The Edge Of Destruction (Eps 1 & 2)

I watched 'Edge Of Destruction' about 2 weeks ago and didn't get around to typing up my rough notes. I look at them now and I can't make head nor tail of them, some bits make sense and trigger my memory, but many I have no idea what they referred to. I should probably watch it again, but I do remember it was pretty ropey, the direction was shaky and some of the acting was even shakier, so I won't. None of the principals seem quite sure how to play this strange little play with strange forces manipulating them, there is certainly little consistency of approach among the four or even within their own performances, which waver wildly. They were clearly confused by what was going on while filming as much as the characters are in the plot. As I'm not watching again, you'll just have to make what you will of my short hand bullet points, written exactly as they were scribbled, that were meant to remind me a day or two later, not 2 weeks later, when this 2 parter has been best and easily forgot. I've made a guess at what I meant in a few places in brackets.

Here are my shorthand scribblings with a few added notes of explanation...

'Edge Of Destruction' Episode One

• "I know you"
• 'Susan - bad neck hurt acting' (yes, I remember it was pretty bad)
• 'Barbara normal' (i think I meant Barbara seems about normal, while the other seem strange)
• 'Ian - Anthony Perkins "working late tonight"' (playing it like Anthony Perkins in 'Psycho')
• 'Ian's forgotten' (Ian's forgotten where they are i.e. in the TARDIS in time and space)
• 'Ian playing deadpan, unblinking' (William Russell choosing to play it deadpan)
• 'Simpleton (tut tut un pc bad shorthand, bad) like Tommy from POS' (Ian acting in a childlike like Tommy from Planet Of The Spiders)
• 'Susan - neurotic'
• 'Ian - zombie' (I seemed to be very interested in the way Ian was being acted and trying to pin it down with a better descriptions)
• 'Ian starts acting normally "what's going on here"' (yes, what the fuck is this shit!!)
• 'Susan hilarious "no, who are you"'. 
• '(Crazy) hair and knife!' (Susan in a brilliantly bad moment of knife weilding with crazy cat lady hair)
• 'Music's good'
• '"an animal or a man or something"' (funny and odd description from Barbara of what may have got into the TARDIS I think)
• '"Rosemary's Baby"'(a yes, more knife weilding Susan)
• 'Susan WTF??' (must have been more craziness from Susan)
• 'then she's better; "hey the scanner's working"' (suddenly Susan acting less crazy? i think it was jarring as she was back to almost normal in the space of seconds)
• 'The pace is so wrong' (the direction - i was so right)
• '"yes it records our journeys"' (would only have written down this line if it was delivered badly or weirdly)
• 'No idea how to play it or say the lines' (referring to the regulars)
• 'Director doesn't know' (surely he could have asked Whitaker or at least talked with the cast to find some agreement, better to all get it consistently wrong than all pull different ways surely?)
• 'Barbara - "do you realise you stupid old man"' (I think I liked Jackie's Hill's delivery there)
• 'Barbara dog n Susan' (that's not what I meant or wrote, but that's what my scribble looks like!!)
• 'Melty time music' (can't remember if I liked it or thought it was bonkers, when the clock hands melted, probably the latter)
• 'The slow moving, you'd be more manic' (maybe thinking they were speaking and moving too slowly for the sense of panic they would/ should have had in this situation' - pad to 25 minutes! slower!!)
• 'Barb(ara) goes to bed' (yes, and?)
• 'Susan psycho walk' (ok, I remember, Barbara goes to bed in the middle of a crisis? then Susan goes to bed with a crazy lady walk)
• 'Ian drained of character'
• 'Wooden' (still talking about Ian)
• 'playing disoriented in different ways' (was this referring to them all, or just William Russell being inconsistent, I think both)

'Edge Of Destruction' Episode 2 'Brink Of Disaster'

• 'Billy bad bad "you saw what he told, try to do"' (must have been a bad Billy fluff)
• Susan back to psycho then "no" put off the ship' (Susan acting psychotic again, but then cries "no" when the Doctor threatens to put Ian and Barbara off the ship)
• 'Billy - 3 fluffs' (he must have been having a shocker)
• 'Ian - "no you'll get knocked out" (bad line delivery I think)
• "We haven't crash landed otherwise I would have discovered that immediately" (The Doctor dishing up a big hot serve of 'no shit!')
• '"We have 10 minutes to survive"' (and the audience 10 to endure! and how did he deduce they had 10 minutes to live - creating fake drama where there was none) 
• 'meta textual' (referring to Hartnell unknowingly speaking for the audience in the previous point, me trying to find the word for where drama/ reality/ character/ audience intertwine)
• "The column hold the power down" (stupid concept, the time rotor as bath plug? or pressure cooker cap, come on!)
• "I don't even know where to begin, if only I had a clue" (The Doctor saying exactly how I feel trying to interpret my shoddy notes, is that some more dubious meta-textual stuff?)
• "If you'd felt the power dear boy, you wouldn't live to speak of it" (snigger, snigger, would love to hear Troughton giving that one to Hines)
• "We have 5 minutes only, they won't know" (let's not bother the delicate girls with this manly problem of total obliteration)
• 'Hartnell monologue, looks and sounds great (un)til he overcooks' (it was until the last few seconds when he goes OTT manic)
• 'it hasn't released itself' (the fast return switch)
• 'fast return - pen' (fast return written badly in texta on console)
• 'Barb + Ian back to back mourn' (?? - I have no idea what I meant)
• 'Hartnell "er uh er uh yes young man, no recrim(inations)"' (I think I enjoyed Hartnell's awkward back-peddling apology)
• 'Ian laughing bad' (bad end of episode it's all better acting I think)
• 'Lovely scene Ian & Barb' (I think I meant to write Doctor & Barbara and it was lovely scene where they make up and walk arm in arm back out to the console room)

A noble failure overall. It is ambitious and ground breaking in some ways, but they just don't manage to pull it off and suspend disbelief often enough. The inconsistencies and uncertainties derial what could have been something akin to Mind Robber Part One.

'The Daleks' (Ep 7 'The Rescue')

Musings on Ep 7;

• "Lily-livered Antodus redeems himself with noble self-sacrificial suicide" or "clearly traumatised individual with severe anxiety dies to prove he was a coward before, but isn't now".
• I shouldn't have given him such a hard time last episode.
• His death almost gives the pointless padding of the cave journey a dramatic purpose...almost.
• "We may be farmers, but have we forgotten how to fight?"; Alydon tries to inspire the troops with rallying cry that purports to be unyielding broadsword, but is more wilted rhubarb.
• The Doctor seems genuinely prepared to sell out all the TARDIS and time travel secrets to the Daleks. Never again was he so willing to offer such a bargain. It's in keeping with Hartnell's 'selfish wanderer', but not the gravely responsible 'citizen of the universe' Doctor that emerges later on in the series.
• "Stop it please" (a solid bit of desperate pleading from Hartnell), "Nothing can stop the Daleks" (pleasing pure egotist bitchery from the aforementioned).
• The Dalek radiation countdown??? in English numerals...and at about one-third speed? Maybe it's in Dalek Rels (sic)...which are of course counted in English in Earth numerals don't you know! ok, ok, how would we know if it was getting close to zero so we know when to wet our pants any other way? yes, ok, you win.
• Dreadful chaotic scene in the Dalek base when the Thals bust in; lots of confusion, hiding in plain sight, people standing in clear shot of dopey Daleks who don't fire. Ropey and amateur looking and utterly confusing. Yes, I admit, very hard to direct in one take with multiple cast members coming from all angles, several sight-restricted Daleks and a slew of not so special effects, but it's the final grand set-piece after 7 weeks for crying out loud!
• What exactly does The Doctor do to drain the power? It's not very well (if at all) explained and it seems he just shoves a huge magnet on the floor which 'drains off the power' and gives one Dalek a major rigarmotic eyestalk boner. Please explain?
• And while we're at it, back to bagging the cave spelunking stuff; why the tedious climb and cave traverse when others pretty much come in through the front door without raising too much of a sweat. Silly pfaffing about really.
• Some lovely bits of Doctor charm; "you wanted my advice, I never give it" and the "my truth is in the stars" monolouge. Well pitched by Billy.
• Silly stuff with Diony's coat and the clunky all-smiling-walk-down-wrap-up after death, dread and destruction. Aaah, what sappy sitcoms are made of!
• Cute bit of business from the Doctor with the handshake; "your hand sir"
• Wow! Barbara gives Ganatus quite the smooch on the cheek after his chaste peck on her hand. It even looked like it caught a bit of Ganatus' pouty lip. I had completely forgotten that bit.
• A tiny TARDIS set, clearly smaller than usual, set up as afterthought in the studio corner for a brief end of episode interior TARDIS scene.
• Hartnell does a nice semi-balletic spin-fall when the TARDIS goes haywire.
• Despite lots of rushed ropiness, there was still plenty enough to enjoy in Ep 7.
• Overall, the first 3-4 episodes of 'The Daleks' are strong and involving, 5 through 7 stretch credibility and set the mould for overlong Doctor Who story padding, but the bloody-minded determination and 'sweaty invention on a shoe string' from the fledgling Who team get an overly ambitious epic well and truly over the line.

'The Daleks' (Ep 6 'The Ordeal')

Musings on Ep 6...

• Ganatus and Barbara are making a foxy duo on the spelunking mission.
• "Do you always do what Ian says?", Ganatus you big, fey flirt!
• Very grim stuff in the caves, I remembered more of a 'boys own adventure' in the caves, but it's actually pretty bleak and tense; hugely padded yes, but still pleasingly bleak.
• The Ganatus & Antodus stand-off is well played. I just want to slap Antodus! I suppose that's the point. It's amazing that Ganatus contained himself as well as he did for their whole life.
• Hartnell clearly loved getting to do his bit of business with the key chain causing the short-circuit.
• It's a nice little Doctor/ Susan scene actually, and you know what? she's not annoying me! Never thought I'd say it, but Carole AF was a capable little actress and I think she (Susan) gets worse in coming stories and I bet Carole was told to play younger, less alien and more vulnerable, so the kids would be able to relate more readily. A terrible decision by the production team, but I'm willing to bet that was indeed the adjusted brief and if she wasn't told explicitly, it played out clear as day in the scripts she was given.
• The Hartnell charicature is starting to emerge! You never really saw it in 'An Unearthly Child'; but the doddery, shuffling, giggling-to-himself old boffin is now starting to appear more and more. Shame really. I would have loved to have seen more of the sinister and textured Doctor from AUC, but then, it would have alienated viewers I suppose. This version is certainly warmer and more forgiveable for his manipulations and moments of blinkered self-interest.
• Enjoyed The Doctor boasting at his short-circuit solution then the immediate comeuppance as he is surrounded by a hoard of Daleks.
• Good scene with the Doctor and Susan on the floor surrounded by Daleks, ending with the explicit Nazi-style raised plunger salute.
• Doctor: "it's sheer murder"... Deadpan Dalek: "no, ex-ter-mination". Simple, but effective.

'The Daleks' (Ep 5 'The Expedition')

Musings from Ep 5;

• "have you processed the pictures?" indeed! Seems Dalek Errand was sent down the Kodak shop to pick up their prisoner pics! Then they pretty much have a slide evening with another Dalek impatiently calling 'next'. You almost expect them to bust out the fondue set. They've certainly got the plungers for it.
• A few lovely lines from Billy H; "tempting providence Chesterman" and "well at least you're not vindictive" after they air their 'fluid link' dirty linen.
• Another nice line from The Doctor about triumph of brain over brawn "the mind will always triumph"...followed closely by a ideological stinker "no time for morals, they must fight for us". ???
• The whole tone of the first half of this episode, which is spent manipulating the Thals to help them, is just wrong. I've watched it a few times and I think I'm right. Ok, they are shitscared, they want to escape, but the only one who has real qualms about using the Thals as sheep to drive across the minefield (Ian) then manipulates them in a most calculating fashion after bowing to pressure. Why the hell should the Thals help? There is no sense that the Doctor or Barbara feel that the Thals' are themselves in any real danger from the Daleks at that point, or concern for the Thals' welfare. It's just "they have to help us because they have to help us, some of them might die but, they have to help us". Fuckers! Maybe I've never been there. Maybe I'm wrong that it's wrong. Maybe it's easy to say behind a computer in casual comfort.
• Basically, Barbara and the Doctor feel that the fluid link and their escape are more important than this ready army of quaint natives. I think it's nasty and I've never found Barbara particularly so unlikable. She comes over as dour, humourless, utterly self-interested and manipulative (pushing Ian to have the hard conversations indeed - from an independent and capable woman) callous even; words I thought I'd never say about Barbara. The way she says 'how you two can stand around having idle chit chat' or words to that effect to the Doctor and Ian, you just want to tell her to fuck off and go jump in the swamp. Oh Babs! how the lofty have displeased me.
• Susan gets its sort of right in saying the Thals need to want to fight for themsleves, as well as of course be the frontline fodder for the fucking fluid link retrieval. Even the way Ian disses and dismisses their history box smacks of superior colonials assuming superior intellect and superior ways.
• "Are they cowards or just against fighting on principle". There are lots of lines like that; things that make me go grrr!
• The first half of the episode is pretty awful tone wise and I feel very little for the principals in their plight, maybe Ian a bit and perhaps Susan who provides some balance. Some critics have called this impasse very realistic, maybe it is, maybe people are more moral and heroic in fiction and we get fooled by it all the time, maybe 'Terry Nay-Fiction' is more real. I know for sure that he has all the subtlety of a blunt sledgehammer.
• Enjoyed the scenes where the Daleks work out they now are dependent on radiation.
• Nice scene between Ganatus and Barbara in the caves. Ganatus is now waxing nobly heroic and gently sensitive and less simpering, petulant ponce. Nice change of gear from whoever he is. Barbara has her eye on him too.
• Ok, thinking about Barbara W again, is she out of character or does she grow into character in coming stories? They (our intrepids) haven't really had a break from white-knuckle danger and threat of death following straight through from 'An Unearthly Child'. Maybe it is through the next few stories she gets her 'terrifying travel' legs and is able to keep a greater sense of composure and her scruples. It is a revelation to watch Barbara 'in order'. Maybe I'll just shut up and let it (and her) unfold.
• The Cardboard Dalek crew! Their debut! Even worse than the ones in Power OTD. Had forgotten about these ones. Maybe less obvious on grainy VHS, now painfully obvious on DVD.
• Stretchy lake monster is very effective. Swamp effective full-stop.

'The Daleks' (Ep 4 'The Ambush')

Musings on ep 4;

• "The lift scene looks good", I wrote that scribbled note while viewing this last night, I can't remember which lift scene, but there you go, it was good.
• The Daleks oxy cutting is surprisingly effective.
• Ian sounds like he's doing something else entirely as he struggles to "open the hatch" and clamber out of the magnetised Dalek; ooh er!
• The moving camera shot with Daleks trundling through into the empty room after cutting down the door and the empty Dalek imploding looks superb.
• Clever effect of the melty wall after a Dalek tries to shoot Ian, but misses.
• Ian & Alydon meet for the first time around the corner after the Dalek/ Thal stand-off and stand enticingly close as they make acquaintance; 'shippers...start your imaginations.
• Nice little moment where the Doctor pulls up a pugh, turns on the charm and looks at the star charts with Diony.
• Ian's 'dislike for the unlike' speech is well played.
• Interesting discourse on pacifism that says more about the writer than the regulars and feels a bit out of character for them.

'The Daleks' (Ep 3 'The Escape')

Musings on ep 3;

• Carole Ann Ford plays the vulnerability and her confusion at the contradiction with what she's been lead to believe quite well when she first sees the dashing Alydon; "but they said you...you're perfect".
• Correct Susan, Alydon is fine!
• The Daleks having a conspiratorial chat with regard to their manipulations of their prisoners is great. They're almost whispering, as if they know they're being naughty. Kids would have lapped it up. It reminds one of the only good bit of 'Daleks In Manhattan', where a Dalek swings his eye stalk around behind him to see if he can get away with his gossiping without being overheard.
• Ganatus is a bit of a ponce, a pretty one admittedly, but a ponce nonetheless.
• The Thal men teasing Diony with their silly sexist needlings is totally irrelevant to the plot, therefore pointless and also vaguely offensive
• Susan studiously taking dictation from the Daleks for the note for the Thals is a nice touch.
• What is with her handwriting? both off the hand and on the paper?? bizarre!...but I like it.
• I love it when Susan giggles at the Daleks lack of understanding of her name "Sue-San" and one Dalek, humourless old school Ma'am with a migraine like, barks "stop that noise".
• Lovely scene with our intrepids deducting how the Daleks are powered and how to de-activate one. Hartnell is clearly relishing this scene; getting to show the Doctor exercising his powers of perception and leading and inspiring the others in using their intelligence and improvisational skills (the fake fight, the clay on the eyestalk.) Very Doctor-y!
• This is the first real evidence of genuine shared purpose and rapport for the team to date. And it's not just out of desperation, there is some real joy in the teamwork.
• Diony: (with vague detachment) "your brother, is he still afraid of the dark?", Ganatus: (with angry mince) "My brother isn't afraid of anything". Tthhooper high-camp!
• Superb and subtle facial reaction from William Russell after seeing the Dalek innards. He got it just right; not easy in a one take wonder multi-scene scenario on a Friday night in Lime Grove.

'The Daleks' (Ep 2 'The Survivors')

Musings on ep 2;

• The 'singing metal' sound effects in the city corridors are very effective and creepy.
• The lift and door movements are pretty smooth. Some solid design work.
• Worst boom shadow shot ever from around 1m25s to 1m35s. You can see every detail of it; pole, muffler, cable etc. The shadow lands on William Russell's face at one point, you see him clock it and wonder if they'll stop, but he marches on and they of course don't.
• Computers and a Geiger counter straight out of 60's Physics Lab with handy English labels. Hmmm. Skaro Upon Avon anyone?
• Great level of tension from Ian after the radiation poisoning reveal, "how much? how badly??" 
• Good that Doctor admitted his culpability for the fluid link ruse, but I suppose he had to to explain that the TARDIS would actually still work and that they could immediately leave the city. So it wasn't a prickle of conscience after all.
• Ian holding the fluid link captive when The Doctor tries to leave is great.
• Another nice Doctor/ Ian face-off;  Doctor: "you stay and look for her if you wish", Ian: "it's time you faced up" etc.
• Barbara really isn't terrified slash relieved enough as she is reunited with the others when they are chucked in the cell with her. It's more like she's opening the front door with vague disinterest for a disliked sibling after school.
• The Doctor kneeling on one knee in the beam of light and being grilled by the Daleks looks great; lovely composition.
• The first proper Doctor/ Dalek stand-off is pretty good. Less histrionic Dalek wise and more effective for it than later Dalek nasties.
• Billy fluff, billy fluff: "anti-radiation gloves...drugs".
• William Russell's "falls" while testing out his paralysed legs are dreadful. 
• The Dalek control room is fairly impressive. I don't remember it looking this good. I thought this design came later circa 'The Chase' or 'Masterplan'
• The tone and mood are great in the scenes in the cell. The stakes seem shockingly high; Ian can't walk and is in torment for not being able to save them, Susan's shit-scared at having to make the drug run, Barbara can't stop the room spinning to string a sentence together or open her eyes and The Doctor is just about comatose. It's pretty well played by all and the sweat and dwindling hope seem all too real.
• Great camera shots to suggest Susan running through the jungle; not the 'face being slapped by twigs' shots, rather the camera looking ahead into the jungle ones with a quick zoom and focus pull.
• Lovely last shot through the TARDIS doors out into the stormy jungle as Susan heads back to the city after collecting the drugs.