Sylvester & Sophie still remain my No.1 Tardis team. They have great chemistry and development -- helped by becoming such long-lasting friends in reality (and even sharing the same birthday - along with Anthonly Ainley, apparently). Regardless of whether you like the 7th Doctor era (or a particular season), everything stands out in its own unique and experimental way. I don't dislike S24, but S25 is a marked improvement, and S26 set the groundwork for the revival -- often feeling like very Modern Who (with a tiny budget). If you forced me to rank the stories, I'd say: 1. Remembrance of the Daleks -- A great bridge between New & Classic Who, requiring no prior experience to enjoy -- introducing a kick-ass companion, full of throwbacks, iconic villains, lots of action, great cliffhangers and side-characters, very well acted, good twists, realistic themes, and no shortage of explosive fun. 2. Curse of Fenric -- My personal favourite, but I rank it slightly lower because it does benefit from prior knowledge and was heavily cut. Even the restored version tends to confuse some people. However, I absolutely love the setting -- World War 2 with Vampires and Lovecraftian horror vibes, spliced with a very modern approach to the Companion. Great music, side-characters (such as Reverend Wainright by the late-great Nicolas Parsons), fabulous atmosphere, and plenty of memorable moments. The cliffhangers are weak (except Episode 3, which is spine-chillingly great). Wish we got more of Fenric on TV. 3. Greatest Show in the Galaxy -- A great blend of campiness and creepiness sprinkled on top of a meta-commentary about the show itself, complete with the iconic "Cool Doctor's don't look at explosions" meme, great side-characters, lovely music, a nice atmosphere (despite being another Quarry), and a nice overall mixture of light and dark tones. 4. Happiness Patrol -- I have a big soft-spot for this story, especially as someone who grew up during the Thatcher reign. The concept of "Be happy, or else" is a simple but intriguing idea, and they slapped it with an absolutely brilliant soundtrack, ranging from dark Resident Evil strings of creepiness (vs) melancholic harmonica and forced happy vibes -- and I wish they went with the original plan of filming it in Black & White. The Kandy Man is very devisive -- people either love him or hate him, and I'm in the "love him" tent. He's deliciously creepy, but the real star is Helen A, and I love the verbal clash between her and the Doctor at the end -- not to mention the Sniper Speech, which is one of many moments that really cement 7th Doc's dark machinations. 5. Battlefield -- Admittedly, not the strongest story, but hey, it's fun -- we've got medieval Knights with guns and swords, Jean Marsh as a fabulous Sorceress who values honor, making her an interesting antagonist -- not to mention a returning Brigadier, an awesome and criminally underused monster costume, plenty of action, plenty of humour, but not lacking in dark or thoughtful moments. Great side-characters as well, including the new Brigadier (Bambera, who I believe will be part of Big Finish stories soon), and her own companion/love-interest, Ansalin. 6. Survival -- There are worlds out there where the sky is burning, where the sea's asleep, and the rivers dream. People made of smoke and cities made of song. Somewhere there's danger, somewhere there's injustice, and somewhere else the tea's getting cold. Come on, Ace. We've got work to do! 7. Ghost Light -- Absolutely love the atmosphere and overall acting, especially moments between 7 + Ace (as usual). Sadly, it suffers from being heavily cut, but even if it was restored, it would take many people a lot of effort to fully grasp the plot about evolution. One of the most unintentionally hilarious but very dark moments involve "Light" turning to the camera while holding the disembodied arm of a maid, and quietly saying (in high creepy high-pitched voice), "I just wanted to see how it worked". Oh, and how can we forget "The creme of Scotland Yard?" 8. Dragonfire -- cliffhanger aside, Dragonfire is very experimental and has one of the best studio sets for the budget. Kane may not be the most in-depth villain, but I like him more than most, and there are some really nice moments buried beneath all the problems, not to mention completely random moments of darkness, such as the iconic face-melt, or Kane casually blowing up a ship full of innocent people, because hey, why not? Whether you like Mel or not, her departure was touching, and we get the first introduction to Ace -- which is always great. Not the best story in the world, but plenty of memorable moments (for better or worse). 9. Silver Nemesis -- If you are willing to turn off your brain and enjoy the simple concept of Victorians, Nazi's, and Cybermen kicking the snot into each other while 7 + Ace relax to the sound of some Jazz music, it's not bad. However, it is rife with problems (and is a very obvious rip off of Remembrance, except infinitely messier). Still, I would watch Silver Nemesis over countless other episodes across Classic Who. 10. Paradise Towers -- Not going to lie, I quite enjoy this one. Until the Chief Caretaker (Richard Briers) is taken over, the acting (overall) is very good across the board, and the world-building is quite nice. It's unashamedly camp and bonkers, but then, you have things like cannibals gorging on residents, or people being dragged down waste-disposal chutes or hoovered up into bins by robotic cleaners. It's bat-sheet insanity, but it has some nice moments. 11. Delta & The Bannermen -- I can totally understand people enjoying this one. My only legitimate complaint is the music, which is extremely in your face. The story is simplistic nonsense, and some of it is utterly pointless (like the two Americans seeking a satellite for... whatever reason), but it's still nonsensical fun, and while 7th still hasn't found his feet quite yet, he does have some nice moments, and I'm not ashamed to say that I never had any major problem with Mel. The plucky go-getter who's always positive, but has no qualm standing up to the Doctor. It's definitely her best episode, except maybe Dragonfire. 12. Time and the Rani -- I don't dislike this one at all, and they did the best they could with the same old Quarry, succeeding in making it at least feel somewhat alien. The plot is nonsense, but McCoy gives it his all, and apart from the screaming moments, Mel gets to shine a bit. Bonus points for post-regeneration costume picking to reference older Doctors before things go sideways.
@waynetubbs3809
3 жыл бұрын
I like The Time and The Rani when Sylvester made his debut as The Seventh Doctor who plays the spoons, and chess, and use comedy to outsmart The Rani.
@Nikioko
3 жыл бұрын
Sylvester McCoy's whole tenure is just as long as a single season of Hartnell or Troughton.
@thetalisman7722
3 жыл бұрын
Such a shame he didn't have more stories to work with
@seedhillbruisermusic7939
3 жыл бұрын
I love Delta And The Bannermen too. But I also love Ghost Light, I don't mind that it's confusing I just love the creepy weirdness of it. And the turning of the Reverend Matthews into a stuffed ape is meant to be a really sick joke by Josiah. It's deliberately disturbing.
@thetalisman7722
3 жыл бұрын
There's a lot of love for Ghost Light out there, its certainly one I look forward to watching again
@Nikioko
3 жыл бұрын
Delta and the Bannermen is so utterly awful that I can't really describe it. Paradise Towers at least is some fun with the cannibal grannies and caretaker Hitler and doesn't take itself too seriously. This, however, is almost as terrible as Love & Monsters from New Who. Concerning Ghost Light: it is really brilliant and one of the best McCoy stories. Most people that underevaluate it do so because they can't understand it due to its complexity. Considering that, this is probably the Classic Who story that comes closest to the Steven Moffat stories of New Who.
@thetalisman7722
3 жыл бұрын
@@Nikioko 😂😂😂 thought that Delta and the Bannermen praise might raise a few eyebrows
@Poseiden2
2 жыл бұрын
I agree with other comments that McCulloch's incidental music is more dated than even the Simpson stuff. Also agree s25/s26 are much better than the sometimes awful s24, tho like you Talisman I do have a bit of time for Delta. And Survival brought a wonderful, more measured performance out of Ainley. However I wished I liked Battlefield more, particularly as the Destroyer is so well-designed and the story fits with the 'Merlin' characterisation of the 7th Doctor. I grew up liking Sylv's characterisation and Ace too, whilst Ghost Light was a frustrating yet experimental, Warriors Gate-style tale that I kept coming back to. And Fenric takes so many strands and unlike Silver Nemesis it ties them altogether into something special - Nicholas Parsons is superb in this. I'm not really a fan of the new show and I wonder what could have been if Old Who hadn't been cancelled...
@rowanc88
3 жыл бұрын
Ok, you've earned my subscription
@thetalisman7722
3 жыл бұрын
Thanks
@ftumschk
3 жыл бұрын
For me, Delta & The Bannermen is borderline "Terrible", partly because of Ray's dodgy Welsh accent, but also because I loathe the Children's TV atmosphere and Keff McCulloch's dreadful incidental music. That aside, and apart from the fact that I'd put Ghost Light in the "Great" category, I'd pretty much agree with your rankings. Good stuff :)
@Nikioko
3 жыл бұрын
Absolutely.
@GenATV33
2 жыл бұрын
12. Time and the Rani (Awful) 11. Dragonfire (Awful) 10. Delta and the Bannermen (Okay) 9. The Greatest Show in the Galaxy (Good) 8. Silver Nemesis (Great) 7. Paradise Towers (Great) 6. Ghostlight (Grand) 5. Happiness Patrol (Grand) 4. Survival (Grand) 3. The Curse of Fenric (Grand) 2. Remembrance of Daleks (Grand) 1. Battlefield (Grand) I also struggled with Ghostlight the first time I watched it, but after repeated times of watching it I think I have a fair understanding of the plot and thus I've enjoyed it more.
@markmountney1311
3 жыл бұрын
1.the curse of fendric (10/10) 2.ghostlight (9/10) 3.rembrance of the daleks (9/10) 4.battlefield (8.5/10) 5.the greatest show in the galaxy (8.5/10) 6.survival (8/10) 7.paradise towers (8/10)- underrated 8.the happiness patrol (8/10) 9.dragonfire (7.5/10) 10.delta and the bannermen (1.5/10) 11.silver nemsis (1/10) 12.time and the bannerman (0/10)
@Nikioko
3 жыл бұрын
Time and the Rani: Terrible Paradise Towers: OK Delta and the Bannermen: Terrible Dragonfire: OK Remembrance of the Daleks: Great The Happiness Patrol: Great Silver Nemesis: Bad The Greatest Show in the Galaxy: Good Battlefield: OK Ghost Light: Great The Curse of Fenric: Absolute Classic! Survival: Great It is a shame that the show was cancelled at a point when it started becoming great again after 10 years of mediocrity (at best). Season 25 brought the show back to a level that was left somewhere in Season 15.
@mark-s
3 жыл бұрын
I agree with this listing i would only swap ghostlight which I thought was good with the happiness patrol which was the worst of the sevenths doctor last two seasons
@Nikioko
3 жыл бұрын
What buffles me: How can you hate Paradise Towers and love The Happiness Patrol? Both stories are quite similar with their dystopian comedy approach. So I would understand if you like them both or if you hate them both, but this is quite odd.
@thetalisman7722
3 жыл бұрын
I feel like The Happiness Patrol uses its innate 80s campiness to its actual advantage with its big colourful production enhancing the messaging about this society that forces you into happiness. I also feel like the themes are just much richer in Happiness Patrol, Also McCoy was playing it much darker in S25 which I vastly prefer and Ace is a vastly superior companion to Mel. Maybe it makes no sense I just really enjoyed Patrol, whilst Paradise Towers I found actively embarrassing.
@Nikioko
3 жыл бұрын
@@thetalisman7722 Paradise Towers uses the classic dystopy of the vertical city. A building that is never exited by its inhabitants and where the rich live at the top and the poor at the bottom. And the story criticises overpopulation and anonymity in an apartment building. That goes so far that over the years, different cultures developed in this isolated building. And as we see, the building is self-supporting because everything, even the dead, is recycled to power the house.
@thetalisman7722
2 жыл бұрын
@@Nikioko I've just rewatched Paradise Towers - I still don't love it, but I have to conceed that you were right on many of the points you made. It's actually a solid enough story.
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