Fifth Time's the Charm
It has been a pretty good past couple of months for the Fifth Doctor era from the British favorite Doctor Who series that has been around for nearly half a century now. And it hasn't shown its age. Not at all.
British icon Peter Davison was a popular choice to step up to the challenge of playing the title role for the long running series, with his gleam of blond hair and innocent grin. The naive charm of his persona was expressive when he was cast into the part starting in 1981. He relinquished the role in 1983 with twenty stories under his belt.
Let's not forget: Davison is the only original actor from the old BBC series to come back to reprise his role as the Doctor in the segment called "Time Crash" written by Stephen Moffatt.
In the recent Doctor Who magazine, which has been a mainstay in the publishing grind, they ran a contest of finest stories to worst ones from its myriad of two hundred stories of Doctor Who so far. For the number one slot, Davison's final story “The Caves of Androzani” was rated very highly by fans. It was an atmospheric story penned by Robert Holmes which was to pit the Fifth Doctor against a band of business deals running amok between struggling parties. And the Fifth Doctor and his companion would be caught in the middle of their pitiful war.
It was the crowning jewel in the cradle of entertaining stories.
It was a fitting end to the time travelling saga for Davison who reached his a culmination of stories here. It was too bad that he didn't stay on for a fourth year as originally intended.
Just this last week another chapter of the Fifth Doctor period was refurnished and given the digital treatment when it hit the shelves on Nov. 3. It was the entire trilogy of the Black Guardian storyline making its way to fan collections everywhere. And rightfully so.
During the 1980s, when the popular swing was hitting its stride for Davison, there grew a leaning interest for interconnected stories... three stories wrapped up to be a single whole. This Black Guardian trilogy would be the third time the series did so.
Some people complained about the stories being too complicated. Others fumed over the sudden dependence of the series history to bring back old villains. No matter what you do, no one is going to be completely happy with what you do. Maybe folks just have too much time on their hands.
I did like the stories very much. And remember them with a whimsical breeze of nostalgia as I have first seen them during my younger days. I thought they were well done... and against many people who complained that Davison was far too young to play the title role, I liked Davison very much. I thought he gave the right amount of portraying an old man trapped in a young body.
You can see he would often find every fight to be an uphill struggle for him. A very vulnerable man.
The first story “Mawdryn Undead” introduces a new companion in Turlough, the red headed weasel you couldn't trust as far as you can throw him. Which wouldn't be far. But he's a brilliant character as he works against the Doctor as an unwilling agent of evil. It creates a nice framework for the next three stories. His stirring eyes always hiding a deadly secret. His character was certainly someone you loved to hate.
This chapter was a ghoulish, creep account of several scientists, led by Mawdryn, who were trapped on a ship living eternal lives. They were not evil men. They were merely scientists mislead by their eager enthusiasm for knowledge. There's the nice addition of the Brigadier, the well loved character from the Third Doctor period, a form fitting soldier who was always by the book, now retired and teaching school. He is always wonderfully portrayed by Nicholas Courtney. It's easy to see why he's well liked. Just watch this episode.
The other chapters “Terminus” and “Enlightenment” follow through the same format of the countering forces of Turlough and the Doctor, like good and evil, light and dark, they were always the opposing sides of the same coin. Mark Strickson, who played Turlough, said in one of his interviews that he enjoyed his time in the series. And it certainly shows when he could imbue such ugly menace through his presence. He remains one of the most interesting characters for the series. Like a conflicted animal in a cage.
The episode “Terminus” is a nice exit for Nyssa, a long time companion, my own favorite companion from the Davison period. They play her theme music which enshrouds the beauty and charm of her character. There's a nice trend that surfaces through all the stories... the idea of immortality is explored in every chapter here.
Turloug’s role as the assassin of the Doctor would reach its end with the episode “Enlightenment” as he would join the Doctor and his other companion Tegan on a contest of racing boats in space... it was a very imaginative script by Barbara Clegg who postulates an idea of a race of immortals who borrow ships and people from earth's history to perform their races out of sheer boredom. It's a great story with a many good acting moments from Davison himself. He looks like he is enjoying his role and settling in nicely.
The show is also directed by a woman. So it’s really a woman’s show this time around.
The third story is really about choice. And what side you would go on? It's nice to see the Doctor pushed back into the background as Turlough becomes more of the central character in these three stories. So the fate of the Doctor remains in his hands. And the story resolves itself as not making the race the focus, but the choice itself. The enlightened choice, you could say.
There is a nice added feature to the special menu where you can trigger the CGI affects. I would recommend watching it this way as it makes you feel like you're watching the old episodes in a entirely different way. The restoration team does a nice job of adding some slick effects and updating the model shots that were otherwise faulty in the old shows.
Davison provides a fresh performance here that is breezy and youthful as it was when the shows were first aired. And you have the pleasure to once again enjoy the entertaining aspects of this particular era that may cater to the more youthful audiences, however they do offer some very nice stories. They feel as invigorating and resourceful as they once were. So why don't you get your cricket ball and bat and follow through the adventures with the ever youthful Fifth Doctor. You'll find the stories are in your favor.
British icon Peter Davison was a popular choice to step up to the challenge of playing the title role for the long running series, with his gleam of blond hair and innocent grin. The naive charm of his persona was expressive when he was cast into the part starting in 1981. He relinquished the role in 1983 with twenty stories under his belt.
Let's not forget: Davison is the only original actor from the old BBC series to come back to reprise his role as the Doctor in the segment called "Time Crash" written by Stephen Moffatt.
In the recent Doctor Who magazine, which has been a mainstay in the publishing grind, they ran a contest of finest stories to worst ones from its myriad of two hundred stories of Doctor Who so far. For the number one slot, Davison's final story “The Caves of Androzani” was rated very highly by fans. It was an atmospheric story penned by Robert Holmes which was to pit the Fifth Doctor against a band of business deals running amok between struggling parties. And the Fifth Doctor and his companion would be caught in the middle of their pitiful war.
It was the crowning jewel in the cradle of entertaining stories.
It was a fitting end to the time travelling saga for Davison who reached his a culmination of stories here. It was too bad that he didn't stay on for a fourth year as originally intended.
Just this last week another chapter of the Fifth Doctor period was refurnished and given the digital treatment when it hit the shelves on Nov. 3. It was the entire trilogy of the Black Guardian storyline making its way to fan collections everywhere. And rightfully so.
During the 1980s, when the popular swing was hitting its stride for Davison, there grew a leaning interest for interconnected stories... three stories wrapped up to be a single whole. This Black Guardian trilogy would be the third time the series did so.
Some people complained about the stories being too complicated. Others fumed over the sudden dependence of the series history to bring back old villains. No matter what you do, no one is going to be completely happy with what you do. Maybe folks just have too much time on their hands.
I did like the stories very much. And remember them with a whimsical breeze of nostalgia as I have first seen them during my younger days. I thought they were well done... and against many people who complained that Davison was far too young to play the title role, I liked Davison very much. I thought he gave the right amount of portraying an old man trapped in a young body.
You can see he would often find every fight to be an uphill struggle for him. A very vulnerable man.
The first story “Mawdryn Undead” introduces a new companion in Turlough, the red headed weasel you couldn't trust as far as you can throw him. Which wouldn't be far. But he's a brilliant character as he works against the Doctor as an unwilling agent of evil. It creates a nice framework for the next three stories. His stirring eyes always hiding a deadly secret. His character was certainly someone you loved to hate.
This chapter was a ghoulish, creep account of several scientists, led by Mawdryn, who were trapped on a ship living eternal lives. They were not evil men. They were merely scientists mislead by their eager enthusiasm for knowledge. There's the nice addition of the Brigadier, the well loved character from the Third Doctor period, a form fitting soldier who was always by the book, now retired and teaching school. He is always wonderfully portrayed by Nicholas Courtney. It's easy to see why he's well liked. Just watch this episode.
The other chapters “Terminus” and “Enlightenment” follow through the same format of the countering forces of Turlough and the Doctor, like good and evil, light and dark, they were always the opposing sides of the same coin. Mark Strickson, who played Turlough, said in one of his interviews that he enjoyed his time in the series. And it certainly shows when he could imbue such ugly menace through his presence. He remains one of the most interesting characters for the series. Like a conflicted animal in a cage.
The episode “Terminus” is a nice exit for Nyssa, a long time companion, my own favorite companion from the Davison period. They play her theme music which enshrouds the beauty and charm of her character. There's a nice trend that surfaces through all the stories... the idea of immortality is explored in every chapter here.
Turloug’s role as the assassin of the Doctor would reach its end with the episode “Enlightenment” as he would join the Doctor and his other companion Tegan on a contest of racing boats in space... it was a very imaginative script by Barbara Clegg who postulates an idea of a race of immortals who borrow ships and people from earth's history to perform their races out of sheer boredom. It's a great story with a many good acting moments from Davison himself. He looks like he is enjoying his role and settling in nicely.
The show is also directed by a woman. So it’s really a woman’s show this time around.
The third story is really about choice. And what side you would go on? It's nice to see the Doctor pushed back into the background as Turlough becomes more of the central character in these three stories. So the fate of the Doctor remains in his hands. And the story resolves itself as not making the race the focus, but the choice itself. The enlightened choice, you could say.
There is a nice added feature to the special menu where you can trigger the CGI affects. I would recommend watching it this way as it makes you feel like you're watching the old episodes in a entirely different way. The restoration team does a nice job of adding some slick effects and updating the model shots that were otherwise faulty in the old shows.
Davison provides a fresh performance here that is breezy and youthful as it was when the shows were first aired. And you have the pleasure to once again enjoy the entertaining aspects of this particular era that may cater to the more youthful audiences, however they do offer some very nice stories. They feel as invigorating and resourceful as they once were. So why don't you get your cricket ball and bat and follow through the adventures with the ever youthful Fifth Doctor. You'll find the stories are in your favor.
posted by K.M. Paters at 11:27 AM
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