging...
For a series that's been out 50 years this next year, you'd think that they would have boxed sets for seasons. For the new series of Doctor Who, they've done exactly that. Read more
Published 5 months ago by MagePro
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A Doctor Who set showcasing the work of Malcolm Hulke
If I were to rate the three stories included in "Beneath the Surface" separately, I would give five stars to "Doctor Who and the Silurians," three stars to "The Sea Devils" and two... Read more
Published 21 months ago by buckbooks
5.0 out of 5 stars
Sea Devils/Silurians is off the hook
Yes dog this is a steal!!! You not only get the Sea Devils but also The Siluruians 2 amazing pertwee episodes total classic greatness as a bounus you get the crappy Peter davison... Read more
Published 23 months ago by Roman Pilates
5.0 out of 5 stars
Beneath the Surface is a value well above the cost.
Beneath the surface consists of 3 story's two from the Jon Pertwee era, and one from the Peter Davison era. Read more
Published on March 13, 2010 by Ralph J. Fitcher
5.0 out of 5 stars
Doctor Who versus Prehistoric Reptiles
As if I didn't already have enough cool things I want to waste my money on, the BBC has recently released some great collections of classic Doctor Who episodes. Read more
Published on November 28, 2008 by Zekeriyah
4.0 out of 5 stars
This planet ain't big enough for...
BENEATH THE SURFACE is one box-set that contains three stories -- three distinct takes on a simple, basic premise. Read more
Published on August 4, 2008 by Andrew McCaffrey
4.0 out of 5 stars
2 out of 3 ain't bad
We get 2 gems from the Pertwee era and one of the Davison era's weakest. The Silurians really set the stage for the 70s in Doctor Who. Read more
Published on July 28, 2008 by Michael A. Nelson
5.0 out of 5 stars
The aliens were here first
Several times on the bonus material for "Doctor Who and the Silurians", then-script editor Terrance Dicks explains the origins for that story's eponymous villain. Read more
Published on July 7, 2008 by Jason A. Miller
5.0 out of 5 stars
Classic Who
This box set contains 2 classic 3rd Doctor storys-Doctor Who And The Silurians and The Sea Devils and The not so good 5th Doctor story Warriors of The Deep. Read more
Published on June 10, 2008 by M. J Krankka
