Best Episode: Frontier In Space In an era of really good stories, this one stands out for its character and plot complexity, its use of alien races with their own, reasonable motivations, and a constantly-changing story dynamic. Some might argue that it goes on a little long, but given how much actually happens, it's hard to see how anyone would trim it down. Worst Episode: Carnival Of Monsters If there was ever a wish to see an episode destroyed, this one would be on many fans' lists for combinations of a ridiculous plot, aliens in blue face-paint, annoying secondary characters, and arguably the worst special effects to ever appear on the show. Best Race: Autons The Autons narrowly beat out the Draconians from Frontier in Space for this role, mostly for being as different as they are. Bits of an alien collective consciousness capable of possessing plastics, they were so compelling in their own time that they were the first aliens to return to the series after its revival. Worst Race: The Green Death The Zeta Minorans from Carnival of Monsters came close, as being merely people painted blue and talking about themselves in the third person, but these giant mutant maggots are nothing short of ridiculous; in one scene of them emerging from their subterranean home, it looks more like someone dyed some Rice Krispies(tm) and spilled them on a diorama. Best Companion: Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart The only companion to appear opposite every Doctor in the original series (although only acting opposite Colin Baker's Doctor in "Dimensions in Time" and one of the Big Finish audio series), the man serves as a foil, usually supporting the Doctor with the aid of UNIT, but occasionally working at cross purposes, as he does in The Silurians. As such, the character provides a very human voice, and occasionally that of a man who has seen too much action. Worst Companion: Liz Shaw Appearing in only four of Jon Pertwee's stories (and later in The Five Doctors), she had such potential to broaden the role, but wound up leaving before doing so. As an ultracapable scientist in our world (and a security leader in the alternate world depicted in Inferno), it's a real shame she never went further with the series. Special Note: Sarah Jane Smith Arguably, aside from the Doctor and the TARDIS itself, Sarah Jane Smith has been the biggest part of the series. Not only has she helped so many of the Doctors, she has also helped defend the Earth in his absence. Were it not for a need to acknowledge the Brigadier, she would have been listed as Best Companion to this Doctor; were it not for a need to recognize Romana, she would have been listed as the Best Companion to the next Doctor. Something had to be said.
Michael Marcus is a game designer, author, and mad scientist living in Hamtramck, Michigan; his current project list include a series of comic short-stories collectively called "One-Punch," a book on hypnosis and language called "The Prometheus Codex," a collaborative game project called "Art War," and a fun spy story called "The Adventures of Jack Uzi" at http://tinyurl.com/JackUziChannel (for those interested).
