Monochrome Malarkey Roundup

And so, that concludes our trek through the black-and-white period of the show. When I started this part of our adventure in the fall of 2017, I had no notion that I'd only be wrapping up in the first days of spring 2021. There were many diversions along the way, but I'm glad I stayed dedicated to the idea of finishing.

The Sixties are probably the hardest part of Doctor Who to watch for modern marathoners like me. The missing episodes are a definite hurdle, as is the sheer volume of episodes generally. Despite only accounting for less than a quarter of the Classic series' seasons, this thread represented more than a third of the show's episodes individually. Once I adapted a little to the different ways of telling televised stories from this decade, though, I found it an incredibly awarding experience, and I'll wear my "I watched all the recons" badge with considerable pride.

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Here are my rankings of all serials to air during this era, from 1 to a conveniently even 50. Once again I'll note that some would have changed. The Space Museum is one I would have been nicer to, and The Chase would have ascended to the 6 - 7 range, and The Daleks to the 8 - 9 range. But no shuffling here. I can always clean house another day.

1. The Mind Robber - 10.00
2. The Aztecs - 10.00
3. The Myth Makers - 9.75
4. The Power of the Daleks - 9.50
5. The Invasion - 9.50
6. The Time Meddler - 9.50
7. The Enemy of the World - 9.33
8. The War Games - 9.00
9. The War Machines - 9.00
10. Marco Polo - 9.00
11. An Unearthly Child - 9.00
12. The Dalek Invasion of Earth - 8.83
13. The Savages - 8.75
14. The Macra Terror - 8.75
15. The Massacre - 8.75
16. The Evil of the Daleks - 8.71
17. The Web of Fear - 8.50
18. The Edge of Destruction - 8.50
19. Fury from the Deep - 8.17
20. The Daleks' Master Plan - 8.08
21. The Rescue - 8.00
22. The Romans - 8.00
23. The Tomb of the Cybermen - 8.00
24. Mission to the Unknown - 8.00
25. The Moonbase - 8.00
26. The Tenth Planet - 7.75
27. The Seeds of Death - 7.67
28. Planet of Giants - 7.67
29. The Crusade - 7.50
30. The Daleks - 7.14
31. The Underwater Menace - 7.00
32. The Gunfighters - 7.00
33. The Ice Warriors - 6.83
34. The Highlanders - 6.50
35. The Faceless Ones - 6.33
36. Galaxy 4 - 6.25
37. The Web Planet - 6.17
38. The Keys of Marinus - 6.17
39. The Sensorites - 6.17
40. The Chase - 6.00
41. The Ark - 6.00
42. The Reign of Terror - 5.83
43. The Abominable Snowmen - 5.83
44. The Smugglers - 5.75
45. The Space Pirates - 5.33
46. The Krotons - 5.25
47. The Wheel in Space - 4.83
48. The Dominators - 4.80
49. The Celestial Toymaker - 4.25
50. The Space Museum - 3.75

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Additionally, I'd like to rank the seasons I've watched through so far. Here's where they stand:

1. Season Two​
2. Season One​
3. Season Four​
4. Season Three​
5. Season Six​
6. Season Five​

But irrespective of any rankings, each and every one of these seasons ranged from very good to fabulous. It's been a great time.

See you soon for the 1970s!

(Modified from the original posted at Gallifrey Base on 20 March 2021.)