Day 536: Full Circle Part 3

Another thing to enjoy about Full Circle is the way in which it deals with the monsters, the Marshmen. Their design is instantly memorable, being a simple swamp creature building upon a light brown colour palette that works well with the lush greens that are seen on location, and is also able to feel slightly out of place and unwelcome in the dull greys of the spaceship, making them stand out in the scenes aboard the spaceship.

But there's also more to it than just that. Consider the scene where the Marsh-child is about to be dissected by the scientist aboard the spaceship, Dexeter. The director, Peter Grimwade, makes the clear decision to have its eyes present throughout the entire scene. This works in particular as we see the human behind the rubber mask, and so we empathise with the creature. When the Marsh-child breaks free from its bonds, we are on the side of the creature, however this changes when the Marsh-child kills Dexeter. Now we see it for something that is dangerous, although still child-like in manner. It makes the monsters feel more threatening, but also gives them enough depth that we can empathise with them and thus we are interested in their plight. It all makes for a good story as we near the conclusion of Full Circle.