Taking a Dive into Classic Who

I was watching all the Troughtons and Pertwees, and was on The Green Death when my hard drive screwed up. Picking up the Hartnells tomorrow. I've already seen Unearthly Child, Dalek Invasion Of Earth, The Aztecs, and The Time Meddler - totally agree with rdks. Hartnell's got some great episodes. I particularly liked The Time Meddler.

Hartnell's were the first classic episodes I sought out, and I wasn't dissapointed.

As to McCoy, I've only seen Curse of Fenric and I enjoyed it.

When I start watching the earlier era (esp Hartnell and Troughton), it always strikes me that there was a lot more development and chemistry between the companions, and their relation with the Doc. I wish there was more done with the Doc 5 team like that, but it seems that team was just set up for angst except for Nyssa.

So Genesis of the Daleks arrived today. Rather then finish up the Key to Time, I obviously decided to go with Genesis.


It was extremely good. Really, I'm finding it difficult to describe the story. It was epic in scope, and done masterfully and more then that...resolved both intelligently and lacking that "Sudden Reversal" that the New Daleks always encounter.

It's worth pointing out that this is my first exposure to the Daleks of the Classic Era. I'm more surprised by how little about them has changed through the years. They still work masterfully, and outside the Classic "Death Animation" when they used their guns (Seriously. Ham it up more, guys. ), they're all but exactly the same as they are in the modern series (More sophisticated with better lighting, yes, but those are minor improvements).

So yeah, to witness a Dalek story where there isn't a sudden defeat, yet they are contained...it blew me away. No disrespect meant, but this is the Dalek story I've been waiting and wishing for (Even my personal favorite Dalek ends poorly, when you come right down to it).

And again, speaking as a "New" Fan, Genesis of the Daleks resonates on every level. I don't know how much credit to give to RTD, Moffat, and the crew of New Who writers, or how much to give to Terry Nation, but this story...I'm going to say this story is an absolute MUST to watch for all New Who fans. I can see why people call it the First Shot of the Time War, but also because of the Doctor's morale dilemma in the climax. As Tom Baker's Doctor asks "Have I that right?" all that's going through my head is Chris Eccelston's speech to the Dalek in Dalek about a million Dalek ships throughout space and time, all burning.

It is, to be absolutely candid, a haunting scene to anyone who was reared on the 2005 relaunch.


It's also gone and made be absolutely ravenous for more. I must find the story in which Davros resurfaces and how they explain his survival (Also if they ever explain why he looks the way he does). Further, Terry Nation has earned my loving devotion with his absolutely masterful tale. I knew the guy was the creator of the Daleks, but this story was so multifaceted and three dimensional that it kinda blew me away. If Mister Nation has had this quality of story telling in all the tales he crafted for Doctor Who, then I'm obligated to track them down.


I bought this story because of the connections The Stolen Earth/Journey's End, due to a passing comment by Davros to Sarah Jane. I came away from the story realizing what I'd watched was in fact, the Prequel to that story. I don't say that ironically - I mean I don't think it's possible to appreciate The Stolen Earth/Journey's End (Or even Dalek, Bad Wolf/A Parting of Ways, and Daleks in Manhattan) without seeing this story. Journey's End got a lot more meaningful title, due to what started in Genesis.


To any New Who fan who has been reading these reviews, I implore you. Get This Story. If you never buy another Classic Who story, you owe it to yourself to pick this one up. I was a little disoriented at first, compared to all the other Classic Who stories I own, Genesis hits the ground running and doesn't slow down for a bit. Leaving you as confused as to what's going on as the Doctor and company. At first, it made me a bit uncomfortable (Also hypocritical, since I've complained before about "wasting time" in the beginning with needless exposition), but looking back it was brilliant way to suck in interest and leave the viewer hungering for more.

As an aside:

Julian Bleach's performance as Davros is eerie now. He's flat out channeling Michael Wisher (Though a little less Screaming).

Also, I got a kick out of Nyder sounding like a Dalek.

Congratulations. You've just watched one of the greatest episodes of the entire series. Whatever you watch next won't be as good. It really is a fantastic story. And since you liked it so much, and Terry Nation's writing, then for your first Hartnell episode you should really watch The Daleks.

Rust wrote:

It's also gone and made be absolutely ravenous for more. I must find the story in which Davros resurfaces and how they explain his survival (Also if they ever explain why he looks the way he does).

Unfortunately for you, you've just watched one of the best, and now you're looking for one of the worst. Destiny of the Daleks. Definitely worth watching but a huge disappointment as a sequel to Genesis. But don't worry, things pick up again with the next Dalek story.

I'd like to add I'm really finding your reviews fascinating!

rdks wrote:

Congratulations. You've just watched one of the greatest episodes of the
entire series. Whatever you watch next won't be as good.

I dunno. The Invasion is still in the pipeline, and I'm really looking forward to watching it.

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And since you liked it so much, and Terry Nation's writing, then for your first Hartnell episode you should really watch The Daleks.

I've seen the Peter Cushing movie adaptation of the story. I also know that the history given in The Daleks isn't the same as the one seen in Genesis. At the same time, I think you're right. After witnessing Genesis, I feel I owe it to myself and my collection to acquire their debut story.

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Unfortunately for you, you've just watched one of the best, and now you're looking for one of the worst. Destiny of the Daleks. Definitely worth watching but a huge disappointment as a sequel to Genesis. But don't worry, things pick up again with the next Dalek story.

Yeah. I read that on Wikipedia. Now that the enthusiasm has "cooled" a bit, I think I'll just safely pull back from Davros' revival. Though that episode with him being a "Great Healer" and the introduction of the Imperial Daleks does sound interesting.

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I'd like to add I'm really finding your reviews fascinating!

Thank you! And I have to say, it is an interesting experience. I've always been aware of Doctor Who's history when I started watching the show. Now getting to experience it, and how many similarities there are between eras, is a real treat.

Indeed, what started as a quest just to obtain a sampling of each Doctor to give myself a "taste" of that history has morphed into something entirely different. In addition to some Hartnell outings and a McCoy adventure (I'm thinking I might just have to go through an episode summary listing and find an adventure that suits my tastes), I still want to find a better Colin Baker adventure (The Two Doctors is...well...it's not good. Especially when you stack it up against the quality of the rest of my collection), I think I'll be getting The Ambassadors of Death sometime in the future, and probably War Games...

This is becoming dangerous to my wallet. At the same time, it helps that the stories are so lengthy. Ordering two or three at a time online per paycheck doesn't kill my wallet so long as I'm careful about what I order (I probably should have picked up Trial of a Time Lord when I had the chance to get it insanely cheap. But I opted for The Key to Time instead), and by the time I finish them up it's a new payday and time for more.

Still, my DVD case only has so much room. Between Doctor Who, Babylon 5, The Transformers, The Dresden Files, and Mystery Science Theater 3000...that one shelf is awfully full already. And it looks like Doctor Who is poised to eat more of it.

For Colin Baker, I recommend "Vengeance on Varos" or "Revelation of the Daleks." I would not go with "Trial of a Time Lord" yet unless it's insanely cheap. The individual stories are OK, but the trial interruptions in the storylines are a distraction that ruins the whole thing - in my opinion.

Oh. I forgot. Because you like Troughton so much (I do, too), I feel you can't go wrong with "The War Games." Absolutely one of the best Doctor Who stories ever.

I always felt that Genesis could have been a very tense fiver or even four part story. There is a lot of running back and forth.

I would like to see a mini-series called Doctor Who Legends. It would be the origin stories for some of the greatest villains and monsters in the programs history.

In the past 2 weeks my nieces & I have had a couple rounds of Who marathon. My older niece finally gave in for the 1st time in a couple years and was willing to watch pre-Tom episodes, and my little niece wasn't about to be out done. My little niece's favourite Doc is still Matt, but along the way she's developed a greater affection for Tom and now Sylv as well, while my older nice has gone ga-ga over Jon, now preferring him over Matt and even challenging David as the Doctor (no small feat that!).

AnyWHO ( ) among the titles we screened were: The Chase, Tomb of the Cybermen, Terror of the Autons, Claws of Axos, Curse of Peladon, 3 Doctors, Carnival of Monsters, Planet of the Daleks, Time Warrior, Planet of the Spiders, Robot, Genesis of the Daleks, Terror of the Zygons, Face of Evil, Robots of Death, Talons of Weng-Chiang, Destiny of the Daleks, Horns of Nimon, Meglos, 5 Doctors, Frontios, Planet of Fire, Attack of the Cybermen, Dragonfire, Remembrance of the Daleks, Battlefield, Girl in the Fireplace, Runaway Bride, Shakespeare Code, Blink, Unicorn & the Wasp, Turn Left, End of Time, Vincent & the Doctor and finally Pandorica/Big Bang (the last 3 still on my DVR, thank goodness!). Remember, that's over the course of 2 weeks (maybe a little more) with a balance of classic & new initially in part to entice the girls into watching the older goodies (for every classic serial I'd let them watch a "new classic" or their choosing), but by the end I didn't need to use the carrot & stick approach, especially with my older niece who really, really likes Jon now! We have a few more stories they'd picked out that we were going to watch this weekend, but after jotting all those titles down, I'm torn--much as I'd love to watch more classics with them, I'm also afraid of burning them out on the classics. Its a conundrum!

Wow! And the nieces haven't even seen some of Jon's and Tom's best! Don't get me wrong, there are some all time greats on your marathon list, but in addition there's still Silurians, Ambassadors of Death, Inferno, Daemons, Sea Devils, and Frontier in Space for Jon, and Planet of Evil, Pyramids of Mars, Seeds of Doom, Deadly Assassin, and City of Death for Tom. They'll be thrilled!

SeaDevil wrote:

Wow! And the nieces haven't even seen some of Jon's and Tom's best! Don't get me wrong, there are some all time greats on your marathon list, but in addition there's still Silurians, Ambassadors of Death, Inferno, Daemons, Sea Devils, and Frontier in Space for Jon, and Planet of Evil, Pyramids of Mars, Seeds of Doom, Deadly Assassin, and City of Death for Tom. They'll be thrilled!

Now that you mention it, among the titles pulled for a possible marathon this weekend are: Ambassadors, Inferno, Sea Devils, Seeds of Doom & City of Death (they've both seen Pyramids many times--its the story I introduced them both to classic Who with). In addition I have The Dead Planet/The Survivors (aka The Daleks), The War Games, Spearhead from Space, Revenge of the Cybermen, Hand of Fear, Morbius, Ribos, Logopolis, Castrovalva, Androzani, 2 Doctors & Fenric from the classics. No choices thus far with the new series, and chances are good that we'll only get through a few of those set aside (several of those are hang overs from the previous weeks as it is--can't stay cooped up in the apartment for hours on end with the eyes glued to the tube, not even for a show as strong as this). My older niece expressed an interest the other day in watching "the vampire one" which took some questioning by to to narrow down to State of Decay, and my little niece asked for "the lion one" which I knew immediately was Warriors' Gate--I'd love some figures from those serials as well, lol! I have to say, it is interesting to hear how they describe the various Doctors and which are fast becoming favourites (i.e., my older niece calls Hartnell Mr. Cranky, Troughton a "clown" (she means it affectionately, of course), Pertwee "Dr. Bond, James Bond"). The little one adores Peter & Sylv, but is really taken with Tegan & Ace (she's more interested in the companions, especially the strong female ones than the Doctor actually). That's the sign of a something more than just a good television program, I tell you what!

Rust wrote:

I still want to find a better Colin Baker adventure (The Two Doctors is...well...it's not good. Especially when you stack it up against the quality of the rest of my collection),

Stick with Daleks and Cybermen. You might want to watch the Fifth Doctor's Dalek episode before you watch Colin's Cybermen episode - they're related.

Eh, I think I'm good for Davidson episodes (The Five Doctors and Earthshock). Nothing against the guy, but he's really...bland..in the realm of Classic Who. He just does nothing for me as the Doctor. I don't dislike him or anything, I just feel no desire to see more of him unless the story seems really intriguing (Like his encounter with Davros, for example).

It's kinda like this: Troughton captured me with his charm and wit, same with Smith and Tennant. Pertwee's got this smooth "Sean Connery as James Bond" Cool about him and his story arc (Trapped on Earth) leads to some interesting stories. Tom Baker just never fails to entertain with madcap wit, seemingly reminding me of every Doctor and none of them at the same time, while my brain keep insisting on morphing Colin Baker into Chris Eccelston, because they seem so similar in character approaches (Despite the fact Colin's outfit is a physical assault on the optic nerve).

Davidson? I can take him or leave him. And in all honesty, I'd rather spend my money on Doctors who I find engaging, rather then the Doctor who kinda feels like he's driving around a Minivan and taking the family on holiday.

Rust wrote:

Eh, I think I'm good for Davidson episodes (The Five Doctors and Earthshock). Nothing against the guy, but he's really...bland..in the realm of Classic Who. He just does nothing for me as the Doctor. I don't dislike him or anything, I just feel no desire to see more of him unless the story seems really intriguing (Like his encounter with Davros, for example).

Unfortunately, the fifth doctor's encounter with Davros is nowhere near as epic and meaningful as the literal struggle of power that existed with the fourth doctor. Maybe the reason I prefer Davison is because, as a more passive doctor, he works well interacting with companions, creating more of an "adventure", or as you called it "family holiday", that took away some sort of authority that was always given to the doctor's character. For me, Davison's doctor was one that is capable of much emotion, yet always hides it, because the "adventure" is the only option for him, and he accepts that the whole "life in the tardis changes you . . . " argument is unavoidable.

Well The Invasion arrived today.

What struck me most about the DVD was two fold: First, that it was an eight part story (The longest I own currently - discounting the Season arc of The Key to Time), and second that two of the episodes were animated. This didn't particularly bother me, but it still came as something of a surprise since no mention of this fact was made when I purchased the DVD.

In any event, I've gotten through the first four parts, I'll save the last four for tomorrow.


The Invasion is a very "slow burn" story. Indeed, it actually seems to be more like two stories following one right after another more then a single, lengthy story. It sets up all the players well in advance and establishes their motivations prior to getting the ball rolling on the real action at the end of the episode four.

Indeed, the main antagonist for the first four episodes - a wealthy industrialist named Tobias Vaughn - reminds me strongly of another amoral industrialist tied to the Cybermen: John Lumic.

And while the first four episodes detail the Doctor and friends escapades with Vaughn and his shady company, the shades of the true villains are everywhere. From the computer receptionist (Who Zoey brain fries in a fun scene reminiscent of Star Trek), to the "super human" factory workers, to Vaughn's casual comments about Conversion - everything points to the Cybermen.

And I have to say, that pleased me more then anything. When Vaughn threatened his chief of security with "total conversion"...it brought a smile to my face. The Cybermen convert. It's nice to see them "back" after witnessing the very Human aspects of Earthshock's Cybermen (Who seem rather disinterested in converting anyone save the few remnants of Humanity after the freighter hits the Earth).

I suppose I should comment on the animated episodes, which encompass the first and fourth part of the story. They're well done, if appearing a bit too stiff at times, but their presence doesn't jar the story any. Just the simple fact that the BBC has gone to the time to restore these episodes is a delight. For anyone who's watched Cartoon Network's Adult Swim, the animation appears to be similar to that used on their Sealab 2021 show, but slightly more animation.


Overall, I'm enjoying the story. While it isn't as good as Genesis of the Daleks or even my other Troughton adventure Tomb of the Cybermen (Patrick spends a lot more time in this story pointing out the obvious), it's still a good adventure. I'll likely have more to say about it tomorrow evening, after I finish watching it.


Though I will say, just like my Earthshock drinking game (Every time the Cyber Leader says "Excellent!", take a shot), I'm already thinking that The Invasion could benefit from one too. Troughton enjoys saying "Oh, how nice!" far, far, far too much for four episodes.

A fine story. One of my favourites, until I watch it again and remember how slow it moves! Episode 5 definitely picks things up.

Rust wrote:

Indeed, the main antagonist for the first four episodes - a wealthy industrialist named Tobias Vaughn - reminds me strongly of another amoral industrialist tied to the Cybermen: John Lumic.

That was intentional, I think. Also, notice the name of the company. International Electromatics. They used the name in Rise of the Cybermen, on the side of the truck Lumic's goons use to steal homeless people.

The animated episodes were a real treat for those of us who for years had to put up with Nicholas Courtney doing a 5 minute rundown of the missing episodes on the VHS release. The same company also did the animated 10th Doctor story The Infinite Quest. We're hoping more lost episodes get released in the future, but it doesn't look good. They lost a lot of money on The Invasion DVD, so they're not very keen to try again quite yet.

Hope you enjoy the rest of the episode! The best is yet to come. And wait 'til you hear the music!

I wouldn't say the story moves slow, so much as it just feels like two separate stories, tied together.

It's part of the reason I stopped at Episode Four: It's a good stopping point for the story, since it's the "logical" conclusion of "Part One".


As for the Animated episodes, I was more fascinated by the Audio aspects then the visual. It just astounds me that they've reassembled the episode from fan recordings sent in to the BBC. A pity it seems Marco Polo is lost forever (The DVD Extra that played an extract of Audio Sampling of the episode doesn't give much hope that it will ever be restored).

I think I should also say that one of the timeless aspects of Doctor Who is how fantastic and mundane seem to collide. Or, to put it another way, how good their science is. While the story is set in the 1960s, the technology used is rather common place today. Video Phones, miniaturized radios, heck even the "Miniaturized Monolithic Circuit" is just a real round about way of saying a microprocessor. Or that Zoey used a "Computer Language" to fry the Receptionist. Given I took a year of Computer Programming before switching majors to Broadcasting, a lot of what Zoey was saying sounded "Familiar". Obviously random gibberish for the most part, but sharing a lot of similarities with the RPG programming language (Which, a quick check on Wikipedia reveals was actually used in the 1960s on card input mainframes).

It's part of the reason this show doesn't seem to age that much.

Whelp, I wrapped up The Invasion (A day late, but the finace' wanted to get together for supper last night).

All in all, it was a good story - just extremely long. Far, far, far too long. The padding on these episodes grates after awhile, but watching the special features it appears the reason for its abnormal length was because they were having issues with scripts being delivered on time, and thus gave a lot more lead time.

Still, the length wasn't exactly used to maximum efficiency. A lot of story plots just kinda twist in the breeze (The Cyber Control of the Defense Minister and the fact Vaughn and Pecker were mostly converted are the two most glaring ones), but overall it's not a poor use of time to sit and watch.

I really like the Cybermen's look in this story, up to a point. There's a scene in which Cybermen walk past the camera, with the camera at ground level pointed down the block. The zipper on the front of the suit does an effective job of vanishing during filming, those boot laces on the Cybermen's feet do not.

It's nice to know a race of mechanical humanoids haven't lost the ability to tie their own shoes.

This was also the only instance I really had a problem understanding the Cybermen (Not the Cyber Director, but the Cybermen themselves). However, that voice modulation sounds wonderful with screams, and that bit with the maddened Cyberman was so brilliant I can't begrudge the effect too much.

So, yeah. Not a whole lot to add to my earlier observations. It's a good story, but definitely on the long side. Oh, and I am glad that UNIT theme didn't last. That music has a way of ruining moments of tension completely.

Never liked the Cybermen's bionic chipmunk voice in the Invasion.

I have always felt that for all of the episodes, the Cybermen were hardly in it!!

HAHAHA you called Packer, 'Pecker' HAHAHA

Well, it's an apt description of him. But in all seriousness, that's just a slip.

And I thought for sure their Cyber nature would play into any attempt to kill them, but appearently I was wrong.

I hate to say it, but I think The Invasion kinda burned me out on Classic Who for awhile. The eight part story, plus the fact I still have two episodes from The Key to Time to finish up. So I think with my next paycheck, I'm just going to nab a Hartnell and McCoy story to finish up my original intent (To collect a sampling of each incarnation of The Doctor), and then flesh it out down the road.

Though Revelation of the Daleks sings to me. Not only would it give me another Colin Baker adventure, but the story just seems interesting.

I'm still torn between The Beginning (An Unearthly Child, The Daleks, and The Edge of Destruction three pack) and The War Machines for Hartnell. I think I'll go the three pack, despite being very interested in the story of The War Machines. Two reasons: First, it's the very beginning of Doctor Who. It's worth watching simply because this was the genesis of the longest running Sci-Fi show on Television. And Secondly, because right now I can get it for as cheap as I could get The War Machines. I'm just worried because this is the beginning. Shows typically don't hit their stride right out of the gate, and I'm worried the opening adventures of the Doctor won't live up to expectations. Plus there's the fact I've already seen a version of The Daleks in the Peter Cushing movie.

As for McCoy...I'm disappointed The Greatest Show in the Galaxy isn't on DVD, because that struck me as a interesting tale. However, Battlefield might be worth a peek, if only because it features the Brigadier. Might be a nice bit of continuity for my collection. Oh, and also Knights. Outside that...not a whole lot to offer from the McCoy era. The Curse of Fenric seemed okay, but nothing really popped out at me.

Rust wrote:

I hate to say it, but I think The Invasion kinda burned me out on Classic Who for awhile. The eight part story, plus the fact I still have two episodes from The Key to Time to finish up. So I think with my next paycheck, I'm just going to nab a Hartnell and McCoy story to finish up my original intent (To collect a sampling of each incarnation of The Doctor), and then flesh it out down the road.

Though Revelation of the Daleks sings to me. Not only would it give me another Colin Baker adventure, but the story just seems interesting.

I'm still torn between The Beginning (An Unearthly Child, The Daleks, and The Edge of Destruction three pack) and The War Machines for Hartnell. I think I'll go the three pack, despite being very interested in the story of The War Machines. Two reasons: First, it's the very beginning of Doctor Who. It's worth watching simply because this was the genesis of the longest running Sci-Fi show on Television. And Secondly, because right now I can get it for as cheap as I could get The War Machines. I'm just worried because this is the beginning. Shows typically don't hit their stride right out of the gate, and I'm worried the opening adventures of the Doctor won't live up to expectations. Plus there's the fact I've already seen a version of The Daleks in the Peter Cushing movie.

As for McCoy...I'm disappointed The Greatest Show in the Galaxy isn't on DVD, because that struck me as a interesting tale. However, Battlefield might be worth a peek, if only because it features the Brigadier. Might be a nice bit of continuity for my collection. Oh, and also Knights. Outside that...not a whole lot to offer from the McCoy era. The Curse of Fenric seemed okay, but nothing really popped out at me.

The Daleks is quite well made. Cliffhanger at the end of episode one was one of the most effective in the show's history.

Plus I prefer to call it, "The Dead Planet", since it sounds more dramatic and mysterious than "The Daleks".

Invasion also was a bit bad, cause these Cybermen felt more like Cybusmen in the the fact they felt so bland and dull.