Rating: 
Summary: "It hasn't moved for fifteen minutes..."
Review: "The Power of Kroll" is very disappoiting. Stories such as this, are one of the reasons why some Who fans disliked the Graham Williams era of producing. It's also a shame this is a Robert Holmes story, who wrote "The Ribos Operation" at the opening of the season! Kroll, a giant mutated squid(with help from the Fifth Segment), is such a bad idea. Bad models and rotten CSO do little to give any kind of real threat(only laughs). And the swampies, well, if you don't have anything nice to say...! The acting is extremely lazy, even Phillip Madoc having a little trouble trying to swallow his lines. The Doctor and Romanna are the saving grace in this stinker. It is a shame that Holmes first script went on the air, why if he had rewritten it a day late, we might have had "The Caves of Androzani" or "The Swamps of Delta Magna"!
Rating:
Summary: Resoundingly awful, but intriguing like an Ed Wood film.
Review: Funny how this episode raises so much like and dislike. Nothing in this episode, however bad, can compare to the candy coated amaturism of the late eighties Doctor Who because Douglas Adams always wrote the best one liners in the show during his stay as script editor. Large rubber tentacles, green stupid aboriginess, an oil rig on a swamp planet and wandering adventures without proper focus....thats all I saw. I agree with the earlier reviewer who said this would be extremely entertaining if it weren't so boring.
Rating: 
Summary: Truly A Great Episode!
Review: I can not believe that people will put this episode down, but rate "Robots of Death" at five stars! The special effects in this episode are on par with the other episodes(with the exception of the "The Deadly Assassin"). Furthermore, the Doctor and Romana have some excellent dialog throughout the story. I whole heartedly agree with some of the other more favorable reviews-- this episode belongs in any Who collection! Likewise, I can find no fault with Robert Holmes script nor Graham Williams producing. Anyone who tears down this episode, but still praises one like "Robots of Death" or "The Talons of Weng Chiang" is,in my opinion a hypocrite!
Rating:
Summary: Were we watching the same thing?
Review: I would like to point out that a fan of any TV series does not have to adore every single episode of it.This story, for example, is a pretty limp attempt to do a 'King Kong'. The silly-looking natives are replaced by (arguably) even sillier-looking men in green paint and wooly hats, who chant 'Kroll' instead of 'Kong'. The characters are pretty wooden and virtually nothing seems to happen for most of the adventure. On the plus side, Tom Baker's Doctor is at his best and the whole thing is taken seriously, which is certainly a refreshing change in what is mainly a rather childish era of the series. But how can you take seriously a rubber monster battling a wobbly toy oil rig? The final episode could have been gripping but is just rendered laughable by special effects which are dire even by the standards of this series. This adventure might have been entertainingly bad if it wasn't so boring.
Rating: 
Summary: "Hmmmmm, Philip looks bored."
Review: I'm going to admit to something that may not make me very popular in Doctor Who circles. But here goes anyway. I like THE POWER OF KROLL. Go ahead; call me a sick man, a twisted fan, a Swampie-Lover and a reject from the Sons Of Earth. I don't care what you think. Yes, KROLL may be a outrageously silly adventure featuring some of the most awful special effects imaginable, but it's a story that I have fond memories of. The biggest flaw, and I mean this in all seriousness, is that Kroll completely fails to breathe fire, stomp through downtown Tokyo, or fire laser beams out of his eyes. If only he had, we would have been looking at a near perfect adventure. Okay, I don't know how anyone on the production team ever thought that they could possibly get away with attempting to realize a sea-monster that's supposed to about a mile across. Doctor Who could rarely even get human-sized creatures looking right, and the result that appears onscreen here is both far better and far far worse than one would expect. Better, because the Kroll monster itself actually looks quite alien and strange. Worse, because whenever this surprisingly good alien creature has to interact with the rest of the story, it does so on the wrong side of a horribly obvious special effect line. The DVD production notes go into detail about what went wrong on the production side, but the long and short of it is that it looks absolutely terrible. It's a pity they didn't realize how flimsy and shoddy the creature effects would being and go completely over to the side of making this a comedy. One imagines that if the production team had tried this a season later, the monster and the Swampies makeup would have looked even more pathetic, but would have been infinitely more entertaining. Still, while the Kroll monster is a particularly poor effect, one can never watch Doctor Who for its production values. What I like about this one is it's effective use of the Base Under Siege mentality. When I first saw this story, I was a young fanbaby and had no idea that this sort of thing was supposedly a worn-out Doctor Who cliché. I liked it then, and that enjoyment has stayed with me. The few sets and small cast help convey the feeling of claustrophobia. KROLL is just a pure adventure. Running around, avoiding the giant monster, getting captured by aliens, escaping from aliens, etc. It's just simple fun. The only downside to this sort of silly/fun adventure is that Kroll doesn't eat nearly as many innocent bystanders as he could have. Oh well. POWER OF KROLL works well as a simple children's adventure. Sure, some aspects of the plot carry all the subtlety of a sledgehammer, but one shouldn't really expect subtlety in a television program featuring a gigantic, evil, angry squid as the main villain. KROLL appealed to the part of me that enjoys Godzilla films. So what if I'm laughing at it rather than with it? At least I'm laughing. The DVD commentary lacks the behind the scenes know-how that had been displayed on other discs. Tom Baker and John Leeson don't really remember much about anything to do with POWER OF KROLL, though to their credit they do manage to make an amusing performance. I enjoyed listening to them once, but I doubt that I'd go out of my way to listen again. It's a pity that there are no production staff members on this commentary track; perhaps they could have jogged the actors' memories. Still, even without any actual recollections of the story, Tom Baker manages to bring a laugh, although he did seem to get a little too excited during each of Kroll's onscreen appearances. THE POWER OF KROLL is a story about a giant squid that made it big and decided to eat a lot of people. Treat it like a cheap monster flick and you can have a fun time with this one. This is pure silly entertainment, and while Doctor Who on TV could often do far more, it's important to consider that entertainment was one of its most important priorities. But just remember what it says on that box. If you know the adventure is featuring a giant, enraged octopus and you go in expecting a detailed, textural, tear-jerking story about Kroll seeking therapy and anger-management classes, then I'm afraid that you're going to be profoundly disappointed. Just break out the popcorn, take a drink every time Kroll eats somebody, and you'll be fine, just fine.
Rating:
Summary: "Hmmmmm, Philip looks bored."
Review: I'm going to admit to something that may not make me very popular in Doctor Who circles. But here goes anyway. I like THE POWER OF KROLL. Go ahead; call me a sick man, a twisted fan, a Swampie-Lover and a reject from the Sons Of Earth. I don't care what you think. Yes, KROLL may be a outrageously silly adventure featuring some of the most awful special effects imaginable, but it's a story that I have fond memories of. The biggest flaw, and I mean this in all seriousness, is that Kroll completely fails to breathe fire, stomp through downtown Tokyo, or fire laser beams out of his eyes. If only he had, we would have been looking at a near perfect adventure. Okay, I don't know how anyone on the production team ever thought that they could possibly get away with attempting to realize a sea-monster that's supposed to about a mile across. Doctor Who could rarely even get human-sized creatures looking right, and the result that appears onscreen here is both far better and far far worse than one would expect. Better, because the Kroll monster itself actually looks quite alien and strange. Worse, because whenever this surprisingly good alien creature has to interact with the rest of the story, it does so on the wrong side of a horribly obvious special effect line. The DVD production notes go into detail about what went wrong on the production side, but the long and short of it is that it looks absolutely terrible. It's a pity they didn't realize how flimsy and shoddy the creature effects would being and go completely over to the side of making this a comedy. One imagines that if the production team had tried this a season later, the monster and the Swampies makeup would have looked even more pathetic, but would have been infinitely more entertaining. Still, while the Kroll monster is a particularly poor effect, one can never watch Doctor Who for its production values. What I like about this one is it's effective use of the Base Under Siege mentality. When I first saw this story, I was a young fanbaby and had no idea that this sort of thing was supposedly a worn-out Doctor Who cliché. I liked it then, and that enjoyment has stayed with me. The few sets and small cast help convey the feeling of claustrophobia. KROLL is just a pure adventure. Running around, avoiding the giant monster, getting captured by aliens, escaping from aliens, etc. It's just simple fun. The only downside to this sort of silly/fun adventure is that Kroll doesn't eat nearly as many innocent bystanders as he could have. Oh well. POWER OF KROLL works well as a simple children's adventure. Sure, some aspects of the plot carry all the subtlety of a sledgehammer, but one shouldn't really expect subtlety in a television program featuring a gigantic, evil, angry squid as the main villain. KROLL appealed to the part of me that enjoys Godzilla films. So what if I'm laughing at it rather than with it? At least I'm laughing. The DVD commentary lacks the behind the scenes know-how that had been displayed on other discs. Tom Baker and John Leeson don't really remember much about anything to do with POWER OF KROLL, though to their credit they do manage to make an amusing performance. I enjoyed listening to them once, but I doubt that I'd go out of my way to listen again. It's a pity that there are no production staff members on this commentary track; perhaps they could have jogged the actors' memories. Still, even without any actual recollections of the story, Tom Baker manages to bring a laugh, although he did seem to get a little too excited during each of Kroll's onscreen appearances. THE POWER OF KROLL is a story about a giant squid that made it big and decided to eat a lot of people. Treat it like a cheap monster flick and you can have a fun time with this one. This is pure silly entertainment, and while Doctor Who on TV could often do far more, it's important to consider that entertainment was one of its most important priorities. But just remember what it says on that box. If you know the adventure is featuring a giant, enraged octopus and you go in expecting a detailed, textural, tear-jerking story about Kroll seeking therapy and anger-management classes, then I'm afraid that you're going to be profoundly disappointed. Just break out the popcorn, take a drink every time Kroll eats somebody, and you'll be fine, just fine.
Rating:
Summary: Essential for Key to Time Series...but not a great story.
Review: If you are collecting the six Doctor Who stories featuring the finding of the segments to the Key of Time then you will have to get this one, but the story is very dull and includes some really bad acting. However, Romana looks lovely. END
Rating:
Summary: Amen Neighbor, Amen!
Review: Kolner is right! This is one of the greatest Who episodes ever! The Doctor and Romana definitely post some great one-liners throughout the episode. Besides, special effects are no worse than any of the other Who episodes. Another thing, what is everyone's problem with Graham Williams? Alomost all of my favorite episodes(this being one of them) come from his tenure! Anyway this video is a must for any Who collection and I recomend it to everyone!
Rating: 
Summary: But for the gap in the Key to Time .. wouldn't be released
Review: My original critique wasn't published (probably because of the expletives) but seriously folks. When I originally saw the Key to Time Series here in Chicago some 17 years ago (man, time sure does fly) they played parts 2 and 3 out of order, so I was left scratching my head wondering how they had two pieces of the key when I had just seen the Doctor boost the first piece from that fat guy on that cold inhospitable planet where they phony rubber lizards wander through the catacombs and kill people. It is because of the need to prevent anyone else from being forced to endure such confusion that I suggest that you watch Power of Kroll . . . but that's the only reason. After all, can't have you watching Armageddon Factor wondering "how did the Doctor and Romana get that Fifth Piece" and "hmmmm, I wonder if that episode was any good (like you do about all those Patrick Troughton episodes that are lost). Well, quite frankly, I wish this was one of the "lost episodes." The story line was pathetic. Although it was fun to watch Phil (I forgot his last name . . . the guy who played Dr. Frankesntein in Brain of Morbius) get eaten by the squid. Otherwise, this was just another stupid story spin on the britsh oppression of india, but in outterspace with a giant squid eating whaetever the heck he wants. If you want to see a GOOD Robert Holmes story, watch "The Sunmakers." But if you're one of those guys who really thinks Power of Kroll is (what did that one guy say? oh yeah, "the greatest Doctor Who story ever") great, then I highly reccomend the following because these stories stank just as bad as "Kroll" and would probabaly appeal to your taste in Dr. Who stories: Underworld, Full Circle (another "series" episode that would never be watched but for its status as being part of a series and the fan's need for continuity), Creature from the Pit, Androids of Tara, and the Pirate Planet. In fact, but for the Stones of Blood, and the very beginning of the Ribos Operation and the very end of the Armageddon Factor, the entire Key to Time series was especially bad. Just watch the Stones of Blood (a VERY good story in terms of plot and production) and imagine that it's not part of the Key to Time series. But no matter what AVOID Power of Kroll. The only good reason to watch this one is to acquire answers to some Doctor Who trivial pursuit game and to answer that nagging question if you saw all the other key to time stories except this one.
Rating:
Summary: The Power of Polystyrene
Review: Normally, watching Doctor Who, you have to deal with poor special effects. But they're never as bad, however, as they are in this story. The shots of the giant squid for which this story is named are so bad that I could not believe the characters truly thought it was even there. Besides that, the story is an atrocity which almost (but not quite) saves a star for the wit and acting of Tom Baker. Nobody else in the story even shows up in this department. A further disappointment is that the author of the story, Robert Holms, is arguably the finest writer the series has had. I really have a hard time believing he actually wrote this story. If you are watching the Key to Time season, I'll just say that the squid is the 5th segment so you can skip watching this one (even though you would have figured THAT out before the first episode was over). This is probably the worst Tom Baker story of all.
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