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 The Final Word on Doctor Who
I have collected many books about the Doctor Who series. Books about the plots, books on the history, books on the Daleks and so on. These series of books, About Time, are the final word. If you just became a fan don't bother with the other books. Buy these books. And if you are already a fan dump all the other books into a Black Hole, or sell them on Amazon.com, and buy up these books.
The first book deals with Seasons 1 to 3, the First Doctor, and really gets into the details about EVERYTHING. The characters, the actors, the plot, the writers, the social and historical events that shaped each episode. Not just the origins of the show but the origins of each and every episode. Plots, merits, flaws, sets are dissected, broken down, and debated about. 288 pages of Doctor Who. Get it used or new.
Wow! A Wealth of Information
It's so great to see Doctor Who making a resurgence. I've been avidly acquiring the DVDs as they come out to replace the four drawers full of rapidly decaying VHS tapes on which, as a high school student, I recorded every episode that aired on PBS. So, though I don't think I've ever reached the heights of rabidity of some, I guess you could say I'm a big fan of the series. And now I've been able to read a priceless manual for the fan--About Time. In it, Wood and Lawrence fulfill every desire of those of us who have spent much of our lives mulling over the series.
Compared to some of the other volumes in this series, I would expect that this one would be somewhat less popular. There are good reasons for this, of course. Primarily, this is because it covers the first three years of the series. These years of black & white transmission where many of the episodes have been lost struggle in popularity with some of the later Doctors. Which is too bad because, as the authors point out, the series was very experimental during this time as it set the tone for what would be common ideas as the series wore on.
For those of us who have a love and respect for Hartnell's tetchy Doctor, however, this book is fantastic. I, for one, was very interested in getting the background of stories about which I knew very little because the episodes were lost. Additionally, the authors simply offer a wealth of information. Not only do they provide facts about plot, cast and characters, but they also offer their point of view through analysis of continuity and "things that don't make sense" as well as critique of the stories. There is also a series of essays that look at some "big picture" questions like what makes the TARDIS work? can you rewrite history? what's the dalek timeline? did the BBC actually like Doctor Who? and many more.
If there's a problem in reading this book for me, it's that I am, unfortunately, rather young and certainly American. I never got to see these shows in their first run as they were designed to be seen. Nor do I understand some of the references about British TV, movies, and actors, which I'm sure are quite familiar to some readers. Still, I wouldn't have passed up reading this book for anything. I'm already working my way through volume 2.
love it!
For those of us not able to watch every episode, this is a good way to understand what has gone on.
The COMPLETE Dr. Who
They said complete and they mean complete. This is not a book for the novice. This is a highly comprehensive look at each episode, from the Unearthly Child and onwards. Each episode is examined for it's own issues, then looked at in how it fits the series, and how it fits the culture of the day. It's so detailed, this book only makes it through the first three seasons and there are a total of seven books covering the orignial series and I'm guessing we'll get the new series soon (he does mention the 2005 season).
If you are a detail junky, this is the book for you. The cross referencing of the culture of the day, BBC politics, actors issues, development of the story and so forth are facinating. It's kept me turning pages and running to order the next installment. It's a definite must for the hard core fan.
A great history...
not only of the start of a great show, but also details British television history and pop culture to put it into a larger context. Sometimes academic, sometimes fanwankish, but never tiresomely pedantic or boring. Can't wait to pick up the next volumes.
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