Following from Doctor Who #130: The Five Doctors...
My usual note: Doctor Who DVDs usually include an audio commentary by surviving cast and crew, dense production note subtitles, brand new making of documentaries and photo galleries. And in the spirit of the season, let's see if I can't name the best Holloween costume from each.
Doctor Who #134: Resurrection of the Daleks (Matthew Robinson, 1984)
Starring the 5th Doctor, Tegan and Turlough. Davros and the Daleks are back once again, and there are so many factions here that it would be easy to get confused. It's the Dalek equivalent of Earthshock, with all the guns blazing and a companion leaving. Yes, last time out for Tegan, done a little more touchingly than is usual for these things. The DVD includes deleted scenes, a John Nathan Turner interview, a featurette on the BBC Radiophonic workshop and interviews about Janet Fielding's departure at the time.
Halloween costume: If you've got a wheelchair lying around, you should really do Davros. Rubber mask acceptable!
Doctor Who #136: The Caves of Androzani (Graeme Harper, 1984)
Starring the 5th Doctor and Peri. The 5th Doctor goes out with a bang, because this is probably his best story, and one of the best directed stories in Classic Who, period. It just has so much STYLE. The weird angles, the creepy POVs, the jarring asides... It's lovely to look at. The DVD offers a fixed special effects feature (repairs a bad matte shot, basically), behind the scenes footage and more.
Halloween costume: Sharaz Jek.
Doctor Who #139: Vengeance on Varos (Ron Jones, 1985)
Starring the 6th Doctor and Peri. Many call this the best 6th Doctor story, but while the reality tv stuff seems to have come true, in a sense, it's still rather obvious. Sil is an interesting new villain, but the level of violence has been rising through the 80s, and now the Doctor's a bit too callous about it. Sort of like Roger Moore's James Bond. So while it's good, it never quite gets as good as other Doctors' best shows. The DVD includes deleted scenes, some behind the scenes footage, but not a lot more. This was an early release.
Halloween costume: Sean Connery's studly bare-chested son.
Doctor Who #140: The Mark of the Rani (Sarah Hellings, 1985)
Starring the 6th Doctor and Peri. The Master gets shown up by new Time Lord threat, the Rani. Her amorality (as opposed to the Master's immorality) is as refreshing as the pretty historical background. The DVD includes deleted scenes, a Blue Peter segment on Ironbridge Gorge as well as a visit to the location, interviews from the time and another with the show's composer to go with an isolated music track. I never mention it, but isolated music tracks are frequent on these releases. I don't quite see the appeal given that most stories feature electronic farting music. More melody in this one, but still 80s synth that is murder to my ears.
Halloween costume: A rubber tree.
Doctor Who #141: The Two Doctors (Peter Moffatt, 1985)
Starring the 2nd and 6th Doctors, Jamie and Peri. The last Doctor Who reunion before Children in Need springs a brief new one on us, The Two Doctors suffers by springing a cannibal story on us, and using the Spanish location as if it were just anywhere. Since this is a Bob Holmes script, there's still some spark of wit, but this last clash with the Sontarans is altogether too violent for its own good. It is interesting however for those who postulate a Season 6b, in which the Doctor and Jamie kept having adventures before he was eventually regenerated into the 3rd Doctor. The DVD includes a silly Sontaran sketch from Jim'll Fix It, a documentary on writer Robert Holmes, behind the scenes footage, a return to the location and a lot more.
Halloween costume: Shockeye - all you need is a kilt and a piece of raw meat.
But what did YOU think? Next: Doctor Who: Revelation of the Daleks to Survival.
My usual note: Doctor Who DVDs usually include an audio commentary by surviving cast and crew, dense production note subtitles, brand new making of documentaries and photo galleries. And in the spirit of the season, let's see if I can't name the best Holloween costume from each.
Doctor Who #134: Resurrection of the Daleks (Matthew Robinson, 1984)Starring the 5th Doctor, Tegan and Turlough. Davros and the Daleks are back once again, and there are so many factions here that it would be easy to get confused. It's the Dalek equivalent of Earthshock, with all the guns blazing and a companion leaving. Yes, last time out for Tegan, done a little more touchingly than is usual for these things. The DVD includes deleted scenes, a John Nathan Turner interview, a featurette on the BBC Radiophonic workshop and interviews about Janet Fielding's departure at the time.
Halloween costume: If you've got a wheelchair lying around, you should really do Davros. Rubber mask acceptable!
Doctor Who #136: The Caves of Androzani (Graeme Harper, 1984)Starring the 5th Doctor and Peri. The 5th Doctor goes out with a bang, because this is probably his best story, and one of the best directed stories in Classic Who, period. It just has so much STYLE. The weird angles, the creepy POVs, the jarring asides... It's lovely to look at. The DVD offers a fixed special effects feature (repairs a bad matte shot, basically), behind the scenes footage and more.
Halloween costume: Sharaz Jek.
Doctor Who #139: Vengeance on Varos (Ron Jones, 1985)Starring the 6th Doctor and Peri. Many call this the best 6th Doctor story, but while the reality tv stuff seems to have come true, in a sense, it's still rather obvious. Sil is an interesting new villain, but the level of violence has been rising through the 80s, and now the Doctor's a bit too callous about it. Sort of like Roger Moore's James Bond. So while it's good, it never quite gets as good as other Doctors' best shows. The DVD includes deleted scenes, some behind the scenes footage, but not a lot more. This was an early release.
Halloween costume: Sean Connery's studly bare-chested son.
Doctor Who #140: The Mark of the Rani (Sarah Hellings, 1985)Starring the 6th Doctor and Peri. The Master gets shown up by new Time Lord threat, the Rani. Her amorality (as opposed to the Master's immorality) is as refreshing as the pretty historical background. The DVD includes deleted scenes, a Blue Peter segment on Ironbridge Gorge as well as a visit to the location, interviews from the time and another with the show's composer to go with an isolated music track. I never mention it, but isolated music tracks are frequent on these releases. I don't quite see the appeal given that most stories feature electronic farting music. More melody in this one, but still 80s synth that is murder to my ears.
Halloween costume: A rubber tree.
Doctor Who #141: The Two Doctors (Peter Moffatt, 1985)Starring the 2nd and 6th Doctors, Jamie and Peri. The last Doctor Who reunion before Children in Need springs a brief new one on us, The Two Doctors suffers by springing a cannibal story on us, and using the Spanish location as if it were just anywhere. Since this is a Bob Holmes script, there's still some spark of wit, but this last clash with the Sontarans is altogether too violent for its own good. It is interesting however for those who postulate a Season 6b, in which the Doctor and Jamie kept having adventures before he was eventually regenerated into the 3rd Doctor. The DVD includes a silly Sontaran sketch from Jim'll Fix It, a documentary on writer Robert Holmes, behind the scenes footage, a return to the location and a lot more.
Halloween costume: Shockeye - all you need is a kilt and a piece of raw meat.
But what did YOU think? Next: Doctor Who: Revelation of the Daleks to Survival.
Comments
Would that be music to fart by or music that sounds like an synthesized fart? Either way, coffee came out of my nose upon reading this.
You're right about it being too violent, though. It always bugged me that the butterfly killing actor guy dies for no reason whatsoever, and that the Doctor deals with Shockeye a little too callously for my liking.
Truth be told, the 6th Doctor only came alive for me on audio, where even Peri is palatable, and Evelyn a joy. Heck, I even like the Frobisher stories. I'm really glad Colin Baker got a second chance via Big Finish, because mismanagement really sank his tv stories.
You know, I have never heard any of the Big Finish stuff. I really need to get around to those someday. Even Peri is palatable?
Good 6th Doc audios I can recommend: ...ish, The Holy Terror, The Marian Conspiracy, Doctor Who and the Pirates (it's a musical, believe it or not), The One Doctor... that's off the top of my head. A lot of people like Whispers of Terror and The Spectre of Lanyon Moor... I like them too, but not to the same extent.