Help with Classic Who DVD's

[Cutter John]

Well, the 'New Beginning' box set might be a good start, as you get two Doctors and the Master. I'd say your best bet would be to track down an episode guide online, and either you, or you and your son go over the episode descriptions and see which stories he finds interesting.

Now, episodes that a fan of the current series might relate to that are out on dvd:

The Time Warrior: Introduced both Sarah Jane and the Sontarans. Plus its just a fun story.

The Hand of Fear: Sarahs final story.

Invasion of Time: A bit long, but its another Sontaran story set on Gallifrey.

The Invasion or Earthshock: Two of the best Cybermen stories. (The first is in black and white and maybe a bit dated, but its still a good story)

The Five Doctors: Pretty much has it all. Gallifrey, the Master, most of the Doctors, Cybermen, and a Dalek. Plus the latest re-release has some nice extras about the show during the 80's, and even a silly David Tennant commentary.

Genesis of the Daleks or Remembrance of the Daleks: The Daleks weren't quite as impressive back then, but they're still decent stories.

 

[OmahaStar]

The Five Doctors: Pretty much has it all. Gallifrey, the Master, all the Doctors, Cybermen, and a Dalek. Plus the ratest re-release has a lot of history on the show in the 80's, and even a silly David Tennant commentary.

I just love to geek out about this one. All but 2 of the 10 Doctors are involved in this one.

1 - via clip in the beginning
1A, 2, 3, 5 - all appear
4 - appears via previously unaired footage
6 & 8 - narrate bonus materials
10 - commentary

Only 7 and 9 weren't involved.

Yes, the whole thing is a giant fanwank, and I love it!

 

[The Borgified Corpse]

The Hand of Fear: Sarahs final story.

Eldrad must live! It is the law! ELDRAD MUST LIVE!!!!!!!

I would strongly recommend "The Five Doctors" since it's a good shmorgasboard of all sorts of elements from the 1st 20 years of the program. The Troughton/Pertwee banter alone makes it worth it.

And I recommend the complete Key to Time arc, particularly "The Ribos Operation," "The Pirate Planet," & "The Androids of Tara." These were the stories that first got me hooked on the show. I like the banter between the Doctor & Romana and Tom Baker & Douglas Adams always worked to keep the show light & fun.

 

[The]

I was teasing, but with a serious (if pedantic) point behind it-- the TV movie is not called "Enemy Within".

Wasn't it called that in the Production Notes, or something?

The Five Doctors: Pretty much has it all. Gallifrey, the Master, all the Doctors, Cybermen, and a Dalek. Plus the ratest re-release has a lot of history on the show in the 80's, and even a silly David Tennant commentary.

I just love to geek out about this one. All but 2 of the 10 Doctors are involved in this one.

1 - via clip in the beginning
1A, 2, 3, 5 - all appear
4 - appears via previously unaired footage
6 & 8 - narrate bonus materials
10 - commentary

Only 7 and 9 weren't involved.

Yes, the whole thing is a giant fanwank, and I love it!

Man, I could NOT agree more! That's the only reason I own two seperate copies of the same story (the first one released a decade ago, and the new one). Once I heard about the involvement of everyone, I was so onboard. Especially for the Tennant commentary. That's just fun to hear a current Doc look back at the original guys.

I read somewhere that McCoy wasn't involved because of conflicting work schedules. I think we was doing a play or something at the time. And, we all know why Eccleston wasn't involved...

 

[John Picard]

WOW You people are teh awsome. This is terrific feedback.

Due to my budget, I told him I was going to combine Christmas and his birthday. His birthday is in January, so this gives me some time to get some of the box sets you all are recommending.

 

[Cutter John]

I would strongly recommend "The Five Doctors" since it's a good shmorgasboard of all sorts of elements from the 1st 20 years of the program. The Troughton/Pertwee banter alone makes it worth it.

In which case I can't go without mentioning "The Three Doctors". The story is kinda weak. But watching Troughton and Pertwee sniping at each other is gold.

 

[Phillip Culley]

I was teasing, but with a serious (if pedantic) point behind it-- the TV movie is not called "Enemy Within".

Wasn't it called that in the Production Notes, or something?

The only time 'Enemy Within' has been used as a title was at a convention around the time it came out, when Philip Segal said that if the fans wanted a name for it they could use 'Enemy Within'.

However, from a production perspective, it was never an officially-used title for the movie.

 

[26138]

The Hand of Fear: Sarahs final story.

ELDRAD MUST LIVE!

Seriously, though - pick up some Tom Baker stuff like The City of Death, The Pyramids of Mars, or The Robots of Death - Tom Baker seems to be a nice doctor to introduce people to who have never seen any of the older stuff. You could get the Davros box set that's being sold, as it contains all the Davros episodes - from Genesis to Remembrance.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Doctor_Who_DVD_releases will also tell you what's available on DVD.

 

[The]

The only time 'Enemy Within' has been used as a title was at a convention around the time it came out, when Philip Segal said that if the fans wanted a name for it they could use 'Enemy Within'. However, from a production perspective, it was never an officially-used title for the movie.

Absolutely right. I just read through it on Wikipedia. For some reason I had it in my head that it was part of some official title that was never used, or something. I think they might as well officially name it "The TV Movie" because everyone calls it that anyway...

Seriously, though - pick up some Tom Baker stuff like The City of Death, The Pyramids of Mars, or The Robots of Death - Tom Baker seems to be a nice doctor to introduce people to who have never seen any of the older stuff. You could get the Davros box set that's being sold, as it contains all the Davros episodes - from Genesis to Remembrance.

Agreed! For American audiences, I've found it far easier to start with Robot (4th Doctor's first episode) and just work our way up. Baker was the Doctor that made it internationally famous anyway. So, the formula still works.

For those more inclined to enjoying an aesthetic quality to their entertainment, I start with Rose, and work our way down...

 

[John Picard]

We have Robot and he loved it. I remember Tom Baker when I would channel surf as a kid, but back then I looked at Doctor Who as "that goofy British Sci-Fi with horrible sets".

 

[The]

I'm weirdly the same way, except that I was immediately enamored by it because I couldn't quite figure out what the hell it was all about. Every time my six-year-old mind seemed to get a handle on one of its aspects ("Okay, he's a time-traveler"), it would suddenly swerve off into left field ("What's a Police Box? Wait...it's bigger on......WHAT?"), or just completely reinvent itself in front of my eyes ("Holy crap, he just died and transformed into a different actor?!!"). I had never, and haven't since, found a show with as much imagination, and most importantly, with as much faith in the imagination of its viewers. You simply cannot enjoy Classic Doctor Who without a healthy dose of imagination on your side. And it returns it, in kind...

 

[Iamnotspock]

What?! Was that in the 1st or 2nd season of The Sarah Jane Adventures?

Dammit! Belated spoiler warning. Sorry, didn't think.

I'm not complaining. I'm elated! I was just the other day wondering how they could work the Brigadier & Liz Shaw into new Doctor Who series. I was asking about which season it was because my friends may be getting Season 1 for Christmas and I was wondering how strongly I should pester them about borrowing it.

Spoiler: The Sarah-Jane Adventures

The final story of series 2, so the last one broadcast in the UK. Search on a certain tubular website.