tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-26857238821444793962024-03-28T02:09:35.495+00:00Ray Hardgrit's Sci-Fi AdventuresExploring universes with rubbish fuzzy DVD screencaps!Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.comBlogger373125tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-71766638493425920912023-12-27T04:57:00.006+00:002023-12-29T19:00:07.104+00:00Doctor Who (2023) - Christmas 2023: The Church on Ruby Road (Quick Review)<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPWsvIWPBQjTg_pELwY3mdkIrOEOQYimS6ebrLCBZoU7hhKRb_F-_PEMpU_MPDpjERQOPshL5sr6PyK5hb6f1XRsFz2w8GIsRGbl4BH0Lrmb0QD7VYHzn3dTaRsjp6Vc7CEM6akJwvfvB3qKBy0FwrjH0Lb7ljMphmiIv0VrIZ7HaWHzWyyjeY14YMH6VH/s1280/Doctor_Who_(2023)_The_Church_on_Ruby_Road_title.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="638" data-original-width="1280" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgPWsvIWPBQjTg_pELwY3mdkIrOEOQYimS6ebrLCBZoU7hhKRb_F-_PEMpU_MPDpjERQOPshL5sr6PyK5hb6f1XRsFz2w8GIsRGbl4BH0Lrmb0QD7VYHzn3dTaRsjp6Vc7CEM6akJwvfvB3qKBy0FwrjH0Lb7ljMphmiIv0VrIZ7HaWHzWyyjeY14YMH6VH/w640-h320/Doctor_Who_(2023)_The_Church_on_Ruby_Road_title.jpg" width="640"></a></div><table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">875</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Serial:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">304</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writer:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Russell T Davies<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Mark Tonderai<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">25-Dec-2023</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm writing about <i>The Church on Ruby Road</i>. Because I said I would, and it'd be weird not to after covering the other three 2023 specials. Plus this is a big deal. It's the first episode of the <i>Fifteenth Doctor's</i> era of <i>Doctor Who!</i><br><br>It's going to be hard for Ncuti Gatwa to follow David Tennant, one of the most beloved Doctors in the series' history, but Matt Smith has already proved that it can be done. I'm not worried, as there has never been a bad Doctor in the series' entire history. Though sometimes good Doctors get stuck in a string of mediocre stories that prevent them from really shining. I'm sure there's no way that's going to happen to Ncuti though. Probably.<br><br>There will be <b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILERS</span></b> below, but nothing for stories that come after this.<br><br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/12/doctor-who-2023-christmas-2023-church.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com1tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-64288394129200084602023-12-22T21:13:00.013+00:002023-12-23T22:42:28.889+00:00Doctor Who (2023): The Giggle<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHu-XXSP73V_ODhzpqrw4Mm1sad0uf5DhXkm0At9p5GbX3GeBaYAZYX9KJ9ivFHTutOhymavP63NA9ErFRKV-SlJpfWoomluI4KPpYI2r9KU_7hlLrTqC1UVjB1E8BpF-RmVILufjM9ClD3-au3vGKGiSuqyhfIltKBegZmdVVYAUArmiHqpV9pKtdppUf/s1280/Doctor_Who_2023_60th_The_Giggle_01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="638" data-original-width="1280" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhHu-XXSP73V_ODhzpqrw4Mm1sad0uf5DhXkm0At9p5GbX3GeBaYAZYX9KJ9ivFHTutOhymavP63NA9ErFRKV-SlJpfWoomluI4KPpYI2r9KU_7hlLrTqC1UVjB1E8BpF-RmVILufjM9ClD3-au3vGKGiSuqyhfIltKBegZmdVVYAUArmiHqpV9pKtdppUf/w640-h320/Doctor_Who_2023_60th_The_Giggle_01.jpg" width="640"></a></div><table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">874</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Serial:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">303</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writer:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Russell T Davies<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Chanya Button<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">09-Dec-2023</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm watching the third and final <i>Doctor Who</i> 60th Anniversary special, <i>The Giggle</i>. That's seriously the title they went with. That's going to be stuck with us in episode lists forever now. Still, at least it's easier to spell than <i><a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2018/11/doctor-who-11-05-tsuranga-conundrum.html">The Tsuranga Conundrum</a></i> or <a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2018/12/doctor-who-11-10-battle-of-ranskoor-av.html"><i>The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos</i></a>.<br> <br>I just typed those from memory by the way, which I guess proves that my exposure to <i>Doctor Who</i> has gone way beyond safe limits. I can't remember what happened in <i>Flux</i> though, so there's still hope.<br><br>I'm expecting that this is where we see the Fourteenth Doctor regenerate into Ncuti Gatwa, which is a bit sad actually. It's rare that I honestly can say that a Doctor is going too soon, but this time he's<i> really</i> going too soon. Three episodes doesn't quite beat Paul McGann's record of one movie, but it's a lot shorter than Christopher Eccleston's thirteen episodes and even that wasn't enough.<br><br>There will be<b> <span style="color: #990000;">SPOILERS</span></b> below for this story and earlier ones.<br><br>
</div><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/12/doctor-who-2023-giggle.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-90716023021747487062023-12-17T14:36:00.004+00:002023-12-21T15:18:14.292+00:00Doctor Who (2023): Wild Blue Yonder<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_D9kNdWcK3duMqjO_T8KMw3jPlKPtjS8cqolLa8dcRcAD50YhgWYqq_fyu1hyq0GPXCxXA86byrF77TOrPjMuDzWEb7kKrFBlSkS8mYZp7_hyphenhyphenrgjWc7M6qXkXV4e6AgxORsqhAH0IN3Wg8ajV1YRc-ryRaUg27l1p_B56ex-zGRVJaZ2MhcyWUXdu1YHL/s1280/Doctor_Who_2023_60th_Wild_Blue_Yonder_04.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="638" data-original-width="1280" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj_D9kNdWcK3duMqjO_T8KMw3jPlKPtjS8cqolLa8dcRcAD50YhgWYqq_fyu1hyq0GPXCxXA86byrF77TOrPjMuDzWEb7kKrFBlSkS8mYZp7_hyphenhyphenrgjWc7M6qXkXV4e6AgxORsqhAH0IN3Wg8ajV1YRc-ryRaUg27l1p_B56ex-zGRVJaZ2MhcyWUXdu1YHL/s640/Doctor_Who_2023_60th_Wild_Blue_Yonder_04.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
<table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">873</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Serial:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">302</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writer:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Russell T Davies<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Tom Kingsley<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">02-Dec-2023</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm watching the second of
<i>Doctor Who's</i> 60th Anniversary specials, <i>Wild Blue Yonder!</i> Hang on, isn't
that a <i>Futurama </i>episode?<br><br>I've been doing a great job of avoiding learning anything about these specials but I didn't have to try too hard with this one. Seems that they've been extra secretive with it, which raises questions about what they've been hiding. I do know that it way written by showrunner Russell T Davies however, just like the rest of the specials. In fact, <i>all</i> of <i>Doctor Who's</i> specials in the modern era were written or co-written by the current showrunner at the time. What this means is, it's going to be a while before I see someone else's name at the start of one of these episodes.<br><br>There will be <span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>SPOILERS</b></span> below for this episode and earlier ones.<br><br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/12/doctor-who-2023-wild-blue-yonder.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com8tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-38448244664878471842023-12-14T15:29:00.001+00:002023-12-14T15:29:36.266+00:00Doctor Who (2023): The Star Beast - Part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1gu-pmraXoQl1qyZjHHLshYM1vXvqeLPOe-YiHaLUbUp2qFUZwOfBahWYprV8y4bmWWg0wZN-lpBCEAEMaYCjOCMfx6ow4U4LJy6Awt_JI-541v7mBj5VY7uyBYZfB-Q-9k-3vVyYoJHOnHVly0CNSm7DtbdHFGVBTzuYx7mXHzJsJrFHb9fLsd24xTaU/s1280/Doctor_Who_2023_60th_The_Star_Beast_04b.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="639" data-original-width="1280" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1gu-pmraXoQl1qyZjHHLshYM1vXvqeLPOe-YiHaLUbUp2qFUZwOfBahWYprV8y4bmWWg0wZN-lpBCEAEMaYCjOCMfx6ow4U4LJy6Awt_JI-541v7mBj5VY7uyBYZfB-Q-9k-3vVyYoJHOnHVly0CNSm7DtbdHFGVBTzuYx7mXHzJsJrFHb9fLsd24xTaU/w640-h320/Doctor_Who_2023_60th_The_Star_Beast_04b.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm still writing about
<i>The Star Beast</i>, the first of <i>Doctor Who's</i> three 60th Anniversary
specials. You can read
<b><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/12/doctor-who-2023-star-beast-part-1.html">PART ONE</a></b>
by clicking that text.<br><br>I've noticed that a few fans seem disappointed
that we've gotten David Tennant back for three episodes as they wanted to get
straight to Ncuti Gatwa. I guess some people are kind of done with the idea of
returning to older characters and legacy actors in general, after the onslaught
of nostalgia we've had this past decade.<br><br>In the last 8 years we've
had movies and series starring Luke Skywalker and Han Solo, Mulder and Scully,
Jean-Luc Picard and Seven of Nine, Neo and Trinity, Rocky Balboa, John Rambo,
Laurie Strode, Maverick, Ewan McGregor's Obi-Wan Kenobi, Arnold Schwarzenegger's
Terminator, Michael Keaton's Batman, Indiana Jones, Rick Deckard, Captain John
Sheridan and Dave Lister. Plus they just made a game with Peter Weller playing
RoboCop again!<br><br>Personally though, I'm one of the people who keeps
watching all this stuff. In fact, I've been thinking I should check out some Big
Finish audio dramas, where the classic actors have been reprising their roles
consistently for 24 years. It's all good as long as it doesn't get in the way of
new characters and actors being introduced, and I don't think it has in this
case. Filming for the <i>Barbie</i> movie overlapped with the specials so it
doesn't seem like Ncuti Gatwa was ever an option and I'd rather have three bonus
episodes with David Tennant than nothing at all. They can continue giving me
bonus Tennant stories next year as well if they want, I won't complain.<br><br>There
will be <b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILERS</span></b> below, for this and
earlier stories.<br><br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/12/doctor-who-2023-star-beast-part-2.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-21603531920569736792023-12-10T22:21:00.010+00:002023-12-14T15:30:23.159+00:00Doctor Who (2023): The Star Beast - Part 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1gu-pmraXoQl1qyZjHHLshYM1vXvqeLPOe-YiHaLUbUp2qFUZwOfBahWYprV8y4bmWWg0wZN-lpBCEAEMaYCjOCMfx6ow4U4LJy6Awt_JI-541v7mBj5VY7uyBYZfB-Q-9k-3vVyYoJHOnHVly0CNSm7DtbdHFGVBTzuYx7mXHzJsJrFHb9fLsd24xTaU/s1280/Doctor_Who_2023_60th_The_Star_Beast_04b.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="639" data-original-width="1280" height="320" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj1gu-pmraXoQl1qyZjHHLshYM1vXvqeLPOe-YiHaLUbUp2qFUZwOfBahWYprV8y4bmWWg0wZN-lpBCEAEMaYCjOCMfx6ow4U4LJy6Awt_JI-541v7mBj5VY7uyBYZfB-Q-9k-3vVyYoJHOnHVly0CNSm7DtbdHFGVBTzuYx7mXHzJsJrFHb9fLsd24xTaU/w640-h320/Doctor_Who_2023_60th_The_Star_Beast_04b.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
<table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">872</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Serial:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">301</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writer:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Russell T Davies<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Rachel Talalay<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">25-Nov-2023</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm watching the first of Russell T
Davies' 60th Anniversary specials: <i>The Star Beast</i>. That's such a pulp
sci-fi title that it shares its name with a Robert A. Heinlein novel from the
'50s. RTD ain't going with something as ordinary as '<a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2018/10/doctor-who-1-01-rose.html">Rose</a>' this time, we're straight into laser guns and space monsters... presumably. I
haven't seen the trailers and I don't actually know what it's about.<br><br>There's
another familiar RT involved with this: director Rachel Talalay. She missed the
first RTD run and skipped the Jodie Whittaker era, but she was trusted with
every big season finale of the Peter Capaldi era, including
<a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.co.uk/2016/10/doctor-who-9-11-heaven-sent.html"><i>Heaven Sent</i></a>/<a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.co.uk/2016/11/doctor-who-9-12-hell-bent.html"><i>Hell Bent</i></a>
so she's definitely who you want setting the tone for the show's latest
regeneration.<br><br>It seems like they're considering this the start of a
new volume of <i>Doctor Who</i>, with the 2005 Revival ending with
<i><a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2022/10/doctor-who-power-of-doctor-part-1.html">Power of the Doctor</a></i>
last year. I let this information settle into my brain for a bit and I've
decided that I like it. Dividing the show up helps me keep it organised in my
head and after 18 years it could use a bit of a relaunch. Though maybe they
could've waited until <i>after</i> the big nostalgic return of David Tennant to
make a fresh start!<br>
<br>I'm going to be going through the whole episode scene by scene, so beware
of <span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>SPOILERS</b></span>. There are 60 years of this show for me to ruin now, so I won't get greedy and
spoil things that happen in later episodes.<br><br>
<div style="text-align: center;">
<b><a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/12/doctor-who-2023-star-beast-part-1.html#episodestart">CLICK HERE</a>
TO SKIP THE FIRST 11 PICTURES AND JUMP STRAIGHT TO THE START OF THE STORY</b><br>
</div>
<br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/12/doctor-who-2023-star-beast-part-1.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-45436563850257954082023-12-09T13:38:00.002+00:002023-12-09T21:49:56.115+00:00Doctor Who (2005): The Day of the Doctor - Part 3<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA5cGQhtnY_9RFuKeZIDMEw3R8JSFJGSOmNIC2p3bsKqCMCkXHxDmSNu2-FbYxnL22_zkhkZjx7lbl7qi00qFJ1jtBqxIGOEKSTQg2Xm3RadZ0Sh6SGNjOVI3-zms-ydJJ405pRCwVqJL8/s1600/Doctor_Who-The_Day_of_the_Doctor_Title.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA5cGQhtnY_9RFuKeZIDMEw3R8JSFJGSOmNIC2p3bsKqCMCkXHxDmSNu2-FbYxnL22_zkhkZjx7lbl7qi00qFJ1jtBqxIGOEKSTQg2Xm3RadZ0Sh6SGNjOVI3-zms-ydJJ405pRCwVqJL8/s640/Doctor_Who-The_Day_of_the_Doctor_Title.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm writing about the final third of <i>The Day of the Doctor</i>, the epic 50th Anniversary <i>Doctor Who</i> special. Click one of these links to jump to an earlier part: <b><a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/12/doctor-who-2005-day-of-doctor-part-1.html">PART ONE</a></b>, <b><a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/12/doctor-who-2005-day-of-doctor-part-2.html">PART TWO</a></b>.<br> <br>Did you know that the title is shiny 3D, not just flat white? That's just one of the awesome observations you'll be getting as I finally finish taking this episode apart.<br><br>There will be <span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>SPOILERS</b></span> below, for this episode and earlier ones. Otherwise, you should be safe.<br><br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/12/doctor-who-2005-day-of-doctor-part-3.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-64942955909361236442023-12-06T17:36:00.003+00:002023-12-09T13:40:45.276+00:00Doctor Who (2005): The Day of the Doctor - Part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA5cGQhtnY_9RFuKeZIDMEw3R8JSFJGSOmNIC2p3bsKqCMCkXHxDmSNu2-FbYxnL22_zkhkZjx7lbl7qi00qFJ1jtBqxIGOEKSTQg2Xm3RadZ0Sh6SGNjOVI3-zms-ydJJ405pRCwVqJL8/s1600/Doctor_Who-The_Day_of_the_Doctor_Title.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA5cGQhtnY_9RFuKeZIDMEw3R8JSFJGSOmNIC2p3bsKqCMCkXHxDmSNu2-FbYxnL22_zkhkZjx7lbl7qi00qFJ1jtBqxIGOEKSTQg2Xm3RadZ0Sh6SGNjOVI3-zms-ydJJ405pRCwVqJL8/s640/Doctor_Who-The_Day_of_the_Doctor_Title.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I want to go to London and slide down
that railing. <br><br>Anyway, I'm still writing about
<i>The Day of the Doctor</i>, arguably the most special of all of
<i>Doctor Who's</i> anniversary specials. I've reached the middle third of the episode, but you
can
<b><a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/12/doctor-who-2005-day-of-doctor-part-1.html">CLICK HERE</a></b>
to return to part one.<br><br>There will be
<span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>SPOILERS</b></span> here for this and older
stuff, but nothing for newer stuff. I'll mention a few things from the
novelisation as well, which shouldn't be too much of an issue as it's the same
story.<br>
<br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/12/doctor-who-2005-day-of-doctor-part-2.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com12tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-28851014544524350902023-12-05T12:15:00.003+00:002023-12-06T18:13:35.240+00:00Doctor Who (2005): The Day of the Doctor - Part 1<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA5cGQhtnY_9RFuKeZIDMEw3R8JSFJGSOmNIC2p3bsKqCMCkXHxDmSNu2-FbYxnL22_zkhkZjx7lbl7qi00qFJ1jtBqxIGOEKSTQg2Xm3RadZ0Sh6SGNjOVI3-zms-ydJJ405pRCwVqJL8/s1600/Doctor_Who-The_Day_of_the_Doctor_Title.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="360" data-original-width="640" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEgA5cGQhtnY_9RFuKeZIDMEw3R8JSFJGSOmNIC2p3bsKqCMCkXHxDmSNu2-FbYxnL22_zkhkZjx7lbl7qi00qFJ1jtBqxIGOEKSTQg2Xm3RadZ0Sh6SGNjOVI3-zms-ydJJ405pRCwVqJL8/s640/Doctor_Who-The_Day_of_the_Doctor_Title.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
<table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">799</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Serial:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">240</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writer:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Steven Moffat</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Nick Hurran</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">23-Nov-2013</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm writing a bit about
<i>The Day of the Doctor</i>, the 799th episode of <i>Doctor Who! </i>It got
<i>so close</i> to being a milestone in the show's history. People could've
still been talking about this story even now. But nope, it missed out by just
one episode.<br>
<br>However, the story turned 10 years old last month, so I figured that this would
be a good time to write something about it. Speaking of anniversaries,
I've been writing about a lot of anniversary specials lately.
<i><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-10-01-three-doctors.html">The Three Doctors</a></i>
was <i>Doctor Who's</i> 10th,
<i><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-five-doctors-part-1.html">The Five Doctors</a></i>
was the 20th,
<i><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-25-08-silver-nemesis.html">Silver Nemesis</a></i>
was the 25th and
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2018/07/star-trek-deep-space-nine-5-06-trials.html"><i>Trials and Tribble-ations</i></a>
was <i>Deep Space Nine's</i> 30th.<br><br><i>Doctor Who </i>did have a 30th Anniversary special, the <i>Doctor Who/EastEnders</i> crossover
<i>Dimensions in Time</i>, made for Children in Need, but I'll be skipping that.
I've seen it before and once was enough. In fact, it was the first <i>Doctor Who</i> story I ever saw from start to finish. I had no idea what the series was back then, but
after watching <i>Dimensions in Time</i> I knew<i> </i>I didn't like it, and then the<i> </i><a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2018/09/doctor-who-eighth-doctor-era-1996.html">TV movie</a> confirmed it. To be fair, if my first exposure to
<i>Star Wars</i> had been the <i>Holiday Special</i> I probably would've avoided
the rest of that for 20 years as well.<br><br>Anyway, the 40th got nothing
new on television at all, but for the 50th Anniversary the BBC treated fans very well. There was <i>An Adventure in Space and Time</i>, dramatising
William Hartnell's time on the series,
<i>The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot</i> spoof, starring the classic Doctors, and
then there was <i>The Day of the Doctor</i>, the 50th Anniversary special
itself, simultaneously released both on TV and in actual cinemas. In 3D!<br>
<br>These screencaps aren't going to be in 3D, but I'll try to add some depth
to my commentary as I go through the whole damn story scene by scene. Well, the
first third of it a least. Either way, there will be
<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILERS</span></b> below.<br><br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/12/doctor-who-2005-day-of-doctor-part-1.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-77299037088019547892023-11-27T23:48:00.005+00:002023-11-29T00:24:22.312+00:00Doctor Who (2005): The Night of the Doctor<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO5SAvRWuXXTb8mk_XP9Y-4YiTiHZqsoAwJ5KnQYWRbKJ5YXeXsObVa2HWDtJF2hqDPbZiwXB78F6gZ-JjkoMAkI4wwhvrJtCDgwHjqWBPsXY0SOlexcCZIh-aQDdqzNEnPYF6hexrtvz0o5V5_dwdd_7unHEmIOJbR9if6FH3_7KjshXgX1pQyicYrKYY/s1920/Doctor_Who_The_Night_of_the_Doctor_01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="1080" data-original-width="1920" height="360" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhO5SAvRWuXXTb8mk_XP9Y-4YiTiHZqsoAwJ5KnQYWRbKJ5YXeXsObVa2HWDtJF2hqDPbZiwXB78F6gZ-JjkoMAkI4wwhvrJtCDgwHjqWBPsXY0SOlexcCZIh-aQDdqzNEnPYF6hexrtvz0o5V5_dwdd_7unHEmIOJbR9if6FH3_7KjshXgX1pQyicYrKYY/s640/Doctor_Who_The_Night_of_the_Doctor_01.jpg" width="640"></a></div>
<table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;"><tbody>
<tr><td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writer:</td><td style="padding: 4px;">Steven Moffat</td><td style="padding: 4px;">|</td><td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td><td style="padding: 4px;">John Hayes</td><td style="padding: 4px;">|</td><td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Date:</td><td style="padding: 4px;">14-Nov-2013</td></tr>
</tbody></table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm finally writing about <i>The Night of the Doctor</i>, the surprise seven-minute minisode prequel to <i>The Day of the Doctor</i> that just appeared on the internet out of nowhere a week before the 50th Anniversary.<br><br>2013 was a while ago now, and it's maybe hard to imagine what it was like to be a <i>Doctor Who</i> fan back then. It was the end of a Doctor's era, whose final run had been marred by long gaps between poorly received stories. But it was also an anniversary year and people were hyped for the return of familiar faces in a big anniversary special written by one of the series' most beloved writers. So it was basically <i>nothing</i> like 2023...<br><br>No one was hyped for <i>The Night of the Doctor</i> however, in fact they didn't know it was coming at all. But then a few people watched it and afterwards they told their friends to drop everything, <i>stay off Twitter</i>, and watch it themselves. Even knowing what it was about would be too much of a spoiler, all that fans needed to know is that they <i>had</i> to see it.<br><br>So I'll warn you now that there will be <b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILERS</span></b> here, both for the episode and relevant stories leading up to it. I won't spoil anything that happens <i>after</i> this story however, even things that fans at the time would've already known.<br>
<br>
</div><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-2005-night-of-doctor.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-25808761034162500772023-11-27T01:21:00.005+00:002023-11-28T02:24:26.100+00:00Doctor Who (1963) 25-10: Silver Nemesis, Part Three<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiruLN5YP0zPMeZb6orzKyFq8PiushTWC7W6I1p4KFG0RIeBuKPRDm-NKlwB4bbLrzsvVAfCH94po6OLG7sO1CipKn4tsfSLg4cSGykI5zfINI84nD2Wz8QK7nGNBFoWoVveZCZc2mKO4m62lSdTHxo7SnvSIqL94Qw6NxMFtKTNCyTSXqVLustr3UjL5ba/s520/Classic_Doctor_Who_25x08.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="392" data-original-width="520" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiruLN5YP0zPMeZb6orzKyFq8PiushTWC7W6I1p4KFG0RIeBuKPRDm-NKlwB4bbLrzsvVAfCH94po6OLG7sO1CipKn4tsfSLg4cSGykI5zfINI84nD2Wz8QK7nGNBFoWoVveZCZc2mKO4m62lSdTHxo7SnvSIqL94Qw6NxMFtKTNCyTSXqVLustr3UjL5ba/w640-h482/Classic_Doctor_Who_25x08.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
<table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">677</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Serial:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">150</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writer:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Kevin Clarke<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Chris Clough</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">07-Dec-1988</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
Today on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm writing about the final part of the
infamous<i> Silver Nemesis</i>. It's only a three-parter this one. You can click
these links to go to
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-25-08-silver-nemesis.html"><b>PART ONE</b></a>
or
<b><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-25-09-silver-nemesis.html">PART TWO</a></b>.<br><br>There had been other three-parter episodes earlier in the show's run,
even a couple of two-parters, and a one-parter, but the Seventh Doctor era was
when they really became a regular thing. It's a little surprising to me that it
took them so long, as splitting up a story into a beginning, a middle, and an end
seems very natural, and people love their trilogies. Three-parters also have the
advantage, theoretically, of not being padded out with irrelevant scenes and dragging on too long. I'll let you know how
well that worked out in this case.<br><br>This is going to be full of
<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILERS</span></b>, at least up to this point in the series.<br><br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-25-10-silver-nemesis.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com2tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-36187935761768006582023-11-24T22:13:00.005+00:002023-11-24T23:10:42.968+00:00Doctor Who (1963) 25-09: Silver Nemesis, Part Two<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiruLN5YP0zPMeZb6orzKyFq8PiushTWC7W6I1p4KFG0RIeBuKPRDm-NKlwB4bbLrzsvVAfCH94po6OLG7sO1CipKn4tsfSLg4cSGykI5zfINI84nD2Wz8QK7nGNBFoWoVveZCZc2mKO4m62lSdTHxo7SnvSIqL94Qw6NxMFtKTNCyTSXqVLustr3UjL5ba/s520/Classic_Doctor_Who_25x08.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="392" data-original-width="520" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiruLN5YP0zPMeZb6orzKyFq8PiushTWC7W6I1p4KFG0RIeBuKPRDm-NKlwB4bbLrzsvVAfCH94po6OLG7sO1CipKn4tsfSLg4cSGykI5zfINI84nD2Wz8QK7nGNBFoWoVveZCZc2mKO4m62lSdTHxo7SnvSIqL94Qw6NxMFtKTNCyTSXqVLustr3UjL5ba/w640-h482/Classic_Doctor_Who_25x08.jpg" width="640"></a></div>
<table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">676</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Serial:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">150</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writer:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Kevin Clarke<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Chris Clough</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">30-Nov-1988</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
Today on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I've got more <i>Silver Nemesis</i> for you, whether you want it or not. However you can <a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-25-08-silver-nemesis.html"><b>CLICK HERE</b></a> if you'd rather go back to to part one.<br><br><i>Silver Nemesis</i> was writer Kevin Clarke's first serial for <i>Doctor Who</i> and, coincidentally, also his last. Though to be fair, at this point <i>every</i> serial was someone's last, as there were only five more stories left before the classic series got cancelled. <i>Doctor Who</i> did eventually come back, but the writers didn't (except for Rona Munro, who returned to write one of Peter Capaldi's final episodes).<br><br>
There will be <span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>SPOILERS</b></span> here for this episode and earlier stories. You don't have to worry about me spoiling anything that happens later though.<br>
<br>
</div><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-25-09-silver-nemesis.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-87677320511769423612023-11-24T00:01:00.006+00:002023-11-24T22:16:30.088+00:00Doctor Who (1963) 25-08: Silver Nemesis, Part One<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiruLN5YP0zPMeZb6orzKyFq8PiushTWC7W6I1p4KFG0RIeBuKPRDm-NKlwB4bbLrzsvVAfCH94po6OLG7sO1CipKn4tsfSLg4cSGykI5zfINI84nD2Wz8QK7nGNBFoWoVveZCZc2mKO4m62lSdTHxo7SnvSIqL94Qw6NxMFtKTNCyTSXqVLustr3UjL5ba/s520/Classic_Doctor_Who_25x08.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="392" data-original-width="520" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiruLN5YP0zPMeZb6orzKyFq8PiushTWC7W6I1p4KFG0RIeBuKPRDm-NKlwB4bbLrzsvVAfCH94po6OLG7sO1CipKn4tsfSLg4cSGykI5zfINI84nD2Wz8QK7nGNBFoWoVveZCZc2mKO4m62lSdTHxo7SnvSIqL94Qw6NxMFtKTNCyTSXqVLustr3UjL5ba/w640-h482/Classic_Doctor_Who_25x08.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
<table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">675</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Serial:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">150</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writer:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Kevin Clarke<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Chris Clough</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">23-Nov-1988</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
Today on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm watching <i>Silver Nemesis, Part One</i>,
the first episode of <i>Doctor Who's</i> silver anniversary story. In fact, it's
not just the show's 25th anniversary celebration, but it's also its 150th
serial. The latest <i>Doctor Who</i> story to air,
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2022/10/doctor-who-power-of-doctor-part-1.html">The <i>Power of the Doctor</i></a>, was the 300th story, so this is exactly halfway through!<br>
<br>Plus it's the 675th episode, which isn't actually significant, except for
being a bloody huge number. To put that into some perspective, the 675th episode
of <i>Star Trek </i>was the 3rd season <i>Enterprise</i> episode
<i>Impulse</i>. (And the 150th <i>Trek</i> story was the second season<i> TNG </i>episode <i>Manhunt</i>.)<br><br>It's a bit weird though that <i>this </i>is the
anniversary story and not <i>Remembrance of the Daleks</i>, which... has certain
connections to a past serial. Also, this is the first anniversary story to not
list the number of Doctors it contains in the title. We're up to seven now, so
it's probably for the best that they don't all show up.<br><br>There will be
<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILERS</span></b> here for the episode and
presumably earlier stories too if it <i>really is</i> an anniversary special
like it claims. I won't give away anything that comes later though.<br><br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-25-08-silver-nemesis.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com14tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-28392186932682450172023-11-22T02:54:00.003+00:002023-11-22T05:47:25.319+00:00Doctor Who (1963): The Five Doctors - Part 4<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9R8OzyyuPSk0bnB1K00_3r72J_lQ9gJ-UC2CsCz3tBBM5HhB-tUMgqUNfxfUoKB6AkbVgeLuIyCH1IorEC28_j7OLUrYNIaGpPaOoqUbJIX0Sp8p7Wwser_FkQB5wnnfF7LA1uuABhnBUNAE0vmZhgLndRpjGq0ctVymHLRsJNJ25vzyWMUUx35VRvr2H/s534/Classic_Doctor_Who_The_Five_Doctors_01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="393" data-original-width="534" height="471" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9R8OzyyuPSk0bnB1K00_3r72J_lQ9gJ-UC2CsCz3tBBM5HhB-tUMgqUNfxfUoKB6AkbVgeLuIyCH1IorEC28_j7OLUrYNIaGpPaOoqUbJIX0Sp8p7Wwser_FkQB5wnnfF7LA1uuABhnBUNAE0vmZhgLndRpjGq0ctVymHLRsJNJ25vzyWMUUx35VRvr2H/w640-h471/Classic_Doctor_Who_The_Five_Doctors_01.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>Today on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm writing about the final chapter of <i>The Five Doctors</i>. If you want to go back and read an earlier part, click <a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-five-doctors-part-1.html"><b>PART ONE</b></a>, <b><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-five-doctors-part-2.html">PART TWO</a></b> or <a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-five-doctors-part-3.html"><b>PART THREE</b></a>.<br><br>This special features a ton of returning <i>Doctor Who</i> characters, but far from all of them. Counting only the absolutely unambiguous and indisputable companions, it's missing 13 people, and this goes up to 19 if you count the more debatable ones. I won't start listing them all, however, so you'll just have to imagine who I'm counting as ambiguous (*cough*<i> Kamelion </i>*cough*).<br> <br>Funny thing is, if you were to look at this from a more non-linear, non-subjective viewpoint and count the number of companions from the series' <i>future</i> that are missing, that number would also be 19. Well, depending on who you decide to include.<br><br>You probably know this already, seeing as this is the fourth part of this review, but there will be <span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>SPOILERS</b></span> beyond this point. Not for anything new though, and by 'new' I mean 'it aired during the last 40 years'.<br><br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-five-doctors-part-4.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-46184983023152552782023-11-20T23:02:00.003+00:002023-11-22T03:21:12.061+00:00Doctor Who (1963): The Five Doctors - Part 3<div>
<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9R8OzyyuPSk0bnB1K00_3r72J_lQ9gJ-UC2CsCz3tBBM5HhB-tUMgqUNfxfUoKB6AkbVgeLuIyCH1IorEC28_j7OLUrYNIaGpPaOoqUbJIX0Sp8p7Wwser_FkQB5wnnfF7LA1uuABhnBUNAE0vmZhgLndRpjGq0ctVymHLRsJNJ25vzyWMUUx35VRvr2H/s534/Classic_Doctor_Who_The_Five_Doctors_01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="393" data-original-width="534" height="471" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9R8OzyyuPSk0bnB1K00_3r72J_lQ9gJ-UC2CsCz3tBBM5HhB-tUMgqUNfxfUoKB6AkbVgeLuIyCH1IorEC28_j7OLUrYNIaGpPaOoqUbJIX0Sp8p7Wwser_FkQB5wnnfF7LA1uuABhnBUNAE0vmZhgLndRpjGq0ctVymHLRsJNJ25vzyWMUUx35VRvr2H/w640-h471/Classic_Doctor_Who_The_Five_Doctors_01.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
Today on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm still writing about
<i>The Five Doctors</i>, the epic crossover event that pulls together heroes
from 1 TV series. If you want to return to
an earlier part click
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-five-doctors-part-1.html"><b>PART ONE</b></a>
or
<b><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-five-doctors-part-2.html">PART TWO</a></b>.<br><br>This special didn't quite manage to bring the full five
Doctors together, but I'm struggling to think of another sci-fi TV series that managed to pack so many main protagonists into one story. I can't remember any <i>Star Trek</i> story that
brings more than two lead captains together, and <i>Stargate</i> and
<i>Babylon 5</i> didn't do any better. One of the <i>Star Wars</i> shows must
have done it by now though...or maybe not? Oh duh, the Arrowverse did <i>Crisis on Infinite Earths</i>. Still, this was the <i>Avengers</i> of 1983.<br><br>This review will be full of
<span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>SPOILERS</b></span>, but I'll not give away anything that happens later in the series.<br><br>
</div><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-five-doctors-part-3.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-70157641841152345262023-11-19T22:26:00.002+00:002023-11-20T23:50:17.920+00:00Doctor Who (1963): The Five Doctors - Part 2<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9R8OzyyuPSk0bnB1K00_3r72J_lQ9gJ-UC2CsCz3tBBM5HhB-tUMgqUNfxfUoKB6AkbVgeLuIyCH1IorEC28_j7OLUrYNIaGpPaOoqUbJIX0Sp8p7Wwser_FkQB5wnnfF7LA1uuABhnBUNAE0vmZhgLndRpjGq0ctVymHLRsJNJ25vzyWMUUx35VRvr2H/s534/Classic_Doctor_Who_The_Five_Doctors_01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="393" data-original-width="534" height="471" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9R8OzyyuPSk0bnB1K00_3r72J_lQ9gJ-UC2CsCz3tBBM5HhB-tUMgqUNfxfUoKB6AkbVgeLuIyCH1IorEC28_j7OLUrYNIaGpPaOoqUbJIX0Sp8p7Wwser_FkQB5wnnfF7LA1uuABhnBUNAE0vmZhgLndRpjGq0ctVymHLRsJNJ25vzyWMUUx35VRvr2H/w640-h471/Classic_Doctor_Who_The_Five_Doctors_01.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
Today on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm continuing with <i>Doctor Who's</i> 20th anniversary special, <i>The Five Doctors! </i>This is going to drag on for four parts, and if you want to jump back to part 1, <b><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-five-doctors-part-1.html">CLICK HERE</a></b>.<br><br><i>The Five Doctors</i> was the final story by the legendary Terrance Dicks, who'd been writing <i>Doctor Who</i>
episodes since the Second Doctor's era. His contributions to the series
spanned 14 years, which is a long time... though not quite as long as Russell T
Davies' incredible 18 years on the show (with a 12 year break in the middle).<br><br>It was hoped that they could get Waris Hussein to direct, as he'd directed the very first serial, <i>An Unearthly Child</i>,
20 years earlier. Unfortunately, he was in America, so the job
ultimately went to Peter Moffatt, who'd already directed Peter Davison
in a few episodes of<i> All Creatures Great and Small</i>.<br><br>Past this point you'll be flooded with <b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILERS</span></b> for the episode and maybe a few earlier stories as well. I'll not spoil anything that comes later however.<br><br>
</div><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-five-doctors-part-2.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com9tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-7504826060564237612023-11-19T00:05:00.013+00:002023-11-19T22:41:48.863+00:00Doctor Who (1963): The Five Doctors - Part 1<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9R8OzyyuPSk0bnB1K00_3r72J_lQ9gJ-UC2CsCz3tBBM5HhB-tUMgqUNfxfUoKB6AkbVgeLuIyCH1IorEC28_j7OLUrYNIaGpPaOoqUbJIX0Sp8p7Wwser_FkQB5wnnfF7LA1uuABhnBUNAE0vmZhgLndRpjGq0ctVymHLRsJNJ25vzyWMUUx35VRvr2H/s534/Classic_Doctor_Who_The_Five_Doctors_01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="393" data-original-width="534" height="471" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEg9R8OzyyuPSk0bnB1K00_3r72J_lQ9gJ-UC2CsCz3tBBM5HhB-tUMgqUNfxfUoKB6AkbVgeLuIyCH1IorEC28_j7OLUrYNIaGpPaOoqUbJIX0Sp8p7Wwser_FkQB5wnnfF7LA1uuABhnBUNAE0vmZhgLndRpjGq0ctVymHLRsJNJ25vzyWMUUx35VRvr2H/w640-h471/Classic_Doctor_Who_The_Five_Doctors_01.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
<table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">602</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Serial:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">129</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writer:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Terrance Dicks<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Peter Moffatt</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">25-Nov-1983</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">Today on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm watching <i>Doctor Who's</i> 20th anniversary special, <i>The Five Doctors!</i><br><br>The 10th anniversary story, <a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-10-01-three-doctors.html"><i>The Three Doctors</i></a>, was the first serial of a season that aired months before the actual anniversary date, but this time around they wanted to get it right. In fact, efforts were made to get the whole of season 20 rescheduled to air later in the year to make it line up properly. They failed, but they did win a consolation prize: <i>Doctor Who</i> was getting its first-ever feature-length special! There have been plenty of Christmas specials and New Year's specials since then, but <i>The Five Doctors</i> is still the longest episode to this day.<br><br>Though in 1995 it got George Lucasified into an<i> even longer</i> and<i> even more special</i> Special Edition, padded out with extra scenes that the director had originally cut for a good reason. Plus there's the 2023 Blu-ray edition as well, along with the version that was split into four separate episodes. I bet that has some <i>interesting </i>cliffhangers.<br><br>You know what, I'm going to split this article up to match the four-part edit and find out what all those cliffhangers are. I'm not sure what version I'll be getting on iPlayer, but I do know that it's going to be <i>long</i>, so it'll be more practical for me to tackle it in pieces.<br><br><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILER WARNING</span></b>: I might spoil things that came before it, I won't spoil things that came after, and the episode itself is getting <i>extremely spoiled</i>. I'm going scene by scene to maximise spoiler coverage.<br><br>
</div><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-five-doctors-part-1.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-9755519193300318712023-11-17T20:53:00.002+00:002023-11-17T20:57:55.497+00:00Doctor Who (1963) 10-04: The Three Doctors, Episode Four<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8fU9VLU2F0K9U9qzL1QN8DM6hPcBtc28eeCYijqxg3JX0MTGiefUIPK1XJc4ZRE5OmraE_GdwXtH3lSQQZEoXx2NytoU2-sEJZuQQvS6-AXT0Efqo46xihs7Vuu1MJ-Ct5ySlRsRIP8jTe1a3OUmz_eJW3wB1sgmqZzAACakeaQqY9MvN37Lm_CZMn_v_/s518/Classic_Doctor_Who_10x04_01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="390" data-original-width="518" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEi8fU9VLU2F0K9U9qzL1QN8DM6hPcBtc28eeCYijqxg3JX0MTGiefUIPK1XJc4ZRE5OmraE_GdwXtH3lSQQZEoXx2NytoU2-sEJZuQQvS6-AXT0Efqo46xihs7Vuu1MJ-Ct5ySlRsRIP8jTe1a3OUmz_eJW3wB1sgmqZzAACakeaQqY9MvN37Lm_CZMn_v_/w640-h482/Classic_Doctor_Who_10x04_01.jpg" width="640"></a></div> <table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">333</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Serial:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">65</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writers:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Bob Baker and Dave Martin<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Lennie Mayne</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">20-Jan-1973</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table><hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, it's episode 333 of <i>Doctor Who</i>. That means the series was averaging 37 episodes a year up to this point, which isn't actually <i>that</i> ridiculous I guess, seeing as they were all 25 minutes long. <i>Star Trek: The Original Series</i> produced an average of 26 stories a year, each 50 minutes long, so when it came to minutes per week it was actually ahead.<br><br>Anyway, just have to write a few more words under screencaps and I'm finally done with <i>The Three Doctors!</i> This is part four of four, the conclusion to this anniversary event, and I'm hoping they didn't already blow through their pyrotechnics budget already with the first three parts, as my expectations have been raised. Also, I'm hoping the story's good etc. Click one of these links to jump back to an earlier episode: <a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-10-01-three-doctors.html"><b>PART ONE</b></a>, <a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-10-02-three-doctors.html"><b>PART TWO</b></a>, <b><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-10-03-three-doctors.html">PART THREE</a></b>.<br><br>You won't be shocked to hear that the heavily promoted season premiere which brought back Patrick Troughton and William Hartnell got the highest viewing figures for the Third Doctor's whole run, averaging 10.3 million on BBC. It had almost twice as many eyes on it as the least watched serial, <i>Inferno</i>. Wait, why didn't anyone watch <i>Inferno? </i>That one was great!<br><br>I'll be going through this whole episode scene by scene, so there will be <b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILERS</span></b> below. I may find reason to mention things that happened in earlier episodes as well, but I won't spoil anything that happens later.<br><br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-10-04-three-doctors.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com7tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-78355043556851437912023-11-16T23:01:00.002+00:002023-11-17T21:03:08.782+00:00Doctor Who (1963) 10-03: The Three Doctors, Episode Three<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidLK-1q_KKzXu7cpGLou7wnvp2Pxo4WmVRGgDWQdGtsebfvRoDMD4IhaqFcVPKHuXPQxvnhzhE5nD3NG3ITF7TDj_BQ6napXtqYFLqFAzgZV-HFga3Zxpw8Gl1DnzikNg_8_MmMNY908tLTwhB-O6UZ4JGLmEhxOsihByw-H7rSAjYDeMUo2Y9WHbSHE4r/s518/Classic_Doctor_Who_10x03_01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="390" data-original-width="518" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEidLK-1q_KKzXu7cpGLou7wnvp2Pxo4WmVRGgDWQdGtsebfvRoDMD4IhaqFcVPKHuXPQxvnhzhE5nD3NG3ITF7TDj_BQ6napXtqYFLqFAzgZV-HFga3Zxpw8Gl1DnzikNg_8_MmMNY908tLTwhB-O6UZ4JGLmEhxOsihByw-H7rSAjYDeMUo2Y9WHbSHE4r/w640-h482/Classic_Doctor_Who_10x03_01.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
<table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">332</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Serial:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">65</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writers:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Bob Baker and Dave Martin<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Lennie Mayne</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">13-Jan-1973</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
Today on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, it's the third part of the
<i>The Three Doctors, </i>the only serial in the entire series to feature 100%
of the Doctors that had been introduced up to that point, all played by their original actors.
Well, except for the entirety of the First Doctor's run, I suppose.<br><br>If you want to jump
to <a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-10-01-three-doctors.html"><b>PART ONE</b></a> or <b><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-10-02-three-doctors.html">PART TWO</a></b>, click the appropriate link.<br><br>It looks weird if I don't pad this intro out with some trivia, so I'm going to talk about books for a moment. Each<i> Doctor Who</i> serial got its own novelisation, with the naming format often being "Doctor Who and [the name of the serial]". So you've got titles like <i>Doctor Who and the Keys of Marinus</i> and <i>Doctor Who and the Tomb of the Cybermen</i> etc. It's very <i>Indiana Jones</i>.<br> <br>That title scheme didn't quite work with this story though, as you can't have 'Doctor Who and The Three Doctors', because then there'd be four Doctors and the story would be all messed up. So they just called it<i> The Three Doctors</i>.<br><br>
<span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>SPOILER WARNING</b></span>: I'm not going to spoil absolutely everything about this episode, but I feel like I could probably manage to give away at least 90% of it and I may mention one or two things that happened in previous stories as well.<br><br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-10-03-three-doctors.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-84732275474506471082023-11-15T18:58:00.003+00:002023-11-16T23:26:12.882+00:00Doctor Who (1963) 10-02: The Three Doctors, Episode Two<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijlxyovU9sMIe4h9mFb1D8t4SXZbhLwM5ajJPqYDBhkc9g45UOh5eh5vkn2_fmmHhY8vZYxDavFO-zprYhRN-DAl8IAnXdrgyzbiGIWeiXAZUCYlf_RrJzRAk6jtohq-0haIBiCZzNB2hwv2vobJzGTEA0dEHjtSAm3euOMxuXTa9Bwz0nzgAWrslCZMBd/s518/Classic_Doctor_Who_10x02_01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="390" data-original-width="518" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEijlxyovU9sMIe4h9mFb1D8t4SXZbhLwM5ajJPqYDBhkc9g45UOh5eh5vkn2_fmmHhY8vZYxDavFO-zprYhRN-DAl8IAnXdrgyzbiGIWeiXAZUCYlf_RrJzRAk6jtohq-0haIBiCZzNB2hwv2vobJzGTEA0dEHjtSAm3euOMxuXTa9Bwz0nzgAWrslCZMBd/w640-h482/Classic_Doctor_Who_10x02_01.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
<table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">331</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Serial:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">65</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writers:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Bob Baker and Dave Martin<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Lennie Mayne</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">06-Jan-1973</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
Today on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm writing about the second episode of <i>The Three Doctors</i> -<i> Doctor Who's</i> epic 10th anniversary saga (that actually aired around its 9th anniversary). It's a four part serial so I'll have made it halfway through after this. Though you can click this link: <b><a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-10-01-three-doctors.html">EPISODE ONE</a></b> if you'd rather go back and read about the first quarter of the story.<br><br>You know, I'm sure that title looks slightly different than it did on part one. They must have had to add it to each episode separately instead of just reusing the footage. That's the kind of quality trivia you can expect to find in my reviews. <br><br>Here's another <i>Doctor Who</i> fact for you: the episode was
written by Bob Baker and Dave Martin, the folks who get a credit whenever K-9 appears in an episode. <br><br><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjirK-UJ3BnCgyQAjx6xrzMRowHIttlZ6OWXw1VZ3NmteifCcK3ewMtwdlRbI9oSwMr0e8wontbBnwhAaQd01SrtlpvUaFC7qFZ-AbaVE1HexU4yrozpqvcILtkdDpVcgQRr9auJ2I1qvkcYgGqIum2nc7LMxDuiPq81-tl0hRPYxwy2edp1Rt17_WsI6Q8/s480/Classic_Doctor_Who_10x02_25.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="41" data-original-width="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjirK-UJ3BnCgyQAjx6xrzMRowHIttlZ6OWXw1VZ3NmteifCcK3ewMtwdlRbI9oSwMr0e8wontbBnwhAaQd01SrtlpvUaFC7qFZ-AbaVE1HexU4yrozpqvcILtkdDpVcgQRr9auJ2I1qvkcYgGqIum2nc7LMxDuiPq81-tl0hRPYxwy2edp1Rt17_WsI6Q8/s16000/Classic_Doctor_Who_10x02_25.jpg"></a></div>Bob is maybe not the most famous Baker to work on
<i>Doctor Who</i>, but he did get there before Tom and Colin at least. Plus he co-wrote the <i>Wallace and Gromit</i> stories!<br><br><b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILER WARNING</span></b>: There will be spoilers here for the events leading up to, and occurring within,
this particular part of this particular serial. I won't spoil anything that happens afterwards though and I definitely won't give away how the story ends as I can't remember.<br><br>
</div><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-10-02-three-doctors.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-86925962585625957812023-11-14T19:49:00.003+00:002023-11-15T23:18:21.015+00:00Doctor Who (1963) 10-01: The Three Doctors, Episode One<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXTFhFIHrdNfeVcvmafjt7VW-BQMxnpl4NwhKNRv0E9kPUJY0umqU5jcO3KosqVukQ9t4Ttl4MK582D9ivsGOmW6N0tRk0kHRmHwk_QLaVmhRhzuUhZy_viHK-yQgnRwKRh7dTbNG9h5AcN9Eghek0dXyxvPCDGzUTxT2cBLqSVxbO_P9bcv4Zlpndqjzj/s518/Classic_Doctor_Who_10x01_01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="390" data-original-width="518" height="482" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEjXTFhFIHrdNfeVcvmafjt7VW-BQMxnpl4NwhKNRv0E9kPUJY0umqU5jcO3KosqVukQ9t4Ttl4MK582D9ivsGOmW6N0tRk0kHRmHwk_QLaVmhRhzuUhZy_viHK-yQgnRwKRh7dTbNG9h5AcN9Eghek0dXyxvPCDGzUTxT2cBLqSVxbO_P9bcv4Zlpndqjzj/w640-h482/Classic_Doctor_Who_10x01_01.jpg" width="640"></a></div> <table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">330</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Serial:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">65</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writers:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Bob Baker and Dave Martin<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Lennie Mayne<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">30-Dec-1972</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table><hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%"><i>Doctor Who </i>is finally returning to television this month with its 60th anniversary special. But I can't write about something that hasn't aired yet, so today on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b> I'm covering the first part of the four-part <i>10th</i> anniversary serial <i>The Three Doctors!<br><br></i>Anniversary specials traditionally happen near an anniversary, but they decided to get an early start with this one. In fact, episode one aired at the end of 1972, almost a whole year early! This was the first episode of Jon Pertwee's fourth year in the role, which means he'd beaten Patrick Troughton's run (almost 3 seasons) and was getting close to matching William Hartnell's (a bit over 3 seasons). Pertwee still had a while to go before he matched their ridiculous episode counts though, as he was averaging 26 episodes a year compared to their 42 episode seasons. It'd take Ncuti Gatwa 15 years to match Hartnell's run and that's including Christmas specials<i>.<br><br></i>I already wrote about this serial a few years back when Twitch did its marathon, but I don't actually remember what I said about it. Or what happens in it. I'm pretty sure I liked it though... unless I didn't. Anyway, this time around I'll be going through the whole story scene-by-scene and writing about it properly. This means there'll be <b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILERS</span></b> for the episode and maybe a few earlier ones as well, if I can remember anything from them.<br><br>
</div><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/doctor-who-1963-10-01-three-doctors.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-44751257722432637052023-11-13T04:21:00.008+00:002023-11-14T02:43:29.264+00:00Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 5-06: Trials and Tribble-ations - Part 2<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpLhmQGOXFZNXz9tpKA1RPbRjVhlsGYzcoh3SDYwawEjxPk8ZkWNbZL1kefx0K43TNMfxquYSfhPgVXYkYKnQ9-npbZHCly05yQzlR57ua4Q2-aUkEBMfTw3AqjKWWUaYUlTYM4XB4RSMu/s1600/Deep_Space_Nine_5-06_title.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="571" data-original-width="749" height="486" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpLhmQGOXFZNXz9tpKA1RPbRjVhlsGYzcoh3SDYwawEjxPk8ZkWNbZL1kefx0K43TNMfxquYSfhPgVXYkYKnQ9-npbZHCly05yQzlR57ua4Q2-aUkEBMfTw3AqjKWWUaYUlTYM4XB4RSMu/s640/Deep_Space_Nine_5-06_title.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm writing about the second half of <i>Deep Space Nine's</i> big 30th anniversary episode, <i>Trials and Tribble-ations! </i>Click <b><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2018/07/star-trek-deep-space-nine-5-06-trials.html">HERE</a></b> for part one.<br><br>Hey, have you ever wondered how many
<i>Star Trek</i> episodes have a dash in the title? Because I haven't. It had never
even crossed my mind until right now. The answer is "8": <i>The Magicks of Megas-tu</i>, <i>The Counter-Clock Incident</i>, <i>Q-Less</i>,
<i>Trials and Tribble-ations</i>, <i>The Siege of AR-558</i>,
<i>Badda-Bing Badda-Bang</i>, <i>Species Ten-C</i> and <i>First Con-tact</i>.<i><br><br></i>I originally planned to mention here that this is the highest-rated
<i>Deep Space Nine</i> episode on IMDb, but it's not anymore. It's dropped to
second place, behind <i>In the Pale Moonlight</i>. That's a shame I reckon,
because the very next episode to air, <i>Let He Who is Without Sin</i>, is the
<i>lowest</i>-rated episode on IMDb. That's the biggest gap in quality between
adjacent episodes since <i>The City on the Edge of Forever</i> came out the week
after <i>The Alternative Factor</i>.<br><i><br></i>Alright, I'll be analysing the second half of <i>Trials and Tribble-ations</i> so there will be <b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILERS</span></b> below. There may be some spoilers here for earlier series as well, but I won't spoil anything that comes after this episode.<br><br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/11/star-trek-deep-space-nine-5-06-trials.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com4tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-10392656013451166532023-11-12T23:53:00.005+00:002023-11-14T02:16:45.200+00:00Star Trek: Deep Space Nine 5-06: Trials and Tribble-ations - Part 1<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpLhmQGOXFZNXz9tpKA1RPbRjVhlsGYzcoh3SDYwawEjxPk8ZkWNbZL1kefx0K43TNMfxquYSfhPgVXYkYKnQ9-npbZHCly05yQzlR57ua4Q2-aUkEBMfTw3AqjKWWUaYUlTYM4XB4RSMu/s1600/Deep_Space_Nine_5-06_title.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="571" data-original-width="749" height="486" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEhpLhmQGOXFZNXz9tpKA1RPbRjVhlsGYzcoh3SDYwawEjxPk8ZkWNbZL1kefx0K43TNMfxquYSfhPgVXYkYKnQ9-npbZHCly05yQzlR57ua4Q2-aUkEBMfTw3AqjKWWUaYUlTYM4XB4RSMu/s640/Deep_Space_Nine_5-06_title.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
<table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">104</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writer:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Ronald D. Moore & René Echevarria</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Jonathan West</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">04-Nov-1996</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I've finally reached
<i>Deep Space Nine's</i> legendary <i>Star Trek: The Original Series</i> tribute episode
<i>Trials and Tribble-ations! </i>This would've been a more impressive milestone for me if I hadn't skipped 73 episodes to get here.
<br><br>Man, I haven't written about a <i>Deep Space Nine</i> episode in
four years, that's crazy. I could've waited three more years and written about this 30th-anniversary episode on its own 30th anniversary, but I just wrote about<i>
<a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2020/09/star-trek-2-15-trouble-with-tribbles.html">The Trouble with Tribbles</a></i>
and
<i><a href="https://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/09/star-trek-animated-series-1x05-more.html">More Tribbles, More Troubles</a></i>
and I've got to complete my tribble trilogy. (Publishing this 8 days earlier would've also been good).<br><i><br></i>This was the
first tribble episode to not be written by David Gerrold, because he didn't work
on <i>Deep Space Nine</i>. Instead, they assigned this to Ronald D. Moore and
René Echevarria, who clearly knew a bit about the classic show. It was directed
by Jonathan West, who'd also been working as <i>DS9's</i> director of photography since the
start of season three. I guess his cinematography skills were useful for a
project like this.<br><i><br></i>Okay, I'm going to go
through <i>Trials and Tribble-ations</i> scene-by-scene with screencaps, so
there'll be <b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILERS</span></b> below. This is
first-time viewer friendly, however! Everything<i> Star Trek</i> that aired after
November 4th 1996 is off limits, everything that came before is fair game.<br><br>
</div><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2018/07/star-trek-deep-space-nine-5-06-trials.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com10tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-13320841189367305032023-09-08T21:41:00.010+01:002023-11-13T00:01:20.130+00:00Star Trek: The Animated Series 1-05: More Tribbles, More Troubles<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;"><a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJHangPmNo0LEjZQX01Cmp5DmYuRiewkTRh9CW-y6d65fIoFm54qqLFsBPaX6aRhaiJkwqdqvKRk_oljOdTXer6fbZAr8sREox2mzfGSdfSl7d49tJS7W0dg64S37KrfKeygZbdUZMQtLpcMszHAX25Z01gUFAG5ZoGCoAcyViF5LrSxKPiZjWDwOBLJ-n/s640/Star_Trek_TAS_2-05_Title.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEiJHangPmNo0LEjZQX01Cmp5DmYuRiewkTRh9CW-y6d65fIoFm54qqLFsBPaX6aRhaiJkwqdqvKRk_oljOdTXer6fbZAr8sREox2mzfGSdfSl7d49tJS7W0dg64S37KrfKeygZbdUZMQtLpcMszHAX25Z01gUFAG5ZoGCoAcyViF5LrSxKPiZjWDwOBLJ-n/w640-h480/Star_Trek_TAS_2-05_Title.jpg" width="640"></a></div>
<table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">5</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writer:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">David Gerrold<br></td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Hal Sutherland</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">06-Oct-1973</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm finally watching a <i>Star Trek: The Animated Series</i> episode! That's because today is the series' 50th anniversary! <br><br>It's also the 50th anniversary of <i>Lassie's Rescue Rangers</i>, <i>Everything's Archie</i>, <i>My Favorite Martians</i>, and <i>Mission: Magic!</i>, the other four cartoon spin-offs started by Filmation in 1973, but <i>Star Trek: The Animated Series</i> has had a more lasting impact. People actually remember it existed. That's partly because they went to the trouble of bringing (most) of the original cast back and got scripts from writers who'd worked on <i>Star Trek</i> before. It's partly because the series goes absolutely crazy half the time. But it's mostly because it's got <i>Star Trek</i> in the title. The series did fall out of favour for a long while, but it's been invited back into the family in recent years. Maybe someday they'll invite <i>Star Trek: Prodigy</i> back as well.<br><br>Anyway, the episode I'm watching isn't the pilot. It's <i>More Troubles, More Tribbles</i>, the sequel to <i><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2020/09/star-trek-2-15-trouble-with-tribbles.html">The Trouble with Tribbles</a></i>, written by the same writer! Well, one of the writers, as Gene Coon wasn't around to do an uncredited rewrite this time. It'd been a long time since <i>The Troubles with Tribbles</i> had first aired, five years, but <i>Trek</i> had become a hit in repeats so I'm sure people were eager for more tribbles. I know I am.<br><br>There will be <span style="color: #cc0000;"><b>SPOILERS</b></span> below for this episode and maybe some earlier ones as I go through it scene by scene and share my thoughts, but I won't spoil anything about later stories. Except for Harry Mudd showing up again eventually, I totally give that away.<br><br>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/09/star-trek-animated-series-1x05-more.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com3tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-78777834627953670812023-09-07T17:01:00.000+01:002023-09-07T17:01:03.324+01:00Star Trek: The Original Series 2-15: The Trouble With Tribbles<div><div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8pg5aBNdPMXwatiFOfzWKdidETkQDRKe6jQEP7ODVnPIeHt0OJtHOTA-N5Sjs8shrRRwqwage9ZQasoHOfv_TOldfcAnspdW5MuoyGlUZTqVFpt8NVK5LXNA-42gApXT4GMGb2OvOSZINi8xlZTeJhmBPGLpIBwA42DNRBv6IDZa1s11IkarpCgdZLw/s640/Star_Trek_TOS_2-15_Title.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="640" height="480" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEj8pg5aBNdPMXwatiFOfzWKdidETkQDRKe6jQEP7ODVnPIeHt0OJtHOTA-N5Sjs8shrRRwqwage9ZQasoHOfv_TOldfcAnspdW5MuoyGlUZTqVFpt8NVK5LXNA-42gApXT4GMGb2OvOSZINi8xlZTeJhmBPGLpIBwA42DNRBv6IDZa1s11IkarpCgdZLw/w640-h480/Star_Trek_TOS_2-15_Title.jpg" width="640"></a>
</div>
<table align="center" class="infotable1" style="border-collapse: collapse; border: 0px; color: #bbbbbb; font-family: "Trebuchet MS", sans-serif;">
<tbody>
<tr>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Episode:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">44</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Writer:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">David Gerrold</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Director:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">Joseph Pevney</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">|</td>
<td style="font-weight: bold; padding: 4px;">Air Date:</td>
<td style="padding: 4px;">29-Dec-1967</td>
</tr>
</tbody>
</table>
<hr style="border-style: solid; color: #333333;" width="60%">
This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm going to try to find something new to say about <i>The Trouble with Tribbles</i>, arguably the most famous episode of <i>Star Trek: The Original Series.</i> It's the one with the tribbles in it.<br><br>You've probably figured out from the clues that this was written by David Gerrold. In fact, it was his first professional sale. He went on to provide two scripts for <i>Star Trek: The Animated Series</i> and was part of the team that developed <i>Star Trek: The Next Generation</i>, even writing some of the series bible. Unfortunately, season 1 <i>TNG</i> was a damn mess behind the scenes and he left the show without writing a single episode.<br><br>The title card doesn't mention that it was heavily rewritten by producer Gene Coon. It was one of his final episodes as producer, as the work was exhausting and he was butting heads with Gene Roddenberry over the amount of comedy he was bringing to what was supposed to be a serious show.<br><br>This was originally the last episode of 1967, which basically covered Coon's time on the series, give or take a few episodes. It's probably not a coincidence that 1967 may have also featured the best run of stories in the franchise's history. They weren't all winners, but the first episode to air that year was <i>The Galileo Seven,</i> one of my favourites, then you've got stories like <a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/06/star-trek-original-series-1-18-arena.html"><i>Arena</i></a>, <i>Space Seed</i>, <i>Devil in the Dark</i>, <i>Errand of Mercy</i>, <i>City on the Edge of Forever</i>, <i>Amok Time</i>, <i>Mirror Mirror</i>, <i>The Doomsday Machine</i>, <i>Journey to Babel</i> etc. I'm not saying that Gene Coon was the real talent behind<i> </i>classic <i>Star Trek</i>, it was a team effort, but the show shined brightest when he was part of that team. And not just a freelancer dropping off scripts like <i>Spock's Brain</i>.<br><br>Okay, I'm going to be going through the whole episode and writing my thoughts underneath screencaps, so there will be <b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILERS</span></b> here. I won't spoil anything that aired after it though. Even episodes that actually have 'tribbles' in the title.<br>
<br>
</div><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2020/09/star-trek-2-15-trouble-with-tribbles.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com6tag:blogger.com,1999:blog-2685723882144479396.post-66169630102018439242023-08-28T03:34:00.001+01:002023-08-28T03:34:08.634+01:00Babylon 5: A Call to Arms - Part 3<div class="separator" style="clear: both; text-align: center;">
<a href="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih06uHAzLvIro5d0iIO487vPag2adYoGL0MpgV8s-Q5gVkxNWttaoPkT1ehZQVdasD-JmL6-PQFYPz3_6nZ4n5L-2TsrXolMtZkxy_0PWX5bNjNILY7EMvn082MuPz3WiB_CNOQg4I1yYu/s1600/Babylon_5_A_Call_to_Arms_01.jpg" style="margin-left: 1em; margin-right: 1em;"><img alt="Babylon 5 A Call to Arms title logo DVD screencap" border="0" data-original-height="480" data-original-width="845" height="362" src="https://blogger.googleusercontent.com/img/b/R29vZ2xl/AVvXsEih06uHAzLvIro5d0iIO487vPag2adYoGL0MpgV8s-Q5gVkxNWttaoPkT1ehZQVdasD-JmL6-PQFYPz3_6nZ4n5L-2TsrXolMtZkxy_0PWX5bNjNILY7EMvn082MuPz3WiB_CNOQg4I1yYu/w640-h362/Babylon_5_A_Call_to_Arms_01.jpg" title="Babylon 5 A Call to Arms title logo DVD screencap" width="640"></a>
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This week on <b>Sci-Fi Adventures</b>, I'm watching the final third of the 5th
<i>Babylon 5</i> movie, <i>A Call to Arms</i>.<br><br>I'm getting really
close to the end of the <i>Babylon 5</i> franchise now, with only 13 episodes of
<i>Crusade</i>, one more pilot movie and two <i>Lost Tales</i> left to go before it's
all over. Oh, plus an animated movie that came out of nowhere recently. And there is
always the threat of that reboot series actually getting made, along with more animated films. But after all that I'll be done.<br> <br>I suppose it could be worse. I could be working my way through <i>Doctor Who</i> or <i>Star Trek</i>...<br><br>This is the
third and final part of my <i>A Call to Arms</i> review, so if you want to go back to <b><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2020/07/babylon-5-call-to-arms.html">PART ONE</a> </b>or<b>
<a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/08/babylon-5-call-to-arms-part-2.html">PART TWO</a></b> click the appropriate text. This is going to include big
<b><span style="color: #cc0000;">SPOILERS</span></b> for the movie and the rest
of <i>Babylon 5</i>, but I'll not spoil anything about
<i>Crusade</i>.<br><br><a href="http://scifiadventures.blogspot.com/2023/08/babylon-5-call-to-arms-part-3.html#more">Read on »</a>Ray Hardgrithttp://www.blogger.com/profile/18436491500347661133noreply@blogger.com3