Which Who Stories Have you seen lately?

I’ll admit to being rather biased towards the early Smith stuff- given how young I am, I became a fan of the classic series after series 5 as it hooked me enough to check out the old stuff (the RTD era hadn’t captivated me at that age, interestingly ). I acknowledge the flaws of Smith’s era, but his early stuff is the one era of New Who I will still gladly go back to, albeit mainly for personal reasons.

Though it is tainted by the later Moffat era, admittedly.

Perfectly understandable.
At the end of the day, personal nostalgia for different eras of the show is a big part of the reason we are all here.

Although I try to not let nostalgia influence my capacity for critical analysis. I have much more affection for the original run either way, hence why I joined this forum as opposed to the rest. That, and the other forums seem to be populated by sheep based on what others have said here, and you aren’t silenced for speaking your mind on this forum.

Re-watched Horror of Fang Rock after hearing of Terrance Dicks’ passing. Superlative Who. The lighthouse setting is brilliantly implemented to reinforce the story’s claustrophobic atmosphere, the guest cast are all brilliantly played, and Tom Baker is on top form too (probably one of his finest Who performances). The final scene where he recites Wilfrid Gibson’s poem ‘Flannan Isle’ (1912) is a testament to Dicks’ eloquent and literary stance to scriptwriting- it’s beautifully interwoven into the scene without coming across as forced as it poetically summarises the story as a whole, and Tom’s delivery of it is magnetic. Brilliant.

Bernard Marx wrote:Re-watched Horror of Fang Rock after hearing of Terrance Dicks’ passing. Superlative Who. The lighthouse setting is brilliantly implemented to reinforce the story’s claustrophobic atmosphere, the guest cast are all brilliantly played, and Tom Baker is on top form too (probably one of his finest Who performances). The final scene where he recites Wilfrid Gibson’s poem ‘Flannan Isle’ (1912) is a testament to Dicks’ eloquent and literary stance to scriptwriting- it’s beautifully interwoven into the scene without coming across as forced as it poetically summarises the story as a whole, and Tom’s delivery of it is magnetic. Brilliant.

Agreed. Fang Rock is a classic and the ending still haunts me to this day.

Gonna re-watch State Of Decay later.

Mercury wrote:

Bernard Marx wrote:Re-watched Horror of Fang Rock after hearing of Terrance Dicks’ passing. Superlative Who. The lighthouse setting is brilliantly implemented to reinforce the story’s claustrophobic atmosphere, the guest cast are all brilliantly played, and Tom Baker is on top form too (probably one of his finest Who performances). The final scene where he recites Wilfrid Gibson’s poem ‘Flannan Isle’ (1912) is a testament to Dicks’ eloquent and literary stance to scriptwriting- it’s beautifully interwoven into the scene without coming across as forced as it poetically summarises the story as a whole, and Tom’s delivery of it is magnetic. Brilliant.

Agreed. Fang Rock is a classic and the ending still haunts me to this day.

Gonna re-watch State Of Decay later.

I was planning on doing the same thing!

Mercury wrote:

Bernard Marx wrote:Re-watched Horror of Fang Rock after hearing of Terrance Dicks’ passing. Superlative Who. The lighthouse setting is brilliantly implemented to reinforce the story’s claustrophobic atmosphere, the guest cast are all brilliantly played, and Tom Baker is on top form too (probably one of his finest Who performances). The final scene where he recites Wilfrid Gibson’s poem ‘Flannan Isle’ (1912) is a testament to Dicks’ eloquent and literary stance to scriptwriting- it’s beautifully interwoven into the scene without coming across as forced as it poetically summarises the story as a whole, and Tom’s delivery of it is magnetic. Brilliant.

Agreed. Fang Rock is a classic and the ending still haunts me to this day.

Gonna re-watch State Of Decay later.

Sounds dumb.

The last story I watched was Density of the Daleks.

Biff Tannen wrote:

Mercury wrote:

Bernard Marx wrote:Re-watched Horror of Fang Rock after hearing of Terrance Dicks’ passing. Superlative Who. The lighthouse setting is brilliantly implemented to reinforce the story’s claustrophobic atmosphere, the guest cast are all brilliantly played, and Tom Baker is on top form too (probably one of his finest Who performances). The final scene where he recites Wilfrid Gibson’s poem ‘Flannan Isle’ (1912) is a testament to Dicks’ eloquent and literary stance to scriptwriting- it’s beautifully interwoven into the scene without coming across as forced as it poetically summarises the story as a whole, and Tom’s delivery of it is magnetic. Brilliant.

Agreed. Fang Rock is a classic and the ending still haunts me to this day.

Gonna re-watch State Of Decay later.

Sounds dumb.

Hey lighten up jerk!

My eyes must be screwed up. What did this son of a bitch just call me?

Mercury wrote:

Biff Tannen wrote:

Mercury wrote:

Bernard Marx wrote:Re-watched Horror of Fang Rock after hearing of Terrance Dicks’ passing. Superlative Who. The lighthouse setting is brilliantly implemented to reinforce the story’s claustrophobic atmosphere, the guest cast are all brilliantly played, and Tom Baker is on top form too (probably one of his finest Who performances). The final scene where he recites Wilfrid Gibson’s poem ‘Flannan Isle’ (1912) is a testament to Dicks’ eloquent and literary stance to scriptwriting- it’s beautifully interwoven into the scene without coming across as forced as it poetically summarises the story as a whole, and Tom’s delivery of it is magnetic. Brilliant.

Agreed. Fang Rock is a classic and the ending still haunts me to this day.

Gonna re-watch State Of Decay later.

Sounds dumb.

Hey lighten up jerk!

Are those two creeps in your profile picture your parents? 

3-D and the rest of the gang will be crying with laughter when I tell me them about you!

Biff Tannen wrote:

Mercury wrote:

Biff Tannen wrote:

Mercury wrote:

Bernard Marx wrote:Re-watched Horror of Fang Rock after hearing of Terrance Dicks’ passing. Superlative Who. The lighthouse setting is brilliantly implemented to reinforce the story’s claustrophobic atmosphere, the guest cast are all brilliantly played, and Tom Baker is on top form too (probably one of his finest Who performances). The final scene where he recites Wilfrid Gibson’s poem ‘Flannan Isle’ (1912) is a testament to Dicks’ eloquent and literary stance to scriptwriting- it’s beautifully interwoven into the scene without coming across as forced as it poetically summarises the story as a whole, and Tom’s delivery of it is magnetic. Brilliant.

Agreed. Fang Rock is a classic and the ending still haunts me to this day.

Gonna re-watch State Of Decay later.

Sounds dumb.

Hey lighten up jerk!

Are those two creeps in your profile picture your parents? 

3-D and the rest of the gang will be crying with laughter when I tell me them about you!

Shouldn't you be rubbing your grandma's toes?

I've finished your homework, Biff. I'll give it to you at school tomorrow.

George McFly wrote:I've finished your homework, Biff. I'll give it to you at school tomorrow.

Hey, ̶D̶̶a̶̶d̶ George!

The Daemons.
Rightly hailed as a classic, this is one of the best 'UNIT family' stories, where everyone gets a bit of representation. The Doctor is a right grumpy sod in this though.
As a fan of Hammer Horror and supernatural horror films of that ilk, this presses a few extra buttons for me, even if it's explained away in a Sci-Fi context, (as is to be expected) it does it very well.
Delgado is at his best, and the whole cast seem to be thoroughly engaged.
It has a serious tone, but also has fun and adventure. A triumph for Barry Letts and the team. 9/10.

Currently enjoying 'The War Games' (as a sort of mini tribute to Terrance Dicks) and loving it.  NuWho types often criticise the classic series for being slow and talky but episode 1 of TWG is fast-paced, frenetic and full of action, right from the very start.  It's also quite bleak and grim and slightly more adult in tone.

Kaijuko wrote:Currently enjoying 'The War Games' (as a sort of mini tribute to Terrance Dicks) and loving it.  NuWho types often criticise the classic series for being slow and talky but episode 1 of TWG is fast-paced, frenetic and full of action, right from the very start.  It's also quite bleak and grim and slightly more adult in tone.

Probably my all time favourite story (though this may change with time). It encapsulates all that I love about 60s Who.

On another note, I am yet again undecided as to which Who story I should watch next.

The Romans:
Quite possibly the funniest Doctor Who story of all time, next to Mad Dogs and Englishmen. Love the comfy atmosphere, and there is never a dull moment. My second favourite Hartnell story, and my favourite from Season 2, a Season that I find extremely strong in the first place.
Also Ian, Barbara and Vicki is miles better than Ian, Barbara and Susan.

SomeCallMeEnglishGiraffe wrote:The Romans:
Quite possibly the funniest Doctor Who story of all time, next to Mad Dogs and Englishmen. Love the comfy atmosphere, and there is never a dull moment. My second favourite Hartnell story, and my favourite from Season 2, a Season that I find extremely strong in the first place.
Also Ian, Barbara and Vicki is miles better than Ian, Barbara and Susan.

Hartnell is on top form in that one. Definitely my favourite story from the second season as well.

I decided to settle with a Who story randomiser as to direct me to a story to watch, and I got Mindwarp. It’s one hell of a fucking mess. The script is inherently incoherent as a result of the Trial segments (we’re never told whether the Doctor is truly behaving psychopathically or whether the entire scenario is fraudulent due to a lack of communication behind the scenes), the tone is just bizarre, and the acting is possibly the hammiest in any Who story (albeit not necessarily in a charming way due to how strange and garish the overall tone and look of the story is). There’s some distinctively poor dialogue too which comes across as tacky due to the lack of intelligent subtext, ‘Skedaddle test...’ ‘Your revoltingly ugly assistant...’ etc. I won’t call it the worst classic story of all time as some here think, but it does seem to get worse the more one thinks about it.

Commander Maxil wrote:

SomeCallMeEnglishGiraffe wrote:The Romans:
Quite possibly the funniest Doctor Who story of all time, next to Mad Dogs and Englishmen. Love the comfy atmosphere, and there is never a dull moment. My second favourite Hartnell story, and my favourite from Season 2, a Season that I find extremely strong in the first place.
Also Ian, Barbara and Vicki is miles better than Ian, Barbara and Susan.

Hartnell is on top form in that one. Definitely my favourite story from the second season as well.

I thoroughly enjoy it too.

Bernard Marx wrote:I decided to settle with a Who story randomiser as to direct me to a story to watch, and I got Mindwarp. It’s one hell of a fucking mess. The script is inherently incoherent as a result of the Trial segments (we’re never told whether the Doctor is truly behaving psychopathically or whether the entire scenario is fraudulent due to a lack of communication behind the scenes), the tone is just bizarre, and the acting is possibly the hammiest in any Who story (albeit not necessarily in a charming way due to how strange and garish the overall tone and look of the story is). There’s some distinctively poor dialogue too which comes across as tacky due to the lack of intelligent subtext, ‘Skedaddle test...’ ‘Your revoltingly ugly assistant...’ etc. I won’t call it the worst classic story of all time as some here think, but it does seem to get worse the more one thinks about it.

It's absolutely ghastly. The fact that the BBC robbed us of the freemen's final stand against the Tripods and gave us tripe like Mindwarp instead makes me very sad indeed.

I think there could have been a decent story in there, but it’s so garishly and badly realised that it completely kills it. To be honest, the only segment of season 23 I still like is The Ultimate Foe, and even that’s dragged down by a poor final episode. The season’s an utter mess from a narrative perspective, and it’s a shame Grade came in and fucked the series over when he did. It just seems to get worse with age, though I’ll still take it over quite a few New Who seasons personally. In fact, I’ll take it over every New Who season post series 6, as well as series 2, which says it all really.

It wasn't all doom and gloom. McCoy and Cartmel were just on the horizon.

Commander Maxil wrote:It wasn't all doom and gloom. McCoy and Cartmel were just on the horizon.

Without a doubt. Things would improve rather quickly afterwards, and I adore seasons 25 and 26. Though I do wish Colin wasn’t treated as badly as he was and managed to actually extend his character progression from season 22 and gain a few more seasons in that vein, as opposed to being completely re-characterised into a bumbling caricature of himself in 23 and then subsequently be fired by Grade.