Disappointing Doctor Who Stories Ever
These are not the worst Doctor who stories, these are the stories that have great expectations but fail to deliver and also includes stories which has its ending change.
Please note that this list may contain spoilers.
Please note that this list may contain spoilers.
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- DirectorGeoffrey SaxStarsPaul McGannEric RobertsDaphne AshbrookThe newly-regenerated Doctor takes on the Master on the turn of the millennium, 31 December 1999.Doctor Who: The TV Movie Is on the top of my list for been the most Disappointing Doctor Who Story ever. This is the 4th time that the show try to revive itself and failed miserably. The story is mediocre at best and the acting is pretty average.
It starts off with the Master on Trial for the crimes he did on planet Skaro and is sentenced to death. before his execution, the Master asked The Doctor (currently in his seventh incarnation) to take his remains back to their homeworld of Gallifrey. and as the voiceover said "It was a request I should never have granted" and then the opening credits starts. After the credits stops, we see the Doctor (played by Sylvester McCoy) eating jelly babies and reading a H.G wells book. when suddenly, the vessel shakes, causing the box containing the Master's remains to shatter and allowing a sentient ooze to escape from it. The ooze enters the TARDIS controls and forces an emergency landing in Chinatown in San Francisco, California on the day before New Year's Eve 1999.
As the Doctor steps from the TARDIS to find his bearings, he is shot by a Chinese gang who are chasing down a young Chinese-American man named Chang Lee (played by Yee Jee Tso). The Chinese gang gets away before the ambulance arrives. the Doctor is rushed to a nearby hospital there surgeons find, through X-rays, that the Doctor has two hearts, but they assume the X-ray image is a double exposure. As cardiologist Dr Grace Holloway (Daphne Ashbrook) starts to operate with a cardiac probe, the Doctor wakes up, tells her to let him die, and then falls into a seizure, eventually flat-lining. Dr Holloway declares the Doctor dead, and his body is placed into a morgue. Lee steals the Doctor's possessions, including the TARDIS key, and runs off. Meanwhile, the ooze, which had stowed itself away on the ambulance, attacks and takes over the body of the ambulance driver, Bruce (played by Eric Roberts). When Bruce's wife questions his odd behaviour, the Master, now controlling his body, murders her.
Late that night at the morgue, the Doctor regenerates into a new body, and leaves the morgue in a state of confusion, he enters into a room with mirrors and chairs, and then asking himself who he is in a dramatic fashion, he then takes parts of costumes intended for the New Year's party later that night. The Doctor (now played by Paul McGann) follows Dr Holloway as she leaves the hospital, and convinces her that he is the same man she operated on earlier. Dr Holloway, who has resigned from her job at the hospital, after the hospital covering up the Doctor's presence there, takes the Doctor home.
Meanwhile, Lee has returned to the TARDIS and enters into it using the Tardis Keys. The Master arrives soon afterwards and tells Lee that the Doctor stole the TARDIS from him, as well as his body, which he wants to retrieve. He convinces Lee to open the Eye of Harmony, thanks to his human retinal pattern (which makes no sense) opens the Eye of Harmony. The Doctor recovers his memory and tries to keep his own eyes shut to prevent the Master from seeing through them, as that would allow him to take over the Doctor's body. The Doctor also warns Dr Holloway that if they do not shut the Eye before midnight, the entire planet may be sucked into it, and that to close it, he needs an atomic clock. So they go to the San Francisco Institute of Technological Advancement and Research, and they get an atomic clock.
Wrapping this story up in a nutshell, The Doctor and Grace Holloway make it back to the Tardis however, the Master is able to control Dr Holloway somehow, and forces her to knock out the Doctor. The Doctor is chained above the Eye of Harmony, his eyes are forced open so the Master can take his remaining regenerations. Lee is killed by the Master when he finds out that the Master was lying to him. The Master then uses his control of Dr Holloway to open the Eye, through this breaks his control of her. Dr Holloway is able to connect the last power circuit in the console room, sending the TARDIS into a time-holding pattern just moments after the turn of midnight, staving off destruction of the Earth. When Dr Holloway tries to return to help the Doctor, she is thrown over a balcony and killed by the Master, but her interference has given the Doctor enough time to push the Master into the Eye itself, apparently killing him. The action causes the Eye to close, and time to revert back to a few moments before midnight, bringing both Dr Holloway and Lee back to life.
As I said before, this is a mediocre movie, which is not a big surprise due to it been a TV movie. The movie starts off really good and exciting, but after the awkward regeneration scene, the excitement and plot weakens and it ends incredibly flat. Another disappointment is the Master, Both the Master and the Doctor are Time Lords (Gallifreyans), but in this the Master is more alien then the Doctor. The Master (played laughably by Eric Roberts) doesn't resemble the classic villain at all, making him a "Averagely Generic Movie Villain" rather than a "Evil Mastermind Genius" which is why he's called "The Master", however, Paul McGann plays the Doctor (The Eighth Doctor) quite well. It's a damn shame that this movie did not Spawn a series with Paul McGann portraying as the Doctor, that and many other failures. We were promised so much but got so little, which is why it's on the top of my list. - DirectorKeith BoakStarsChristopher EcclestonBillie PiperDavid VerreyThe Slitheen have infiltrated Parliament and have the Doctor and his friends trapped as the Doctor works to prevent them from starting World War Three.Doctor Who: World War Three is the Second part of Aliens of London, which is the First time you see Dr. Toshiko Sato who you may recognize from Torchwood.
Following from the cliffhanger in "Aliens of London", it is revealed that the Prime Minister along with the half of the Members of Parliament are an Alien family called the "Slitheen" who were responsible for crashing there own spaceship through Big Ben and into the River Thames. The Slitheen landed their ship one year earlier in Scotland, but it wasn't detected by the British government. When the Slitheen took over the Parliament, they decided to used there own ship to fake crash it in London and use a space pig as a pilot.
Following this event, the Doctor (played by Christopher Eccleston) is captured by MI5 and his taken along with his companion Rose (Billie Piper) escorted to 10 Downing Street. The Doctor is asked to join a panel of alien experts, including those from UNIT, while Rose is escorted into the building by Harriet Jones (played by Penelope Wilton). Harriet tells Rose the aliens are disguised as MPs, which Harriet Jones incidently found out. Both Harriet and Rose discover the corpse of the previous Prime Minister. They make to reveal their discovery but are caught by Margaret Blaine (Annette Badland), who begins to unzip her human suit to attack them. Meanwhile, as the Doctor attempts to convince the experts of the forgery of the events, Joseph Green (who is current Prime Minister) sends an electrical shock through the assembled group,
including the Doctor.
The Doctor takes off the electrical pass and puts it on a Slitheen, while Mickey Smith (Noel Clarke) is able to push aside the Slitheen (disguised as a police inspector) who was advancing on Jackie Tyler (Rose's Mother). The Doctor attempts to get the police, but by the time he has returned, the Slitheen have got back into their suits. The Doctor escapes to the upper floors of 10 Downing Street, and reunites with Rose and Harriet in the Cabinet Room. Before sealing off the room, the Doctor confronts the Slitheen and learns that they are a family rather than a race, and they are not invading Earth, but rather raiding it for some commercial purpose.
The rest of the episode is kinda boring, The Doctor, Rose and Harriet Jones stay in the Cabinet Room for the entire episode, explaining the plot to us rather then showing us. Another thing I didn't like about this is the Slitheen, the Slitheen are not scary in the slightest, they look like fat ugly teletubbies that fart (yeah literally they fart). What would have made this story better is that the Slitheen were a race of Insects disguised as humans trying to destroy the planet, or not insects why not robots disguised as humans control by a Alien Race. Both of those ideas would work so much better, but maybe i'm nick picking, when I heard the news that Doctor who was coming back on television, I was excited and the first 3 episodes I enjoy very much but by the time this episode came along (which was episode 5 by the way), the show when downhill a bit. I don't like Christopher Eccleston as the Doctor nor Billie Piper as his Companion, Christopher Eccleston never convinced me as the Doctor, it's not that his a bad actor it's more that he isn't that interesting or unusual, as for Billie Piper, she's just annoying. - DirectorAlan WareingStarsSylvester McCoySophie AldredAnthony AinleyA spate of mysterious disappearances in Perivale have been recently taking place, meaning that The Doctor's decision to take Ace to her home village couldn't come at a better time.Doctor Who: Survival was the final story of the classic Doctor Who TV show, and was also the last time we see Anthony Ainley as the Master.
The story begins on Earth in the year I believe is 1989, The Doctor (played by Sylvester McCoy) brings Ace (Sophie Aldred) to her hometown of Perivale in the suburbs of North West London. However, mysterious disappearances and unusual noises have been recently taken place in Perivale. The Doctor decides to investigate and discovers that it has something to do with a homeless black cat.
The Black cat is controlled by the Master, who uses the cat to summon the Cheetah People, who howl like wolves and use horses to catch there prey (even though Cheetahs can run faster than a average horse). Ace is then kidnapped by a Cheetah Person after cuddling a black cat which the Master is controlling, and she is taken to the Cheetah People's Homeworld which does not have a name, along with some of her friends including a Indian Woman Name Shreela and unhappy young man called Stuart.
The Doctor is also dragged in after fighting with a self defence instructor named Paterson (Played by Julian Holloway) and he's teleported along side Paterson to the Cheetah People's Homeworld, and it is up to the Doctor and the rest of the Survivors to workout away to get back to Earth.
The story sounds alright until you get to the second and third episodes which become farcical to the point of stupid. The acting is also stupid in this and so too is the characters which are bland and one dimensional, in particular Ace. Sophie Aldred is so boring as Ace, that I think her Jacket has more personality then her. The thing that disappointed me the most is the fight scene between the Master and the Doctor on the Cheetah People's Homeworld which is about to explode. Sounds awesome until you watch it, the scene only lasted one minute, worst climax ever.
Problems at the time:
From 1985 to 1989 Doctor who was a TV show with serious problems, poor views, minimal budget and bad writing was the course for its cancellation in 1989. In the 6th December 1989, shortly after John Nathan-Turner's retirement from Doctor who, The Head of Series Peter Cregeen decided to cancel the show because there were no producers that wanted or were able to continue the show.
Script editor Andrew Cartmel realizes that the show probably wouldn't have another season, decided to write a short, melancholic closing monologue for actor Sylvester McCoy, which McCoy recorded on 23 November 1989, the day after Episode 1 was broadcast: “There are worlds out there where the sky is burning, and the seas asleep, and the rivers dream. People made of smoke, and cities made of song. Somewhere there's danger, somewhere there’s injustice, and somewhere else the tea's getting cold. Come on, Ace — we’ve got work to do!” This was dubbed over the closing scene of Survival as the Doctor and Ace walked off into the distance, apparently to further adventures.
Rumors:
If the show continued past 1989, Sylvester McCoy would have continued for another 2 seasons (2 years) as the Doctor. It's believed that Richard Griffiths, Rowan Atkinson, Robert Lindsay and Hugh Laurie were considered for the role of the Eighth Doctor, and were considered to played the Doctor for the Doctor Who Movie too. In the End, the role of the Eighth Doctor went to Paul McGann. - DirectorNicholas MallettStarsColin BakerNicola BryantMichael JaystonThe Doctor is put on trial by the Time Lords again. The first of two events from his resent past is presented as evidence of his interference in the affairs of other worlds. In particular, his actions on planet Ravalox.Doctor Who: The Trial of a Time Lord is four stories in one and is also Colin Baker's last performance as the Doctor.
quickly summing up of the stories: Part one of The Trial of a Timelord (The Mysterious Planet), starts off on the planet Ravalox. A Robot Ruler named Drathro is following its instructions to maintain the habitat of the underground system. Queen Katryca wants to take back Ravalox, and attack Drathro's steal castle. After attacking Drathro's castle, Queen Katryca is killed by Drathro and the remain attack group retreats, however, Katryca's tribe manages to severely damaged the black light generator which not repaired, can destroy the universe. The Doctor stops it of course, but Drathro malfunctions and blows up taking out the entire complex, The Doctor, his companion Peri (Nicola Bryant), Katryca's tribe and the rest of the Humans working for Drathro who they called "The Immortal One" escape the explosion. The Doctor and Peri say their goodbyes and they all lived happily ever after (except for the Doctor and his companion Peri).
The second part of The Trial of a Time Lord (titled Mindwarp) is set on the planet Thoros Beta. The Doctor is captured by Sil's guards and then is put on a machine which makes him forget who he is.
After he is rescued by King Yrcanos (Played by Brian Blessed) the Doctor betrays him and his companion Peri, Yrcanos escapes but Peri doesn't. Meanwhile, a snake like creature Named Kiv (Christopher Ryan) has a serious Headache, and can only be stopped by having a body transfer. After Lord Kiv's second body does nothing to help his migraine, Sil and Kiv's doctor Crozier (Patrick Ryecart) decide to use Peri as a more suitable body for Kiv's brain. The Doctor's mind recovers and sneaks away and frees Yrcanos (who was just recently captured), urging him on for Peri's safety. The Doctor attempts to return to save her but is suddenly drawn hypnotically into the TARDIS, which appears in the hallway; it is later revealed that he travelled directly to this trial from that point.
The Time Lords then Put King Yrcanos in a time bubble to hold his arrival back at the lab until after Kiv's mind was successfully transplanted into Peri's body.
King Yrcanos arrives to the Lab, only to find out that Mis Perpugilliam Brown is now Lord Kiv of Thoros Beta, King Yrcanos then obliterates the lab and kills Peri / Kiv. So much for happily ever after.
The third story (which is titled Terror of the Vervoids) starts off with the Doctor exercising, with him himself does not need since he is going to regenerate soon anyway. This is also the first story that stars satan's daughter herself Bonnie Langford playing as Mel Bush, the Doctor's personal trainer.
Wrapping this story up as quickly as possible, the Doctor and Smelly Melly arrives on the spaceliner Hyperion 3.On board, the Doctor picks up a Mayday message, which he later finds out that it was faked. As the Doctor investigates the false message, Mel accidentally awakens a pod of Vervoids which are half plant half human, and yes they do talk. Vervoids then try to take over the ship by turning the human passages in to there own kind one by one.
The fourth and final story (Which doesn't have a proper name) begins with the Valeyard announcing the Doctor's sentence which the Doctor replied by saying that the Valeyard's evidence has been falsified, and that the Matrix has been tampered with. The Keeper of the Matrix insists this impossible. suddenly Sabalom Glitz and Mel Bush arrive unexpectedly in the courtroom and The Master appears on the Matrix screen to claim responsibility and to demonstrate that the Doctor's allegation that the Matrix has been breached is plausible. The Master (played by Anthony Ainley) Tells the Doctor and the High Council that Ravolox is really the planet Earth in 1000 years time, and the Valeyard turns out to be the Doctor in his final incarnation. The Valeyard Escapes to the Matrix along with the Doctor and George Bush Senior's unwanted daughter (Mel) go too.
So in all fairness, The Trial of a Timelord isn't that bad but there are some Disappointments, especially at the ending. It is revealed through the Master that the Doctor's previous companion Peri is not dead, nor is she controlled by Lord Kiv, she is infact married to King Yrcanos and rules part of Thoros Beta as Queen, this ruins the whole Mindwarp story, which is the best one out of the other Trial of a Timelord stories. The worst one is probably Terror of the Vervoids, it's not so much Bonnie Langford or the Doctor's slightly more revolting Pink Green Purple striped Waistcoat or his yellow cravat. No it's more the plot which to me doesn't make any sense what so ever.
Problems with the last story:
The final story of the Trial of a Timelord was originally titled "The Ultimate Foe" but was renamed "Time Incorporated" shortly after Robert Holmes death (who died four months before The Trial of a Timelord aired). Because Robert Holmes died before he could finish The Ultimate Foe, writer Pip Baker and his wife Jane Baker decided to finish the script. Script editor Eric Saward was also asked to finish The Ultimate Foe, but due to stress and the death of his friend Robert Holmes, left Doctor who and the BBC. John Nathan-Turner took over as script editor the remainder of the season until Andrew Cartmel became script editor in 1987. - DirectorMichael HayesStarsTom BakerMary TammJohn WoodvineRomana looks on as Princess Astra turns herself into the sixth segment of the Key to Time, giving the Shadow ultimate power. The Doctor and Drax arrive just in time but for the Doctor one final trial remains.Doctor Who: The Key to Time is six stories in one great Adventure and it's also the first time you see Romana (played by the sexy Mary Tamm).
At the beginning of The Ribos Operation, the Doctor (played by Tom Baker) is given a mission by the White Guardian (a protector of good in the universe) Doctor's mission is to receive all six disguised segments of the powerful Key to Time, the reason is so the White Guardian can restore balance between the forces of good and evil through out the universe. The Doctor is warned about the Black Guardian who also seeks these segments, but for an evil purpose (since he is the protector of evil and darkness in the universe). The White Guardian provides the Doctor with a wand-like device, which can locate the pieces and remove their disguise. After the Doctor talks to the White Guardian, he walks back to the Tardis and is introduced to Romanadveratnalundar, whom the Doctor calls Romana and then they get their first segment on the planet Cyrrenhis Minima.
Skipping to the final story (The Armageddon Factor) the Doctor and Romana arrive on the planet Atrios, which has endured a recent bombing by their neighbouring planet Zeos, with whom they are at war. It's unknown how long the Zeons and Atrions have been at war, but it's clear that the Atrions are losing the war. The Commander-in-chief of Atrios known only as "The Marshall" (Played by John Woodvine) demands victory over the Zeons, but due to a lack of warships and a dwindling army, his dreams of victory seems vain. Because of this, he imprisons Princess Astra of Atrios (Played by the future Romana incarnation Lalla Ward) so he will have full authority and control of what remains of the Atrion Government.
Before the Marshall launched a counter strike on the planet Zeos, Princess Astra is captured by the Shadow who is an agent of the Black Guardian. The Doctor Romana and K9 are all teleported to Zeos (without the Tardis) to help save the Princess, along with an Military Adviser Shapp and an First Aid Officer Merak (Princess Astra's love interest). The Doctor stumbles over an deserted Supercomputer known as the Mentalis, which is controlling the war. The Doctor orders the Mentalis to stop the war, which it does, but is then alerted by the Marshall's presents. The Mentalis then puts itself on self destruct, which when detonated, will destroy one half of the universe, taking Atrios and Zeos with it.
The Doctor and Romana try to stop the countdown but are unsuccessful. They then rush back to the Tardis and manage to put the Marshall's ship in a time loop using the key to time. The Doctor creates a substitute sixth segment out of chronodyne, which gives the Key enough power to create a time loop in which to trap the Marshall's ship as well as the Mentalis control room.
Moving to the plot, Romana is captured by the Shadow's minions known as "Mutes" the Shadow also has 5 pieces of the Key to time and Princess Astra. The Shadow leaves laughing to himself, Romana tells Princess Astra to escape but Astra refuse. Astra tell Romana that it's her destiny to be here, and then she says that she is the sixth child of the sixth generation of the sixth royal house of Atrios, it is then revealed that Princess Astra is the sixth and final piece of the Key to time, she is then transformed into the final piece. The Doctor arrives and snatches the partially assembled Key and the final segment, and disappears with Romana and K9 in the TARDIS, assembling the Key after dealing with the Mentalis self-destruct as well as the Marshall's missiles (using the TARDIS to deflect them onto the Shadow's ship killing the Shadow and all his minions).
Now you're probably thinking to yourself, this doesn't sound that bad, but when you get to the very end of The Armageddon Factor: Part Six, you feel like nothing has been achieved, and all six of these thrilling adventures were all for nothing. Let me give you a example, The Black Guardian disguise himself as the President of Gallifrey wearing nothing but white clothing. The Black Guardian congratulate the Doctor and Romana on finding and assembling the Key to Time, and requests that it be sent to him. However, the Doctor, realising that it is actually the Black Guardian in disguise—due to his lack of compassion for the fate of Princess Astra. The Doctor then orders the Key to re-disperse and return to their planet in their original form. So the Doctor has being going through out time and space to find the pieces of the key to time only to connect them and then disconnect them? What's the point of that?
Having saying that, the "Key to Time" adventures are a lot better written and has better acting than the "Trial of a Time Lord" (which was shown 8 years after the Key to Time) and unlike the Trial of a Time lord, non of the stories (including this one) are that bad, if I have to say which one is my least favorite out of the Key to Time, it would probably be The Androids of Tara (the story is a bit boring), my favorite one would be The Power of Kroll (something about giant monsters always triggers my interest), this is why I put The Armageddon Factor on the bottom of my list, it did disappoint me but not as much as The Trial of a Time Lord or World War Three.