This round sees Season 8 up against Season 21.
Season 8 was the first to be made entirely by the Barry Letts / Terrance Dicks partnership. The previous year had been set up by Peter Bryant and Derrick Sherwin, so Letts' hands had been tied. He didn't like the restriction to Earth or the seven episode story lengths. This year he got more stories, by reducing the episode count, and managed to find a way of getting the Doctor back into outer space. And a regular villain was introduced - a Moriarty to the Doctor's Holmes, and the Brigadier's Watson. The Master appeared in every story, which Letts and Dicks quickly came to regret as it became too predictable for the viewer. Letts took on the role of producer with a number of conditions - one of which was that he could get to direct the odd story. he does this on the season opener Terror of the Autons. Something else Letts intended was experimentation with the latest VFX techniques. He was a great champion of CSO (Colour Separation Overlay, as the BBC called it).
Autons stands out for the number of shots per episode, as well as the use of CSO to replace backgrounds - with the unfortunate result that Mrs Farrell appears to have a kitchen half a mile long. As well as introducing Roger Delgado's Master, we also get Katy Manning as Jo Grant, and Richard Franklin as Captain Mike Yates.
The Mind of Evil is notable for its prison setting, armed ambushes and convict gangs - brutally realistic ingredients for a family fantasy show. The monster is kept well down in the mix, so these harder elements are more prominent.
The Claws of Axos is another four-parter, and another very bright, colourful story. The Axon monsters are a great design. Director Michael Ferguson shared Letts' interest in experimenting with new VFX techniques.
Colony in Space got the Doctor back onto an alien planet, thanks to the clever idea of the Time Lords occasionally using the Doctor as their unofficial agent, thus managing to keep the exile in situ. This was the first story to be directed by Michael E Briant.
Finally, we get The Daemons, co-written by Letts using a nom de plume. Thanks to the mix of Paleolithic archaeology, paganism and black magic, set against the backdrop of a quaint English village that has the Master for its vicar, this one is a cast, crew and fan favourite.
Apparently, had Peter Davison known how good Season 21 as going to be he might have been tempted to change his mind about leaving. He hadn't enjoyed Season 20 very much - even though it was supposed to be the big anniversary year.
It doesn't get off to the best of starts. On paper, Warriors of the Deep should have been a classic, what with the return of both the Silurians and the Sea Devils, and a base under siege. There was also a new dinosaur-like monster, called the Myrka. The realisation was awful, however. Overly lit sets that should have been dark and dank, a pantomime horse Myrka, poorly redesigned Silurians and Sea Devils, a couple of dreadful guest performances, and messed up continuity.
The Awakening was the last of the old two-part stories, and it has obvious inspiration in a story from Season 8 - The Daemons. Quaint English village, ancient buried alien evil, and a church blowing up at the end. Frontios was written by former Script Editor Christopher H Bidmead and gave the character of Turlough some much-needed character development.
When Peter Davison announced his departure, it was decided that companions Tegan and Turlough would also depart. Janet Fielding did not want her departure overshadowed by that of the star, so she elected to leave first, in Resurrection of the Daleks. This was the rearranged 20th anniversary Dalek story. This saw the return of Davros, who would be played by Terry Molloy until the end of the classic series. The body count in this story is higher than The Terminator.
It was Mark Strickson's turn to leave in Planet of Fire, which also saw the introduction of new companion Peri Brown. Writer Peter Grimwade's shopping list also included the Master and a foreign filming locale - Lanzarote. It was then time for Davison to depart, in the highly regarded The Caves of Androzani. It has often topped polls, and never been excluded from any Top Ten.
But then we go from the sublime to the ridiculous. Producer JNT decided to introduce the new Doctor in the last story of the season, rather than have the audience wait for the start of the next.
If Caves tops polls, The Twin Dilemma tends to sit obstinately at the opposite end.
A difficult decision this one. Season 8 has the creation of the UNIT Family, the introduction of the Master, and The Daemons. Season 21 has The Caves of Androzani. Caves isn't quite enough to see off a whole season of Roger Delgado, so I am going to declare Season 8 the victor. The first and last stories of 21 also drag it down.
Next time, it's a battle of the Bakers - Season 18 versus Season 22.
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