Watching right now... 
Doctor Who Newbie
- Thread starter Starbreaker
- Start date
I've watched the first two parts. I think it's ok so far... I find the Doctor kind of boring though.
Alright, I just started Part 4 so I'll do that one next.
I can't get the theme song out of my head, by the way.
I can't get the theme song out of my head, by the way.
.... and the City of Death.
What she said!
Yeah, the 80's have that effect. The era you're watching right now was the era I really grew up with...
Of that list, The Three Doctors is good, in that it gives you experience with each of the first three doctors. Pyramids of Mars is one of my favorites, and is always rated high in polls. Tomb of the Cybermen is one of the best classic series stories ever.
Caves of Androzani is usually rated high, though, and I think it's kind of a stinker of a story until the last 5 minutes.
Caves of Androzani is usually rated high, though, and I think it's kind of a stinker of a story until the last 5 minutes.
I don't remember all the names, but some do stick in the memory as being effective stories for me:
The Tomb of the Cybermen (favourite 2nd Doctor story)
Robots of Death
City of Death
The Wheel in Space (I think this and Ark are related)
Ark in Space
Spearhead From Space (first 3rd Doctor story)
The Talons of Weng-Chiang
Horror of Fang Rong
The Green Death
Carnival of Monsters (classic 3rd Doc story)
The Three Doctors (oh yeah!)
Ghost Light
I particularly like Three Doctors, because when I first saw it, it was such a huge exploration of the show's past, probably one of the first TV series to do that. I bought the BBC 10th anniversary commemorative magazine (I live in Australia remember, it was hard to get, and a few years ago found it had been reprinted and got it again! ) and it was all good. Ahhh, memory.
The Tomb of the Cybermen (favourite 2nd Doctor story)
Robots of Death
City of Death
The Wheel in Space (I think this and Ark are related)
Ark in Space
Spearhead From Space (first 3rd Doctor story)
The Talons of Weng-Chiang
Horror of Fang Rong
The Green Death
Carnival of Monsters (classic 3rd Doc story)
The Three Doctors (oh yeah!)
Ghost Light
I particularly like Three Doctors, because when I first saw it, it was such a huge exploration of the show's past, probably one of the first TV series to do that. I bought the BBC 10th anniversary commemorative magazine (I live in Australia remember, it was hard to get, and a few years ago found it had been reprinted and got it again!
) and it was all good. Ahhh, memory.
In no particular order, the following are all great stories for a new fan.
Pyramids of Mars (Fourth)
The Tomb of the Cybermen (Second)
Robots of Death (Fourth)
City of Death (Fourth)
The Aztecs (First)
Spearhead From Space (Third)
The Talons of Weng-Chiang (Fourth)
Horror of Fang Rong (Fourth)
The Caves of Androzani (Fifth)
Vengeance on Varos (Sixth)
The Curse of Fenric (Seventh)
Pyramids of Mars (Fourth)
The Tomb of the Cybermen (Second)
Robots of Death (Fourth)
City of Death (Fourth)
The Aztecs (First)
Spearhead From Space (Third)
The Talons of Weng-Chiang (Fourth)
Horror of Fang Rong (Fourth)
The Caves of Androzani (Fifth)
Vengeance on Varos (Sixth)
The Curse of Fenric (Seventh)
Netflix
Pyramids of Mars <-dark and serious, produced when Doctor Who was going through a hammer horror period.
The Tomb of the Cybermen
City of Death <- Light hearted fun that never takes itself seriously. You wouldn't want a season of similar stories, but as it is it's great. Also has Romana II, a Time Lady.
Ark in Space
The Curse of Fenric
Earthshock
Yeah same here. The last 5 minutes or so are great but the rest is rather dull. Then again I think about half of Robert Holmes stories are rather dull.
The Tomb of the Cybermen
City of Death <- Light hearted fun that never takes itself seriously. You wouldn't want a season of similar stories, but as it is it's great. Also has Romana II, a Time Lady.
Ark in Space
The Curse of Fenric
Earthshock
Yeah same here. The last 5 minutes or so are great but the rest is rather dull. Then again I think about half of Robert Holmes stories are rather dull.
Wouldn't it be better if he at least made an attempt at watching them in order?
That's really not feasible for me. I have some of the first doctor and then just that list above of what's online and everything since '05. I'm just trying to get some samples of the show.
The 5th doctor was my first. Then I saw episodes with Doc 6 and Doc 7, but Peter Davison was the definitive Doctor for me.The 5th Doctor is sedate, and serious. If you want zany, drop back to the 4th Doctor...
That is, until I saw Tom Baker episodes.
There's just something about Tom Baker. What it is, I've never quite been able to tell, but somehow he took ownership of that role like no one else had before or has since. IMO, all subsequent actors playing the Doctor are, to some slight degree, playing Tom Baker playing the Doctor.
To the newbie who started the thread, I consider myself a long time newbie. I've been watching off and on since the eighties, but have never totally immersed myself into the universe as I have with other shows like Lost and Star Trek. In fact, I've only just seen Eccelson's final episode. Shame he did so few episodes. I don't know the general concensus here, but I thought he really nailed the role.
I think there's nothing wrong with that. I think it will give you a good flavour of the different Doctors and the different stories and companions and eras. I think you'll lose a bit of continutiy (in terms of getting to know a Doctor and his style over the longer term) but hey, you have all those years at your disposal. How lovely!
And really, though, how many hardcore fans have actually seen the show in order? Most American fans started with Tom Baker and only later saw the earlier incarnations.I think there's nothing wrong with that. I think it will give you a good flavour of the different Doctors and the different stories and companions and eras. I think you'll lose a bit of continutiy (in terms of getting to know a Doctor and his style over the longer term) but hey, you have all those years at your disposal. How lovely!
I would actually recommend the Tom Baker episodes first. If you want a taste of the earlier Docs, though, you can't go wrong starting with "The Three Doctors." Then skip to Tom Baker, then whatever order you like after that. Just my two cents.
I've seen the 9th doctor up to 'Dalek'. I though End of the World was excellent and Dalek was above average, but the other three were about average... not that I have much to judge by yet.
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