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Classic Who. The Beeb. Blu-ray. Newly remastered. Need I say anymore?
Because the new decade needed a new Doctor. The changing of the guard – Tom Baker will always be MY Doctor – was inevitable, I suppose, for a long-running program like Doctor Who. A certain tiredness was sweeping over the program and, with a change in its broadcasting schedule, it became necessary to change the face of the program, too.
I may not be a HUGE fan of how the BBC is marketing this release in America, but hey, it’s Doctor Who and it is in blu-ray so I should just keep my complaints stuffed in my piehole. Why? Because Season Nineteen of Doctor Who has now been upgraded to blu-ray by the BBC and it, thanks to a retooling of the effects and the sound (all optional), zips along with elegance and grace.
It is a perfect set for ANY serious fan of Doctor Who. Relish the recursion!
Following on the heels of Tom Baker’s splendidly gorgeous 1080p upgrade back in July of this year, when his first season as The Doctor was released on blu-ray, Peter Davison, otherwise known as the cricket-loving blonde Doctor Who, gets his first season also released. And it begins with a very weak Doctor, after his regeneration, needing a Zero Room as he stumbles upon a town named after the lithograph by M.C. Escher. Hint, hint, hint.
Now, the BBC – never one to make much sense in what and how they release their massive library of shows – are going about this blu-ray rollout all sorts of weird-like. The next scheduled blu-ray release, outside of the current running series with Jodie Whittaker in the role, will be Tom Baker’s seventh year (otherwise known as The Eighteenth Season) as The Doctor. And that is scheduled to come out in March of next year; like I said, I am no fan of how these seasons are being release, but they don't seem to be stopping which was always my concern when the first set was release. {googlaeads}
All I know is that, so far, the episodes look and sound FANTASTIC. Gone are the fuzzy lines from the broadcast; the piercing white lights of the studio; the dullness in the image; the sound design, too. Everything looks and feels as best as it possibly can and, for my money, the show zips along with an entirely watchable energy that has long been missing from the DVD releases.
This Collector’s Edition, featuring all 26 episodes of the first season, including fan favorites like “Castrovalva” and “Four To Doomsday”, will not disappoint even the casual fan of the show. There are seven different stories included here, with “Kinda”, “The Visitation”, “Black Orchid”, “Earthshock” and “Time-Flight” rounding out Davison’s first year. As far as the writing goes, this series is top notch.
Also in tow – as this season sees him matching wits against The Master, the Terileptils, AND the newly redesigned Cybermen – are companions Tegan (Janet Fielding), Nyssa (Sarah Sutton) and Adric (Matthew Waterhouse). Good thing he’s not alone to face the terrifying stench of the Mara!
The eight-disc set, with each disc dedicated to one of the stories, also includes five new featurettes about the season and its storytelling; a new hour-long chat with Davison, and tons of bonus looks into the episodes themselves. It is a perfect set for ANY serious fan of Doctor Who.
Relish the recursion!
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[tab title="Blu-ray Review"]
Blu-ray Details:
Home Video Distributor: BBC
Available on Blu-ray - December 4, 2018
Screen Formats: 1.33:1
Subtitles: English SDH
Audio: English: DTS-HD Master Audio 2.0
Discs: Blu-ray Disc; eight-disc set
Region Encoding: Locked to Region A
With an upgrade in sound and in vision, this television show, presented here in its Nineteenth Season, looks almost new again. It sure beats the previous DVD releases as clarity has been pushed forward, shadows deepened, and lines/edges much more defined. Colors, too, are more pronounced – especially the greens and reds which used to be bleached out – and the special effects get a bit more polish to the some of the details. Fans can even chose to watch the series with enhanced special effects, too. With sound offered in mono, stereo, and 5.1 stereo surround, you can’t go wrong with this remastered and restored special edition release of Peter Davison’s first year as Doctor Who.
Supplements:
Commentary:
- None
Special Features:
Peter Davison’s first series as the Fifth Doctor is presented by the BBC in a limited edition Eight-disc box set. This release features all 26 episodes remastered, but fans will really dig the brand new special features!
The limited edition Blu-ray includes brand new special features exclusive to this set:
- Five new ‘Making-Of’ documentaries for Castrovalva, Four To Doomsday, Black Orchid, Earthshock and Time-Flight
- Surround sound mixes for Kinda and Earthshock
- An extended version of Black Orchid Part One
- Rare studio footage from Castrovalva, Four To Doomsday, Earthshock and Time-Flight
- Updated special effects for Castrovalva
- Seven more editions of Behind The Sofa
- A newly-shot one-hour interview ‘Peter Davison In Conversation with Matthew Sweet
- Plus the following stories from 1982:
- Castrovalva (Four episodes)
- Four To Doomsday (Four Episodes)
- Kinda (Four Episodes)
- The Visitation (Four Episodes)
- Black Orchid (Two Episodes)
- Earthshock (Four Episodes)
- Time-Flight (Four episodes)
The eight-disc box set also includes the Peter Davison/David Tennant mini-episode Time Crash, plus hours of extensive special features previously released on DVD.
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