Curse of Fenric

[clocketpatch]

Well, I finally watched my new DVD. I watched the movie version (I've got to watch the actual episode version next, because I don't think I've ever seen it. Then I can objectively say whether or not it makes more sense). Also, I watched it with my Mum, who didn't seem to realize that it was from the eighties... like, she saw Seven and was all "Oh, is that the new Doctor. He has a funny shirt. Why is it covered in question marks? That's silly."

Me... "Um... new is an... um... objective term..." *hands DVD case and points at the bit where it says 1989*

Mum: "So, when did they get the new actor? The new girl is good too, better than the blonde, but isn't her haircut a bit funny?"

Me... *shakes head*

That aside, I think she liked it.

I'll write out a commentary one day, probably, maybe, but not today. I did notice a few new things watching the episode. Like, for example, the weather. You know, the bad weather effects really aren't as obvious when you're watching a bad quality version on a ten inch computer screen. On the actual TV all I could notice every time it "rained" was how blue the skies were in the background, and how the rain looked suspiciously like a hose was being sprayed at the cast. At one point the hose was only spraying half the screen and the actors literally walked into a rainy patch. Now, I know what that say about English weather but... ;D

Another thing I noticed for the first time (more positive now) is Seven chanting the names of his companions to ward off the blue vampire monsters. I clearly heard him say Adric, Tegan, and Susan. Though why he'd start with Adric is beyond me... very nice scene though.

Very nice story. The "we have to work together to fight pollution" message got a wee little bit heavy handed at the end, but over-all the plot is magnificent. Easily one of the best stories of the show's history, even with the "Nevil! Nevil from the Dawn of Time!" (I love the fact that he ~actually~ does say nevil)

And I love Ace and the Doctor and the development they both get. That scene where they're both wiping mud off each other is just precious.

[jjpor]

It is a classic, no doubt about it, probably objectively the best Seven story of them all (although I do have my other little favourites!) and definitely up there with things like Talons in the Best of All Time nominees (or so I would argue anyway). It is an absolute crying shame that the old series was cancelled just as it was hitting its stride again after the dodginess of the mid-80s, and even more of a shame that casual viewers still remember this as the period when Who was getting "too silly".

And Sylv and Sophie are brilliant in this; it's a great character story for both Seven and Ace; the dark schemer first glimpsed in Remembrance of the Daleks really comes out to play here, and we are given all sorts of hints about why Ace is the way she is and just how much the Doctor is manipulating her (for her own good basically, although the mission always comes first for him). Nice time loop thing going on with the baby too.

And a good solid supporting cast; Commander Millington is perhaps slightly less formidable than he seemed to me on first viewing, but still has lots of convincingly nutty moments; you wonder if he was always that way or whether he's just seen too much in the course of the war. Nicholas Parsons, best known as a gameshow host in the UK, is a revelation as the vicar, and his eventual fate is one of the chilling moments of a story with more than a few chilling moments. Which brings me to Dr Judson, a great character, especially when he is no longer Dr Judson but Fenric; the bright cheery smile he gives directly to camera in that scene with the unfortunate nurse is just pure evil.

It's one of those stories where you're willing to forgive the little slips that you mention above, just because everything else is so good (and Nevil From the Dawn of Time!!! is all part of the charm I think; Sylv acting crazy is always fun). I mean, the haemovores are basically dodgy man-in-a-mask monsters, but that doesn't stop their relentless advance from being a little bit unsettling. Either that or I am getting very forgiving in my old age. ;D

[magnusgreel]

Which version are we talking about? There's a more recent one where more footage was added (not the slight bit of extra footage from a years-ago version) and the music and even the sequence of scenes were redone. This is not in episodic form. I have a tape of this and have seen it once. The original I've seen three or four times, and I have never understood more than about halfway, I think. Sylvester mumbles, that may be part of it.