Doctor Who Thread III: Reverse the Polarity of the Neutron Flow

[Dr. Simon]

We're only on page 36 of 50 by my count... though second doing something from the 4th doctor for eventual title

Ah, so it's 50+ pages, not 1000+ posts as I thought. Getting my BBs mixed up. (It used to be 1000+ posts on Enworld but there seems to be no limit now).

Not to mention overarching themes for a person. Take the latest Sexism in Doctor Who discussion; after some research into the actual content of shows previously done by Stephen Moffatt I can say quite definitively that:
1) One theme that he does very well is a messed up relationship and that,
2) It is a very rare show of his that does not dwell on a romantic or familial relationship at depth.
3) He likes entering into discussions about marriage and romantic partnerships a lot.

Let us not forget that he wrote the sitcom Coupling, and I think a lot of that style sometimes leaks over into his Who.

For producers and whatnot this colours their entire tenure. Now I know about Barry Letts and his tenure, combined with some vague knowledge of the serials done under his reign I can guess at themes and motifs that are likely to recur again and again. Hammer horror homages, period pieces and intrigue. A darker tone, and one that has more violence and violent themes than previously, or afterwards.

Most notable during Tom Baker's second season, where pretty much every story was inspired by a classic horror trope. But the first and third Baker seasons were also largely darker in tone than what had gone before. Which could be why they are some of the best. In my mind, anything that upset Mary Whitehouse had something going for it.

The day I find a monster-free (for a given level of monster) episode/serial of Doctor Who I will rejoice unto the Heavens alleluia in nomine deus et angeli! before playing something happy.

The First Doctor serial "Edge of Destruction" is an odd two-parter between "The Daleks" and "Marco Polo", so the third story ever, where a fault in the TARDIS sends it heading back to the start of time, and basically involves The Doctor, Ian, Susan and Barbara getting angry with each other under the pressure (also at this stage the Doctor has effectively kidnapped the two teachers and it was his fault they got stranded on Skaro). I'd like to see a retread of that.

And don't forget that all the First Doctor historicals (and the first few Second Doctor historical stories too) don't feature alien monsters, although as you say a "given level of monster" you might include Nero or Robespierre as a "monster". Quite often, though, the human adversaries are quite nuanced (see esp. The Aztecs or The Crusades).