![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
locker_monsterWell, eight Doctors, twenty-something Companions, and 696 episodes (roughly). A year and a bit later and I'm finally caught up on all of my Classic Who. Whoo! Though, I'm slightly depressed now. It was great fun catching up on all of the episodes, but now I have nothing to watch.
So, one last round of summaries.
Favourite Doctor: I really don't like doing favourites and after watching all of these episodes, I'm not really sure I came out with a favourite, but I suppose if I did have to choose, it would be Five. Shocker! His run was one of the few where I re-watched serials I had already seen. With some of the other Doctors, I skipped over serials, but with Five, I watched it from beginning to end all the way through. He did remind me a lot of Ten, which is why I'm so fond of him, but he was super likable, too. Some of the Doctors could be a right pain, but Five never annoyed me. And I also dreaded making it to his last episode. I didn't want his run to end.
Favourite Companion: My gosh, there are so many, and I really can't stand to pick any out. I suppose I liked certain combinations more than I liked certain Companions. The TARDIS team of Ian, Barbara, and Vicki was good and so was Jamie and Zoe, and Sarah Jane and Harry. But an individual Companion that's my absolute favourite? Yeah, I can't pin it down.
Favourite villain: Well, I can tell you who my least favourite villain is for sure. Out of the recurring monsters, I suppose the Cybermen were okay. Their stories, on a whole, were never that boring or annoying. For the most part, though, Doctor Who relied on the villain of the week. Oh sure, there were times they hoped one particular monster would take off like the Daleks, but that rarely happened. I should mention the Yeti though. Those two serials are lost, but they're furry, and thus, cute. :-)
Favourite story: I'm going to break these down by era
-First Doctor: "The Rescue" and "The Romans" are, by far, my favourite serials from One's era. They're such polar opposite, these stories. One set in the future, the other in the past. One is very serious and one was the show's first attempt at broad comedy. But I love both. "The Rescue" was most like a New Who story, I found, probably because it was only two parts and the plot never dragged. Also, the story's theme felt very New Who-ish. At the heart of the story, it's about loneliness and being "rescued" from the despair of being on your own. Vicki is rescued by the Doctor and the Doctor is rescued by Vicki, to a lesser extent. She becomes his surrogate granddaughter and the two of them have a lot of fun together. And then there's "The Romans". Such a bizarre story. One half of the plot is this comedy and the other half is played straight. It shouldn't have worked, but it does. I think it's because they didn't bother to keep it historically accurate and they could take some liberties. And yes, it's terribly shippy if you're an Ian/Barbara shipper (which I sort of am, I suppose). Can't go wrong with Romans, it seems.
-Second Doctor: Not many to choose from here. While I did read the transcripts for the missing episodes, it's not the same as watching them, so it's hard to form an opinion from just words. Still, I really enjoyed "The Invasion" and "The War Games". "The Invasion" was a surprisingly good Cybermen story. It's probably because they're barely in it. ;-) For an eight part story, the plot never lags and even with all the characters running around, it never felt bloated. The same applies with "The War Games". "The War Games" has the added bonus of introducing the Time Lords before they became jerks in funny hats.
-Third Doctor: This one is a toughie. I really didn't love any serials from Three's era. There are some I like, but not love. Maybe "Inferno". I love a good alternative reality story. But the others? Meh. "Invasion of the Dinosaurs" is good for a laugh; got to love cheesy looking dinosaurs.
-Fourth Doctor: With all the serials to choose from, you'd think I would have lots of favourites, but I don't. "Pyramids of Mars" is my top choice. I don't know what it is that I love about this story. The villain is a guy who sits in a chair for most of the story and the henchmen kill you by hugging you to death. I think I like it so much because the story strikes a nice balance between everything. There's humour but it's serious, too. The Doctor isn't too laid back and Sarah Jane doesn't just run around after the Doctor. She gets to shoot a rifle and she's a good shot, too, for no apparent reason. A close second would be "The Ark in Space" for reasons I really can't describe either.
-Fifth Doctor: "The Caves of Androzani", hands down, is the best serial from Five's run. Great dialogue, great plot, and a great dilemma for the Doctor to overcome, namely, trying to save his and Peri's life from the toxemia poisoning. The Doctor takes a real beating in this story; on top of the toxemia poisoning, he gets hit on the head, he burns himself, and he tumbles down a big sand dune. All because he was a little selfish and he didn't turn back when Peri asked. It's the Doctor's guilt that pushes him on, which is why is regeneration is so awesome. He risks death so he can right his wrong.
-Sixth Doctor: Um... There are no good stories. I suppose "The Two Doctors" would be my favourite if I was forced to choose. A multi-Doctor story; can't go wrong there.
-Seventh Doctor: Yeah, not a lot to choose from here, either. Maybe "Battlefield"? I don't know. They brought the Brig back for that one and that's always fun.
-Eighth Doctor: I don't even know why I'm bothering to add Eight. One canon story and it wasn't very good. New Who seriously needs to bring him back so he can at least have one more canon story.
The thing I appreciated the most while watching Classic Who? It's still the same show whether it aired in 1963 or in 2010. New Who is not a reboot, or a re-imagining, or a spin-off. It's still the same main character travelling around in the same ship having the same crazy and awesome adventures.
So, one last round of summaries.
Favourite Doctor: I really don't like doing favourites and after watching all of these episodes, I'm not really sure I came out with a favourite, but I suppose if I did have to choose, it would be Five. Shocker! His run was one of the few where I re-watched serials I had already seen. With some of the other Doctors, I skipped over serials, but with Five, I watched it from beginning to end all the way through. He did remind me a lot of Ten, which is why I'm so fond of him, but he was super likable, too. Some of the Doctors could be a right pain, but Five never annoyed me. And I also dreaded making it to his last episode. I didn't want his run to end.
Favourite Companion: My gosh, there are so many, and I really can't stand to pick any out. I suppose I liked certain combinations more than I liked certain Companions. The TARDIS team of Ian, Barbara, and Vicki was good and so was Jamie and Zoe, and Sarah Jane and Harry. But an individual Companion that's my absolute favourite? Yeah, I can't pin it down.
Favourite villain: Well, I can tell you who my least favourite villain is for sure. Out of the recurring monsters, I suppose the Cybermen were okay. Their stories, on a whole, were never that boring or annoying. For the most part, though, Doctor Who relied on the villain of the week. Oh sure, there were times they hoped one particular monster would take off like the Daleks, but that rarely happened. I should mention the Yeti though. Those two serials are lost, but they're furry, and thus, cute. :-)
Favourite story: I'm going to break these down by era
-First Doctor: "The Rescue" and "The Romans" are, by far, my favourite serials from One's era. They're such polar opposite, these stories. One set in the future, the other in the past. One is very serious and one was the show's first attempt at broad comedy. But I love both. "The Rescue" was most like a New Who story, I found, probably because it was only two parts and the plot never dragged. Also, the story's theme felt very New Who-ish. At the heart of the story, it's about loneliness and being "rescued" from the despair of being on your own. Vicki is rescued by the Doctor and the Doctor is rescued by Vicki, to a lesser extent. She becomes his surrogate granddaughter and the two of them have a lot of fun together. And then there's "The Romans". Such a bizarre story. One half of the plot is this comedy and the other half is played straight. It shouldn't have worked, but it does. I think it's because they didn't bother to keep it historically accurate and they could take some liberties. And yes, it's terribly shippy if you're an Ian/Barbara shipper (which I sort of am, I suppose). Can't go wrong with Romans, it seems.
-Second Doctor: Not many to choose from here. While I did read the transcripts for the missing episodes, it's not the same as watching them, so it's hard to form an opinion from just words. Still, I really enjoyed "The Invasion" and "The War Games". "The Invasion" was a surprisingly good Cybermen story. It's probably because they're barely in it. ;-) For an eight part story, the plot never lags and even with all the characters running around, it never felt bloated. The same applies with "The War Games". "The War Games" has the added bonus of introducing the Time Lords before they became jerks in funny hats.
-Third Doctor: This one is a toughie. I really didn't love any serials from Three's era. There are some I like, but not love. Maybe "Inferno". I love a good alternative reality story. But the others? Meh. "Invasion of the Dinosaurs" is good for a laugh; got to love cheesy looking dinosaurs.
-Fourth Doctor: With all the serials to choose from, you'd think I would have lots of favourites, but I don't. "Pyramids of Mars" is my top choice. I don't know what it is that I love about this story. The villain is a guy who sits in a chair for most of the story and the henchmen kill you by hugging you to death. I think I like it so much because the story strikes a nice balance between everything. There's humour but it's serious, too. The Doctor isn't too laid back and Sarah Jane doesn't just run around after the Doctor. She gets to shoot a rifle and she's a good shot, too, for no apparent reason. A close second would be "The Ark in Space" for reasons I really can't describe either.
-Fifth Doctor: "The Caves of Androzani", hands down, is the best serial from Five's run. Great dialogue, great plot, and a great dilemma for the Doctor to overcome, namely, trying to save his and Peri's life from the toxemia poisoning. The Doctor takes a real beating in this story; on top of the toxemia poisoning, he gets hit on the head, he burns himself, and he tumbles down a big sand dune. All because he was a little selfish and he didn't turn back when Peri asked. It's the Doctor's guilt that pushes him on, which is why is regeneration is so awesome. He risks death so he can right his wrong.
-Sixth Doctor: Um... There are no good stories. I suppose "The Two Doctors" would be my favourite if I was forced to choose. A multi-Doctor story; can't go wrong there.
-Seventh Doctor: Yeah, not a lot to choose from here, either. Maybe "Battlefield"? I don't know. They brought the Brig back for that one and that's always fun.
-Eighth Doctor: I don't even know why I'm bothering to add Eight. One canon story and it wasn't very good. New Who seriously needs to bring him back so he can at least have one more canon story.
The thing I appreciated the most while watching Classic Who? It's still the same show whether it aired in 1963 or in 2010. New Who is not a reboot, or a re-imagining, or a spin-off. It's still the same main character travelling around in the same ship having the same crazy and awesome adventures.
Tags:
