Rating: 
Summary: Classic Tom Baker episode from the "golden age"
Review: This 4 part adventure reminds me on the movie "Alien", but has been made five years before.It is the 4th Doctor's second performance and a true classic. Full of suspense (escpecially after part 1) and one of the best Whos ever!
Rating:
Summary: "I can't recall a single thing about it, really!"
Review: "The Ark in Space" is one of those stories I watched at age 11, only a couple of months after discovering "Doctor Who" on PBS. It instantly became one of my favorites, and remained so even after I'd seen the other 26 years' worth of stories. What makes "Ark" a great "Doctor Who" story is the list of usual suspects: small cast, claustrophobic setting, some moments of real horror (1974 special-effects style) as the Ark commander is turned into a 6-foot-tall fiberglass wasp, after becoming gradually encased in green bubble-wrap. And, of course, Tom Baker's larger-than-life performance as the Doctor. The "Doctor Who" DVD releases have been of uniformly high quality. Each episode comes with a pop-up track of subtitled production notes, and an audio commentary by the cast and crew. The "Ark" production notes include details on the original script for the story, and memorably inform us that bubble wrap was not as common in 1974 as it is today! The commentary track is one of the better ones: Elisabeth Sladen, who played companion Sarah Jane, has terrific recall and some intriguing insights into the original production that I hadn't read or heard elsewhere. Series producer Philip Hinchcliffe supplies enough inside information into the sets, lighting, and script editing process to be informative without ever getting stuffy -- and his recall is excellent, too. The star of the commentary track is, naturally, Tom Baker. Tom's involvement with DW since leaving the role has been infrequent and bizarre. His contribution to the track involves frightening barks of laughter at lingering shots of the male actors' physique, or double entendres in the script (intentional or otherwise). He confesses from the opening seconds that he "can't recall a single thing" about the story, and this frees him up to be the irreverent, unpredictable voice circling effortlessly around Sladen and Hinchcliffe's scholarship. There are other extra features -- an informative, current interview with the episode designer, and a vintage, bizarre interview with Baker in costume. There are 7 minutes of original (silent) model test footage. Help yourself. I fast-forwarded through this after my resolve was defeated somewhere around Minute Three. The 3D Ark schematic is brief, and thus cute. The redone CGI effects work better than you might expect when viewed as part of the story via seamless branching, and of course you can always turn it off. The "unused title sequence" has some interesting outtakes, but the final 30 seconds are, in fact, the used title sequence. The photo gallery is a must-skip. There's a strange "TARDIS-cam" view which appears to be a new creation; this is atmospheric, if pointless. There are reportedly three hidden easter eggs, of which I've only found one. Again, it's Tom Baker, in costume, being bizarre. I can't wait to find the other two.
Rating:
Summary: "Have a jellybaby, Vira..."
Review: Another classic Who serial is finally on DVD in all its glory. Not only is the serial itself, wonderful, the extras that accompany the disc are incredible bonuses. The Doctor, Sarah Jane and Harry arrive on Space Station Nerva and discover that something is not all right. An alien has invaded the main solar stack to absorb energy to grow. At the same time, the Human Race is awaking from cryogenic sleep a few thousand years beyond their wake-up call, and are in danger of being absorbed, physically and mentally from the Wirnn. This serial really helps jump start the Tom Baker era. It really is a good example of a taught, suspenseful Who adventure. Kudos again to the Restoration Team for their incredible transfer ans bonus material on the disc.
Rating:
Summary: The Doctor's DVD's just keep getting better and better!!
Review: The Doctor is taking Sarah and, new companion, Harry on a joy flight in the TARDIS when they land on what seems to be an unoccupied space station. They are soon caught up in a race to save the surviving human race who are using this space station as a resting place for when the Solar Flare radiation on the Earth has dropped to liveable levels again. Something else has invaded this station causing the occupants to oversleep. The Wirrn are here to claim the sleeping vestiges of the human race as their dinner... This is the 2nd story for the Tom Baker reign as Doctor Who and it seems he has settled into the role superbly. The story, acting, set design are all fantastic. That is, if you can accept the fact that green bubble wrap is about to take over the human race. Back in the 70's, the bubble wrap larvae of the Wirrn would have looked great as bubble wrap was a new thing, now it looks dated and cant be watch without a sly comment or a laugh. This does not detract from the great acting from the 3 regulars though. The DVD transfer is excellent, picture quality is in full frame and is in great condition. Extras on the DVD are getter better with each one released. The Extras on the disc include: New CGI Model Shots
You can now watch this classic with either it's original shakey model shots or you can watch it with the newly created CGI model shots of the Ark. It's great to see someone taking time to do this sort of stuff. Original 16mm Model shots
Take after boring take of the original model shots of the ark turning, the Wirrn crawling over the Ark and the escape ship blasting off, great to see but very monotonous. Commentary
An unmissable commentary by Tom Baker, Elisabeth Sladen and Philip Hinchcliffe. Some interesting tidbits are found through this plus Tom's enjoyment is fantastic. Design Feature
An interview with designer Roger Murray-Leach News Item
A rare interview with Tom Baker (although it was done when he was filming Revenge Of The Cybermen) Unused title sequence (thank God they didn't use it) Trailer - this trailer wouldn't make anyone watch this show. TARDIS Cam - also on the BBC website - this teases us with showing what Doctor Who would look if it were still on. 3D Ark Scematic, Photo Gallery and a couple of Easter Eggs for you to find. Overall an excellent DVD for an excellent episode. RECOMMENDED!!!
Rating: 
Summary: Fun story but poor video quality
Review: I enjoy most any Dr. Who with Tom Baker. The quality of this tape is very poor however. Had to adjust every control on my TV just to watch it.
Rating: 
Summary: Standard Doctor story for a developing Time Lord.
Review: Ark in space is was a good episode as far as it goes. Sarah was of course Sarah part doer and part screamer. I think in general this episode plays down her character. After all she is a reporter, we should see her questioning more. Harry and Tom Baker's Doctor (particularly Harry) got a chance to develop their personalities as characters. Although I enjoyed the episode and the performances it seemed like Jon Pertwee could have pulled off this one just as well if not better. Not because Baker did a poor job, far from it, but I think this was more of a vanalla episode to ease in a new Doctor. Watching it I almost think the script may have been written before Baker took the part. We have a stong supporting cast, (the complaining engineer was a nice change from the elitist characters of Noah & Vira) and a more than passable adventure that serves as a good link to the next three episodes. I suspect the writers made Mr.Baker's part more generic because he was new to the part. This is understandable but different from how the pervious changover was done. That problem would quickly go away on a planet named Skaro, but that's another review.
Rating:
Summary: Form Vs Content on Nerva Beacon
Review: I'm pleased to see that the majority of folks reviewing this tape have given it high marks. "Ark In Space" was my favorite Liz Sladen era episode as a young 'un, and I was delighted to finally have the episode on tape to view as an adult and contemplate the very eloquent story it aspires to tell. Sadly, in my eyes, this is one of the scripts that really suffered because of the limited budget and time alloted to its filming. After thirty years of Kubrick and Lucas and Ridley Scott, there are moments in this adventure where the nickle and dime set construction and effects shots really mar at one's suspension of disbelief. I admit that the white, sterile atmosphere of the Beacon [along with the THX 1138ish white jumpsuit costumes, in which Liz Sladen has never looked better] does create a convincing sense of place that is well suited for the teriffic story the episodes relate, but there are moments when you can see through the world they represent and realize that we are looking at a low budget Sci Fi TV set. The hybernation pods that the Nerva crew emerge from look especially phony -- you can even see the saw marks on Vira's chamber as the camera lingers on her face, revealing that it is indeed a carved piece of styrofoam and the door hinged with a brownish packing tape. But then again, when you put a Doctor Who tape in your deck you are sort of signing a "suspension of disbelief waiver form" where stuff like that isn't supposed to matter, so I am just being picky and spoiled. The charictarizations and complexity of the story line more than make up for it, and I love the scenes of the tortured Noah as he transforms into a half man half walking glob of green spray painted bubble wrap. You gotta love it. Recommended.
Rating:
Summary: "We should absorb the humans..."
Review: The writers of Alien stole the plot from Ark in Space, and Star Trek stole from it and many other Who stories for the concept of the Borg ("Resistance is useless... We should absorb the humans..."). This is not only one of the best examples of Doctor Who ever, but a classic in every sense. The acting is exemplary, particularly by Tom Baker as the Doctor. This was Baker's second story as the fourth Doctor, and his portrayal of this alternately hillarious and strangely frightening incarnation is truly astonishing...much more so than in the earlier story, "Robot".
Rating:
Summary: Indomitable!
Review: The first series featuring Tom Baker as the doctor produced my favorite Dr. Who adventures and this one is no exception! Sarah Jane and Harry work wonderfully as the doctor's companions and Tom Baker is his funny and crazy self. This is a great story about how the doctor saves the remains of mankind from the Willin, horrible giant insect creatures, who want to use the cryogenically frozen humans as a food source for their larvae! After you've seen this one, be sure to watch the adventures that follow-"The Sontaran Experiment" and "The Genesis of the Daleks". All of these absolutely fantastic and essential for any Dr. Who collection!
Rating:
Summary: The Epitome of Tom Baker
Review: Disclaimer: There is not a single Tom Baker story I don't like from the first season, so please take this review with a grain of salt (i.e., don't slam me just because I am one of the few people who still, to this day, enjoy watching Revenge of the Cybermen). Ark in Space is one of the early Baker classics which, in my humble opinion, truly epitomizes why Tom Baker was, and continues to be, the most popular incarnation of the Doctor (please note that I didn't say he was the BEST; we all know that every incarnation was wonderful in his own special way). The interaction between Liz Sladen and Ian Marter was great. Here, the companions compliment the Doctor and are not mere appendages that clutter the plot. I particularly liked the development of the plot - cold, pure, survival (humans vs. the wiirn - winner takes all). Baker's famous speech about the strength and determination of the human race, by itself, makes the Ark in Space worth your time. The sets were well done. The BBC special effects department toned down the cheesy FX thereby making this a presentable episode from a technical perspective. But we all know it's the story that makes Dr. Who so good. I highly recommend it and hope you enjoy it as much as I did when I first saw it.
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