Old School Doctor Who Episodes Love Meme

[doyle]

I've run memes like this before for companions and for ships (and I'm trying to dig up links to those) and decided it might be fun to try one for all the episodes of old school Doctor Who. In the comments are threads for every story from An Unearthly Child to The TV Movie (actually, The Curse of Fatal Death, because I couldn't leave Lumley Doc out); reply to these comments with what you loved about the episode, whether it's favourite lines, moments, squee for the rubbish dinosaurs, character love, shippiness, screencap picspam, or just 'best episode ever'. No harshing others' squee, please - there are 160 serials linked, there must be some you loved... Loving on stories generally derided by fandom is positively encouraged.

For some help navigating, this wiki page has the serials in order.

If any have been missed, feel free to stick them on at the end - I've just realised The Myth Makers isn't there...

Comments

Carnival of Monsters

[doyle_sb4.livejournal.com]

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Re: Carnival of Monsters

[doyle_sb4.livejournal.com]

The Drashigs: one of my favourite Who monsters ever.

And Harry! But not Harry!

Re: Carnival of Monsters

[livii.livejournal.com]

This one is fabulous; I really, really enjoyed it. Reviewishly, to whet your interest perhaps?

Oh, I do love Three and Jo travelling about together! They seem to enjoy each other's company a great deal (and not just in a shippy way, I didn't find this one shippy at all, actually). I also have a rather large girlcrush on Jo. She's so adorable, honestly. I'm fairly blind to her faults because, well, this story alone she's cute and adventurous and she argues with Three and carries around a huge set of skeleton keys and figures out the lateral thinking better than the Doctor does and manages to have chemistry with the 1920s girl in about one minute of screen time together and is so blessedly sweet. Aw. Girlcrush activate!

I really liked the plot of this one too, though some of the balding-blueish men stuff got boring (but the acting was generally very good). The time looping on the S.S. Bernice was ace though (and generally, woo for 1920s at-sea-to-Bombay settings! I love that so much) and the way you weren't really sure what was going on for a very long time, and everything. The Drashigs weren't half bad for the budget (dodgy insertion into scenes notwithstanding, and not their fault) and plus, during the first shot of three of them, one of 'em slipped another one some tongue. Hells yeah. ;)

Of course, the biggest attraction must be Harry. Who I just called Harry, cos clearly the writers/producers later said "hmm, we quite liked that sailor chap, let's write him back in and just change his name." Because in what way was he not Harry? Bless the boy. He was so young, and wearing sailor whites, and he took ladies for walks around the deck and in one time loop (at least, that's the only time I noticed it) he was mouthing things to her, and it looked simultaneously incredibly adorable and quaint and swoon-worthy, and also quite, quite dirty. Bless the boy! Plus, he got in a fistfight with the Doctor! He boxed at his school! And he's a terrible shot! And he throws dynamite on a ship! And the Doctor insults his intelligence! Oh, if you ever wondered about Three and Harry interacting, this is it. And it was wonderful.

Oh, I also have to say that I greatly enjoyed the two showpersons, Vorg and Shirna - their costumes were a 'great' preview for the 1980s episodes, heh, and Shirna looked fantastic in hers (not so much Vorg, but I appreciate the dedication that led to those pants). I particularly loved Shirna's eyebrows made of glittery things and the bouncing baubles in her hair. If it weren't such a bare costume, I'd totally want to recreate that for Halloween. One of my complaints about the episode would actually be that Shirna was so beautifully developed as a Companion-Type character that I was disappointed to see her not go at the end - she could have used the Doctor's grace, she was stuck in an unsuitable position, she was clever and had tons of empathy and her grin at seeing the TARDIS's dematerialization trick just about actually broke my heart, cos, wow, she should have got to go. Phooey.

Re: Carnival of Monsters

[airie-fairy.livejournal.com]

Twenties Ian Marter is, in fact, an ancestor of Harry's. Yes.

Jo talking to chickens and having a skeleton key and telling the Doctor to hide while she gets captured and rolling her eyes and going along resignedly with all the people with no memories and taking charge of a ship full of strangers when monsters attack and congratulating the Doctor on her own rope idea and complaining that she's only half cooked.