Doctor Who - The Beginning (An Unearthly Child [1963] / The Daleks [1963] / The Edge of Destruction [1964]) [DVD]

Way back in 1963 (nearly 50 years now!) two teachers followed a very unusual pupil home, to a Police box in a junk yard in London. They stepped inside the box to meet its mysterious owner, and a legend began. For Lo, so was Dr. Who born! With innumerable TV adventures, two films, countless books and audio adventures and (to date) eleven actors in the lead role this has to be one of the most successful things the BBC ever made. And on these 3 DVDs is the origins of this space/time/medium spanning phenomenon.The Unearthly child is the very first episode of Who ever screened, introducing us to an irascible old man in the form of William Hartnell. Paternally watching over his grand daughter Susan, and the two teachers (Ian and Barbara) who have so rudely forced themselves into his world. The first episode is a classic bit of sci fi TV drama. It soon segues into a story involving cavemen, demonstrating the TARDIS's time travel capabilities. The remaining 3 episodes are a little patchy, as the cast start to find their feet and characters (it took a few more episodes for the character of the Doctor to coalesce and settle down). It's a real treat to watch though. Especially interesting is the unscreened pilot episode, essentially the same as the first episode. It's amazing that this has survived.The second DVD introduces us to another legend, for just as the Doctor has roamed time and space, so he has always found the Daleks. The Pepperpots have been with him ever since his second TV adventure. Their debut is a great little tale, an absolutely cracking adventure with some fascinating sciency background as well as interesting moral issues that Who always did so well. They were a brilliant concept, and here very scarily realised. Hartnell now has a menacing foe to be heroic against, and he plays it up beautifully. Absolutely classic stuff.The final part in this trilogy is a cheap two parter set entirely in the TARDIS. Something has gone wrong, and the companions are trapped as the TARDIS flies out of control. Mysterious things are happening, can the crew interpret them to unravel the mystery and save themselves? This is another interesting tale, and hints at some of the high sci fi concepts that Who would later stray into.The picture quality is as good as can be expected from series of this age. We are lucky they have survived at all, considering how much the BBC junked. They have had some amazing restoration, and are miles better in terms of quality than my old VHS copies. The extras are impressive and well worth a look. In all this is a great box set that put ins place all the elements that would become the everlasting legen of Dr. Who. But more than just historically interesting they are also pretty good stories. 5 stars.

The Beginning has the first three Doctor Who serials, four including the cut down Marco Polo, and is definitely recommended to Doctor Who fans.The first serial, An Unearthly Child, has a great start with a brilliant episode, but sadly starts to decline in the later episodes. The first episode definitely makes the whole serial worth it though, and not just because it's the very beginning! The whole atmosphere is very mysterious and I bet that when it first aired people were very curious! Ian and Barbara, two of the Doctor's companions, are interested in Susan's odd behaviour and want to find out more. They locate the well known junkyard and get involved with something that will change their lives! Sadly, the next three episodes are rather boring with only a few interesting moments. It's about cavemen wanting to start a fire and whatnot. 6/10The second serial, The Daleks, introduces the Doctor's greatest enemy, the Daleks (obviously), and introduces them fantastically! The entire serial is interesting, it introduces the Thals and their fight against the Daleks, it adds to Dalek lore greatly, it has lots of twists and even has a Dalek dying by sticking its eye in the air comically! Sorry, I'm getting rather tired, as you can no doubt tell. Anyway, the only bad side to the episode is that it drags on quite a bit in the middle. But that's expected because most serials from Classic Who do this. 8/10The third serial, The Edge of Destruction, is short, but incredible! This is one of my personal favourites! And it's not really short because it is still the length of an entire New Who episode! In this two episode serial we see the TARDIS crew start to get along and trust each other. We see how the Doctor finally starts to be nice to Ian and Barbara after one horrible idea he has. The episode was made because they didn't have enough money to create a big episode like the others, and it's a good job they did! This episode is based purely in the TARDIS and has lots of character development. It also has Susan looking fiercer and stronger than before! She actually threatens Ian and Barbara with scissors, something parents did not like. Definitely a must see! Most people: 9/10 My rating: 10/10The fourth serial, Marco Polo, is supposed to be quite long, but is cut down to thirty minutes due to the loss of the video. In this extra we see lots of pictures and a cut down audio to match with the pictures. This actually works very well! In my opinion it fits perfectly and I think that if it were any longer I'd get bored! In the story the TARDIS crew have to travel with Marco Polo and a traitor. It'd be hard to go into detail, which says good things about the episode doesn't it? The idea of it being cut down may scare you, as it did me, but trust me when I say that it's brilliantly done! 5/10 (purely because of its length)So, as you can see, this is definitely something you should buy! It's actually much cheaper than I think it should be! Although, only buy this if you're a Whovian who is used to Doctor Who. If you haven't tried New Who first, I recommend that so you can have a taste of the modern series first. This isn't something you can just jump into.Enjoy guys!

For all the people drawn into the Doctor's world over the decades, this is where it all began. The set includes 3 episode cycles. The Unearthly Child introduces 2 human teachers who are concerned about a most unusual girl in their classes, whose well intentioned meddling triggers the Saga. They find she is living with her crusty and unpleasant grandfather, who refers to himself only as Doctor. The affable Doctor comes much later. The four of them find themselves accidentally propelled by a wonky "Tardis" into time and space. The Dead Planet was the episode cycle that MADE Dr. Who. Without it, Dr. Who would have vanished into oblivion. The third episode cycle, The Edge of Destruction being frankly awful.1960s production values must be forgiven. The BBC budget being so meager, all to many later episodes were discarded, misplaced or overwritten. The acting and writing were mediocre at best, but the concept was so sound that it lived on. A must see for the most faithful.

I watched these shows and enjoyed them very much. However, the first two episodes are the exact same.I have waited for many years to see this again. I hope to see more soon of the Dr Who. It’s my dream to buy all of the Dr Who DVD’s so I can watch them when ever I want. I hope to see ,ore of this actor very soon. Thank you seller.

Parfait pour les amateurs de DR Who. Très bonne qualité des épisodes sur le DVD. C'est amusant de découvrir le premier Docteur Who. Mon mari qui est un grand fan à fortement apprécié.

Lo estaba deseando desde hace años. Funciona perfecto y no es caro. Mola. Mola. Mola. Mola. Mola. Mola. Mola. Mola.

I have always wanted dr who the beginning and I found it. It was not very dear that's why I brought it. Denis