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Post by number13 on Feb 18, 2024 12:46:57 GMT
The Masque of Mandragora
Classic Who's most sumptuous "historical", with the costume dept. pulling out all the stops, great sets and excellent location filming on the Italian Riviera, North Wales and a script by Renaissance expert Louis Marks which gives the top cast something to get their teeth into and give it (as I believe the term is) 'some welly', with all the belief that actors would give to Shakespeare.
Tom (and Terry Walsh) plays a terrific action Doctor, there's Renaissance scheming and plotting up there with 'The Borgias' and not one but three villains to boo and hiss! And Sarah to be the damsel-in-distress; it's a long way from the Sarah of 'The Time Warrior' or 'Invasion of the Dinosaurs' but she's perfect as always. And there's a robed, chanting, alien-possessed pagan cult - what more could a 'Doctor Who' story need?
It looks great, it's played up to the last full stop of the script and I enjoy it hugely every time!
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Post by bethhigdon on Feb 18, 2024 23:53:21 GMT
Watched Resurrection of the Daleks. This was the first Doctor Who story I ever watched... it and Planet of Fire was what made me a fan of the series, so while not perfect, I can't help be fond of it anyways.
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Post by bonehead on Feb 19, 2024 15:51:15 GMT
Sleep No More.
I think this is where Series 9 of Doctor Who started to stumble a bit for me. The first four two-parters were excellent, what came after not so much. Sleep No More is not bad, just a little too dour, with characters we don't get to know and hoodie monsters that often look a bit silly. There's a good bit of banter between Clara and The Doctor, and Jenna Coleman and Peter Capaldi always spar of each other really well, but most of the rest of the dialogue is fairly perfunctory. Guest star Reece Shearsmith is very good with what he's given, and the ending is effective. As a whole though - middling, I'd say.
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Post by mark687 on Feb 19, 2024 16:08:44 GMT
Sleep No More.
I think this is where Series 9 of Doctor Who started to stumble a bit for me. The first four two-parters were excellent, what came after not so much. Sleep No More is not bad, just a little too dour, with characters we don't get to know and hoodie monsters that often look a bit silly. There's a good bit of banter between Clara and The Doctor, and Jenna Coleman and Peter Capaldi always spar of each other really well, but most of the rest of the dialogue is fairly perfunctory. Guest star Reece Shearsmith is very good with what he's given, and the ending is effective. As a whole though - middling, I'd say.
Yes its odd one isn't it? The angle is to make everything seem flat for the twist but it works too well so it comes across as boring. Regards mark687
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Post by bonehead on Feb 19, 2024 16:30:52 GMT
Sleep No More.
I think this is where Series 9 of Doctor Who started to stumble a bit for me. The first four two-parters were excellent, what came after not so much. Sleep No More is not bad, just a little too dour, with characters we don't get to know and hoodie monsters that often look a bit silly. There's a good bit of banter between Clara and The Doctor, and Jenna Coleman and Peter Capaldi always spar of each other really well, but most of the rest of the dialogue is fairly perfunctory. Guest star Reece Shearsmith is very good with what he's given, and the ending is effective. As a whole though - middling, I'd say.
Yes its odd one isn't it? The angle is to make everything seem flat for the twist but it works too well so it comes across as boring. Regards mark687 Sadly, yes. A 'found footage' Doctor Who episode is a good idea, but it didn't really work.
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Post by number13 on Feb 20, 2024 9:45:05 GMT
The Hand of Fear
An era ends with a fast-changing story that in its first half seems like a return to the Pertwee era (not that I'll complain about that!) with industrial and medical locations, excellent location filming and stunts, a suited Director trying to cope with the Doctor's weird world breaking in on his organisation (Dr. Watson is one of the best of these in classic Who, open-minded and full of courage) and the Doctor using some Venusian aikido and hypnosis - on Sarah. All we needed was a UNIT rapid response team at the power station for the full house!
Then a quick change to Kastria for the almost-finale, done in studio and done well, though personally I prefer the female Eldrad and would have liked her 'evil regeneration' to still essentially be her; great crystalline costume isn't it?
And then the real finale. With the fast turn-over of some modern Companions (and Doctors), it seems amazing that I went through all my school years with just two Doctors and (not counting the sudden crowd as the moment was prepared for Tom's handover ) only four Companions in ten years - plus K9 of course, good dog!. Like Pandax III, they had staying power in those days.
But here, on a street not in South Croydon, after three-and-a-bit seasons, it's good-bye (for the moment) Sarah Jane. You were magnificent!
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Post by fitzoliverj on Feb 21, 2024 19:27:55 GMT
Ghost Light. I'm glad the Doctor and Ace know what's going on, because I'm not sure I do. Does anybody remember if the DVD cut is more comprehensible? (And to think people are demanding another version of this in the form of a Lungbarrow audio!)
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Post by whiskeybrewer on Feb 22, 2024 16:54:28 GMT
Ghost Light. I'm glad the Doctor and Ace know what's going on, because I'm not sure I do. Does anybody remember if the DVD cut is more comprehensible? (And to think people are demanding another version of this in the form of a Lungbarrow audio!) Yes. Yes i am
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Post by bonehead on Feb 22, 2024 18:48:44 GMT
Fury from the Deep.
Spoilers follow for this 56 year-old story.
The first time I experienced this was in the 1990's, when BBC's Radio Collection put it on cassette, with linking narration by (I think) Eric Saward, and it struck me what a genuinely frightening tale it was. Since then, I've also read the novel and listened to David Troughton's audio reading but never (until now) watched the animated episodes. I'm not a massive fan of the animations if I'm honest, despite the huge amounts of work put in, and was worried it might undermine the story. While the animations are mixed (the scenerios are excellent, as are the actor's likenesses - I also like the liberties taken with the retrospective approach) but the body movements are often awkward and sadly comical), but the story remains absolutely excellent. The character of Robson (Victor Maddern) is a true monster, and that's before he's 'influenced' by outside forces, and Victoria's growing disenchantment with her time-travels is nicely done. The growing threat, though, is the most palpable; the relentless sound of a heartbeat in the pipes, the omnipresent, pulsating sea-weed and the growing effects it has on the characters, Robson's systematic breakdown, Maggie's increasingly erratic behaviour ... all these set pieces would have terrified me as a kid. They unnerved me enough the first time I heard them all those years ago.
From the stills I've seen, the animated visuals aren't as terrifying as the original (compare the two versions of Mr Oak and Mr Quill for example), but are effective enough to sell the unease of this beautifully produced tale. It's my favourite Pat Troughton story and, needless to say, he's excellent in it. AND the sonic screwdriver makes its first appearance here.
One of Doctor Who's scariest yarns, I would say.
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Post by number13 on Feb 22, 2024 21:24:24 GMT
The Deadly Assassin
Robert Holmes gives the Time Lords a right old makeover; pretty well everything we now know about them dates from here. (Of course he'd already named their planet and given them two hearts in earlier stories.) Something major needed to happen, right after losing Sarah Jane halfway through a season, and this solo Doctor story with the return of the old enemy fits the bill perfectly.
I know it was controversial at the time with certain fans, but I was too young and the wrong sort of fan to know about all that; I just thought it was a cracking tale and very well made, a mix of in-studio political skulduggery and 'boys own' location adventure, full of great new characters and - the Master!! And I still think the same today, with the 5:1 sound mix on the blu-ray release giving a definite extra lift to the story.
*adopts Borusa voice* 'Mr. Holmes - 10/10'
(Judging by his world-building in the Matrix, Goth had an obvious interest in early 20thC Earth warfare. My fan theory: he was part of the mission to that zone when the War Games were closed down by the Time Lords and never forgot it.)
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Post by bonehead on Feb 22, 2024 22:08:27 GMT
The Deadly Assassin
Robert Holmes gives the Time Lords a right old makeover; pretty well everything we now know about them dates from here. (Of course he'd already named their planet and given them two hearts in earlier stories.) Something major needed to happen, right after losing Sarah Jane halfway through a season, and this solo Doctor story with the return of the old enemy fits the bill perfectly.
I know it was controversial at the time with certain fans, but I was too young and the wrong sort of fan to know about all that; I just thought it was a cracking tale and very well made, a mix of in-studio political skulduggery and 'boys own' location adventure, full of great new characters and - the Master!! And I still think the same today, with the 5:1 sound mix on the blu-ray release giving a definite extra lift to the story.
*adopts Borusa voice* 'Mr. Holmes - 10/10'
(Judging by his world-building in the Matrix, Goth had an obvious interest in early 20thC Earth warfare. My fan theory: he was part of the mission to that zone when the War Games were closed down by the Time Lords and never forgot it.)
As a blood-thirsty little tyke, I can't tell you how disappointed I was as a youngster to find they'd cut the 'drowning' cliffhanger. Ruddy Whitehouse!
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Post by mark687 on Feb 22, 2024 23:46:44 GMT
Fury from the Deep.
Spoilers follow for this 56 year-old story.
The first time I experienced this was in the 1990's, when BBC's Radio Collection put it on cassette, with linking narration by (I think) Eric Saward, and it struck me what a genuinely frightening tale it was. Since then, I've also read the novel and listened to David Troughton's audio reading but never (until now) watched the animated episodes. I'm not a massive fan of the animations if I'm honest, despite the huge amounts of work put in, and was worried it might undermine the story. While the animations are mixed (the scenerios are excellent, as are the actor's likenesses - I also like the liberties taken with the retrospective approach) but the body movements are often awkward and sadly comical), but the story remains absolutely excellent. The character of Robson (Victor Maddern) is a true monster, and that's before he's 'influenced' by outside forces, and Victoria's growing disenchantment with her time-travels is nicely done. The growing threat, though, is the most palpable; the relentless sound of a heartbeat in the pipes, the omnipresent, pulsating sea-weed and the growing effects it has on the characters, Robson's systematic breakdown, Maggie's increasingly erratic behaviour ... all these set pieces would have terrified me as a kid. They unnerved me enough the first time I heard them all those years ago.
From the stills I've seen, the animated visuals aren't as terrifying as the original (compare the two versions of Mr Oak and Mr Quill for example), but are effective enough to sell the unease of this beautifully produced tale. It's my favourite Pat Troughton story and, needless to say, he's excellent in it. AND the sonic screwdriver makes its first appearance here.
One of Doctor Who's scariest yarns, I would say.
Mine had it with Tom reading in character Agree with on the chill/thrill factor, its also IMO. one of the most subtle, detailed, and emotional maturely reasoned and delivered Companion Departure story. Regards mark687
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Post by bonehead on Feb 23, 2024 0:16:44 GMT
Fury from the Deep.
Spoilers follow for this 56 year-old story.
The first time I experienced this was in the 1990's, when BBC's Radio Collection put it on cassette, with linking narration by (I think) Eric Saward, and it struck me what a genuinely frightening tale it was. Since then, I've also read the novel and listened to David Troughton's audio reading but never (until now) watched the animated episodes. I'm not a massive fan of the animations if I'm honest, despite the huge amounts of work put in, and was worried it might undermine the story. While the animations are mixed (the scenerios are excellent, as are the actor's likenesses - I also like the liberties taken with the retrospective approach) but the body movements are often awkward and sadly comical), but the story remains absolutely excellent. The character of Robson (Victor Maddern) is a true monster, and that's before he's 'influenced' by outside forces, and Victoria's growing disenchantment with her time-travels is nicely done. The growing threat, though, is the most palpable; the relentless sound of a heartbeat in the pipes, the omnipresent, pulsating sea-weed and the growing effects it has on the characters, Robson's systematic breakdown, Maggie's increasingly erratic behaviour ... all these set pieces would have terrified me as a kid. They unnerved me enough the first time I heard them all those years ago.
From the stills I've seen, the animated visuals aren't as terrifying as the original (compare the two versions of Mr Oak and Mr Quill for example), but are effective enough to sell the unease of this beautifully produced tale. It's my favourite Pat Troughton story and, needless to say, he's excellent in it. AND the sonic screwdriver makes its first appearance here.
One of Doctor Who's scariest yarns, I would say.
Mine had it with Tom reading in character Agree with on the chill/thrill factor, its also IMO. one of the most subtle, detailed, and emotional maturely reasoned and delivered Companion Departure story. Regards mark687 Yes Tom was the narrator followed by, I think, Frazer Hines in the updated version. It was a pleasure hearing Tom, who at that time had distanced himself from Doctor Who a bit, but odd in a way. One line he had in his narration, I remember, was 'with the savagery of a Tereleptil's hunting knife' (or something like that). Strange to hear him referencing other Doctor's stories, although thanks to Big Finish, we're much more used to that kind of thing now. Great memories! 😁
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Post by number13 on Feb 23, 2024 9:20:56 GMT
The Deadly Assassin
Robert Holmes gives the Time Lords a right old makeover; pretty well everything we now know about them dates from here. (Of course he'd already named their planet and given them two hearts in earlier stories.) Something major needed to happen, right after losing Sarah Jane halfway through a season, and this solo Doctor story with the return of the old enemy fits the bill perfectly.
I know it was controversial at the time with certain fans, but I was too young and the wrong sort of fan to know about all that; I just thought it was a cracking tale and very well made, a mix of in-studio political skulduggery and 'boys own' location adventure, full of great new characters and - the Master!! And I still think the same today, with the 5:1 sound mix on the blu-ray release giving a definite extra lift to the story.
*adopts Borusa voice* 'Mr. Holmes - 10/10'
(Judging by his world-building in the Matrix, Goth had an obvious interest in early 20thC Earth warfare. My fan theory: he was part of the mission to that zone when the War Games were closed down by the Time Lords and never forgot it.)
As a blood-thirsty little tyke, I can't tell you how disappointed I was as a youngster to find they'd cut the 'drowning' cliffhanger. Ruddy Whitehouse! I saw the original broadcast and remember it vividly! And Dad turned to me and said 'How's he going to get out of this one then?' I was confident - he's the Doctor and the Doctor always gets out of it!
(Dad usually watched 'Doctor Who' with me, even though he wasn't keen on fiction in general he enjoyed the style of my favourite show and the Hinchcliffe/Holmes years especially. I think the stories reminded him of the Saturday matinee serials of his youth, quite a few of those were science fiction of course. 'Flash Gordon' is the famous one and ran for ever, much like the Doctor's adventures, but there were others too. It wasn't all "Cowboys and Indians", "Biggles Thumps Another German" and "Through the Jungle in Pith-Helmets" on the big screen back then. )
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Post by bonehead on Feb 23, 2024 10:24:50 GMT
As a blood-thirsty little tyke, I can't tell you how disappointed I was as a youngster to find they'd cut the 'drowning' cliffhanger. Ruddy Whitehouse! I saw the original broadcast and remember it vividly! And Dad turned to me and said 'How's he going to get out of this one then?' I was confident - he's the Doctor and the Doctor always gets out of it!
(Dad usually watched 'Doctor Who' with me, even though he wasn't keen on fiction in general he enjoyed the style of my favourite show and the Hinchcliffe/Holmes years especially. I think the stories reminded him of the Saturday matinee serials of his youth, quite a few of those were science fiction of course. 'Flash Gordon' is the famous one and ran for ever, much like the Doctor's adventures, but there were others too. It wasn't all "Cowboys and Indians", "Biggles Thumps Another German" and "Through the Jungle in Pith-Helmets" on the big screen back then. ) That's a great memory. There's something about watching with others isn't there? I had a bit of a get-together with friends when the show came back in 2005 with 'Rose'. Luckily we all loved it! An experience shared and all that ...
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Post by ollychops on Feb 23, 2024 13:12:17 GMT
Currently on Episode 4 of The Wheel in Space. Not even the Cybermen can save this one…
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Post by number13 on Feb 25, 2024 9:42:01 GMT
The Face of Evil
A clever script, an excellent studio jungle and an amazing new Companion. I like the mix of adventure story, allegory and psychological themes and as always in this era, the production standards are high.
But from the moment the Doctor offers that first jellybaby, this is mostly a terrific introduction to the knife-wielding, instinctive and very intelligent huntress who was about to burst into TARDIS life unlike anyone we'd ever seen before. It's worth remembering that the Doctor didn't choose to take his 'Eliza Doolittle' on board; like the original Eliza, she invited herself because she wanted to experience more.
In obvious ways, Leela is very different to all other Companions, but in others she's part of an established pattern. Some writers may not always have remembered their characters as well as others did, but Leela's three predecessors were the most brilliant scientific all-rounder in the country, a fully qualified and adventure-seeking UNIT agent and a freelance investigative journalist. And Leela's successor was the future Lord President of Gallifrey!
The Companions (Jo was the only actual Assistant, with the UNIT job title and salary to prove it!) of the 1970s were a talented and independent lot and combined with imo the best two Classic Doctors and the best production teams, they made for a wonderful time to grow up with 'Doctor Who'!
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Post by timleschild on Feb 25, 2024 10:19:14 GMT
The Invasion
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Post by number13 on Feb 26, 2024 9:24:06 GMT
The Face of Evil
A clever script, an excellent studio jungle and an amazing new Companion. I like the mix of adventure story, allegory and psychological themes and as always in this era, the production standards are high.
But from the moment the Doctor offers that first jellybaby, this is mostly a terrific introduction to the knife-wielding, instinctive and very intelligent huntress who was about to burst into TARDIS life unlike anyone we'd ever seen before. It's worth remembering that the Doctor didn't choose to take his 'Eliza Doolittle' on board; like the original Eliza, she invited herself because she wanted to experience more.
In obvious ways, Leela is very different to all other Companions, but in others she's part of an established pattern. Some writers may not always have remembered their characters as well as others did, but Leela's three predecessors were the most brilliant scientific all-rounder in the country, a fully qualified and adventure-seeking UNIT agent and a freelance investigative journalist. And Leela's successor was the future Lord President of Gallifrey!
The Companions (Jo was the only actual Assistant, with the UNIT job title and salary to prove it!) of the 1970s were a talented and independent lot and combined with imo the best two Classic Doctors and the best production teams, they made for a wonderful time to grow up with 'Doctor Who'!
P.S. I haven't forgotten Harry Sullivan! Yes a 70s Companion but also one of the chaps from UNIT and like the rest of them, made of sterling stuff and a credit to his service, his country and his planet.
'I say, jolly good! Just doing my bit you know.'
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Post by bethhigdon on Feb 27, 2024 14:36:26 GMT
re-watched Seeds of Doom, where Troughton faces off against his greatest enemy... Foam!
It's perfectly average Who, but it has the bonus of actually existing.
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