Last Classic Who Story you watched

[Mr Awe]

Been watching the Classic season 10 blu ray which I got about a week ago. Working my way through Pertwee's fourth season. I've seen each of these stories multiple times so none of them are new. Pertwee's era has a nice consistent, comfortable quality level that I always enjoy.

Quick takes up to where I'm at:

The Three Doctors: The story isn't the strong but the interactions between Troughton and Hartnell really make the story. I also enjoyed both The Brigadier and Benton with their different reactions to see Troughton again. Several nice continuity touches there too--even down to Benton's promotion. While Omega's story wasn't particularly strong, it was nice early effort at expanding the Time Lord lore.

Carnival of Monsters: I always enjoy this story, although the ending is so weak that I never quite remember how it ends while I'm rewatching it! Holmes really nails the Doctor/Jo relationship. There's great banter throughout. The idea of being in a machine like that is just fun. I also enjoyed how Holmes drew us into the planetary politics using just a couple of characters.

Frontier in Space: I'm currently half way through this story. There's several sprawling human space empire type stories during Pertwee's era. Colony in Space, Mutants, and Frontier come to mind. I always have a soft spot for them--probably more than the typical fan. Definitely more than most for Mutants, which I love but most don't! Frontier is knocked I think because it's a bit talky and they spend so much time getting shuffled from one cell to the next! But, I enjoy it. By this point, they've got the relationship between Jo and the Doctor down and it's fun. And, you get a perspective of the galactic situation, Earth's internal politics and with both its colonies and the Draconians, but more from someone who is accidentally involved in it rather than the typical DW story. Then, throw in the Master and the banter really begins.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

I always loved The Three Doctors. Its got mythbuilding that isn't overreaching and is easy to follow for casual fans, even. And without a doubt, Baker & Martin's best-ever effort, although I suspect Dicks ghost-rewrote it before production took place anyway.

 

[Mr Awe]

There was definitely some re-writing because they had to reduce Hartnell's screen time due to his illness. And, rewrote Jaime to be Benton instead. Not sure if that was Dicks, but I wouldn't be surprised.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

Honestly, the only part I disliked about that serial is the Brig's amok response to seeing the Second Doctor, as he comes off as a distinctly idiotic person who never interacted with the Doctor a lot of times. However, it is hilarious to see him rationalize this, so I dunno.

 

[Christopher]

Honestly, the only part I disliked about that serial is the Brig's amok response to seeing the Second Doctor, as he comes off as a distinctly idiotic person who never interacted with the Doctor a lot of times. However, it is hilarious to see him rationalize this, so I dunno.

Well, I'd hardly call it "amok" (frenzied, violent), just confused and stubborn. And to be fair, prior to "The Three Doctors," Lethbridge-Stewart's experiences with the Doctor had been in strictly chronological order, so this was his first direct experience with meeting the Doctor out of sequence -- and only his second direct encounter with a time-travel event, immediately after "The Time Monster." (He wasn't really directly involved in the time travel elements of "Day of the Daleks.") Being told that the Doctor is a time traveler is one thing, experiencing it is another.

 

[Redfern]

Yup, by the events of "The Five Doctors", the Brigadier pretty much takes it in stride when Troughton's Doctor enters the office to congratulate him. So, he finally "got it", eventually.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

I just find his overall reaction wildly exaggerated. Especially compared to Benton, who's far more together in the same situation.

 

[Mr Awe]

I just find his overall reaction wildly exaggerated. Especially compared to Benton, who's far more together in the same situation.

I think it was mainly played for laughs. But, it kind of makes sense too. The Brigadier briefly met Troughton. Then this other guy shows up who looks different, but has the same name and does similar things. The Brigadier also isn't the most imaginative persons. From his point of view, they might as well be different people. Or, his face changed back. At the very least, those are simpler explanations for him to handle.

Additionally, in that era, the Brigadier was often presented as a kind of ridiculous, simplistic figure. Always blindly wanting to use the simple but ineffective methods, such as bombing, shooting, etc. It's consistent characterization.

 

[Turtletrekker]

The Three Doctors was my introduction to Patrick Troughton, who went on to become my favorite Doctor.

It was also my introduction to the Brigadier, who came off as a bit of a dolt in this serial, but I grew to like him eventually.

 

[Christopher]

I just find his overall reaction wildly exaggerated. Especially compared to Benton, who's far more together in the same situation.

The paradoxical thing about the Brigadier, I've always thought, is that he's basically your classic officious, unimaginative, bureaucratic martinet, but he's the one character of that type that we -- and the Doctor -- actually like. He's got all those unfortunate traits, yet has enough decency and competence alongside them that it negates them. Plus, of course, 90% of what makes him likeable is Nicholas Courtney's charisma.

So while we may want to root for the Brig, the fact of the matter is that sometimes his mindset is just not going to be where we want it to be, or at least he'll need to do a fair amount of work to get there.

Besides, the contrast between the reactions of the Brig and Benton, in both "The Time Monster" and "The Three Doctors," is what's so great about the stories. The Brig's the high-ranking career officer, but it's this lowly enlisted guy who's eight steps ahead of him in figuring things out. The interplay between them is great fun. It wouldn't work if the Brig were on the same page as Benton and everyone else.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

The paradoxical thing about the Brigadier, I've always thought, is that he's basically your classic officious, unimaginative, bureaucratic martinet, but he's the one character of that type that we -- and the Doctor -- actually like. He's got all those unfortunate traits, yet has enough decency and competence alongside them that it negates them. Plus, of course, 90% of what makes him likeable is Nicholas Courtney's charisma.

So while we may want to root for the Brig, the fact of the matter is that sometimes his mindset is just not going to be where we want it to be, or at least he'll need to do a fair amount of work to get there.

Besides, the contrast between the reactions of the Brig and Benton, in both "The Time Monster" and "The Three Doctors," is what's so great about the stories. The Brig's the high-ranking career officer, but it's this lowly enlisted guy who's eight steps ahead of him in figuring things out. The interplay between them is great fun. It wouldn't work if the Brig were on the same page as Benton and everyone else.

I agree with all the above. Especially about Courtney making the character likeable - indeed, anyone else would have a hard time selling his and the Doctor's continued relationship after the Silurians's destruction in The Silurians and without Courtney, the era would've stagnated and just would've been another Quatermass rip-off. Indeed, his charm and elegance are the odd quality so unfitting for a military officer, that he adds to the character and makes him such an odd combo of both tradition and non-tradition, you believe why the Doctor would befriend him, as in reality he is not like any other military man, despite acting like one most of the time. I resist saying he added a human quality, but he did sell him during the character's on-and-off times, always well enough.

And indeed, I really wish, when Courtney was proving to be unavailable, that Benton would step up the plate and gradually become the Brig. I always had a soft spot for him (mainly due to this very serial), and vastly prefered him over the dull-as-dishwater Mike Yates. He's never dull on-screen.

Its a shame Big Finish didn't get cought on with Benton until way too late.

 

[Lonemagpie]

It depends who's writing the Brig - he is indeed officious and an establishment figure, but he's actually (at least early on, and in the hands of the better writers) but what he's not is a properly regimentad - in mindset - officer. He's one of those capable of thinking outside the box. As the pre-WW2 Prussian officer class used to say, the best officer is one who knows when not to obey orders, and the Brig is that type...

As for the most recent story watched, Power Of The Daleks today...

 

[Christopher]

And indeed, I really wish, when Courtney was proving to be unavailable, that Benton would step up the plate and gradually become the Brig.

Not sure military ranks work that way. Enlisted grades and officer ranks are two separate things. There are ways for enlisted people to become officers, either by attending a military academy for several years or by getting some kind of credit/recognition for lived experience as an equivalent, but it's not automatic. And only a tiny fraction of a percent of officers ever get to a rank like brigadier general (despite the tendency of many Star Trek fans and writers to assume that every Starfleet ensign will inevitably become an admiral if you just wait long enough).

It depends who's writing the Brig - he is indeed officious and an establishment figure, but he's actually (at least early on, and in the hands of the better writers) but what he's not is a properly regimentad - in mindset - officer. He's one of those capable of thinking outside the box. As the pre-WW2 Prussian officer class used to say, the best officer is one who knows when not to obey orders, and the Brig is that type...

That's fair -- he did seem more relaxed and flexible in "The Web of Fear," say, than in something like "The Three Doctors." I figure maybe it's a consequence of getting a desk job and having to embrace his bureaucratic side more.

 

[Lonemagpie]

That's fair -- he did seem more relaxed and flexible in "The Web of Fear," say, than in something like "The Three Doctors." I figure maybe it's a consequence of getting a desk job and having to embrace his bureaucratic side more.

In-universe that's probably a reasonable explanation, though in reality it had more to do with which writers and directors had more military experience (so he's at his best when Duggie Camfield was directing, for example).

For Benton to become an officer, BTW, he'd have had to pass the WOSB exam (now the AOSB) and get on to the LEOC (Late Entry Officer's Course, for NCOs and Warrant Officers chosen to be commissioned) at Sandhurst for four weeks (not years).

That said, it'd be unusual in the British Army for him to stay in his assignment once commissioned as a 2nd Lieutenant- far more likely that he'd be put on a further course for assignment to a different area. Late Entry officers also basically don't make it past Lt-Colonel, so he wouldn't realistically make Brigadier. But they could certainly have bumped him up to Captain to replace Yates, and Major wouldn't be impossible eventually.

 

[Christopher]

I think Benton being an enlisted guy is part of his charm, though.

 

[diankra]

There are also issues with Lethbridge-Stewart's career, but I tend to see it as him being a hot-shot young colonel, then when UNIT is set up the international agreements on national size mean the UK branch should be headed by a brigadier, so the obvious candidate gets a very early promotion, but stays at that rank for a long time (partly because he maybe resists attempts to rotate him to other roles).

 

[Lonemagpie]

I think Benton being an enlisted guy is part of his charm, though.

Totally - he's a natural NCO

 

[Marc]

Its a shame Big Finish didn't get cought on with Benton until way too late.

Thought I'd read that John Levine was living in the U.S for a while which might have delayed things.

, that he adds to the character and makes him such an odd combo of both tradition and non-tradition, you believe why the Doctor would befriend him, as in reality he is not like any other military man, despite acting like one most of the time. I resist saying he added a human quality, but he did sell him during the character's on-and-off times, always well enough.

Given the nature of what U.N.I.T dealt with, I think an officer who was partly non-traditional was the sort of leader required.

 

[diankra]

Thought I'd read that John Levine was living in the U.S for a while which might have delayed things.



Given the nature of what U.N.I.T dealt with, I think an officer who was partly non-traditional was the sort of leader required.

Also, he is not an easy person to work with.

 

[Lonemagpie]

Just watched the LC Evil Of The Daleks recon (well, and the actual episode 2, which survives), which was pretty good, especially with so much of the effects sequences from the end spliced back in.