Vampyros Adric
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« on: June 17, 2012, 04:01:43 pm » |
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The 24th season of Doctor Who began on 7 September 1987 with Scottish actor Percy James Patrick Kent-Smith, better known as Sylvester McCoy taking on the Seventh incarnation of the Doctor. In this, his first series, McCoy who is better known as a comedy actor, portrayed the Doctor with a degree of clown-like humour. This approach was subsequently toned down in later series as the stories took on a much darker tone.
McCoy joined Bonnie Langford who reprised her role as the Doctor's companion, Mel Bush. Her departure, at the end of the season overlapped with the appearance in Dragonfire of Sophie Aldred who played Ace. Ace would become the Doctor's companion in the next season. Season 24 also saw producer John Nathan Turner appoint Andrew Cartmell as Script Editor and transmission was moved to a regular Monday evening time slot.
The season opened somewhat controversially with Colin Baker refusing to film the regeneration scene after being fired. So the first story, Time and the Rani, started with a hurriedly improvised McCoy wearing a blonde wig. Written by Pip and Jane Baker, the first story saw the return of Kate O'Mara as the Rani. The other stories in the season were all scripts from new authors, in keeping with the policy of JNT to try and introduce new writers into the show. Paradise Towers saw the Doctor and Mel arrive at a tower block, where the inhabitants live in fear of killer cleaners and the disembodied architect in the basement. In Delta and the Bannermenm, the Chimeron queen heads for a holiday camp in Wales after being a target for assassination by the murderous Bannermen, only for the Doctor and Mel to arrive and try and protect her. In the season finale, Dragonfire, the Doctor and Mel arrive on Iceworld and do battle with the wicked Kane, part of a criminal gang who has waited 3000 years to escape his ice prison.
Season 24 saw some ambitious, and on occasions outrageous guest stars appear. Kate O'Mara and mother of Sherlock, Wanda Ventham appeared in Time of the Rani, Richard Briers, Clive Merrison and Judy Cornwell were drafted in for Paradise Towers. Perhaps most controversially, Ken Dodd joined Don Henderson and Hugh Lloyd for Delta and the Bannermen and in Dragonfire there was a welcome return to the Whoniverse for Tony Selby reprising his role as the roguish Sabalom Glitz together with Edward Peel and Tony Osoba.
But which one of these stories did you most enjoy....?
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Vampyros Adric
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« Reply #1 on: June 17, 2012, 04:15:44 pm » |
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This was such a time of change for the show. The appointment of Andrew Cartmell as Script Editor was, IMHO, a significant one - it was he who tried to move the Doctor into a darker, more contemporary place. The casting of McCoy was not universally welcomed - with Head of Drama, Jonathan Powell not accepting McCoy until he had been through a round of auditions. Yet it turned out to be a stroke of genius . Offering my humble opinion again, this was JNT's finest casting decision. Peter Davison was a household name and a very safe pair of hands. Colin Baker was right actor but wrong place and time, but McCoy just picked the role of the Doctor up and gave it his own wonderfully quirky twist.
This season is a little too 'experimental' for me. It kinda has the feel of a youth theatre project in places (given the new script editor and new writing team that is inevitable I guess). But of these stories, I have to give my vote to Dragonfire. Yes, it has the most ludicrous cliff-hanger of all time (with Sly McCoy deliberately climbing over some safety railings and dangling over the cliff). But Edward Peel is suitably naughty as Kane while the Mel/Glitz story is charming. McCoy really starts to make the role his own and Aldred shows why she was given a contract to become a regular. Not the strongest season of all - more of a work in progress.
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Nyki
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« Reply #2 on: June 17, 2012, 06:19:42 pm » |
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It's my least favourite series of the lot - I loved McCoy's Doctor as he developed over the next two series, but I didn't feel the idea worked at first, and the stories were pretty weak. Dragonfire's the only one I really find worth watching.
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Saber
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« Reply #3 on: June 18, 2012, 10:53:59 am » |
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I think there is plenty to like with all of the stories. Some of them are ridiculously cheesy but I enjoy them all the same. My vote went to Dragonfire because I think it's the best of the bunch
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The Doc
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« Reply #4 on: June 18, 2012, 09:40:24 pm » |
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It's very unpopuar and ridiculously bad but even still I can't help but love Time and the Rani, so that's what got my vote.
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Now and then, every once in a very long while, every day in a million days, when the wind stands fair and The Doctor comes to call, everybody lives.
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Peri-Peri
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« Reply #5 on: June 20, 2012, 10:37:15 am » |
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I was sure I clicked on Dragonfire but my vote came out for Delta. Oh well. None of these stories are great so I don't suppose it matters much either way.
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It eats you, starting with your bottom
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Twisted-Sister
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« Reply #6 on: June 21, 2012, 10:38:25 pm » |
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I think I could have pretty much closed my eyes and picked any of them because I'm not really bothered about any of them. I've gone with Dragonfire
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Tardis-Console
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« Reply #7 on: June 21, 2012, 10:54:09 pm » |
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I've only seen DATB so that's where my vote went. I quite liked it though.
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My Series 6 Ratings (so far): TIA 10/10 | DOTM 10/10 | COTBS 8/10 | TDW 10/10 | TRF 9/10 | TAP 10/10 | AGMGTW 10/10 | LKH 8/10 | NT 4/10 | TGWW 10/10
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Roranicus
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« Reply #8 on: June 22, 2012, 10:54:54 pm » |
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I've gone with Delta too. Not a very strong season really, is it?
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Oh my god Karen, you can't just ask someone why they're white!
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Kovarians-Eye-Patch
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« Reply #9 on: June 23, 2012, 11:51:07 pm » |
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Dragonfire for me. Not by very much though.
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Aneurin
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I've gone with Delta and the Bannermen
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