ltia wrote:
It has to be said that the classic gothic period of Who was really only Tom Baker's first three seasons - it's every bit at much Hinchcliffe as it is Baker. Oddly, the very first story in the following season (Horror of Fang Rock) very much continues the Hammer-inspired excellence and is one of my favourites. After that one, it started to get *really* crap and the only
story really worth a mention from the late 70s is the awesome City of Death.
The other period of aceness is Troughton's last season and Pertwee's first, and again I reckon there's a sudden drop in quality after that until Hinchcliffe joined. Nice to see some people agree with me about Jo Grant being terrible.
I do like Bakers last season, though. State of Decay in particular.
Also, watching Horns of Nimon out of context makes it even funnier. Man, the Nimon looks ridiulous. Never spotted the split trousers, but that's probably because I'm too busy oggling at Lalla Ward AND Janet Ellis in the same shot.
After that, when it was good, it was every bit as good as the 70s good stuff. when it was bad... I mean ffs.
Colin Baker's first season actually has some good stories, mostly the stuff he isn't in. The Two Doctors is really good, partially just because of Troughton's fantastic performance. To be fair, I'm told Colin baker's audio stuff is really quite good.
I reckon the worst Who ever got was Baker's last season and McCoy's first. After that, it rapidly got better. Ace is a good assistant although I think her acting ability wasn't really up to the task once the writing got better.
Of Colin's first season Revelation of the Daleks, The Two Doctors and Vengeance on Varos stand out. Mark of the Rani is superbly implemented with location work that is up there with the top dramas of the day (another shoot was cancelled and JNT got double the intended location recording time for no extra money). Mark of the Rani proves how good Who could have looked with just a few extra quid. However Mark falls down thanks to having the Master bumbling around.
Revelation has some lovely location work as well, but it was pure luck that it snowed. As a result the entire opening episodes location work looks stunning. No special effects, no snow machines, just pure luck and the fact they had to record because they couldn't afford a remount. I was watching the documentry on the DVD last night and Graeme Harper (the director who also works on the new series) was recounting what a challenge it was to get it all shot. Tractors having to pull the crew vehicles, etc.
The Trial season has its good points but they get swamped in the dross. I quite like Mindwarp as a story. It looks good and has a decent cast.
The problem with Ace is that she is very much of her era. I'm not inclined to blame Sophie for that.