The Tenth Planet
(Episode 1)
We've landed in the coldest place in the world!
We see a rocket taking off (stock footage from an Australian launch!) and the story is written by Kitt Pedler. So not only did he invent the Cyberman, and predict the internet, he was in fact also Knight Rider. No end to the man's talents.
The Smugglers
(Episode 1)
Only 8 more Hartnell episodes.
And this is another bloody recon. Bloody as in the episode is bloody missing, not bloody as in "these wonderful people have put together what we've got left through hard work". Thanks, folks. You recon folk are great. It's the episode junkers who get the Paddington Bear stare.
Not helped by this episode being a very visual one, the gory
bits - kept because the Australian censors axed them - look visually
attractive, and the limited location footage left suggests this story was very
visually attractive. Bah and humbug.
The War Machines
(Episode 1)
Doctor Who is required? Yes, he bloody well is.
Ian Stuart Black returns immediately. Now, Black was a
highly regarded bon viveur, acclaimed for witty after dinner speeches well into his early 80s. The Savages showed very little of this spirit, but let's
see what this story does.
Oh, look, its London! Modern London!
Oh, ok, London of 1966, which is now older than subjects taught in actual school history. But its contemporary swinging 60s London and instantly recognisably so.
We start with a bird's eye view of London before the camera swings round to show us Bedford Square, one of the more instantly recognisable bits of posh, conservation protected London. The widow Asquith lived in that long shot. Well, not in 1966, she died in 1945, but you get the drift.
From this long shot from above, we hear and see the TARDIS
materialise at street level.
The Savages
(Episode 1)
So, I am going into this tale with very little memories of my last watch of it, over 20 years ago. I remember Steven leaving clearly, and one of my favourite Doctor moments ever, but that's about it.
The Doctor announces he has landed in a place of peace and prosperity and leaves the TARDIS for a walk. He's in a forest.
A much more relaxed Dodo (who knew Doc Holliday was such a mood fixer) jokes with Steven about the Doctor getting lost, all the while some old men creep up on him.
