Glen A. Larson (1937-2014)

The planet loses another great voice from the popular culture of my formative years. There isn't a whole lot to say that hasn't been said elsewhere. Glen A. Larson (1937-2014) has passed.

Larson will be forever appreciated and loved by fans like myself for bringing the world some of the science fiction classics.  Most notably, the reimagined Battlestar Galactica by Ronald D. Moore wouldn't have happened without the existence of the original Battlestar Galactica (1978-1979), a true classic in the annals of science fiction. Musings Of A Sci-Fi Fanatic took a very thorough look at Part 1 of Saga Of A Star World. I really do need to get on that second part.




The pure imagination of Buck Rogers In The 25th Century (1979) would follow. "Beedy Beedy Beedy, what's up Buck?" Like Battlestar Galactica, for kids like me, it was another dose of pure escape coupled with great casting topped with yet another enticing female co-star.

But Larson also left his mark at the start of The Six Million Dollar Man (1973) on a couple of pilot films covered here at Musings Of A Sci-Fi Fanatic.

Other series in which Larson left his mark entertained endlessly in the 1970s and 1980s including The Hardy Boys/ Nancy Drew Mysteries (1977-1979) based on those classic blue hard cover books that seemed to circulate my neighborhood to no end.




B.J. And The Bear (1979-1981) would follow. As a kid it seemed I was a sucker for chimpanzees and orangutans. If you included a monkey of any kind I was front row and center at the television. Clint Eastwood's Every Which Way But Loose (1978) and Any Which Way You Can (1980) had a similar effect. It seemed like there was a vortex for kids who loved ape-centric entertainment at the end of the 1970s. And of course let us not forget the Planet Of The Apes franchise.

Those uniforms were so cool you can see their influence on series like manga and anime's Attack On Titan (2012).




I was never much of a Magnum, P.I. (1980-1988) guy, but my grandmother loved it.

Talking cars were much more my thing. So Knight Rider (1982-1986), complete with roving red cylon eye sound effect, came next and my father was a real fan of that particular Pontiac Firebird Trans AM. And thus his love and mine for that aforementioned series was representative of why Knight Rider was a hit across generations. The 2008 reboot of the series didn't capture the same lightning in a bottle as Moore's reworked Battlestar Galactica. All of the charm of the original Knight Rider was gone replaced with nothing but an empty coat of contemporary television car wax and none of the character that made the first so unforgettable.




And finally, with The Six Million Dollar Man in the rear view mirror, The Fall Guy (1981-1986), starring Lee Majors, arrived and became a huge hit for me. Not to mention my bedroom walls were adorned with more than a few Heather Thomas posters. God bless all of the people involved in casting there and in the casting of latex-heavy, gorgeous Erin Gray for Buck Rogers. Bless your hearts. Thank the Lord and Larson for small favors. Iconic characters were created in Apollo and Starbuck. He gave me my beloved robot daggit (another chimpanzee by the way), Twiki and more gorgeous ladies than you could shake a stick at in the form of the lovely Jane Seymour, Maren Jensen, Laurette Spang and Anne Lockhart. He really did deliver on the space babes. Those colonial warriors never had it so good.




Well, Glen A. Larson had a big hand in creating some of the finest television in my young life ... and poster girls. Many of these series have been purchased and will continue to be enjoyed for years to come. But to recall the memories of enjoying those original episodes of Battlestar Galactica, holding a Cylon Raider or a Colonial Viper in my hand and the thrill of those days. Those memories are unquestionably irreplaceable. I would be remiss not to pay tribute to the man here given all of the joys he provided my young life. Great joy indeed.








Room posters.

Doctor Who: The First 50 Years Poll (or The Mighty 241)

Way, way back in 2009 I posted an edited version of The Mighty 200 which appeared in Doctor Who Magazine #413. See that post here.

More recently, Doctor Who Magazine #474 covered the entire 241 episode Doctor Who run save for the latest episodes starring Peter Capaldi. It will be fascinating to see where many of those episodes fall next go round. In keeping with the fact I love both polls and Doctor Who, I present you an updated and full version of that very poll here at Musings Of A Sci-Fi Fanatic for a bit of light fun on the eve of Peter Capaldi's Series 8 finale.



My interest in providing this to you as a guide to watching Doctor Who was first inspired by the two-part Human Nature and Family Of Blood (Series 3 featuring David Tennant). This particular story from Series 3 offers an exceptional bit of science fiction implementing familiar ideas (alien invasion, body snatching) in a fresh new way. And Human Nature would definitely land itself the prestigious honor of being my favorite Tennant entry of Series 3. Tennant also delivers possibly his most impressive turn as the Doctor unwittingly transformed into human John Smith. Tennant is quite good. Tennant performs out of character and isn't permitted to fall back on his Doctor shtick which, as you know, can become repetitious.




Blink (Series 3), too, is excellent. You'll see below that Blink landed itself in the number two spot for second best Doctor Who episode of all-time. While very good, I'm not so sure I'd be quite so willing to go that far. As impressively simple as the Weeping Angels concept is in Blink and as delightful a performance as actress Carey Mulligan turns I'm not so sure I would be that generous. It's certainly a quality episode with Tennant essentially relegated to a supporting role. It's notable that earlier in the season Andrew Garfield guested in Daleks In Manhattan and Evolution Of The Daleks. Mulligan and Garfield would star together in the exceptional science fiction film drama Never Let Me Go (2010) a few years later based on the dystopian tale by Kazuo Ishiguro.



Before we begin it was also interesting to note two additional polls in the issue - Favourite Doctor and Favourite Companion.

Favourite Doctor was ranked as follows: 12. Jon Hurt. 11. Colin Baker. 10. Paul McGann. 9. William Hartnell. 8. Christopher Eccleston. 7. Sylvester McCoy. 6. Peter Davison. 5. Jon Pertwee. 4. Patrick Troughton. 3. David Tennant. 2. Matt Smith. 1. Tom Baker.

Christopher Eccleston is far better than this list would suggest. I'll leave it at that. Tennant may be a bit overrated. Tom Baker remains the king. Verdict is still out on Smith until I given his stories a proper look.




Favourite Companion was ranked as follows: 15. Tegan Jovanka. 14. Rory Williams. 13. Barbara Wright. 12. Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart. 11. Ian Chesterton. 10. Romana II. 9. Leela. 8. Jo Grant. 7. Clara Oswald. 6. Ace. 5. Any Pond. 4. Jamie McCrimmon. 3. Rose Tyler. 2. Donna Noble. 1. Sarah Jane Smith. Just amazing the power and chemistry of the Tom Baker and Elisabeth Sladen collaboration as Doctor and Companion. The two have traversed time and space in popularity and appears to remain secure as long as many of us fans are still alive. They would easily place together atop a Favourite Doctor/ Companion Combination poll if ever there was one. Now there's an idea for an issue, because the results would no doubt vary from the above. And, for the record, Clara Oswald, played by Jenna-Louise Coleman, is easily one of my all-time favorite companions. She's a modern delight in a fashion similar to the late, great Elisabeth Sladen.



It's also worth noting that actress Freema Agyeman is nowhere to be found on the list of favorite companions. In a rare instance, The Sci-Fi Fanatic is not alone in having a distaste for the annoying Marth Jones character or the performance by Agyeman. She doesn't even make the list and she wouldn't make mine either.



So, as far as the best episodes of Doctor Who, how you rate nearly 250 episodes is something of an impossible task it would seem, but here it is. When it comes to any quality sci-fi series like Doctor Who, there are so many ever so slight variations in quality that it becomes a matter of degrees nearly impossible to separate. It's certainly easier to articulate and pinpoint what makes a great episode and what makes a lemon, but becomes harder when episodes have their strengths and weaknesses in play. How do you rate one over the other? And even one man's lemon is another's lemonade. Nevertheless, it is good fun. And thus into the Tardis we go.

241. The Twin Dilemma.
240. Fear Her.
239. Time And Rani.
238. Timelash.
237. Time-flight.
236. Underworld.
235. The Space Pirates.
234. The Dominators.
233. The Rings Of Akhaten.
232. The Space Museum.
231. Meglos.
230. Paradise Towers.
229. The Doctor, The Widow And The Wardrobe.
228. The King's Demons.
227. The Curse Of The Black Spot.
226. Warriors Of The Deep.
225. The Sensorites.
224. The Underwater Menace.
223. The Horns Of Nimon.
222. The Time Monster.
221. Arc Of Infinity.
220. Love And Monsters.
219. The Web Planet.
218. Four To Doomsday.
217. Delta And The Bannerman.
216. The Monster Of Peladon.
215. Dragonfire.
214. Planet Of Giants.
213. The Mutants.
212. The Power Of Kroll.
211. Creature From The Pit.
210. Galaxy 4.
209. Terminus.
208. Daleks In Manhattan/Evolution Of The Daleks.
207. The Krotons.
206. Silver Nemesis.
205. The Long Game.
204. The Armageddon Factor.
203. Nightmare In Silver.
202. The Gunfighters.
201. Journey To The Centre Of The Tardis.



200. The Lazarus Experiment.
199. Colony In Space.
198. The Savages.
197. The Celestial Toymaker.
196. The Invisible Enemy.
195. The Idiot's Lantern.
194. The Smugglers.
193. Victory Of The Daleks.
192. The Keys Of Marinus.
191. Planet Of The Dead.
190. Nightmare Of Eden.
189. Night Terrors.
188. The Invasion Of Time.
187. Attack Of The Cybermen.
186. The Beast Below.
185. The Rebel Flesh/ The Almost People.
184. The Ark.
183. Inside The Spaceship.
182. The Mark Of The Rani.
181. New Earth.
180. The Doctor's Daughter.
179. Boom Town.
178. The Hungry Earth/ Cold Blood.
177. The Wheel In Space.
176. 42.
175. The Chase.
174. The Leisure Hive.
173. Aliens Of London/ World War Three.
172. The Happiness Patrol.
171. The Rescue.
170. The Reign Of Terror.
169. Mission To The Unknown.
168. The Trial Of A Time Lord.
167. The Vampires Of Venice.
166. The Highlanders.
165. Closing Time.
164. The Power Of Three.
163. A Town Called Mercy.
162. The Sun Makers.
161. Planet Of Fire.
160. Revenge Of The Cybermen.
159. Battlefield.
158. Voyage Of The Damned.
157. Dinosaurs On A Spaceship.
156. Black Orchid.
155. The Awakening.
154. Destiny Of The Daleks.
153. The Runaway Bride.
152. Doctor Who.
151. Let's Kill Hitler.



150. The Macra Terror.
149. The Next Doctor.
148. Death To The Daleks.
147. Frontios.
146. The Android Invasion.
145. The Myth Makers.
144. The Sontaran Stratagem/The Poison Sky.
143. Full Circle.
142. The Faceless Ones.
141. The Ice Warriors.
140. The Sontaran Experiment.
139. The Claws Of Axos.
138. The Two Doctors.
137. Invasion Of The Dinosaurs.
136. Gridlock.
135. Vengeance On Varos.
134. The End Of The World.
133.The War Machines.
132. Cold War.
131. The Romans.
130. The Face Of Evil.
129. The Wedding Of River Song.
128. The Crusade.
127. Frontier In Space.
126. The Seeds Of Death.
125. Planet Of The Ood.
124. Rise Of The Cybermen/ The Age Of Steel.
123. Planet Of The Daleks.
122. Image Of The Fendahl.
121. Castrovalva.
120. The Bells Of Saint John.
119. Hide.
118. The God Complex.
117. Mawdryn Undead.
116. Robot.
115. Warrior's Gate.
114. The Pirate Planet.
113. The Moonbase.
112. Snakedance.
111. Smith And Jones.
110. The Visitation.
109. State Of Decay.
108. The Greatest Show In The Galaxy.
107. The Shakespeare Code.
106. Partners In Crime.
105. Amy's Choice.
104. The Masque Of Mandragora.
103. The Ribos Operation.
102. The Unicorn And The Wasp.
101. The Hand Of Fear.



100. The Massacre Of St Bartholomew's Eve.
99. Resurrection Of The Daleks.
98. The Androids Of Tara.
97. A Christmas Carol.
96. The Ambassadors Of Death.
95. The Time Of The Doctor.
94. The Keeper Of Traken.
93. The Curse Of Peladon.
92. Planet Of Evil.
91. The Girl Who Waited.
90. The Lodger.
89. Tooth And Claw.
88. A Good Man Goes To War.
87. The Abominable Snowmen.
86. The Unquiet Dead.
85. The Tenth Planet.
84. Marco Polo.
83. The Crimson Horror.
82. The End Of Time.
81. Planet Of The Spiders.
80. Ghost Light.
79. Survival.
78. 100,000 BC.
77. The Time Meddler.
76. Mind Of Evil.
75. Enlightenment.
74. The Stones Of Blood.
73. The Mind Robber.
72. Rose.
71. The Fires Of Pompeii.
70. Revelation Of The Daleks.
69. Fury From The Deep.
68. The Snowmen.
67. The Angels Take Manhattan.
66. Father's Day.
65. Day of The Daleks.
64. Carnival Of Monsters.
63. Kinda.
62. Logopolis.
61. The Aztecs.
60. The Sea Devils.
59. Terror Of The Autons.
58. The Impossible Astronaut/ Day Of The Moon.
57. The Christmas Invasion.
56. The Enemy Of The World.
55. Utopia/ The Sound Of Drums/ Last Of The Time Lords.
54. The Time Warrior.
53. The Time Of Angels/ Flesh And Stone.
52. The Impossible Planet/ The Satan Pit.
51. The Three Doctors.



50. Doctor Who And The Silurians.
49. Asylum Of The Daleks.
48. The Dalek's Master Plan.
47. The Dalek Invasion Of Earth.
46. The Mutants.
45. Army Of Ghosts/ Doomsday.
44. Midnight.
43. The Waters Of Mars.
42. The Pandorica Opens/ The Big Bang.
41. The Brain Of Morbius.
40. The Name Of The Doctor.
39. Turn Left.
38. The Daemons.
37. The Doctor's Wife.
36. School Reunion.
35. The Stolen Earth/ Journey's End.
34. The Evil Of The Daleks.
33. The Invasion.
32. Horror Of Fang Rock.
31. Silence In The Library/Forest Of The Dead.
30. The Green Death.
29. The Girl In The Fireplace.
28. Spearhead From Space.
27. Vincent And The Doctor.
26. The Curse Of Fenric.
25. The Five Doctors.
24. Earthshock.
23. The Tomb Of The Cybermen.
22. The Ark In Space.
21. The Deadly Assassin.
20. The Seeds Of Doom.
19. The Power Of The Daleks.
18. Inferno.
17. The Eleventh Hour.
16. The Web Of Fear.
15. Dalek.
14. Terror Of The Zygons.
13. Bad Wolf/ Parting Of The Ways.
12. The War Games.
11. The Robots Of Death.
10. Remembrance Of The Daleks.
9. Human Nature/ The Family Of Blood.
8. Pyramids Of Mars.
7. The Empty Child/ The Doctor Dances.
6. The Talons Of Weng-Chiang.
5. City Of Death.
4. The Caves Of Androzani.
3. Genesis Of The Daleks.
2. Blink.
1. The Day Of The Doctor.

Whew. My fingers hurt. Kidding. Honestly, I have my problems with the positions of these nearly 250 entries. Let me take a moment to correct them. I swear I've tried my very best to avoid endless Doctor Who viewing, which in turn may result in Doctor Who fatigue thus affecting my judgment and selections.



This much is clear. Genesis Of The Daleks and Terror Of The Zygons should be lower. Silence In The Library higher. Blink lower. The Girl In The Fireplace higher. Love And Monsters much higher. The Unicorn And The Wasp higher. Army Of Ghosts lower. New Earth and The End Of The World higher. Gridlock higher. Robot lower. The Unquiet Dead higher. The Utopia trilogy lower. Father's Day and Midnight higher. Wellllll, I could go on.

That should do it for this highly un-scientific, non mathematical conclusion to the latest Who poll. Much better wouldn't you say? Confused? I know I am. Where my own personal list would place all of these entries I have no idea.



But like the Doctor said in Blink, it really is "like a big ball of wibbly wobbly, timey wimey stuff." So let's leave it at that. On the eve before Capaldi's finale, let's bring on those Peter Capaldi additions. Will he make the Top 10? He would on my list.

Here are more of the many wonderful images from Doctor Who.