Top 21 - 32 (vintage) Doctor Who Stories from Venger Satanis's blog
Alright, this is the last installment of Doctor Who awesomeness. If you've never seen the old series, then check it out. I highly recommend discovering or re-discovering one of the best science fiction series ever made. The special effects might not live up to 21st century expectations, but sometimes one is pleasantly surprised by the ingenuity and final results from the 60's, 70's, and 80's.
These are last 12(!) stories which I personally feel are the best. Why 12 instead of the usual 10? Well, there were a couple gems I couldn't leave behind. Mind you, just because a story is in this category, that doesn't mean it's average... let alone sucks. Being in the top 30 is still quite an achievement when you consider there's about 200 Dr. Who stories which ran between 1963 and 1989. Picking the top 21 - 32 was just as difficult as 11 - 20. Perhaps more so, because whatever I leave out isn't going to get mentioned. This is the last installment, after all.
Now, I bent the rules slightly with the Peladon stories. I counted both The Curse of Peladon and The Monster of Peladon as one. They are very similar and take place only 50 years from each other. Interestingly, the same thing occurred in the William Hartnell story The Ark (a small jump in time while remaining in the same space), except the time jump was within the story. The Ark is a decent story, if you're into that kind of thing.
I almost chose War Games over Snakedance because it's significantly better in a few respects. However, for the 21st century audience, a long, drawn-out black and white story like War Games is more likely to put one to sleep. Plus, Snakedance is the sequel to Kinda - one of my very favorites. I was also on the fence about Colony in Space. I love most stories where Petwee plays the Doctor, but sometimes I just get sick of seeing him in 1970's Britain. At least, this one is set in a different time and place.
Nor was it easy to choose between State of Decay and Full Circle. Both are great stories from the E-Space trilogy. Again, I think today's audience would prefer vampires to humanoid marsh creatures. So, there you go.
I should also mention that there are a couple Dr. Who stories which I haven't seen in years and years. They are not currently available on DVD, so it's difficult for me to judge them a couple decades later. I'm thinking of The Ambassadors of Death, in particular.
Enjoy my selections. Feel free to post your own preferences, experiences watching these stories, and go rent/buy/netflicks the following if you haven't seen them.
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Really excellent choices of Who, examples of the show at its best. The Daleks, as the show that made the whole series famous is essential, of course and one I overlooked. Keeper of Traken and State of Decay are all respected stories from John Nathan Turner's time as producer. Pity the show seemed to lose steam with Davison and the ill fated week day time slot. Robots and Pyramids are always in the top five choices in polls. Peladon pairing - nice, perhaps a tad stodgy for new/young fans. Frontier was occasionally criticised for too much padding. Invasion of Time used a 'dogleg' with its six parter and the diversion into the Tardis. Five Doctors was very ambitious; for some reason I remember the syrupy 'That's how it all started' line from a gushing Peter Davison Dr at the very end of the story.
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Thanks. Yes, some interesting choices.
Some Peter Davison episodes were brilliant, but occasionally budgetary concerns derailed the story. Other times, I don't think the show was dark, gritty, and mature enough. Case in point - some of the best stories from the 5th Doctor were Resurrection of the Daleks, Earthshock, and Caves of Androzani... even Fronotios and Four to Doomsday were pretty darn good.
The Peladon stories have something to say about socio-political culture, as well as, lots of alien eye candy. I really enjoy scifi that can bridge the gap between futurism and ye olden days. Curse and Monster do that quite well. Reminds me a bit of Blake's 7.
The principal strength of Invasion of Time is not knowing what the Doctor is up to. It's a mystery.
The Five Doctors isn't an awesome story, but the nostalgia of seeing old friends makes up for it. Plus, the Master, Cybermen, and some additional glimpses of Gallifrey make it worthy of being in the top 32. You've got to admit that Hartnell's black and white introduction is cool.
VS
Something prejudiced me about the 80's series. Top of the list was that disco synthesiser theme and incidental music, which I abhorred with a vengeance! They booted poor old Dudley Simpson out!
To me, the music was a small but vital ingredient which could increase the horror feeling of the show, depending on its calibre. The newer composers tended to solely use electronic music, a style that Simpson experimented with and abandoned in the early 70's stories before adding classical instruments and scoring. They seemed to have no idea where to place musical 'stings', or periods of silence, which Dudley did so brilliantly.
A very good defence of the stories which I criticised, ones which used more subtle allegory. The 80's design Cybermen were nice, but were somehow less chilling than the 70's tear drop style of blank Cyber-mask.
As you said, on the whole, Davison's era was less gritty and dark. For the generation brought up on the gothic horror style of early Tom Baker, and the rip-offs of classic horror stories, the new show seemed sadly watered down.
A lot of Who fans forget about the importance of sound. Yes, the incidental music is a big part of that Doctor Who aesthetic. Growing up in the 80's, I suppose it sounded normal to me. Perhaps the 70's was better in that regard. Next time I watch a Davison story, I'll try to pay more attention to how it sounds.