There’s a popular saying from a certain spandexed superhero that ‘with great power, comes great…’ something or other. This could mean a wide number of things, most of which don’t necessarily apply to us, being a trio of geeks with a few microphones and a love for British science fiction, seated around a studio that smells faintly of strange cheese and cat fur. But we do understand one facet of that interpretation, being the need to involve those whom we serve (in our own humble way) as part of our craft. Seeing the wisdom in this, we decided to give voice to those of you perhaps without microphones, or dairy-scented sound booths.
This week, we consider ourselves done talking about our own personal favorite Doctor Who stories, and dedicate this portion of our appreciation arc to share those selections sent to us by our wonderful listeners. The lists we got were both interesting and commendable, and made us decide that it’s high time we call in sick to work, stay home and have another binge watch. Well done, listeners, you likely cost us our day jobs.
Episodes Referenced (in no particular order):
- The Mind Robber
- The Unicorn and the Wasp
- The Impossible Planet / The Satan Pit
- Listen
- Seeds of Doom
- Stones of Blood
- A Good Man Goes to War
- Caves of Androzani
- The Pandorica Opens / The Big Bang
- Robots of Death
- City of Death
- War Games
- Talons of Weng Chang
- Web of Fear
- Day of the Doctor
- Listen
- The Name of the Doctor
- Doctor’s Wife
- Family of Blood
- Night of the Doctor
- The Eleventh Hour
- Blink
- Genesis of the Daleks
- Five Doctors
- Pyramids of Mars
News Links:
- Eccleston Explains Why His Doctor Was a Northerner..
- …And How That Impacted Why He Left DW.
- Series 9 Opener May Be Darkest Yet, With the Return of a Classic Villain
- Doctor Who Coming to Disney XD
- Leaked Sony Emails May Point to Doctor Who Movie
- Series 8 Soundtrack Being Released in May
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Alright, in defense of the Unicorn and the Wasp. As suspected my reasons do seem very personal, but this is the episode I’m saying I enjoy most, not that I think is best (and in my own defense my 2 and 3 favorite Nu Who episodes are Blink and The Doctor’s Wife. Human Nature/Family of Blood makes my shortlist too).
Unlike those episodes, The Unicorn and the Wasp is a bit of light fun. Of the modern era, it’s my favorite Doctor, favorite companion, and favorite Doctor/companion duo. The 20’s is one of my favorite periods. The party that the Doctor and Donna happen upon in the opening is an atmosphere that I’d like to be in for a bit.
Aside form that the episode is basically one big game of Clue, where the writer, portrayed in a brilliant performance by Fenella Woolgar, gets to save the day (love that bit as I’m also a writer). And of course, as everyone has to point out, the detox scene is incredible (“how is Harvey Wallbanger one word?!”). It’s not an episode you have to gear up for or watch more than one episode to enjoy. If you’re in a good mood, a bad mood, an indifferent mood, it’s there: cheerful with a dash of murder and it makes me so so happy.
But yeah, the giant wasp bit is dumb, and simply meant as a silly play on words, move past it.
I have no favourite story. I like most of them, but there is one story I am fond of even though it isn’t very good. The Mutants is probably Pertwee’s poorest story. I missed it in April 1972 due to my family moving from England to Australia that month. In 1973 we came back and I found out that a chalk cave near my house was used in a Doctor Who story. I believed that I would never see the story because Doctor Who was almost never repeated in the ’70’s.
Many decades later in 2011, I found out that the story that the cave appeared in was called The Mutants.It was mainly filmed in a quarry near Dartford, where the Blue Water Shopping Centre is now, and it was there that I bought the dvd. The chalk cave is about 15 miles from there, or half a mile from where I live in Rochester Kent. Because I had to wait 39 years to see that story and because it features a place I went past every day on my way to school in the ’70’s, I love the Mutants, even though it is pretty boring.