My Journey Begins - Dr. Who's First Season

2013 marks the 50th anniversary of Dr. Who and to celebrate, I've decided to watch the entire series from start to finish, well almost.

I realized early on that it would be nearly impossible for me to watch nearly 50 years of TV within only 12 months, given my schedule. That, and once I started to re-watch "An Unearthly Child," I realized that it wouldn't be any fun--and be more like a chore--to re-watch those episodes I've already seen.

So, my mission now is to "fill in the blanks." I'll still blog about when I saw each episode and what I thought but I probably won't re-watch many of them. Also, while I plan to watch them in their original order, I know I'm going to have to make exceptions based on availability.

With that, then, I begin my "Who50 Quest."

001 - An Unearthly Child (4 parts). I remember watching this a long time ago when PBS was still showing the classic Dr. Who. I thought the first episode was a good intro to the Dr. Who and Susan, but the other three stories were rather weak. Recently, I did watch the original pilot and thought it was interesting to see differences in how the Doctor was played between the pilot and premier episode. In the pilot, he seemed more harsh and threatening. I'm glad they toned him down. I also really liked the companions. Susan was hot and Barbara and Ian had a good chemistry together and Ian and the Doctor played well off each other.

002 - The Daleks (6 Parts). What can I say about the episode that put Dr. Who on the map and sent young boys and girls running for cover behind the nearest sofa. As Dr. Who celebrates 50 years in 2013, so do the Daleks. Happy birthday to the scariest creatures in the universe!

003 - The Edge of Destruction (2 Parts). I know this was a budget saving episode, but I really liked it. I like the TARDIS only episodes. I think it forces the writers to come up with something original.

004 - Marco Polo (7 Parts). I think I saw clips of this with "The Edge of Destruction," but I won't count that as watching the whole episode. Of course, this is one of the "lost episodes" but I was able to secure an audio copy. I plan to start tomorrow.

005 - Keys of Marinus (6 Parts). I did watch this on DVD and really didn't care for it too much.

006 - The Aztecs (4 Parts). My first "first doctor" episode besides "An Unearthly Child." I remember going in skeptical about William Hartnell, but coming out a huge fan. He's one of my favorites, but I find something good in each of the doctors (yes, even Colin Baker).

007 - The Sensorites (6 Parts). I have nooo idea what this is about, but my DVD is on the way.

088 - Reign of Terror (6 Parts). One of the historical episodes, this should be good. My DVD is coming with The Sensorites.

Well, that actually does it for the first season! I have my work cut out for me!