h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

I do see your point here. By the standards that had been set, the Davison episodes can seema little over the top, to say the least. I *hope* thats not the only reason that I enjoy them, but as a dyed in the wool Romero fan, I must say I do have a streak that tends to find that kind of thing funny as opposed to offensive.
Maybe over analysing the point won't help much either. I happen to have a soft spot for the Davison episodes which I find hard to explain, even to myself.
Mina, my other half, has a soft spot for them as well, but you can read why earlier in this forum.

This is going to sound weird, but while these are the episodes that were shown right after I became a fan, they're also episodes that I missed about half of on their original transmission. So even so Davison should probably be 'my' Doctor, he isn't. I think he was much too young and inexperienced for the part.

I like the odd bit of gore (Dawn of the Dead is one of my favourite films) but I think it's well out of place in a - let's be euphemistic - family show like DW.

I stopped trying to analyse why I love DW so much long ago. Even if I could work out the answer, what would I really benefit?

Well, thats certainly true.
Davison was my second go round. I grew up with Pertwee, and sort of lost interest in Who towrds the end of baker's run, but picked up the series again when Davison joined.
As to him being too young, I'm not sure about that. I don't know how old he was when he got the part?

I think he was only about thirty. He just struck me as too passive and lacking in authority... and, given the companions he was saddled with, rather like a supply teacher...

"Saddled" seems a little unfair. I agree that Nyssa was a nearly pointless character, but I have a huge fondness for Tegan and Turlough. They actually behaved like real people, which did make a change...

Weighing in...

Tom Baker *is* the Doctor. All those other blokes were just actors.

And as a recent book on the series said about 'City of Death', "it's just a shame the rest of 'Who' exists to put this story in a context", and "just when you think it can't get any better, John bloody Cleese appears". Does anyone know when/if this story is coming out on DVD?

HOW can people have not mentioned "Robots of Death"? OK, freezeframing the DVD during the operation on the damaged robot does allow you an extremely clear and sharp view of the "Marigold" logo on its hand , and the "doink" noise when Leela's knife hits that other one in the chest is a bit out of place, but it's still a beautiful show.

HOW can people not have mentioned "Castrovalva"? Or "The Visitation"? (tell me Terileptils aren't the best alien they ever did...) Or "The Talons of Weng Chiang" - what do you mean Mr. Sin didn't scare you? "The Curse of Peladon" - Aggedor rocks! "The Sontaran Experiment" (yeah I know, not that great, but the robot scared the bejeezus out of me before I even knew I had a bejeezus).

Anyway, that should be enough to get me flamed, I'm off to put me asbestos underpants on and stick marshmallows on my thumbs!

H.

Curse of Peladon, one of my own favourites. Robots of Death, possibly the single best-designed DW story ever. Talons of Weng-Chiang, an astounding piece of work on nearly every level. I suppose Castrovalva and Visitation aren't too bad either.

City of Death... a great, great piece of comedy Doctor Who... but not *quite* as good as its' fan club would have you believe.

(Oh dear, entirely the wrong site to make that assertion on... budge up, Hooloovoo, I need to come in the fireproof box too...

Waitaminute! Hooloovoo... *Blue*shark? Is there something going on here...? )

The other robots in the Chase were the Mechanoids, who were giant D20s. They were meant to be a new recurring villain, but the public at the time didn't like them (according to various fan stuff wot I 'ave read). It did introduce Steven, who I rather like, and was the last one for Ian and Barbera, which makes it special, but as a whole it dissapoints me. Just a personal thing rightly.
On the military in Davison stories, I like the idea that Pete was always trying to solve things peacefully, but people kept getting killed anyway. I sometimes get the feeling that he is so fed up with it all, he is almost ready to just give up and let everyone kill each other. He certainly seems to get very exasperated. But he always tries anyway, which I like.
City of Death is great, true. It was not long ago re-released on video, so I don't expect them to bring it out on DVD too soon. Me, I'm all het up for Tomb of the Cybermen in the New Year.
I love jabbering about Who

Hey Awix! Twenty points and a cheap cigar to the researcher who spells my name right at the first attempt!

The only reason I mention it is there are *eleven* Hooloovoos and at least one of them gets sniffy if I pretend to be him. Which I don't - click on my name and have a look at my space...

H.

I think the Mechanoids also weren't reused because a) they were a blatant moneyspinner for Terry Nation and b) the casings were too bloomin' big (the size of a mini) to be practical...

"You are the real Hooloovoo. I claim my five pounds..."

You forgot (c) they were a bit c**p.

You don't get the five pounds, by the way, Awix, you get a slap round the chops with a herring - it's Hoovooloo, a haitch, then a vee then a Ell. Think "hovel" (!).

Did anyone else read a book of a Dr. Who series *before* they saw it and then get seriously disappointed by the c**p monsters when you saw it on the telly? I read "The Web Planet", and in my mind the Zarbi were great, and the Menoptera. Then I saw them...

H.

Ark in Space. More than any other story. The novel is so rich and memorable, the TV version is rather bland in comparison.

The right spelling *is* Hooloovoo, BTW... either DNA was misinformed or there was a typo... honest...

I know what the *correct* spelling is! Did you check my space? Did you?

Oh yes, Ark in Space. Wasn't that the one with the Wirrn? FLASHBACK! Went to Blackpool Exhibition aged very small, paid to get in with mother and uncle, he went down the stairs, she started to, but NO WAY was I going down there. HUGE Wirrn at the bottom of the stairs, I couldn't see the glass "protecting" people from this insect head, and they tried for about twenty minutes to persuade me, I was having NONE of it. They gave up and got the money back. Not at all annoyed that I'd been pestering them all morning to go in...


H.

Tom Baker, no question.

Oh, and "City of Death... a great, great piece of comedy Doctor Who... but not *quite* as good as its' fan club would have you believe."

You're wrong - it's just as good, if not better.

"You're a very beautiful woman, probably." - my all time favourite Who line. And I'm not biased just because I worked for Douglas Adams.

Also, Baker had pretty much the whole of the Hinchcliffe era, most of which is fantastic.

References to D20 should be avoided, I'd have thought-tends to give away an association with role-playing of some kind. And nobody wants to see that, least of all a dyed-in-the-wool gamer like me.
Anybody here ever attempt to play the frankly bl**dy awful Dr Who role-playing game?

And I'd agree about nearly all of Hoovooloo's choices, btw, though I must point out that the "blues" in Bluesshark isn't a reference to a colour, but to a musical genre.

Oh dear... is there anyone here I haven't got on the bad side of?... taking things in order...

H, I was attempting to imply for humorous effect (honest) that DNA misspelt the hyperintelligent blue entity word. "I suggest you calm down and take a stress pill" to quote Hal 9000. No slight to your ability to read or spell your own nickname was implied.

Didn't I say that City of Death had a lot of cheerleaders? I admit it's a very good story and has the wittiest script in the history of the series but, to paraphrase an article posted off-site, at heart it's a souffle and personally there are times I really want a fat juicy steak. Not that I'd presume to call Jim wrong... value judgments and all that...

Which DW RPG are you talking about? The FASA one or the Virgin 'Time Lord' one? Never played the latter but spent many happy hours with the former.

Back to my bunker...

You haven't got on the bad side of me Awix. Not yet anyway................

Haven't heard of those Doctor Who Games, but then I can't remember the name of the one I have on the Amiga so I might own one of them, but I will tell you a good Doctor Who Game. The 8 Doctors for the PC. It has no contest.

Has anyone else played it?

spook

Hey, no stress Awix, I was just trying to get you to read my space. Some links there I'm trying to get clues on, or get people to have a laugh with. Any ideas?

Re: City of Death, I know what you mean. For a steak, how about "The Deadly Assassin"?

As far as DW RPGs go, I think I played the first, a terrible effort from about 1981 by Games Workshop. Confusing pointless nonsense, that was.

H.

Okay, okay, I looked at your page! HVL, say no more! As for some of your bits and bobs there... I'm apolitical (ie a coward) and try to stay out of the Italic/SBVM crossfire. Say no more.

Hmm. I agree with you entirely about Deadly Assassin - it doesn't have the word 'Matrix' in it for nothing...

I had the old GW boardgame too! The problem with it was it had waaaaay too many counters and an extraordinarily clunky and inept dice system. I think the other Blues brother was referring to the old Dungeons and Dragons style storytelling game, which was okay if a bit too influenced by barmy American fan theories about the Master and the Cybermen and what-have-you...

I do hope you scrolled past all that guff at the top and checked out the fun stuff!

WOW! Somebody else who wasted however much it was (£20? hugely overpriced, whatever) on that thing. How many times did you play it? Me - twice. Yeesh.

H.