Weaving together things from the past

[starsuperion]

Okay well RTD started the trend in the new who series, whereby there are events in previous episodes, and arcs that seem to carry over and protrude themselves once again in latter episodes and or seasons(series). A job that Moffat has taken and done so with ease it seems in the new seasons of 5 and 6.

But my question is this barring the Key to time series, and enlightenment entanglements, are there any instances which do the same for the classic series, and what are their connections, and how do they compare to the writing and the style done today?

A current example is river song, her death, and the events she has been involved in fundamentally drive particular story arcs, then there is the silents in the 5th season which became a fact in the 6th, to go back further we have rose, the battle of canary warf, which dropped pieces throughout the series, until it came to a head at the finale of season(series) 4...

also let's not forget jack and the finale of series 1, his rebirth by Rose Tyler influenced much of the story in the doctor who series and overflowed into the Torchwood series as well, as a prominent story subplot..

So what are the classic series examples? (think of this as a sort of fun game, like six degrees of kevin bacon or some such nonsense like that..I am curious, because the writing had to be very forward thinking and very reverse minded as well, which RTD and Moffat seemed to understand. How do previous writers stack up, and how do their overall story arcs apply? (mind you, please think of the story not the special effects or acting)

hope to hear those Doctor Who specialists come out of the wood work and jump on this one, it's a toughie from my POV. But oh so interesting a question..

 

[Sindatur]

Okay well RTD started the trend in the new who series, whereby there are events in previous episodes, and arcs that seem to carry over and protrude themselves once again in latter episodes and or seasons(series). A job that Moffat has taken and done so with ease it seems in the new seasons of 5 and 6.

But my question is this barring the Key to time series, and enlightenment entanglements, are there any instances which do the same for the classic series, and what are their connections, and how do they compare to the writing and the style done today?

A current example is river song, her death, and the events she has been involved in fundamentally drive particular story arcs, then there is the silents in the 5th season which became a fact in the 6th, to go back further we have rose, the battle of canary warf, which dropped pieces throughout the series, until it came to a head at the finale of season(series) 4...

also let's not forget jack and the finale of series 1, his rebirth by Rose Tyler influenced much of the story in the doctor who series and overflowed into the Torchwood series as well, as a prominent story subplot..

So what are the classic series examples? (think of this as a sort of fun game, like six degrees of kevin bacon or some such nonsense like that..I am curious, because the writing had to be very forward thinking and very reverse minded as well, which RTD and Moffat seemed to understand. How do previous writers stack up, and how do their overall story arcs apply? (mind you, please think of the story not the special effects or acting)

hope to hear those Doctor Who specialists come out of the wood work and jump on this one, it's a toughie from my POV. But oh so interesting a question..

I think Moffat has taken it to a whole new level with S5/S6.

Often times in the old Series, run-ins with a specific enemy, harkened back to the previous stories of those enemies.

Then of course, there was the E-Space Trilogy (Which sort of spun off from the White and Black Guardians and the Key to Time) .

And, then there was Tril of a Time Lord (Colin Baker's Final Season)

Not so much forward thinking in the old writing, but, alot of backwards thinking.

 

[starsuperion]

Okay well RTD started the trend in the new who series, whereby there are events in previous episodes, and arcs that seem to carry over and protrude themselves once again in latter episodes and or seasons(series). A job that Moffat has taken and done so with ease it seems in the new seasons of 5 and 6.

But my question is this barring the Key to time series, and enlightenment entanglements, are there any instances which do the same for the classic series, and what are their connections, and how do they compare to the writing and the style done today?

A current example is river song, her death, and the events she has been involved in fundamentally drive particular story arcs, then there is the silents in the 5th season which became a fact in the 6th, to go back further we have rose, the battle of canary warf, which dropped pieces throughout the series, until it came to a head at the finale of season(series) 4...

also let's not forget jack and the finale of series 1, his rebirth by Rose Tyler influenced much of the story in the doctor who series and overflowed into the Torchwood series as well, as a prominent story subplot..

So what are the classic series examples? (think of this as a sort of fun game, like six degrees of kevin bacon or some such nonsense like that..I am curious, because the writing had to be very forward thinking and very reverse minded as well, which RTD and Moffat seemed to understand. How do previous writers stack up, and how do their overall story arcs apply? (mind you, please think of the story not the special effects or acting)

hope to hear those Doctor Who specialists come out of the wood work and jump on this one, it's a toughie from my POV. But oh so interesting a question..

I think Moffat has taken it to a whole new level with S5/S6.

Often times in the old Series, run-ins with a specific enemy, harkened back to the previous stories of those enemies.

Then of course, there was the E-Space Trilogy (Which sort of spun off from the White and Black Guardians and the Key to Time) .

And, then there was Tril of a Time Lord (Colin Baker's Final Season)

Not so much forward thinking in the old writing, but, alot of backwards thinking.

didn't the 7th Doctor episode the Remembrance of the Daleks hearken back to the initial episode with the 1st Doctor?

 

[Skellington]

So what are the classic series examples?

One could argue that the period from The War Games to The Three Doctors shows a kind of story arc, covering as it does a progression in the Doctor's relationship with the Time Lords and the consequences of his implied actions prior to An Unearthly Child. Presumably the show's producers always intended that his freedom would be restored and had an idea regarding how this would be accomplished.

(Edit: It's just occurred to me that in The War Games he's tried for interference in the affairs of other races and theft of a TARDIS but not for the statutory kidnapping of his granddaughter. I guess that the prosecutors had plenty to chew on without that.)

 

[Turbo]

I dunno where you're pulling kidnapping from. After all, we have no idea what happened to the rest of his family; he might have had custody of Susan by the time he ran from Gallifrey.

 

[23skidoo]

All stories in Season 12 were interconnected - this was Tom Baker's first season - with several based off Space Station Nerva. And it continued into Season 13 because the story "Terror of the Zygons" was held over, giving the impression of a cross-season arc. Though often called the Nerva arc, it could also be the Harry Sullivan arc as it covered his entire tenure as a companion.

Except for the rare examples mentioned I don't really believe the original series could get away with doing too much of this, simply from the perspective of international sales. Check out broadwcast.org and you'll see how international broadcasters often aired Doctor Who stories in random order, skipping entire eras or showing stories out of order.

It isn't just something they did in the 1970s, either. Apparently Canadian broadcasters were doing this as recently as the early 2000s (the Space network bought all of the episodes from Hartnell to Pertwee, but only the single-2 parter The Sontaran Experiment, which was the third Tom Baker story of Season 12, turning the Space Station Nerva arc into hash in the process).

This is a prime reason why TV series prior to the 1980s rarely had ongoing story arcs because this tended to happen all the time. I remember in the early days of Star Trek TOS syndication you could be watching one of the first episodes and then tune in a day later and see one of the last.

Alex

 

[captcalhoun]

the second Peladon story was a sequel to the first.

 

[The Mirrorball Man]

And of course there's the whole season 6b.

 

[starsuperion]

Actually I beg to differ with Alex on this.. I think that the entire daleks related episodes from the Hartnell era were inter woven and in some respects even carried bits over to the 2nd and 3rd doctor series, especially where the Thals were concerned.. the chase was referenced a few times in latter serials talking about the daleks time travel capabilities, and so forth.. one could even draw the first few Thal serials to the 4th doctor and his mission to avert the daleks creation.

 

[DWF]

Actually I beg to differ with Alex on this.. I think that the entire daleks related episodes from the Hartnell era were inter woven and in some respects even carried bits over to the 2nd and 3rd doctor series, especially where the Thals were concerned.. the chase was referenced a few times in latter serials talking about the daleks time travel capabilities, and so forth.. one could even draw the first few Thal serials to the 4th doctor and his mission to avert the daleks creation.

The Troughton Dalek stories weren't written by Terry Nation who didn't return til Planet Of The Daleks which is sure is the reason for the nods to the first Dalek story.

 

[The Nth Doctor]

Another example is Season 8's focus on The Master's arrival on Earth and eventual capture (which is later followed up by The Sea Devils).

 

[starsuperion]

were there any connections drawn through the "ice warriors story lines" that permeated the series as a whole in the latter doctors serials? Besides the obvious connections drawn in the 10th doctor special the waters of mars that is..

On a side note, it is interesting how RTD made the water the infection which changed humans to an almost Icewarrior type being, with their mouths cracked and such like the old creature costumes, sans the armour that is..

 

[Whofan]

In Curse of Peladon the Doctor makes a reference to Seeds of Death.


Also the Peter Davison era episodes featuring the Master seemed to always have him say "You escaped from ________" (Wherever the last episode took place).

Season 17 was sort of like the Randomizer season, since the Doctor used a component to well, 'randomize' his adventures so the Black Guardian wouldn't catch up with him. He removed it in The Leisure Hive, although the Black Guardian didn't catch up with him until two seasons later.


As for the Thals, they sort of show up again in the novels, but I don't really consider those canon. I think John Peel created like a "Thalek" or something like that...

 

[Meredith]

Timelash has a shout out to the third Doctor....