The Underwater Menace is the latest of the stories with missing episodes to receive the animation treatment. The set includes the extant episodes 2 and 3 of the original story and animations in both black & White and color of all episodes 1-4. The reconstructions of the missing episodes 1 & 4 are also included.
The animation of the story is fine and the extras are top notch, unfortunately this is one of the lesser stories in the catalog. Joseph Furst as Zaroff gives a terrible over-the-top performance that is laughable and cringeworthy. Troughton’s performance shows the first sign of seriousness as he moves away from his overtly silly persona. The Man from Mid an episode of the BBC drama The Midnight Men is an interesting extra. It stars Andrew Keir of Quatermass fame and has Troughton and Furst in small roles. 8 out of 10.
