A review by snowsnakes
Doctor Who and the Tenth Planet by Gerry Davis
5.0
What more can I say? Doctor Who is amazing- even more so in a book-version. I will say a few words about the book though, because there is honestly a lot to say.
This is a really old Doctor Who episode-turned-book. It's actually the first Doctor's final episode (if your following me), which means it was written in the late 60s. It also means that The Doctor was not the same young-looking jumpy guy we know today, but an old, wise looking man. Figures, "when the Doctor was younger, he was an older man," Doctor Who in a nutshell for you.
But what's even more cool is that this book is based in the future, or at least their future, which is our past really...
I rated it 5 stars not only because I love The Doctor and all his adventures but also because it was extremely interesting to read how the writers drew out the year 2000. What was most interesting though, the technology (movie players, radios, etc) and social norms (women's role and the general mannerism of the characters) stayed the same, as if the story took place in the 60s, only with space travel and advanced weaponry- the writers never imagined how much society would evolve technologically and socially in just 40 years. My favourite part regarding this inability of the writers to 'see' the future was the moment when Ben, one of The Doctors companions, was locked in the "Projection Room," where the 'high tech' military base kept their films and their film projector, which they still used to watch movies... Little did the writers know that film projectors would be antiques by the 1990s.
It was really cool reading Doctor Who, especially because the book portrayed the character of the first Doctor, who was not the ever-present and action driven as the more recent incarnations. You can see how much the TV show progressed and the classic characters and ideas that were developed since the 1960s. For example, this is the first episode where the Cybermen appeared. Moreover, my favourite line has to be, "'Imagine trying to tackle one of them geezers with a screwdriver!' Ben said to himself in disgust." ... I wonder if they knew?
Here we are witness to the birth of the sonic screwdriver!
This is a really old Doctor Who episode-turned-book. It's actually the first Doctor's final episode (if your following me), which means it was written in the late 60s. It also means that The Doctor was not the same young-looking jumpy guy we know today, but an old, wise looking man. Figures, "when the Doctor was younger, he was an older man," Doctor Who in a nutshell for you.
But what's even more cool is that this book is based in the future, or at least their future, which is our past really...
I rated it 5 stars not only because I love The Doctor and all his adventures but also because it was extremely interesting to read how the writers drew out the year 2000. What was most interesting though, the technology (movie players, radios, etc) and social norms (women's role and the general mannerism of the characters) stayed the same, as if the story took place in the 60s, only with space travel and advanced weaponry- the writers never imagined how much society would evolve technologically and socially in just 40 years. My favourite part regarding this inability of the writers to 'see' the future was the moment when Ben, one of The Doctors companions, was locked in the "Projection Room," where the 'high tech' military base kept their films and their film projector, which they still used to watch movies... Little did the writers know that film projectors would be antiques by the 1990s.
It was really cool reading Doctor Who, especially because the book portrayed the character of the first Doctor, who was not the ever-present and action driven as the more recent incarnations. You can see how much the TV show progressed and the classic characters and ideas that were developed since the 1960s. For example, this is the first episode where the Cybermen appeared. Moreover, my favourite line has to be, "'Imagine trying to tackle one of them geezers with a screwdriver!' Ben said to himself in disgust." ... I wonder if they knew?
Here we are witness to the birth of the sonic screwdriver!