Well busy as a Dyke in a D.I.Y store,
back at collage all enrolled paid done dusted, just prepping in the few short weeks before start date.
Completely knackered thru lack of sleep,although really healthy body clock up at 8 am naturally ,but Mr wisdom tooth prevents sleep you know kinda disrupts flow of the night
Its called according to my Dentist 'a impacted wisdom tooth' i call it pain in the arse ,basically instead of growing up its growing on a angle,fine,but theres a tooth in front of it so cant go anywhere and boy do you feel it impacting and pushing
To add to this joy is infections aka Abscess on the gum leaving me with a sore dodgy bleeding gum now a permanent feature when i brush nice so all in all not good to add to this the answer is a hospital visit and to have tooth "Cut" out not pulled and this means a piece of jaw bone to boot ,thank you god oh and while in there and on the job taking top wisdom tooth as well so ill be very big pit holes stitches and a fine mess ,big ol day for me
So despite being up and down in the night im up early im out swimming and im trying to get back on top, its small steps but so damn many it gets tough at times.
Im emoting like a teenage girl, so i have a nice vast range of emotions cursing through my body trying to control me, People all over the place i need to deal with ,a mind that refuses point blank to focus, so i do hope i get a tad straiter prior to collage
I hope to milk all the services they got wonder if there is a Gym i can abuse have to see get there first first night then see what happens
Really excited about it and got my books stationary and all set hope to study read a bit prior to collage
We had a excellent full moon last night,I have my couch facing the main window ,i like the view,
it was creeping through the clouds and in between the trees ,the whole image together looked like something from a James Herbert book
It was pleasant and eerie sat on the couch looking out of the window to it
And putting the bin's out this morning and feeding bread to the birds (Fox that has the freakiest bark ever) and squirrels oh and we got a badger,either that or huge rat,
i saw the biggest mushrooms ive seen since Wales,now i know it is semi rural here but they were something off Star Trek or Dr Who at least 7 inch across
Very cool not sure what there called and i doubt safe to eat but this is a first and do look neat on the side lawn
Now Widow Twanky is calling T.T.F.N
Tuesday, 24 August 2010
Saturday, 21 August 2010
The Third Doctor
Enjoyed reviewing the 7th Doctor so i thought after watching "The Carnival of Monsters" (to catch up ,get up to speed with CO latest toy releases,just got seeds of doom and others to cover ) id cover another Dr
One i remember as a child at 9 or 10 in his video "Death to the Daleks" i liked him he was different his style was unique even as a child this Doctor stood out as something all together different he was as i remember exciting and still is,and i loved his console room i remember finding it erie, it has become my favorite console if not favorite room that belonging to the 4th and 5th Dr's version
A protector is how id some him up, and he will take physical action if necessary not in a crude way ,unlike the sixth Dr thugishly beating up opponents or killing them while smiling and with quip remarks but with class and style. Venusion aikido, that looks like real world ju jitsu and judo (Probably something Jon himself practiced at sometime in his numerous activities )
This was a Five year era that gave us the Barry Letts /Terrance .Dicks team (with Bob Holmes writing stories and creating many iconic villains) ,that was iconic and fundamental to shaping the program to be succeeded by Phillip Hinchcliffe /Bob Holmes team, to form a truly golden era for Doctor who
John Devon Roland Pertwee (Pertwee is a modification of the original French Huguenot family name Perthuis de Laillevault), was born 7 July 1919 in Chelsea, London. His parents, Roland and Avice, divorced shortly after Jon's birth; they had been living apart for some time and Jon was conceived on Armistice Day, 11 November 1918, when they had met up again by chance during the celebrations.
Jon and his older brother Michael remained with their father, who was a distinguished playwright, actor and novelist. Jon and Michael lived for a time with their Grandmother and their Uncle Guy at Caterham in Surrey, and then returned to live with their father in South Kensington after Roland remarried in 1927.
Jon was sent to Aldro boarding school in Eastborne at the age of seven, but was expelled for swinging on the lavatory chains Tarzan-style. Between schools, Jon visited a friend of his father's, A.A. Milne, and met his son Christopher Robin Milne, who introduced him to his toys, Piglet, Owl, Kanga, Roo and Winnie the Pooh.
http://nzdwfc.tetrap.com/archive/tsv48/jonpertweealife.html
His Doctor seems to be a great big Grey area of haters and lovers, But there is a lot to like here, personal opinion aside you either personally do or don't like a Doctor
The over use of CSO and poor effects. As far as the effects go, yes they were ropey ,but for a shoe string budget and the early 70's id expect no less ,if anything the effects were pushed to there limits , but lets not forget Tom Baker and Peter Davisons era had their share of tacky effects - Underworld , Horns of Nimon, Warriors of the Deep, and the worse effects were seen in the late 80s that made theses effects look like high art ,and maybe CSO was slightly over used but then so now is CGI
A establishment figure hmmm ,Really ? he is stuck on Earth one planet in one time and he makes the most of it, you see many examples of him arguing with the the Brigadier or politicians, and frustrated at the establishment to go ahead and do it any way
He is a touch mysoginistic and chauvanistic. But that is as much a reflection of the age as it is the actor or the show and to be fare is perfectly acceptable ,this is no limp wristed jessie
They dared to change a formula by then 6 years old,
A show on the brink of cancellation as viewing figures had dropped and it was felt 6 years was long enough
gone was Dottie old man absent minded clown and something completely new comes in
In a lot of ways was a program that was a sign of the times with carnaby street look James Bond in films Adam adamant and other such shows as the Avengers on TV and it changed as the time went on to being vastly different in its last two years
Much the same way as Peter Davison's Dr was a sign of his times with the public school boy preppy style and the era of the Yuppie that was around, and films like chariots of fire and on TV in brides head revisited etc
The surprise was with discussion with the new producer Barry Letts , he was to play it strait as he later recalled "I was asked to play the part as Jon Pertwee ,and i had no idea who he was "
And it worked Pertwees love of Gadgets vehicles and action was a perfect mix ,and the Man loved his clothes as can be seen again in his role all frills,silk ,satin and velvet & bow ties and cravats (This was 1969 to 1974), it was a totally bold new stroke for the character
He had an identity in the role ,that was as was asked for totally Jon Pertwee and the viewing figures and appreciation for Doctor Who grew under his tenure in the TARDIS,
Pertwee is definitely one of the best Doctors ,why ?
The man himself is the first factor. Jon Pertwee is an obvious choice to play the Time Lord.
Jon Pertwee was a man of considerable talents prior to working for the BBC, he had been a circus performer doing stunts on the wall of death with a motorbike , stunt driver (raced anything that had a engine) loved diving swimming skiing anything physical and served in the Royal Navy
Tall with a young old handsome face , with a shock of white gray hair he looked the part
So to cast a comedic Actor who was well known in the industry and had done a wide variety of parts , from Shakespeare,repertoire west end plays to comedy on the radio films such as Hammer Horror ,Carry on films and much more , it came as no surprise that he was chosen to play the Doctor
I am fortunate to have met Jon several times and found him the consummate performer and entertainer a true showman ,he was polite friendly and always made time for the fans
He stopped to take time to talk to me when he didn't have to, and as i got older and met him again i found him genuine sincere and approachable
To start with .His era had a bold new Idea of having the Doctor stranded on Earth that was a fresh look with the occasional visit on behalf of the Timelord's to outer space, (although he spent less time on Earth that the Doctor has since his return in 2005 ),but then the 3rd Dr's last 2 years were copied by the first two years of Doctor who with Drs 9 & 10 out to space or in time then back to U.NI.T, HQ or jackies flat with both Dr's a trip to parallel Earth
U.N.I.T ,Brigadier Lethbridge Stewart ,one of the best characters in the program,
it was a good idea, the Dr is stranded and uses his knowledge to get a place to live and work on his TARDIS, to have Earth defended by a arm of the British military purpose set up for the unexplained ,pre-dating x files and such like ,so more action and thrills for the kids to cheer to and enjoy the adventures of a Dr that was, is instantly more identifiable
There was also the 'Mystery' element the puzzle the Doctor had to work out searching out clues and putting it together to form the bigger picture
This gave the program a whole new life not seen before or since totally new fresh look like starting over
the fact it is more scary to see Monsters on earth coming out of the wood work so to speak,
you thought it was safe to go in the sea then out pops a race of creatures who live under it and want to kill you, (This years before Jaws) under the Earth is a race of Creatures that see us as the invaders, the infestation to be wiped out ,and these are not even alien invaders ,the mundane bent towards death and destruction like daffodils or dolls or gargoyles or shop dummies coming to life to kill you, this has been often tried many times in Dr Who and other programs and films since
(This era was a perfect spring board for yet another completely different change of direction in the cosmos striding fourth doctor )
His era built on the mythos of the Doctor introducing Omega one of the founding fathers ,the planets name Gallifrey the Timelords the president the first multi Doctor story
The fact that his era had a majority of the best monsters and introduced new legendary ones , Auton's,Sea Devils, Silurians, Ogrons, Draconians, Sontarans....... the Master, Single greatest Villain for the Doctor ever, played here believable and scary and sinister and very smooth by Roger Delgado
Only regret he never faced the Cybermen i feel this is a really missed opportunity, what he, his Dr could of done with a good U.N.I.T story against the silver giants from Mondas
The small, but important, fact that he regularly changed his outfit for a new look , he had some of the best title sequences and season 11 titles is still one of my favorites
,Liz Shaw the boffin scientist in his first season, Jo Grant is easily one of the best companions, and introducing the legend that has become Sarah Jane Smith in his final year on the program
His era is worth watching and not dismissing to quickly, theres something to be enjoyed here.
Jon Pertwee returned to the role of the Third Doctor several times in the eighties and nineties. In 1983, he appeared in the twentieth anniversary television special The Five Doctors, and in 1989 again played the Doctor, this time on stage in Doctor Who - The Ultimate Adventure. In 1993 he appeared on screen once more as the Third Doctor in the two part charity skit Dimensions in Time, and also played the Doctor on radio for the five-part audio Doctor Who story The Paradise of Death. The success of that production led to a sequel, the six part The Ghosts of N-Space, made in November 1994 but not transmitted until early 1996. Jon made appearances at numerous Doctor Who conventions, invariably appearing in a version of the Third Doctor's costume which he'd had made especially for such occasions.
One i remember as a child at 9 or 10 in his video "Death to the Daleks" i liked him he was different his style was unique even as a child this Doctor stood out as something all together different he was as i remember exciting and still is,and i loved his console room i remember finding it erie, it has become my favorite console if not favorite room that belonging to the 4th and 5th Dr's version
A protector is how id some him up, and he will take physical action if necessary not in a crude way ,unlike the sixth Dr thugishly beating up opponents or killing them while smiling and with quip remarks but with class and style. Venusion aikido, that looks like real world ju jitsu and judo (Probably something Jon himself practiced at sometime in his numerous activities )
This was a Five year era that gave us the Barry Letts /Terrance .Dicks team (with Bob Holmes writing stories and creating many iconic villains) ,that was iconic and fundamental to shaping the program to be succeeded by Phillip Hinchcliffe /Bob Holmes team, to form a truly golden era for Doctor who
John Devon Roland Pertwee (Pertwee is a modification of the original French Huguenot family name Perthuis de Laillevault), was born 7 July 1919 in Chelsea, London. His parents, Roland and Avice, divorced shortly after Jon's birth; they had been living apart for some time and Jon was conceived on Armistice Day, 11 November 1918, when they had met up again by chance during the celebrations.
Jon and his older brother Michael remained with their father, who was a distinguished playwright, actor and novelist. Jon and Michael lived for a time with their Grandmother and their Uncle Guy at Caterham in Surrey, and then returned to live with their father in South Kensington after Roland remarried in 1927.
Jon was sent to Aldro boarding school in Eastborne at the age of seven, but was expelled for swinging on the lavatory chains Tarzan-style. Between schools, Jon visited a friend of his father's, A.A. Milne, and met his son Christopher Robin Milne, who introduced him to his toys, Piglet, Owl, Kanga, Roo and Winnie the Pooh.
http://nzdwfc.tetrap.com/archive/tsv48/jonpertweealife.html
His Doctor seems to be a great big Grey area of haters and lovers, But there is a lot to like here, personal opinion aside you either personally do or don't like a Doctor
The over use of CSO and poor effects. As far as the effects go, yes they were ropey ,but for a shoe string budget and the early 70's id expect no less ,if anything the effects were pushed to there limits , but lets not forget Tom Baker and Peter Davisons era had their share of tacky effects - Underworld , Horns of Nimon, Warriors of the Deep, and the worse effects were seen in the late 80s that made theses effects look like high art ,and maybe CSO was slightly over used but then so now is CGI
A establishment figure hmmm ,Really ? he is stuck on Earth one planet in one time and he makes the most of it, you see many examples of him arguing with the the Brigadier or politicians, and frustrated at the establishment to go ahead and do it any way
He is a touch mysoginistic and chauvanistic. But that is as much a reflection of the age as it is the actor or the show and to be fare is perfectly acceptable ,this is no limp wristed jessie
They dared to change a formula by then 6 years old,
A show on the brink of cancellation as viewing figures had dropped and it was felt 6 years was long enough
gone was Dottie old man absent minded clown and something completely new comes in
In a lot of ways was a program that was a sign of the times with carnaby street look James Bond in films Adam adamant and other such shows as the Avengers on TV and it changed as the time went on to being vastly different in its last two years
Much the same way as Peter Davison's Dr was a sign of his times with the public school boy preppy style and the era of the Yuppie that was around, and films like chariots of fire and on TV in brides head revisited etc
The surprise was with discussion with the new producer Barry Letts , he was to play it strait as he later recalled "I was asked to play the part as Jon Pertwee ,and i had no idea who he was "
And it worked Pertwees love of Gadgets vehicles and action was a perfect mix ,and the Man loved his clothes as can be seen again in his role all frills,silk ,satin and velvet & bow ties and cravats (This was 1969 to 1974), it was a totally bold new stroke for the character
He had an identity in the role ,that was as was asked for totally Jon Pertwee and the viewing figures and appreciation for Doctor Who grew under his tenure in the TARDIS,
Pertwee is definitely one of the best Doctors ,why ?
The man himself is the first factor. Jon Pertwee is an obvious choice to play the Time Lord.
Jon Pertwee was a man of considerable talents prior to working for the BBC, he had been a circus performer doing stunts on the wall of death with a motorbike , stunt driver (raced anything that had a engine) loved diving swimming skiing anything physical and served in the Royal Navy
Tall with a young old handsome face , with a shock of white gray hair he looked the part
So to cast a comedic Actor who was well known in the industry and had done a wide variety of parts , from Shakespeare,repertoire west end plays to comedy on the radio films such as Hammer Horror ,Carry on films and much more , it came as no surprise that he was chosen to play the Doctor
I am fortunate to have met Jon several times and found him the consummate performer and entertainer a true showman ,he was polite friendly and always made time for the fans
He stopped to take time to talk to me when he didn't have to, and as i got older and met him again i found him genuine sincere and approachable
To start with .His era had a bold new Idea of having the Doctor stranded on Earth that was a fresh look with the occasional visit on behalf of the Timelord's to outer space, (although he spent less time on Earth that the Doctor has since his return in 2005 ),but then the 3rd Dr's last 2 years were copied by the first two years of Doctor who with Drs 9 & 10 out to space or in time then back to U.NI.T, HQ or jackies flat with both Dr's a trip to parallel Earth
U.N.I.T ,Brigadier Lethbridge Stewart ,one of the best characters in the program,
it was a good idea, the Dr is stranded and uses his knowledge to get a place to live and work on his TARDIS, to have Earth defended by a arm of the British military purpose set up for the unexplained ,pre-dating x files and such like ,so more action and thrills for the kids to cheer to and enjoy the adventures of a Dr that was, is instantly more identifiable
There was also the 'Mystery' element the puzzle the Doctor had to work out searching out clues and putting it together to form the bigger picture
This gave the program a whole new life not seen before or since totally new fresh look like starting over
the fact it is more scary to see Monsters on earth coming out of the wood work so to speak,
you thought it was safe to go in the sea then out pops a race of creatures who live under it and want to kill you, (This years before Jaws) under the Earth is a race of Creatures that see us as the invaders, the infestation to be wiped out ,and these are not even alien invaders ,the mundane bent towards death and destruction like daffodils or dolls or gargoyles or shop dummies coming to life to kill you, this has been often tried many times in Dr Who and other programs and films since
(This era was a perfect spring board for yet another completely different change of direction in the cosmos striding fourth doctor )
His era built on the mythos of the Doctor introducing Omega one of the founding fathers ,the planets name Gallifrey the Timelords the president the first multi Doctor story
The fact that his era had a majority of the best monsters and introduced new legendary ones , Auton's,Sea Devils, Silurians, Ogrons, Draconians, Sontarans....... the Master, Single greatest Villain for the Doctor ever, played here believable and scary and sinister and very smooth by Roger Delgado
Only regret he never faced the Cybermen i feel this is a really missed opportunity, what he, his Dr could of done with a good U.N.I.T story against the silver giants from Mondas
The small, but important, fact that he regularly changed his outfit for a new look , he had some of the best title sequences and season 11 titles is still one of my favorites
,Liz Shaw the boffin scientist in his first season, Jo Grant is easily one of the best companions, and introducing the legend that has become Sarah Jane Smith in his final year on the program
His era is worth watching and not dismissing to quickly, theres something to be enjoyed here.
Jon Pertwee returned to the role of the Third Doctor several times in the eighties and nineties. In 1983, he appeared in the twentieth anniversary television special The Five Doctors, and in 1989 again played the Doctor, this time on stage in Doctor Who - The Ultimate Adventure. In 1993 he appeared on screen once more as the Third Doctor in the two part charity skit Dimensions in Time, and also played the Doctor on radio for the five-part audio Doctor Who story The Paradise of Death. The success of that production led to a sequel, the six part The Ghosts of N-Space, made in November 1994 but not transmitted until early 1996. Jon made appearances at numerous Doctor Who conventions, invariably appearing in a version of the Third Doctor's costume which he'd had made especially for such occasions.
Tuesday, 17 August 2010
The Seventh Doctor
Finally finished "the Psychic Circus" so thought id comment as felt compelled to,
They say that you always have a loyalty to the Doctor that you grew up with, and in my case, by the time I was seriously getting into Doctor Who at age 12 ,13 , it was Sylvester McCoy.
I had the VHS Tapes early fledgling titles( Remember these are the days of VHS costing as much as £20) and "Death to the Daleks "The Pyramids of Mars" "the Five Doctors" and "Revenge of the Cybermen" Will forever be all time classics for me
And i had the Target novelizations of previous episodes (Boy was i disappointed when i finally got to see invasion of the Dinosaurs) the fun books like knitting album ,Dr who cook book and the Matt Irvine special effects book and Dr Who Technical manual (as i had yet to see this sonic screwdriver i was unaware of its importance to the Dr)
And i had the BIG reference books from messers Howe ,Stammers and Peter Haining ,
Ah the days before mighty Wikipedia and a search engine was a library
Granted, I’d been watching the show for a good few years by this point, I caught the State of Decay, the first story I ever watched. But while I enjoyed the Davison era and tolerated Colin Baker, (I wasn't a avid fan or dedicated watcher nor am i now it is a show i do enjoy watching periodically and do follow it is a show with great stories and entertainment and unique in the world of media )
The eighties were dominated by producer John Nathan-Turner, who entered his role in 1980, heading season 19 until the shows cancellation in 1989 and season 26
I really found myself warming to the Sylvester McCoy (real name Patrick Kent Smith) reign in the Tardis,heck i even like his logo, tho not the opening titles or music
The man himself is the first factor. McCoy wasn’t an obvious choice to play the Time Lord,
I loved that little bit of eccentricity,(and in real life is a really nice quiet man friendly and entertaining )
I felt that he had an identity in the role. and physically was a lot like the 2nd Dr in he was a small fun physical actor that had done a variety of shows and performances and physical theater,
His appearance once again dictated by John Nathan Turner ,(who you would of thought would of learned his lesson after the sixth Drs costume) this is a man who is dictating and involved in design and look of costumes, yeah, same man who thinks the hight of fashion is Hawaiian shirts and bright colored trousers and shoes ,
it was ok, he kept his panama hat that he used at the audition and as well as a prop coming from his back ground in physical theater ,i liked ,the rest was strait from the 2nd Drs wardrobe baggy checked trousers crumpled shirt baggy oversized jacket with huge pockets ,
I liked McCoys touches of scarf in the Jacket lapel ,along with a unique iconic question mark Umbrella and the Doctors pocket watch and TARDIS key in the Jackets top pocket ,but what was that jumper about?????? ,covered in question marks he looked like the riddler ,talk about ruining the character ,a item soon ditched in the books and audio novels and comics
He’s not the best Doctor Who ever, but he proved to be a good choice, and his passion for the show since is no surprise.
He also changed the tone of his performance a surprising degree over his run. and improved immensely,he may of struggled with the angry scenes and shouting but thats one small fault
The early McCoy episodes, where he was playing the role a lot lighter, were certainly his weakest, as his portrayal of the Time Lord got much darker towards the end of his run.he improved
(A theme maintained in the New Adventure books i enjoyed and currently in the Big Finish audio plays )
Furthermore, once he managed to rid himself of Bonnie Langford (surely the worst assistant for the good Doctor of all time) and got Sophie Aldred in as his companion, things improved considerably. Some of McCoy’s earlier stories were the wrong side of ropey (Time and the Rani, Paradise Towers,anyone?), but when he teamed up with Ace it gave the writers an interesting, almost parental dynamic between the Doctor and his assistant that harked back to genuine old-time Who. It would have been interesting to see how the duo of McCoy and Aldred would have developed had the show kept going, although John Nathan Turner was believed to be looking to phase Ace out in the following series that never came.
A successful partnership that was very popular and endured in the spin off media and has proven extremely successful ,when free of budgets and time restraints it gos to show what could of been
Although i hate the way she constantly calls him 'professor' that grated then and now he is the Doctor
nor do i agree completely with the Cartmell plan of the good Doctor as a god and one of the first ever Timelords, alongside Rassilon and Omega
And before we lay all this trouble and the show's woes on the shoulders of the producer Johna Nathan Turner,Who did yes stay to long ,but could not leave due to the BBC despite wanting to and would of given new lease of life to the program ,he did yes make it his own personal show and was involved way to much in to many parts of it and it did yes become his personal view and fantasy and he made some terrible errors (like his successor Russel Davis and Stephen Moffet but unlike them he didnt influence the storys or writing or actually write for the show ) and yes it did become as camp a show as the 60's Batman TV series
I will say in its defense, his era took the show on some phenomenal highs and into the 1980's. and definately glossed it up
Graham Williams left as producer at the end of the Horns of Nimon ,Shada and it was up to John Nathan-Turner to vastly improve the series,
Season 17 was a very poor season, dominated by Tom Bakers performance and one man show , poor production and overly comic stories including cartoon noises and scripts from then script editor Douglas Adams
Graham Williams had left in his wake some very appalling stories,and direction ,production standards were exceedingly poor,
The show did gain some high production ,and some unique stories under John Nathan Turner's (JNT) tenure at first, with some definitely adult in tone,with high viewing figures and generally enjoyed and liked family show in the beginning of his tenure it improved as he made his changes and settled into the program ,
a weekday slot loosing Bidmead and his confusing inexplainable plots to going through several Script Editors eventually to Eric Saward ,
The fifth Dr Mara stories dealing in strong psychological levels and demonic possession, control and domination very adult in tone to fun adventures like the Arc of Infinity , Awakening and the visitation and organizing and running the Marathon 20 yr anniversary and season
He promoted the show endlessly and kept it in the media ,he got it firmly established abroad and oversaw the first videos and mass market of the show ,
He also worked under some appalling conditions and dictum's by the BBC and had no money or time or any discernible talent around him and his ambitions often exceeded the budget and means at his disposal ,
He was a variety style producer who although had worked for some time on Dr Who was at times out of his depth in the world of Science Fiction ,and he had to take his work and adapt it to Sci Fi ,which sometimes wasn't altogether successful, sometimes it was
But that Changed when he got new writers and script editors in Cartmell /Aranovitch they helped bring new life into the show and turn it round in its last season it was more like the show of old
And the improvements in technology of effects ,camera filming etc helped along with a good solid Dr Companion team in Sylv and Sophie
He new Doctor Who having worked for the program on and off since troughtons time and regular as Production Assistant as of Talons of Weng Chiang 1977 but alas this just was not the 70s anymore it was the eighties and the demands of the program were not met by BBC,he did much to modernize the program but he ran out of ideas and rest became regular light entertainment needing fresh ideas new production from 85 onwards
But he wasn't helped by lack of writers lack of money lack of some key talent and resources to develop make the program and being at logger heads with his script editor wasn't helping
His ego new no bounds and as a result lots of directors refused to work on the program the talent pool of old writers or anyone from shows past he resented this didnt lend itself to smooth running
Then there were some of the stories. Detractors of the McCoy era (and I am not blind to its problems) will quickly point to the likes of Dragonfire and Ghost Light as bad episodes that did nothing but hammer a few more nails into the show’s coffin .
The tepid Cybermen outing Silver Nemesis didn't help either, especially as it was designed to mark the programe’s 25th anniversary.in fact that year was a big turn around for writing and performance and improvement of the show but was let down by some stories
But what about Remembrance Of The Daleks?, that’s as a good a Dalek story as we’d seen since Genesis Of The Daleks. The same writer, Ben Aaronovitch, also gave us the King Arthur-inspired Battlefield, which too was quite a piece of work, even if the effects left a lot to be desired plastic Knights Armour and wooly jumpers for chain mail and a sadly unrealized Monster in the Greater Deamon (Sue Moore another upcoming talent that made her mark firmly in the late 80s Doctor who and was defiantly brilliant at what she did from Heamovors to Greater Deamon to the ancient one etc can only think how if she had gone on or been in Hollywood she would of ended up) ,Destroyer, that was squandered and was generally
Hampered by lack of budget,EG Jean Marsh was wonderful as Morgane the witch but really ,stand in middle of blacked out studio in front of a black curtain ,get the dry ice machine and give her a lamp to hold as a magic ball ,that's it!.
it was like a cheap pop 80s video,this is BBC late 80s for you and what Doctor Who the program was battling against,it looked better quality in the 70s but this aside Battlefield is a great story and some great performances and really does much to have one eye on the future but a hearty nod to the past
The Greatest show in the Galaxy is a realy good story ive just enjoyed Nice sets simple yet effective Tardis console room looked good (why did they feel the need to skip it i don't know) the Doctor and Ace on good form ,creepy Alien robot Clowns and maniacal bus conductor and strange Gods creatures ,and the setting in the "Desert of Dorset" was more convincing than the actual recent trip to film in the deserts of Dubai.
And then there’s The Curse Of Fenric, the finest episode of the McCoy era, and a good candidate for one of the top five stories in the show of all time.
This put the Doctor to the side of the action for the most part, instead developing the character of Ace quite dramatically,(NOT in a Soap Opera way or about her in a way that is outside of Doctor Who but a part of it .)
in a strangely moving and brilliantly constructed story. It stands up particularly well, not least because the DVD release has edited the story into one full story with subtle new effects it has great monsters chilling atmosphere and a good story well directed and shot
Even throughout the low points of his era,and remember BBC had not a clue putting it schedule against a popular soap and not advertising or promoting it and giving it no resources or funds
McCoy had a gusto, energy and quirkiness that served the show well, often at times when a story around him was sinking without trace.
And yet when he did get good material to work with, he made the most of it, and helped deliver some stories that simply shouldn’t be overlooked in the world of classic Who.
Given the cheapness and lack of care from the BBC at this time it is amazing what in some stories was achieved , and it really deserves some reassessment.
Try to ignore the lack of money and cheapness and theres some good story's
McCoy's brief appearance in the TV Movie shows what could of been with money time and effort on behalf of the production staff, new costume and all
They say that you always have a loyalty to the Doctor that you grew up with, and in my case, by the time I was seriously getting into Doctor Who at age 12 ,13 , it was Sylvester McCoy.
I had the VHS Tapes early fledgling titles( Remember these are the days of VHS costing as much as £20) and "Death to the Daleks "The Pyramids of Mars" "the Five Doctors" and "Revenge of the Cybermen" Will forever be all time classics for me
And i had the Target novelizations of previous episodes (Boy was i disappointed when i finally got to see invasion of the Dinosaurs) the fun books like knitting album ,Dr who cook book and the Matt Irvine special effects book and Dr Who Technical manual (as i had yet to see this sonic screwdriver i was unaware of its importance to the Dr)
And i had the BIG reference books from messers Howe ,Stammers and Peter Haining ,
Ah the days before mighty Wikipedia and a search engine was a library
Granted, I’d been watching the show for a good few years by this point, I caught the State of Decay, the first story I ever watched. But while I enjoyed the Davison era and tolerated Colin Baker, (I wasn't a avid fan or dedicated watcher nor am i now it is a show i do enjoy watching periodically and do follow it is a show with great stories and entertainment and unique in the world of media )
The eighties were dominated by producer John Nathan-Turner, who entered his role in 1980, heading season 19 until the shows cancellation in 1989 and season 26
I really found myself warming to the Sylvester McCoy (real name Patrick Kent Smith) reign in the Tardis,heck i even like his logo, tho not the opening titles or music
The man himself is the first factor. McCoy wasn’t an obvious choice to play the Time Lord,
I loved that little bit of eccentricity,(and in real life is a really nice quiet man friendly and entertaining )
I felt that he had an identity in the role. and physically was a lot like the 2nd Dr in he was a small fun physical actor that had done a variety of shows and performances and physical theater,
His appearance once again dictated by John Nathan Turner ,(who you would of thought would of learned his lesson after the sixth Drs costume) this is a man who is dictating and involved in design and look of costumes, yeah, same man who thinks the hight of fashion is Hawaiian shirts and bright colored trousers and shoes ,
it was ok, he kept his panama hat that he used at the audition and as well as a prop coming from his back ground in physical theater ,i liked ,the rest was strait from the 2nd Drs wardrobe baggy checked trousers crumpled shirt baggy oversized jacket with huge pockets ,
I liked McCoys touches of scarf in the Jacket lapel ,along with a unique iconic question mark Umbrella and the Doctors pocket watch and TARDIS key in the Jackets top pocket ,but what was that jumper about?????? ,covered in question marks he looked like the riddler ,talk about ruining the character ,a item soon ditched in the books and audio novels and comics
He’s not the best Doctor Who ever, but he proved to be a good choice, and his passion for the show since is no surprise.
He also changed the tone of his performance a surprising degree over his run. and improved immensely,he may of struggled with the angry scenes and shouting but thats one small fault
The early McCoy episodes, where he was playing the role a lot lighter, were certainly his weakest, as his portrayal of the Time Lord got much darker towards the end of his run.he improved
(A theme maintained in the New Adventure books i enjoyed and currently in the Big Finish audio plays )
Furthermore, once he managed to rid himself of Bonnie Langford (surely the worst assistant for the good Doctor of all time) and got Sophie Aldred in as his companion, things improved considerably. Some of McCoy’s earlier stories were the wrong side of ropey (Time and the Rani, Paradise Towers,anyone?), but when he teamed up with Ace it gave the writers an interesting, almost parental dynamic between the Doctor and his assistant that harked back to genuine old-time Who. It would have been interesting to see how the duo of McCoy and Aldred would have developed had the show kept going, although John Nathan Turner was believed to be looking to phase Ace out in the following series that never came.
A successful partnership that was very popular and endured in the spin off media and has proven extremely successful ,when free of budgets and time restraints it gos to show what could of been
Although i hate the way she constantly calls him 'professor' that grated then and now he is the Doctor
nor do i agree completely with the Cartmell plan of the good Doctor as a god and one of the first ever Timelords, alongside Rassilon and Omega
And before we lay all this trouble and the show's woes on the shoulders of the producer Johna Nathan Turner,Who did yes stay to long ,but could not leave due to the BBC despite wanting to and would of given new lease of life to the program ,he did yes make it his own personal show and was involved way to much in to many parts of it and it did yes become his personal view and fantasy and he made some terrible errors (like his successor Russel Davis and Stephen Moffet but unlike them he didnt influence the storys or writing or actually write for the show ) and yes it did become as camp a show as the 60's Batman TV series
I will say in its defense, his era took the show on some phenomenal highs and into the 1980's. and definately glossed it up
Graham Williams left as producer at the end of the Horns of Nimon ,Shada and it was up to John Nathan-Turner to vastly improve the series,
Season 17 was a very poor season, dominated by Tom Bakers performance and one man show , poor production and overly comic stories including cartoon noises and scripts from then script editor Douglas Adams
Graham Williams had left in his wake some very appalling stories,and direction ,production standards were exceedingly poor,
The show did gain some high production ,and some unique stories under John Nathan Turner's (JNT) tenure at first, with some definitely adult in tone,with high viewing figures and generally enjoyed and liked family show in the beginning of his tenure it improved as he made his changes and settled into the program ,
a weekday slot loosing Bidmead and his confusing inexplainable plots to going through several Script Editors eventually to Eric Saward ,
The fifth Dr Mara stories dealing in strong psychological levels and demonic possession, control and domination very adult in tone to fun adventures like the Arc of Infinity , Awakening and the visitation and organizing and running the Marathon 20 yr anniversary and season
He promoted the show endlessly and kept it in the media ,he got it firmly established abroad and oversaw the first videos and mass market of the show ,
He also worked under some appalling conditions and dictum's by the BBC and had no money or time or any discernible talent around him and his ambitions often exceeded the budget and means at his disposal ,
He was a variety style producer who although had worked for some time on Dr Who was at times out of his depth in the world of Science Fiction ,and he had to take his work and adapt it to Sci Fi ,which sometimes wasn't altogether successful, sometimes it was
But that Changed when he got new writers and script editors in Cartmell /Aranovitch they helped bring new life into the show and turn it round in its last season it was more like the show of old
And the improvements in technology of effects ,camera filming etc helped along with a good solid Dr Companion team in Sylv and Sophie
He new Doctor Who having worked for the program on and off since troughtons time and regular as Production Assistant as of Talons of Weng Chiang 1977 but alas this just was not the 70s anymore it was the eighties and the demands of the program were not met by BBC,he did much to modernize the program but he ran out of ideas and rest became regular light entertainment needing fresh ideas new production from 85 onwards
But he wasn't helped by lack of writers lack of money lack of some key talent and resources to develop make the program and being at logger heads with his script editor wasn't helping
His ego new no bounds and as a result lots of directors refused to work on the program the talent pool of old writers or anyone from shows past he resented this didnt lend itself to smooth running
Then there were some of the stories. Detractors of the McCoy era (and I am not blind to its problems) will quickly point to the likes of Dragonfire and Ghost Light as bad episodes that did nothing but hammer a few more nails into the show’s coffin .
The tepid Cybermen outing Silver Nemesis didn't help either, especially as it was designed to mark the programe’s 25th anniversary.in fact that year was a big turn around for writing and performance and improvement of the show but was let down by some stories
But what about Remembrance Of The Daleks?, that’s as a good a Dalek story as we’d seen since Genesis Of The Daleks. The same writer, Ben Aaronovitch, also gave us the King Arthur-inspired Battlefield, which too was quite a piece of work, even if the effects left a lot to be desired plastic Knights Armour and wooly jumpers for chain mail and a sadly unrealized Monster in the Greater Deamon (Sue Moore another upcoming talent that made her mark firmly in the late 80s Doctor who and was defiantly brilliant at what she did from Heamovors to Greater Deamon to the ancient one etc can only think how if she had gone on or been in Hollywood she would of ended up) ,Destroyer, that was squandered and was generally
Hampered by lack of budget,EG Jean Marsh was wonderful as Morgane the witch but really ,stand in middle of blacked out studio in front of a black curtain ,get the dry ice machine and give her a lamp to hold as a magic ball ,that's it!.
it was like a cheap pop 80s video,this is BBC late 80s for you and what Doctor Who the program was battling against,it looked better quality in the 70s but this aside Battlefield is a great story and some great performances and really does much to have one eye on the future but a hearty nod to the past
The Greatest show in the Galaxy is a realy good story ive just enjoyed Nice sets simple yet effective Tardis console room looked good (why did they feel the need to skip it i don't know) the Doctor and Ace on good form ,creepy Alien robot Clowns and maniacal bus conductor and strange Gods creatures ,and the setting in the "Desert of Dorset" was more convincing than the actual recent trip to film in the deserts of Dubai.
And then there’s The Curse Of Fenric, the finest episode of the McCoy era, and a good candidate for one of the top five stories in the show of all time.
This put the Doctor to the side of the action for the most part, instead developing the character of Ace quite dramatically,(NOT in a Soap Opera way or about her in a way that is outside of Doctor Who but a part of it .)
in a strangely moving and brilliantly constructed story. It stands up particularly well, not least because the DVD release has edited the story into one full story with subtle new effects it has great monsters chilling atmosphere and a good story well directed and shot
Even throughout the low points of his era,and remember BBC had not a clue putting it schedule against a popular soap and not advertising or promoting it and giving it no resources or funds
McCoy had a gusto, energy and quirkiness that served the show well, often at times when a story around him was sinking without trace.
And yet when he did get good material to work with, he made the most of it, and helped deliver some stories that simply shouldn’t be overlooked in the world of classic Who.
Given the cheapness and lack of care from the BBC at this time it is amazing what in some stories was achieved , and it really deserves some reassessment.
Try to ignore the lack of money and cheapness and theres some good story's
McCoy's brief appearance in the TV Movie shows what could of been with money time and effort on behalf of the production staff, new costume and all
Sunday, 15 August 2010
Doctor Who ,"The claws of Axos"
i will start by saying
AROOGAH AROOGAH geek alert
in the history of Dr Who and Character Options,
we saw the 'Delgado' Master a month ago in a leaked image from China
but this was announced Friday on store shelf Saturday thats quick
You may wonder why the Krynoid is now flesh colored and called an Axon.
In fact it was an Axon first. The humanoid Krynoid costume was a modified Axon costume. I suspect we'll get a Kyrnoid eventually, since that leaked test prototype was in Krynoid colors.
question of who he'll be packed with? We shall see.maybe the 4th Dr from the 11 Doctors box set ?
You may wonder why the Krynoid is now flesh colored and called an Axon.
In fact it was an Axon first. The humanoid Krynoid costume was a modified Axon costume. I suspect we'll get a Kyrnoid eventually, since that leaked test prototype was in Krynoid colors.
question of who he'll be packed with? We shall see.maybe the 4th Dr from the 11 Doctors box set ?
This is the reason it is a box set and not a clamshell it is huge and heavy to
standing a good 6 inches tall
and this is from the early days where a lot of care and attention went into the product ,the detail is astounding the paint is brilliant
alas you can tell due to the features on the head that it is the KRYNOID not a AXON, the axons tended to have marshmallow heads ,no features
but i have seen it with simply the head turned round looks great
this is a stunning piece and big if your a 3rd Dr fan hes your doctor or you just like this story this is going to take some room up and stand very proud on your shelf
Articulated to boot this at this detail and cost is not a toy but a collectors item
It has been a big year for Doctor Who and this is great work
The packaging is nice, with a internal picture of the episode showing ship and Axon's and box back has a brief synopsis and couple of pictures, and not much said on the Master ,if anything, and using the picture from the Sea Devils ,which is a odd choice and one of the worst pictures they could use it seems to be really selling the Axon
Now the reason i bought this
well was for this one reason i am a HUGE Master fan i love the Moriarty to Holmes it was a genius idea ,Master of evil Master of the Dark arts the evil to the Doctors good and personality individual in his own right , a great character brilliant portrayed by the late Roger Delgado
No Photograph can do this Justice
Stunning is the word ,
Breath taking another, I made a 8" custom Delgado some years ago and did exactly the same look
the raised eyebrow the sneer of contempt the look of disdain
They have even given him a darker skin tone ,Brilliant, his high forehead and graying hair (subtly shown)
The Nero suit is perfect the braiding the leather gloves the flash of cuff (no cuff links sadly)
and TCE to boot not from this story but his signature weapon
in a clamshell with the Axon
Now i grew up with Ainlys camp interpretation ,which i still like to some degree but thanks to UK gold ,i got to see this man in action and my blood ran cold
He was evil ,he was nasty, he was mean and he loved it ,he enjoyed what he did
he was a rouge and so likable, the cockney accent the attitude the look and the suave style sold me so totally
He IS the Master no makeup required he had the look you can see why he got a lot of villain parts
If i do the list here to prove a point of great stories to sit of a evening and watch and enjoy
The Mind of Evil, in the Prison so clever so manipulative
The Time Monster,Bit off more than he can chew in another nefarious scheme his two piece with Pertwee is stuff of legend
Iconic the Dameons
Frontier in Space one up on the Doctor in every twist and turn, and even playing the Daleks as surely as a puppet master pulls strings
The Sea Devils, whats not to like?, it is all here iconic monster Master Dr action the lot
Terror of the Autons his debut story sheer brilliance what a story from i am the master and you will obey me to company exec from hell his confrontation with the Dr TCE in hand and the look as he threw the scientist off the tower terrifying
It sets up who he is as a character and often thought of that line in the song " WHEN A FELON'S NOT ENGAGED IN HIS EMPLOYMENT OR MATURING HIS FELONIOUS LITTLE PLANS"
Thats him thats the Master maybe he is not around at the moment but you can bet he is not sitting idol
and Claws of Axos is yet another example of plans gone wrong he arrives on earth a prisoner of the Axons
standing a good 6 inches tall
and this is from the early days where a lot of care and attention went into the product ,the detail is astounding the paint is brilliant
alas you can tell due to the features on the head that it is the KRYNOID not a AXON, the axons tended to have marshmallow heads ,no features
but i have seen it with simply the head turned round looks great
this is a stunning piece and big if your a 3rd Dr fan hes your doctor or you just like this story this is going to take some room up and stand very proud on your shelf
Articulated to boot this at this detail and cost is not a toy but a collectors item
It has been a big year for Doctor Who and this is great work
The packaging is nice, with a internal picture of the episode showing ship and Axon's and box back has a brief synopsis and couple of pictures, and not much said on the Master ,if anything, and using the picture from the Sea Devils ,which is a odd choice and one of the worst pictures they could use it seems to be really selling the Axon
Now the reason i bought this
well was for this one reason i am a HUGE Master fan i love the Moriarty to Holmes it was a genius idea ,Master of evil Master of the Dark arts the evil to the Doctors good and personality individual in his own right , a great character brilliant portrayed by the late Roger Delgado
No Photograph can do this Justice
Stunning is the word ,
Breath taking another, I made a 8" custom Delgado some years ago and did exactly the same look
the raised eyebrow the sneer of contempt the look of disdain
They have even given him a darker skin tone ,Brilliant, his high forehead and graying hair (subtly shown)
The Nero suit is perfect the braiding the leather gloves the flash of cuff (no cuff links sadly)
and TCE to boot not from this story but his signature weapon
in a clamshell with the Axon
Now i grew up with Ainlys camp interpretation ,which i still like to some degree but thanks to UK gold ,i got to see this man in action and my blood ran cold
He was evil ,he was nasty, he was mean and he loved it ,he enjoyed what he did
he was a rouge and so likable, the cockney accent the attitude the look and the suave style sold me so totally
He IS the Master no makeup required he had the look you can see why he got a lot of villain parts
If i do the list here to prove a point of great stories to sit of a evening and watch and enjoy
The Mind of Evil, in the Prison so clever so manipulative
The Time Monster,Bit off more than he can chew in another nefarious scheme his two piece with Pertwee is stuff of legend
Iconic the Dameons
Frontier in Space one up on the Doctor in every twist and turn, and even playing the Daleks as surely as a puppet master pulls strings
The Sea Devils, whats not to like?, it is all here iconic monster Master Dr action the lot
Terror of the Autons his debut story sheer brilliance what a story from i am the master and you will obey me to company exec from hell his confrontation with the Dr TCE in hand and the look as he threw the scientist off the tower terrifying
It sets up who he is as a character and often thought of that line in the song " WHEN A FELON'S NOT ENGAGED IN HIS EMPLOYMENT OR MATURING HIS FELONIOUS LITTLE PLANS"
Thats him thats the Master maybe he is not around at the moment but you can bet he is not sitting idol
and Claws of Axos is yet another example of plans gone wrong he arrives on earth a prisoner of the Axons
the doctor and the master |
on shelf with his other incarnations |
Thursday, 12 August 2010
Who do you think you are ?
perWell hello there,
Busy ol time of late ,so what is new?
well being a typical boring hum drum day (widow Twanky eat your heart out ) but new stuff has happened which is of interest to me and makes sense in my world
Well we are full steam ahead for the future and dare i say it future proof ,
I am a Graphic Designer (sounds like the pirate king tune ) Career (Insert laughter here) of choice.
I had a long break out, want back in, really not satisfied doing much else to be fare so im way, way out of touch, spot in the distance out of sight ,so i enrolled at collage borrow some funds here save there voila im in
Ever done a job and thought im bored to tears and what am i doing here thats most jobs to me
Oh but better much better i milked it i got 2 for one
i envisaged one course as that is what i saw within remotely my price range ,but as i fretted about needing two ,and where do i find that sort of money ?,see most courses to get back up to speed were looking at 700 ,1000 pounds plus, well unless i win lottery i am out
I kept chipping away and now i have the course first i thought just photoshop now i have both photoshop and adobe illustrator (Adobe programs are industry standard art pc packages used on macs)
So im in local collage....ish, and two night courses in around two month duration so head down milk it and home study in between, make this really work !, this is truly last chance saloon here and i got big plans for my future, that don't involve the UK
Im going great guns health wise,swimming is fun, getting tons from the counselor,still mad as box of frogs don't worry ,and still got creative juices flowing, ,just in a slightly better place given time i will get there if nothing im a fighter ,who said being stubborn is a bad thing ?
Finding more about me, you cant see wood for the trees, and then your eyes are opened and new thoughts take place, re wiring of the brain here re thinking and you know at first a shock and does leave you with tons to think about ,and some things i was right about
a wall is useful and attitude is a necessity,keep yourself to yourself do what you gota do, and sod em all
I have truly gotten far away from me as a person, and far away from who i am
i am in need of getting back to the energy the raw experiments the try and if i like go with i feel stagnated and rusty ,so heres to future
Now if i can only stop being permanently knackered
Busy ol time of late ,so what is new?
well being a typical boring hum drum day (widow Twanky eat your heart out ) but new stuff has happened which is of interest to me and makes sense in my world
Well we are full steam ahead for the future and dare i say it future proof ,
I am a Graphic Designer (sounds like the pirate king tune ) Career (Insert laughter here) of choice.
I had a long break out, want back in, really not satisfied doing much else to be fare so im way, way out of touch, spot in the distance out of sight ,so i enrolled at collage borrow some funds here save there voila im in
Ever done a job and thought im bored to tears and what am i doing here thats most jobs to me
Oh but better much better i milked it i got 2 for one
i envisaged one course as that is what i saw within remotely my price range ,but as i fretted about needing two ,and where do i find that sort of money ?,see most courses to get back up to speed were looking at 700 ,1000 pounds plus, well unless i win lottery i am out
I kept chipping away and now i have the course first i thought just photoshop now i have both photoshop and adobe illustrator (Adobe programs are industry standard art pc packages used on macs)
So im in local collage....ish, and two night courses in around two month duration so head down milk it and home study in between, make this really work !, this is truly last chance saloon here and i got big plans for my future, that don't involve the UK
Im going great guns health wise,swimming is fun, getting tons from the counselor,still mad as box of frogs don't worry ,and still got creative juices flowing, ,just in a slightly better place given time i will get there if nothing im a fighter ,who said being stubborn is a bad thing ?
Finding more about me, you cant see wood for the trees, and then your eyes are opened and new thoughts take place, re wiring of the brain here re thinking and you know at first a shock and does leave you with tons to think about ,and some things i was right about
a wall is useful and attitude is a necessity,keep yourself to yourself do what you gota do, and sod em all
I have truly gotten far away from me as a person, and far away from who i am
i am in need of getting back to the energy the raw experiments the try and if i like go with i feel stagnated and rusty ,so heres to future
Now if i can only stop being permanently knackered
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