Doctor Who (1963–1989): Season 2, Episode 17 - The Zarbi - full transcript
The Doctor, Ian and Vicki are captured by the Zarbi while Barbara meets up with the butterfly-like Menoptera who are trying to reclaim the planet.
DOCTOR: Chesterton.
Chesterton!
Ian.
Are you all right, boy?
(IAN GRUNTING)
My face!
My face.
-What's the matter with it?
-It's a little blistered.
It feels as if I fell into a bed of stinging nettles.
What happened to that weed?
I don't know.
-It just went.
-Went where?
It just went! Into the air, the ground.
What a cursed place this is!
Yeah, it's a cursed place. So barren.
I wonder....
Yes, cursed.
Come on, Doctor. Let's get back to the Tardis.
Get something for my face.
Oh, unfortunately,
I can't help you at the moment, dear boy.
-What?
-And I have a shock for you.
The ship's gone. Vanished.
There must be an answer to it, my boy.
There must be an answer!
They can't even get in the ship,
let alone operate it.
The interior of my ship is inviolable.
(DOCTOR GASPING BREATHLESSLY)
-What the matter?
-It's my chest.
-Can't you breathe?
-It's....
Something wrong with these?
Yes, these ADJ coats are no use.
After about an hour, they're useless.
-Can we live without them?
-Just about.
Let's take them off, shall we?
Get used to the atmosphere, okay?
-All right?
-Yes.
Yes.
Can certainly tell the difference, can't you?
Like a diver.
Oh, it's...it's possible.
-Hm.
-Okay?
There, do you see those ridges?
What are those ridges in the sand there?
Have a look.
Here?
-The Tardis.
-I heard the Tardis.
Been dragged away. Dragged away.
(BEEPING)
(BEEPING)
(BELL CHIMING)
My bracelet. I was....
Who are you? What do you want?
-Stop her!
-Stay where you are.
Those tracks have disappeared.
The ground seems firmer here.
No sign of it.
All so strange, so unnatural.
I've never experienced
anything in my life before like this.
-But we must continue with our search.
-Yeah.
Take a look over there.
Well, that's odd.
Those are not track marks.
Those are more like claw marks, yeah. Chesterton.
Doctor.
DOCTOR: I think we're on the right track....
Never mind about that.
Look at this.
Good gracious!
-It's hollow.
-Yeah.
Yes, well preserved.
Yes, a vertebrate creature. Highly developed.
But its skin is more like a chrysalis.
Menoptra. Yes.
Does that word mean anything to you, hm?
No, nothing. You mean you've been here before?
No. No, my boy.
But it's this rock formation
and now this creature, this object,
-it suggests the planet Vortis.
-Vortis?
-What galaxy is that in?
-The Isop galaxy.
Yes, very like Earth.
Many light years from Earth.
And yet the Vortis hasn't a moon.
And here, there are several. Look, you see?
You can see for yourself.
Yes.
Can't a planet attract satellites to itself, Doctor?
Yes, but it would need a galactic explosion,
you know, some kind of new force.
Whether this Vortis planet has that or not,
I can't be sure.
Anyway, come on, over here.
(BEEPING)
Help me.
BARBARA: After we landed,
two of our party went to explore.
The last thing I remember was being in the ship,
the doors opening and then, well, then you came.
-Kill her.
-No.
A stranger must not be trusted.
You chose ill when you chose to land on Vortis.
I keep telling you, we didn't choose.
Our ship was forced here.
The Zarbi will treat them as enemies.
If we refuse to help them, they will not survive.
Her future is no concern of ours.
Hrostar, she was under the force of the Zarbi.
Why did you break it?
Look, all we want to do is get away from here.
These Zarbi that you seem frightened of,
maybe we could help you.
Have you any weapons?
-No, but we....
-Watch her.
If we let her go, she may tell the Zarbi
where they can find us.
No.
Even if she does not wish to betray us,
they will extort it from her.
There are few of us and many of the Zarbi.
She offers help.
She is not to be trusted.
I say kill her.
Hrostar.
The Menoptra do not act without thought.
Stop her!
(BEEPING)
Strange lights in the sky.
DOCTOR: Pulsating.
You think they could be natural
like the aurora borealis?
No. Look down there, my boy.
That's where they've taken the ship to.
Apparently so. We've got to get down there.
I wish I had more knowledge
of what we were up against.
Ah, this wilderness....
Doctor.
(BEEPING)
The best thing is just to stand still.
Maybe we could talk to them,
make them understand.
Apart from rubbing our back legs together
like some sort of grasshopper...
I doubt if we can get on speaking terms
with them.
Stand still!
Okay!
These creatures on this planet
are completely unknown to me.
Just stand still and obey.
-Remember those claw marks?
-Yes.
Ian?
Doctor?
Is there anybody there?
(BEEPING)
Look at this. It's growing.
Organic matter. Reproducing itself.
-Fantastic.
-Yes, I wonder....
I wonder how long it's taken to grow that size?
1 00 or 200 years old?
Doctor, if your assumption was correct
and this is Vortis,
what do you know of its history?
History doesn't mean anything
when you travel through space and time.
All right, don't push.
(RAPID BEEPING)
(ALARM BUZZING)
My ship! The doors are open.
-Oh, Ian.
-It's all right, Vicki, don't worry.
-Where's Barbara?
-I don't know.
I was asleep. She must have left the ship.
What's the meaning of this, child?
Who tried to get in here?
I don't know. I don't know.
What do you creatures want?
(BEEPING)
No.
(BARBARA SCREAMING)
Vrestin, use that and we shall all be destroyed.
The Zarbi are all around us.
If you break communicator silence,
they will know where they may find us.
If we do not contact our forces,
they face destruction.
We must warn them of the power of the Animus.
And of the strength of the larvae gun.
The Zarbi are massed together against us.
Pilot party to Menoptra invasion force.
(STATIC BUZZING)
Pilot party to Menoptra invasion force.
This is Vrestin.
Urgent report.
Urgent report.
They are in reach of the enemy locators.
They will not break communicator silence.
They will.
They can echo their signals to us
off satellite Taron.
Menop Spearhead, acknowledge reception.
(STATIC BUZZING)
Vrestin, it's no use.
The cave is cutting off our signals.
Yes.
We must try again from outside the cave.
If they catch us, we must break the transmitter.
Vrestin, Hrostar! The Zarbi!
Vrestin, smash the crystals.
Smash the crystals, Vrestin!
(ELECTRONIC WHIRRING)
Vrestin! Run! Get away!
Get away!
We are safe for the present.
How did I get back here?
You were morphatised. Look.
I don't understand.
The Zarbi can control everyone,
even us, the Menoptra, when they use that metal.
It's gold.
Don't touch it!
I see.
So it was the bracelet.
What will they do to us?
We are to be taken to the Crater of Needles.
And then?
They will put us to work.
Once there, you might well wish
that you had not been spared.
The doctor's not getting through to them.
(RAPID BEEPING)
IAN: That sounds like an alarm.
(RAPID WHIRRING)
ANIMUS: Why do you come now?
The doctor is speaking to someone,
why cant we hear what he's saying
Who are you, we come in peace
ANIMUS: Peace, is that why you attack?
Where is your main force.
We are alone, we have strayed from our astral plane.
ANIMUS: When will your invasion fleet arrive
what is its weaponary.
We are peaceful travelers from Earth.
ANIMUS: You lie, you are the Menoptra Our detectors
show you are massing in space to attack. Speak!
I know nothing of these Menoptra.
ANIMUS: We will show you the fate which
awaits all of your ships. All your people.
Please listen to me.
I haven't finished my explaination.
Chesterton!
Ian.
Are you all right, boy?
(IAN GRUNTING)
My face!
My face.
-What's the matter with it?
-It's a little blistered.
It feels as if I fell into a bed of stinging nettles.
What happened to that weed?
I don't know.
-It just went.
-Went where?
It just went! Into the air, the ground.
What a cursed place this is!
Yeah, it's a cursed place. So barren.
I wonder....
Yes, cursed.
Come on, Doctor. Let's get back to the Tardis.
Get something for my face.
Oh, unfortunately,
I can't help you at the moment, dear boy.
-What?
-And I have a shock for you.
The ship's gone. Vanished.
There must be an answer to it, my boy.
There must be an answer!
They can't even get in the ship,
let alone operate it.
The interior of my ship is inviolable.
(DOCTOR GASPING BREATHLESSLY)
-What the matter?
-It's my chest.
-Can't you breathe?
-It's....
Something wrong with these?
Yes, these ADJ coats are no use.
After about an hour, they're useless.
-Can we live without them?
-Just about.
Let's take them off, shall we?
Get used to the atmosphere, okay?
-All right?
-Yes.
Yes.
Can certainly tell the difference, can't you?
Like a diver.
Oh, it's...it's possible.
-Hm.
-Okay?
There, do you see those ridges?
What are those ridges in the sand there?
Have a look.
Here?
-The Tardis.
-I heard the Tardis.
Been dragged away. Dragged away.
(BEEPING)
(BEEPING)
(BELL CHIMING)
My bracelet. I was....
Who are you? What do you want?
-Stop her!
-Stay where you are.
Those tracks have disappeared.
The ground seems firmer here.
No sign of it.
All so strange, so unnatural.
I've never experienced
anything in my life before like this.
-But we must continue with our search.
-Yeah.
Take a look over there.
Well, that's odd.
Those are not track marks.
Those are more like claw marks, yeah. Chesterton.
Doctor.
DOCTOR: I think we're on the right track....
Never mind about that.
Look at this.
Good gracious!
-It's hollow.
-Yeah.
Yes, well preserved.
Yes, a vertebrate creature. Highly developed.
But its skin is more like a chrysalis.
Menoptra. Yes.
Does that word mean anything to you, hm?
No, nothing. You mean you've been here before?
No. No, my boy.
But it's this rock formation
and now this creature, this object,
-it suggests the planet Vortis.
-Vortis?
-What galaxy is that in?
-The Isop galaxy.
Yes, very like Earth.
Many light years from Earth.
And yet the Vortis hasn't a moon.
And here, there are several. Look, you see?
You can see for yourself.
Yes.
Can't a planet attract satellites to itself, Doctor?
Yes, but it would need a galactic explosion,
you know, some kind of new force.
Whether this Vortis planet has that or not,
I can't be sure.
Anyway, come on, over here.
(BEEPING)
Help me.
BARBARA: After we landed,
two of our party went to explore.
The last thing I remember was being in the ship,
the doors opening and then, well, then you came.
-Kill her.
-No.
A stranger must not be trusted.
You chose ill when you chose to land on Vortis.
I keep telling you, we didn't choose.
Our ship was forced here.
The Zarbi will treat them as enemies.
If we refuse to help them, they will not survive.
Her future is no concern of ours.
Hrostar, she was under the force of the Zarbi.
Why did you break it?
Look, all we want to do is get away from here.
These Zarbi that you seem frightened of,
maybe we could help you.
Have you any weapons?
-No, but we....
-Watch her.
If we let her go, she may tell the Zarbi
where they can find us.
No.
Even if she does not wish to betray us,
they will extort it from her.
There are few of us and many of the Zarbi.
She offers help.
She is not to be trusted.
I say kill her.
Hrostar.
The Menoptra do not act without thought.
Stop her!
(BEEPING)
Strange lights in the sky.
DOCTOR: Pulsating.
You think they could be natural
like the aurora borealis?
No. Look down there, my boy.
That's where they've taken the ship to.
Apparently so. We've got to get down there.
I wish I had more knowledge
of what we were up against.
Ah, this wilderness....
Doctor.
(BEEPING)
The best thing is just to stand still.
Maybe we could talk to them,
make them understand.
Apart from rubbing our back legs together
like some sort of grasshopper...
I doubt if we can get on speaking terms
with them.
Stand still!
Okay!
These creatures on this planet
are completely unknown to me.
Just stand still and obey.
-Remember those claw marks?
-Yes.
Ian?
Doctor?
Is there anybody there?
(BEEPING)
Look at this. It's growing.
Organic matter. Reproducing itself.
-Fantastic.
-Yes, I wonder....
I wonder how long it's taken to grow that size?
1 00 or 200 years old?
Doctor, if your assumption was correct
and this is Vortis,
what do you know of its history?
History doesn't mean anything
when you travel through space and time.
All right, don't push.
(RAPID BEEPING)
(ALARM BUZZING)
My ship! The doors are open.
-Oh, Ian.
-It's all right, Vicki, don't worry.
-Where's Barbara?
-I don't know.
I was asleep. She must have left the ship.
What's the meaning of this, child?
Who tried to get in here?
I don't know. I don't know.
What do you creatures want?
(BEEPING)
No.
(BARBARA SCREAMING)
Vrestin, use that and we shall all be destroyed.
The Zarbi are all around us.
If you break communicator silence,
they will know where they may find us.
If we do not contact our forces,
they face destruction.
We must warn them of the power of the Animus.
And of the strength of the larvae gun.
The Zarbi are massed together against us.
Pilot party to Menoptra invasion force.
(STATIC BUZZING)
Pilot party to Menoptra invasion force.
This is Vrestin.
Urgent report.
Urgent report.
They are in reach of the enemy locators.
They will not break communicator silence.
They will.
They can echo their signals to us
off satellite Taron.
Menop Spearhead, acknowledge reception.
(STATIC BUZZING)
Vrestin, it's no use.
The cave is cutting off our signals.
Yes.
We must try again from outside the cave.
If they catch us, we must break the transmitter.
Vrestin, Hrostar! The Zarbi!
Vrestin, smash the crystals.
Smash the crystals, Vrestin!
(ELECTRONIC WHIRRING)
Vrestin! Run! Get away!
Get away!
We are safe for the present.
How did I get back here?
You were morphatised. Look.
I don't understand.
The Zarbi can control everyone,
even us, the Menoptra, when they use that metal.
It's gold.
Don't touch it!
I see.
So it was the bracelet.
What will they do to us?
We are to be taken to the Crater of Needles.
And then?
They will put us to work.
Once there, you might well wish
that you had not been spared.
The doctor's not getting through to them.
(RAPID BEEPING)
IAN: That sounds like an alarm.
(RAPID WHIRRING)
ANIMUS: Why do you come now?
The doctor is speaking to someone,
why cant we hear what he's saying
Who are you, we come in peace
ANIMUS: Peace, is that why you attack?
Where is your main force.
We are alone, we have strayed from our astral plane.
ANIMUS: When will your invasion fleet arrive
what is its weaponary.
We are peaceful travelers from Earth.
ANIMUS: You lie, you are the Menoptra Our detectors
show you are massing in space to attack. Speak!
I know nothing of these Menoptra.
ANIMUS: We will show you the fate which
awaits all of your ships. All your people.
Please listen to me.
I haven't finished my explaination.