The War Games
Joe Siegler
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The War Games
This Story: Season 6, Story 7. Production Code ZZ
Overall: Story 50, Episodes 244-253
Airdates: 19 Apr 1969 to 21 Jun 1969
Written by Terrance Dicks & Malcolm Hulke. Directed by David Maloney.
Notes
- This story has a lot of “lasts”. It’s the last story for Patrick Troughton, Fraser Hines, & Wendy Padbury (as regulars). It’s the last story in the 1960’s. It’s the last story made in black & white. It’s the last serial where the program made 40+ episodes in a season.
- It also has two major EPIC level firsts. It was the first time we ever got to the Doctor’s home planet, but the name Gallifrey wasn’t used in the show yet. It was also the first story where his own people are named – “The Time Lords”.
- Was the second longest story of the 60’s era, with 10 episodes. Depending on your interpretation of the 1986 serial, “The Trial of a Time Lord” (14), “The War Games” is third longest in the entire classic Who era – the second being “The Daleks’ Master Plan” with 12.
- In 2019 I wrote a short piece on the 50th Anniversary of this story for the “Doctor Who Companion” website. You can read that here.
Links
[ Wikipedia | Tardis Data Core | SPS Historium | Amazon US DVD | Amazon UK DVD ]#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 244 - The War Games 1/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 19 Apr 1969. #DoctorWho 1/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 19, 2022
Here we are. The start of the final Troughton serial. Some have said it's too long at 10 eps, but I enjoy the length, and honestly never felt it was (too) full of padding. One of pic.twitter.com/G0NsNq6kOp
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 244 - The War Games 1/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 19 Apr 1969. #DoctorWho 2/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 19, 2022
my favs. We immediately find our crew in a bizarre situation, although the why of it isn't made clear till later. Given the overall length, this episode is nearly all setup. pic.twitter.com/vz3ZL3XXrJ
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 245 - The War Games 2/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 26 Apr 1969. #DoctorWho 1/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 20, 2022
We get a hint of what's to come when we hear a sound like the Tardis sound, but no Tardis is visible. The story starts crossing time zones, with characters from 1745 interacting pic.twitter.com/vTQoDddd2P
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 245 - The War Games 2/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 26 Apr 1969. #DoctorWho 2/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 20, 2022
with people from 1917. The Doctor & Zoe escape and recover Jamie, whose Highlander status is used for a change. The reason why other time zones is still a mystery. Enjoy pacing. pic.twitter.com/PqAb75Taj7
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 246 - The War Games 3/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 3 May 1969. #DoctorWho 1/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 21, 2022
We now are introduced to another time zone, and in Ep3, it's obvious something weird is going on with other times. The Doctor makes progress in figuring out what is happening. But pic.twitter.com/S3vF6SVJgV
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 246 - The War Games 3/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 3 May 1969. #DoctorWho 2/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 21, 2022
they get stuck in a German base. We do get some insight into the larger plan at play here when we see some of "Central Command". The Doctor's "John Smith" alias is used here. pic.twitter.com/8rNQZDvFLB
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 247 - The War Games 4/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 10 May 1969. #DoctorWho 1/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 21, 2022
The Doctor & Zoe stow away in the Tardis like machine, which isn't named yet - they eventually make it to the War Games base - and they explore for answers as to what's going on. pic.twitter.com/3B3BJ2i3xh
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 247 - The War Games 4/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 10 May 1969. #DoctorWho 2/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 21, 2022
Jamie & Jennifer are stuck in a Civil War area. This ep continues the capture / release / capture cycle for which this story is famous for. I still think it works, though. pic.twitter.com/FkNzN1g6UR
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 248 - The War Games 5/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 17 May 1969. #DoctorWho 1/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 22, 2022
As we're square in the middle of the story, we have a lot of running around and exposition here. It's not bad at all, but it's what you expect in the middle of a long story. pic.twitter.com/CdEl4f3zji
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 248 - The War Games 5/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 17 May 1969. #DoctorWho 2/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 22, 2022
A dislike of certain of the team members sets up what is probably inevitable conflict. Eventually Jamie's group manages to capture a time machine, but is ambushed at the base. pic.twitter.com/FdHP6BI71H
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 249 - The War Games 6/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 24 May 1969. #DoctorWho 1/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 24, 2022
I forgot the name "Time Lords" was first ever uttered in Ep6 - I thought it was Ep9. Historic moment here, and it's not by the Doctor or another Time Lord. The Doctor works to pic.twitter.com/Wguz34NyGS
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 249 - The War Games 6/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 24 May 1969. #DoctorWho 2/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 24, 2022
free people from processing & organize a resistance. Enjoyed the "tardis crush" cliffhanger. I don't think there's any outfit Zoe has been in where she hasn't looked awesome. :) pic.twitter.com/rBEXHTmcmN
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 250 - The War Games 7/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 31 May 1969. #DoctorWho 1/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 24, 2022
The Doctor escapes & continues his resistance building. The War Lord arrives and attempts to set his two squabbling underlings straight. He overtakes one of the British time zone, pic.twitter.com/xCg1oLL8wT
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 250 - The War Games 7/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 31 May 1969. #DoctorWho 2/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 24, 2022
killing Smythe. The Doctor creates a base to work from, and starts reversing the process to free people. The tension is building towards a conclusion, the stakes feel higher. pic.twitter.com/SBrAi1DBfD
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 251 - The War Games 8/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 7 Jun 1969. #DoctorWho 1/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 25, 2022
The Doctor is taken back to HQ & forced to work on mind processing unit. The rebel forces continue to amass, w/Zoe's memory helping them find others, coordinating their attacks. pic.twitter.com/IAHLoFzPym
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 251 - The War Games 8/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 7 Jun 1969. #DoctorWho 2/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 25, 2022
Loved them throwing a hand grenade into a Sidrat. ;) The Doctor appears to betray all of the rebels in the cliffhanger, but of course he didn't really. Looking forward to Ep9. pic.twitter.com/0EdJR5YsiC
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 252 - The War Games 9/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 14 Jun 1969. #DoctorWho 1/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 26, 2022
The Doctor realizes the Sidrats have a short lifespan, and the War Chief wants his Tardis. This doesn't happen of course; the Doctor ends up freeing everyone, but because there pic.twitter.com/eHbyBVqoHQ
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 252 - The War Games 9/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 14 Jun 1969. #DoctorWho 2/2
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 26, 2022
are too many people, the Doctor calls the Time Lords with a device we don't see again until Matt Smith's era. The Doctor, Jamie, & Zoe, get back to the Tardis and try to escape. pic.twitter.com/PpAA8ZwSvO
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 253 - The War Games 10/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 21 Jun 1969. #DoctorWho 1/4
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 27, 2022
Several lasts: Second Doctor, 60's Who, black/white. This final episode of The War Games is one of the two absolutely essential eps in the entire decade. It's as important as pic.twitter.com/HtZ7Q5ThvE
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 253 - The War Games 10/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 21 Jun 1969. #DoctorWho 2/4
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 27, 2022
An Unearthly Child Ep 1 IMO. The Time Lords reset the events of the War Games, return everyone and then commit genocide on the War Lord's race. They then allow the Doctor to say pic.twitter.com/7Ra7O4D2lR
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 253 - The War Games 10/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 21 Jun 1969. #DoctorWho 3/4
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 27, 2022
goodbye to Jamie & Zoe, then banish him to Earth & force a regeneration on him. One of the best individual eps of the 60's. The only bad thing is that we don't get an actual pic.twitter.com/gvPvek4c4f
#DoctorWhoMarathon Ep 253 - The War Games 10/10 (Serial ZZ, Story 50) - 21 Jun 1969. #DoctorWho 4/4
— jᎾᎬ sᎥᎬᎶᏞᎬᏒ (@JoeSiegler) April 27, 2022
regeneration. I remember the first time I saw this, I thought "That's it?" There was a fan film called "Devious" which attempted to bridge the gap and showed a regeneration. pic.twitter.com/xOwSsV5HlY
As a postscript, there’s this funny video that turned up in 2018 with someone altering the video in the segment where the Doctor doesn’t like regeneration looks that are offered to him. Really made me laugh.
