Product Details

• Amazon Sales Rank: #55178 in DVD
• Released on: 2007-07-02
• Rating: Parental Guidance
• Format: PAL
• Original language: English
• Number of discs: 1
• Running time: 98 minutes

Synopsis
In this 1988 installment of DOCTOR WHO, the seventh Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) faces off against the ever-troublesome Daleks. However, things get even more complicated when opposing Dalek factions meet in an explosive battle.

Customer Reviews

You must remember this...
... because this 2007 version is exactly the same as the extant edition, except they've slipped a natty blue sleeve over the old-style box (the worst ever, incidentally). Just thought you ought to know in case you weren't going to get it because it wouldn't match yer other Who DVDs (you know what some people are like). It will - and as it's mid-price you can buy new at pre-owned rates. As for the show itself... one of the star performers of the unfairly-maligned McCoy era, 1963-set Remembrance goes right back to the show's origins, unfolding around the junkyard William Hartnell's Doctor first emerged in. Full of dark hints and knowing references to DW history, this was also a fresh, bold pointer as to where it wanted to go, though ultimately the plug would be pulled by the Beeb a year on - shame, because McCoy and the script team clearly had plans to both explain the Doctor's origins and add to the mystique, too. There are nods to Quatermass, UNIT is prefigured, Who stalwarts Michael Sheard and Peter Halliday are on board and - almost incidentally - the Daleks get their best story in more than a decade.
This is part of a re-booted DVD series aimed, one suspects, at tempting new, young Ecclestone- and Tennant-era fans to sample the 'classic' era, and no bad thing for that. Recommended.

1988 classic
In 1988, the 25th anniversary season of Doctor Who was launched. In the 5 years since the 21st anniversary, when the programme had seemed to be in the best of health, Doctor Who had seen the departure of 2 Doctor's, a decline in ratings and most significantly had overcome the threat of cancellation. With all these factors in play, it was something of an achievement that the programme even made it to its 25th birthday. For the opening story of the season, producer John Nathan Turner elected to reintroduce the series most popular enemies, The Daleks, and he also returned the programme to the location of the very serial from 1963. In the process an explanation would be offered for why the original Doctor, William Hartnell, had been living in a London scrapeyard with his granddaughter all those years earlier.
After 2 very lacklustre seasons, Remembrance Of The Daleks, is the first really good story since Revelation of the Daleks, ironically the last story to feature the aliens. Thanks to the influence of script editor, Andrew Cartmel, the series was also able to move in a new direction. With darker stories and the development of the 7th Doctor as a manipulator, who influences the events around himself, the show was able to take its self in a fresh direction. This really suit McCoys portrayal. In addition, he works very well with his new companion Ace, introduced in the previous serial.
As with The Trial of a Timelord, the serial opens with an impressive shot of a spaceship, in this case one heading towards Earth. The location of 1963 works well, although perhaps more could have been done to hide the odd modern office block in the background. A scene early on, in which The Doctor is driving along a road, is hampered by the appearances of modern day cars. Nevertheless despite this, Remembrance is very good indeed. The Daleks for the first time in some years, are very much given the central role of the villains. The script features 2 Dalek factions both attempting to steal the hand of omega, a weapon device hidden by the original Doctor on Earth. Themes of racism and fascism are also dealt with in the script. The extras include a commentary by the actors

Good to watch for fans of the series
I was never a Doctor Who fan when i was younger and only got in to the show in 2007 watching the first episode of the 3rd series of modern doctor who shows. After becoming addicted to the show with both Christopher Eccleston and David Tennent as the Doctor i was eager to view some of the older doctors and see what i thought of them now.

First i ventured to the TV movie with Paul McGann who was a great Doctor that was unfortunate to be given a poor overly hollywoodised plot.

Then i came to view this Sylvester McCoy serial, despite a lot of people disliking Sylvesters Doctor I felt that he portrayed the character well with a slightly arrogant genious. McCoy manages to appear arrogantly superior while at the same time displaying a genuine concern for the humans in the show.

Ace is great as his companion and I really enjoyed watching her go on a Dalek bashing rampage with a suped up baseball bat after her beloved stereo is destroyed.

Although the budgets for these early series are nowhere near the new doctor who shows and the special effects are a little iffy it all adds to the charm of the show and means that the stories dont rely on great effects to carry them but well written scripts and good acting

I enjoyed this as a newly converted fan but it may not appeal to those who have arent already fans, for new fans i would recommend the current series as a starting point for existing fans it is great to see these earlier shows to fill in some background of the Doctor.