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Batced — Heathrow, 1981?
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Published: 2018-07-17 04:24:31 +0000 UTC; Views: 923; Favourites: 32; Downloads: 4
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The Fifth Doctor block on Twitch went by so fast, that it's kind of a slap into reality. I'd gone through Peter Davison's era before and bingeing it like this I forgot that he was only there three years and three seasons, and with the reduction of the number of stories per season from the 1970s, his time on the show appears quicker than it really was.That being said, with Twitch now onto the Sixth Doctor's era (which should probably conclude later this week, sadly), it's a bit of an anachronism having this picture Davison now. But, it was still a bit too good to sit on, with the lighting and posing being some of the best I've done in a while.
It also burns me that Character Options, whom I've dinged in the past for decisions that make no sense, for not seeing fit to have any of Davison's regular companions (Adric, Nyssa, Tegan, and Turlough) represented alongside him. Peri is a good concession, since the work they've done for Big Finish together has expanded on the gap in the two stories where they were an official team, but think of the Fifth Doctor and the above four names are what you usually associate him most with. That and celery, and being the Tenth Doctor's father-in-law perhaps.
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Comments: 10
Lost of youtubers have made customs of almost all of Peter Davison's companions, but Peri rarely appears, oddly enough. I think she is considered more of a 6th Doctor companion, even if she has had a truck load of stories with Davison, in Big Finish,
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I remember, and I think this was Batmanmarch who said this in one of his reviews of the Peri figures, that one of the top guys at CO had an affinity for the character which is why she had different variations over other 80s companions appearing. Maybe it's that stigma that the 80s were a terrible time period in the show's history, I don't know, but even though there's valid criticism towards a bunch of Colin Baker stories, the Davison ones had a higher hit ratio to warrant inclusion of Tegan from "Kinda", "Snakedance", or a Dalek set with Tegan as she appeared in "Resurrection of the Daleks", Turlough from "Mawdryn Undead", Nyssa from "Four to Doomsday" (while not her best outing, it's a good one to show off the more casual outfit she started wearing) and Adric if they did an "Earthshock" re-release with a Cyberman and Cyberleader.
I actually really like the chemistry between Davison and Nicola Bryant when they sit down and do their Big Finish stories. Second to the wealth of material Davison has with Sarah Sutton.
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I can see why anyone working on action figures would have a better affinity for Peri, since she is considered by at least some of the fans to be one of the better companions of the 80's, and is obviously known for her good looks. I guess, she is somewhat more iconic than other characters of that era (Tegan is mostly famous for the domestic whining she puts on display and Adric is known for being annoying and wooden, but once again, Big Finish have put Fielding and Waterhouse to great use, these days).
Personally, I love the whole 80's era, in general and I would love to see the entire Davison gang get their own action figures. Ya just can't have the Fifth Doctor without Tegan, Nyssa, Adric and Turlough. Whatever ya may think of the gang (I think their initial run of stories has the decent burst of stories, like the one's ya've mentioned and when Turlough joins, there is great potential for a group dynamic).
I love almost all Colin Baker stories, I think it's a really underrated era. The only one I would say isn't my fave is 'Mindwarp'.
Yeah, the two of them clearly have a great rapport. I think had Davison stuck around for one more year, he and Bryant would have made even finer work, together. Since Big Finish isn't a mainstream thing, less people are exposed to their great work. The same goes for Davison and Sutton, who make a fabulous team. Nyssa's also one of the better 80's companions, to boot, even if she was shoved inside of the TARDIS for the entire duration of some stories. Big Finish have really given her a chance to show what she's made of.
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I enjoy Peri in doses, I think there were a bunch of mistakes made that kind of don't help her character now (the American accent and the skimpy outfits) but Nicola Bryant was a fine enough actress to overcome these. I love the return appearance she puts in with the Colin Baker at the opening of "The Mysterious Planet", there's a nice feel that Robert Holmes captured with the lines written, of two people who cared about each other but got on each others nerves from time to time, and Baker and Bryant nailed perfectly.
In the last couple years I've been a convert to the church of Colin Baker....well, mostly an apologist to disregarding his TV stories. I've always loved his Big Finish material, but I never gave much regard to the TV episodes just because of widespread fan opinion on a lot of them. Thankfully, I was mistaken, and there was more to them than just being some misfires (I actually enjoy The Twin Dilemma more than Timelash) and find myself in agreement that "Vengeance on Varos" was a really good tale). "The Two Doctors" remains my favorite overall however, and alongside Davison and McCoy, Baker really should've had a longer run, and like Davison really should've been allowed to find his Doctor and develop the character more than he was able to (although I think Davison started nailing the character around Season 20, and really settled in by 21....who knows what 22 would've been in further developing the Fifth Doctor).
I can honestly see why Davison fought hard to keep Nyssa and by extension Sarah Sutton on the show when she was in danger of being written out. The character, like Adric and Tegan, had potential, and maybe if in the 80s JNT had allowed more veteran Doctor Who writers on the program, we wouldn't have had to wait until some thirty years later for Big Finish to step in and do the work that Bob Baker, Dave Martin, Terrance Dicks, Robert Holmes, Anthony Read, David Fisher, or even Douglas Adams would've done and seen clearer than most writers. However, I do think Eric Saward was often on to something with his scripts, but I never know if it was JNT or the BBC who sometimes undercut what would've been gold material in a lot of cases (Nyssa not really having a big involvement in "Mawdryn Undead", which would've been a really good one for her scientific knowledge).
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Peri is the ultimate hit and miss companion, really~ Some stories she has showcase her brilliantly, some shove her aside and say, "Oh, look, she has a huge bum!" (Oh, God, yeah, the outfits were the basic way of the BBC saying "Look, we have a gorgeous woman!" and JNT was a fan of the Hawaiin shirt, as Janet Fielding often puts it, so he always approved of ludicrous costumes~) Baker and Bryant are an unstoppable duo. I think what makes it work is their great friendship, IRL. Listening to the pair of them on the DVD commentaries really showcases a great relationship. Bob Holmes was one of the best writers, cuz he knew how to get that good humour and friendship in the regular cast, when other writers failed to live up to it.
I never had a period where I even disliked the Sixth Doctor or his era, at all. I never even knew there was controversy, until people pointed it out, online. Needless to say, I'm never really swayed by fan opinions, online, but I do tend to agree, when they make succinct point. 'The Two Doctors' is by far my favourite of his era, as well. 'Vengeance on Varos' is not one I visit very often, but I find that when I revisit stories that I haven't watched in ages, I really enjoy them.
Davison is a fabulous actor, who, like ya said, needed at least one more year to really bring all that he had together. His three Seasons on the show suffered from the ideas writers had at the time and his own personal views on the programme (he really didn't enjoy Season 20, at all). He could have made a far bigger impression, with one more year. Granted Davison regrets leaving, when he did and he does wish that he had been longer, but... what can ya do? Minds change vastly over time.
I know, I was just watching 'Snakedance', a few minutes ago and it's a shame that Nyssa is often saddled with little to nothing to do in her stories, cuz she does have the great traits that could've gone places. When she's out of the TARDIS, she really shines.
Exactly~ In fairness, in what I have read, he didn't really seem to know what he was doing, or maybe the writer simply didn't have the right ideas in their head, at the time. Sometimes they admit that they feel their ideas in the past were awful or simply not developed enough (in the DVD commentaries, they often blame the little time they had, the money, the lack of support from other writers, etc.) and it happens in all manners of fiction. Writers have an idea that they imagine will go well and then look back and realise how they probably should've thought more on it.
JNT liked all companions that he had in the TARDIS, so I think maybe the writers just couldn't think of things for Nyssa to do, or they felt she was too intelligent (that;s why they got rid of Liz Shaw, after all) for the story and they shoved Tegan in, so that she could ask questions and explain the plot, when the plot makes perfect sense with Nyssa, while we have to stop an explain, with characters like Tegan. They underestimated their audience, they really did. They always make the excuse that too many companions made this problem, bit if we look at the first couple TARIS gangs, that was never an issue.
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I think Batmanmarch knocked-up a Tegan out of the Astrid figure. If you haven't seen any of his action-figure adventures, they're worth a watch!
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I probably haven't seen that story, but I'd be keen to check it out. I've eyeballed a couple contenders myself, and trying to think which look would be appropriate. I was always partial to the short hair Janet Fielding sported during Season 20-21 myself as my ideal Tegan hairstyle.
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'Hell on Earth' was the story. Tegan's hair was always short though I preferred her original style, there was a nice clash between her 'orderly' almost prim 'do' and those heightening hemlines...
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Ah, thank you! I'll go check it out later.
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