props. At one point, a Sontaran (played by the actor Stuart Fell) nearly takes a fall after missing a short jump and landing on a pool chair. As the aliens originate on a planet of notably high gravity, however, their clumsiness is easily explained. The closing credits of episodes three, four, and six feature the return of the section of Doctor Who theme commonly called the "Middle Eight", this sequence not having been heard since the early Jon Pertwee era. Cast notes Milton Johns had previously appeared as Benik in The Enemy of the World (1967–68) and Guy Crayford in The Android Invasion (1975). Christopher Tranchell had previously played Roger Colbert in The Massacre of St Bartholomew's Eve (1966) and Jenkins in The Faceless Ones (1967). Analysis Writer and journalist Matthew Sweet has compared the Doctor's strategy of feigning madness in this story to Hamlet. Broadcast and reception Following transmission of the story, producer Graham Williams met with Head of Serials Graeme MacDonald, and they agreed that the story had contained too high a level of humour, resulting in a lack of credibility in Stor, and a lack of dramatic tension, and that in future any humour in the programme should counterpoint and strengthen the story rather than undermine and weaken it. Memos to this effect were to be issued to future directors of the show, in order to preserve a level of seriousness that both men felt to be necessary; however, the humorous trend continued until Williams' tenure came to an end in 1979. Paul Cornell, Martin Day, and Keith Topping wrote in The Discontinuity Guide (1995) that the serial "stands up reasonably well", though the Vardans' appearances were "ludicrous". In The Television Companion (1998), David J. Howe and Stephen James Walker wrote that the story was "something of a mess". Although there were good special effects, they stated it had a lack of good characters, found Baker's performance to be "below par", and criticised the "pathetic" Vardans. In 2010, Mark Braxton of Radio Times was also disappointed, finding many "inept sequences". He also criticised the way Leela was written in the serial, as well as her sudden departure. DVD Talk's John Sinnott was more positive, giving the serial four out of five stars. He acknowledged that it was "a flawed and uneven adventure" with issues in plot logic, but it succeeded in "goofy fun" with a good performance