The Energon Pub

[bcm77]

You don't like it. I get that.

Correction. I don't like SOME of it.

Prior to Catherine Tate bellowing her way into the Whoniverse in "The Runaway Bride" I thought it was great.

There was the odd dodgy episode but aside from "Love & Monsters" nothing major and had the show not returned I would have never got intrested in the Classic era.

It may also suprise you that RTD is responsible for my favorite moment in the whole of the revival,namely the bit in "Rose" where the Doctor talks about being able to feel the Earth falling through space.

Christopher Eccleston brought the words to life in a way that only Tom Baker could have matched and had he stayed for more than a single season I think he could have been the best of them all.
As it is I put him at number 4 behind Tom Baker,Jon Pertwee and Patrick Troughton which should be a clear indication of what I think of the very first series of Nu-Who.

I also LIKED David Tennant initially but started to tire of him early in series 3 when it became apparent that he wasn't going to do anything other than the same hyperactive smartmouth schtick every single week.

[Editor]

Wow, so you do like some of the new Who, unbelievable. And I'm surprised because that indeed was a good bit.

But it would be more believable if we saw bits like that from you more often. I'm not about to go thru and count but seriously for every ten posts they seem to be 5 how the series is currently crap or will be crap and 5 posts criticizing how the rest of us are fools for liking it. I would change the number to add positive criticism or comments but seriously, your last post was the only one i can remember over the past season.

Blast Cannon's pub analysis whether you see it or not is spot on. You still consider yourself a fan, great. You still think it can improve in your eyes, fantastic. But it doesn't change the fact that every time you jump in, that things change from the topic at hand to:
1) how you disagree
2) we are idiots, sheep whatever for not agreeing with you

Here is an idea. Try getting off your high horse, realize that our comments and views are just as valid even if they differ from yours, post your thoughts once, and don't take every differing view as an attack you need to counter.

Honestly. Lighten up, and then maybe the rest off us won't feel the need to roll our eyes when we see you have posted again.

[Lorekeeper]

I like Doctor-lite episodes. They give us a chance to see the ripples of the Doctor's actions far from his immediate location in the "Whoniverse." Spin-off series can't really do this, because they can't promise us the Doctor; they need to rely on their own casts of characters.

The Doctor-lite episodes also give writers a chance to be a little more experimental, too. Lots of folks are going to wind up hating the episodes, anyways, so why not try something risky?

On another note, if we ever get back to Rose, will her Doctor still be Tennant? He'd have to be, right? Hmmmm....

[bcm77]

One way I would come round to the idea of Doctor-lite episodes would be if they were 2 parts instead of 1.
That way the Doctor could be absent for half of it and still be onscreen for a decent amount of time.

I know he doesn't have to be onscreen 100% of the time but without the main character or the companion being at the centre of things I couldn't get into it as I felt like I was watching some generic sci-fi show.

In fact my niece said "Have you got it on the right channel? because she missed the start of both "Blink" & "Love & Monsters" and didn't believe me when I said I had.
Her next question was "Where's the Doctor?"

[Editor]

One way I would come round to the idea of Doctor-lite episodes would be if they were 2 parts instead of 1.
That way the Doctor could be absent for half of it and still be onscreen for a decent amount of time.

I know he doesn't have to be onscreen 100% of the time but without the main character or the companion being at the centre of things I couldn't get into it as I felt like I was watching some generic
sci-fi show.

I could debate this but seriously, not worth the effort beyond stating the base fact that in both L&M and Blink, The Doctor does play a role, sure he's not in the spotlight but just the spector of him in referance or on video elevates things beyond the generic. Judge it against other episodes but not against other shows.

In fact my niece said "Have you got it on the right channel? because she missed the start of both "Blink" & "Love & Monsters" and didn't believe me when I said I had.
Her next question was "Where's the Doctor?"

And...

Sorry, but this isn't the first time a show has done something like this, and most of the time with less warning. An example of this happened the other week with Stargate: Atlantis, where the first half of the episode you almost felt like you were watching CSI. The acting was different, the way the scenes were shot and cut it was very different from what is expected of the show and if you had no clue about the episode before watching it you would be quite lost. So the Doctor isn't in the episode much, it doesn't mean that it's not an episode of Who.

In a lesser degree, write the whole of Sarah Jane Adventures or Torchwood as Docter Lite episodes of Who. Torchwood has done a great deal of keeping itself independant more or less but SJA has been Doctorless and yet tied in quite closly dealing with the Graske, The Trickster (from Turn Left) the aftermath of the Sontarons latest attack, The Slitheen and more. To the point of when Sarah and Luke running into to a police box hoping to find the Doctor accompanied by his theme, only to find it was a Police Box. Do I expect to see the Doc show up? No. Does that ruin the episodes? No.

Take things for what they are, if you don't like it. Fine. But just say it and leave it.

[bcm77]

One way I would come round to the idea of Doctor-lite episodes would be if they were 2 parts instead of 1.
That way the Doctor could be absent for half of it and still be onscreen for a decent amount of time.

I know he doesn't have to be onscreen 100% of the time but without the main character or the companion being at the centre of things I couldn't get into it as I felt like I was watching some generic sci-fi show.

I could debate this but seriously, not worth the effort beyond stating the base fact that in both L&M and Blink, The Doctor does play a role, sure he's not in the spotlight but just the spector of him in referance or on video elevates things beyond the generic. Judge it against other episodes but not against other shows.

In fact my niece said "Have you got it on the right channel? because she missed the start of both "Blink" & "Love & Monsters" and didn't believe me when I said I had.
Her next question was "Where's the Doctor?"

And...

Sorry, but this isn't the first time a show has done something like this, and most of the time with less warning. An example of this happened the other week with Stargate: Atlantis, where the first half of the episode you almost felt like you were watching CSI. The acting was different, the way the scenes were shot and cut it was very different from what is expected of the show and if you had no clue about the episode before watching it you would be quite lost. So the Doctor isn't in the episode much, it doesn't mean that it's not an episode of Who.

In a lesser degree, write the whole of Sarah Jane Adventures or Torchwood as Docter Lite episodes of Who. Torchwood has done a great deal of keeping itself independant more or less but SJA has been Doctorless and yet tied in quite closly dealing with the Graske, The Trickster (from Turn Left) the aftermath of the Sontarons latest attack, The Slitheen and more. To the point of when Sarah and Luke running into to a police box hoping to find the Doctor accompanied by his theme, only to find it was a Police Box. Do I expect to see the Doc show up? No. Does that ruin the episodes? No.

Take things for what they are, if you don't like it. Fine. But just say it and leave it.

I try and give an actual reason for my opinion of something instead of just saying "it's crap" and still you aren't satisfied

[Blast Cannon]

Yes, but he has justified his dissatisfaction; something which you have failed to do thus far.

[bcm77]

Yes, but he has justified his dissatisfaction; something which you have failed to do thus far.

Why should I waste time trying to justify things to you lot because you seem impossible to please?
You keep telling me that I should accept others opinions and move on and my last post was suppposed to be my last word on the Doctor-lite episodes with some attempt at explaining exactly why I dislike them but suprise suprise I get the same kind of response.
Maybe you should take your own advice.

[Blast Cannon]

Yes, but he has justified his dissatisfaction; something which you have failed to do thus far.

Why should I waste time trying to justify things to you lot?

Game, set and match.

To get things moving on again, I recently bought 'the Five Doctors' DVD as a means to get a quick crash course on the personality of each Doctor and evaluate which Classic Who to buy next. Although my preference is more towards the second Doctor on that particular adventure, I was wondering if any of you could give any authoritave advice on the subject.

Does anybody have any classic adventures which you would recommend a relative newbie to the classics?

[Editor]

All the multi doctor storys are worth the watch, beyond that seeing you are in england almost everything should be available to you but if you are planning to look for the prime pieces look for the special boxsets they have put out,(these would be the regular box sets most other regions have had released). My top three to look at would be:

3: The Beginning: An Unearthly Child, The Daleks, The Edge of Destruction. The introduction from the start of everything.

2: New Beginnings: The Keeper of Traken, Logopolis, Castrovalva. The transistion from Tom Baker to Peter Davison.

and number 1:
The Davros Colection: (The collected set has yet to be released here but all the volumes have) Genesis, Destiny, Resurrection, Revelation, and Remembrance of the Daleks. 5 stories, From Tom thru to McCoy, all connected by Davros and covers some of the main events in Dalek history. Watch in a single go, or extended with Dalek and the Season 4 ending.

A local channel years back picked up broadcast rights and dropped their saturday late night movie to show Who, somebody there had decided to show story archs rather than serials in order. I had watch a couple and then they showed Genesis with the following weeks showing Destiny, Resurrection and Remembrance. (I don't remember if I missed, or if they just didn't show Revelation) It was this, that brought me back into watching Who and made me a fan after I had given up trying to find episodes as nobody held the rights for long enough.

[bcm77]

Yes, but he has justified his dissatisfaction; something which you have failed to do thus far.

Why should I waste time trying to justify things to you lot?

Game, set and match.

Did you have to use more than the one braincell for that remark or is that too much to ask from you?

Great Classic stories include,

2nd Doctor
"Tomb of the Cybermen"
"The Invasion"
"Seeds of Death"

3rd Doctor
"Inferno"
"The Time Warrior" ( 1st appearance of the Sontarans )
"Spearhead from Space" ( 1st appearance of the Autons )
"The Silurians"
"The Sea Devils"

4th Doctor
"Genesis of the Daleks" ( 1st appearance of Davros )
"The Talons of Weng-Chiang"
"The Brain of Morbius"
"The Hand of Fear"
"City of Death"
"Robots of Death"

5th Doctor
"Earthshock"
"The Caves of Androzani"

[Blast Cannon]

All the multi doctor storys are worth the watch, beyond that seeing you are in england almost everything should be available to you but if you are planning to look for the prime pieces look for the special boxsets they have put out,(these would be the regular box sets most other regions have had released). My top three to look at would be:

3: The Beginning: An Unearthly Child, The Daleks, The Edge of Destruction. The introduction from the start of everything.

2: New Beginnings: The Keeper of Traken, Logopolis, Castrovalva. The transistion from Tom Baker to Peter Davison.

and number 1:
The Davros Colection: (The collected set has yet to be released here but all the volumes have) Genesis, Destiny, Resurrection, Revelation, and Remembrance of the Daleks. 5 stories, From Tom thru to McCoy, all connected by Davros and covers some of the main events in Dalek history. Watch in a single go, or extended with Dalek and the Season 4 ending.

A local channel years back picked up broadcast rights and dropped their saturday late night movie to show Who, somebody there had decided to show story archs rather than serials in order. I had watch a couple and then they showed Genesis with the following weeks showing Destiny, Resurrection and Remembrance. (I don't remember if I missed, or if they just didn't show Revelation) It was this, that brought me back into watching Who and made me a fan after I had given up trying to find episodes as nobody held the rights for long enough.

I think I know what you're talking about. I saw the Davros collection at my local HMV and I'm pretty certain that it came down in price because of the sale. I'll go into town tomorrow and have a look see.

[Mkall]

Reviving for two things of note:

1) Torchwood Season three Trailer this actually looks intriguing

2) Someone's making Dr Who into an anime. It certainly is... different than what we're used to seeing the good Doctor do. Beating up street thugs doesn't seem his style, but there is Cybermen and Daleks (and a scantily clad anime chick with a gun) and I hope the voice acting is better when it's finally released.

[Cheetron]

Torchwood looks alright, seems to be going in the right direction in terms of stories instead of taking a year off and crying about the dead.

The Anime - weird. Yea.....

[Editor]

I like what he is trying to do with that anime version, and some of the visuals clearly were well thought out and executed.

Cybermen look great.
Backgrounds really have that Macross:DYRL style which he pulled off well.
Davros morphing from his Rememberance bubble to his standard look, killer.

The choice of useing Three seems a bit off, but as far as the physical fighting goes, I can see what he was going for.

----------

Torchwood series 3, It looks like a barnburner, and I can't wait.

[Matrix.]

... beating people up with his fists? Not Pertwee's style?

What planet are you from?

[Lorekeeper]

The art on the anime is quite nifty, but the animation/movement is creepy.

[Burn]

It ... works for me. When I first read it I was hesitant, but i'd actually like to see this done as a full scale production.

Mostly for the Daleks and Cyber-Men who seemed suited in that style.

[Mkall]

The trailer is up for the Easter Episode: http://io9.com/5194232/behold-the-next- ... al-monster

This looks like a cross between "Midnight" and "Voyage of the Damned"

[Cheetron]

The trailer is up for the Easter Episode: http://io9.com/5194232/behold-the-next- ... al-monster

This looks like a cross between "Midnight" and "Voyage of the Damned"

It looks good. I can't wait to watch it. It feels like it's not Doctor Who but at the same time it is.

[bcm77]

I'm really looking forward to the specials. 4 more episodes until I'll be able give the show another chance

[Darth Bombshell]

According to the trailer at the end of Planet of the Dead, the title of the next special is "The Waters of Mars".

Hmm...

Ice Warriors, anyone?

[Burn]

Well ... that was worth the wait ... not.

I'm a fan of Michelle Ryan and I thought she did a great job, then they had her go and kiss The Doctor. Yes, I realise it was a spur of the moment thing but bloody hell, can we just have ONE companion in this new series that doesn't feel the urge to snog The Doctor?

Ominous warnings ... yes we know his song is ending "It is coming from the darkness" will probably turn out to be that Satan monster thingy and "he will knock four times" most likely will be The Master but i'm also leaning towards Wilfred having a tap on the Tardis door wanting in.

Overall, enjoyable, but nothing very exciting or memorable.

[Matrix.]

I thought it was awful, sadly. Michelle Ryan was corpsing all over the place and the entire thing was misdirected.

I could probably write a very large review talking about what was wrong with it, but I heard a quote which pretty much sums it up:

"The whole point of transporting a London bus to the middle of the desert is that it puts the everyday inside the impossible. Yet we begin this story with an aristocratic cat-burglar doing the full Pink Panther schtick, as if to demonstrate that nothing about this story exists in the real world. Within ten minutes, everything here has been established as a fantasy-telly standard with no grounding in anything we might recognise"

[Darth Bombshell]

Yes, I realise it was a spur of the moment thing but bloody hell, can we just have ONE companion in this new series that doesn't feel the urge to snog The Doctor?

Not while RTD's still in charge, methinks.