DEEP BREATH

"You may have a sonic screwdriver, Doctor, but I have a blowtorch for
a hand. Who's cooler now?"

Series: 8
Episode: 1
Broadcast Date: 23 August 2014
Executive Producers: Steven Moffat, Brian Minchin
Producer: Nikki Wilson
Script Editor: Derek Ritchie
Writer: Steven Moffat
Director: Ben Wheatley
Regulars: Peter Capaldi (Doctor Who), Jenna Louise Coleman (Clara)

The Plot: The newly-regenerated Doctor ends up in Victorian times with a T. Rex and soon investigates cases of spontaneous combustion. Also, Clara doesn't like the new Doctor very much. Old friends turn up but he can't remember them (Oh come on! It was only 6 years ago!).
We Like: Peter Capaldi makes a grand entrance as the post-regeneration confusion seems to get the better of him. When he calms down, however, he turns a masterful performance as the Twelfth Doctor.
We Dislike: Clara, Clara, Clara...how superficial and disappointing! So you don't like the new Doctor because he's gotten a bit on the gray side. This is suprising considering that she's met every single incarnations of our favourite Time Lord, so she knows he didn't always go for the youngish look. How superficial.
Rating: 3

THE TENTH PLANET

The Cyberman was about to convert General Cutler into one of their own,
until he realised Cutler already had no heart, and very little brains. 

Season: 4
Episodes: 4*
Broadcast Dates: 8-29 October 1966
Producer: Innes Lloyd
Script Editor: Gerry Davis
Writer: Kit Pedler, Gerry Davis
Director: Derek Martinus
Regular Cast: William Hartnell (Dr. Who), Michael Craze (Ben), Anneke Wills (Polly)

The Plot: The year is 1986 and the Solar System has a new planet, Mondas whose inhabitants pay a visit. They'll be popping up quite a few times for now on.
We Like: I don't know, but I have always found these early Cybermen to be the most effective. Their eerie appearance is certainly arresting. Oh, and the Doctor dies at the end.
We Dislike: General Cutler, one wonders exactly how he got his job as he is dangerously incompetent.
Rating: 3.5

THE SMUGGLERS

"Last chance Old Man: Where. Are. The. Missing. Episodes!"

Season: 4
Episodes: 4*
Broadcast Dates: 10 September-1 October 1966
Producer: Innes Lloyd
Script Editor: Gerry Davis
Writer: Brian Hayles (x2)
Director: Julia Smith
Regular Cast: William Hartnell (Dr. Who), Michael Craze (Ben), Anneke Wills (Polly)


The Plot: Ahoy, ship mateys! The Doctor goes treasure-hunting in 17th century Cornwarll while Ben and Polly are accused of murder by a man who happens to be the inside man for a smuggler's ring.
We Like: The fact that the nursery rhyme which points to the treasure's location changes every time somebody says it. That'll certainly help.
We Dislike: Pirates! Why did it have to be pirates! Sorry, mate, I don't do pirates...and Jack Sparrow's not in it, too.
Rating: 1

* All episodes missing as of August 7, 2014

COMPANION FOLLOW-UP: STEVEN TAYLOR

Steven's sweater is defnitie proof that black & white
Doctor Who has qualities of its own. 

A space pilot from the future, Steven found himself marooned on planet Mechanus. He was taken prisoner by the robotic Mechanoids until they brought in other prisoners, namely the Doctor and his companions. For the first time in two years, Steven finally had a ticket out.

Origin: The future, most likely the 22nd to 24th century.
Seasons: 2-3
Tenure: 26 June 1965-18 June 1966
Reason for Leaving: For some reason, the Doctor selected Steven to become the leader of the former Elders and Savages, to help rebuild their civilisation.
Assessment: Take Ian Chesterton, strike about 20 years, and add an even more belligerent and argumentative nature yet take out all the humour and you have Steven. I quite liked Steven but couldn't they have made him less a pain in the ass? Guess not. Steven gets to shine in The Massacre when he is left alone in the middle of chaos and murder, and rightly calls the Doctor on it. He's also very amusing in The Gunfighters (and quite the singer as well).

COMPANION FOLLOW-UP: DODO CHAPLET

Teenage hearthrob Dodo was much interfered with. Here, she is refusing
the advances of a Monoid. 

When the TARDIS materialises at Wimbledon Commons, young teenager Dod Chaplet went in, mistaking it for a real Police Box. Steven, however, is sure she is a descendent of someone he knew in 1572.

Origin: Contemporary England.
Season: 3
Tenure: 26 February-2 July 1966
Reason for Leaving: Mind-controlled by the malevolent computer WOTAN, Dodo got a bit of a headache and decided to stay with her aunt.
Assessment: Obviously, Dodo was a step back from Vicki, Sara Kingdom and, yes, even Katarina. She was supposed to talk with a Cockney accent, but the BBC doesn't do Cockney. The production team didn't have a single idea what to do with her, and never even bothered to give her a parting scene.

THE WAR MACHINES

The Doctor inspects the latest innovation: a fully-automated, radio controlled
MP3 player with bonus machine guns. 

Season: 3
Episodes: 4
Broadcast Dates: 25 June-16 July 1966
Producer: Innes Lloyd
Script Editor: Gerry Davis
Writer: Ian Stuart Black
Director: Michael Ferguson
Regular Cast: William Hartnell (Dr. Who), Jackie Lane (Dodo)
Joining In: Ben (Michael Craze), Polly (Anneke Wills)
Jumping Ship: Dodo, who has a bit of a headache.

The Plot: Doctor Who goes Mod Squad as the Doctor and Dodo teams up with a pair of kids from the Now! Generation to stop a maniachal computer.
We Like: The Doctor lands in contemporary England, teams up with government officials and the army to stop the baddies. 3 and a half years later down the line, you'll be seeing this kind of stuff every week. Groundbreaking!
We Dislike: WOTAN manages to be ahead-of-is-time and hopelessly dated at the same time.
Rating: 4

THE SAVAGES

When he was about to leave his home planet, the Doctor seriously consi-
dered going with The Tourist as his username.

Season: 3
Episodes: 4*
Broadcast Dates: 28 May-18 June 1966
Producer: Innes Lloyd
Script Editor: Gerry Davis
Writer: Ian Stuart Black
Director: Christopher Barry
Regular Cast: William Hartnell (Dr. Who), Peter Purves (Steven), Jackie Lane (Dodo)
Jumping Ship: Steven, 'elected' king of the Elders and the Savages by the Doctor.

The Plot: A parable on how the rich and powerful exploits the poor and downthrodden for their own benefit.
We Like: Frederick Jaeger steals the Doctor's life force and gets to imitate William Hartnell. What fun!
We Dislike: In those days, when they wanted to get rid of a companion they didn't mess about, did they? Still, Steven's departure is wayyy better than Dodo's (see next story).
Rating: 2.5

*All episodes missing as of August 6, 2014

THE GUNFIGHTERS

The Doctor assures Bat Masterson and Wyatt Earp that he is indeed a
doctor, and he's also on holiday, sort of. So why all the fuss?

Season: 3
Episodes: 4
Broadcast Dates: 30 April-21 May 1966
Producer: Innes Lloyd
Script Editor: Gerry Davis
Writer: Donald Cotton (x2)
Director: Rex Tucker
Regular Cast: William Hartnell (Dr. Who), Peter Purves (Steven), Jackie Lane (Dodo)

The Plot: Hee-haw! The TARDIS crew arrrive in Tombstone, Arizona, and the Doctor is mistaken for Doc Holliday. You can see where this is going.
We Like: Often cited as the worst Doctor Who serials ever, but don't believe a word of it. Like all humourous episodes, it starts out full of laughs but ends in grim tragedy when we get to that infamous gunfight. The accents are a bit dodgy, but no one said Brits could do 'American' well, so there.
We Like: The Ballad of the Last Chance Saloon. Did we have to hear that song every single episodes? Even Steven has to sing it as well (albeit at gunpoint).
Rating: 4

THE CELESTIAL TOYMAKER

"Last question, Doctor: what is the air-speed velocity of an unladen swallow?"
"What do you mean, hmm? African or European swallow?"

Season: 3
Episodes: 4*
Broadcast Dates: 2-23 April 1966
Producer: Innes Lloyd
Script Editor: Gerry Davis
Writer: Brian Hayles, Donald Tosh
Director: Bill Sellars
Regular Cast: William Hartnell (Dr. Who), Peter Purves (Steven), Jackie Lane (Dodo)

The Plot: Come on down, Doctor! You're the next contestant on The Celestial Toyroom.
We Like: The sheer concept of the Doctor and friends trapped into a seemingly innocuous realm of fear.
We Dislike: Judging from episode 4, they shouldn't have bothered. It's not uninteresting, but this attempt at surrealism falls flat, or at least not as weird as it should have been.
Rating: 2

* Only episode 4 still exists as of August 4, 2014.

THE ARK

The Monoid Olympics, where you can step up to gold by eliminating
the opposition. 

Season: 3
Episodes: 4
Broadcast Dates: 5-26 March 1966
Producer: John Wiles
Script Editor: Gerry Davis
Writer: Paul Erickson, Leslie Scott
Director: Michael Imison
Regular Cast: William Hartnell (Dr. Who), Peter Purves (Steven), Jackie Lane (Dodo)

The Plot: The TARDIS arrive on the Ark, a generational spaceship taking the remnants of the human race to planet Refusis II ('cause our Earth is about to blow up). Trouble abounds when Dodo's cold infects the crew.
We Like: The goofy Monoids and the fact that the serial is essentially two stories using the same sets and costumes.
We Dislike: Speaking of costumes, check out what humans will be wearing in a couple of millenias. The notion of Fashion Faux Pas seems to have vanished in the haze.
Rating: 3

THE MASSACRE

The Doctor and Steven enjoy a drink before the upcoming murder and
mayhem. 

Season: 3
Episodes: 4*
Broadcast Dates: 5-26 February 1966
Producer: John Wiles
Script Editor: Donald Tosh
Writer: John Lucarotti (x3), Donald Tosh
Director: Paddy Russell
Regular Cast: William Hartnell (Dr. Who), Peter Purves (Steven)
Joining In: Jackie Lane (Dodo)

The Plot: And what a plot! The evil Queen Mother Catherine de Medici is plotting not only to assassinate a too-popular protestant admiral. but use the murder to cook up one hell of a shit storm.
We Like: Quite possibly the grimmest Dr. Who story ever, written by the king of historicals. The kids at home must have been gobsmacked! And then there's Hartnell playing the evil Abbott of Amboise.
We Dislike: This marks the arrival of Dodo Chaplet. 'Nuff said.
Rating: 3.5

* All episodes missing as of July 30, 2014.

COMPANION FOLLOW-UP: KATARINA

Katarina ponders on why the realm of the dead
needs all these doohickeys and thingamabobs. 

Katarina was the handmaiden of Trojan prophetess Cassandra. When the Doctor became involved in the last days of the Trojan War, Katarina befriended Vicki, then known as Cressida. At the end of the war, believing the Doctor to be a god, she willingly decided to join him on his journey.

Origin: Earth, ca. 1190 BC.
Season: 3
Tenure: 6 November-4 December 1965
Reason for Leaving: Taken hostage by a Dalek agent who wanted to use her as leverage, she committed suicide to kill the agent and prevent the Doctor from going back to Kembel.
Assessment: Katarina, we hardly knew ye! Not much to say, as there's only a single episode featuring her and she doesn't do much except taking care of the wounded Steven. Katarina believed the Doctor was taking her to the afterlife. In retrospect, she was quite right about that.

COMPANION FOLLOW-UP: VICKI

"The Doctor wanted to take us to 18th century Paris again, but that's sooo
last year!"

Vicki was a passenger on board the spaceship UK 201 en route to planet Astra. However, the ship crashed on planet Dido and this is where things went wrong. The only other survivor was a man named Bennett who pretended to be paralysed. While not paraplegic, it appeared that Bennett was certifiably insane.

Origin: Vicki is from the late 25th century, though it is never specified if she's from Earth, exactly.
Tenure: 2 January-6 November 1965
Reason for Living: Just like her predecessor, Susan, Vicki unexplicably fell in love with someone she barely knew, and belonged to a different time than her own. However, she will serve as inpiration for a Shakespeare play.
Assessment: To be honest, Vicki was always intended as a copy-paste replacement for Susan Foreman. But that,s where all similarities end. Vicki was certainly a superior companion: smart, witty, resourceful and mature beyond her years. Vicki is certainly not one to be afraid of her own shadow. Her best sierials are The Romans (nice double act with the Doctor, there), The Web Planet (for the well-written interplay with Barbara) and The Space Museum due to her nderstanding of space and time and the fact that she's the one who organises the Xeron Rebellion

THE DALEKS' MASTER PLAN

The simmering anger and resentment felt by companions from time
to time get a voice in Sara Kingdom, whose first job was to kill the
Doctor. 

Season: 3
Episodes: 12*
Broadcast Dates: 13 November 1965-29 January 1966
Producer: John Wiles
Script Editor: Donald Tosh
Writer: Terry Nation (x6), Dennis Spooner (x4)
Director: Douglas Camfield
Regular Cast: William Hartnell (Dr. Who), Peter Purves (Steven), Adrienne Hill (Katarina), Jean Marsh (Sara Kingdom), Nicholas Courtney (Bret Vyon)
Jumping Ship: Katarina, the first companion ever to get killed off.

The Plot: The Daleks have allied themselves with the Guardian of the Solar System to betray the entire galaxy. And you thought President Obama was bad!
We Like: Episode 2 is the only extant episode featuring Katarina, so it's good to know she hasn't been erased from history. The rest, well, we only got about a fourth of what was shown so...nevertheless, pretty exciting.
We Dislike: Some of the middle episodes don't have anything to do with the plot, so just sit back, relax and watch Dr. Who have a toast on ye!
Rating: 3

*Only episodes 2,5 and 10 exists as of July 29, 2014.

THE MYTH MAKERS

The wise Doctor is apparently agreeable to a fool's bargain with a con
artist and a rake.

Season: 3
Episodes: 4*
Broadcast Dates: 16 October-6 November 1965
Procuder: John Wiles
Script Editor: Donald Tosh
Writer: Donald Cotton
Director: Michael Leeston-Smith
Regular Cast: William Hartnell (Dr. Who), Maureen O'Brien (Vicki), Peter Purves (Steven)
Jumping Ship: Vicki, another victim of Sudden Companion Romance Syndrome (or SCRS).
Joining In: Adrienne Hill (Katarina)

The Plot: In his definite version of the Iliad, Homer seems to have completely forgotten the Doctor's involvment with that Trojan Horse bit.
We Like: Another comedy episode, this time replacing farce with satire. Cotton should have written more.
We Dislike: And yet another comedy episode that ends in tragedy. Doctor Who has very strange ideas about what constitutes funny, apparently.
Rating: 3.5

*All episodes missing as of July 28, 2014.

MISSION TO THE UNKNOWN

For their latest dastardly plan, the Daleks have kidnapped the cast of a
popular children's show to do their evil biddings. 

Season: 3
Episodes: 1
Broadcast Date: 9 October 1965
Producer: Verity Lambert
Script Editor: Donald Tosh
Writer: Terry Nation (x5)
Director: Derek Martinus
Regular Cast: Barry Jackson (Jeff Garvey), Edward de Souza (Marc Cory), Jeremy Young (Gordon Lowery)

The Plot: Two special agents land of planet Kembel and realise the Daleks have made some interesting friends.
We Like: It's the first, ever Doctor-less episode, as none of the regular cast appear. Kembel itself, just a shade less dangerous than Skaro.
We Dislike: It's actually the prologue for The Daleks' Master Plan. Since it was followed by a completely different serial, fans had to wait a month before the rest of the story.
Rating: 3