Book Review: Doctor Who - The Key to Time by Peter Haining

Doctor Who: The Key to Time – A Year-by-Year Record
by Peter Haining [791.457 DocYh]

Doctor Who: The Key to Time – A Year-by-Year Record by Peter Haining documents the 1963-1989 classic British science fiction television series, from the arrival of creator Sydney Newman at the BBC on April 23rd 1963 through the premiere of Colin Baker’s first episode as the Sixth Doctor; March 22nd 1984. Each chapter of the book is devoted to a specific year in the show’s run, with dated entries interspersed by official photographs and fan art. Published to time with the show’s 21st anniversary, it is an interesting time capsule in genre media fandom and supplementary reference work.

Peter Haining (1940-2007), a journalist-turned-author/editor, specialized in anthologies and reference books devoted to genre fiction and other subjects such as horror, Sherlock Holmes, and the historicity of Sweeney Todd. “The Key to Time” was the second of six books focused on the original series of Doctor Who published between 1983 and 1999. The Lincoln City Libraries maintain the first four of these volumes.

Of Haining’s four books in the LCL catalog, I would recommend “The Key to Time” above the rest, due to the possession of an editorial focus that the rest of them lack. By concentrating on a chronological documentation of what happened when, it avoids the tarnished reading experience one gets when flipping through “A Celebration” or “The Doctor Who File”: chaotically lurching from topic to topic with smatterings of random photos and artwork. The Key to Time also has the advantage of covering the program’s first twenty years and the whole tenure of the first five Doctors. The promotional and production photographs break up the text nicely, and while the fan art varies wildly in quality, it also provides an interesting glimpse into a side of historical media fandom most don’t normally see outside the world of fanzines.

Another vintage text I would recommend in the LCL system is Doctor Who – The Early Years (1986, 791.457 qDocYb) by Jeremy Bentham. The Early Years focuses key stories from the first three seasons with first Doctor William Hartnell, and includes production insights, behind-the-scenes photos, concept art and model blueprints, in addition to summaries and stills of certain stories that had been deleted from the BBC Archives through the 1960s and 1970s.

[ Wikipedia page for the multi-episode Doctor Who arc The Key to Time ] | [ Wikiepedia page for Peter Haining ]

Recommended by Dave D.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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Doctor Who: The Fearmonger by Michael Blum (audiobook)

Doctor Who: The Fearmonger
by Michael Blum [Compact Disc Blum]

I’ve been a Whovian — a Doctor Who fan — since first seeing the series on our local PBS television station back in the early-to-mid-1980s. For a series that has had 13 different actors portray the main character over the course of 55 years, I still find myself drawn to the versions of The Doctor from the series’ original run (1963-1989). One Doctor I haven’t really seen in many episodes, the 7th, Sylvester McCoy, never aired in our local TV market, and the libraries unfortunately do not have any of his adventures on DVD. However, I was able to enjoy this original audiobook, featuring McCoy recreating his role in a full-cast audio recording.

Original Doctor Who audiobooks are a huge thing — there have been dozens of them produced over the years, primarily from a company known as Big Finish Productions, almost all of which bring back the original actors to have portrayed The Doctor, as well as many of their co-stars (i.e. their “companions” on the series). These are always extremely well-produced and performed, and The Fearmonger is one of the better ones I’ve had a chance to sample. Originally released 16 years ago in 2002, the topics and tone of The Fearmonger eerily presage the divisive political climate we currently live in. The Doctor and his human female traveling companion Ace find themselves in a hostile political landscape, in which outsiders are being treated as villains, and shock radio hosts are capitalizing on social divides. However, in this case, the natural human drama is being amplified by an interfering alien presence.

The full cast on this one makes The Fearmonger a far more entertaining listen than with a single narrator, and the sound effects and music make this a much richer listening experience overall. I highly recommend the entire series of Doctor Who audio adventures, especially those by Big Finish, and I enthusiastically recommended this specific entry in the series!

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try any of the many, many Doctor Who novels, in both print and audiobook, available through the libraries!]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited (on DVD)

Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited
[DVD Doctors]

At the time of the 50th anniversary of the British science fiction series Doctor Who, in 2013, a series of “specials” was produced, celebrating the different eras of of that show. The series is built around the adventures of a time-traveling alien adventurer — The Doctor — who, when faced with death, has the ability to regenerate into a fresh new body, with a completely new appearance and personality. Over the course of the first 50 years of the show, that had allowed the role of The Doctor to be played by eleven different actors (now 12, as the series is in its 53rd year). There were 11 episodes of The Doctors Revisited produced, which featured interviews, behind-the-scenes footage, and clips from famous episodes to feature each specific “Doctor”. Each The Doctors Revisited documentary was accompanied by an entire serialized storyline from the time period that each actor portrayed the character, from the first Doctor, William Hartnell and his storyline “The Aztecs”, through the Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith.

For anyone who is only vaguely aware of the cultural phenomenon that is Doctor Who, this trio of DVD Boxed Sets — set one covers Doctors 1 through 4, set two covers Doctors 5 through 8, and the final set covers Doctors 9 through 11 — is an absolutely perfect way to find out what the show is all about. Each short documentary covers the actor who played the Doctor, his traveling companions, the main “villains” he faced during his tenure, and the major storylines that were introduced during his era on the show. These were wonderfully-produced and informative specials, and the actual Doctor Who episodes that accompanied each documentary are fine examples of the show. The 12th Doctor is now Peter Capaldi, and episodes of his run can be watched on BBC America, or in series boxed sets here at the library.

[ Internet Movie Database entry for this mini-series ] | [ official www.doctorwho.tv web site ]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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The Dalek Project by Richards and Collins

The Dalek Project
written by Justin Richards with art by Mike Collins [YA Richards]

As a huge Doctor Who fan, I was pleased to grab this one when it came across the desk recently. The Dalek Project is a graphic novel, published in 2012, and featuring the 11th Doctor (Matt Smith). Ever since their first appearance on the Doctor Who television series in the early 1960s, the Daleks have been The Doctor’s arch-enemies — metal-encapsulated monstrosities with a hatred of all other living things, that, like the Doctor himself, have developed the ability to travel through not just space but also time. In this story, which crosses between two parallel lines of events in modern time and in 1917, the Doctor must try to prevent a decades-long plot from coming to fruition, to the doom of humanity. I can’t really give away more details without spoiling the whole thing. I will say the writing in this short work is great — for anyone familiar with Matt Smith’s performance as The Doctor, you’ll hear his voice in your head as you read his dialog. But the art is ! haphazard — some is excellent and other parts are cringe-worthy. I would say this is a must-read only for Doctor Who completists, but it is also a nice introduction to the whole Doctor Who mythos for anyone who hasn’t ever seen an episode or read one of the novels. The only thing that’s a little different is that throughout the history of Doctor Who, the Doctor usually travels with “companions” (most often humans), who provide a bit of point-counter-point to the Doctor’s over-the-top nature. In this storyline, The Doctor is…”between companions”, so readers don’t get that particular experience. Otherwise, a top-notch read!

[If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the various other Doctor Who graphic novels or comic-book versions.] [ entry on this Graphic Novel at the tardis.wikia.com site ]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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Who-ology: Doctor Who: The Official Miscellany

Who-ology: Doctor Who: The Official Miscellany
by Cavan Scott and Mark Wright [791.457 DocYs]

As Doctor Who fans -- known as Whovians -- prepare to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the premiere of this venerable science fantasy series on November 23rd, 2013, the publishing world is being flooded with a wide variety of fiction and non-fiction titles related to the world of this time traveling Timelord. One of the best of the non-fiction books is Who-ology: The Official Miscellany. The Doctor is a member of a long-lived species, the Gallifreyans, which have the ability to "regenerate" when they reach the end of a lifespan, whether by natural or unnatural causes. As a television series, this gives the writers/producers the ability to continue the series when the lead actor chooses the exit the role. Thus, as Whovians celebrate the 50th anniversary of the start of their series, we are enjoying the final few adventures of the 11th actor to play The Doctor, and looking forward his regeneration into the 12th Doctor in late December. In the meantime, whether you're a hardcore Whovian who can quote every last bit of time traveling trivia, or you're relatively new to the fandom and want to know what everybody else is so all-fired-up about, this volume has a little of everything any Doctor Who fan might want to see. How many different places on planet Earth have the Doctor and his various companions visited? Check out the map on page 224. How many times has a duplicate of The Doctor appeared on the show? Check page 54. How many different companions, both human and otherwise, have traveled with the Doctor in his 50 years of adventures? You'll find that here. To be honest, this is the Doctor Who trivia fans' ultimate source of useful information. My only complaint about this book is that I wished there were photographic illustrations -- there's a lot of line art here, but no photos of any of the Doctors, companions, monsters, planets, etc. Still, a terrific treasure trove of information about this long-lasting television phenomenon! -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[ official Doctor Who web site ] | [ official Cavan Scott web site ] [ Doctor Who Fan Club of Nebraska - Tardis Travelers (Facebook group -- must be logged in to view) ]

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Assimilation (squared)

Assimilation²
by Scott and David Tipton and Tony Lee (writers), J.K. Woodward (and others) (art) [741.5 Tip]

Considering the popularity of crossovers (also known today as mashups) I'm surprised that this has never happened before, but apparently this comic-book-turned-graphic-novel is the first official cross-over of these two incredibly popular multi-media juggernauts: Star Trek (in this case Star Trek the Next Generation) and Doctor Who! Originally released as a monthly comic-book in multiple installments, this trade paperback combines the first four issues of a much larger ongoing story. The 11th (current) Doctor, with his travelling companions Amy Pond and Rory Williams, crosses paths with the crew of the Enterprise D (Jean Luc Picard,Geordi LaForge, Commander Data, et. al.) only to discover that their realities should not co-exist -- they come from two parellal timelines. Ever worse, one of the Doctor's worst enemies, The Cybermen, have teamed up with, and then taken over the Federation's deadliest foe, The Borg. I have mixed feelings about this cross-over. While I'm a huge fan of both properties, and the writers even work in a subplot featuring the classic Trek characters of Kirk, Spock and McCoy encountering the 4th Doctor, I found the artwork to be all over the place. Woodward's art, which is made to resemble paintings in each panel, ranges from very good to absolutely atrocious. The art in the Classic Trek flashback sequence was terrific. The writing, on the whole is strong, but occasionally sacrifices story logic in order to emphasize character quirks. The dialog, especially for The Doctor, really captures the personality of the characters as they were seen on screen. And the chilling storyline of the Borg and Cyberman joining forces made for a suitably powerful villain. I wish I liked this more than I did, but find myself only recommending it for it's fannish historical significance. Fans of both Star Trek the Next Generation and Doctor Who should certainly appreciate it! I just wanted better artwork!. -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library [Subscribe to Scott's monthly booklist newsletter It's All Geek to Me! - on the Books, Movies & More newsletter sign-up page]

[ Wikipedia page for this comic series ]

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The Dalek Conquests

The Dalek Conquests
presented by Nicholas Briggs [Compact Disc Briggs]

This one is a treat for science fiction fans, particularly those with a love for the British SF icon Doctor Who. One of The Doctor's main nemeses, ever since his second storyline in 1963, has been the Daleks, rolling weaponized tanks containing the mutated biological remnants of a species so dedicated to war and destruction that their ultimate goals include the destruction of all other life forms and the placement of themselves as the most superior form of life in the universe. Over 43 years of their history (this audioset was put together in 2006), the Daleks have returned again and again in episodes of Doctor Who, with their strident mechanical voices shrieking "Exterminate! Exterminate!" Over that length of time, a great deal of inconsistencies has cropped up regarding the origins and evolution of the Daleks, complicated by the time travel elements that are intrinsic to Doctor Who. This 2-disc CD set uses a narrative framework of a researcher attempting to compile a history of the Daleks, as well as audio clips from various generations of the tv series, to try to create an acceptable level of Dalek continuity over the years. The continuity ends up a bit flimsy, considering the vast number of TV writers/producers/directors who had a hand in individual Dalek storylines. But the attempt is admirable. For me, the most interesting part of this set is the chance to hear bits from rare episodes of the show that haven't been available any other way. Being a fan of the recent new Doctor Who adventures that have been airing since 2005, it was also mildly frustrating to not have the new Dalek storylines since 2006 included. But, still...this is a fun oddity for genre fans! [If you enjoy this, you may also wish to try the various Doctor Who DVDs and novels in the library collection.] -- recommended by Scott C. - Bennett Martin Public Library

[ official Doctor Who web site at the BBC ] | [ Wikipedia page for Nicholas Briggs ]

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Doctor Who: The Complete Fourth Series

Doctor Who: The Complete Fourth Series

Wow! Talk about intensity. The Spaceship Titanic crashing toward earth, the horrific last day of Pompeii, the saddness of the enslaved Ood -- the Doctor's adventures don't get any easier, only more frightening, culminating in the kidnapping of the entire Planet Earth. This series is a must see as the Doctor and companions of past and present all come together to save not only Earth, but the universe. -- recommended by Janet K. - Walt Branch Library

[Numerous books are also available in the library collection that feature Doctor Who; also: additional Doctor Who books ] [ official Doctor Who BBC web site ] [ Outpost Gallifrey - Top Doctor Who Fan Site ]

See books based on shows like this in our TV Tie-Ins booklist

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