The first of what would become an occasional theme in Doctor who (mind, after forty odd years, totally new stories are a bit rare), sees the Doctor and his companions find the remnants of Humanity and their Monoid servants escaping the destruction of Earth. Everything is seemingly hunky-dory until an introduced illness changes the balance of power ( )

http://nhw.livejournal.com/825455.html

Paul Erickson added some extra chrome into the book version of The Ark which was, I suppose, not realisable on screen, notably the numerous different habitats on the Guardian/Monoid spaceships, and a second invisible Refusian. Also the motivation for the Monoids' peculiar decision to send the Doctor and Dodo on an exploratory mission is (just about) rationalised. I had forgotten just how bloodthirsty the climax is, as the Monoids wipe each other out in a firefight (and here Erickson gives in to Ian Marter-style temptation to make the fighting even more vicious on the page). I felt, however, that the characterisation of the first Doctor was a bit shaky, with a bit too much use of "old chap" which is not really one of his catchphrases. ( )