Last Classic Who Story you watched

[JD]

I got Britbox on Amazon Channels a while back, but I haven't taken the time to watch a lot of Classic Who yet, but I'm hoping to correct that now.
I got a bunch of Classic Who novels a while back so I'm mainly focusing on Doctors and companions in those novels, or stories that tie directly into them.
When I first got it watched Terror of the Autons and Mind of Evil since they had the Third Doctor and Jo, who are in Last of the Gaderene. It's been a while since I watched them so I don't really remember much, beyond the fact that I liked them.
This morning I watched City of Death, since it has the Fourth Doctor and Romana II, who are in Festival of Death. I loved this one, the whole thing with Scaroth being splintered across time, but still connected almost felt a bit like the kind of screwy time stuff that we got a lot during Steven Moffat's time as showrunner for the new series. Duggan was a fun one off sidekick, and Scarlot was a great villain. John Glover really hit that sweet spot of scenery chewing, but not so over the top that he was ridiculous.
I can see how Tom Baker and Lalla Ward ended up married, they really did have some great chemistry.
I've also got The Sands of Time, with Fifth Doc, Nyssa and Tegan. Can you guys recommend a good serial with them? I know that one is a sequel to Pyramids of Mars, so I already planning on rewatching that before I read it.
I have seen at least one serial for each Doctor except Six. What would be a good one to watch to get a good feel for what Six and his era of the show were like?

 

[diankra]

Tricky to answer your Nyssa Tegan question. Writers tended to like mouthy Tegan, so Nyssa is stronger in stories where she is sort of absent, but they aren't necessarily good. Visitation is probably best at being good while giving both a decent role (I also love Snakedance, but Tegan is effectively absent due to posession).
For Six, unfortunately the two best (imho) either sideline him, or have him deranged. Vengeance on Varos is probably the best so far as being good while letting Colin be the Doctor.

 

[Christopher]

This morning I watched City of Death... John Glover really hit that sweet spot of scenery chewing, but not so over the top that he was ridiculous.

That was Julian Glover (from The Empire Strikes Back and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade), not John. It was his return to Doctor Who, as he'd previously played King Richard I in the Hartnell serial "The Crusades."

I can see how Tom Baker and Lalla Ward ended up married, they really did have some great chemistry.

I never bought the idea of the Doctor being romantically interested in his human companions (who would've been like small children to him), but I definitely believe he and Romana #2 were a couple, since the actors' romance came through so clearly onscreen.

 

[JD]

That was Julian Glover (from The Empire Strikes Back and Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade), not John.

Oh, I guess I got my J names mixed up.
Him being in those two movies would explain why he seemed so familiar.

 

[Christopher]

Oh, I guess I got my J names mixed up.

It's a common mistake.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

Well, the Doctor jettisoned a quarter of the TARDIS's interior in "Castrovalva." Maybe some of the navigational circuits went with it. Or maybe she was just mad at him.

Actually thought it was both. She was mad because she jettisoned some navigational circuits from the TARDIS. Plus, I don't think she liked Tegan at the time.

 

[jaime]

Yeah, they were going to have it change to blend in, but decided it was better to give it a consistent shape, both for budget and for recognizability. It was definitely the right choice.




There was a gradual progression over the years. The First and Second Doctors had essentially no control over the TARDIS's course and were never able to take their companions back home. The Third Doctor spent a lot of time tinkering with the TARDIS to break free of exile, and once he was free, he was able to set a course but rarely wound up where he aimed. The Fourth Doctor gradually got better until he could make precise short hops, and he only occasionally went off course. The Fifth Doctor still had trouble getting Tegan back to Heathrow, but by the Sixth Doctor era and beyond, he pretty much had perfect navigational control. It makes sense, really, since he stole the TARDIS and presumably didn't know how to work it at first, and gradually learned through experience over the course of years.




Note that in "The Dalek Invasion of Earth" the Daleks have parabolic dishes that are supposed to be receiving broadcast power as a substitute for the static in the floors. So that was accounted for there, though it was forgotten afterward.



They were supposed to have evolved to genetic perfection while the Daleks degenerated to hideousnes, and unfortunately, the culture at the time still assumed that the perfect human specimen was white and blonde. (Ironic, given that the Daleks were meant to be an allegory for the evils of Nazism.)

The Thals too hated what they had mutated into though.

 

[Marc]

I don't think she liked Tegan at the time.

I think the feeling was well and truly mutual

 

[worf1965]

Thanks for the comments on my observations of Hartnell's first 2 series.

Hartnell Edge of Destruction thoughts.
1. Very slow. Would never be made today. A criticism and a compliment.

2. Love the 60s special effects - everyone shaking to simulate the shaking of the Tardis - a la Trek OS. I have a certain nostalgia for the old cheesy special effects. Todays CGI is often impressive, but is so overused that often it's just annoying to me.

3. I loved the "Fast Return" switch. Such a simple control! Also, funny that one stuck spring can cause the entire Tardis to malfunction. 60s technology?

4. You can tell it was originally a family show with a huge education element for kids with the doctors asides on solar system genesis and the flashlight demonstration to illustrate the workings of simple springs in devices.

5. Love Hartnell grabbing the lapels of his jacket when making some profound speech. Straight out of a Shakespearean theater.

6. Is this the first time the Doctor acknowledges the efforts of a female companion in resolving a problem when he compliments Barbara at the end?

7. Barbara figures out that thd Tardis was giving warning signals that something was wrong. The Doctor says the Tardis cannot think for itself, but Ian surmises that it xan. The Doctor says it only thinks as a machine can. I guess there is no conception yet of the Tardis as alive.

 

[JD]

Does the idea of the Tardis being alive go back to the classic series? I had thought that was more of a new series thing.

 

[Mr Awe]

I love Barbara. She's such a strong character. Directly challenges the Doctor at points. She feels more like a real person than a character. It's a long time before we have a female companion as strong as Barbara.

 

[Redfern]

Does the idea of the Tardis being alive go back to the classic series? I had thought that was more of a new series thing.

Some fans cite "Edge of Destruction" as a "cornerstone" or "catalyst" for that idea (myself included depending upon my mood), but, yeah, it's more of an "'05 revival" thing. Most of the time if Doctors Hartnel through McGann "addressed" the TARDIS, it was more akin to the way somebody might "talk" to a beloved "clunker" of a car.

 

[jaime]

Some fans cite "Edge of Destruction" as a "cornerstone" or "catalyst" for that idea (myself included depending upon my mood), but, yeah, it's more of an "'05 revival" thing. Most of the time if Doctors Hartnel through McGann "addressed" the TARDIS, it was more akin to the way somebody might "talk" to a beloved "clunker" of a car.

You mean she’s just as unreliable.

 

[Christopher]

Does the idea of the Tardis being alive go back to the classic series? I had thought that was more of a new series thing.

I think the seeds were planted in the original, that it had telepathic circuits and was a sophisticated enough machine to have a sort of mind of its own. I think it was the sort of thing where there was enough to put the idea in viewers' minds, but it wasn't really developed explicitly until the New Adventures, the audios, and later the revival show.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

Plus the Third and Fourth Doctors (particularly the latter) always talked to the TARDIS herself - something Sarah Jane herself commented on to Rose in School Reunion.

 

[Marc]

Some fans cite "Edge of Destruction" as a "cornerstone" or "catalyst" for that idea (myself included depending upon my mood), but, yeah, it's more of an "'05 revival" thing. Most of the time if Doctors Hartnel through McGann "addressed" the TARDIS, it was more akin to the way somebody might "talk" to a beloved "clunker" of a car.

Didn't Tegan once ask is the TARDIS was alive? (or was the question about it's sentience). Seem to recall the 5th Doctor's response as "in a manner of speaking, yes".

 

[Christopher]

Didn't Tegan once ask is the TARDIS was alive? (or was the question about it's sentience). Seem to recall the 5th Doctor's response as "in a manner of speaking, yes".

Maybe you're thinking of the bit at the start of "The Five Doctors" where the Doctor has just upgraded the console and Tegan asks if it'll work properly now, and the Doctor says "Well, the Tardis is more than a machine, Tegan. It's like a person. It needs coaxing, persuading, encouraging." Although that could've been taken as simple anthropomorphism, like a guy talking about his car.

 

[The Four Doctor]

In Planet of the Spiders (Pertwee's finale), there's this (paraphrased)
Captain Yates: "You talk about the TARDIS as if she were alive?"
Three: "Yes i do, don't I?"

 

[JD]

Are there any specific stories I should watch before I read Last of the Gaderene?

 

[worf1965]

Just finished Marco Polo. I watched it on CGI reconstructions on YouTube. Somd observations.
1. We see what looks like a Yeti footprint at thd beginning and then it's forgotten. Oh well, for a later series.

2. Gotta laugh at women in heels in the snow and the desert.

3. This seems more of a Marco Polo series than Doctor Who. The Doctor iz more of a bit player. He basically sleeps through episode 2.

4. I liked the tracking of the voyage on the maps - ancient looking maps.

5. Another science lesson - this time on condensation.

6. Why does Barbara wander into the cave alone?

7. Why does the Doctor risk (and temporarily lose) the Tardis in a backgammon game ?