And now for something completely different

[elisi]

Partly just to prove that I am actually watching Classic Who and have Opinions...

As I have explained previusly, I am watching backwards, by Doctor. I find this a very good way of acclimatising myself to the slower pace (Seven's stories are paced quite similar to modern TV, and then it gets slower as you get further back), and it really helps to follow a TARDIS team and see how they grow & develop. Watching random 'good episodes' never managed to make me invested enough to watch more, but this has worked a treat! (Even the dull/annoying episodes are worth it when you care about the characters.)

I have now done Seven, Six and Five, and have just finished S12 (Four's first). And I luff them all very much. (I watched the movie years ago, and should probably watch it again, although I know that Eight is basically to be found in Big Finish...)

Anyway. Opinion time. :) With thanks to Promethia. (As always.)

Poll #21655 The Ark in Space...

Open to: Registered Users, detailed results viewable to: All, participants: 13

View Respondents

The Arc in Space was hella boring:

View Answers

1) Finally! Sombody admits it!
3 (23.1%)

2) It was just ok.
4 (30.8%)

3) It's overhyped but still good.
1 (7.7%)

4) You are wrong and I will tell you why in the comments.
1 (7.7%)

5) You are wrong and we are now mortal enemies.
2 (15.4%)

6) You have no idea how scary bubblewrap was for a six-year-old in 1975!
0 (0.0%)

7) I've never seen The Arc in Space.
1 (7.7%)

8) I don't know what's going on. I'm just here for the drama.
0 (0.0%)

9) Harry Sullivan is an imbecile.*
1 (7.7%)

*I know that line was from Revenge of the Cybermen, but it's too perfect not to use

Comments

[thisbluespirit]

Only not really, but my top comfort watching for years was Sarah, Harry and Four exploring a deserted white base in episode 1. (I don't think it's the best story & I don't think I'd come across a lot of hype for it, other than it being probably the first signs of things to come with Hinchcliffe, but it's a good one with a notable design, a good script, a scary monster, joyfully unconvincing bubblewrap, and Four, Sarah and Harry at their most adorable together. Maybe if people don't like Four, Sarah and Harry? Also it's only four episodes anyway, and it's not Revenge of the Cybermen, always a good thing.)

I'm glad you're enjoying your voyages though! And the characters are why we're all here anyway. It's not as if Classic Who fans are actually a lot of masochists who like to torture themselves with polystyrene rocks and bubble wrap; we do it for love.

[elisi]

Only not really, but my top comfort watching for years was Sarah, Harry and Four exploring a deserted white base in episode 1.
This was one of the only ones I'd seen before, but had forgotten about 95% of the plot, so it was almost new. And it just felt like wading through treacle. So - since I know it's well-beloved - I presumed that for some people it was comfort viwing (or similar) and just curious.

it's a good one with a notable design, a good script, a scary monster, joyfully unconvincing bubblewrap, and Four, Sarah and Harry at their most adorable together.
See I can appreciate all these (and noted all these points whilst watching) and yet I found it nigh-on impossible to watch. I can't pinpoint why.

Also it's only four episodes anyway, and it's not Revenge of the Cybermen, always a good thing.
VERY TRUE.

This might just be one of those times where I - despite my Pollyanna tendencies - simply differ wildly from general fandom opinion. Much like how everyone loved Midnight, and I didn't.

I'm glad you're enjoying your voyages though! And the characters are why we're all here anyway. It's not as if Classic Who fans are actually a lot of masochists who like to torture themselves with polystyrene rocks and bubble wrap; we do it for love.
Yes, but why the love??? Genesis of the Daleks is amazing, hands down, and I generally understand why the wellknown classic episodes are beloved (although there were several - Kinda & Enlightenment most specifically - that I had never heard of and that were absolutely sublime!), but now and again I just sit there scratching my head.

(Ditto with Caves of Androzani. Like, I appreciate what it does, and it does it very well, but it was a trial to watch.)

[thisbluespirit]

Yes, but why the love???

I meant the whole show, not Ark specifically! We watch all this for love. It's maybe kind of tragic, but also fun. :-D


And as to Ark, I don't know - just if I wanted a Four, Sarah & Harry, I'd watch this or Terror of the Autons and if I wanted to watch a S12 serial out of order (I tend to rewatch in order myself), it'd probably be this one. It isn't my favourite or anything, but I can't answer for anyone else. My reasons are as they are above, and I'm a little puzzled that'd be the one to get so much hate.

You haven't been moving in the right circles, though, if you hadn't heard of Kinda, as it's frequently listed as a top episode all around - and I'd agree! (Enlightenment goes under the radar more, probably because of Mawdryn Undead & Terminus, but I love it & I'm not alone!)

[nostalgia]

Genesis is overrated!

[promethia_tenk]

Four, Sarah and Harry at their most adorable together. Maybe if people don't like Four, Sarah and Harry?
You might be on to something there. Episode one is exactly the kind of thing I would eat up with a spoon if I were more attached to the characters (as a point of comparison, I looooooove the first half of Castrovalva where, arguably, nothing happens and they just poke around the TARDIS for awhile). But I far prefer Sarah and Four on their own and think Harry kind of ruins it, so . . .

(This poll came about because Elisi and I were both underwhelmed by this one, and I read/listened to one too many things in which it was declared a masterpiece, landmark episode, top ten, beloved of various modern showrunners, etc. I totally appreciate your reasoning, but completely scratching my head at the effusive praise I'm seeing elsewhere.)

[thisbluespirit]

I think, in terms of the praise it gets, it did do a lot of things for the first time in a particular way, with the parasitic aliens & body horror - but the of course, that popularity with older fans means it influenced a lot of New Who and a lot of what came after (and possibly even Alien, now the ur-text for this kind of thing), so what it's good at has been done and redone nth-dozen times, so that value is pretty minimal watching retrospectively, I suppose.

I can appreciate that, but I think, yes, I definitely love it because Four-Sarah-Harry are one of my favourite team!TARDISes (probably joint-honours with the also platonic-adorable Two-Jamie-Zoe in my books) and getting to amble round a deserted space station with them for 25 minutes suits me fine. I used to rewatch just episode 1 if I had the flu. That and the Guardian Trilogy, but that was mainly because I had it all together one one tape off the telly so it was my most convenient bit of Five.

Nyssa and Tegan do problem solving together alone is also pretty great, tho. :-D

[wolfy_writing]

MORTAL ENEMIES!

I mean I remember it being interesting, but haven't watched in a while, so I can't exactly pin down why, beyond I like Four and Sarah and weird bug aliens.

Therefore MORTAL ENEMIES!

[elisi]

Excellent! I have never had mortal enemies before, this is very exciting. :D

(And if/when you do watch it again, tell me what you like!)

[wolfy_writing]

Well, everything I know about having mortal enemies comes from Hark, A Vagrant.

(Will do!)

[thisbluespirit]

LOL, together we shall fight armed with green bubblewrap! We shall be invincible but much mocked and unable to creep up on anyone! <3

[elisi]

Apparently bubblewrap was very new back then, and probably worked great as something unsettling & different.

[wolfy_writing]

They shall know us by the ominous crinkling and popping!

[auroracloud]

It's not in the least bit boring if you're TERRIFIED OF BUGS even when they're normal-sized, and utterly disgusted by idea of parasitoid wasps and such, and then there's a HUMAN-SIZED ONE that has sneaked aboard your spaceship while you slept. I found the bubble wrap a relief, because goodness knows how many nightmares I'd have had if the thing had actually looked realistic.

I did generally enjoy the story as well, though! I have no detailed analysis to offer, as I watched it in the summer as part of the Twitch marathon, which is a bit too fast for detailed analysis to happen. My enjoyment may have been much enhanced by the fact that it was no longer the Third Doctor and Jo Grant era, which I'd made several unsuccessful attempts to get into, and I was overjoyed to find I could watch both a Doctor and a companion I liked again.

Because my information on the Received Fannish Wisdom tends to be a bit random, I had no idea this episode is supposed to be particularly well-liked, though. All I'd heard until now was people making fun of the bubble wrap.

[elisi]

It's not in the least bit boring if you're TERRIFIED OF BUGS even when they're normal-sized, and utterly disgusted by idea of parasitoid wasps and such, and then there's a HUMAN-SIZED ONE that has sneaked aboard your spaceship while you slept.
! OK, that's a good point. (Incidentally, possibly my favourite part of it is Sarah startled at seeing the massive dead bug and asking what it is, and Harry replying - completely deadpan - 'No idea. We found it in the cupboard' as if it were a pair of old boots.)

I did generally enjoy the story as well, though! I have no detailed analysis to offer, as I watched it in the summer as part of the Twitch marathon, which is a bit too fast for detailed analysis to happen.
Fair nuff, I love the idea of the Twitch marathons, but they are WAY too fast for me.

My enjoyment may have been much enhanced by the fact that it was no longer the Third Doctor and Jo Grant era, which I'd made several unsuccessful attempts to get into, and I was overjoyed to find I could watch both a Doctor and a companion I liked again.
LOL. Promethia will be jumping on this, trust me! (I have only watched two Three episodes, so have no opinion yet.)

Because my information on the Received Fannish Wisdom tends to be a bit random, I had no idea this episode is supposed to be particularly well-liked, though. All I'd heard until now was people making fun of the bubble wrap.
I knew that too. *g* But yeah, it's one of THOSE episodes. And since THOSE episodes tend to be stuff like Logopolis (which is very good indeed) I was just puzzled.

[nostalgia]

It's acceptable. I can't imagine ever rating it as a Top 10 or anything near that, but it's not *bad* as such it's just... there. Tom's big speech is massively overrated though and people miss that he may be doing it ironically.

[elisi]

It's acceptable. I can't imagine ever rating it as a Top 10 or anything near that, but it's not *bad* as such it's just... there.
If people hadn't talked so much about how great it was, I'd not be so meh, probably. (Although I'm the person who disliked Midnight, so my tastes are clearly odd.)

Tom's big speech is massively overrated though and people miss that he may be doing it ironically.
Fans taking stuff too literally? I don't believe it!

[promethia_tenk]

Tom's big speech is massively overrated though and people miss that he may be doing it ironically.
Ooo. I like this. Though possibly only because Ten's given me a massive twitch any time the Doctor gets too enthusiastic about how great humans are.

[greensword]

Just so you know I read this before bed last night, and also promethia_tenk's post about War Games, and somehow that turned into me dreaming about wandering around a spaceship with Two and Zoe and Jamie getting infected by aliens (who, in the dream, were going to turn us into Daleks). So thanks for that!

[elisi]

You're welcome?

[a-phoenixdragon.livejournal.com]

Ohhh, I loved the Classics! Four, Six and Seven are my favs from the series. :D

*HUGS*

[elisi]

But Five???? (He is so adorbs, and gets such a hard deal.)

[(Anonymous)]

I love S12. Four/Sarah/Harry is one of my fave lineups. Although, really, Three's era is my fave. So many iconic things debut in that time.

[elisi]

I love S12. Four/Sarah/Harry is one of my fave lineups.
Yay! I love it when people love things, and wish I liked it more.

Although, really, Three's era is my fave. So many iconic things debut in that time.
This show really has something for everyone...

[flowsoffire.livejournal.com]

Working your way backwards! That's an interesting idea, cool one :)

[elisi]

It's working very well! Although there is a LOT of Four... /o\