Retro Review: The Hand of Fear

[wamdue]

Wam, after the Pertwee era, most stories were a standard 4 episodes 25 minutes long.

figured that was the case, watching it as I have done on BBC 4 these past two day seems to work well for me, I suspect I could have waited till next Monday for parts 3 & 4 however.

So, you got 1 episode a week, but, it was only once every 4 weeks you completed a story.

that is what I thought it was, I was surprised to read what RevdKathy wrote

Four weeks is a long wait for your 25 minute fix.

I guess it was worded badly.

The thing that would worry me about earlier stories, where its 6, 8 or even 10 episodes, is there maybe some single episodes where the plot doesnt advance much.

 

[Sindatur]

Yes, there were several filler episodes in Classic Who where you had people running up and down corridors and being captured and escaping and being captured again.

It's often joked about editing the 6 epsiode stories down to 4 episodes.

Watching them all as one story, nowadays, is fine, or even at the rate of an episode or two a day, but, yea, back in the day, when they were originally airing, I would've gone crazy if I was a UK resident and only seeing 1 half hour episode a week, and really irritated on the weeks where it went nowhere.

Still I love the Classic Series as much as the Current Series, and enjoy sitting down watching a story like a movie, all in one sitting

 

[RevdKathy]

Yeah, my bad - that was badly worded.

I think I was just tring to make the point that there's a "What you're used to" element. That TARDIS control room is actually quite 'homey' compared to some versions, Doctor 4 using his scarf is the same idea as Doctor 11 using a hat - stuff like that.

The effects would probably have been 'rotoscoping', so not much computing involved.

 

[Starkers]

I tend to watch serials at the rate of an episode a day on DVD now, sometimes maybe 2 eps a day but never back to back. I think when I was a kid I probably just accepted that you waited for the next episode, it was what you were used to back in my day, when t'was only three tv channels and a mobile phone meant you had an extension cable

Re Sarah Jane leaving, actually most companions left quite suddenly. It isn't like today where they'd spend a series priming you and making it really obvious (see Rose Tyler for further details)

 

[wamdue]

I think I was just tring to make the point that there's a "What you're used to" element.

yes I agree, I like that when BBC 4 does air Doctor Who, it airs it similar to how the show airs now.

 

[wamdue]

ratings

BBC Four
19:40- Doctor Who: 168k (0.83%)
20:05- Doctor Who: 294k (1.37%

episode 3 was low, despite being IMO the best of the 4.

 

[Cutter John]

Lots of fond memories of this one. Sarah's crazy outfit, the quite amazing Eldrad makeup, and of course the goodbye at the end.

I actualy partly agree with you wamdue. I actually thought Tom was a great Doctor while he was working with Liz. But by about midway through the next series he really started to get more and more OTT with his performances. By the time Invasion of Time rolled around, he was starting to get on my nerves. IMO, DW was never really the same after that.

 

[VDCNI]

ratings

BBC Four
19:40- Doctor Who: 168k (0.83%)
20:05- Doctor Who: 294k (1.37%

episode 3 was low, despite being IMO the best of the 4.

They look like pretty good numbers for BBC4 - particularly for before 9pm since that is when it seems to show most of its bigger programmes.

Plus Doctor Who rates higher in the South of the country and Episode 3 would have been up against Eastenders.

 

[wamdue]

ratings

BBC Four
19:40- Doctor Who: 168k (0.83%)
20:05- Doctor Who: 294k (1.37%

episode 3 was low, despite being IMO the best of the 4.

They look like pretty good numbers for BBC4 - particularly for before 9pm since that is when it seems to show most of its bigger programmes.

Plus Doctor Who rates higher in the South of the country and Episode 3 would have been up against Eastenders.

I was going to go old school and blame Corrie, but your right it could well have been EastEnders (Corrie wasnt on)

 

[The Borgified Corpse]

Eldrad must live! It is the law! Eldrad must live!!!!





That is all.

but is it the Order

No. Khan offered the world Order. But he ended up leaving all depressed when the 1996 Eugenics Wars were met with such worldwide indifference that 99% of the people never noticed.

The thing that would worry me about earlier stories, where its 6, 8 or even 10 episodes, is there maybe some single episodes where the plot doesnt advance much.

Like pretty much ALL of "The War Games" (except for maybe the 1st 2 and last 2 episodes).

Then there's some of the longer William Hartnell stories, where Part 1 would be spent puttering around the TARDIS and wandering around a deserted alien landscape for 25 minutes. The initial appearance of something, ANYTHING, was enough of an event to warrant an end-of-episode cliffhanger. I mean, look at Part 1 of "The Web Planet." In 25 minutes, what happens? Barbara gives Vicki some asprin and the Doctor burns Ian's tie.

 

[VDCNI]

One nice thing about the ratings - on average kids numbers were around 40k for episodes 1-2 & 50k for 3-4.

Big jump from the kids audience of 4-6k that BBC4 normally gets!