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Doctor Who – The Master Summons the Sea Devil

An evening pause: I never watched Dr. Who, so I have no idea if this clip is a typical representation of the show. Its schlockiness however is quite impressive.

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20 comments

  • Mitch S

    Pertwee!
    The third Doctor was considered the “James Bond” of doctors.
    It was the early 70’s so the success of Bond type action heroes had an influence.
    Pertwee’s Doctor’s charm doesn’t show much in this clip.
    That sea creature is hilarious – “the Beeb” didn’t give Dr Who an effects budget like Star Trek had (tight as that was) but the obvious costumes and limitations of the effects added to the charm of the series.
    “The Master” is one of Dr Who’s prime adversaries. Both Dr Who and The Master were runaways from their home planet (so they both had time travel machines) but with very different attitudes.

  • t-dub

    I always liked Perter Davidson and Tom Baker playing The Doctor.

  • Col Beausabre

    The shlockiness is its charm

  • wayne

    Mitch-
    good summary!
    –Are you familiar with Blake’s 7?

    t-dub-
    My wife was a big Tom Baker fan.
    (Given that the Dr. has been played by multiple actors, my general theory on “which Dr. is best”—if one likes Dr. WHO, they tend to like the Dr. they first experienced.)

    Mr. Z.,
    Dr. WHO, — started in 1963 on BBC. It was definitely aimed at children. As Mitch notes, they didn’t have a large budget and location scenes were shot at various unused quarries and abandoned industrial sites. On the upside, they had access to all manner of historical sets & costumes from the BBC. A lot of the early episodes were historical dramas where the Dr. would be inserted into events.
    His space-time machine is called the TARDIS*, and the ongoing ‘joke’ is that it is “bigger on the inside than the outside.”(*time and relative dimensions in space)
    This was an episodic show of 20-ish minute shorts, we would recognize it as a Serial in multiple chapters. When they imported it to the USA most stations would combine the chapters into a single 90+ minute episode.
    (Primarily shown on PBS stations.)

    The 1st episode, with William Hartnell, is available. He was the Dr. from 1963-1966.
    Patrick Troughton starred from 1966-1969, and Jon Pertwee from 1970-1974.
    (Many of the of these episodes (63′ – 74′) are lost or only exist in fragments.)

    Personally– Jon Pertwee is my favorite. In his iteration he’s basically trapped on Earth and begins working with the top-secret british intelligence force known as UNIT.

    All Doctor Who Title Sequences
    https://youtu.be/QNszKKAtEwU
    10:55

  • wayne

    “Blake’s 7, a science fiction television series, originally ran for four seasons on BBC One, from 1978 to 1981. Created by Terry Nation.” (Nation created the Dalek’s for Dr. Who.)
    “In the far future, mankind has reached out into space, beyond the confines of its own solar system, discovering and colonizing new worlds. A single ruling body – the Federation – governs Earth’s empire with an iron fist. For the vast majority of citizens life is hard. Personal freedoms are severely restricted and free speech is prohibited.”
    “Blake’s 7’s narrative concerns the exploits of political dissident Roj Blake, who leads a small group of rebels against the forces of the totalitarian Terran Federation that rules the Earth and many colonized planets. The Federation uses mass surveillance, brainwashing and drug pacification to control its citizens. Blake was arrested, tried on false charges, and deported to a remote penal colony. En route, he and fellow prisoners Jenna Stannis and Kerr Avon gain control of a technologically advanced alien spacecraft, which its central computer Zen informs them is named Liberator. Liberator’s speed and weaponry are superior to Federation craft, and it also has a teleportation system that enables transport to the surface of planets. Blake and his crew begin a campaign to damage the Federation but are pursued by Space Commander Travis—a Federation soldier—and Servalan, the Supreme Commander and later Federation President.”

    Blakes 7 S01 E01
    “The Way Back”
    https://youtu.be/2warRbMFOpk
    1:11:24

  • Jeff Wright

    Sputnik III and Vostok inspired Daleks and Sontaran craft perhaps. Jon’s son was Alfred in Gotham.

  • Jay

    I grew up with Doctor Who in the 80’s, it was broadcasted on the local PBS station on Saturdays along with Blake’s 7 and Red Dwarf. Yes, the special effects were not great, but the original series had one thing that tv shows now and the current Doctor Who series do not have: a good plot! I quit watching the new series when Matt Smith played the Doctor.

    Watching this clip I noticed the microphone at 1:40! These things often got through editing. My favorite funny part was the episode “Horns of the Nimon” when one of the guards is killed and he splits his pants wide open.

  • wayne

    Jay–
    yeah, early 80’s PBS for me as well.
    I’ve watched a few episodes of the current iteration– terrible woke junk. They did to Dr. Who what they did to Star Trek.

    Daleks were very popular in England, and they did make 2 feature films, which are totally unlike the tv show.

    Dr. Who And The Daleks Trailer (1965)
    Peter Cushing
    https://youtu.be/hkC2JgC9CR4
    3:04

    Dalek Invasion Earth Trailer 2150
    Peter Cushing
    https://youtu.be/jbywMLdHfTk
    4:05

  • wayne

    ah… that should be–

    Daleks’ Invasion Earth: 2150 A.D. Cinema Trailer
    https://youtu.be/aHSyoMPQibI
    2:33

  • t-dub

    Wayne, I can see your point in that people like the first Doctor they experienced. I liked Peter Davidson because he wore that sprig of celery on his lapel (fifth Doctor 1981–1984), and Tom Baker (fourth Doctor 1974–1981) for the outrageously long scarves. I also really liked David Tennant as well (Doctor #10 2005–2010), in fact, personality/acting wise he was my favorite.

  • Jeff Wright

    “Genesis of the Daleks” is my favorite.
    Catch that one Mr. Z.

  • Col Beausabre

    “You will be assimilated”

  • Jay

    Wayne,
    Yes, I have seen those movies.

    Jeff Wright,
    “Genesis of the Daleks” is my favorite episode as well. One more to watch, “The Dominators” is underrated episode that gets a bad rap due to the comical “Quark” robots and how the Dominators easily conquered the planet that was inhabited by hippies.

  • wayne

    I must nominate an episode to watch:
    “The War Games”

    “The seventh and final serial of the sixth season of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which originally aired in ten weekly parts (250 minutes) from 19 April to 21 June 1969. An unnamed alien race led by the War Lord (Philip Madoc) kidnap and brainwash soldiers from wars throughout Earth’s history to fight in war games on another planet as part of the aliens’ plot to conquer the galaxy. The Second Doctor (Patrick Troughton) and his travelling companions Jamie McCrimmon (Frazer Hines) and Zoe Heriot (Wendy Padbury) form a resistance army to stop this plot and to return the kidnapped soldier’s home.
    This was the last regular appearance of Troughton as the Doctor and the last serial to be recorded in black and white. It also marks the last regular appearances of Padbury and Hines as companions Zoe and Jamie and sees both the first naming and first appearance of the Doctor’s race, the Time Lords.”
    “[After saving everyone] the Time Lords place the War Lord on trial and dematerialize him. They erase Zoe and Jamie’s memories of travelling with the Doctor and return them to the respective point in time when each of them first entered the TARDIS. They then place the Doctor on trial for stealing the TARDIS and breaking the rule of non-interference. The Doctor presents a spirited defense, citing his many battles against the evils of the universe. Accepting this defense, the Time Lords announce that his punishment is exile to Earth in the 20th century. He points out he is too well known on Earth, so the Time Lords tell him he will change his appearance, as he has before…..”
    And then we get Jon Pertwee!!

  • wayne

    Dr Who Review, Part 4 –
    ” The Jon Pertwee Era”
    Clever Dick Films
    https://youtu.be/zH-tlUZtrdw
    37:07

    (-this guy has a whole series, which is very well put together, short & concise.)

  • pzatchok

    I like all the Doctors, each for different reasons.

    Yes even the new woke doctor. Ignoring the outright woke indoctrination of some of the episodes.
    Even the old stories had a little wokeness to them in their stories. They were in ways written to make you think about the differences in mans timeline. Not as blatant as the new doctor but they are still there.

    But schlocky is a great term for the series.

  • sippin_bourbon

    First Doctor I saw was Peter Davidson, my preference is Tom Baker.

  • wayne

    sippin_bourbon–>

    Dr Who Review, Part 5 –
    “The Tom Baker Era”
    Clever Dick Films (2018)
    https://youtu.be/Wm-DM6Hx82M
    1:02:04

  • pzatchok

    I wonder who got all the sonic screw drivers?

  • wayne

    pzatchok-
    (I’m not actually a Whovian, but fortunately a lot of people on the internet are.)

    Doctor Who –
    “Every Use of the Sonic Screwdriver: 1968-2020”
    https://youtu.be/Ez16dYoaj5E
    23:09

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