Publishing a few days early in case Sandy punches me in the nuts.
Story 075 - Robot
I initially tried starting this initiative here. After all, Tom Baker was the one whom my few friends seemingly aware the show existed to 2005 fawned over. That attempt failed because Robot struck me as insanely clunky at the time. After a complete watching with some more perspective, I think that was another argument for the hypocrisy of this blog. I really need to experience entertainments with a bare minimum of pre-conception to enjoy them. Being told a daft yet intelligent man with this epic scarf would sweep me off to the stars and make me never wish to return home for so many years didn't mesh so well with meeting number 4 while he was regenerating and establishing himself as different from 3 yet still The Doctor. It did a nice job establishing what Baker was going to do with the character and effectively told a decent story. Not an instant favorite but far from Adric-bad.
Story 105
- City of Death
Okay. Now I get it. Baker was positively sublime in this one. He struck this amazing balance between insane and insanely gifted. It was just a delight to watch from start to finish. Of course, I adored lead writer Douglas Adams' novel Dirk Gently's Holistic Detective Agency and saying he borrowed from this storyline for it would be an understatement. Only real blight on my enjoyment of this one was the wish the third Dirk book got completed because the lead of that and the lead of this had so very many parallels. Wheeeeeeeeeeeeeeee.
Story 092 -
Horror of Fang Rock
Horror . . . simply didn't work for me. After City of Death I wasn't prepared for Baker scowling into the mist a lot. Plus, Leela: Warrior Princess made my head hurt. It was neat meeting the sworn enemy of the baked space potat.. er Sontarans though. Also nice of it to eviscerate some really cloying rich d-bag stereotypes.
Story 051
Spearhead from Space
After the rewatch of Robot, I wanted to try out the debut of another actor in the role. Pertwee was fun in The Three Doctors so I opted for this episode. The Nestene Conciousness scared the crap out of me. They introduced the possibility of my Masters of the Universe Collection strangling me and setting fire to the house while I slept. Jon Pertwee handled them with proper gravitas and made me want to be #13 if only to have access to his wardrobe in the TARDIS.
Story 069 -
The Green Death
I'm glad Dad couldn't stand Doctor Who when I was growing up. There was this bucket outside which he dropped garbage into to feed a large colony of maggots. I thought of them quite fondly right up until seeing this serial. I guess so long as we didn't upgrade the Apple //e to B. O. S. S. levels with a Transwarp card. OH WAIT! WE DID! I AM DEAD!
Story 052 -
Doctor Who and the Silurians
I had some interest in Silurians because of Moffat's ninja avocado warrior episodes. Got to say I prefer the original version with the funky multipurpose headlights. Sure the costumes are a bit cheesier but there's no random Kill Bill posing. Instead, there's a rather stylish yellow car named Bessie. Loved it!
Story 062
The Sea Devils
The Silurians have some cousins who wear stylish blue netting and live under the ocean. Fortunately, they were manipulated by The Master. I love me some Robert Delgado and Jon Pertwee pairing. The two complemented each other perfectly. Even with historical perspective telling me The Doctor can't los, The Master is a credible enough threat to cause some serious nailbiting.
Showing posts with label Sea Devils. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Sea Devils. Show all posts
Sunday, October 28, 2012
Thursday, October 25, 2012
Watchin' the Who Part 5: Almost up to Real Time, Bitches
Story 130 -
Warriors of the Deep
On paper, this episode wasn't a bad idea. The Sea Devils introduced the idea of a team-up with Silurians which could pose a nearly unparalleled threat to Earth. Add to that a writer with love for Alien and this should have been one of the most terrifying Who stories ever told. Sadly, almost nothing went right. It was too well lit to have anything approximating atmosphere or character. The equivalent of the Xenomorph became a bearded pantomime horse shedding green paint on cast and sets. Sea Devils put on goofy samurai outfits concealing 3/4 of their distinctive features. Words like "pacing" or "storytelling" didn't apply at all. Davison did an admirable job trying to lend the story an iota of merit but I am not sure Olivier could carry something this bad. Only way it could've been worse was if they added a flock of Adric clones who hugged Ewoks non-stop for a full episode.
Story 082 - Pyramids of Mars
An Egyptian god was part an alien race hellbent on universal conquest and can only be stopped by some rather clever people with a pervasive love for Earth. With a bit of adaptation the premise of this episode sounds quite a bit like Stargate. It's a bit awesomer with a scarf and some downright witty writing.
Story 066 - Carnival of Monsters
As a kid, I would sometimes wonder what would happen if my Viewmaster was a microscope and little people were embedded in the reels. According to this episode, Pertwee would cause a marsh to explode with a sonic screwdriver and kick the asses of monsters whose asses everyone knows cannot be kicked. I adore that man. He is just pure class. Absolutely brilliant Doctor.
Story 067 - Frontier in Space
Apparently, what man will most fear in the future are dudes with rubbery facial polyps, uniform beards, and outfits borrowed from Oz. Little shall they know that The Master pulls their strings! Bwahahahaha. About the only thing about this story that sucks is Delgado died afterwards. Otherwise, it has great pacing and twists only foreseeable if one reads some spoilers. I guess the Oz-ian Draconians are a bit cheesy/grating but Delgado and Pertwee together is pure magic.
Story 068 - Planet of the Daleks
Gargh. Thalls. Ick. At least some of them die horribly. Plus, there is some great model work going on. Not so sure why an invisible race would decide to use the fur of Grimace. Sure the planet gets cold but Snuffleupagus would blend in better with trees. All kidding aside, Pertwee is fairly brilliant even managing to play off the dull, monotonous of the Thall race.
Story 070 - The Time Warrior
I was pretty much destined to love this story. It introduced Sarah Jane Smith. I loved that character so much I named a puppy after her. As a bonus, it was a fun tale. A Sontaran lands in medieval times and sets about arming a robber baron anachronistically. By the third or fourth straight-up history story during the Hartnell era they started to become an exercise in endurance. This one had a story beyond "a man from the future and his companions get captured by ignorant savages then escape last second." Plus, Pertwee brought the kungfu poses which look absolutely smashing with his stylish jackets.
Story 071 - 025 The Gunfighters
Oh man. This one was an exceptionally awkward historical piece with multiple musical numbers. About the only thing approximating a highlight was when the Doctor introduced himself as Dr. Caligari instead of using the Smith alias. Otherwise, a real snoozer.
On paper, this episode wasn't a bad idea. The Sea Devils introduced the idea of a team-up with Silurians which could pose a nearly unparalleled threat to Earth. Add to that a writer with love for Alien and this should have been one of the most terrifying Who stories ever told. Sadly, almost nothing went right. It was too well lit to have anything approximating atmosphere or character. The equivalent of the Xenomorph became a bearded pantomime horse shedding green paint on cast and sets. Sea Devils put on goofy samurai outfits concealing 3/4 of their distinctive features. Words like "pacing" or "storytelling" didn't apply at all. Davison did an admirable job trying to lend the story an iota of merit but I am not sure Olivier could carry something this bad. Only way it could've been worse was if they added a flock of Adric clones who hugged Ewoks non-stop for a full episode.
Story 082 - Pyramids of Mars
An Egyptian god was part an alien race hellbent on universal conquest and can only be stopped by some rather clever people with a pervasive love for Earth. With a bit of adaptation the premise of this episode sounds quite a bit like Stargate. It's a bit awesomer with a scarf and some downright witty writing.
Story 066 - Carnival of Monsters
As a kid, I would sometimes wonder what would happen if my Viewmaster was a microscope and little people were embedded in the reels. According to this episode, Pertwee would cause a marsh to explode with a sonic screwdriver and kick the asses of monsters whose asses everyone knows cannot be kicked. I adore that man. He is just pure class. Absolutely brilliant Doctor.
Story 067 - Frontier in Space
Apparently, what man will most fear in the future are dudes with rubbery facial polyps, uniform beards, and outfits borrowed from Oz. Little shall they know that The Master pulls their strings! Bwahahahaha. About the only thing about this story that sucks is Delgado died afterwards. Otherwise, it has great pacing and twists only foreseeable if one reads some spoilers. I guess the Oz-ian Draconians are a bit cheesy/grating but Delgado and Pertwee together is pure magic.
Story 068 - Planet of the Daleks
Gargh. Thalls. Ick. At least some of them die horribly. Plus, there is some great model work going on. Not so sure why an invisible race would decide to use the fur of Grimace. Sure the planet gets cold but Snuffleupagus would blend in better with trees. All kidding aside, Pertwee is fairly brilliant even managing to play off the dull, monotonous of the Thall race.
Story 070 - The Time Warrior
I was pretty much destined to love this story. It introduced Sarah Jane Smith. I loved that character so much I named a puppy after her. As a bonus, it was a fun tale. A Sontaran lands in medieval times and sets about arming a robber baron anachronistically. By the third or fourth straight-up history story during the Hartnell era they started to become an exercise in endurance. This one had a story beyond "a man from the future and his companions get captured by ignorant savages then escape last second." Plus, Pertwee brought the kungfu poses which look absolutely smashing with his stylish jackets.
Story 071 - 025 The Gunfighters
Oh man. This one was an exceptionally awkward historical piece with multiple musical numbers. About the only thing approximating a highlight was when the Doctor introduced himself as Dr. Caligari instead of using the Smith alias. Otherwise, a real snoozer.
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