DW And The Silurians 5-7, from the Collection set. The story as a whole is a classic, but this back half is particularly great, when the scale opens up (ha, scales). A defining performance from Pertwee in his second story! 4.5/5
It’s a very dark but very substantial script about misunderstanding and xenophobia and power struggles, denying the evidence of your eyes if it doesn’t suit you, the kind of ideas it’s introducing into a family show in 1970 are pretty amazing. It’s teaching you to try everything in your power, like The Doctor, to avert the very worst, sometimes it’s the best you can do. The end is certainly disquieting, writer Malcolm Hulke perhaps forcing The Brig into a shape he doesn’t suit to make a larger point about the military mind.
It’s overlong by one or two parts, but it has an appealing seriousness and so many nice ideas in it. You could easily lose those two parts simply by having Liz Shaw do the science bits of the plot, given that she is a scientist, at the same time as The Doctor does the cave-based diplomacy bits of the plot, but she still has some great scenes (and I am obsessed with the green duffel coat).
I was at my friend’s on Thursday watching Wish/Reality, and had a bit more time after, so I asked if it was out yet. I believe it was dropping at midnight. We didn’t stay that late.
So…I just checked On Demand on my cable, and it’s available to me, so we’re watching it now. They’re singing…
Right. My friend has Disney+, and since I have cable I have Disney Channel. But if you hadn’t said something, it wouldn’t have occurred to me we could put it on. Just finished ep. 4.
Evolution Of The Daleks. I like the first part well enough, but this would be my pick for the single dumbest episode of the show.
Like… I can usually deal with dubious science on this show (even if I absolutely cannot stand the eugenicist idea of morality being genetic), but this is like a ten-car pile-up. Right in front of a brick wall with “Time Lord DNA got all mixed up. Just that little bit of freedom.” painted onto it. Even if I took all the bad science as read, it is impossible for me to make sense of that bit of dialogue.
I get the constraints this was made under, and I certainly don’t abide the garbage Helen Raynor copped for it online, but wowzers.
Fugitive of the Judoon: Fantastic episode, especially towards the end! I love the fugitive doctor! Her scenes with 13 were great, and I’m actually kinda enjoying the timeless child stuff so far Praxeus: Not much to say about this one. I had an enjoyable time watching it, and I loved all the scenes with 13 in the science lab doing sciencey things Can You Hear Me?: I was pretty surprised at how different this was to how I remember. The floating fingers were creepy, but I am not a fan of all-powerful immortal gods in Doctor Who I hoped the antagonist could have been more weird and unknown, like the midnight entity. I also wanted more of the story in Aleppo, I think it’s a really cool setting. However, I really enjoyed 13 in this episode[1], talking to herself because she was alone, and her scene with Graham at the end was funny and sooooo relatable!
Finished up Frontier in Space, mostly I’ve been finding the pacing here a lot better than I’ve remembered of classic who in these two seasons but uhhh… Frontier in Space is an exception to that. It definitely feels like it goes on for far longer than needed, and overall I just kinda felt ‘eh’ about it.
That said, I think this is the first time that a Master reveal has surprised me in the classic I’ve watched, and the Dalek reveal even moreso; I definitely didn’t expect it to be a secret 12 parter.
Anyway, now watching Arc in Space over diner with my dad!
This is my first time rewatching her era since broadcast and I’m loving it so much
I hoped the antagonist could have been more weird and unknown, like the midnight entity. I also wanted more of the story in Aleppo, I think it’s a really cool setting. However, I really enjoyed 13 in this episode