Often low down on commentators' lists, the Seventh Doctor as played by Sylvester McCoy is often unfairly maligned or overlooked. Much of this is to do with the actor being the lead when the show was axed or because of the rather shaky Season 24 where he clung to his more comic sensibilities. However, the Seventh Doctor became one of the very best, cut off just as he was getting into his stride. It's true that early tales such as Time and the Rani and Delta and the Bannermen were lightweight, silly even, But there was a freshness to the show, an attempt to put aside the hangover from the Colin Baker era. Once young rookie script editor Andrew Cartmel had a chance to influence things he turned to the graphic novels of the era, producing a layered, comic strip sensibility. This tied in with McCoy's desire to make his Doctor darker. From Season 25, bar the occasional misfire, the stories are rich, allegorical and give us a Doctor who is mercurial, funny, dangerous and monumental. McCoy excels in this new iteration of his character. Stories such as The Curse of Fenric, Remembrance of the Daleks and The Greatest Show in the Galaxy are among the very best of the lot and McCoy remains a great Doctor Who.
Writer of The Blog of Delights, a review site covering film, TV, cult TV, books and audio. Fan of Dr Who, Bond, X-Men and Marvel. Also the writer of e-book 'Fictional Legends: Doctor Who - the TV Adventures' for Collca.
