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From: ckuppe@spock.UUCP (Charles A. Kupperman '87 )
Newsgroups: net.tv.drwho
Subject: The old stories
Message-ID: <338@spock.UUCP>
Date: Mon, 20-Jan-86 13:04:51 EST
Article-I.D.: spock.338
Posted: Mon Jan 20 13:04:51 1986
Date-Received: Wed, 22-Jan-86 05:16:06 EST
Organization: Choate Rosemary Hall, Wallingford, CT.
Lines: 46

The showing of the older episodes on American television has brought up
several interesting points:

* Do colour copies exist of the Pertwees that were shown in BW?
  	Yes, for most of them.  I've seen Daemons and Silurians in colour,
	and the most informed sources say all episodes except Invasion
	of the Dinosaurs 1 and Planet of the Daleks 3 exist in colour, but
	they exist on a format that cannot be shown on television.

* Will the "butchered" episodes ever be seen properly?
	I think so.  The missing episode of POD was shown in movie form.
	The reason the episodes were ommited, I think, had more to do with
	scheduling decisions than availability.  So, next time around, we
	may see the whole thing.

* Now for the interesting part.  What about the long cherished British opinions
  on the early (Hartnell) stories?
	This requires some clarification.  Ever since about 1977, the British
	fans have entertained a very high opinion of themselves.  They rather
	became the arbitrary judges of all Doctor Who stories, declaring the
	Pertwee years sacred, and declaring certain stories "classics", and
	spitting upon others.  The thing is, however, most of them,
	until recently, had never seen the Hartnell years.  I mean that, at
	the same time as the consensus of British fandom was solidly in favor
	of these judgements, they couldn't really remember anything
	before the Troughton years.  (This is a generalisation.)
	Now, suddenly, these stories are available to both British and American
	fans, and "sacred" judgements by such authorities as J. Jeremy Bentham,
	who wrote those reviews in Doctor Who: a Celebration, and whose word
	is almost inviolate, are being reversed.  For instance, the story
	Edge of Destruction has suddenly lost its status as a "classic",
	the status it held for many years, and is now being regarded by many
	fans as a rather silly romp - Invasion of Time without the humor.
	Similarly, Gunfighters is now seen by many British fans as a terrific
	farce, a story that, along with the Romans and the Time Meddler, adds
	a lot of fun to the Doctor Who concept.  
	Personally, I think Horns of Nimon is a fun story and should be
	regarded a lot more highly.  That just goes to show how varied opinions
	can, and should, be.

Sorry to bog you all down with this,
	Charles Kupperman.

"A long-shanked rascal with a mighty nose."

	-- The Time Warrior.