The Energon Pub

[AllNewSuperRobot]

(I always forget both parts aren't called Family of blood )

[AllNewSuperRobot]

The First Doctor [William Hartnell] and Captain Britain pinup sketch [date unknown]

Art by: Alan Davis

A team-up I'd love to see!

[ZeroWolf]

It might have happened in the eighties when Marvel had the Doctor Who license

[Lorekeeper]

Part of what I loved about the Captain Britain and Excalibur books of the 80's/90's is how much Doctor Who seeped into it. WHO was UNIT, and if that's not the biggest nod, I don't know what is. The cross-time-caper of early Excalibur was very Whovian as well. It would have been great to see actual crossovers.

There seems to be cross-pollination into NuWho as well. What are the Slitheen if not Warwolves?

[AllNewSuperRobot]

You might have heard about a little bit of news lately...

[JazZeke]

I'm so glad he's coming back! I gad a feeling it was only a matter of time after seeing him at Gallifrey One, but I didn't think it would be this soon.

[Burn]

Here's hoping we can get a nice big multi-Doctor story on screen with him.

[AllNewSuperRobot]

Indeed. Not too long until the 60th anniversary (2023). A Five+ Doctor Nu Who story is certainly doable by that point. Eccleston all the way to Whitaker, plus McGann too!

[ZeroWolf]

Here's hoping we can get a nice big multi-Doctor story on screen with him.

Let's not get crazy! Let him get a few audio books back under his belt first. I'm now confused though over what exactly happened at the end of nuWho season 1. The story that got brandied about was that he chose to leave to avoid being typecast but from what he says, that wasn't accurate and more to do with what he called the politics of the show

[AllNewSuperRobot]

Apparently the 'typecast' line wasn't the case at all. That's just what the media picked up on. He did leave British TV for quite a long time after it all though. So something else definitely happened. Although I doubt we'll ever get the full story.

[ZeroWolf]

From what I've just looked up, he said he was blacklisted for four years, which if true, is quite a sentence for an actor. Though you wonder if staring in GI Joe and Thor Dark World were punishment enough

[AllNewSuperRobot]

Exactly. A mere 'typecast' comment wouldn't have garnered that kind of response from the BBC.

He was alright in Heroes though. Funny when you think he may have taken all these American roles due to being blacklisted...

[Burn]

The "typecast" comment was also attached to "wanted to make it big in the US"

Which worked out well for him.

[ZeroWolf]

Probably, as he was most likely actively looking to the American job market if the British one was closed off. I feel guilty now as I had thought bad of him at the time for "running off after one season" but it sounds like there was a lot more going on.

[AllNewSuperRobot]

Yeah. The short tenure Doctors really got screwed over, when you see the bigger story behind the scenes. Colin Baker being fired over the phone is still one of the worst.

The "typecast" comment was also attached to "wanted to make it big in the US"

Which worked out well for him.

He is a great actor. Not convinced he has found That role to crack the US yet though.

[Burn]

So New Year's special happened.

For a Chibnall episode it wasn't bad. Still wastn't great though.

But ... as the story wasn't bad, it highlighted to me that Jodie isn't suited for the role. Maybe if she had a better writer she might be able to get into the role more, and there was a glimmer of potential in her one-on-one chat with Ryan, but for the most part it just felt like she was going through the motions.

Also highlighted how much I'm not a fan of Jack. I think Chibnall has over-emphasised how much time Jack has spent with The Doctor. And Jack's borderline obsession with The Doctor was almost pathetic. Didn't really do the character any justice.

The stand out for this episode was Ryan, he can see through The Doctor's bullshit and that gave him reason to leave. More potential lost though, seeing through the BS could have lead to him turning against The Doctor which would have made for a good twist.

Oh well ... onto the next season Yaz and some middle aged codget called Dan.

[AllNewSuperRobot]

That was probably the lamest Dalek story I think I've seen?

The feared scourge of the universe is defeated and outsmarted easier than a lone Cyberman in the last arc of Season 12? I'd agree the writing is awful. Plus the focal point for the episode was literally the most bland and uncharismatic companion in this run. I heard an extra scene was added in last minute, I had hoped it would be Yaz leaving too. An all new set of companions are needed. Better writing too, but the former is easier to fix.

As for Jack, his characterisation seemed post-10th Doctor, but pre-Torchwood. Which didn't seem to make any sense?

[ZeroWolf]

Well the three season rule has struck again as Jodie as announced she's leaving the series after this next season.

[Burn]

I'll believe it when someone other than The Sun reports it.

That being said, we still have Chibnall.

[AllNewSuperRobot]

"Chibnall will remain" is a recurring line in many outlets that are running with this. I think however, much like Colin Baker's run, the Doctor isn't the problem. Whitaker doesn't have great range but better writing could do something interesting with her. Hopefully Big Finish will fast track her.

[JazZeke]

I'm just gonna copy-paste the thoughts I livetweeted as I was watching, in a more cohesive order. It's an... okay story, but it's mostly just a remix of elements done before without adding anything new to the table. Even the Dalek-v-Dalek fight was brief and disappointing.

You know, the fact that for the first time ever, the Doctor is in a prison that they can't escape just piles on to the criticism that Whittaker's Doctor is the most ineffectual incarnation and makes me wonder if they ever would have written a male Doctor in this situation. Also what was the point of putting the Doctor in prison when she's just going to get broken out right away? The breakout SHOULD have been the story, not a detour before things can get going.

Props where they're due, the Dalek assembly scene gave me a proper "oh ****" moment. Buuut... Dalek body-snatching is stupid. Why/HOW does ultraviolet light help Daleks TELEPORT???

Ryan and Graham's final scene be like


This show really, really needs some fresh blood working on it.

[AllNewSuperRobot]

I'd agree the prison bit was pointless. I wouldn't say her incarceration actually does paint her specifically in a negative light. She was more or less abducted instantly.
Given Nu Who Doctors rely more on the Sonic Screwdriver, Psychic Paper and other tools instead of just outwitting the situation. It is more reflective of the general conceit of Nu Who. That if you took away the Tardis, Companions and all the gadgets, the Doctor is defeated.

[JazZeke]

The more I think about this episode, the more I wonder... what was the POINT of it? It added nothing to Dalek lore. Daleks as police robots had the potential to be topical, and I think that's what they were going for--but they didn't do anything with the concept. The Daleks took over the casings as soon as they were unveiled to the public. Victory of the Daleks showed them posing as human machines, anyway, and to much greater effect.

Was it a companion exit story? The events had nothing to do with Ryan's decision to leave. They could have done literally anything, fought any monster, and Ryan would have decided it was time to stay home anyway.

The Prime Minister character, despite being a character that pushes events forward, is underdeveloped. She had no presence in the story, and she really should have. Likewise with the not-Trump guy whose name I don't care to remember. He bounces around the story first as the instigator, then the comic relief when they shanghai him into the TARDIS, then as a would-be-turncoat that goes nowhere, and then the guy who takes all the credit... and for what? At the end of the day, what comes of it? Does that even constitute an arc? For a primary character in the story, he goes nowhere.

Ultimately, this story was just a perfect example of a Chibnall script--throw a bunch of random story elements together in a blender, regardless if they go together or not. (Just like his TARDIS interior design, actually.)

[AllNewSuperRobot]

A Christmas gift I finally got around to finishing. This was really fun. I don't really know the Tom Baker era. To that end this was a great showcase to the uninitiated, such as myself. I imagine 4th Doctor fans will appreciate it even more. Plus it has Cybermen in it, which is always a win for me. 9/10

An interesting bit of trivia on the story itself: It was originally conceived as a 70's Doctor Who Movie pitch. Co-written by Baker and then companion, Harry Sullivan aka Ian Marter.

[AllNewSuperRobot]

This amusing picture popped up on social media, the other day. Some of them clearly didn't change all that much from their youth. While others (Davison ) look quite different.