Back to the very beginning...

[SiHart]

Let's go back to the start! The first season of Doctor Who was a slow burner for the viewers until the arrival of the Daleks... and then they were there for two years of exciting trips through time and space with William Hartnell. And great stuff it was too full of great aliens like The Sensorites, the Voord, The Zarbis and the Moroks! Not to mention the wonderful historicals like The Reign of Terror! Susan or Vicki?

Oh OK, I', joking, but seasons 1 and 2 are rightly regarded as good'uns... or are they? Which do you prefer and why?

Si xx

[Dirk Gently]

Easy one for me, I prefer the first season. Far less duff ones.

[Wayne]

Season 1 by quite a margain.

The Daleks, Edge of Destruction, The Aztecs, The Sensorites, are all Hartnell faves. And even Keys of Marinus is bubbling under. And An Unearthly Child for that magic first ep. The only ones i really don't like are Marco Polo, & the Reign of Terror.

Season 2 by contrast is largely full of fairly average (or worse) stories, apart from Planet of Giants & The Web Planet, which are my favourites. But even those don't hold a candle to my 4 faves from S1.
The Space Museum is ok for the most part & would just probably scrape the bronze medal. The Crusade is ok. One of the better historicals, but still not a patch on The Aztecs. The Chase is ok in parts, but not in others. Meanwhile, DIOE is way overated. Gimme the Cushing movie anyday of the week! The Rescue is utterly forgetable filler, The Time Meddler is equally meh, & The Romans is utter wank. So there.

I like these threads!

[Rob McCow]

So Wayne likes these threads, but not The Romans. Right! I love hearing Wayne's opinion on things, there's never any mucking about.

Myself on the other hand...

Season 1 is great, but there's a tremendous drag factor with all the long, long serials. There's a mix of story lengths in Season 2 which makes it more accesible. Even the best stories in Season 1 have moments where they become repetitive and ploddy.

Although it's harder to pick up on 45 years later, there is a jump forward in production values on Season 2. Getting out of Lime Grove was a good start! There are less moments where it feels amateur, forced or rushed as in Season 1.

The story telling is 'bolder' and crazier. The alternation between historical and sci-fi is broken down so that we get stories like the Time Meddler.

Season 1 is more classical, Season 2 is more mental. So Season 2 gets my vote!

[Andrew Curnow]

Season 2 for me too.

Both seasons have their down points (Edge of Destruction, The Romans, Keys of Marinus, The Chase) but I'd say the high points of season 2 are higher than season 1. I love The Rescue and The Web Planet, which maybe aren't universally loved - DioE is generally regarded as an all-time great too, and I'd agree with that. The Crusade is every bit as good as The Aztecs, and The Time Meddler not only pushes the format a bit by merging the previously-separated historical & scifi styles, but also looks ahead with another Time Traveller.

Plus, if I'm honest, I think Vicki is a far, far better companion for the Doctor than Susan, and Maureen O'Brien infinitely better than Carol Anne Ford.

So season 2!

[Stephen Morgan]

I came in at season two. Hartnell's performance was becoming finely honed by this time and was becoming the "kindly uncle" figure I remember him for. But looking back at the first season (which I've voted for btw), when his Doctor was slighly brasher, more abrasive, I think his character and those stories have the slight edge over the second series, with the exception of course of The Sensorites, which has to be the most padded, and most boring story ever, but it is surrounded by excellence in stories that fit the remit of semi educational.
By series two of course the sci-fi element had really taken over and the educational remit all but forgotten, but still those stories are really good, and series two of course contains my favourite, The Web Planet.
We are fortunate that most of the first two series exists, we can get a good look at what they were like, and how different to any contemporary series Dr. Who actually was, but, even then, the formula and style of the series was getting itself noticed.

[Antony Cox]

Again, a difficult one for me.

I have all the existing stories from Season One, but not for Season Two, so I can't make a fair comparison.

Based on what I have got, though, I'd go for Season One because it's so great without having any history to live up to.

[Larry]

bit of a tough one both seasons have some excelent stories with the exception of the vastly over rated Marco Polo and the painfully dull Sensorites I pretty much like all the stories in season 1. I still rate the first episode and a half of an An Earthly Child as one of the best in the entire old series and although The Daleks, dose get a bit slow at times it is still IMO the best piece of writting by Terry Nation. And Edge I don't care what anybody says I think it's one of the most atmospheric and tense stories in the old series. The Aztecs is probably the best of all the historicals and the other two stories in the season Keys and Reign although not classics are still pretty enjoyable.

onto season 2 well if I'm honest the only story that I don't like is the brain numbingly slow Web Planet, The Time Medler is an absolout gem and still one of my favouriteall time stories. The Chase, despite it's reputation is
although a bit dull at times is still a fun story and Dalek Invasion Earth is another of the better Dalek stories.The Romans was one of those stories I hated on first viewing but the more times i've seen it the more I have grown to like it and the Rescue is a nice little story and one that for me shows Hartnel's Doctor at his kindest moment. The other two stories Planet and Space Museum I feel deserve a better press although again nothing special are still enjoyable if your inb the right mood.


so a tough choice but seaon 1 but I think just because of the first 13 episodes of series 1 which defined the direction Doctor Who was to take and which saw some of the best writting and possibaly best peformances from the original TARDIS crew i've voted for that.

[Paul Clement]

Season 1 is a clear winner for me. Aztecs, Marco Polo are top notch, while there are a few stories bubbling under that are all enjoyable to watch, despite Daleks dragging like nobodys business.

Season 2 has the best Hartnell story (IMO) in Dalek Invasion of Earth, but there are too many weaker stories in the season as a whole.

[MacNimon]

Easily Season 1 for me. It simply has a stronger set of stories (with the exception of The Sensorites), whereas much (but not all) of season 2 is rather dull by comparison. I prefer Hartnell's early interpretation of the Doctor as well.

[Stuart Wallis]

"It's turned out to be quite the spirit of adventure"

An apt phrase. S1 has more of an air of a voyage of discovery. While i like S2 for the most part, it seems to be more of a bunch of friends travelling together than Ian and Barbara discovering new times and places and trying to get back home.

[Pip Madeley]

What Wallis said.

[Antony Cox]

What Wallis said.

More cheese, Penguin?

[Stuart Wallis]

Something I'm saying all the time...