Classic Doctor Who fans - I need your help!
This coming weekend I'm off to a Doctor Who themed cottage for the next week with a group of friends. One of the things this cottage features is an extensive collection of Doctor Who DVD's, including what looks like ALL dvd released Classic DW episodes
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For One, the selection's gonna be light because more than half of the original episodes are missing. I'd recommend "Unearthly Child" just because you need to see where this whole thing started. If you have time for others, I can definitely recommend "The Daleks" which is the second episode, and where one of the best villains in sci-fi history came in. They were a LOT safer back then. Also, "The Aztecs", because it has a lot of cool time travel points and people being awesome. Anything they've got's liable to be great, except maybe "The French Revolution", and avoid "The Gunfighters" at all costs. Unless you want to be four-walled with a bad song.
For Two, there's even more missing. Apparently after Troughton's tenure, the Doctor stopped in and pointed out DVD sales, but until then, the BBC routinely recycled this footage. "The Tomb of the Cybermen" is all there, as is "The Krotons", but I'm not sure the second one's out on DVD. They'll probably have "War Games", which has a lot to recommend it, Jamie, and the first appearance of the funny-hat-wearing set.
For Three, the very best episode is "Terror of the Autons". It introduces the Autons, which you've seen reprised in New Who. It also introduces a certain character who may yet reappear even now. Besides, I just gotta say, blow-up chairs and plastic daffodils. If you have time for extras, "Inferno" is fantastic, and "The Three Doctors" is one of those must-sees that every fan should at least have a look at. Again, only if you have time, but you should at least peek at "Planet of Spiders", too.
Four's tenure was the longest of any Doctor, except, technically, Eight, and that only technically, because all we have of Eight is the '96 Movie. Anyway, it makes picking episodes for him difficult, because there are so many, for so many reasons. Let's see. "Genesis of the Daleks" because it's referred to in "Stolen Earth", and because it might just be where that War started. "Terror of the Zygons" because, omg, Nicolas Courtney in a kilt. "The Brain of Morbius" for so many reasons, including Sarah Jane being fantastic. "The Deadly Assassin" because it is the first and only - until "Mars" - companionless episode, also brilliant, and contains more funny hats. "The Invasion of Time" for them again, as well as about six thousand other very very cool things, including jelly babies as death threats. After this, you enter "Key to Time series" territory. You'll never have time to watch them all, and some of them are tragic, anyway (special effects budget? No, we'll just use bubble wrap!). Maybe "The Armageddon Factor", but you might be a bit lost. They'll have the ESpace trilogy, and they might have "Shada", which is, sadly, only a reconstruction of an unfinished episode. If you have time, "Warriors Gate", because ROMANA!!! If I had to pick one and only one, though... "Invasion of Time", I think.
...Wow, this got too long...
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Five was my Doctor for years. So I'd be more likely to say "Don't watch these three" and recommend the rest. Nevertheless, the absolute must-watch, cannot avoid, everything in a nut-shell episode? "The Five Doctors". It's a major mile-stone episode, and just wow. If you want to try something else, I can't fault "Enlightenment" or "Frontios", either.
Six is a tough one, because it's pretty plain there was something wrong off camera throughout, despite how very hard Colin Baker worked, and he really did try. Some of the scripts can make you cry, and his costume can blind you. All the same, he too had fantastic episodes. I'd definitely recommend "The Mark of the Rani" just for the textbook antithesis of OT3, as well as some truly brilliant dialogue. Also, there's "The Two Doctors" which is so good I don't know what else to say. You won't have time for the Trial, anymore than you will for all of Wargames, so I'd say go with "The Mark of the Rani".
As for Seven... You need Ace. Mel is cute, but she screams more than anything. All the same, my favorite Seven episode has Mel in it - It's called "Delta & the Bannermen". For someone wanting to know Seven in all his scope and brilliance, though... "The Silver Nemesis" is definitely the episode you want. It has Cybermen, Ace, explosives, Nazis, a talking comet, and a witch. What's not to love? Also, "Survival" if you have time, because there the original greatness ended.
If they have the 96 movie, watch it, even though you get more plot-holes in the first 10 minutes than you do in any other episode except, maybe, "Journey's End".
Now, all this being said, I have one more recommendation. Drink heavily. If you like to drink and have fun drinking, try a Classic Who drinking game because Classic Who isn't quite like New Who in certain important regards. For one thing, they did it on a shoestring budget, for another, it ran for thirty years with fifteen different writers. Continuity sort of wasn't. I have a link on my LJ somewhere, if you want it, let me know.
And now that I've buried you in my Who!Geek essays, I'm going to go play with my Daleks, my fourty foot scarf, and my sonic screwdriver. I really hope you guys have a fantastic, brilliant, and friend-filled time of it!
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Please send me the link to the drinking game - that might be fun! Thanks for the warning too, although I've seen enough clips from Classic Who to know the special effects are laughable in many places, but I'm prepared for this.
And now that I've buried you in my Who!Geek essays, I'm going to go play with my Daleks, my fourty foot scarf, and my sonic screwdriver. I really hope you guys have a fantastic, brilliant, and friend-filled time of it!
HAHAHA! Okay this comment convinced me that you need to see pictures of where we're going: http://www.doctorjohnsmith.co.uk/The%20Cottage.html
How incredible is that? In the "welcome packet" it has the instructions "Don't climb inside the Dalek" (how badly do we all wanna try that now?) and "Extra chairs are in the TARDIS". Seriously, this week will be one big Fangasm! And we leave TOMORROW Wheeeeeeeeeeee!
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http://www.ringthis.com/tv_drinking_games/drwho.htm
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