Stories You've Watched Recently

[Bones2]

Thought this might be a fun topic. Being DW fans, I imagine we all watch past stories from time to time, so here we can discuss/review any episodes you've watched recently, either new Who or old Who, so long as it's from before the series currently airing. Could be fun, like. I've watched quite a few stories of late (within the past month or two...or three), so...


The Mind Robber - I remember thinking this was fantastic when I watched this as a child on UK Gold. I perhaps don't rate it quite as highly now, but it's still fun and quite bonkers. 3.5 or perhaps a kind 4 out of 5 I think.

Doctor Who and the Silurians - Complete classic. Gave it my first rewatch in a very long time (because of Hungry Earth/Cold Blood being on) and it's possibly my second favourite DW story ever after Caves of Androzani. If you've never seen it, I definitely advise watching it. *****

Inferno - Another highly regarded story from season 7. For me it suffers from being a bit overlong, but it's still a great story. Probably 4 out of 5.

The Sea Devils - Essentially a retread of The Silurians, but it's fun all the same. The Sea Devils were a great design (good enough to use in the Eleventh Hour montage), and there's some great stuff with the Master too. A strong ****.

The Talons of Weng-Chiang - As with Inferno, it's very highly regarded. It's got a good atmosphere, and is intriguing enough. Not quite the full 5 for me, but 4 certainly.

Horror of Fang Rock - Fairly good, but it drags a little bit. 3, maybe 3.5

Warriors of the Deep - Gave this another watch because of HE/CB as well. It's got a poor reputation, but I think it's better than many say. The Silurians look good as do the Seabase sets, and though the Myrka is a case of a good idea perhaps not all that well realised, I think there was a decent sense of menace as it broke through the doors. On the downside, it may seem to remove the ambiguity from the Silurians and Sea Devils, but then twice they'd been killed for trying to make peace with humans. No classic, but it gets 2.5 or maybe 3. There are worse Davo clunkers.

Enlightenment - I'm not hugely fond of the Davison era, but this is certainly one of its stronger offerings. Eternals racing sailing ships in space? Good stuff. 3.5 or probably 4.

Revelation of the Daleks - My favourite story from my favourite Doctor, and my favourite Dalek story. There's some genuine gruesomeness in there too. Not far behind Andronzani and The Silurians in my esteem, and probably the most underated DW story in my view. *****

Remembrance of the Daleks - Probably my second favourite Dalek story. Very entertaining (if fanwanky), it's another genuine classic and perhaps McCoy's best story. *****


Strong scores mostly, but then I guess I'd be more likely to rewatch stories I remember as good. Do chime in with your recent watches or opinions.

 

[Admiral_Young]

I just started watching "The Trial of a Time Lord" online...Colin Baker is one of my least favorite Doctor's but am kind of enjoying him in this.

 

[Starkers]

Last non current Who I watched was Caves of Andozani, which was of course bloody brilliant. Seriously the only thing wrong with that story is the magma monster...even losing my Doctor was worth it cos he got a fantastic end.

Before that Gridlock, which was ok. Not nearly as good as I remembered it.

Before that it was The War Games which was really good, if a little sad as it was the last full Troughton I'd ever seen.

Can't recall before that.

Bones, re Warriors of the Deep it should have been a classic. As lots of people have said the major problem is the lighting, it's all so bright and sterile, if they'd just made it darker it would have been so much better. The Silurians look a little stilted, and much as I love Sea Devils they aren't well treated here. Half of their heads don't seem to be fitted on correctly meaning they loll to one side of the other and they look like a bunch of shuffling zombie Sea Devils (which would have made quite a good explanation if it'd been used.) I think the Myrka is unfairly disparaged and again turn the lights down a bit and it works better.

God knows who's idea it was for Ingrid Pitt to try and kick it to death though

I remember the first time I saw Inferno it felt really long and plodding, but with subsequent viewings it really is a cracker.

Haven't seen the Pertwee silurian/Sea Devil series in such a logn time, same for Colin vs the Daleks, but I agree with all your others ratings with the exception of Fang Rock, I love that story.

 

[HappyDayRiot]

I also watched Enlightment for the first time recently, following the thread on here about it. I love the Ffith Doctor and I agree this was a very good episode for him.

 

[Starkers]

Its such a wonderful notion, sailing ships in space. And the Eternals were a great creation.

 

[Silent_Bob]

I haven't been watching per se, but i've just finished listening to 'The Scapegoat', an 8th Doctor Audio. The more i listen to the audio dramas the more i wish McGann had had more time on screen. He really made an excellent Doctor.

 

[Admiral_Young]

I watched "Caves of Andozani" prior to "End of Time" and thought it was a fantastic finish for my favorite of the classic Doctors! I cried out no Tristan!!!! (All Creatures Great and Small fans should get that).

 

[Worf2DS9]

The last story I watched was "The Aztecs", which was my introduction to the First Doctor and his companions. I have to say I enjoyed it quite a bit. I liked the mischievous humour in Hartnell's performance and I can see why the show in its infancy was educational as well, what with all the info about the titular society put forth throughout the serial. Carole Ann Ford seems older than Susan is supposed to be, though, which was a little weird, but otherwise it was fun to finally get to see this Doctor after so many years!

The more i listen to the audio dramas the more i wish McGann had had more time on screen. He really made an excellent Doctor.

Agreed! Every time I listen to one of Eight's audios, I long for another TV appearance of some sort. I can't say I've warmed to the post-Charley TV-series-like one-hour format they adopted for these audios (I'm up to "Human Resources"), but regardless, McGann continues to prove why he's one of the one of the best Doctors around!

 

[Bones2]

Bones, re Warriors of the Deep it should have been a classic. As lots of people have said the major problem is the lighting, it's all so bright and sterile, if they'd just made it darker it would have been so much better. The Silurians look a little stilted, and much as I love Sea Devils they aren't well treated here. Half of their heads don't seem to be fitted on correctly meaning they loll to one side of the other and they look like a bunch of shuffling zombie Sea Devils (which would have made quite a good explanation if it'd been used.) I think the Myrka is unfairly disparaged and again turn the lights down a bit and it works better.

God knows who's idea it was for Ingrid Pitt to try and kick it to death though

I'd say it's lit exactly how I'd expect a Seabase to be lit, but I'd agree it does no favours to the shortcomings in the production. The Silurians stand up pretty well I think, but less so the Sea Devils and the Myrka. But I'm usually more willing to forgive some wobbly monsters for the sake of a good story well told, and it doesn't quite stand up on that level. The cliffhanger of part 1 has Turlough saying "forget it Teagan, he's drowned" or whatever it is after the Doctor's been submerged for no more than 5 seconds, "what HAVE you been eating?" is a complete facepalm, and the bit where the Sea Devil gets his face melted by shooting at that cylinder (while enjoyably gruesome) is a bit daft. Still, I don't think it's as bad as its reputation suggests, but you're right, it could have and should have been a classic.

On the subject of an episode with potential that doesn't deliver, I watched Image of the Fendahl yesterday. There's some good ideas in there, but it's a bit of a snore. 2 or 2.5 at best.

 

[Psion]

Original Who usually reminds me of a filmed play performed by a group of enthusiastic and sometimes even talented performers, but woefully underfunded. Had no one conceived of it in the 1960s, it would be the perfect formula for an ongoing, low-budget Internet series. From wobbly sets to silly monsters, the production distances itself from believability every chance it gets.

But as Bones says, I'm willing to forgive all of that if the story is good.

Just last night, I finally had a chance to view "An Unearthly Child". I was amazed at how well it held up against the ensuing decades of continuity. I don't recall anything that explicitly contradicted the show we came to know and love. This tells me the various productions have had little reason to adjust the original premise -- and thus, the show's creators did their jobs well.

The hairs on the back of my neck stood up when Susan's teacher told her the United States has a decimal currency, but Britain does not and Susan responded, "Oh of course, that's because it hasn't happened yet." She was right ... that was still eight years in the future when the episode was filmed! I love when sci-fi shows bulls-eye stuff like that!

I was also amused by the mention of "John Smith and the Common Men". There are story possibilities lurking behind that one!

Carol Ann Ford fascinated me. She wasn't a particularly good actress, but she still pulled off an otherworldly mystique. A bit awkward and not especially beautiful, something about the way she carried herself really lent to the idea she wasn't human.

William Russell and Jacqueline Hill both turned in earnest, but not very brilliant performances. They worked in their roles, and helped advance the story, but anyone could have done their jobs. The character of Ian Chesterton seemed more than a bit pushy and I thought he got himself and Barbara exactly what they deserved when the Doctor abducted them.

Hartnell himself was great. I was a bit put off by what looked like stage acting instead of television acting, but I loved watching him breathe first life into the Doctor. Oddly, several scenes looked more like they came out of the thirties than the sixties; I wonder if there were any early Hollywood influences on the show.

There was one contradiction to later continuity: not only was the TARDIS a rough ride, it also appeared to incapacitate passengers. Barbara and Ian passed out, and the Doctor himself looked a little dazed by the time they landed. The trip was very reminiscent of the time warp sequence from Star Trek IV: The Voyage Home.

I'm probably going to show the episode before "The Big Bang" this Saturday. Both wife and son might find it interesting, but dramatic sensibilities have changed significantly since those episodes aired.

 

[Stevil2001]

I haven't been watching per se, but i've just finished listening to 'The Scapegoat', an 8th Doctor Audio. The more i listen to the audio dramas the more i wish McGann had had more time on screen. He really made an excellent Doctor.

Oh, I love The Scapegoat. I downloaded it from Big Finish and went into it so cold I didn't know the title (I'd forgot by the time I started listening) and I was blown away by its off-the-wall brilliance. The best of that season, to be sure.

 

[Captain Pike]

The classic Who release for June here in Aus was the Myths & Legends boxset, and this would constitute my most recent viewing of the old show.

I am firmly of the opinion that all 3 of these stories are much better than their reputations would suggest.

The Time Monster - This is one of the few stories which, up until this release, I had not owned in any form. It's also not easily available online - when I searched a few years ago for a torrent of it I could find none, and it's incomplete on youtube (I think they have parts 1 & 2 only). My memories of this one were that it was a poor story - I can remember disliking this one in my youth and not being particularly excited during ABC's broadcast of the entire classic run a few years ago. So I was very pleasantly surprised to find out that I had misjudged it. It's really not that bad a story; it has some unique concepts, fairly good direction and good performances. Kronos looks absurd, as always, but if you can overlook that it's pretty good. The doctor improvising his 'temporal disruptor' thingy from a bottle cork and some kitchen utensils foreshadows some of the gadgets the doctor comes up with in the new show. I also liked that parts 5 & 6 take place almost entirely in Atlantis - it provides the dog-leg in plot needed to sustain a 6 parter and keeps you interested. It's good to see the Master have companions, and here the high priest of Atlantis fills this role admirably. Finally, the knockers on the queen of Atlantis were enough to make my eyes pop! The story is not without it's problems, but much better than I had feared - 3 out of 5

Underworld - I've always had a soft spot for this and Nimon. I love the use of the Argonaut story in a sci fi setting. The Minyans themselves are rather important in the scheme of Time Lord history in general, and this is their only appearance in the entire series. I maintain that this story is actually rather well written, and many of the special effects (particularly the model work) are very good for it's time. The Doctor is at his wackiest here, and I know that puts some people off, but I quite like him like that. The use of CSO was perhaps too ambitious for it's time - I believe this was one of the first shows to rely on this level of blue screen acting ever. It doesn't quite work - it would be decades before the technology would catch up to the point where this was really feasable, and here they were working on a shoestring budget as always. If you can look past these shortcomings, this is really quite a good story. 3 out of 5.

The Horns of Nimon - I'm one of the few (some might say 'special') people who hold this story in high regard. Yes, I know it's full of actors hamming it up and overtly over-the-top characters, but for me these are the jewels in the crown of this story. Like Underworld (and to a lesser extent, The Time Monster) this story owes much to Greek myth, in this case the legend of Theseus & The Minotaur. I like the way the labyrinth in this case is essentially an integrated circuit (though the special effects dept did not help to make this as clear an analogy as it should have been), and the idea of a black hole as a wormhole used by the Nimon to invade worlds from an altogether distant galaxy is bold and appealing. The Nimon costumes are somewhat unconvincing, but combined with the excellent voice work their presence is imposing, and dare I say it, actually quite frightening to children. The dialogue is witty, yet never once seems forced and sometimes I have to wonder how much of it is due to Douglas Adams being on the floor as the script editor. Certainly things like the co-pilot regularly calling his cargo 'Weakling scum!' every single time he checks on them I think are due to his presence. The character of Soldeed is an unqualified success, and Crowden's performance is truely inspired. Yes it's often over the top, but I feel in a good way. Every time he fawns before the Nimon is golden, but even this is eclipsed when he looses his grip on reality (once he sees more than one Nimon) at which point he goes completely OTT and his death scene is one of the best and most hilarious in the history of the programme. On the negative side, some of the direction is a bit off, and David Brierly is no substite for John Leeson as the voice of K9. 4 out of 5.

Oh and letting John Levene do commentaries has had some rather hysterical results. I don't think I've ever heard someone who's only fame is as a bit part actor go on (and on) quite so seriously as if he was Laurence freaking Olivier. Seriously. Well, okay, maybe Matthew Waterhouse. But Benton is in a whole other league. And he's like an old woman. It's hilarious (and a little bit sad at the same time).

 

[Starkers]

Bones, re Warriors of the Deep it should have been a classic. As lots of people have said the major problem is the lighting, it's all so bright and sterile, if they'd just made it darker it would have been so much better. The Silurians look a little stilted, and much as I love Sea Devils they aren't well treated here. Half of their heads don't seem to be fitted on correctly meaning they loll to one side of the other and they look like a bunch of shuffling zombie Sea Devils (which would have made quite a good explanation if it'd been used.) I think the Myrka is unfairly disparaged and again turn the lights down a bit and it works better.

God knows who's idea it was for Ingrid Pitt to try and kick it to death though

I'd say it's lit exactly how I'd expect a Seabase to be lit, but I'd agree it does no favours to the shortcomings in the production. The Silurians stand up pretty well I think, but less so the Sea Devils and the Myrka. But I'm usually more willing to forgive some wobbly monsters for the sake of a good story well told, and it doesn't quite stand up on that level. The cliffhanger of part 1 has Turlough saying "forget it Teagan, he's drowned" or whatever it is after the Doctor's been submerged for no more than 5 seconds, "what HAVE you been eating?" is a complete facepalm, and the bit where the Sea Devil gets his face melted by shooting at that cylinder (while enjoyably gruesome) is a bit daft. Still, I don't think it's as bad as its reputation suggests, but you're right, it could have and should have been a classic.

Its a shame, because I love base under seige stories, Davison is my Doctor, Tegan one of my all time favourite companions (and Turlough's good as well). I also like the Cold war setting and the story. And it isn't even the budget that's the problem its how they used the budget.

 

[Bones2]

I woke up far too early this morning, so I used that spare time to give Mawdryn Undead a watch. Hadn't seen it for years. It's...well, it's a tricky one. I like the concept a lot; it's one of the cleverer ideas of the era. It tries to do a bit about time travel and some gory weirdos who stole from the Time Lords but suffer horribly for it. It's always nice to see the Brigadier crop up post-UNIT, and it introduces Turlough who's one of the better companions of the era. On the downside, the resolution is a complete deus ex machina, and I'm not that interested in seeing the Black Guardian again. Still, a solid 3.5 I think. Another of the better Davoes.

 

[Captain Pike]

Spaghetti heads..

 

[Bones2]

Yeah. Though I'll admit the cliffhanger when he turns round and the episode ends is briefly startling. So's the bit later when the camera goes back to Nyssa and Tegan and they're mutating horribly. Turning into children...less efffective.

 

[Orcus]

I woke up far too early this morning, so I used that spare time to give Mawdryn Undead a watch. Hadn't seen it for years. It's...well, it's a tricky one. I like the concept a lot; it's one of the cleverer ideas of the era. It tries to do a bit about time travel and some gory weirdos who stole from the Time Lords but suffer horribly for it. It's always nice to see the Brigadier crop up post-UNIT, and it introduces Turlough who's one of the better companions of the era. On the downside, the resolution is a complete deus ex machina, and I'm not that interested in seeing the Black Guardian again. Still, a solid 3.5 I think. Another of the better Davoes.

Yep - I haven't seen this one for a few years either but remember it as being one of the very best of Davo's offerings. This is Peter Grimwade's finest script for the series, I think - even with the deus ex machina (which isn't one, really).

 

[The Sonic Mole]

I just finished watching Attack Of The Cybermen. It's not as bad as many people make out, but the fact that the Cybermen are barely audible is very annoying!

 

[Bones2]

I've always quite liked Attack. Possibly rate it over Earthshock (which, of course, has an episode of buggering around in caves a little pointlessly). Lots of good stuff in there, and the Sixth Doctor is rather wonderful. Might make that the next Who I watch (that or, err, The Impossible Planet).

 

[The Sonic Mole]

I think it gets criticed a lot for being inpenetrable to those who aren't deeply entrenched in the series - there are A LOT of references in there. From a personal point of view I found the constant stream of references good fun. I also enjoyed what is relatively gritty material. For example the bit with Lytton, half converted to Cyberman, begging the Doctor to kill him is truly chilling!