On Doctor Who; the Third Doctor

[scripsi]

Being on a Doctor Who trip as I am, you will have to stand me burbling away. I never had anyone to talk Doctor Who with before! I started watching old Who a couple of years before New Who started, though I didn’t see every episode then. I am currently re-watching Old Who and now I will watch every episode. I have just started with the Sixth Doctor. But I feel the need to discuss some of the previous ones. It’s been a little too long since I saw One and Two, so they will have to wait- I jump in one Three. I liked DW from the start, but it was with Jon Pertwee that it really came to be a show I loved, so it seems fitting.


The Doctor



One of the charms with DW is how it re-invents itself. In 1970 there wasn’t just a new Doctor; there were a lot of other things as well. Being in colour, for example. It also saw the Doctor stranded on Earth for budget reasons. With the knowledge of how to fix the TARDIS by the Time Lords, the Doctor is basically made impotent (especially of you consider the TARDIS the Doctor’s wife…), so no wonder that he is grouchy at times. The new Doctor, even if he was in his 50’s, was also a much more active personality. One and Two usually had a male companion for the action bits, Jon Pertwee took those on himself. I mean, in his very first episode we get to see him in jus a towel. And doesn’t he look mighty good for his age?

Three does something that no Doctor except Eleven ever does- he settles down. He may be stuck on. Earth for ages, so he gets a job and collects friends in a different way than other Doctor’s. He is also not so much alien as he is an eccentric. He can be rude, she speaks his mind, drives an obsolete car and insist on evening wear in the laboratory, but he passes as human much more easily than many other Doctors.

The companions



Companions in Old Who are often said to be under-used and lacking in personality or just to be eye-candy. I can agree that we get little background, not lie New Who were we get to know the companion’s families and their concerns. But I don’t think the companions of the 70’s lack personality and even if they are pretty and nice to look at, they are not treated as sex object until we arrive in the 80’s. Not even Leela- you just know she would do something nasty to anyone who tried to be frisky with her.

We have, of course, UNIT, with the Brigadier, Benton and Yates. I adore the Brigadier because he is kind and caring underneath his military clothes he and Three have such a nice chemistry. They clearly like each other a lot, even if they have very different world views and often clash. Mot notably in The Silurians. There we also get a bit of what I dislike the most with Old Who- a tendency to not address psychological issues, but just go on as nothing have happened.



Elizabeth Shaw, who is Three’s companion in his first season, falls into the category of Brainy Companion. We also have Plucky Companion and Bitchy Companion as well, but Liz, even if she can be plucky too, is a scientist. She is one of my favourite companions in Old Who because she is smart and kind and often contributes to the solution. I can, kind of, see why the producer’s felt they wanted a companion who was a better viewer’s substitute, but I’m still sorry that she didn’t get a proper send-off. I would also have loved to see her return for a later episode; I think she and Jo would have been very fun to watch together.



So we get Jo Grant instead who is bubbly and bright (whatever she says), but certainly not an intellectual. She also has an enormous empathy and kindness. Even if she leaves a bit abruptly, her future life is just the right for her. I really loved it when she turned up in The Adventures of Sarah Jane and was just the same.

Then, of course, we have Sarah Jane. She did have several adventures with Three, but I consider her so much a companion to Four, so she will have to wait.

The Master



What can I say. No one reading this journal can have missed that I adore Rodger Delgado. He was my first Master and the best, even if Anthony Ainley is a pretty close second. Delgado’s Master sports a lot of cliché’s, but I wonder if they were such clichés 40 years ago. He is over the top, sometime hammy, evil, suave, steals scenes from everyone, charming and ultimately always defeated. He even looks evil with his widow’s peak 8which Delgado didn’t have IRL), beard and mesmerizing eyes. And he is always so well-dressed, at least on Earth.

I didn’t know much about him when I first saw DW and I remember feeling quite shocked when he first emerged. That he is a bad guy who kills people we get to know early on, but it happens off stage. And then we get to the scene were he is calmly watching a man suffocate at his feel and you realise that he doesn’t have to do that. He could kill him quickly, of get an Auton to do it, but he opts for slow and awful because he likes it.. He is charming, soft-spoken and polite and gets his kicks from watching someone die in terror. Rather chilling.



A lot have already been said about Pertwee’s and Delgado’s friendship and how well they play off each other, and they really do. I know many thinks Simm’s Master fits Ten because they are both rather whacky and talks fast and a lot, but Three and the Master are much more opposites in personality and I think that works much better. TV Tropes says that this regeneration of the Master just wants to take over/kill off Earth and spend time with the Doctor and that sums it up pretty well. I mean, it would be so much easier to NOT be on the same place as the Doctor if you want to succeed in you evil plotting.

The costumes



One thing to remember when you watch DW from this period is that this is what people wore. True, the Doctor is almost always wearing evening wear with his velvet suits and frilly shirts, but they are fashionable clothes for the early 70’s. I’m born in 1971 and I remember my father’s best suit very well- midnight blue velvet paired with an orange, frilly shirt. Jo is often accused to be dressed for fan service, but again, what she is wearing was what a young woman wore back then. Mini-skirts were in. My mother, who is born the same year as Katy Manning, got married in a mini-dress in 1970 and it wasn’t considered the least shocking. I get a real nostalgia trip watching Jo, because basically everything she is wearing are clothes of the same style that my Mum wore. Well, she didn’t have any go-go-boots. And Liz Shaw, who dresses a bit more conservative also were fashionable shirt length. I also remember a friend of my parent’s wearing her red hair in exactly the same chignon style as Liz.

Comments

[a-phoenixdragon.livejournal.com]

I just wanna squish this post...

*HUGS*

[scripsi.livejournal.com]

Hmm, well, the Brigadier says he doesn't squish, but that he has no opinion of what Yates and Benton do on their free time, as long as they are out of their uniforms. The Doctor is game and so is Jo and Liz looks like she can be convinced. The Master, however, is casually playing with his TCE, so don't get any ideas. ;)

[nenya_kanadka]

Obviously the post I came here for! :D And to use my Three icon. :D

I love all the companions so far with Three. I'd heard of Jo of course--saw the Sarah Jane Adventures episode before I ever met young Jo, even--but somehow I'd managed to miss Liz until I saw her episodes. And she was amazing. I have a soft spot for scientists anyway, and she was just...brave and clever and could keep up with the Doctor intellectually and come up with solutions. I kind of ship Three/Liz/Brig...they were such a good team.

And Jo, dear girl, does get underused at times, but I adore her too. (The one thing I'd change, I think, is all the times the Doctor tells her to stay behind and "do as you're told" in this very paternalistic manner. Or tells her she's stupid. It's the one thing I dislike about Three. And yet at the same time, he's so tender and gentle of her most of the time, and there's clearly this deep fondness between them. Which I love.) I love Jo's escapology, and the way she never does stay behind when told, but manages to get herself involved and help save the day. (That scene in The Sea Monsters where she's doing a Donna through the window making hand-signs at the Doctor! Brilliant.) And yes, always connecting with people with her big big heart.

The Brig is dashing in that uniform and often rolls his eyes at the Doctor's shenanigans, but it's clear they are also becoming dear friends. I hear that in the Eighth Doctor audio plays, the Doctor calls the Brig his best friend, and I can believe it. <3

And Benton and Yates...doesn't Jo have something going on with one of them? Maybe just flirting. But they're surprisingly awesome. And seeing UNIT in Three's era makes me that much fonder of Kate Stewart and her crew. I'm so glad New Who has picked that plot up a little bit again.

(P.S. I think you've got your Jo and Brig pictures swapped by accident?)

[scripsi.livejournal.com]

I identify myself with Liz more than any otehr companion. I Always were a brainy girl, but we are also the same type look-wise, which makes identification even easier. :) And yes, shipping Three/Liz/Brig is very, very easy. I too find the Brig rather dashing.

I agree, Three can be such a prick toward Jo, even if you also get that he really cares. And I love how she just Bounce back and never stays were the Doctor puts her. I think she grumbles at some Point that her date with Yates was spoiled.

I love that New Who makes use of UNIT again.

(P.S. I think you've got your Jo and Brig pictures swapped by accident?)

Ooops! Yes, I did. :)

[nenya_kanadka]

Ha! I'm a redhead myself and always wanted to be a scientist (haven't become one, but was always good at the maths and physics in school) so that contributes to my love for Liz as well. She was just such a surprise, as I'd heard the cliches about oldschool companions just screaming a lot...and then I got Liz. <3

I try to tell myself that the Doctor is generally grumpy because he's stuck on Earth, with these people who are really rather backward in some ways, and it's true that he does snap at the Brig and other people too. It's just worse somehow when it's Jo, and it is sometimes gendered a bit. The show showing its age, I guess. Pisses me off because sometimes they do get it so right, and then...noooope. Jo puts up with a lot!

But if I can get past that, I love the parts where they're being friends and teasing each other. They clearly do have a connection. If only someone would give Three a bit of a smack and make him take her more seriously. :P

Anyway...

[scripsi.livejournal.com]

I'd heard the cliches about oldschool companions just screaming a lot.

I think they mostly don't. There is often a frustrating lack of rounding off the character of a companion, but they all have distinct personalities. The companions who fare the worst are the ones in the early 80's, both Tegan and Peri gets a really short stick there.

Yes, you can tell these episodes are 40 years old at times and at times one do want to smack the Doctor. But on the whole they do have a lovely chemistry.

[nenya_kanadka]

Yes, they really are individuals with personalities and different ways of interacting with the Doctor (and other people). I'm very fond of basically all of them. :D

[kaffy_r]

I've always thought that Three must have spent his time on earth vastly at odds with himself; on the surface almost utterly controlled and civilized, always "in charge" - but underneath, afraid of having had his mind and memory tampered with by the Timelords, afraid that he might never recover either those things or his beloved Tardis, locked away from both himself and the universe.

Think of all the fear he hid beneath a veneer of polite irritability, and all the gentleness he showed towards his friends despite all the fear - he really was a magnificent iteration!

[scripsi.livejournal.com]

Yes, indeed. He must be quite terrified, underneath. He doesn't know for how long he will have to remain on Earth and he can't get away. Even if he loves and trusts his friend at UNIT he must also be aware that other humans may see him as a threat. A horrible situation, really.

And then the Time Lords casually popping by to just say that the Master is here, btw, but offering no help, or giving the Doctor temporary leave. It must be so frustrating!

Most of the time Tree is my favourite Old Who Doctor. Sometimes I Think it's Four, but most of the time it's Three. :)

[flowsoffire.livejournal.com]

Squee, a post about Third Doctor Who! :D Let me hug you for this! I agree with a lot of what you said, most of all the things I've already seen, hahaha. I am really in love with One and Two, but I have to say that the 70's show is keeping me engaged in a different way and I'm really enjoying the way it all unfolds. I love Three, and his temper and snark, and indeed it's pretty good that he doesn't just have a handy male companion for the action (sometimes the guys felt a bit one-dimensional, like they were just there for that—some of them, mind you, there were a lot more to others like Ian and Jamie). And the Brig! The Master! Liz! Jo! ♥ All the babies.

The costumes are very good indeed, yes :D It's a shame that Jo's send-off wasn't too good either, and also about the lack of psychological issues and consequences being a thing in classic!Who. Oh well… it remains great in its own way ;P

♥

[scripsi.livejournal.com]

*hugs* Yes, Three is his own action man. :)

Jo's send-off isn't all bad, just a bit rushed, which I think s more common than not when it comes to companion's departure. I guess we are so used today to foreshadowing such things several epidoes before that we are taken a bit back by it.

Perhaps that's why I'm so much more drawn to write fanfic about old Who than new. Not because I love it more, but because there are more "holes" to fill in with fics. :)

And yes, it is great in it's own way! <3

[flowsoffire.livejournal.com]

Oh yes, I completely agree. Vicki, Steven, Dodo, Liz… there were many quick ones. We just want it to be as meaningful on screen as it is to us and as we feel the relationship deserves, but it doesn't always work this way! ;P

And filling in the missing things is always great! :D