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March 29, 2024, 08:01:12 AM

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Old Doctor Who - Part 3

Started by Ambient Sheep, October 21, 2016, 05:20:01 PM

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Norton Canes


Norton Canes

Quote from: daf on June 25, 2018, 02:26:34 PM
'Rutan Airport' - Cats UK
'Rutan Rifles' - The Jam
'We're Rutans, Were Rutans, We hope you like-a Rutans too' - Bob Marley & The Bob Marley Reggae Band

The Ru-Tan Clan

Isnt Anything

Quote from: Bad Ambassador on June 25, 2018, 02:40:07 PM
The Lules of Rutan - Fred Freiberger

karma for that man


edit  - hadnt seen this page but still ....

KARMA FOR THAT MAN

daf

#1293
Quote from: Replies From View on June 25, 2018, 03:12:00 PM
The Time Warrior was as good as they ever got

I still don't understand how they never managed to replicate the original glossy 'Baked Potato' head ever again - did they just forget how to do it?
And that tongue. Jesus - look at that frigging TONGUE!


By Experiment it's the same actor underneath, but that's one dry rubbery spud he's wearing on top -


The Invasion of Time Sontaran looks like it was carved out of a parsnip after a heavy night on the pop.


While by the The Two Doctors, they've just given up - with a deflating rubber head rattling around inside a massive collar, seemingly made by two teams unable to "get their shit together" - For Friggs sake, I mean look at this garbage - it's pitiful!

purlieu

Quote from: Norton Canes on June 25, 2018, 11:42:26 AM
I know the Sontarans were originally written by Robert Holmes with satirical intent as a race of slightly ridiculous imperialist warmongers but I thought the relaunched series' depiction of them veered too far into comedy territory (I'm look at you, Strax).
Y'see, I like Strax, but I do agree that the enduring image of them is currently very comic, which is one reason I wouldn't mind another story. The overall characterisation - exceptionally military - and the look of the modern Sontarans are both excellent and I think, given the right story, they could be tremendous.

And yes, the Two Doctors Sontarans are utterly appalling.

Replies From View

And let us never forget the definitely-canon:








Are those the Two Doctors masks?

Replies From View

For people who want to see another story where the Sontarans are taken seriously (before Moffat starts exploring their comic potential), one of them appears in a series 2 Sarah Jane Adventures story called The Last Sontaran.

daf

Quote from: Replies From View on June 25, 2018, 05:37:04 PM
Are those the Two Doctors masks?

Yes - it was included on the original edition of the Two Doctors DVD.

There are some corners of the universe which have bred the most terrible things. Things which act against everything we believe in, They must be fought, and deleted from all future copies of the DVD.

Even without Savile, it is a bum-clenchingly awful car crash that gives me the hot elbows.

Replies From View

Quote from: daf on June 25, 2018, 08:25:58 PM
Yes - it was included on the original edition of the Two Doctors DVD.

There are some corners of the universe which have bred the most terrible things. Things which act against everything we believe in, They must be fought, and deleted from all future copies of the DVD.

Even without Savile, it is a bum-clenchingly awful car crash that gives me the hot elbows.

I'm very pleased I managed to get the Two Doctors DVD before that feature was removed.  Unless there's an aesthetic difference between the original release and the later one, I can't see how anyone would be sure they were getting the former somewhere like eBay.  The seller isn't likely to trumpet that their DVD has Jimmy Savile on it.

daf

It is a right mess, but I wouldn't part with my copy for anything less than . . .



(i'm serious!)

Norton Canes

Quote from: daf on June 25, 2018, 04:00:45 PM
I still don't understand how they never managed to replicate the original glossy 'Baked Potato' head ever again - did they just forget how to do it?

Sontaran actor Kevin Lindsay had life-threatening breathing problems in the Lynx mask, so it had to be redesigned for Styre to give him more air. I do like the Styre mask almost as much as the original - it has a kind of ogre-like quality.

Just realized I don't have The Time Warrior in my DVD collection (I think I had an extended borrow off someone). This must be rectified forthwith.


Replies From View

You'll notice also that Kryten's mask got worse the more they tried to accommodate Robert Llewellyn's selfish lust for comfort.

Conclusion:  MAKE THESE PEOPLE SUFFER.

Malcy

Quote from: daf on June 25, 2018, 08:57:41 PM
It is a right mess, but I wouldn't part with my copy for anything less than . . .



(i'm serious!)

I'm gonna put my copy on at £999,000. Sorry but I'm skinny!

daf

Tom Baker 'Season 12' blu ray trailer :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VX3zsgaci2A

Review of the US version by 'Bobble' from Friday Night Dinner :
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=T3TGfBVkZcI

The UK version has been delayed to sort out some problem with the subtitles.

Norton Canes

Still can't believe they didn't whack Zygons on the end of that.

daf

#1305
Yes, it's an odd one that - made at the end of one season and held back for the next - like they used to do back in the 60's *

Due to this it feels slightly out of place with either season 12 (as it wasn't shown with the rest)  or 13 (the phasing out of Harry & Unit).

It's a floater - Feels more like a between seasons 'Summer holidays film' special (with an Omnibus version released to Saturday morning fleapits)

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -
* ('The Smugglers' and 'Tomb of the Cybermen' were both recorded at the end of their respective seasons and held back till the start of the next. Though, those 60's seasons were SO long, major changes usually occur within seasons, rather than between them - e.g. dropping the historicals, companions leaving etc.)

Bad Ambassador

This was still happening well into the 70s, though. The Time Warrior and Robot were both shot as part of the previous season.

During the 60s, Planet of Giants, The Dalek Invasion of Earth, Galaxy 4, Mission to the Unknown, The Dominators and The Mind Robber were all also held over.

daf

And though Spearhead from Space wasn't held back, it also feels like a bit of a floating oddity - not only due to being shot all on film, but has a different producer (Derrick Sherwin) to the rest of Pertwee's stories (Barry Letts).

Norton Canes

Then there's Time And The Rani, which was made along with the rest of season 24 but feels like a hangover from fuck knows where.

Replies From View

Quote from: Norton Canes on June 26, 2018, 03:53:06 PM
Then there's Time And The Rani, which was made along with the rest of season 24 but feels like a hangover from fuck knows where.

I still think it could have been a half-decent story if it had had Colin Baker in it as the Doctor as planned.  It wouldn't have had the weird regeneration at the start or McCoy guffing about throughout*, and it would have been the Doctor sacrificing himself at the end rather than some random character from the story.  The sixth Doctor was going to sacrifice himself at the end of Time and the Rani, and regenerate.  Much better.


* I don't know whether the post-regeneration antics would have been held over for Paradise Towers or they would have just moved on with the story.

Norton Canes

Quote from: daf on June 26, 2018, 03:08:24 PM
Yes, it's an odd one that - made at the end of one season and held back for the next - like they used to do back in the 60's

Due to this it feels slightly out of place with either season 12 (as it wasn't shown with the rest)  or 13 (the phasing out of Harry & Unit).

It's a floater - Feels more like a between seasons 'Summer holidays film' special (with an Omnibus version released to Saturday morning fleapits)

Maybe they're planning to do season 13 next and have kept hold of it to provide more continuity. When you think about it, it's only really seasons 12, 13 and 14 that are worth Blu-Raying, aren't they? Tom's easily the biggest draw but too may of the Williams stories just aren't good enough (though The Key To Time's obviously OK if they want a strong story arc). 18 might be worth a punt, I suppose - at least it looks good. If not Tom then the Pertwee seasons are patchy and I don't think Davison, Colin Baker or McCoy are exactly going to stoke the enthusiasm of the casual buyer.

Oh, season 7, guess that's a possibility.

OK or perhaps 8 if they think the UNIT vibe is worth pushing. 10 has some decent stories too, including Hartnell and Troughton, Daleks and 'the one with the maggots'.

Replies From View

In the end all of them can be justified one way or another.  Only the 1960s seasons are borderline, due to the missing episodes.

daf

#1312
Quote from: Norton Canes on June 26, 2018, 05:12:12 PM
I don't think Davison, Colin Baker or McCoy are exactly going to stoke the enthusiasm of the casual buyer.

Hold on to your hat, but, unless this one completely bombs, I believe the plan is to release them ALL!

The next one tentatively pencilled in is Season 19 - (Davison's first) - partly due to the large amount of location film that still exists and can be HD'd up the wazoo.

I predict, if nothing else, All of Pertwee and Tom Baker will get done - Davison next most likely.

They'll leave the 60's era as late as possible - on the off-chance some missing episodes turn up (there are strong hints that there are two more missing episodes in the hands of 'collectors', but they haven't been able to get them back . . . yet!)

Doctors 6 & 7 could probably fit their entire era into a box each. The McCoys will still look like a turd no matter how much it's polished due to the wretched one inch video used for everything, but I think there's still a bit of film footage in Colin's shows that could be scrubbed up - the Trial of a Timelord intro swoop would look AMAZING in HD!

Replies From View

It depends whether you're thinking of them mostly as Blu-Ray upgrades or as complete season sets for people who don't have them yet.  Regardless of video quality I think McCoy's third season is very strong but yes those final 1980s seasons feel sadly truncated and could be released together.  I doubt they will though.

I think season 19 is a strange next choice to be honest.  Not one of my favourites at all and I don't think it'd make a good entry point for anyone after season 12.  Seasons 13 and 14 should have been next, surely.  Then some Pertwee, as long as they can even out the video quality a bit.

Is it Castrovalva that has all the 'New Beginnings' documentary stuff on the DVD?  It would make sense releasing it on that basis, I suppose.

gatchamandave

Quote from: daf on June 26, 2018, 05:48:20 PM
Hold on to your hat, but, unless this one completely bombs, I believe the plan is to release them ALL!

the Trial of a Timelord intro swoop would look AMAZING in HD!

And then he walks into a courtroom that looks like it's made out of cardboard that's been blinged up with gold auto paint and starts doing boatyard/knackersyard shit off Michael Jayston who is visibly writing a stiff letter to his agent in his head.

purlieu

If they are going to do them all, I hope the rest come around a bit quicker than this one. It feels like it was announced about 18 months ago. They'll have to do a few a year just to get all 26 series out before the physical market begins to drag. I'm sure they'll do Colin and Sylvester as series sets to keep it all even, but it seems daft that some of the '60s boxes will have the same runtime as many episodes as McCoy's entire era.

I think there are a number of reasons for all this: getting the new logo onto everything, having convenient boxsets of series rather than 150-odd DVDs, upgrades in quality wherever possible, rinsing a bit more cash out of classic Who as a franchise, now the main DVD range is pretty complete. I'd imagine if we get many more animated lost stories, they might come along with some of the '60s box sets.

I would have expected series 7 or 8 to follow next - obviously the existing Spearhead From Space Blu-Ray is both a plus and minus point for 7 - it properly benefits from the upgrade, but it's already available so there's less new material. I'd have gone with series 21 for Davison - not only is it probably his strongest, but it also contains what is generally considered the second best classic story in Caves of Androzani, and also both ends of a regeneration in the same series.

Speaking of Davison, books! The Ultimate Treasure was Bulis on almost self-parody mode: a treasure hunt, in which the characters have to encounter one threat or trap after another for the bulk of the plot. Most of them are encountered three times, by the different groups. The guy doesn't know how to write an interesting, layered plot. A bunch of interesting ideas encountered on the journey made it pleasant enough, but it's not going to be high on my 'to re-read' list.
Superior Beings starts off in properly grim mode: a race of creatures who hunt humans for both sport and food and are generally really fucking ruthless capture Peri and, later, all the main characters in the story. A fair bit of unpleasant imagery in there, to the extent of the whole thing being difficult to read. It comes alive in the second half with a garden planet with walking plants, and some ancient God-like creatures at its centre.
Telos novella Blood and Hope is the first 100% historical story since a series 8-era Pertwee one, set at the end of the American civil war. The most beautifully written and affecting book I've come across so far, both tremendously sad and also joyful. Excellent stuff.

And now onto Terrence Dicks's Warmonger. Its reputation precedes it and I'm not looking forward to it.

Replies From View

I'm guessing The Five Doctors would appear on the season 20 set, meaning season 21 would begin with Warriors of the Deep and end with Twin Dilemma.  Bit of a risk to put that season out too early, I reckon, especially since it springboards into Colin Baker's run, which (on the basis of Twin Dilemma alone) isn't something most people will be clamouring to get.

daf

#1317
Quote from: Replies From View on June 26, 2018, 06:08:33 PM
It depends whether you're thinking of them mostly as Blu-Ray upgrades or as complete season sets for people who don't have them yet.

It's a bit of both, but I think it's mostly a way of making the old series available in a modern (series) box set format to cater for the casual viewer - who would otherwise find the prospect of hunting down 140+ DVD's too daunting, and probably not bother.

Quote from: Replies From View on June 26, 2018, 06:08:33 PM
I think season 19 is a strange next choice to be honest.  Not one of my favourites at all and I don't think it'd make a good entry point for anyone after season 12.

It's pretty much the season with the most original location film that still exists - so it will be a showcase for the blu ray HD.

Plus, by rotating the Doctors, you add variety, hide the stinkers, and have a couple of 'big carrots' in reserve to keep up interest in the range -  in the same way they held back Zygons for the last DVD release - to keep you buying them.

Quote from: Replies From View on June 26, 2018, 06:08:33 PM
Is it Castrovalva that has all the 'New Beginnings' documentary stuff on the DVD?  It would make sense releasing it on that basis, I suppose.

Yes it does - they should also get David Tennant in for that one - a guest commentary or a 'behind the sofa' (gogglebox) feature might draw in some curous New Series fans.

Norton Canes

I'd love it to be season 19 or 21, even though I won't be buying either of them - or any Blu Ray ever, probably.

JamesTC

Mine arrived a few days early today. It is an incredibe looking box set. Really feels like a luxery item.

Watching the Tom Baker interview. It is probably his best ever interview. Unlike many others it isn't heavily edited to fit the voice of the producer. This is just Tom being allowed to freely talk about his time in the show without being poked or prodded much by the interviewer Matthew Sweet.

The few clips from Season 12 shown show a good upgrade in picture quality.

I think as Shada shown, there is still some improvement to be gained on tape material upgraded to HD so long as it is upgraded by a team who know what they are doing.