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"It feels different this time..." - The new Doctor Who Thread
Just coming to post that.
Don't know if the rumors are true and this is Gatwa's last season or not, but it'd be a shame if so. This looks like a lot of fun.
Also, was that a Dalek laser at the end? That one guy died with a very similar effect that Dalek lasers always had but more juiced up visually. Not sure if I care for it if so, always liked the jank VFX the Daleks have.
Don't know if the rumors are true and this is Gatwa's last season or not, but it'd be a shame if so. This looks like a lot of fun.
Also, was that a Dalek laser at the end? That one guy died with a very similar effect that Dalek lasers always had but more juiced up visually. Not sure if I care for it if so, always liked the jank VFX the Daleks have.
I never said my anger was rational.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
The Time Monster
"Yes, that was the daisiest daisy I'd ever seen."
In this serial, the Doctor has a prophetic dream and suspects the Master is up to something even more potentially destructive than usual. The Doctor uses some clever trickery to track the Master to a small college where he is posing as a professor. He's working on a project to manipulate the flow of time, in fact trying to find and capture Kronos, a creature that eats time that served as the inspiration for the titan Chronos. The time experiments soon have unexpected effects, such as turning one young scientist into a 100 year old man. The Master summons Krasis, a high priest from Atlantis to help him capture and control Chronos. Eventually, the Master and Krasis decide to return to Atlantis to complete the plan which involves taking a powerful crystal. The Doctor and Jo follow in their TARDIS and are almost defeated but manage to follow him. There the Master finds he cannot manipulate the King of Atlantis but finds his wife to be understanding of the Master and feels a strong, amoral hand important to saving Atlantis from downfall. However, while she approves of the Master overthrowing the King, she doesn't approve of the Master killing him, which he does, and before she can strike the Master, he summons Kronos, which kills everyone save the Queen while the Master escapes with Jo clinging onto him and the Doctor follows behind. The Doctor threatens to ram their TARDISes but while he won't do it (as it will kill all parties), Jo does to prevent him from unleashing Kronos once more. The action frees Kronos who thanks the Doctor for freeing her. She threatens the Master with eternal torture and the Doctor refuses to let her. The Master escapes and the Doctor and Jo return to Earth.
Man, that was a lot of... something. It's really sort of wild that the formula for Master episodes are "the Master sort of putters around his plan for four episodes and then the main story happens in the last two." Those first four episodes tend to be trying to fill out a one episode story into four and the final two feel like they are trying to fit 6 episodes of story into two. It's watchable but the last two episodes is both when it goes completely off the rails and is also at it's most interesting. Like The Mutants, it feels like it's both under and over developed. I can follow most of the first four, though its something of a mess but when I try to break down the last two... I can talk about individual scenes but it becomes clear when it is the sum of it's parts, characters and rules are incredibly inconsistent.
What does Kronos do to people. Age them? Send them into... non time? Just murder them? There seems to be no rhyme nor reason. The serial puts a hat on that when Kronos says "I'm everything". There are definitely mythologies where that applies, where a god or creature can be both good and evil and follows a particularly mythic logic that allows it to be all things the story needs. But for most of the story, it was a screeching bird man. So to have it be so much more feels completely contrived. Similarly, the Queen feels like they wanted to have a character of dimensions; she knows the Master is evil but is cool with it but still loves her King. I think WITH TIME, this could be a well-rounded character who isn't easily manipulated but is still willing to further the goals of a monster. But there's not enough time and this character just gives me whiplash.
The Time Monster is kind of delightfully stupid but that's more in the end when it is just swinging for the fences, trying to be a cosmic episode in two episodes where they fight a minotaur and kill Atlantis (again) and have royal intrigue. Much of the acting in the last half is not great outside of our beloved regulars but the guy who plays the King knows the assignment. I feel like he knows how stupid it all is but his smile seems genuine, like he put on the stupid wig and vestments and was reminded acting was "let's pretend" time and couldn't help enjoying it. God bless him. I also love that the Master introduces Kronos and tries to speak to him and it's just this dumb squawking bird thing. Like, the design is kind of both cool and dumb but it's really hard to take seriously as a cosmic horror when it just acts like a dumb bird and everyone is treating it a different kind of threat.
The Time Monster is ridiculous. It's a ridiculous title even. It sounds like what a term an efficiency expert writing a book would use. It's completely half baked and like the Sea Devils is completely dependent on the charms of Delgado and Pertwee. Thankfully, that does help a lot. And in fact, the Doctor gets this weirdly beautiful speech. When you break it down to the words, it feels like this exercise in faux profundity but two things work in it's favour; smaller details, like the Doctor describing his childhood home and hints that he had something of a hard, heartbreaking childhood and the fact that Pertwee completely sells it. Yeah, it's probably not as profound when you stop and think about it but like Troughton's speech in Tomb of the Cybermen (which is a much better and more emotionally powerful speech), it slows things down and instead of being about the plot, it's kind of about... who this guy is and how he thinks and functions. And in his case, he's capable of looking deep, real deep into the world and seeing beauty where one might see ugliness. Frankly, I think I just talked myself into thinking the speech is even better than I gave it credit for.
Best Cliffhanger: Purely for top notch Master gloating, the part where he sends them into... untime. Or something.
Next Time:
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"Yes, that was the daisiest daisy I'd ever seen."
In this serial, the Doctor has a prophetic dream and suspects the Master is up to something even more potentially destructive than usual. The Doctor uses some clever trickery to track the Master to a small college where he is posing as a professor. He's working on a project to manipulate the flow of time, in fact trying to find and capture Kronos, a creature that eats time that served as the inspiration for the titan Chronos. The time experiments soon have unexpected effects, such as turning one young scientist into a 100 year old man. The Master summons Krasis, a high priest from Atlantis to help him capture and control Chronos. Eventually, the Master and Krasis decide to return to Atlantis to complete the plan which involves taking a powerful crystal. The Doctor and Jo follow in their TARDIS and are almost defeated but manage to follow him. There the Master finds he cannot manipulate the King of Atlantis but finds his wife to be understanding of the Master and feels a strong, amoral hand important to saving Atlantis from downfall. However, while she approves of the Master overthrowing the King, she doesn't approve of the Master killing him, which he does, and before she can strike the Master, he summons Kronos, which kills everyone save the Queen while the Master escapes with Jo clinging onto him and the Doctor follows behind. The Doctor threatens to ram their TARDISes but while he won't do it (as it will kill all parties), Jo does to prevent him from unleashing Kronos once more. The action frees Kronos who thanks the Doctor for freeing her. She threatens the Master with eternal torture and the Doctor refuses to let her. The Master escapes and the Doctor and Jo return to Earth.
Man, that was a lot of... something. It's really sort of wild that the formula for Master episodes are "the Master sort of putters around his plan for four episodes and then the main story happens in the last two." Those first four episodes tend to be trying to fill out a one episode story into four and the final two feel like they are trying to fit 6 episodes of story into two. It's watchable but the last two episodes is both when it goes completely off the rails and is also at it's most interesting. Like The Mutants, it feels like it's both under and over developed. I can follow most of the first four, though its something of a mess but when I try to break down the last two... I can talk about individual scenes but it becomes clear when it is the sum of it's parts, characters and rules are incredibly inconsistent.
What does Kronos do to people. Age them? Send them into... non time? Just murder them? There seems to be no rhyme nor reason. The serial puts a hat on that when Kronos says "I'm everything". There are definitely mythologies where that applies, where a god or creature can be both good and evil and follows a particularly mythic logic that allows it to be all things the story needs. But for most of the story, it was a screeching bird man. So to have it be so much more feels completely contrived. Similarly, the Queen feels like they wanted to have a character of dimensions; she knows the Master is evil but is cool with it but still loves her King. I think WITH TIME, this could be a well-rounded character who isn't easily manipulated but is still willing to further the goals of a monster. But there's not enough time and this character just gives me whiplash.
The Time Monster is kind of delightfully stupid but that's more in the end when it is just swinging for the fences, trying to be a cosmic episode in two episodes where they fight a minotaur and kill Atlantis (again) and have royal intrigue. Much of the acting in the last half is not great outside of our beloved regulars but the guy who plays the King knows the assignment. I feel like he knows how stupid it all is but his smile seems genuine, like he put on the stupid wig and vestments and was reminded acting was "let's pretend" time and couldn't help enjoying it. God bless him. I also love that the Master introduces Kronos and tries to speak to him and it's just this dumb squawking bird thing. Like, the design is kind of both cool and dumb but it's really hard to take seriously as a cosmic horror when it just acts like a dumb bird and everyone is treating it a different kind of threat.
The Time Monster is ridiculous. It's a ridiculous title even. It sounds like what a term an efficiency expert writing a book would use. It's completely half baked and like the Sea Devils is completely dependent on the charms of Delgado and Pertwee. Thankfully, that does help a lot. And in fact, the Doctor gets this weirdly beautiful speech. When you break it down to the words, it feels like this exercise in faux profundity but two things work in it's favour; smaller details, like the Doctor describing his childhood home and hints that he had something of a hard, heartbreaking childhood and the fact that Pertwee completely sells it. Yeah, it's probably not as profound when you stop and think about it but like Troughton's speech in Tomb of the Cybermen (which is a much better and more emotionally powerful speech), it slows things down and instead of being about the plot, it's kind of about... who this guy is and how he thinks and functions. And in his case, he's capable of looking deep, real deep into the world and seeing beauty where one might see ugliness. Frankly, I think I just talked myself into thinking the speech is even better than I gave it credit for.
Best Cliffhanger: Purely for top notch Master gloating, the part where he sends them into... untime. Or something.
Next Time:
The fact that Doctor Who can't really do a decent Atlantis story (at least, one that is generally agreed to be good; I like The Underwater Menace despite its many faults) is wild.
At least you're on to season ten, though! It's the other good Pertwee season (imo). I don't think it has any outright bad stories in it, though some get a bit dull here and there. And I fuckin love The Three Doctors. It is, at times, (and sometimes simultaneously) insane, sublime, ridiculous, funny, epic, sad, and stupid. It has a few of my favorite scenes in the entire classic series. It sets the template for multi-Doctor stories (which are always at least fun, if not always good). Both Pertwee and Troughton are fantastic in it. I don't mean to overhype it - some people find it mostly stupid. I hope you end up liking it.
At least you're on to season ten, though! It's the other good Pertwee season (imo). I don't think it has any outright bad stories in it, though some get a bit dull here and there. And I fuckin love The Three Doctors. It is, at times, (and sometimes simultaneously) insane, sublime, ridiculous, funny, epic, sad, and stupid. It has a few of my favorite scenes in the entire classic series. It sets the template for multi-Doctor stories (which are always at least fun, if not always good). Both Pertwee and Troughton are fantastic in it. I don't mean to overhype it - some people find it mostly stupid. I hope you end up liking it.
In part, because of your watchtrough, Johnny Unusual, I watched The Three Doctors while playing through Books 3 and 4 of Shining Force CD a couple days ago, and watched Carnival of Monsters today. Thoroughly enjoyed both. I really wish the Pertwee era hit those highs more consistently - those two stories, as far as I'm concerned, hold up well to the eras on either side of Pertwee, if you ask me.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
The Three Doctors
"Jo, it's all quite simple - I am he and he is me!"
"And we are all together, coo coo cachoo?"
"What?"
"It's a song by The Beatles."
"Really? How does it go? "
In this serial, The Doctor finds unit under attack by a bizarre cosmic entity. It turns out it isn't just him; Gallifrey is barely holding on from an energy attack from the unknown. With their forces completely thinned, the Time Lords only have the Doctor out there to help and they feel he is not enough. A high ranking Time Lord choses the unthinkable; allowing the Doctor to team up with himself from a previous point in history; namely the Second Doctor. Soon UNIT is under attack from more monsters and call on the First Doctor, though being trapped in a time eddy, he is unable to do more than give advice. Eventually the Doctors realizing the force is attacking from an anti-matter universe. Whats more, they want the Doctor alive. The Doctor intentionally lets himself be attacked (with Jo accidentally along for the ride) and sent to the other universe who the Second Doctor stays behind to figure things out on Earth's end. The Doctor is captured and becomes a prisoner and soon the Second Doctor is taken too.
They learn their captor is Omega, the Gallifreyan who helped create time travel and found the time lords and was thought dead. In fact he became trapped in an antimatter universe but somehow managed to survive by sheer force of will. Soon he became the God of an empty universe, creating monsters to do his biding and a zone where both matter and antimatter can co-exist. Mad from isolation, Omega wants revenge on the time lords, he believing that they abandoned him. With Jo's help, the Doctors surmise that Omega needs them because there are limits to his seemingly unlimited power. It turns out he can't leave the universe without collapsing it before he gets out and wants the Doctors to take his place mentally holding the universe in tact with their wills until he leaves. The Doctors try not to upset Omega and humour him but soon they all learn his plan is impossible; when taking off his mask, Omega is.... nothing. His body corroded into nothing long ago and all that's left is a sheer mental force. Omega rages and threatens to destroy everything but the Doctors come up with a plan utilizing The Second Doctor's recorder, which ended up stuck in a device that protected it from the process that allowed matter and antimatter to seemingly share space. The two pretend to surrender to allow their friends to escape (who also were transported) and trick Omega into unleashing matter into the antimatter universe, destroying Omega. The Doctors manage to escape in the TARDIS and with Omega defeated, they return to their own timelines.
The Three Doctors is a big deal in a lot of ways. It really feels like the first fan service episode, the one designed to draw people in with a big promise; all the Doctors in one place! Well, it doesn't quite happen like that, sadly, but at least Hartnell got to be part of it. Sadly even when he was in his tenure on the show he seemed to struggle. But for the show's 10th anniversary they gave the fans a present. Now, was it a good one? Mostly. It has a lot of flaws but it also really embraces the fun of the concept while not getting too wrapped up in itself. I think smartly it keeps things relatively simple with a pretty basic "Broken God" story that doesn't get in the way too much of what people really want; two Doctors interacting.
And I think the smart thing is it really reminds you these aren't just two different actors, the characters are quite different. Sadly, that doesn't land with Hartnell and I don't think it's an issue of his diminishing capacity. Well, not entirely. I think if we was capable of being on set, it would help a lot. But Hartnell doesn't QUITE feel like that character. Yes, Hartnell's Doctor is a little less warm than some of the Doctors after but the warmth was there and it feels missing here. There are other things missing, too, but I can't articulate them. I like his bon mots but I think he's so much less wacky than the other Doctors that come after, even if he's sometimes presented as a cheeky and a bit mischievous. Obviously not putting him on set was probably the right call but I feel like he never gets an emotional moment.
To be fair, only Pertwee does at the end. Mostly because it's a very slight story. It's a shame because the idea of Omega is interesting; the man who helped build civilization who is a toxic madman. Don't meet your heroes, kids. I'm surprised they never canonically brought him back on the show (even though I think elements of his mythos do). Like, even doing an episode sort of like the one where the Twelfth Doctor meets widdle Davros and have it be a reminder before he was a threat, he was just some guy (especially since it might have been a pre-super prosperity era for Gallifrey. I mean, we barely get an idea of Gallifrey's deal outside of the upper crust and government, let alone what it was like before... their whole deal). But Omega is a very broad villain, shouty and bloviating. Typical "Star Trek crew vs. childish god" story. I don't entirely hate it but if we are going to have such an outsized villain, it's a shame we don't get a real counterbalance.
The real joy that really carries most of the serial is Troughton and Pertwee being catty to each other (frankly I wonder what the Second Doctor would think of the inside of the TARDIS from a couple seasons before. Yikes.) It plays well and it could be hard to have two versions of the most eccentric dude in the room but utilizes their differences well. I think that's what episode 2 is the weakest. They are far apart and it's more Pertwee wandering a quarry. If anything, Jo should have gone with Troughton (and if Hines was available, which he wasn't. Jamie could have hung out with Pertwee). But when they are together, it really clicks. I think it is sad that Pertwee's sad little thoughts of Omega remind me that we mostly get zaniness from Troughton and it's good stuff but there's a sadness that we never get a real emotional beat, especially since they meet a man they respect and learn that an accident has ruined his mind and soul due to loneliness. Again, Omega could be so much more and I feel like they could bring him back (though maybe depower him. "All Powerful God" villains can get tiring and that's literally what Gatwa's next season is about.) I don't know if he shows up again in the classic run or the Jodie Whittaker run (which I skipped after her first season) but I feel like he wasn't a heavily recurring one.
Overall, it's fun but slight. It doesn't waste potential for Troughton in terms of chemistry but I wish there was more emotion in it. It's a mostly easy watch but I wish they did something more fun for episode 2. And I love the very silly monsters who feel like leftovers from other monsters sewn together. As a "sweeps week" type of episode, it gets the job done.
Best Cliffhanger:
UNIT headquarters floating into space. I have love for those cheesy effects.
Next Time:
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"Jo, it's all quite simple - I am he and he is me!"
"And we are all together, coo coo cachoo?"
"What?"
"It's a song by The Beatles."
"Really? How does it go? "
In this serial, The Doctor finds unit under attack by a bizarre cosmic entity. It turns out it isn't just him; Gallifrey is barely holding on from an energy attack from the unknown. With their forces completely thinned, the Time Lords only have the Doctor out there to help and they feel he is not enough. A high ranking Time Lord choses the unthinkable; allowing the Doctor to team up with himself from a previous point in history; namely the Second Doctor. Soon UNIT is under attack from more monsters and call on the First Doctor, though being trapped in a time eddy, he is unable to do more than give advice. Eventually the Doctors realizing the force is attacking from an anti-matter universe. Whats more, they want the Doctor alive. The Doctor intentionally lets himself be attacked (with Jo accidentally along for the ride) and sent to the other universe who the Second Doctor stays behind to figure things out on Earth's end. The Doctor is captured and becomes a prisoner and soon the Second Doctor is taken too.
They learn their captor is Omega, the Gallifreyan who helped create time travel and found the time lords and was thought dead. In fact he became trapped in an antimatter universe but somehow managed to survive by sheer force of will. Soon he became the God of an empty universe, creating monsters to do his biding and a zone where both matter and antimatter can co-exist. Mad from isolation, Omega wants revenge on the time lords, he believing that they abandoned him. With Jo's help, the Doctors surmise that Omega needs them because there are limits to his seemingly unlimited power. It turns out he can't leave the universe without collapsing it before he gets out and wants the Doctors to take his place mentally holding the universe in tact with their wills until he leaves. The Doctors try not to upset Omega and humour him but soon they all learn his plan is impossible; when taking off his mask, Omega is.... nothing. His body corroded into nothing long ago and all that's left is a sheer mental force. Omega rages and threatens to destroy everything but the Doctors come up with a plan utilizing The Second Doctor's recorder, which ended up stuck in a device that protected it from the process that allowed matter and antimatter to seemingly share space. The two pretend to surrender to allow their friends to escape (who also were transported) and trick Omega into unleashing matter into the antimatter universe, destroying Omega. The Doctors manage to escape in the TARDIS and with Omega defeated, they return to their own timelines.
The Three Doctors is a big deal in a lot of ways. It really feels like the first fan service episode, the one designed to draw people in with a big promise; all the Doctors in one place! Well, it doesn't quite happen like that, sadly, but at least Hartnell got to be part of it. Sadly even when he was in his tenure on the show he seemed to struggle. But for the show's 10th anniversary they gave the fans a present. Now, was it a good one? Mostly. It has a lot of flaws but it also really embraces the fun of the concept while not getting too wrapped up in itself. I think smartly it keeps things relatively simple with a pretty basic "Broken God" story that doesn't get in the way too much of what people really want; two Doctors interacting.
And I think the smart thing is it really reminds you these aren't just two different actors, the characters are quite different. Sadly, that doesn't land with Hartnell and I don't think it's an issue of his diminishing capacity. Well, not entirely. I think if we was capable of being on set, it would help a lot. But Hartnell doesn't QUITE feel like that character. Yes, Hartnell's Doctor is a little less warm than some of the Doctors after but the warmth was there and it feels missing here. There are other things missing, too, but I can't articulate them. I like his bon mots but I think he's so much less wacky than the other Doctors that come after, even if he's sometimes presented as a cheeky and a bit mischievous. Obviously not putting him on set was probably the right call but I feel like he never gets an emotional moment.
To be fair, only Pertwee does at the end. Mostly because it's a very slight story. It's a shame because the idea of Omega is interesting; the man who helped build civilization who is a toxic madman. Don't meet your heroes, kids. I'm surprised they never canonically brought him back on the show (even though I think elements of his mythos do). Like, even doing an episode sort of like the one where the Twelfth Doctor meets widdle Davros and have it be a reminder before he was a threat, he was just some guy (especially since it might have been a pre-super prosperity era for Gallifrey. I mean, we barely get an idea of Gallifrey's deal outside of the upper crust and government, let alone what it was like before... their whole deal). But Omega is a very broad villain, shouty and bloviating. Typical "Star Trek crew vs. childish god" story. I don't entirely hate it but if we are going to have such an outsized villain, it's a shame we don't get a real counterbalance.
The real joy that really carries most of the serial is Troughton and Pertwee being catty to each other (frankly I wonder what the Second Doctor would think of the inside of the TARDIS from a couple seasons before. Yikes.) It plays well and it could be hard to have two versions of the most eccentric dude in the room but utilizes their differences well. I think that's what episode 2 is the weakest. They are far apart and it's more Pertwee wandering a quarry. If anything, Jo should have gone with Troughton (and if Hines was available, which he wasn't. Jamie could have hung out with Pertwee). But when they are together, it really clicks. I think it is sad that Pertwee's sad little thoughts of Omega remind me that we mostly get zaniness from Troughton and it's good stuff but there's a sadness that we never get a real emotional beat, especially since they meet a man they respect and learn that an accident has ruined his mind and soul due to loneliness. Again, Omega could be so much more and I feel like they could bring him back (though maybe depower him. "All Powerful God" villains can get tiring and that's literally what Gatwa's next season is about.) I don't know if he shows up again in the classic run or the Jodie Whittaker run (which I skipped after her first season) but I feel like he wasn't a heavily recurring one.
Overall, it's fun but slight. It doesn't waste potential for Troughton in terms of chemistry but I wish there was more emotion in it. It's a mostly easy watch but I wish they did something more fun for episode 2. And I love the very silly monsters who feel like leftovers from other monsters sewn together. As a "sweeps week" type of episode, it gets the job done.
Best Cliffhanger:
UNIT headquarters floating into space. I have love for those cheesy effects.
Next Time:
Oh, Omega gets a return in the classic series, but it's a far, far worse story, both in terms of the plot of the serial itself, and also in terms of Omega's appearance and backstory in it. It doesn't ruin the character or anything, but it's one of the most dull stories of the 80s, which is really saying something.
I agree with you re: Jamie being paired with Pertwee - that would have been an interesting dynamic given the character differences between the second and third Doctors. Anybody, really, would work interestingly with Troughton, though, and I rather enjoyed his bits with Sergeant Benton. The odd one out for me in the Three Doctors is the Brigadier - Nicholas Courtney plays him excellently as always, but he's written almost out of character here. He doesn't believe anything either Doctor tells him to a degree he doesn't in any other story, at least that I can recall offhand.
It is delightful to me that at conventions, in person, Pertwee and Troughton were catty with each other, both sort of half in character and half out of character. They were built differently as actors - Pertwee wanted his costars to be word perfect so he could get his cues, whereas Troughton played with the script a bit loosely and wouldn't really perfectly learn his lines until recording. This apparently infuriated Pertwee, so Troughton, being the guest star now, deferred to him (which was the professional thing to do, here - I don't think Pertwee was in the wrong for wanting that). You can see this awkwardness to a degree on screen in the first episode - they talk over each other a bit, likely due to Troughton throwing off Pertwee, causing Pertwee to step on Troughton's line. Even through to The Five Doctors, they are still far cattier to each other than the other Doctors, which I adore.
I have to disagree with you on Hartnell, though. He doesn't feel like a character at all, much less the First Doctor - he feels like an old, dying man reading lines awkwardly off cue cards, which, of course, he was. I don't blame him for this - it's lovely to see him, at least, given he launched the show and this is a celebration of the ten years it had been on the air - but he probably was in too poor health to be in the serial. When they cast him, they'd apparently caught him on a "good" day according to his wife, who was surprised to find out he was expected to act in anything. They rewrote his part to just be filmed in one day, on the TARDIS scanner. Honestly, he just makes me sad in The Three Doctors - his acting ability in it is greatly diminished. It was apparently his final acting performance before his death in 1975.
I hope you end up liking The Carnival of Monsters. It's one of Robert Holmes's best, I think.
I agree with you re: Jamie being paired with Pertwee - that would have been an interesting dynamic given the character differences between the second and third Doctors. Anybody, really, would work interestingly with Troughton, though, and I rather enjoyed his bits with Sergeant Benton. The odd one out for me in the Three Doctors is the Brigadier - Nicholas Courtney plays him excellently as always, but he's written almost out of character here. He doesn't believe anything either Doctor tells him to a degree he doesn't in any other story, at least that I can recall offhand.
It is delightful to me that at conventions, in person, Pertwee and Troughton were catty with each other, both sort of half in character and half out of character. They were built differently as actors - Pertwee wanted his costars to be word perfect so he could get his cues, whereas Troughton played with the script a bit loosely and wouldn't really perfectly learn his lines until recording. This apparently infuriated Pertwee, so Troughton, being the guest star now, deferred to him (which was the professional thing to do, here - I don't think Pertwee was in the wrong for wanting that). You can see this awkwardness to a degree on screen in the first episode - they talk over each other a bit, likely due to Troughton throwing off Pertwee, causing Pertwee to step on Troughton's line. Even through to The Five Doctors, they are still far cattier to each other than the other Doctors, which I adore.
I have to disagree with you on Hartnell, though. He doesn't feel like a character at all, much less the First Doctor - he feels like an old, dying man reading lines awkwardly off cue cards, which, of course, he was. I don't blame him for this - it's lovely to see him, at least, given he launched the show and this is a celebration of the ten years it had been on the air - but he probably was in too poor health to be in the serial. When they cast him, they'd apparently caught him on a "good" day according to his wife, who was surprised to find out he was expected to act in anything. They rewrote his part to just be filmed in one day, on the TARDIS scanner. Honestly, he just makes me sad in The Three Doctors - his acting ability in it is greatly diminished. It was apparently his final acting performance before his death in 1975.
I hope you end up liking The Carnival of Monsters. It's one of Robert Holmes's best, I think.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Carnival of Monsters
"The function of this tribunal is to keep this planet clean. This Tellurian creature comes from outside our solar system and is a possible carrier of contagion. Furthermore the creature may be hostile."
"Would you kindly stop referring to me as "the creature", sir. Or I may well become exceedingly hostile!"
In this serial, following the events of the last story the Time Lords allow the Doctor to travel in his TARDIS once more. The Doctor aims for Metebelis 3 but finds himself on what appears to be a ship on the Indian Ocean in 1926. Meanwhile, a flim flam man and entertainer Vorg and his long-suffering assistant Shima arrive on the planet Inter Minor only to be immediately suspected of being spies by political higher ups. Some of the Inter Minor tribunal are not seeing eye to eye on current matters of state. Vorg has brought an entertainment machine called a miniscope which shows pictures of monsters and aliens. Back on the boat, the Doctor and Jo are surprised when they see a dinosaur outside the boat. Even more strangely, they are captured but find out that after a certain amount of time events reset and play out again. The biggest shock comes when a giant hand reaches into the boat and plucks out the TARDIS.
It turns out the Doctor and Jo are trapped in Vorg's Miniscope (to the ignorance of Vorg himself), which has shrunken monsters and aliens for display. The Doctor eventually realizes what is happening but not before escaping into the miniscopes circuitry and accidentally stumbling onto a habitat for the Drashigs, giant omnivorous monsters that can even eat metal. The Doctor and Jo accidentally let the Drashigs out of their habitat and they begin devouring the wiring, threatening all life in the miniscope (as well as threatening to escape and eat everyone). Vorg, unclear of entirely what is happening tries to deal with a potential Drashig outbreak while one of the Inter Minor members decides to use the confusion to eliminate a political rival and take control of the planet. Eventually the Doctor escapes but learns the life support system is failing and must find a way to re-enter it, save Jo and send all the creatures back to their home time. As this happens, some Drashigs escape and kill the very conspirator who planned to use the potential Drashig tragedy as a political play. Vorg and Shima stop the Drashigs with some quick thinking and though they nearly die, the Doctor's plan works, with the miniscope destroyed.
The Three Doctors really set the tone for this season apparently because it feels like even more than season 8, the order of the day is fun. I think you CAN peak into some deeper meaning behind what the story is about (if anything, it feels more like a bunch of unrelated ideas that don't quite play out). but I think the goal is a fun ride. Carnival of Monsters is mostly more successful than the Three Doctors, in terms of plot. Specifically, the first episode is extremely clever. I think this kind of storytelling where there are two seemingly unrelated threads you are waiting to dovetail is much more common now but I feel like in the 70s the audience must have been confused. First we have this weirdo trying to sweet talk generic alien types and the Doctor finding a time loop on a ship. Then a big hand happens. It's great. I love beomg thrown for a loop in my story telling. One of my favourite series is Better Call Saul and they did it often, especially in cold opens where you have to wonder "What does this have to do with anything" until you realize how important it is (one of my favourite ones is a pair of old sneakers on power lines over a lonely stretch of highway that fall and that's it)
It's an episode with a lot of wild ideas and weirdly doesn't quite feel like what I take from this era. Probably because they aren't shackled to Earth anymore and now they can stretch their legs. It feels a lot more like what I expect from either a Troughton (the more high concept trap they are in) or a Tom Baker (the semi-comedic tone, the set and costume design). Despite that it's still a story that suits the strengths of Pertwee; his dashing personality as he charms a passenger, his impatience for injustice, is curiosity and bemusement of the situation. I also think his chemistry with Katy Manning is really strong here and though there's some "damsel" stuff (in the sense that he has to save his friend), the character of Jo is really coming into her own as someone who might be a step behind the Doctor a lot of the time but is still clever and witty in a way where they play off each other real well.
As for the b-plot... it's interesting because I could see this episode as being described as a comedic episode, it's not that funny At least in terms of the Inter Minor peoples and Vorg. It's whimsical and the actors are charming but there are actually more laughs with Jo and the Doctor despite the fact that I think the show is good at balancing it's slight tonal differences between the situations. I feel like the Inter Minor politics is trying to be a bit of a pisstake on this kinds of stories in Doctor Who but it never goes much beyond "these jerks are stuffy dummies". For reasons I can't articulate, Vorg... I won't say he doesn't work but I wish he worked better. For some reason, he seems to have little chemistry with Pertwee when it is ripe for a situation like he and Troughton sharing time, only MORE antagonistic.
It's not perfect but I am so used to seeing the show spin it's wheels or have long talky exposition scenes... well, even that happens sometimes but at the same time it does what good Doctor Who episodes do and make that entertaining rather than just table setting. Again, a lot is due to the chemistry between Pertwee and Manning but it's a script that mostly hums along. In fact, so much you don't mind that the story called Carnival of Monsters only has two kinds of monsters (sorry Orgs, you don't count). It really could have gone all out and just dusted off a lot of costumes from some one-off monsters, even if just for a cameo to inhabit the world with the titular monsters for some eye candy. But it is an episode that looks good and it plays with it's time loop (god, I'm tired of time loops. Like, there are a lot of good ones but it feels played out) in a fun way. It's consistently a romp even though when you stop you realize there were only two locations visited in the miniscope, where a modern story would probably have a chase through five. Because if you can, why wouldn't you. Well, in this case, budget but it still works here. Inter Minor looks kinda crappy? Sure but I actually think it works tonally for the story that dabbles in artificiality and toying with the formula of a famously cheap show. Carnival of Monsters doesn't go deep but it goes fun and is really strong with it's leads.
Best cliffhanger: The Hand. I really think the best cliffhangers are rug pulls. Much better than "we are going to shot you!"
Next time:
"The function of this tribunal is to keep this planet clean. This Tellurian creature comes from outside our solar system and is a possible carrier of contagion. Furthermore the creature may be hostile."
"Would you kindly stop referring to me as "the creature", sir. Or I may well become exceedingly hostile!"
In this serial, following the events of the last story the Time Lords allow the Doctor to travel in his TARDIS once more. The Doctor aims for Metebelis 3 but finds himself on what appears to be a ship on the Indian Ocean in 1926. Meanwhile, a flim flam man and entertainer Vorg and his long-suffering assistant Shima arrive on the planet Inter Minor only to be immediately suspected of being spies by political higher ups. Some of the Inter Minor tribunal are not seeing eye to eye on current matters of state. Vorg has brought an entertainment machine called a miniscope which shows pictures of monsters and aliens. Back on the boat, the Doctor and Jo are surprised when they see a dinosaur outside the boat. Even more strangely, they are captured but find out that after a certain amount of time events reset and play out again. The biggest shock comes when a giant hand reaches into the boat and plucks out the TARDIS.
It turns out the Doctor and Jo are trapped in Vorg's Miniscope (to the ignorance of Vorg himself), which has shrunken monsters and aliens for display. The Doctor eventually realizes what is happening but not before escaping into the miniscopes circuitry and accidentally stumbling onto a habitat for the Drashigs, giant omnivorous monsters that can even eat metal. The Doctor and Jo accidentally let the Drashigs out of their habitat and they begin devouring the wiring, threatening all life in the miniscope (as well as threatening to escape and eat everyone). Vorg, unclear of entirely what is happening tries to deal with a potential Drashig outbreak while one of the Inter Minor members decides to use the confusion to eliminate a political rival and take control of the planet. Eventually the Doctor escapes but learns the life support system is failing and must find a way to re-enter it, save Jo and send all the creatures back to their home time. As this happens, some Drashigs escape and kill the very conspirator who planned to use the potential Drashig tragedy as a political play. Vorg and Shima stop the Drashigs with some quick thinking and though they nearly die, the Doctor's plan works, with the miniscope destroyed.
The Three Doctors really set the tone for this season apparently because it feels like even more than season 8, the order of the day is fun. I think you CAN peak into some deeper meaning behind what the story is about (if anything, it feels more like a bunch of unrelated ideas that don't quite play out). but I think the goal is a fun ride. Carnival of Monsters is mostly more successful than the Three Doctors, in terms of plot. Specifically, the first episode is extremely clever. I think this kind of storytelling where there are two seemingly unrelated threads you are waiting to dovetail is much more common now but I feel like in the 70s the audience must have been confused. First we have this weirdo trying to sweet talk generic alien types and the Doctor finding a time loop on a ship. Then a big hand happens. It's great. I love beomg thrown for a loop in my story telling. One of my favourite series is Better Call Saul and they did it often, especially in cold opens where you have to wonder "What does this have to do with anything" until you realize how important it is (one of my favourite ones is a pair of old sneakers on power lines over a lonely stretch of highway that fall and that's it)
It's an episode with a lot of wild ideas and weirdly doesn't quite feel like what I take from this era. Probably because they aren't shackled to Earth anymore and now they can stretch their legs. It feels a lot more like what I expect from either a Troughton (the more high concept trap they are in) or a Tom Baker (the semi-comedic tone, the set and costume design). Despite that it's still a story that suits the strengths of Pertwee; his dashing personality as he charms a passenger, his impatience for injustice, is curiosity and bemusement of the situation. I also think his chemistry with Katy Manning is really strong here and though there's some "damsel" stuff (in the sense that he has to save his friend), the character of Jo is really coming into her own as someone who might be a step behind the Doctor a lot of the time but is still clever and witty in a way where they play off each other real well.
As for the b-plot... it's interesting because I could see this episode as being described as a comedic episode, it's not that funny At least in terms of the Inter Minor peoples and Vorg. It's whimsical and the actors are charming but there are actually more laughs with Jo and the Doctor despite the fact that I think the show is good at balancing it's slight tonal differences between the situations. I feel like the Inter Minor politics is trying to be a bit of a pisstake on this kinds of stories in Doctor Who but it never goes much beyond "these jerks are stuffy dummies". For reasons I can't articulate, Vorg... I won't say he doesn't work but I wish he worked better. For some reason, he seems to have little chemistry with Pertwee when it is ripe for a situation like he and Troughton sharing time, only MORE antagonistic.
It's not perfect but I am so used to seeing the show spin it's wheels or have long talky exposition scenes... well, even that happens sometimes but at the same time it does what good Doctor Who episodes do and make that entertaining rather than just table setting. Again, a lot is due to the chemistry between Pertwee and Manning but it's a script that mostly hums along. In fact, so much you don't mind that the story called Carnival of Monsters only has two kinds of monsters (sorry Orgs, you don't count). It really could have gone all out and just dusted off a lot of costumes from some one-off monsters, even if just for a cameo to inhabit the world with the titular monsters for some eye candy. But it is an episode that looks good and it plays with it's time loop (god, I'm tired of time loops. Like, there are a lot of good ones but it feels played out) in a fun way. It's consistently a romp even though when you stop you realize there were only two locations visited in the miniscope, where a modern story would probably have a chase through five. Because if you can, why wouldn't you. Well, in this case, budget but it still works here. Inter Minor looks kinda crappy? Sure but I actually think it works tonally for the story that dabbles in artificiality and toying with the formula of a famously cheap show. Carnival of Monsters doesn't go deep but it goes fun and is really strong with it's leads.
Best cliffhanger: The Hand. I really think the best cliffhangers are rug pulls. Much better than "we are going to shot you!"
Next time:
Yeah, I really appreciate the hand cliffhanger, too. I think it's my favorite Pertwee cliffhanger, too, although there's probably quite a few I'm forgetting.
The first - and in my opinion, best - Davros will eventually be played by one of those Inter Minor politicians, by the way, hilariously enough.
The first - and in my opinion, best - Davros will eventually be played by one of those Inter Minor politicians, by the way, hilariously enough.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
If there is a pause, I can't imagine it being as long as the last one. Back when I was a kid, it was rare to find anyone who knew the show despite it playing on YTV (Canada's Nickolodeon) and forest a brief time Space (Canada's Sci Fi Channel). Know if feels very much in the public consciousness.
While I'm mostly enjoying the Davies run, a pause might not be the worst thing for the show in the long run if it gets to be really refreshed with maybe shaving the lore off a bit.
While I'm mostly enjoying the Davies run, a pause might not be the worst thing for the show in the long run if it gets to be really refreshed with maybe shaving the lore off a bit.
Uh, wow, there's a lot going on there. I really enjoyed it!
My wife caught the grossness of Alan pretty much immediately - I didn't even hear the line "I know girls aren't good at math," so because she rolled her eyes and repeated what he said to me, the twist became pretty telegraphed (although he went on to be pretty obviously sexist in that very first scene with the "are you married?" crap). I did not expect to hear a character in Doctor Who say "planet of the incels" in 2025, but here we are. One wonders how certain parts of the internet are going to take that line...
I was hoping to hear Ncuti Gatwa say "Blinovitch limitation effect" but, alas, RTD (probably wisely) didn't go there so he didn't have to exposit ancient Doctor Who lore lol.
As a huge, unapologetic Tegan Jovanka fan, I'm 100% here for Belindra Chandra. Doctor Who should do reluctant companions more often, in my opinion.
My wife caught the grossness of Alan pretty much immediately - I didn't even hear the line "I know girls aren't good at math," so because she rolled her eyes and repeated what he said to me, the twist became pretty telegraphed (although he went on to be pretty obviously sexist in that very first scene with the "are you married?" crap). I did not expect to hear a character in Doctor Who say "planet of the incels" in 2025, but here we are. One wonders how certain parts of the internet are going to take that line...
I was hoping to hear Ncuti Gatwa say "Blinovitch limitation effect" but, alas, RTD (probably wisely) didn't go there so he didn't have to exposit ancient Doctor Who lore lol.
As a huge, unapologetic Tegan Jovanka fan, I'm 100% here for Belindra Chandra. Doctor Who should do reluctant companions more often, in my opinion.
I liked it as well! The robots had a fun visual design and the story kept moving at a good clip.
I was reminded a bit of The Girl in the Fireplace, insofar as the robots abduct someone based on a (seeming) misunderstanding about a name, but the episode ended up going in quite a different direction from there. I was hoping for a skewering of generative AI but I'll happily take a skewering of incels instead.
I'm a little tired of companions who are at the center of a mysterious cosmic destiny or whatever, but aside from that Belinda is immediately likeable and I'm looking forward to more of her. I liked that she takes umbrage with the Doctor helping himself to her DNA, etc., and questions whether she can trust him given what happened to poor Sasha 55.
Twice towards the end she seemed to know things she shouldn't -- she asks "is that your TARDIS?" when the robots deliver it, but I don't think the Doctor ever said the name TARDIS, he said "they impounded my ship." Maybe that's a script error, or maybe he told her off-screen... Or maybe it's something more. She also asks to be delivered back to May 24th, 2025 in time for her 7:30am shift, but in the next line is surprised to learn that the TARDIS is a time machine. Again, it could just be because she knows there was a "Time Fracture" and assumes the Doctor can pilot a ship back through it... but again maybe it's more.
What was with Manny "holding up the ceiling"? Is he super strong? (With those arms, maybe.)
We're back, baby! Excited for next week.
I was reminded a bit of The Girl in the Fireplace, insofar as the robots abduct someone based on a (seeming) misunderstanding about a name, but the episode ended up going in quite a different direction from there. I was hoping for a skewering of generative AI but I'll happily take a skewering of incels instead.
I'm a little tired of companions who are at the center of a mysterious cosmic destiny or whatever, but aside from that Belinda is immediately likeable and I'm looking forward to more of her. I liked that she takes umbrage with the Doctor helping himself to her DNA, etc., and questions whether she can trust him given what happened to poor Sasha 55.
Twice towards the end she seemed to know things she shouldn't -- she asks "is that your TARDIS?" when the robots deliver it, but I don't think the Doctor ever said the name TARDIS, he said "they impounded my ship." Maybe that's a script error, or maybe he told her off-screen... Or maybe it's something more. She also asks to be delivered back to May 24th, 2025 in time for her 7:30am shift, but in the next line is surprised to learn that the TARDIS is a time machine. Again, it could just be because she knows there was a "Time Fracture" and assumes the Doctor can pilot a ship back through it... but again maybe it's more.
What was with Manny "holding up the ceiling"? Is he super strong? (With those arms, maybe.)
We're back, baby! Excited for next week.
Yeah, there were a few moments where Belinda seemed to know things she shouldn't. I sincerely doubt continuity errors like that would pass the editing phase unless they were supposed to be there. I don't even think Chibnall would make that many obvious ones. And they kind of call attention to them, too, with the "skipping" the Doctor and Belinda experienced a few times.
And regarding the companion being at the center of a mysterious cosmic destiny or whatever... I'm probably over-analyzing it, but it almost seems like the show is going to critique the Doctor for his occasional tendency to do that to his companions... You could almost feel Belinda wanting to say to him, "you're just like Al," when the Doctor acts a bit forward, and that they've known each other for a long time, when for her they just met. And also, she was freaked out by the Doctor being at her house, and following her all the way to her destination planet... I think I've convinced myself that's what they're going for, having written this post now lol
And regarding the companion being at the center of a mysterious cosmic destiny or whatever... I'm probably over-analyzing it, but it almost seems like the show is going to critique the Doctor for his occasional tendency to do that to his companions... You could almost feel Belinda wanting to say to him, "you're just like Al," when the Doctor acts a bit forward, and that they've known each other for a long time, when for her they just met. And also, she was freaked out by the Doctor being at her house, and following her all the way to her destination planet... I think I've convinced myself that's what they're going for, having written this post now lol
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
Called Shot: Ill get to my thoughts on the episode another time (mostly positive) but my called shot is the series is strongly hinting with her fourth wall breaking that we'll be dealing with a metafictional arc and with the last two episodes of the season called Wish World and Reality War, the season finale will be an incursion by the Land of Fiction (and one of the various evil Gods, possibly the unnamed evil that controlled the writer in The Mind Robber) which leads to the Doctor trying to save Doctor Who the TV Show and with it the universe from cancelation (and possibly being threatened with rebooted with a Doctor internet chuds won't complain about, IE an unchallenging white cishet male).
Fun first episode for season 2. 'Planet of the Incels' made my eyes roll out of my head, not least which because it should have been singular. But that aside I'm just happy for more DW and next week looks fun.
Johnny Unusual
(He/Him)
I overall liked the episode. Definitely a stronger intro to the season than Space Babies. Like that, there's some social sci-fi stuff but thankfully less fart-powered spaceships and booger monsters. I love the cheesy old-timey look of the robots and I actually think it makes a good contrast when the villain, a ridiculous human being, looks genuinely kind of disturbing.
I like the choice that there's a companion who correctly asserts the Doctor is dangerous and being with him is dangerous and is like "no thanks". Some of the stuff feels a little too silly just for the sake of having unusual memorable moments (every ninth word). It actually feels like a lesser Moffat choice. Looking forward to the next episode, too. I was always hoping they'd dabble with animation. They actually almost made a Doctor Who cartoon in the 80s with Nelvana.
I like the choice that there's a companion who correctly asserts the Doctor is dangerous and being with him is dangerous and is like "no thanks". Some of the stuff feels a little too silly just for the sake of having unusual memorable moments (every ninth word). It actually feels like a lesser Moffat choice. Looking forward to the next episode, too. I was always hoping they'd dabble with animation. They actually almost made a Doctor Who cartoon in the 80s with Nelvana.
