Story #25 - The Gunfighters (1966)

Sarah -
It’s the Wild West, and – hooray! – Steven always wanted to be a cowboy. A quick costume change and Dead Eye Steve and Dizzy Dodo get to "dress up like Tom Mix."


Harry -
Oh dear, that shirt... What was Steven thinking? He looks like a fugitive from a Wild West Revue. He and Dodo are ready for a real Western romp, I guess.


Sarah -
It would be a Western romp … if only the Doctor didn’t have a toothache, and Doc Holliday weren’t coming to town – and if that bloody woman would just stop singing!

But wait, Doc Holliday is coming to town to set up a dentist shop. What luck for the Doctor! But wait, four blokes are lying in wait for Holliday at the Last Chance Saloon. Bad luck for Holliday!

The plot of this romp is thickening – and still that woman sings.


Harry -
Ah, the never-ending "Ballad of the Last Chance Saloon". I have read many fan criticisms ripping on the singing in this story and was expecting the worst. Actually, I didn't mind it. Mercifully, they made a kind of Greek Chorus of the singer. A blindingly obvious Greek Chorus, mind, but in a weird way it worked. And it only could have worked in a comedy story like this.


Sarah -
I imagine they were trying to go for the “High Noon” effect, but it ended up feeling a little more “Cat Ballou” to me. Honestly, I didn’t mind it all that much. Plus, she filled in all the plot details in case the viewer happened to be a complete blooming idiot.

I'm going to dash ahead to discuss my favorite part of the entire story. Just before departing, Dodo stops everyone to ask if they can hear the singing. The Doctor admonishes her for falling for every Western cliche and they head back to the TARDIS. I nearly fell off my sofa laughing -- THE SINGING WAS ALL IN DODO'S HEAD AFTER ALL! SHE REALLY IS INSANE!


Harry -
Mad as a bag of frogs. La la la, can you hear the voices??


Sarah -
Meanwhile, things get even thicker, as they are want to do when a character named Doc and a character named Doctor find themselves in the same town.


Harry -
Didn't we just have a mistaken identity caper the last time the TARDIS landed on Earth? Here we go again.


Sarah -
Who doesn’t love a good mistaken identity caper? What a mess the TARDIS crew has gotten themselves into!


Harry -
You gawt that right, pardner. The Clanton Gang present a very real danger to Steven and Dodo while they lie in wait for the Doctor at the saloon. It made for a good first cliffhanger. However Wyatt Earp is soon on the scene to rescue the Doctor by arresting him and hauling him off. Tell me that didn't have "Hartnell Holiday" all over it!

The vacation plans must have fallen through, because the Doctor and friends are present throughout the story. I say "present" because Steven and Dodo seem to be complete bystanders for much of the story. The real drama is played out by all of the historical characters, as these four episodes slowly build up to the big finish at the O.K. Corral.


Sarah -
Poor Steven and Dodo just got shifted around from scene to scene, didn’t they? I had high hopes for them in the beginning. It even looked like Steven was going to get to do something heroic. You know, something Ian might do. Instead, he nearly gets himself lynched.


Harry -
Yes, the groundwork was set for Steven and Dodo to really get involved here, they donned their period dress with great enthusiasm. Maybe they were too naive? You could look at their subsequent rough ride as evidence that travelling with the Doctor and his magical box will always be harsher than what you fancy it might be like.


Sarah -
I do want to put in a kind word for Peter Purves. Whatever you may say about the inconsistencies in the writing of Steven’s character, Purves is always game. Need him to be angry? He’s on it. Some broad comedy? He’s your man!


Harry -
He can even carry a tune!


Sarah -
Also, he’s kind of cute in this story. If only the writers had given him more.

I’ll even admit that Jackie Lane gets off one good scene when she turns the gun on Doc Holliday, demanding he take her back to the Doctor. The moment when she hands him the gun and asks for a glass of water is brilliant – and clearly the actions of a mad woman!


Harry -
Yes, that was a bit of fun.

But the historicals used to not be this way, all lurching along in the other characters' wake. Think back to "Marco Polo" or "The Aztecs." Barbara, Ian and Susan were so much more involved in the plot, sometimes even driving it. And the historical characters were much more than just "characters" as they are here. I'm thinking of Marco Polo's journal entries, or Tlotoxl's into-the-camera asides -- moments that gave us entry into their personal thoughts. Here, unfortunately, we just have a bunch of Wild West figures playing out Wild West stereotypes, dragging our time travellers along with them. Alas.


Sarah -
Still, there is a sense of fun, at least at the beginning, which has been missing for a while. Hartnell gets to show his comedic chops and his timing is perfect. Actually, the more I think about Hartnell’s performance, the more I like this story. It’s refreshing to see him being the Doctor we love, after being sidelined in so many stories. We get to see what he can do when he’s actually given something to DO. His complaint about people giving him guns is priceless!


Harry -
Hartnell did shine when the story drifted into high comedy.


Sarah -
I also really enjoyed the supporting characters, even if most of the accents were more than a little inconsistent. It’s a short hop from the Arizona Territory to the Perpugilliam Brown School of American Accents, it seems. Still, it’s easy to pick on accents, so I’ll move along and focus on what did work.

John Alderson and Anthony Jacobs were perfect as Wyatt Earp and Doc Holliday. Sheena Marshe does a good turn on the saloon-girl-with-a-heart-of gold trope. Laurence Payne was wonderfully menacing as Johnny Ringo – his appearance changed the tone of the entire story. They all carry the roles off so well; it’s been a while since we’ve seen such strong character performances. The Clantons…well, they’re just hideous – but let us move along from them.


Harry -
If only they had done some more with these characters, rather than just have them go through the motions of history, if that makes any sense. What with all that singing, I guess there wasn't much time for character development.

Felt bad for Charlie the bartender, though.


Sarah -
Poor Charlie. That scene was harsh.

After the relative romp of the beginning of the story, things turn dark when the infamous Gunfight at the O.K. Corral finally takes place. It’s all rather gruesome, and our heroes don’t really have much to do – other than batty Dodo running into the middle of things.


Harry -
Longest gunfight ever? I'm tempted to go back and count how many rounds were fired; it sounded like there were a couple dozen extra shooters blasting away during the whole thing. Well, we did get a big shoot-em-up at the end, can't complain about that. I'm not a big fan of Westerns, so for me that's usually the big attraction.


Sarah -
I enjoyed this story much more than I expected. I don’t share your Western aversion, but The Gunfighters had never had the best reputation in fandom, so my expectations were low. It’s a solid story, with strong performances all around.


Harry -
I too kept expectations low, was expecting the worst, and was pleasantly surprised. The story never seemed to drag, had plenty of colourful moments, and finished with a bang.


Sarah -
Stories like this are what make me appreciate this little project of ours. Having seen so few of the first two Doctors’ stories, it’s wonderful to have the opportunity to watch them for the first time.


Harry -
Same here! The fact that we can now compare different eras within the First Doctor's era is wonderful. Let's wrap this one up and head to the next story!


Lasting image: Steven in his "buckaroo" costume.

Favourite moment: the scene in the saloon where the various members of the Clanton family are plotting to hire Johnny Ringo, while belting down shots of whiskey as fast as the frantic barkeep can pour them.

Best line: "And lastly, sir, your humble servant, Doctor, er, Caligari."
"Doctor who?"
"Yes, quite right."

It never gets old!

6/10


Sarah -
You're right -- it never gets old!

Lasting image: The Doctor entering the saloon in his cowboy hat. (Not the last time he’ll sport that look!)

Favorite moment: Dodo hearing voices.

Best line: “All these people are giving me guns, I do wish they wouldn’t”

With an honorable mention for: “Well I had to find some sort of suitable cover. After all, you can’t walk into the middle of a Western town and say you come from outer space. Gracious me, you’ll be arrested on a vagrancy charge.”

7/10

I imagine our epic re-watch will be a very different experience from the Third Doctor on, where I’ve seen every story multiple times. For now, I’m really enjoying the feeling of discovery.


Harry -
It's definitely been worth watching each episode in order. That's the perfect note to end on here, as today we celebrate our first anniversary on the sofa.

Happy Anniversary Deerie! I hope we have many more (at the pace we are moving, there promises to be many more!).


Sarah -
Happy Anniversary, Old Chum! I recently found myself calculating how long it would take us to get through the Tom Baker years and decided I'd better not plan that many years ahead!

Let's sign off with a hearty Happy New Year to our readers. We'll see you on the Sofa in 2012!


Harry -
Happy New Year!

It might be too ambitious to promise that we'll get through the Troughton era by the end of next year, so let's promise to get through the Hartnell era by the end of next year. I think that's doable!


Sarah -
I think we can manage that.

Our marathon continues with Story #26 - The Savages...

Story #24 - The Celestial Toymaker (1966)

Sarah -
Well, the writers have finally found an efficient way to deal with yet another of William Hartnell's holidays -- make him invisible and mute. Problem solved!

I know this story is a favorite of yours, Dear Harry, so I'm putting on my positive hat and looking forward to your comments.


The Celestial Toymaker -
Hello Sarah. I'm afraid Harry is indisposed at the moment. He too has been rendered mute and invisible, and I have placed him in one of my game rooms where he might while away some time playing Sudden Death Othello. I hope we can play some games together. You are ever so clever and I think you would make a worthy opponent.


Sarah -
Knock it off Harry. I know it's you. You're making an already tedious story even more tedious.

So tell me, what makes you love this story so much? Have you reassessed your feelings towards it following this viewing?


Harry -
I see my makeshift Toymaker costume did not fool you. [*throws blue housecoat aside.*]


Sarah -
Not that it wasn't a good look for you.


Harry -
Why thank you darling!

Yes, this has always been a favourite story of mine, mostly because of the Toymaker character as played my Michael Gough. I love his voice, all caramelly and resonant. He purrs his lines like a tiger toying with its prey (if tigers toy, that is).

Unfortunately, this story takes two direct hits that weaken the viewing experience. First off and most obviously, the first three episodes are missing, so we are forced to watch reconstructions that rely on very scant available images. Even then, and this is the second weakness, the Toymaker does very little else than menace the Doctor and his friends with his voice.


Sarah -
I have to agree with you on both points. Gough's performance is positively juicy and I would love to be able to see it. (Keep checking those closets and lower file drawers, Kiddos, we know it's out there somewhere!) The recons do not in any way enhance the story. This is such a visual story and it feels wrong to judge it on the recon, but that's all we've got.


Harry -
But I still love the notion of an omnipotent being, grown bored with its powers and seeking out bright minds to play games with. It's not the last time we'll see this in science fiction, or in Doctor Who for that matter.

This story is so visual that no reconstruction could do it justice. I'd love to have seen the clowns mucking around with Steven and Dodo during the game of Blind Man's Bluff. All we hear are a squeaky voice and a honking horn. But it's still enough to raise my ire at those two, er, clowns. I strongly sympathized with Steven's growing anger.


Sarah -
I started taking notes, but gave up because I had no idea what the heck was going on. I was even more irate than Steven.


Harry -
On the subject of Steven, his attitude to the goings-on in the Celestial Playroom was markedly different to that of Dodo. Steven was skeptical of everything around him, impatient to get moving and overtly hostile to the characters they played against -- wanting to win and get out of there, even if it meant a terrible end to their opponents.

Dodo meanwhile seemed caught up in the fun of it all, not seeming to grasp the menace of the Toymaker or his games. But Dodo is insane. Let her be.


Sarah -
The Steven-Dodo dynamic was my favorite part of the story. Steven's anger and impatience mirrored my own and wacky Dodo was just playing along. I was ready for him to have a dramatic breakdown -- slapping Dodo repeatedly and telling her to get a grip on herself. That would have livened up the story!


Harry -
There's a fanfic for that.


Sarah -
I'm sure there is. *shudders at the thought*

I also kind of liked the game with Cyril. Peter Stephens' performance of the snotty little pischer is so delightfully over-the-top, that it's a joy to see him lose.


Harry -
Oh he was a vile bastard, wasn't he? Leaping unwittingly to his own demise was quite fitting.

You mentioned off the top about William Hartnell's absence in this story. Hartnell wasn't there, but the Doctor was (though not in body or voice). You think the producers were giving old Billy a hint?


Sarah -
One can only think.

So, staying positive, as we are want to do, I believe I learned more about the story from reading Rob and Toby's discussion than actually watching it. I didn't actually realize that the game characters were all played by the same three actors until I read Running Through Corridors. Or maybe I'm just slow on the uptake.


Harry -
Well, even though the actors played all three sets of characters with different voices, there was not much visual evidence to go by, and who would have really guessed that they were all the same people?

(Right here is where Messr Hadoke would slap me with a large haddock and tell me to read the bleedin' credits.)


Sarah -
Lasting image: The Toymaker's fab costume

Favorite moment: Cyril losing the game.

Best line: "I'm bored. I love to play games but there's no-one to play against. The beings who call here have no minds, and so they become my toys. But you will become my perpetual opponent. We shall play endless games together, your brain against mine."

5/10 (Although I'm open to re-evaluating my rating when the original footage is discovered in someone's gran's attic.)


Harry -
Keep double-checking your root cellars, people!

Well, I see my best efforts have failed to convince you. I still like the story because it is so "out there" as a Doctor Who adventure, even though "out there" wasn't all that "there." Oh no, I've gone cross-eyed!

Lasting image: the trilogic game.

Favourite moment: Any moment when the Toymaker was oozing menace.

Best line: "Go for move 1,023!"

7/10






Our marathon continues with Story #25 - The Gunfighters...

Story #23 - The Ark (1966)

Sarah -
First off, I’m positively giddy at the prospect of actual moving images in this story after so many reconstructions!


Harry -
Yup yup, valuable as they are to preserving the legacy, these reconstructions are wearing on me too. I want moving pictures, is that so wrong?


Sarah -
It's not wrong at all. I plan to party like it's 1999 when we finally get through our last recon. It was rather heartening to hear Rob Shearman comment at Chicago TARDIS about how chuffed he and Toby were when they got through the final recon.


Harry -
Chicago TARDIS was a blast!


Sarah -
It was a great time. It’s like a revival meeting for Whovians.

Now, back to my list...second, eyes in mouths are damn creepy. I may have trouble sleeping this evening with visions of Monoids dancing in my head.


Harry -
My manager would be alarmed to know how much time I spent today wondering how the actors got their eyeball to move around.


Sarah -
I'm so glad it wasn't just me. I was all distracted by the mechanics of it all. I also spent far too much time wondering how the Monoids ate all the food the humans prepared for them.


Harry -
That too.  For the eyes -- sorry, eye -- I concluded that the actors had a painted ping-pong ball in their mouths, with an opening cut into the back so that they could use their tongues to move the "eyeball" around. Although no one seemed to do it very well and the Monoids all came off boggle-eyed.


Sarah -
Third, I’m afraid your analysis of Dodo’s mental health is coloring my world. I felt a little sympathy for her when the Doctor harshed on her way of speaking, but can’t shake the impression that the girl is wackadoodle.


Harry -
Bonkers. She's already gotten into the TARDIS wardrobe and decided that it's time for Dodo's Mad Medieval Cosplay, la la la!


Sarah -
She was even chided for it by the Doctor. Later, when the Doctor says, “Don’t worry, Child, you’re quite safe with us,” you know things are going to go very wrong. Who knew it would be the common cold? Typhoid Dodo is on the scene.


Harry -
HAH!


Sarah -
Makes me just a little paranoid about my current sniffles. Perhaps I’ll just quarantine myself to the house for the duration to avoid spreading it about.

As the plague spreads, suspicion naturally falls on the new arrivals and a trial begins. I was hoping that Steven would finally get some good scenes as he confronts the Guardians, but he just passes out. Typical.


Harry -
I've been meaning to ask you your thoughts on Steven. Doesn't he seem terribly bland from one story to the next? Since he was introduced as a mildly overexcited fighter pilot, we haven't heard a peep about his backstory, nor have whatever skills he may possess have been worked into any story. He's settled into a kind of bemused tagalong who does the occasional bit of heavy lifting for the old man.

He is handsome though, don't you think?


Sarah -
He's terribly dishy, which somehow makes the lack of character development even more frustrating. I had high hopes for "The Massacre", which should have been his moment to shine, but was so disappointing in the end. I really want Steven to be fabulous, but am starting to reconcile myself to the fact that he's never going to get there.

So, the Doctor finds a cure, vaccinates the Guardian, delivers a reassuring speech, and heads off on the complimentary shuttle back to the TARDIS.


Harry -
I love the complimentary shuttle! It's a far cry from "An Unearthly Child," where the Doctor and his friends had to scamper back to the TARDIS all bedraggled and hair wild. These humans are clearly a civilized people, despite their curious antipathy towards trousers and leggings.


Sarah -
There's definitely a trend towards either under- or over-dressing on Doctor Who, isn't there?


Harry -
Definitely. And actually, these pantless people may not be entirely civilized, as we saw them almost go to pieces during the Dodo epidemic. Maybe there was a symbolic meaning to Dodo's medieval costume, as there was a mood of "BURN THE WITCH" being whipped up by Zentos, the deputy commander.


Sarah -
And what a charming man he was. Still, they find themselves safely back in the TARDIS and all is well in the universe…or is it?


Harry -
It is for all of 10 seconds, before that quirky TARDIS lands them in the exact same spot, 700 years later. The camera pans up to reveal the now-completed human statue, and the statue is topped by a Monoid head!


Sarah -
The shot of the statue was my favorite single moment of the story.


Harry -
I liked that cliffhanger, and the ensuing two episodes were very fast moving. I also liked the repeated use of overhead shots, something that makes this story stand out from others.


Sarah -
I thought the overall design and feeling of the story was very classic Doctor Who. I could easily imagine this story being told in another Doctor’s era – perhaps the Fourth Doctor. He’d have a good time giving the Monoids what for.


Harry -
Just as I was panning Steven for never using his fighter pilot skills, he suddenly goes and analyses the spaceship's navigation charts. Well done flyboy!


Sarah -
It was a heartening moment.


Harry -
Er... that about wraps up the nice things I have to say. Even Rob and Toby broke character and started trashing this story. My favourite part of "The Ark" might actually be their review in Running Through Corridors. Hilarious stuff!


Sarah -
I just got around to reading it. I definitely laughed more than I have anywhere else in the book!


Harry -
Anyway, after starting off as benign, Ood-like servant creatures, the Monoids have been fitted with voiceboxes and armed with heat guns. Having been weakened by the Dodo epidemic, the human Guardians are now enslaved to the Monoids. But it's done so hokily. There's a short story by John Wyndham called "Dumb Martian," and it plays on this theme of servants-become-masters to chilling effect, but here it's so, so hokey.


Sarah -
It does kind of fall apart in the second half, doesn’t it, which is really too bad because the story has so much promise. I liked the fact that the Doctor had become a bit of a legend among the Guardian descendents. I also thought Venussa was a strong character with a nice performance by Eileen Helsby.


Harry -
Yes, she did a nice turn.


Sarah -
She might have made a good companion; she looked like she wouldn’t have minded traveling with Steven, if you know when I mean.


Harry -
Indeed! Now, my notes are littered with comments like "shoddy acting," "bad acting," and worst of all: "Hartnell BORED." I wonder if this story was the beginning of the end of William Hartnell's job as the Doctor. He looks terribly bored throughout the story, merely reciting his lines. Even his Hartnellian giggles seem forced.


Sarah -
The moment when the Monoid almost reveals his diabolical plan to Dodo before catching himself may be the single worst moment of acting in the entire history of the series. Not a race of super-spies, these Monoids.


Harry -
The Monoids are livelier, with all that flailing of hands, but they are so silly as monsters, and with the rest of the cast seemingly dampened by Hartnell's boredom, the story limps to the finish. There, we are made to believe that a Refusian -- an invisible creature that uses human-sized chairs to sit on -- can somehow lift a colossus statue and help pitch it out of the spaceship before the bomb contained within can explode. Yeesh.


Sarah -
But they certainly have a knack for interior design! Terribly kind of them to set up such swanky digs for their coming neighbors. I can only imagine the BBC accounting department was delighted by the notion of invisible aliens. Crap storytelling, but easy on the budget. Speaking of budget, how the heck did they afford an elephant? Did it just wander in from another set?


Harry -
Imagine the director whisper-shouting: "Keep rolling, keep rolling! Actors, go and stroke the elephant, we've not got enough time for another take!"

If you'll humour me as I go all "Toby" for a bit, it was nice to see Terence Bayler in this story. I recognized him as the actor who played MacDuff in Roman Polanski's wild and wooley 1971 film version of Macbeth. He also appeared in Jean Marsh's 1975 production of Upstairs, Downstairs.


Sarah -
Not to mention all his work with the Monty Python chaps. Alas, poor Yendom, betrayed so cruelly by the masters he trusted to save him. Doesn’t he know what happens to collaborators?


Harry -
Alas, poor Yendom.


Sarah -
Lasting image: The Monoid statue.

Favorite moment: The big reveal of the Monoid statue.

Best line: Doctor telling the monoid in the lab, “Yes, I know I’m a bit of a quack.”

6/10


Harry -
Lasting image: All those overhead shots will stick in my mind.

Favourite moment: Random elephant.

Best line: "Two, take them away to the security kitchen..." I was hoping that that sentence would end with "...and have them puréed."

5/10

 



Our marathon continues with Story #24 - The Celestial Toymaker...