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| Three's cape is one of the less crazy things about this era of the show |
The 3rd Doctor began his run confined to
Earth. He took a job working with U.N.I.T. (a military organization) as its
scientific advisor. The Third Doctor was
far more action oriented than any before or since, brandishing Venusian Karate
at would be assailants. He also dressed
like Austin Powers and drove an antique hotrod instead of a time machine. Crazy right?
Spearhead From Space *available on Netflix*
Spearhead from space introduces the Autons, which
you may have seen in the new series. It also establishes the show’s new
Earthbound format, and properly introduces the new expanded cast. As much as the third Doctor era seems so
antithetical to Doctor Who as we tend to think of it, it’s important to
remember how well this format can work.
For one thing this version of the show was massively popular. For another thing, large sections of the new
series took place on contemporary Earth, with an expanded cast (e.g. Rose’s
Mom.) Spearhead also established that
The Doctor has two hearts.
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| Every time I her the song "Two of Hearts" I ask my wife if it's Stacey Q or Tiffany. I always figure out that it's Stacey Q without checking the internet. My wife, for her part, continues to be unimpressed |
Doctor Who and the Silurians
This was later remade as Hungry Earth/Cold Blood,
but I think it works better in the classic series. The titular Silurians serve
as a dark mirror for mankind, and the humans are pretty much a lot worse. The
production values aren’t as good, but The Silurians paints a much bleaker picture
than its modern counterpart. The ending
was actually so dark it painted the series into the corner. The writers worked around this problem by
skillfully ignoring it.
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| Remember when it turned out Jon and Odie were dead? |
Inferno
I like this one okay, but it’s generally
considered one of the 3rd Doctor classics by fans of the era. The Doctor spends a good chunk of this one in
a fascist parallel universe. It’s pretty
cool to see an evil version of The Doctor’s friend Brigadier
Lethbridge-Stewart, not to mention seeing the Doc’s companion Liz Shaw in some
sexy fascist fetish wear, but it’s all kind of inconsequential to the main
story. Still, it’s a lot more
entertaining than the usual captured/uncaptured episode padding. This is one of the many time the Classic
Series would use an oil refinery as a default science-y location, which seems
kind of cheap and campy; of course True Blood would do use a similar location
for their vampire concentration camp about 40 years later so…
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| Hotcha-cha! |
Terror of the Autons
The 3rd Doctor’s second season begins with
the return of the Autons. Also back: the
plot of the first Autons story, only this time proto-feminist companion Liz
Shaw has been replaced with ditzy Jo Grant with scant narrative
justification. Also introduced is The
Master, who makes a few appearances in the new series, but more significantly appears
in almost all 3rd Doctor serials from here on out. Basically, he’s
the Doctor’s equal but he’s evil. His
only weakness: ludicrously over-complicated plans. Both The Master and Jo Grant are kind of one
dimensional as written, but the actors playing them really kick things up to
the next level.
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| This particular serial also has a deadly chair sequence that would make Ed Wood proud |
The Claws of Axos
This one is about as 3rd Doctor as the
3rd Doctor ever got, which is to say it’s insane. It’s not the best serial of the period, but
it serves well as a caricature of the era.
If you want to watch a great 3rd Doctor Serial watch Carnival
of Monsters. If you just want to see a 3rd
Doctor serial in all its insane glory watch Claws of Axos
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| ??? |
The Daemons
Doctor Who meets the Wicker Man. If a glamrock/karate version of the Doctor
exploring the occult isn’t something you’re into, you should probably stop
reading now because we have VERY different tastes.
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| What is this that stands before me? |
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