'Doctor Who – The Five Doctors' (1983)



Good morning and welcome once again to another post where I look at Doctor Who like it used to be in the days when colour TV was only just a thing; well... in my house anyway...
So, 'The Five Doctors' was all about celebrating the twentieth anniversary of the TV show but as an eight year old, I had no idea about any of that. No, for me it was the culmination of several weeks of watching old Doctor Who stories (the BBC really pulled out all the stops) and really looking forward to seeing Tom Baker's Doctor again, only to see him shoved into a time vortex before the story had even got started.(because Tom Baker agreed to appear in the story then changed his mind, meaning the writers had to be extra creative...) It was still good though, here's some blurb from the Terrance Dicks novelisation that I used to have...

A twentieth anniversary special featuring the Doctor in all five of his regenerations.
Why are all five Doctors being removed from their separate time-streams? Who is the enemy they will have to unite against? What will become of the Doctors when the battle is over?
We have travelled a long way with Doctor Who. The Five Doctors gives us the chance to turn the clock back and meet some old friends — and some old enemies.

'The Five Doctors' is just one big nostalgia treat for fans with as close an original line up of Doctors as could be reasonably expected along with a whole load of fan favourite monsters. If you have a favourite monster (from 'old' Doctor Who) then it's a safe bet that you will see it here. There's also Anthony Ainsley's Master, my favourite Master (although I've never seen Roger Delgado's Master so that could all change) And the Raston Warrior Robot... The Raston Warrior Robot is brilliant and I would love to see it in 'New' Doctor Who, I reckon they could do a really good job with it.
It is a nostalgia fest then but 'The Five Doctors' was marking the anniversary of Doctor Who so how could it be anything but...? I loved watching the different Doctors bounce off each other as well. Patrick Troughton's second Doctor always seemed to be the centre of any trouble and I really need to dig out more of his adventures...

It's not just about the nostalgia though as there is a story and plot as well! The story doesn't quite gel with the constant parading of fan favourites but it is an interesting plot nonetheless with a couple of decent twists right at the very end. I really liked the fifth Doctor's little nod to how it all began, presumably using that one line to launch a whole load more adventures.

I've heard the 'The Five Doctors' described as 'pantomime' and that's a really apt description for a story that's more about style than substance. Who doesn't like a pantomime though? I love it and the same goes for this fun, albeit frothy, tale.


Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

‘Deathworlder’ – Victoria Hayward (Black Library)

Image
Before I get into the review proper, thank you Black Library for sending me a copy of ‘Deathworlder’ in return for a fair and honest review. Talking of ‘fair and honest’… There will be loads of the latter but I enjoyed the hell out of ‘Deathworlder’ so… We’ll see how being fair goes ;o) That’s your only warning, lets talk ‘Deathworlder’… Lazulai is a world beyond the brink, its battle against the tyranids all but lost. Once-magnificent cities lie in ruin. The seas boil. The skies crack. Horrific alien bioforms devour. In mere days the planet will be consumed. The 903rd Catachan ‘Night Shrikes’ defend one of the last fortresses still standing. Led by Major Wulf Khan, to die fighting is all that is expected of them… until she is given one last mission: to lead a squad through the apocalypse and recover a piece of archeotech that may doom or deliver the entire Lazulai System. Facing insurmountable odds and zero hope for aid, the major must hold her squad together as they pick their way ...
Read more

‘Hellraiser 3: Hell on Earth’ (1992)

Image
Every time Halloween comes round, I promise myself that I’ll watch more horror films and read more horror fiction; we’re halfway through the month and you can see how that’s going so far… There’s still plenty of October left though so lets see how I do from now until the end of the month ;o) First up is ‘Hellraiser 3’ which I watched last night, mostly because I love it (you can tell how this post is going to go, sorry…) but also because it was cheap on Prime and I’m still just on the wrong side of payday. Here goes… TV reporter Joey Summerskill’s life is changed forever when she witnesses the horrific death of a teenager, torn apart by bloody chains. Joey’s search for a story leads her to the Lament Configuration Box but it has already been opened, waking an old evil from its slumber… Now Pinhead walks the earth once more, creating a new army of Cenobites from the transmuted flesh of his victims; his one desire to reclaim the Box. Even with help from an unexpected source, Joey Summers...
Read more

‘Cursed City’ – C.L. Werner (Black Library)

Image
I always have these vague ‘reading resolutions’, for the New Year and without fail, they all come to absolutely nothing. I still read loads, just none of the books that I meant to… This year is panning out slightly differently and I think I’m going to enjoy it. All the books that were originally ‘out of sight, out of mind’, in the loft at my old place, are now all over my new place and wherever I look, I’m constantly discovering books that I totally forgot I had but now quite fancy reading. Books like ‘Cursed City’ for example… I’m not going to tell you how long ‘Cursed City’ was sat in my loft, lets just say it was long enough for me to totally forget it was there and buy myself another copy… Oh well. I found it on the shelf the other day (only the one copy now) and figured it was way overdue a read, let me tell you about it… Ulfenkarn is a city of nightmares. Its vampiric rulers have indulged their bloodlust in every shadow-clad alley, turning the once-proud metropolis into a charnel...
Read more