of "renewal"
It really is a pity that all episodes from The Power of the Daleks are lost. It stands as the first episode Patrick Troughton was ever credited as "Dr. Who (sic)," and even from just the audio, it sounds like a blast. To be honest, I'm constantly surprised at the quality of the writing and the brilliance of the ideas from really old shows like Doctor Who (and Star Trek: TOS etc.). Somehow I have this idea that if the show is old, the plots will be cliche'd and boring, but the writers knew what they were doing and pulled out the big guns in the first Two episode: the Daleks.
Beyond the logistics of the plot, Troughton does a great job playing the Doctor. It's funny hearing an echo of Ten here; Two constantly refers to himself as "the Doctor" in third person. The implication is that Two isn't fully comfortable with being himself; he knows that he's the Doctor, but he feels as though he's a different person (which he is). This is only highlighted by Ben and Polly's constant squabbles of "is he the Doctor? or isn't he?" etc.
A note on the two personalities of the Doctor. Something I really enjoyed about Hartnell's portrayal of One is really how young One really seems. He may look like an old man, and sometimes he may sound like an old man, but when you put all his actions into perspective, he really has the attitude of someone much younger, much more enthusiastic and optimistic. This is the Time Lord that sabotaged his own ship so that he could get a closer look at the Daleks. This is the Time Lord who was rash enough to kidnap Barbara and Ian; who tumbled headfirst into new situations without fear; who dressed in interesting fashions; who was irrepressibly curious about absolutely everything. Many of these traits he retains in later regenerations, but there is something incredibly naive (in comparison to his later selves, which also gained a sort of tragedy and bitterness among their auras) and innocent about his travels. The Doctor travels now to meet new people; the Doctor travels then to forget old ones.
Two seems more laidback. Still infinitely clever, but (in a way that is very unlike Ten and Eleven) is more likely to hide it. He's not keen to display his cleverness. I'm not sure about his motives at the moment, however. He's definitely more quirky. Recorders, tongue-twisters, etc. More fun-loving. Somehow, the actors are able to 'age' the Doctor without actually aging him. It's absolutely fascinating!
(Of course, that could just be my own bias talking. I could just want to see the Doctor's personality aging, and therefore I do, etc. Oh well.)
Anyway. My final verdict is that my interest in Two is very piqued. It had seemed to me that Two was the least interesting Doctor, but that may simply be due to the lack of existing episodes. Two is quietly quirky; somehow, he's also more righteous, more (however ironically) mature, and more straightforward while being more roundabout. I can see Troughton's influence on Matt Smith (both have this aura of the older, more mature adult without being absolutely pretentious). I do believe I can spend some time getting to know Two, considering the lack of existing episodes.
Beyond the logistics of the plot, Troughton does a great job playing the Doctor. It's funny hearing an echo of Ten here; Two constantly refers to himself as "the Doctor" in third person. The implication is that Two isn't fully comfortable with being himself; he knows that he's the Doctor, but he feels as though he's a different person (which he is). This is only highlighted by Ben and Polly's constant squabbles of "is he the Doctor? or isn't he?" etc.
A note on the two personalities of the Doctor. Something I really enjoyed about Hartnell's portrayal of One is really how young One really seems. He may look like an old man, and sometimes he may sound like an old man, but when you put all his actions into perspective, he really has the attitude of someone much younger, much more enthusiastic and optimistic. This is the Time Lord that sabotaged his own ship so that he could get a closer look at the Daleks. This is the Time Lord who was rash enough to kidnap Barbara and Ian; who tumbled headfirst into new situations without fear; who dressed in interesting fashions; who was irrepressibly curious about absolutely everything. Many of these traits he retains in later regenerations, but there is something incredibly naive (in comparison to his later selves, which also gained a sort of tragedy and bitterness among their auras) and innocent about his travels. The Doctor travels now to meet new people; the Doctor travels then to forget old ones.
Two seems more laidback. Still infinitely clever, but (in a way that is very unlike Ten and Eleven) is more likely to hide it. He's not keen to display his cleverness. I'm not sure about his motives at the moment, however. He's definitely more quirky. Recorders, tongue-twisters, etc. More fun-loving. Somehow, the actors are able to 'age' the Doctor without actually aging him. It's absolutely fascinating!
(Of course, that could just be my own bias talking. I could just want to see the Doctor's personality aging, and therefore I do, etc. Oh well.)
Anyway. My final verdict is that my interest in Two is very piqued. It had seemed to me that Two was the least interesting Doctor, but that may simply be due to the lack of existing episodes. Two is quietly quirky; somehow, he's also more righteous, more (however ironically) mature, and more straightforward while being more roundabout. I can see Troughton's influence on Matt Smith (both have this aura of the older, more mature adult without being absolutely pretentious). I do believe I can spend some time getting to know Two, considering the lack of existing episodes.