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Colin Baker the worst doctor?
lach doch mal
Posts: 16,328 Forum Member
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I never watched Colin Baker the first time round. However, everything I heard or read about him seemed to indicate that everything about his time was pretty much sh*te.
Now I watched most or pretty much all of the Colin Baker stories. They are actually insightful, philosphical and not half bad. Colin's acting is great. Some philosophical questions of his series dip into the eighties zeitgeist (e.g. vegetarinism and species extinciton and habitat distruction). To be fair, in my mind, he was a brilliant doctor, who didn't get the recognition he deserved.
What does everyone else feel (sorry if it has been raised before, I just rewatched "Attack of the Cybermen" and I thought it was really good - well Perry was a bit of a nuisance, but I'm sure the male members of the forum species will disaggree;).
Now I watched most or pretty much all of the Colin Baker stories. They are actually insightful, philosphical and not half bad. Colin's acting is great. Some philosophical questions of his series dip into the eighties zeitgeist (e.g. vegetarinism and species extinciton and habitat distruction). To be fair, in my mind, he was a brilliant doctor, who didn't get the recognition he deserved.
What does everyone else feel (sorry if it has been raised before, I just rewatched "Attack of the Cybermen" and I thought it was really good - well Perry was a bit of a nuisance, but I'm sure the male members of the forum species will disaggree;).
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I think Colin was given a raw deal, and also some really bad material to work with - he fares much better in the audio plays
He also got saddled with the terrible Trial of a Timelord concept which stunk to high heaven.
I feel a bit bad for him in many ways, as so many factors went against him, but while I wouldn't want to call anyone "the worst" Doctor, he remains easily my least favourite.
I know what you mean, and I think it was a bold concept. However, in the next story (i.e. Attack of the Cybermen). Colin is not so much different from, for instance, David Tennant. He clearly wanted to follow the distress signal and help!! I think the few minutes of insanity could be easily forgiven and explained by the regenerations process. Hovewer, I didn't watch it as a child, and the effects you describe are probably different from my own experience:). I just can see the enjoyment in his acting, and I think David Tennant was very similar.
As for his Doctor, big mistake to start him of so nasty. He never recovered from that I think and the costume didn't help. Loved him to bits during the Trial Season and had he continued, he could have been one of the greats. A truly great Doctor that never was, who never fulfilled his potential due to decisions made out of his control.
I certainly agree my age was a factor here, which is why I mentioned it, but I am sure many other viewers were uncomfortable with this too I think there is a fine line between being bold and being foolish, however, and I think they crossed the line with that concept.
P.S, I diasgree!
yes indeed, he was up against it an awful lot, especially as Grade had a personal grudge against him....no one who has taken over the role has had so much going against him, not even McCoy.....
Thats why i try not to be too harsh on him even though I'm not keen on him in the role. A lot of it wasn't his fault.
Maybe you are both right, that his introduction was wrong. Of course I didn't like his nastiness either and his willingness of sacrifiicing Peri (after PD sacrificie). However, afterwards, I feel he really redeemed himself and I didn't dislike the stories (I'm quite a simple soul I fear, I like Sylvester McCoy as well). I'm always sad when Colin Baker is used as the yardstick for Who-poorness.
Even as a female of the species, I can see her appeal (especially in the pink lycra in Attack of the Cybermen):D:D.
Weird thing for me was that I absoluted hated him to begin with because he took over from Davison, my fave. Over the years though, my attitude has mellowed because I've looked at the bigger picture. Okay, he's not up there with my fave Doctors but I enjoy watching him a lot.
I think whoever was The Doctor when Grade was in charge would have been up against it. Grade was fortunate that Baker wasn't very popular and that Season 22 was quite violent at times. It gave him the perfect excuse to take the actions that he did. :mad:
I liked his personality - brash and arrogant, but caring at times. It needed someone to break away from Peter Davisons naive, quiet , geeky sort of person.
Unfortunately, 'Trial Of a Time Lord' ruined it for him - a cheap-looking serial with video instead of film for outdoors, and some crappy stories (apart from The Vervoid story which was ok).
That's just my opinion anyway
I was thinking more of her blue one in VOV and her costume in The Two Doctors!!!!:D:D:D:D
Controversial.......but wrong! :rolleyes:
pull the other one, it's got bells on.....;)
It seems harsh to call Colin the worst Doctor under those circumstances, but if not him, then who? I can't think of any other Doctor whose tenure I don't recall more fondly than Colin's - except maybe Paul McGann's, and he didn't really do it long enough to judge. Hartnell and Troughton too I've seen little of, but they both seemed very good from the couple of stories I've seen from each.
So, although as I've said I don't think it's really his fault, my answer to the question in the thread title must be yes, I'm afraid.
Agreed. No surprises you've already got the rolleyes emote but I suppose it saves me getting it!
There was no support for the show from upper Management, which led to the embarrassment of him being fired.
After all that no one would have blamed him if he'd just turned his back and walked away from DW for good, but he didn't.
His time as The Doctor wasn't good, but he wasn't the reason why it wasn't good.
Can I just categorically state, I don't think Colin is the worst doctor. Actually I don't think there is a worst doctor. As I have said on many occassions, whenever I watch any Doctor Who, the person playing it is the doctor.
I was interested why so many people feel that he was rubbish or bad, and I think the majority seem to think that it was the stories and what he was up against at the time (Grade politics).
I have watched most of his stories and I honestly don't think they are that bad. His violence at times adds another layer to a very complex character. If anything I find Colin's aggressive doctor more believable than the modern pacifist doctors (I don't mean this as a criticism of New Who and I understand that the doctor has changed after the time war).
because quite clearly this is a thread about Colin Baker?
With apologies so Sylvester fans but I have to admit that he was my least favourite Doctor, perhaps it was because of his strong Scotish accent but I never "believed" in his Doctor
I thought the worse Doc with Sylvester McCoy. I found him annoying and also his stories were bobbins...
No. Colin was a great Doctor. Colin is a great Doctor. The worst Doctor ever is the manic, maddening Tennant-no contest.
But i haven't seen much of Colin Bakers Doctor. I've watched two doctors, read the Synthespians TM, and i've also read volume one of his comics with Frobisher and that weird star map bloke. (Those stories were rubbish.) But i also read his bit in The Forgotten. Not that good.
Ii know my family don't like him but that aside, he visited where i lived recently but my family wouldn't take me
Still i'm not sure whether i like him yet.
His Dalek story. Complex-word-begining-with-R-just-like-the-last-two-and-next-one of the Daleks. Where can i watch that..........you know.....arround here. You know, onae lineae. If you catch my drift.