Cheap Doctor Who - Remembrance of the Daleks (DVD) (Christopher Barry (III), Julia Smith, John Gorrie, Ron Jones (II), Derrick Goodwin, David Maloney, Richard Martin (IV), Peter Moffatt, Derek Martinus, Fiona Cumming) Price

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Customer Reviews of Doctor Who - Remembrance of the Daleks

"Remembrance" is set in London, in November, 1963, opening "Doctor Who"'s 25th anniversary season by revisiting events from the show's very first episode. The script, written by then 25 year-old Ben Aaronovitch (who later made a big splash in the subsequent "Doctor Who" book line) is a terrific one, layered with references to the show's past, to the societal fears of the time (uncertainty over the burgeoning civil rights movement, and the Kennedy assassination, all linger over the story), and, of course, gives us a more descriptive view of "Doctor Who"'s signature monsters, the Daleks, than ever before. The production, on the other hand, seems stretched paper-thin, with ultra-wobbly Daleks, a really awful '80s-synthesizer incidental score, and primitive CGI effects that dated as rapidly as '70's DW's fascination with Chroma-key.

The DVD commentary track is recorded by Sylvester McCoy himself, and by Sophie "Ace" Aldred. The on-screen chemistry between these two, for which the McCoy era is fondly remembered, is present on the commentary track, which is sadly a little dull when compared to Peter Davison's comedy stylings on the "Caves of Androzani" DVD, also out this month. Aldred audibly enjoys the story, but McCoy's final reaction is "HMMM...". I agreed with both of them.

The notable extra is a stunning montage of 13 deleted scenes, with linking text describing their place in the originally-conceived story. This presentation is as handsome as the presentation of the deleted scenes in "The Godfather" box set. Honest! Also welcome are McCoy's on-camera jokes and bloopers -- the man is a human outtake reel and he's quite funny in these. The best of an obligatory photo-gallery is a shot of McCoy on location watching his stunt-double in action.

"Remembrance" can also be watched with pop-up production notes, which sometimes border on the painfully obvious ("TV sets took a long time to warm up in 1963") but which add interesting trivia. You can also select a "music-only" option, but the Casio drums and the synthesized handclaps are so painful that you're probably best off skipping that.

Sly Mckoy versus the Daleks on DVD
Remembrance of the Daleks is the only Sylvester Mcoy Dalek story and it's the best 7th Doctor they made. It involves the Doctor returning to the very Junk Yard where the program began in 1963 just a few days after his first incarnation left. For some reason, two warring factions of Daleks have traveled back to this time as well. Why are they there and what do they want... and what exactly was the Doctor doing in 1963 London back in the first episode anyway? All these questions will be answered.
It is so cool that Dr. Who is coming out on DVD with all the extras you could want. It's a pity other show DVDs such as the recent Farscape episode don't have such extras. Hopefully the forthcoming Star Trek DVDs will. Here's a list of the extras you'll get...
commentary by Sylvester McCoy & Sophie Aldred, deleted scenes, out-takes, on screen production note subtitles, multi-angle scenes, the original trailers, photo gallery
Ths commentary is pretty good. More consistent and informative than the Robots of Death Commentary but not quite as entertaining as The Five Doctors Commentary or the Caves of androzani Commentary. Sophi and Sylvester talk a lot about things that happened on the set and the careers of some of their costars in the story. Pretty interesting stuff...

On another note... if you're looking for new Dr. Who material. Look for the audio releases of the missing episodes. Look for my list "Missing Dr. Who's on Audio and Video" to find out about this. [....]Look for "The Web of Fear" for starters. "The Dalek's Master Plan" Audio Release is awsome too. Also check out Big Finnish productions for the new audio adventures of Dr. Who featuring Doctors ranging from Peter Davison to Paul Mcgann. Was this review helpful? Did you learn something new from it? Please vote Yes.

Should have been exterminated
Wow, If this story-line really is among the best of the Sylvester McCoy years, I completely understand why Doctor Who was cancelled after his third season.

No fault with McCoy, really, although his portrayal of the doctor as a caustic misanthrope certainly didn't help my enjoyment of the program, but neither did it seem utterly heretical, as did the story's major flaws. I am a big fan of the series leading up to the Peter Davison era and what I find most enjoyable about the show during these years is its ability to tell a riveting Sci-Fi tale despite the hinderances of a low budget (namely the shoddy effects and cobbled together sets.) Pre-1980's Doctor Who relied on the strengths of the BBC, excellent writing and acting, and managed to consistently present an entertaining, interesting story.

Not so, I'm afraid, with "Remembrance of the Daleks." Well crafted plot has been jettisoned in favor of hollow action scenes, actor driven suspense has been buried beneath an obtrusive synth-rock score, and the viewer is left with a superficial mess with all the charm of an ABC After School Special.

Based on the worth of the story alone, this product deserves only one star. However, I've given it two because the DVD has many interesting extras, including a commentary that almost makes it possible to sit through all four episodes, and, well, I think the "Special Weapons" Dalek was actually pretty cool.