|
|
| Publisher:
Telos Publishing Ltd |
| Release
Date: November 2003 |
| ISBN:
1903889510 |
| Awards:
|
| Format
Reviewed: Paperback |
| Buy
it at Amazon US
|| UK |
| Read
an Excerpt |
| Genre:
Non-Fiction /SF / TV tie-in [Earth & Various Planets Featured
in the Series] |
| Reviewed:
2003 |
| Reviewer:
Rachel A Hyde |
| Reviewer
Notes: To
buy this book you can order it from Telos Publishing Ltd, Beech
House, Chapel Lane, Moulton, Cheshire CW9 8PQ England. Visit
the website www.telos.co.uk
for more details. |
|
The
Television Companion
The
Unofficial & Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who
By David
J Howe & Stephen James Walker
If
the States has Star Trek as the household word in television SF,
then the UK has Dr. Who. It spans the years 1963-89 (not forgetting
1996) and has more than one generation of children hiding behind
the sofa on a Saturday teatime. No Telos has brought out this tubby
tome, a one-volume guide to every episode and more besides. Telos
has made quite a name for itself with these guides to cult TV shows,
and as with the others this one is pretty exhaustive. As it is an
unofficial guide, there aren't any photographs, but there is a lot
else, including a handy thumb guide along the spine for each incarnation
of the Doctor. Maybe this is a small thing, but it gives an indication
of the attention to detail that is a feature of this book. Each
episode is described in some detail and much is made of what went
on behind the scenes and some of the thinking behind the stories,
series directions and casting choices. There is a brief synopsis
of how each episode in a particular story ended (those wonderful
cliff-hangers!), a list of "things to watch out for,"
quotes, "things you might not have known" and an in-depth
analysis of each story. I seem to agree with most of the authors'
decisions about which were hits and which misses; they too rave
over my own two favorites, Genesis of the Daleks and The Talons
of Weng-Chiang, so maybe you too will find yourself nodding in agreement.
There are three appendices, too, detailing
various spin-offs for TV and a list of all the episodes available
to buy as videos, DVD's or audio recordings, as well as novelizations.
There are various indexes, and all that is missing is a list of
recommended websites for fans, which would have been useful and
fitting for a SF series. A big glossy coffee table book with loads
of pictures would have been nice, but for an unofficial guide, there
is loads in here to keep a fan happy for some time. If you are hoping
for information about the show's possible reincarnation, the book
isn't new enough for that. Highly recommended for all Dr. Who fans
out there.
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