So You Want To Watch Classic Who?

You’re locked down, quarantined, and self isolating. You like Doctor Who, but have yet to dip your toe in the vast ocean of the classic series. But there’s so much! Where to start?

Well, My housemate recently asked me to introduce them to the good old stuff, so I put together a little set of blocks to help ease them in. Rather than going from beginning to end, Unearthly Child to Survival, I decided to break it down into more manageable chunks.

I began by working backwards, starting with the TV Movie, and then the Seventh Doctor, Sixth, Fifth, and so on. This eases you through the change of pace, tone, and general direction. Series 26 has a lot that New Who would later go on to use and Ace is fantastic. But the TV movie is just fun and silliness and has excellent music.

 

Doctors bannerDoctors Intro:

The Doctors Introduction is a short and sweet introduction to each classic Doctor via a decent story.

– TV Movie 
– The Curse of Fenric
– Attack of the Cybermen
– The King’s Demons
– City of Death
– The Time Warrior
– The Mind Robber
– The War Machines

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The Master Intro

And after the Doctor, who better to follow up with than The Master? I tried to give a decent spread showcasing each incarnation in their best light.

– Terror of the Autons
– The Dæmons
– The Deadly Assassin
– Keeper of Traken
– Planet of Fire
– Mark of the Rani
– Survival

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Daleks 101

After The Master, who else but the Daleks? Again, a balance between eras while maintaining a sort of narrative.

– The Daleks
– The Dalek Invasion of Earth
– The Power of the Daleks
– Genesis of the Daleks
– Resurrection of the Daleks
– Revelation of the Daleks
– Remembrance of the Daleks

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Cybermen 101

Moving on to the Cybermen. Again, showing them in their best light while weaving a narrative.

– The Tenth Planet
– The Moonbase
– The Tomb of the Cybermen
– Revenge of the Cybermen
– Earthshock
– Silver Nemesis

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Multi-Doctor Stories

Just for fun, some Multi-Doctor stories, because they’re all classics.

– The Three Doctors
– The Five Doctors
– The Two Doctors

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Regeneration Stories

It’s the end, but the moment has been prepared for… Allowing them to see how each Doctor ends, and begins. (Minus Tenth Planet as already covered under Cybermen, and Trial of a Time Lord as I’d rather that be viewed as it’s own thing)

– The War Games
– Spearhead from Space
– Planet of the Spiders
– Robot
– Logopolis
– Castrovalva
– Caves of Androzani
– The Twin Dilema
– Time and the Rani
– Night of the Doctor (IT COUNTS!)

Brig Banner

The Brigadir / UNIT

Now to introduce them properly to one of the Doctor’s best and oldest pals!

– Web of Fear
– The Invasion
– Inferno
– Claws of Axos
– Terror of the Zygons
– Battlefield

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Time Lord / Gallifrey Lore

For the Lore!! Get into that Gallifreyan History 101!

– The Time Meddler
– Invasion of Time
– The Brain of Morbius
– Shada (but which version?)
– State of Decay
– Arc of Infinity

Key to Time

Story Arcs

The epic serials! Classic Who’s attempt at story arcs. I have such a soft spot for these.

– The Key to Time
– The Trial of a Time Lord

Historicals

Historical

And to round it out, the Historical stories. Not many of them as the show goes on, but certainly a bit of Who legacy to delve into.

– The Aztecs
– The Romans
– Black Orchid
– The Visitation
– Mark of the Rani

And after that, you can just dip in here there and everywhere with random favourites. There’s so much good stuff in the mix and far more stories than are listed here. But this is, I feel, a nice and exhaustive introduction to how Doctor Who be!

Nice

Rise of Kyoshi

Rise of Kyoshi

Rise of Kyoshi – An Avatar the Last Airbender Novel

★★★★☆

Kyoshi is one of the most recognisable Avatars from The Last airbender. Her look, and her stern attitude have cemented her as an imposing and revered figure within the universe. So, when the Avatar team announced that the first of their novel series was going to delve into Kyoshi’s story, it was some of the best news for a while.

It’s a rip roaring read full of action, beauty, and tension. A stunning tale that melds perfectly into the franchise and adds more than enough to keep fans guessing. The world is painted in breathtaking colours, the characters detailed and nuanced. It’s like diving back into the original series at times.

You will fall in love with Kyoshi, but you will fear her, too. She carries the story by the strength of her convictions, her passion for her friends, and her destiny as the Avatar. If you are a fan of the series, this will be a perfect addition to your collection.

[Read More]

 

Barrow of Furnace Part 1

PART ONE!
#VoteGorlak!
Welcome to The Campaign Trail! Join Daeryth Moonbeam, Pelecos the Various, and Tilda Northwanderer as they use their adventuring skills to swing a by-election.

This introductory episode comes in two parts! Don’t miss part two, also being released today!

The Campaign Trail is written and produced by Joel Cornah (aka The Miliverse)
twitter.com/JoelCornah
joelcornah.com

It stars:
Aym Phoenix
twitter.com/AymTellsStories
aymphoenix.com/

Steven Poore
twitter.com/StevenJPoore
stevenpoore.wordpress.com/

Joanne Hall
twitter.com/hierath77
hierath.wordpress.com/

Theme music: The News Team by Dr Hollywood

Follow The Campaign Trail on social media:
twitter.com/TheCampaignCast
www.facebook.com/CampaignCast/

 

Juliet E McKenna – The Green Man’s Heir

Juliet E McKenna – The Green Man’s Heir

A very special episode of the Writers of Fantasy podcast! I interviewed Juliet E McKenna about her brand new book, The Green Man’s Heir. It is a modern day fantasy novel that delves into folk tales and stories against the backdrop of the Peak District countryside.

Juliet talks about the experience of moving from traditional epic fantasy and towards something new. We delve into the treatment of female characters in both epic and modern fantasy, and also dip into police procedurals a bit. It’s a great interview. Check it out!

Links and stuff!

Juliet’s website: http://www.julietemckenna.com/

Buy The Green Man’s Heir: Purchase links – ebook edition
Amazon UK
Amazon US
Barnes & Noble – Nook (US only)
Google Play 
Kobo

Lucy Hounsom Interview – Worldmaker

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Lucy Hounsom Interview – Worldmaker

Our latest interview for the Writers of Fantasy podcast is with Lucy Houndsom. She is the author of the Worldmaker series as well as a co-host of the amazing podcast Breaking the Glass Slipper.

There were some technical difficulties with my microphone, but Lucy’s is fine and that’s what matters. We talked about representation of disabilities in fantasy, feminism, bookselling, and a huge range of issues. Lucy is an amazing writer and her advice is great to hear for any aspiring authors or even established ones.

[Listen here]

Links:

Lucy’s website: Here

Facebook: Here

Breaking the Glass Slipper: Here

RJ Barker interview: Here

Riding the Red Dragon by Maria Talvela: Here

Michael Dante DiMartino Interview

 

Mike DimartinoThis week on the Writers of Fantasy podcast my guest is Michael Dante DiMartino; he is a writer, artist, and perhaps most famously, the co-creator of Avatar the Last Airbender and The Legend of Korra!

He is also the author of a new fantasy series, Rebel Genius!

We talk about building characters, worlds, themes, and more besides. Check it out as we delve into Avatar and more!

[Listen here]

How Whittaker’s First Scene Mirrors Her Announcement

Jodie Banner

How Whittaker’s First Scene Mirrors Her Announcement

Like pretty much every other fan on the planet, I spent much of Christmas day eagerly awaiting the 13th Doctor’s first scene. When Whittaker appeared, it was a moment of joy for new things, and sadness at the passing of Capaldi. But also a chance to get a glimpse of what we might expect from Chris Chibnall’s vision of the series.

But what was most immediately interesting to me was the way in which Whittaker’s first scene mirrored her infamous ‘Meet the 13th Doctor‘ announcement video. Directed by Jamie Childs, the scene that told the world who the new Doctor would be came on just after the Wimbledon Men’s final in 2017.

For the purposes of clarity, I will be referring to the ‘Meet the Thirteenth Doctor‘ video as ‘The Introduction‘ and the regeneration scene from Twice Upon a Time as ‘The Episode‘.

 

[READ MORE]

Twice Upon A Time – Doctor Who Review

Not a Moment

Twice Upon A Time – Doctor Who Review

Steven Moffat has a long history of subverting expectations when it comes to Doctor Who. If there is any hallmark of his tenure as showrunner, I think that might be it. His greatest achievements as well as his greatest missteps have often come as a result of this, in my opinion. Twice Upon a Time is no exception.

For a regeneration story, many in the audience will be expecting grand excitement on an epic scale. Instead, Moffat delivers a somewhat subdued and introspective script. Performed brilliantly by Capaldi, Bradley and Mackie, no question. But how will it hold up in the legend of the show?

Spoilers to follow, obviously…

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[Read More]

Anna Smith-Spark Interview

court of broken knives

Anna Smith-Spark Interview

My guest this week is Anna Smith-Spark! She is the author of the Court of Broken Knives. She has previously been published in the Fortean Times and the poetry website greatworks.org.

We talk about gender in fantasy, writing, characters and world building. Also there are some jokes about Tony Blair.

[LISTEN HERE]

anna-smith-spark-author-photo-1I first met Anna on a panel at FantasyCon2015. I believe it was gender and sexuality representation Sci-Fi and Fantasy. I remember a point being made that we hope to one day not have these panels because the issue will have become accepted as representation begets representation.

But we still do get them – I did one at BristolCon this year. We talk about what Anna thinks of the progress that’s been made since and how we may have taken backwards steps recently.

We also delve into the Court of Broken Knives as Anna gives us insights into how she wrote it and where her characters came from.

You can find Anna online here:

courtofbrokenknives.org

https://www.facebook.com/anna.smithspark

 

 

V. E. Schwab Interview

V. E. Schwab Interview

For this week’s episode of the Writers of Fantasy Podcast, I got to talk to Victoria Schwab, aka V.E. Schwab. She is an American fantasy author best known for her 2013 novel Vicious, the Shades of Magic series, and her children’s and young adult fiction.

We had a really good, long talk about world building, characters, writing, and gender issues in science fiction and fantasy. Listen here, and there are some key quotes! Check it out!

[Listen here]

On The Near Witch and How a Writer changes

I started out when I was quite young, and I wrote my first book when I was nineteen. The Near Witch was the second book I’d ever written, and I was twenty-one! And I’m now thirty! There’s some growth that happens, I’ve not got thirteen books published, and obviously you grow and change as a person.

I get asked often ‘do you go back and look at your previous work and think of things you would do differently?’ The honest truth is that I kind of look at each and every one of my books as a time capsule of who I was and what I was capable of doing. So, I never want to change any of them, as The Near Witch is a capsule of who I was in college and what I was studying and what excited me.

Whereas The Shades of Magic series and The Monsters of Verity series are just as much time capsules of who I was and what I was going through while doing a Masters Degree on depictions of monstrosity. And I was travelling a lot. So, they’re precious to me in different ways.

Monsters and Villains

Certainly with something like Vicious, which is about villains, and villainy. About the arbitrary labels that we apply to heroes and villains. It’s a book about personal vendettas, and who is a hero and who is a villain. Is it determined by where they fall on opposite sides of this argument? In that book, specifically, I wanted to play with the idea [of villains].

I sat down and thought ‘wouldn’t it be a fun challenge to write a book without heroes?’ Could I write a book without heroes and make the reader strongly root for one of the villains? It was a craft exercise in learning it’s not what our characters do, it’s not what we do as people, but why we do it. Motivation Vs action.

Sometimes I do sit down and think. There’s always a seed. I gather ingredients for a story until I have enough to make a meal. But I think there’s always that one ingredient that’s the core, bonding thing.

[More]