There was an unexpected pre-Christmas bonus for Doctor Who fans in early December with this new edit of the classic Third Doctor story from 1972. Timed to lead in to the debut of latest spin-off drama, The War Between the Land and the Sea, how would this tale of missing ships and creatures emerging from the sea stand up?
One of the biggest changes comes right at the start, with the title sequence dropped in favour of an opening that mirrors that of the new drama, with new music by The War Between composer Lorne Balfe. I had wondered if Malcolm Clarke’s score (one of Doctor Who’s more experimental, shall we say?) would be replaced wholesale, but it was still in evidence here, and even with some cues that had never been broadcast before, according to Russell T Davies in Doctor Who Magazine’s preview.
It’s the latest classic era story to get the re-edit treatment from Ben Cook and his team, following on from The War Games and The Daleks in previous years. With The Sea Devils having a shorter episode count than those stories, there wasn’t the need for quite such a radical approach to cutting material to fit the new slot, and I found it difficult to spot where the edits were for the most part, to be honest.
Perhaps the most notable trims were when the creatures of the title were on screen, with the new version avoiding lingering on them for too long, presumably keen to avoid highlighting any perceived shortcomings in what a production of this era could achieve with its monsters. I didn’t spot any new visual effects, and a scene where dialogue is changed so a Sea Devil says the name of the new drama was subtle enough to have me wondering if that’s what was originally said.
We also get a brief clip from Doctor Who and the Silurians to accompany the scene where Jo and the Doctor discuss the plot of that Season 7 tale for viewers’ benefit. In contrast with its predecessor, The Sea Devils is a less sophisticated tale, favouring action and spectacle over the more complex exploration of another species’ society and motivations that Malcolm Hulke’s original gave us. With that being so, perhaps the Silurians would have been a more suitable companion piece to The War Between?
But it has to be said that The Sea Devils features some all-time classic Doctor Who set-pieces, from the Doctor and the Master’s swordfight (with a break for sandwiches, naturally) to the creatures rising up from the sea. The Master is at his most calculating and manipulative, and Roger Delgado displays a wonderful comic touch, never more so than when Trenchard explains that the Clangers are just puppets really.
Jon Pertwee must surely have thought Christmas had come early with all those different modes of transport on land and sea to play about with, though he looks equally happy to be throwing himself over barbed wire to gallantly clear the way for Jo. It’s nice to see Katy Manning get to do her share of the rough stuff too, neatly taking out two guards to make an escape.
It seems a shame that the Brigadier and the UNIT team missed out on the programme’s seaside outing, but perhaps that was the price of securing such close co-operation from the Royal Navy, with the Senior Service front and centre here – another aspect that former Naval Intelligence Sub-Lieutenant Pertwee must have enjoyed. That familiar early 1970s trope of the Doctor coming up against narrow minded bureaucrats is much in evidence – amusingly, even with significant editing, there is a lot of the Doctor standing in front of a desk losing his patience with a complacent middle-aged man.
Overall, the 2025 version of The Sea Devils is unlikely to prove anywhere near as contentious with viewers who don’t like to see their Doctor Who interfered with as The Daleks and The War Games edits were. And as a reminder of Jon Perwee’s action-oriented Doctor, perfectly matched with Roger Delgado’s charmingly evil Master and with great support from Katy Manning as the spirited Jo Grant, it’s an excellent way to pass a Sunday afternoon.
