Arnold
Tash Jayasinghe
CibbuanoTop 10 Classic Doctor Who stories
October 29th 2006 11:54
All the talk about the new Doctor Who series lately has made me a little nostalgic for the 'classic' episodes of Who. Don't get me wrong, I love new Who, but here are my personal Top 10 stories, in no particular order...
Genesis of the Daleks (1975), 4th Doctor
Generally considered to be one of the best Doctor Who stories of all time (voted number 1 by Doctor Who Magazine), I thought I'd get this out of the way first. 'Genesis of the Daleks' was the story that finally showed us the origins of the Daleks, and managed to completely reinvent the Doctor's deadliest enemies in the process. This story marked the first time that the fascist slantings of the Daleks were made a little more explicit... the Kaleds (the race from which the Daleks are created) are pretty much just Nazis. Davros, the deformed and wheelchair-bound mad scientist who creates the Daleks, is first introduced to us here and would go on to become the Doctor's second-most revisited villain (after The Master). This 6-part story features many great scenes and some killer cliffhangers too.
Kinda (1982), 5th Doctor
I like 'Kinda' because it's a different kind of story... one of the few examples of 80s Doctor Who to be adventurous enough to cover some new ground. Basically, the Doctor and his companions land on a jungle planet that is infested by an evil snake-like entity known as the Mara (shades of the tempting snake of the Old Testement here)... the Mara attacks from within, rising up through the subconscious and breaking down the confidence of it's victim (in this case, the Doctor's loud-mouthed companion Tegan) until they surrender themselves to it. Also on the planet are a native tribe known as the Kinda, and a survey team of humans who are conducting studies on them. Anyway, a mystical Kinda box gets opened by some of the humans and they go insane... making for some unpredictable and entertaining episodes of Doctor Who that are only let down by some dodgy 80s special-effects. Watch out for some well-known actors from The Bill in this one too.
The Curse of Fenric (1989), 7th Doctor
Prior to it's cancellation, 'Doctor Who' was actually in a kind of renaissance... pulling itself out of a slump that had lasted a few years. I don't know if it was due to the fact that the fans were finally catching up with the show creativity-wise, or if it was due to the influence of a new script-editor, but someone wised up and got with the program. 'The Curse of Fenric' is a great traditional-styled Doctor Who story about vikings, futuristic barnacle-ridden vampires, an all-powerful evil entity from the dawn of time and World War II. It also features the Doctor at his darkest and most manipulative and is probably one of the stories that most influenced the direction of the New Adventures (original Doctor Who novels published in the 90s after the show was cancelled)... whether this is bad or good is subjective, but it definitely made an impression at the time.
The Robots of Death (1977), 4th Doctor
A cool and creepy story of silky-voiced robots gone haywire and murderous, and a cracking whodunnit story too. I think I've probably watched this story more than any other. A classic.
Inferno (1970), 3rd Doctor
I've already written a seperate blog about this story, but it makes my Top 10 easily so I'll talk about it a little here too. This is one of the few Doctor Who stories to deal with a parrallel universe and even now it's depiction of the end of the world as a fiery molten hell still creeps the fuck out of me. I think a lot of my choices of 'best stories' have to do with how much I find them scary, and this one I find scary.
Caves of Androzani (1984), 5th Doctor
Of all the stories to depict the Doctor regenerating into another body, this one is easily the best. It features some unusually snazzy direction for 80s Doctor Who, has a great villain in the form of the tragic android-maker Sharaz Jek, and is one of the best showcases of the 5th Doctor's character. Peter Davison couldn't have asked for a better final story, these four action-packed episodes are pretty much all about the Doctor trying to save his friend... even to the extent of sacrificing his own life.
The Talons of Weng-Chiang (1977), 4th Doctor
Another story from Doctor Who's glory era of 1975 to 1977, the years when the show really went for broke in trying to scare it's audience. This one features the Doctor in a Sherlock Holmes outfit, investigating murders in Victorian East End London. Throw in some gangs of Chinese assassins, a giant rat, another great deformed villain (this one is a dying time traveller who pretends to be a Chinese God), some memorable guest characters and Mr. Sin - one of the creepiest creations to ever appear in Doctor Who, a little cyborg knife-wielding cyborg with the brain of a pig.
Tomb of the Cybermen (1967), 2nd Doctor
This story could very well have not made this list, had it not been rediscoverd in a vault in Hong Kong back in 1992. Along with about 110 other episodes of Doctor Who, this story was 'lost' by the BBC back in the 70s (they burnt them, thinking no one would be interested in ever seeing them again - a criminal act of wastefulness!). Anyway, this story goes a long way to mythologising the Cybermen, one of the Doctor's most revisted adversaries. In this story we're introduced to their adopted home planet, Telos, and also meet the CyberController for the first time. It also marks the first time we get to see humans being converted into Cybermen. The Cybermen got redsigned by the production team after every few stories, and apart from the Cybermen in the new series I think that the Cybermen featured in this story would have to be my favourite.
Remembrance of the Daleks (1988), 7th Doctor
Dalek war! New Imperial Daleks clash with traditional Daleks in 60s London and some new mystery gets injected into the character of the Doctor again. Both Dalek factions have come to 60s London to claim the Hand of Omega, an ancient Time Lord weapon that can manipulate stars. This story features some pretty good special effects for a classic Doctor Who story, and also features the Special Weapons Dalek - a super cool armoured Dalek that has a built-in cannon. This story has so much going for it... it's fun, it has action, it has a cool story and it made the 7th Doctor an interesting character after his initial four stories of gurning and pratfalling.
The Deadly Assassin (1976), 4th Doctor
The first Doctor Who story to show the Doctor's home planet in it's all glory. After hundreds of years of adventures and avoidance of Gallifrey, the Doctor finally returns home to answer a summons from the Time Lords. Here's three reasons why this story is so great...
1. The end of the first episode... what the hell is going on? In one shocking moment the Doctor reminds us that he is an alien and that we don't really know all that much about him. A great cliffhanger.
2. The Matrix... we're introduced to the Matrix, a massive computer powered by the minds of dead Time Lords. The Doctor travels into the Matrix and finds a surreal nightmare world where he must battle for survival against a mysterious assassin.
3. The return of the Master.... this is one of the few episodes were the Master is a less than ridiculous villain. Here we see what happens to Time Lords at the end of their 13 lives, the Master is in the final stages of his life and has become a decaying and degenerate skeletal figure. For once he isn't trying to conquer Earth - here he wants to gain access to the Eye of Harmony, the source of all Time Lord power, in the hopes that he can extend his lifespan. Unfortunately, the Master's quest for a new body would become his modus operandi for almost all of his subsequent revisits.
Anyway, that's my 10. There are plenty of other great stories but I just listed the ones that I've watched the most and gotten the most enjoyment from. Dig it.
Genesis of the Daleks (1975), 4th Doctor
Generally considered to be one of the best Doctor Who stories of all time (voted number 1 by Doctor Who Magazine), I thought I'd get this out of the way first. 'Genesis of the Daleks' was the story that finally showed us the origins of the Daleks, and managed to completely reinvent the Doctor's deadliest enemies in the process. This story marked the first time that the fascist slantings of the Daleks were made a little more explicit... the Kaleds (the race from which the Daleks are created) are pretty much just Nazis. Davros, the deformed and wheelchair-bound mad scientist who creates the Daleks, is first introduced to us here and would go on to become the Doctor's second-most revisited villain (after The Master). This 6-part story features many great scenes and some killer cliffhangers too.
Kinda (1982), 5th Doctor
I like 'Kinda' because it's a different kind of story... one of the few examples of 80s Doctor Who to be adventurous enough to cover some new ground. Basically, the Doctor and his companions land on a jungle planet that is infested by an evil snake-like entity known as the Mara (shades of the tempting snake of the Old Testement here)... the Mara attacks from within, rising up through the subconscious and breaking down the confidence of it's victim (in this case, the Doctor's loud-mouthed companion Tegan) until they surrender themselves to it. Also on the planet are a native tribe known as the Kinda, and a survey team of humans who are conducting studies on them. Anyway, a mystical Kinda box gets opened by some of the humans and they go insane... making for some unpredictable and entertaining episodes of Doctor Who that are only let down by some dodgy 80s special-effects. Watch out for some well-known actors from The Bill in this one too.
The Curse of Fenric (1989), 7th Doctor
Prior to it's cancellation, 'Doctor Who' was actually in a kind of renaissance... pulling itself out of a slump that had lasted a few years. I don't know if it was due to the fact that the fans were finally catching up with the show creativity-wise, or if it was due to the influence of a new script-editor, but someone wised up and got with the program. 'The Curse of Fenric' is a great traditional-styled Doctor Who story about vikings, futuristic barnacle-ridden vampires, an all-powerful evil entity from the dawn of time and World War II. It also features the Doctor at his darkest and most manipulative and is probably one of the stories that most influenced the direction of the New Adventures (original Doctor Who novels published in the 90s after the show was cancelled)... whether this is bad or good is subjective, but it definitely made an impression at the time.
The Robots of Death (1977), 4th Doctor
A cool and creepy story of silky-voiced robots gone haywire and murderous, and a cracking whodunnit story too. I think I've probably watched this story more than any other. A classic.
Inferno (1970), 3rd Doctor
I've already written a seperate blog about this story, but it makes my Top 10 easily so I'll talk about it a little here too. This is one of the few Doctor Who stories to deal with a parrallel universe and even now it's depiction of the end of the world as a fiery molten hell still creeps the fuck out of me. I think a lot of my choices of 'best stories' have to do with how much I find them scary, and this one I find scary.
Caves of Androzani (1984), 5th Doctor
Of all the stories to depict the Doctor regenerating into another body, this one is easily the best. It features some unusually snazzy direction for 80s Doctor Who, has a great villain in the form of the tragic android-maker Sharaz Jek, and is one of the best showcases of the 5th Doctor's character. Peter Davison couldn't have asked for a better final story, these four action-packed episodes are pretty much all about the Doctor trying to save his friend... even to the extent of sacrificing his own life.
The Talons of Weng-Chiang (1977), 4th Doctor
Another story from Doctor Who's glory era of 1975 to 1977, the years when the show really went for broke in trying to scare it's audience. This one features the Doctor in a Sherlock Holmes outfit, investigating murders in Victorian East End London. Throw in some gangs of Chinese assassins, a giant rat, another great deformed villain (this one is a dying time traveller who pretends to be a Chinese God), some memorable guest characters and Mr. Sin - one of the creepiest creations to ever appear in Doctor Who, a little cyborg knife-wielding cyborg with the brain of a pig.
Tomb of the Cybermen (1967), 2nd Doctor
This story could very well have not made this list, had it not been rediscoverd in a vault in Hong Kong back in 1992. Along with about 110 other episodes of Doctor Who, this story was 'lost' by the BBC back in the 70s (they burnt them, thinking no one would be interested in ever seeing them again - a criminal act of wastefulness!). Anyway, this story goes a long way to mythologising the Cybermen, one of the Doctor's most revisted adversaries. In this story we're introduced to their adopted home planet, Telos, and also meet the CyberController for the first time. It also marks the first time we get to see humans being converted into Cybermen. The Cybermen got redsigned by the production team after every few stories, and apart from the Cybermen in the new series I think that the Cybermen featured in this story would have to be my favourite.
Remembrance of the Daleks (1988), 7th Doctor
Dalek war! New Imperial Daleks clash with traditional Daleks in 60s London and some new mystery gets injected into the character of the Doctor again. Both Dalek factions have come to 60s London to claim the Hand of Omega, an ancient Time Lord weapon that can manipulate stars. This story features some pretty good special effects for a classic Doctor Who story, and also features the Special Weapons Dalek - a super cool armoured Dalek that has a built-in cannon. This story has so much going for it... it's fun, it has action, it has a cool story and it made the 7th Doctor an interesting character after his initial four stories of gurning and pratfalling.
The Deadly Assassin (1976), 4th Doctor
The first Doctor Who story to show the Doctor's home planet in it's all glory. After hundreds of years of adventures and avoidance of Gallifrey, the Doctor finally returns home to answer a summons from the Time Lords. Here's three reasons why this story is so great...
1. The end of the first episode... what the hell is going on? In one shocking moment the Doctor reminds us that he is an alien and that we don't really know all that much about him. A great cliffhanger.
2. The Matrix... we're introduced to the Matrix, a massive computer powered by the minds of dead Time Lords. The Doctor travels into the Matrix and finds a surreal nightmare world where he must battle for survival against a mysterious assassin.
3. The return of the Master.... this is one of the few episodes were the Master is a less than ridiculous villain. Here we see what happens to Time Lords at the end of their 13 lives, the Master is in the final stages of his life and has become a decaying and degenerate skeletal figure. For once he isn't trying to conquer Earth - here he wants to gain access to the Eye of Harmony, the source of all Time Lord power, in the hopes that he can extend his lifespan. Unfortunately, the Master's quest for a new body would become his modus operandi for almost all of his subsequent revisits.
Anyway, that's my 10. There are plenty of other great stories but I just listed the ones that I've watched the most and gotten the most enjoyment from. Dig it.
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