I’m very slowly rewatching all of Doctor Who from the beginning, and I’ve finally finished season 3 from 1965-1966. Here’s my ranking, and some quick thoughts. (Click for Season 1 and Season 2.)
- The Daleks’ Master Plan – Not a surprise that the Dalek story takes top marks again this season. At twelve episodes, it’s an epic, but the odd Christmas episode mid-way, followed by a tangential mini-arc with the return of the Monk, keeps it feeling fresh.
- Galaxy 4 – The new animation had me enjoying this story a lot more this time around. The Drahvins are camp as hell, how could I not rate this highly?
- The Celestial Toymaker – Similarly, the new animation improves this story drastically – this is probably the only story that would drop in my ratings if the lost episodes were found. The animated people take some getting used to, particularly Steven, but the Toymaker’s games look fantastical.
- The Savages – A high placement considering all the episodes are missing, but it’s a great exit story for Steven. Plus, “colonialism is bad” is a message that’s always timely.
- The Myth Makers – Another one that’s risen in my esteem after rewatch, despite no episodes surviving. It’s a load of fun until the sudden tonal shift in the last episode takes it dark. Points off for Vicki’s goodbye happening off-screen.
- The Massacre – Drags a bit, but a good focal episode for Steven; and William Hartnell shines in his double roll as both the Doctor and the evil Abbot.
- The War Machines – The first two episodes are great, and it introduces two of the best companions, Polly and Ben. But the latter two episodes lean into dull 50s-style sci-fi, and poor Dodo is shuffled off the show without a word.
- The Ark – The first two episodes hold up a lot better than the first. It’s not a bad story, really, but massive points off for the “colonialism is good, actually” message, which really doesn’t jibe with Doctor Who‘s core. (They should put this in a box set with Kerblam! and call it “Right-Wing Tales”.)
- Mission to the Unknown – A bit unfair to judge this on its own, since it’s really a prologue to “Master Plan,” but who said Doctor Who was fair? I may be rating this low because I watched the fan-produced animation, which is dreadful.
- The Gunfighters – For years, fan consensus, based on the memory of those who’d watched it on airing, was that this story was terrible. Then it was released on VHS, and fan consensus was that it had been treated unfairly. I am here to tell you that fan consensus was right the first time. This was a chore to get through, and that song… dear god, that song…
