Doctor Who'ing

Beth, Wes and I had another wonderful day continuing our marathon viewing of Doctor Who from the beginning. This time we watched "The Crusade", "The Space Museum" and "The Chase".

During "The Crusade", it was again lamented that the series doesn't take the chance of making historical stories anymore. Wes appreciated how the four time travelers were handled, and Beth and I commented on the rich depth of David Whitaker's Shakespearean script. Wes found it hard to believe anyone would mistake Vicki for a boy. Just wait till we reach "The Smugglers"! How any of those pirates could mistake Polly of all the female companions for a lad beggars belief.

"The Space Museum" was appreciated for its doing something different with time, and for the dilemma the Doctor and his companions faced. Vicki was again praised for being far more pro-active than Susan could ever hope to be. Beth and Wes were pleasantly surprised by a young Jeremy Bulloch (the future Boba Fett) appearing. The Moroks' badger-style hair produced a laugh, as did the fact that the planet Xeros seemed to be populated by twinks!

Of the three stories, I think "The Chase" was enjoyed the most. The opening sequence with the time/space visualizer was singled out as being particularly good. We couldn't help but draw comparisons to the different locations used throughout the story with those in Star Wars: Aridius (Tatooine), Mechanus (Dagobah), and the Mechanoid City (Cloud City)! Beth really liked the vignettes set in those myriad times and places, and she grew fond of Steven Taylor despite his brief appearance. She was happy when I hinted he just might have been able to slip inside the TARDIS.

Beth was also glad that Ian and Barbara had a nice send off. It always brings a lump to my throat watching the two schoolteachers part company with the Doctor who, after 16 stories, grew fond of these interlopers to the point where he didn't want them to go.

After "The Time Meddler" next time, we'll be heading into reconstruction madness. With so many episodes missing from Season 3, I hope it won't be too tough on my awesome friends.

Point of Entry

As I finally get a chance to catch up on the first series of Doctor Who Lost Stories audio dramas, I thought I'd take the opportunity to share my thoughts on them. When the series was first announced, I was incredibly excited as exploring the scripts that would have been produced if Doctor Who hadn't been forced into hiatus back in 1985 is something I've wanted Big Finish Productions to do from the start.

Point of Entry is an oddity as it was never fully commissioned, but was a fruitless unsolicited submission. As a result, it feels more like an original play than a bona fide Lost Story. It is easy to understand why Point of Entry never moved past a pitch. There's simply no way a script this dark and borderline disturbing would have ever been produced. How much of that originates from Barbara Clegg or Marc Platt is up for debate.

The adventure itself has a wonderful sense of atmosphere and a nice pace, despite the two episodes running over an hour each. Both the Doctor and Peri are given a nice slice of the action, with Nicola Bryant's performance as Peri masquerades as the queen a definite highlight. Using a demonic villain and connecting it with Kit Marlowe's Dr Fautus was inspired.

I applaud Big Finish for taking a chance and developing this unsuccessful pitch from the Eighties. As it turned out, Point of Entry was quite a gem.

The Five Companions

This excites me more than it decently should! The Fifth Doctor and Nyssa encountering four of William Hartnell's companions in a new audio drama which is touted as being "a really affectionate tribute to the era of the First Doctor".

Pictured are (from left to right): Anneke Wills (Polly Wright), William Russell (Ian Chesterton), Jean Marsh (Sara Kingdom), Peter Purves (Steven Taylor), and Sarah Sutton (Nyssa).

Prison in Space

A wonderful release! Of all the unmade Doctor Who stories, "Prison in Space" came the closest to actually making it into production. In fact, it was only a few weeks away from going in front of the cameras before it was dropped at the last minute.

The story is a genuinely amusing one, and the references to gender politics are definitely of their time - even the Doctor is not above making the odd caustic remark. The tiny cast is used really very well and are tremendously good. I loved hearing Frazer Hines and Wendy Padbury performing together again, as well as Frazer's brilliant and astonishing Patrick Troughton impersonation (you honestly believe you're hearing the Second Doctor!), and there's a good pace and rhythm to this serial.

Nice sound design and incidental music too, reminiscent to Don Harper's excellent score for "The Invasion".

If the script had reached TV screens, I don't think it would have aged well. The women subjugating men backbone of the story wouldn't go over too well when viewed today. But, taken as a bit of intentional comedy, there's a lot of fun to be had.

The Four Doctors

I was really looking forward to hearing this one. After all, you've got Doctors Five, Six, Seven and Eight in an adventure with the Daleks... What could possibly go wrong? Well, it's all a bit boring. The Doctors are in their own time zones doing things, while the Daleks rant and rave. Honestly, Nick Briggs' Dalek voices were so LOUD that it ended up giving me a headache. It brought back memories of the excessively noisy Sixth Doctor audio play "The Apocalypse Element".

Disappointing.

South Park Top 15

Doctor Who'ing

Continuing our marathon viewing of Doctor Who from the beginning, Beth, Wes and I tackled "The Rescue", "The Romans", and "The Web Planet" this month. Of the three stories, "The Romans" (one of my personal favorites) was the biggest hit. The historical romp in Ancient Rome was thoroughly enjoyed not only for its humor, but also for the way in which the plot gave all four time travelers a nice slice of the action. Beth and Wes have noted several times throughout our journey through the series what a shame that there aren't historical stories in the New Series. Also, their disappointment over how today's companions almost never dress up in costumes from other times and places.

I was a little worried about showing "The Web Planet", as it is almost universally hated by fandom. But, I was pleasantly surprised to see how much Beth and Wes enjoyed it. Although they both agreed that it was slow in spots and could have used better pacing, they both noted and appreciated the story's ambition and imagination, and we all agreed that it probably could have been something special in a more capable director's hands. The costumes for the Menoptra, while campy, were praised, as well as the insect choreography.

New companion Vicki, and Maureen O'Brien's performance,
were also a hit. Poor Carole Ann Ford did the best with the material and direction she was given, but overall Susan was a disappointment for my friends. Wes rightly observing that her main function seemed to only be to get hysterical and twist her ankle. Vicki, on the other hand, has had more thought put into her character. She's fun, pro-active, feisty, and actually has a much warmer relationship with Hartnell's Doctor than with his own granddaughter! As much as I adore Ian and Barbara, Vicki has always been my favorite First Doctor companion. And I was so pleased that Beth and Wes liked her, too.