Yay, stuff is on its way!

[dbskyler]

Guess what just became available to buy in the U.S.? Sarah Jane Adventures Series 4, that's what! The series that includes "Death of the Doctor"! Plus other good stuff! But also "Death of the Doctor"!

So I did some comparison shopping and decided to purchase from Amazon. The only trouble was, the item qualified for Super Saver shipping (aka free shipping), but only if the total order was at least $25, which it wasn't. So I hemmed and hawed, and thought about adding Doctor Who Series 6 to the order because I do want to own that one day, but I was going to wait until the price went down a little since it's expensive and I have all those episodes on videotape anyway. So I poked around the site to see what else I might want to buy, and there it was: ANDROID INVASION! The episode that I used to have on videotape that I watched and re-watched until it sadly disintegrated due to age. The episode that I really enjoy despite all its flaws, because it has a great plot, great banter, Sarah's face falling off, and a wonderful moment where Colonel what's-his-face says that the astronaut has traveled farther than any human ever has before, and Harry and Benton give each other this look. Yes, I could practically buy the DVD just for that moment. Anyway, there it was, and I was aching to buy it, but it's not being released until Jan. 10. I can pre-order it, though, and the website seems to imply that if I add it to my order, I will qualify for Super Saver shipping. So I hit the "add to cart" button and watch what happens, and I'm just waiting to be told that both my DVDs will arrive together in January after "Android Invasion" is released, and I don't want to wait that long for Sarah Jane Adventures, but no! Sarah Jane Adventures is being shipped now, and "Android Invasion" is being shipped when it's released, and both are being shipped for free!

Hooray!!!!!!!

And now suddenly I'm in the mood to go shopping for a bright pink sailor suit. I can't imagine why. :D

Comments

[persiflage-1.livejournal.com]

I could've told you Amazon would do that... But you found out anyway.

I've only got S2 of SJA on DVD (and that's 'cos someone bought it for me!) - I should get the rest.

[dbskyler.livejournal.com]

This is the first time I've ever pre-ordered anything, so I didn't know how it worked. It's great when you get to combine two things that you really wanted to buy anyway in order to get free shipping!

I'm really looking forward to the SJA DVDs since the series wasn't broadcast here, and this will be the first time I get to see the episodes on my TV! Also, I really want to own "Death of the Doctor" because I love that episode so much. I don't own all of SJA, but I do own my favorites (or will once my new purchase arrives!)

[persiflage-1.livejournal.com]

Yes it is great!

I want seasons 3 and 5 especially...

[dbskyler.livejournal.com]

I have season 3. It's very good.

My only complaint about the DVDs is there are no extras on them. Just imagine how awesome a commentary by David Tennant and Elisabeth Sladen would have been for "Wedding of Sarah Jane Smith"!

[persiflage-1.livejournal.com]

Well if they'd included extras the DVDs would (a) take longer to come out, and (b) cost a good bit more and since they're aimed at children, I suspect the BBC wanted to keep the price down.

[dbskyler.livejournal.com]

True, true. And I have to admit that it's nice that they're relatively inexpensive!

I've been impressed with the quality of the extras on the Classic Who releases, though. I'm looking forward to seeing what they came up with for "Android Invasion."

[persiflage-1.livejournal.com]

I'm trying to remember - but can't. I follow several Who-related Twitter feeds, and I know it's been mentioned on one of them, but I'm blanking on the details.

[thisbluespirit]

Yay for nice stuff! :-)

Actually, my video of The Android Invasion broke, too, although here it is coming out with Invasion of the Dinosaurs in a box set (I think.) My attitude to Android Invasion really sums up me and Classic Who, because I... don't like it much (sorry!). But I was devastated when my video copy broke... :lol: So I am ridiculously happy to know it's going to be available on DVD soon!

Also, if you find a pink sailor suit, you will have to post photos of you wearing it. ;-p

[dbskyler.livejournal.com]

Oooh, I would be annoyed if I had to buy it in a box set with "Invasion of the Dinosaurs." That is not one of my favorite episodes. Although, to be fair, part of the problem might be that when I first saw it, I was still very new to the Pertwee era, and I had no idea who Mike Yates was.

"Android Invasion" is ridiculous, but I first saw it as a child, when I could take ridiculousness at face value. Crayford not noticing that he wasn't actually missing an eye didn't bother me back then, so somehow it doesn't bother me now, either. I totally understand how other people wouldn't like the episode, though. But LOL at being devastated at a broken videotape of an episode you dislike!

Also, if you find a pink sailor suit, you will have to post photos of you wearing it. ;-p

LOL, I suspect that I won't be able to find one . . . :p

[thisbluespirit]

Hee. But I like Invasion of the Dinosaurs much more than Android Invasion! Here is why: Benton punches a general; your argument is invalid. Also the Doctor asks the Brigadier to get him a dinosaur, and the Brigadier does - and the Doctor complains it's the wrong sort of dinosaur! :lol: Much padding, but also Carmen Silvera and Martin Jarvis and people. And did I mention that Benton gets to punch a General? It's definitely one for when you know UNIT, though, because otherwise, yes, why would you care that Yates is a traitor, the Brigadier is fighting dinosaurs and Benton is being particularly Bentonesque?

It's not really the eyepatch that bothers me. :-)

[dbskyler.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I think would like "Invasion of the Dinosaurs" a lot more now than back then. (I unfortunately haven't seen it in ages, because it wasn't out on DVD!) My local PBS station began by airing Tom Baker episodes, then aired older stuff haphazardly, for pledge drives or as they purchased seasons. I can't remember the order in which I saw stuff, but I'm pretty sure I hadn't seen any UNIT episodes other than the Tom Baker ones before I saw "Invasion of the Dinosaurs." So a lot of that stuff with Benton and the Brig -- and especially everything with Mike Yates -- went completely by me.

And okay, I'm curious -- what don't you like about "Android Invasion"?

[thisbluespirit]

I'm sure you would. It does have exceptional padding (pretty much like Planet of the Spiders), but it is rather a lovely last gasp of a UNIT-fest.

Since my copy died when I was trying to rewatch it, I might like it better this time, but basically, I like the first episode and the cliffhanger with the fake Sarah, and I like that there is some extra Harry. Milton Johns not knowing whether he has an eye or not also cheers me up a bit. I'll tell you if I like any of the rest of it once I've seen it again.

[dbskyler.livejournal.com]

Well, who wouldn't be cheered up by a villain who doesn't know that he's not missing an eye? Except tasteless people who insist on logic, of course. ; )

Purely from memory, since it's been so long since I've been able to watch it, here's what I love about "Android Invasion":

-- The Doctor says they're on Earth, unless someone's started importing oak trees. And then it turns out -- someone has!

-- All the mystery with what's going on in the village. I remember finding it very mysterious.

-- The TARDIS disappears, leaving Sarah behind! Oh no!

-- Sarah's face falls off! (Hee, I just like that moment.)

-- When the Doctor sees his first Kraal, his response is "Hello there!"

-- Sarah rescues the Doctor from being disintegrated.

-- The Doctor and Sarah discuss the Doctor's plan to beat the androids to Earth. "You've put your finger on the one tiny flaw in our plan." "Our plan? It's your plan!"

-- Harry and Benton share a knowing moment about how far humans have actually traveled.

-- Benton is concerned about finding the empty TARDIS, and he is going out to whatever-it-is with his sister. (Have I mentioned that this is the episode that made me fall in love with Benton?)

-- The Doctor outwits the android by pretending to be an android.

-- After the fight with the android Doctor, the Doctor mistakenly picks up the android's hat, then throws it away in disgust before retrieving his own hat. (And Tom Baker plays that so, so well!)

-- Sarah proclaims that she's going home by taxi, but the Doctor offers to take her home instead. And she relents. And you just know that she knows she's not going home. *g*

About the only thing I don't like (that I remember right now) is the lack of a proper send-off for Harry. He's just kind of forgotten about, and he doesn't get the scene he should've gotten for his last episode. At the time I first saw it, though, I didn't know it was Harry's last episode -- I figured he could show up again at any time -- so the lack of a send-off didn't bother me in the least.

[thisbluespirit]

:-)

Yes, I really, really hate Harry's shoddy exit. That's probably mainly why I don't like it so much. Nice Sarah-Doctro banter does not make up for bad treatment of Harry, if you're me! (Can you tell I like Harry? :lol:) There are other reasons, but that's one the main one, so I may not have been fair to the rest of it.

I think I have less tolerance for silly writing, though, when it is from someone who can write much, much better! (I don't know why Terry Nation used to do that; it's why I think of him as a glorious hack. He came up with marvellous, enduring ideas, and wrote excellent scripts, but if the producer/script writer didn't or couldn't push him, he would send in whatever he could get away with and get paid for, while rushing off to America, or on holiday. For Blake's 7, he wrote first drafts, and the script editor would get back to him for the rewrites, and because it was his show he'd say did he want the rewrites or the next script, so Chris Boucher'd ask for the next script and do the rewrites himself. Luckily for everyone, Terry Nation with bits by Chris Boucher is a good combination, but, really... And Android Invasion is probably the worst example of his 'had a good idea and then went on holiday' writing that I've seen yet. Maybe he was just busy, I don't know, but he did make rather a habit of that sort of thing. Hmm. But then I don't really know that much about him, I suppose.)

[dbskyler.livejournal.com]

I think I actually prefer hack writing, actually! Well, I certainly enjoy silly nonsense. I'll take "Android Invasion" over "Genesis of the Daleks" any day. I can recognize that "Genesis" is well-structured, and deals with Serious Issues, but I don't enjoy watching it. I'd much rather see an over-complicated invasion plot, with androids and a virus that they never get around to actually putting in the water supply. :D

[thisbluespirit]

I sometimes don't like the thought of watching Genesis, but when I do, it's marvellous. Part of that is to do with david Maloney's direction as well, because there are still a fair number of the trademakr Terry Nation cliches. (And, yes, a virus - how he does love mutants and viruses and nuclear wastelands and... :lol:) Although I prefer stuff where things have good writing and are also a bit shinier/fun, if I can get them. (Like Robots of Death, yay!).

Hmm. I'm trying to decide from that whether you'd actually really not like B7, or whether you would, cos even at its grimmest, it's so snarky. It's an academic question, anyway. :lol: