Thursday 9 January 2014

1.02 The Daleks



The First Doctor with Susan, Ian and Barbara
Follows on from An Unearthly Child


 Background

Only the second ever Doctor Who story to be aired, The Daleks can be quite a daunting serial to watch for the uninitiated – even hard-core fans of the classic era have been known to find it hard going, and I certainly did the first time I watched it. Re-watching it, however, having become more familiar with the First Doctor and his companions and the structure of their stories, I find it quite delightful, packed full of character insight and development.

This is one of those stories where the gulf between the old and the new is at its widest, so it is important to bear in mind the difference in structure between Doctor Who in 1963 and the 21st century rebooted show. When we modern viewers look back on classic serials like this one, we tend to think of each multi-episode adventure as the equivalent of a single episode of the rebooted show, and are therefore aghast at the thought of that single episode plot being stretched out across seven instalments. Yet taking that approach to this story does it a huge disservice because it was never intended to be viewed in that way– just as a marathon cannot be viewed in the same way as a sprint. A serial like The Daleks has more in common with a mini-series like Torchwood's Children of Earth, in fact, in that although the episodes are not standalone, they are self-contained, each telling its own smaller story which then feeds into the next, all adding together and building to form the larger whole; although the complete mini-series may be considered as one story, those episodes were made to be viewed individually, over a period of time.

When The Daleks began its run, in December 1963, it was not known by that name, nor was it known to viewers that this was going to be a seven-episode adventure that could later be known under that umbrella title, because every episode of the show had its own title and all formed part of one long ongoing story. So, for instance, what we now consider to be the opening episode of this serial, the episode titled 'The Dead Planet', was to viewers simply the fifth instalment of the ongoing story of the Doctor and his companions, picking up where the last episode, 'The Fire-maker', left off. When approached in that way, the structure and pace of the serial begin to make a lot more sense.

Bearing all of this in mind, therefore, The Daleks is best approached not as a single entity with one plot stretched thin across seven episodes, which it isn't – the primary story arc running through the serial in fact divides neatly into two main plotlines, the one laying the groundwork for and setting up the other – but rather as a series of individual episodes, each a discrete entity with its own story to tell while also adding up to a larger whole. The overall story is long and drags a bit in places, there's no doubt about that, but the focus is largely on the characters rather than the plot, which is always going to be the way to my heart. So, if you watch this serial expecting it to be one long exciting story all about Daleks from start to finish, you are going to be sorely disappointed and also rather bored, but if you watch it as it was intended, with each 25-minute episode viewed on its own terms as part of an ongoing story about the characters and their adventures, it is a lovely serial to watch.

That said, this is the Doctor's first encounter with the Daleks, and is well worth watching for that reason alone. Just think about it for a moment. That long and tangled history he has with them, all those furious confrontations and epic battles, the Time War and the destruction of Gallifrey…all of that can be traced back to this story, this first encounter, which set the tone for everything that has followed. For anyone who ever watched the Ninth Doctor adventure Dalek and wondered what the backstory was, well, that backstory begins right here, in The Daleks.

Wednesday 8 January 2014

Doctor Who 1.01 An Unearthly Child



The First Doctor with Susan, Ian and Barbara

DOCTOR: "We are not of this race. We are not of this Earth. We are wanderers in the fourth dimensions of space and time, cut off from our own planet and our own people by aeons and universes that are far beyond the reach of your most advanced sciences."


Background

It is said that the past is a foreign country, they do things different there – and this is certainly true of the world of television. That being the case, it isn't easy for a modern viewer, trained to expect particular narrative and production styles, to go back to the very beginning of Doctor Who and re-watch episodes that were made in 1963, when everything about the nature of television was so very different.

Veterans of twenty-first century television are accustomed to fast-paced and sophisticated productions stuffed with action and witty banter, shows with high production values and glossy special effects, utilising the very latest in rapidly developing technology and filmed in high definition for a digital age. We are able to record our shows or buy them on DVD so that we can re-watch them over and over, scrutinising every tiniest detail and analysing frame-by-frame, gathering online the moment each new episode ends in order to dissect and discuss what we just saw. Twenty-first century television is an immersive, interactive experience that can be re-lived over and over, squeezing every last nuance out of each and every frame, with intricate story arcs woven through seasons and intertwined with intense emotional character arcs – arcs that are built, in fact, around the knowledge that viewers can and will re-watch every episode over and over, often in marathon viewing sessions, and are designed to reward such dedication.

In 1963, however, television was still in its infancy and was a very ephemeral, throwaway medium. Doctor Who was created as a low budget, educational tea-time science fiction show aimed primarily at children, with the expectation that each episode would be aired once and once only. The show was structured as an ongoing serial, with each 25 minute instalment leading directly into the next – there was no such thing as a standalone episode; there was simply the show: one long, ongoing adventure. Since each episode could only be seen once, the show had to tell simple, straight-forward stories that could be easily followed from one week to the next, focusing on the characters and how they handled whatever situation they found themselves in, rather than on intricately convoluted plots and sub-plots requiring multiple viewings to grasp all the nuances. The cast rehearsed during the week, but then filmed each episode 'as live', with each scene shot in sequence, usually in a single take; if a mistake was made, so long as it wasn't catastrophic they simply had to carry on, as there wasn't time to re-shoot. The show was filmed mainly on set, with little or nothing in the way of special effects or post-production – indeed, watching the 26 years of the classic show in chronological order is quite an education in the gradual evolution of televisual technology through the 1960s-80s. Between the mistakes, primitive sets, theatrical acting styles and use of heavy, static cameras, the early episodes can have the feel of a filmed stage play rather than a television drama, relying on the imagination of the viewer to fill in the gaps.

Almost everything about the structure and production of those earliest seasons feels alien to a modern viewer, accustomed to hi-tech and fast-paced shows to match our hi-tech and fast-paced lifestyles, but we should be careful not to impose modern expectations onto vintage television. Just because something is old and outdated doesn't mean it has nothing to offer. Classic shows such as Doctor Who can never conform to modern standards because they were made for a very different age and for very different viewing habits, but if we adjust our expectations to meet the show on its own terms and watch it in the spirit with which it was made, if we can take our foot off the gas long enough to appreciate a simpler story told at a slower pace, the experience can be tremendously rewarding. Although it might come as quite a culture shock to the uninitiated, for those able to overcome that culture barrier and accept it for what it is instead of dismissing it for what it isn't, the early show is rich in characters and ideas and feels wonderfully fresh and free. Everything about Doctor Who was brand new in 1963. There was no set formula to adhere to, no constraint imposed by backstory or tradition – the fledgling show was free to explore its concept to the full, limited only by what could be achieved by 1960s television production.

These early adventures form the origin story of the Doctor, the story of how he came to fall in love with the human race, the story of how he became the hero that later generations have come to take so much for granted. And for those able to look past the serialised narrative structure, primitive production values and theatrical acting style to fully engage with the characters and their situation, those first seasons of the show are tremendous fun to watch.

Tuesday 3 July 2012

LORELAI: Michel, get that please.
MICHEL: I cannot.
LORELAI: Michel, we’ve been over this: we all cover the phone. That includes you.
MICHEL: Don’t misunderstand. I want to answer it, I truly do, but today, today I am suffering from ennui.
LORELAI: Ennui?
MICHEL: Severe ennui. You know what ennui is, yes?
LORELAI: Yes. Um, Webster’s defines ennui as a lazy, soon-to-be-out-of-work French concierge who won’t answer the phone.
MICHEL: Look, I’ve made my peace with the fact that everyone who calls here is a notch above brain dead, and that the pennies I am thrown each week are in exchange for me dealing with these people in a non-violent manner. And usually that is fine, but today…sorry, lady: I have ennui.
LORELAI: So, you’re sleepy?
MICHEL: It’s a metaphysical angst.
LORELAI: So, you wanna go beddy-bye?
MICHEL: You make light, it increases my ennui.
Gilmore Girls ~ Love, Daisies and Troubadours

Tuesday 10 April 2012

Scott & Bailey quotes

RACHEL: "Why would you tie a dog collar around someone's neck and set fire to them?"
JANET:  "Well, if you're a psychopathic murdering nutter, why wouldn't you?"

~ Scott & Bailey

Monday 2 April 2012

Doctor Who quotes

SARAH: “How long have we been travelling?”
DOCTOR: “Hmm? What did you say?”
SARAH: “You promised me we’d be back in London five minutes before leaving Loch Ness.”
DOCTOR: “Did I?”
SARAH: “Oh, you’re trying to wriggle out of it.”
DOCTOR: “Wriggle out of what?”
SARAH: “Your promise.”
DOCTOR: “Listen, we’re on the edge of a time-space vortex and you’re talking in minutes.”
SARAH: “Oh, I see. What’s gone wrong this time?”
DOCTOR: “Nothing. Nothing at all. What makes you think something’s gone wrong?”
SARAH: “Because you always get rude when you’re trying to cover up a mistake.”
DOCTOR: “Nothing of consequence. Slight overshoot, easily rectified.”
SARAH: “Come on, where are we?”
DOCTOR: “We’ve come out of the time vortex at the wrong point, that’s all. A few years too late.”
SARAH: “How many?”
DOCTOR: “Thirty thousand.”
Planet of Evil

Thursday 1 March 2012

Doctor Who - Ark in Space

Ten Reasons Why I Love Harry Sullivan


  1. So pretty! Check out the eyes and the curls and the epic sideburns!
  2. He’s wonderfully laid back, which stands him in good stead where travelling with the Doctor is concerned; once the initial culture shock has worn off, he just takes all the crazy completely in his stride!
  3. He may not always fully understand what’s going on, but he’s always willing to pitch in and help.
  4. He’s brave. He gets scared when faced with deadly danger on alien planets, and is man enough that he can admit it, but he never runs and hides; he faces danger head on and doesn’t let fear stop him doing the right thing.
  5. He’s so very well meaning and so endearingly apologetic about his clumsiness.
  6. He’s capable of so much more than he thinks he is, as the Doctor proves many times during their adventures – be it operating wildly futuristic technology, performing an autopsy on a giant space bug, or sabotaging a Sontaran spaceship…if asked, Harry will give it a go and always succeeds.
  7. He’s the perfect English gentleman and officer, always so impeccably turned out – but he can also handle himself in a fight and isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty for the greater good.
  8. He’s so very jolly hockey-sticks – such a natural cheer-leader, always so enthusiastic and congratulatory about other peoples’ success, and utterly sincere with it, absolutely adorable.
  9. He saves the Doctor’s life several times over during their adventures together – including one time while concussed and a prisoner, and no one ever finds out that he did it.
  10. He has a healer’s instinct: if he sees someone sick or injured, he rushes straight to them, without hesitation, to see what he can do for them.
  11. He is not an imbecile.
  12. He’s a sweetheart. ‘Nuff said!

Wednesday 28 December 2011

Doctor Who quotes

Lily: "What's happening?"
Doctor: "No idea. Do what I do. Hold on and pretend it's a plan."

Doctor Who: The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe