14th November, 2022.
Right at the moment … ?
It’s a Monday night.
And I’ve got potatoes on the go.
Potatoes, vegetables … and chicken.
I’m going for healthy eating, frankly.
At any rate … ?
It’s Monday.
And I’m going to be eating dinner, listening to I’m Sorry, I Haven’t a Clue …
Then watching the next episode of classic Dr Who serial, The Abominable Snowmen.
Hopefully?
There’ll be a game of Mornington Crescent in the offing!
15th November, 2022
Only managing to avoid a horrible fate: as Jamie pushes over the props holding up the roof … right on top of the menacing thing!
With the Yeti buried under a pile of rubble?
Jamie snatches one of the strange metal balls piled up at the back of the cave — convinced the Doctor (Patrick Troughton) — will want to examine it: and the pair head off to find the monastery.
At Detsen?
The Doctor is held prisoner by the Monks: as head guard, Khrisong (Norman Jones), is convinced the Doctor is responsible for murdering someone … and for the reported change in the behaviour of local Yeti.
Is a version of the ducking stools used in medieval witch trials?
Khrisong plans to tie the Doctor to Detsen’s gates.
If the Doctor gets killed And eaten by Yeti, he’s obviously innocent …
Before he’s ‘tried’? The Doctor has a quiet word with a friendly monk called Thomni (David Spenser): telling him to look under the straw of the Doctor’s prison bed.
Thomni does exactly that.
And, unnoticed by his fellow monks … ?
Finds the monastery’s Ghanta … and rushes off to speak to the Abbot …
~≈🚀≈~
Now … I’ve seen another episode of The Abominable Snowmen.
And you’re possibly going to be asking me stuff.
Aren’t you?
How was the episode?
How’s the animation looking?
What do you think of the Yeti?
Are tomatoes a major feature?
We can answer that last question, first.
Yes: there are no tomatoes.
Tomatoes … aren’t a feature of the episode: or the story, so far.
Unless they were on the catering trucks, feeding the crew whilst filming: something I couldn’t tell you about.
Maddened burbling about fruit, aside?
Yes: this is another good episode.
The animation itself? Looks superb: as it did in the first episode.
The overall sound quality? Is great: Mark Ayres has done his usual sterling job, and — I’m assuming, here — had some fairly good sources to work with.
Or, at least, fairly even ones.
I didn’t notice any differences in quality, put it that way!
The story, itself? Gets moved forward: the Doctor makes a friend of Thomni, we get to met the abbot, see more of the Yeti — those of us who’ve seen The Web of Fear will notice the differences in design — and … we get hints about Master Padmasambhava*: the mysterious being at the heart of the Monastery.
And there’s a quite possibly deliberate in-joke.
I mentioned in my review of episode one that the animators had made the monks — originally played by English actors — seem more East Asian.
Which is far enough.
Something that occurred to me last week: but that had to wait until I’d verified the names of the characters?
Was that two of the monks — Rinchen and Sapan, played respectively by David Grey and Raymond Llewellen — had had the redrawing treatment.
And, in the animated versions … ?
They look suspiciously like Cho-je and K’anpo Rimpoche (Kevin Lindsey and George Cormack) from The Planet of the Spiders!
I think the producers of this version of The Abominable Snowmen had their tongue very firmly planted in their cheek. And it’s very welcome!
With all that said … ?
Have I watched another well made episode … ?
Yes I have.
Am I going to carry on watching, and watch episode three, next week??
Yes: I will. The Abominable Snowmen is great fun!
Episode 2★★★☆
* Seemingly? Writers Hayes and Lincoln named him after a real world Buddhist figure.
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