Doctor Who/Recap/S2/E05 The Web Planet

"Apart from rubbing our legs together like some sort of grasshopper, I doubt if we can get on speaking terms with them."

- The Doctor ponders the difficulties of communication.

Continuing the series general policy at this point of alternating history and science themed stories, we head to the planet Vortis, populated by the butterfly-like Menoptra and ant-like Zarbi. The latter of these have fallen under the influence of the Animus, a parasitic creature which is slowly enveloping the whole planet in webs.

The Doctor and friends join up with a group of Menoptra and defeat the Animus, freeing the Zarbi from its control.

Watch it here.

Tropes

 * Alien Sky: Vortis has multiple moons, drawn there by the Animus.
 * Big Creepy-Crawlies: The Zarbi and the larva guns.
 * Bug War: In this case, bugs versus bugs rather than bugs versus humans.
 * Continuity Nod: Ian and Barbara finally get on the same page with the Doctor and Vicki about their adventures in Rome.
 * Eldritch Abomination: The Animus qualifies both in terms of its powers and in terms of its appearance. In the Expanded Universe, it's actually named as one of H.P. Lovecraft's Old Ones, Lloigor...
 * In-Camera Effects: The unique look of this serial was achieved by attaching a distorting lens to the camera.
 * People in Rubber Suits
 * Puppeteer Parasite
 * Starfish Language: The Zarbi.