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Old Doctor Who - Part 3

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

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Malcy

The extras on Classic Who are worth the price alone. Been rewatching loads on YouTube recently. TroughtonLover is your friend for a good selection.

Malcy

Did The Green Death get a re release? They arent on my version which has a great selection of extras already.

Replies From View

Quote from: Malcy on December 10, 2018, 11:28:54 PM
Did The Green Death get a re release? They arent on my version which has a great selection of extras already.

Yes - a special edition re-release.

daf mentioned it in his post, with a link:

Quote from: daf on December 10, 2018, 07:31:17 PM
This is on The Green Death (also a big big bonus on this - RTD and Katie Manning do a bonus commentary on the final episode AND the Sarah Jane Adventure 'Death of the Doctor' two parter - A MUST HAVE!)

Ambient Sheep

Quote from: daf on December 10, 2018, 07:31:17 PMThese are the ones they did for the final round of DVDs - Five parts of 'Doctor Forever' - one per DVD (all 'special editions')...

Thanks for the list, saved me a lot of trawling.


Quote from: daf on December 10, 2018, 07:31:17 PM- - - -This is on The Green Death (also a big big bonus on this - RTD and Katie Manning do a bonus commentary on the final episode AND the Sarah Jane Adventure 'Death of the Doctor' two parter - A MUST HAVE!)

Yes, I saw that on the Restoration Team website earlier -- VERY tempting.  Such a shame it's an SE of one I already fucking have...


Quote from: daf on December 10, 2018, 07:38:21 PMYou soppy sod - let me give you a hug!

(((((((((((((( Lovely Sheepie )))))))))))))))))

Thank you for being lovely.

purlieu

The new extras are the main reason I want to get the BluRay sets really, but I'm just worried that even the Australian ones will be gone by the time I have the cash (and the US ones are encoded differently for different TVs, right?).
But yeah, the extras are really worth buying any of the sets for, all the ones I've seen are incredible.

Ambient Sheep

Quote from: Malcy on December 10, 2018, 11:28:54 PMDid The Green Death get a re release? They arent on my version which has a great selection of extras already.

Yup... this is how it works now... in April 2016, see http://www.impossiblethings.net/restorationteam/TheGreenDeathSE.htm (officially reached via the framed menu system here: http://www.restoration-team.co.uk).

The original 2004 DVD's description can be found here: http://www.impossiblethings.net/restorationteam/greendeath.htm

EDIT: beaten by RFV but never mind. :-)

Malcy

Quote from: Ambient Sheep on December 11, 2018, 12:38:10 AM
Yup... this is how it works now... in April 2016, see http://www.impossiblethings.net/restorationteam/TheGreenDeathSE.htm (officially reached via the framed menu system here: http://www.restoration-team.co.uk).

The original 2004 DVD's description can be found here: http://www.impossiblethings.net/restorationteam/greendeath.htm

EDIT: beaten by RFV but never mind. :-)

I hope this isn't a trend that will see every story get a SE & eventual Blu-Ray. Especially when the new extras end up on YouTube eventually. I almost picked up a SE of 'The 5 Doctors' recently for the Tennant commentary track. But it wasn't on it! Must be 3. Ridiculous.

The Green Death was one of the next I got after Spearhead. Had the most memories for me.

Ambient Sheep

That's a good point -- at some point will they have the gall to re-release those New Who series that had additional different commentaries on the website, with them now as an extra commentary track on the SE DVD / more-likely Blu-Ray?

Ploughed through the Season 19 blu-ray extras over the past few evenings and really enjoyed them, especially the new retrospectives and the hour-long interview with Davison. Interesting and (mind-)probing questions from Matthew Sweet.

The stories themselves are definitely a mixed bag but strong overall. I've never been a big fan of Castrovalva as it always seemed too low-stakes and meandering, but I enjoyed it a lot more this time round. The re-done special effects aren't everyone's cup of tea but I thought they worked well this time and were integrated much better than in previous efforts.

Kinda and Earthshock remain absolute belters and The Visitation is good too, but a bit formulaic and saddled with Saward's clumsy dialogue (also evident in Earthshock, but Grimwade's superb direction means you don't notice as much).

I'm also a shameless apologist for Four to Doomsday (it's a right old mess but bursting with insane ideas, has a great guest cast and cracking set and costume design) and Black Orchid is good breezy fun.

Sadly Time Flight is even worse than remembered though. It's a shame the set bows out on such a duff note, but overall it's really decent with a nice variety of stories and superb extras. I was on the fence about buying as I already had most of the stories on DVD (and was a bit gutted I'd dithered over Season 12 and missed out) but I'm really glad I picked this up.

Norton Canes

I love season 19. I suppose it was the season where I became a 'fan' of the programme rather than just someone who tuned in to see a man in a scarf win against some monsters. Sometime after season 18 had finished I'd bought both volumes of Jean-Marc Lofficier's excellent (if occasionally inaccurate) programme guide and had resolved that, in case he'd decided not to pursue further volumes, it would fall to me to keep them up to date. Therefore, as each episode was transmitted I sat dutifully with a notepad and and poised pen, scrawling down character names and plot notes (Ceefax subtitles were immeasurable helpful) then writing them up in my neatest handwriting in the days following each story's conclusion. I think this endeavor lasted until around the midway point of season 20 when I finally realised it was better to just enjoy the fucking show than spend the next twenty years of my life being the guardian of the Who documentation flame. I guess it didn't occur to me that one day all these stories would be released on home media, or that a man called Ian Levine would be doing much the same thing but in even greater detail, and with the names spelled correctly. Still, I brought my dog-eared little notebooks to the Longleat anniversary bash where John Leeson complimented me on my efforts.

Anyway, I digress. It is true, yes, that all the stories in season 19 have plenty to commend them, with the exception of Time-Flight, which at least has the good grace to be camply amusing. The general public seemed to agree with this sentiment as viewing figures were respectable throughout, confirming that the show's move to weekdays was worthwhile. Peter Davison is on great form throughout - I don't think any actor has actually worked harder at creating and presenting the character of the Doctor, but he generally makes it seem effortless. I'm glad he reeled in the wilder elements of his portrayal, some of which remain in the first episode of Four To Doomsday, which includes the first scenes he recorded (bar the post-regeneration smile in Logopolis). I agree that Castrovalva is slow and meandering, especially in episode two, but it improves immensely once the TARDIS crew reach the titular town. For what it's worth, here's what I would have done to improve the season's structure and tighten up the stories: 1) Reduce Time-Flight to a two-parter, cut out all the prehistoric stuff and make it a Midnight-style bottle story set entirely on the plane (with a few extra scenes in Heathrow). 2) Kick off the season with a new two-parter called Event One which is basically the first two episodes of Castrovalva but set entirely within the TARDIS, Edge Of Destruction-style. 3) Have Castrovalva second in the running order, expand it to a four-parter and set in entirely in the dwelling itself. The concluding two episodes of the transmitted version are so good that I want to see more of the story set there, and I'm sure Chris Bidmead could have expended some of the story elements, or introduced new ones, to facilitate that. Hang on... does that mean the season is now two episodes longer? I haven't thought this through properly have I.

Fuck's sake, look at all this shit I've just written. It's taken me literally about three minutes. I love season 19.

Good stuff Norton, lovely to read.

When I was growing up on the Beeb's VHS releases I never really warmed to Davison's era in the same way I loved the Pertwee/Baker stuff, so this Season 19 box set has been a treat and made me re-evaluate it as a sequential run.

And I completely agree, Davison is a joy throughout - he's clearly put such thought into the role and his attention to detail make it a wonderful performance. For instance, there's a lovely bit in Black Orchid when someone says "Doctor who?" and instead of mugging or double-taking, he simply turns to his companions and gives them a little glance to acknowledge the meta-joke. A small moment, but his performance is full of those well-considered additions.

Norton Canes

I'd like to see a compilation of his 'which corridor do I take' moments - whether it's surreptitiously changing the flip of a coin, or pointing one way then going the other... no-one could decide which corridor to take quite like Davison.

Quote from: Norton Canes on December 13, 2018, 12:39:43 PMFor what it's worth, here's what I would have done to improve the season's structure and tighten up the stories: 1) Reduce Time-Flight to a two-parter, cut out all the prehistoric stuff and make it a Midnight-style bottle story set entirely on the plane (with a few extra scenes in Heathrow). 2) Kick off the season with a new two-parter called Event One which is basically the first two episodes of Castrovalva but set entirely within the TARDIS, Edge Of Destruction-style. 3) Have Castrovalva second in the running order, expand it to a four-parter and set in entirely in the dwelling itself. The concluding two episodes of the transmitted version are so good that I want to see more of the story set there, and I'm sure Chris Bidmead could have expended some of the story elements, or introduced new ones, to facilitate that. Hang on... does that mean the season is now two episodes longer? I haven't thought this through properly have I.

No, still the same number of episodes, I think.  Castrovalva already is a four parter, you've just restructured it so that it's all set on the planet and around the dwelling rather than changed its length.  Otherwise you've taken two episodes off Time-Flight and put them before Castrovalva, so the overall episode number of the season would still remain what it already is.

Norton Canes

#1783
Plus I've added the 'Event One' two-parter. Never mind, Castrovalva can be another two-part story, second in the run. Basically just episodes three and four of the original version. I reckon two-part stories would have played out better with the twice-weekly episodes.

No. Hang on. All I've done is taken two episodes off Time-Flight and added them to the start of the season. That's it. It works. Fuck, I am really tired right now, I can't do numbers.

(I mean ideally I would just make the whole season a 26-episode version of Kinda, but there you go)

purlieu

Kinda is bloody brilliant, and Earthshock is decent, but the rest of 19 never sticks in my head. I've seen them a number of times now (plus reading the novelisations) and I can still barely remember what happens during The Visitation and Four to Doomsday.

Norton Canes

#1785
Castrovalva: Davison's performance is beyond awesome in episode one, he totally carries an otherwise rather static installment. Shame then that he spends most of episode two being pushed around in a box by Nyssa and Tegan. However, episodes three and four are blissfully good.
Four To Doomsday: As OGT says upthread it's "bursting with insane ideas" but the pace slackens as it goes on. Much to admire but would perhaps have been so much better as an oddball two-parter.
Kinda: People say what drags this down is the snake, but in fact what are more cumbersome and unrealistic are the scenes of padding that Eric Saward added. Apart from that, it's solid win.
The Visitation: Probably the least grueling of all Saward's scripts, but Peter Moffatt's direction kills it dead in places. Watchable, and the Michaels Robbins and Melia are great.
Black Orchid: Fun for what it is. It's always good to watch the cast trying to pretend that a blustery winter day is in fact the height of summer. 
Earthshock: The underground scenes in episode one are massively atmospheric, as are the scenes in the freighter's hold. The bridge is drab though, the only splash of colour being Beryl Reid's hair. I remember one guide describing it as 'pages of clunking macho nonsense', which is as apposite a summary as I've ever seen. The Cybermen do look great, though.
Time-Flight: Fuck it, pour yourself a big glass of something and just enjoy.

JamesTC

Quote from: Malcy on December 11, 2018, 12:42:49 AM
I hope this isn't a trend that will see every story get a SE & eventual Blu-Ray. Especially when the new extras end up on YouTube eventually. I almost picked up a SE of 'The 5 Doctors' recently for the Tennant commentary track. But it wasn't on it! Must be 3. Ridiculous.

The Tennant commentary track is hidden as an easter egg on The Five Doctors SE (the 25th-anniversary edition).

People might as well wait for the Blu-Ray sets now rather than get the old DVDs. They are releasing three or four a year. It looks like 18, 10 and 26 next year with possibly another release.

Replies From View

I wonder whether the cost of each boxset will reflect the number of episodes in that season.

JamesTC

The three sets up to now have all been roughly the same price but have had varied episode counts. Season 12 has 20 episodes. Season 19 has 26 episodes. Season 18 has 28 episodes plus K9 and Company which is the equivalent of two episodes.

Maybe the first six seasons will be a little more expensive as they have more content (depending on how they represent the missing episodes).

Season 23-26 can be padded with extended versions. I'd like a Trial-less version of The Mysterious Planet and Terror of the Vervoids.

Replies From View

Quote from: JamesTC on December 15, 2018, 09:50:16 PM
Season 23-26 can be padded with extended versions. I'd like a Trial-less version of The Mysterious Planet and Terror of the Vervoids.

Seasons 23-26 being only 14 episodes each, it's really hard to imagine what they could do to justify a price that matches the earlier seasons.  The sets that range from 20 to 30 episodes per season are already packed with extras, including omnibus versions of some stories (albeit shorter than the episodic versions, but they are nonetheless alternative edits that take up their own disc room).

VelourSpirit

They could put 25 and 26 together and it'd only be a bit longer than season 19. More stories would mean a lot more extras though. I'm really excited for whenever they do 26 - think that one was meant to be the end of 2019? It's my favourite classic era and I've not even seen any of the DVD extras.

purlieu


I have no idea who this handsome, stubbly chap with the chiselled jaw is, but he's no incarnation of The Doctor I know of.

That might be the best fleshed out Target I've read. Every aspect was really brought to life, with plenty of extra scenes and lots of additional dialogue that never felt tacked on at all. Plus a flashback / forward to the Merlin Doctor (wearing a parka). Brilliant stuff.

Ambient Sheep

#1792
Great.  Just discovered that The Time Monster is buried in a box-set with fucking Underworld and The Horns of fucking Nimon for £17.  Thanks guys.

The Auton stories being boxed I can understand, the Peladon stories I can understand, even The Silurians & The Sea Devils with Warriors of the Deep at a push, but what the fuck is THIS shit?!

Replies From View

Surely it can be found for less than £17 by now?

Yeah that one was swiftly called out as the "stories that wouldn't sell well if released individually" box set.

Same with The Gunfighters and The Awakening being released together as "Doctor Who - Earth Story", which is as tenuous a connection as you can get.

Ambient Sheep

Quote from: Old Gold Tooth on December 19, 2018, 12:27:34 PM
Yeah that one was swiftly called out as the "stories that wouldn't sell well if released individually" box set.

Yeah, very obviously, but when one's main interest is Pertwee stories it really sucks big-time.


Quote from: Replies From View on December 19, 2018, 12:25:36 PM
Surely it can be found for less than £17 by now?

Oh probably.  I've just been asked to give a collection of Amazon Prime-worthy URLs, that's all, from which I'll be lucky enough to be getting a semi-random selection.

Needless to say, I've not put that box on the list.


Found it curious, btw, that the Inferno SE is only £6.99 whereas The Green Death SE is £9.99.

Jerzy Bondov

I need to have a fucking good look at myself I really do. Why do I have so many Doctor Who DVDs, many of which I don't even enjoy? I have a spreadsheet where I was ticking them off as I bought them. I've not got close to all of them - only eighty three! What is that compulsive need I have to collect everything in a series, even if I don't like all of it? They put them in the matching boxes and that's it, I have to get them all lined up. What I need to do is adjust my mindset from collector to curator. Not I've got every Doctor Who DVD, but I've got my favourite Doctor Who DVDs.

But where to begin? That's the appeal of the collector mindset over the curator - no thought required. Is it a grey box with a Doctor Who DVD in it? Yes. Have I already got it? No. BOUGHT. Adding 'how good is it?' opens up such a can of worms for me. I don't want to have to think about that. Sleepless nights. 

Quote from: Old Gold Tooth on December 19, 2018, 12:27:34 PM
Yeah that one was swiftly called out as the "stories that wouldn't sell well if released individually" box set.

Same with The Gunfighters and The Awakening being released together as "Doctor Who - Earth Story", which is as tenuous a connection as you can get.

Bought the box. Emptied the DVDs from it. Put them at opposite ends of collection. Result.

Quote from: purlieu on December 15, 2018, 11:32:15 PM

I have no idea who this handsome, stubbly chap with the chiselled jaw is, but he's no incarnation of The Doctor I know of.

That might be the best fleshed out Target I've read. Every aspect was really brought to life, with plenty of extra scenes and lots of additional dialogue that never felt tacked on at all. Plus a flashback / forward to the Merlin Doctor (wearing a parka). Brilliant stuff.

Rather enjoying this series of posts, cheers.

Are some of the missing and past doctor adventures are missing?

daf

#1799
Quote from: Old Gold Tooth on December 19, 2018, 12:27:34 PM
Same with The Gunfighters and The Awakening being released together as "Doctor Who - Earth Story", which is as tenuous a connection as you can get.

Quote from: A Hat Like That on December 19, 2018, 02:53:35 PM
Bought the box. Emptied the DVDs from it. Put them at opposite ends of collection. Result.

I kept the boxes but turned them backwards on the shelf so you can see the DVD spines, and then just re-fill them chronologically, keeping the most chronologically convenient DVD in the box (as marked in bold)  :

Earth Story : Gunfighters / The War Machines - (particularly pleased with this as both ARE Earth stories!)
Beneath the Surface : The Silurians / Ambassadors of Death / Inferno - (another happy coincidence with the drill plot of Inferno, and streching it a bit, you could argue that the helmets of the Ambassadors also have a "ooh - what's beneath the surface?" element to them)
Myths and Legends : The Sunmakers / Underworld / Invasion of Time - (no special link with these - can't win 'em all!)