| Doctor Who - Survival (Episode 159) | 
 enlarge | Actors: Sylvester Mccoy, Sophie Aldred
Studio: BBC Warner
Category: DVD
List Price: $34.98
Buy New: $25.49
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Avg. Customer Rating:  13 reviews
Sales Rank: 44445
Format: Closed-captioned, Color, Dvd-video, Full Screen, Ntsc
Language: English (Original Language)
Rating: NR (Not Rated)
Number Of Items: 2
Running Time: 72
Aspect Ratio: 1.33:1
Shipping Weight (lbs): 1
Dimensions (in): 7.1 x 5.4 x 0.6
MPN: E2915
UPC: 794051291523
EAN: 0794051291523
ASIN: B000QGE8I8
Release Date: August 14, 2007
Availability: Usually ships in 1-2 business days
Condition: A DVD set that is shrink-wrapped and has apparently been unopened, in perfect or near-perfect condition. Shipping email and confirmation tracking included. 100% of your purchase helps Goodwill create jobs and change lives.
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Product Description
The Doctor takes Ace back to her hometown of Perivale only to find that something is very very wrong. Many of Ace's old friends and neighbors have disappeared while domestic pets become victims of unseen killers. Will the hunter become the hunted when only the fittest survive? (Episodes 1-3 72 mins)Running Time: 264 min.Format: DVD MOVIE Genre: SCI-FI/FANTASY UPC: 794051291523 Manufacturer No: E2915
Amazon.com
The final serial in Doctor Who's original run on the BBC (before it was revived in 2005), this three-episode story stars Sylvester McCoy as the Doctor, who brings his companion Ace (Sophie Aldred) back to Earth, only to discover that a race of feline aliens have turned the planet into their private hunting ground. The aliens, called Cheetah People, are traveling between their dying planet and Earth to kidnap humans for food--and lurking behind the whole scheme is none other than the Doctor's arch enemy, the Master (Anthony Ainsley in his final TV performance as the character). Despite the relative lack of quality of its video cinematography, Survival is a sold serial from the McCoy era, with some genuine suspense and an affectionate (if temporary) send-off for the venerable sci-fi hero. The two-disc set of Survival is typical of the impressive presentations that the Doctor's adventures have received on DVD. Two commentary tracks have been recorded--one featuring McCoy, Aldred, and script editor Andrew Cartmel, and the other by the winners of a contest sponsored by Doctor Who magazine (this appears only for episode 3). The hour-long, two-part Cat Flap (one of the original titles for the serial) covers the making of the serial from start to finish, and Endgame is an intriguing look at how the program might've continued after Survival had it not been cancelled in 1989. Little Girl Lost is a 15-minute exploration of Ace's character from her debut story until Survival, and Destiny of the Doctors features footage of Ainley as the Master taken from the 1997 computer game of the same name. The extras are rounded out by several deleted and extended scenes, a round of outtakes, the standard photo gallery, text-only commentary track, Radio Times listings (in DVD-ROM format), and a 20-minute episode of a U.K. educational program called Search Out Science, which features McCoy and Aldred as their characters in a discussion of (what else?) time and space. --Paul Gaita
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| Customer Reviews: Read 8 more reviews...
 Not the Who I know June 19, 2008
1 out of 2 found this review helpful
I never took a shine to McCoy as the Doctor. Everything about his portrayal of the Doctor iiritated me, from his quirky mannerisms, to his bizzare innunciation of words. He always seemed to be talking down to the viewer, and that just doesn't work in a series like Doctor Who, where the Doctor should always take the role seriously. It just always seemed to me like he was dumbing the whole thing down. It was like watching Mr Rogers as the Doctor. I had high hopes for this one, as it featured the Master, a character that I loved(although Nathan Turner really overexposed him). Still, Ainley was completely wasted in this horrid episode, which turned out to be the series' last episode. It was very sad to see the show go out with a whimper like this, and thankfully it has been resurrected, but other than the historical significance of this episode, I'd say take a pass. McCoy's "if we live like animals we die like animals" speech comes across as laughable. I'm a Who LOVER, but even I have my limits, and this episode tested my loyalty to the show
Doctor Who and Ace Go to Perivale April 13, 2008
In what served as the final episode of the "classic" Doctor Who series on BBC TV back in 1989, The Doctor takes Ace home to Perivale to catch up with old friends only to learn they are disappearing under very odd circumstances. But before the Doctor can get knee-deep in some old fashioned investigating, Ace disappears and the Doctor finds himself once more at the mercy of the Master!!
But this is a different Master than we have seen in recent stories. Here, the Master is desperate, more so than ever, and guest star Anthony Ainley is finally allowed to play the part as he always wanted. The Master is behind the kidnappings, but he has new powerful allies, the Cheetah People. They may look harmless compared to new series standards but watch out!
If the Doctor cannot find the way for everyone to escape and return to earth chances are you WILL be a Cheetah Person before too long!!!
Ace is once again given a lion's share of the story, but the two feuding Time Lords must meet again for a final (?) battle. This time, The Doctor and his personal nemesis must endure a knock out drag out fight where anything goes, and all attempts at civility between them are ripped away as they both begin to succumb to the curse of the Cheetah!
But the Doctor is not certain of the final fate of the Master, who seems to escape death yet again but at what cost?
Perhaps he simply chooses to believe he is dead at last...and maybe he is..for now....
The end of the begining December 28, 2007
1 out of 1 found this review helpful
This was the last story of the original "Doctor Who", which ran on the BBC from 1963 - 1989. Think about that for a moment. Six US presidents were in office during that time (more or less... JFK was killed the day the show started to air). When the program started we hadn't been to Moon. By the time it ended, we'd lost interest in going back there. If you added up the runs of the original "Star Trek" series, "The Next Generation", "Deep Space Nine" and "Voyager" you end up with twenty-four seasons of television. "Doctor Who" wound up with twenty-six. Of course, you can add "Enterprise" into there to boost the numbers and make it twenty-eight, but now with three seasons of the new "Doctor Who" on the air, and a fourth coming, "Star Trek" still loses.
There were a lot of problems with "Doctor Who" throughout those years. This is somewhat to be expected with a show that runs that long, after all. The SFX were usually laughable, even by the standards of the time. The monsters were frequently silly and the less said about some of the costumes and sets the better. But there was always a great enthusiasm on the part of the show. The people involved took it seriously. Most of the stories were original and interesting and the actors were, in general, top-notch, especially the ones who played the Doctor.
Sylvester McCoy was the first Doctor I paid attention to, really. My local PBS station started airing his shows right about the time that I was begining to get into "Doctor Who". The first episode I ever remember seeing was Doctor Who - Remembrance of the Daleks. Though now I've gone back to see all the other Doctors, plus watched the TV movie and the new series, and though I like all the Doctors, the 7th one still holds a special place in my heart.
Which is why it's too bad McCoy was the one duty when the show finally folded. His Doctor was intelligent, funny and charming, but had a great ruthlessness about him when it was called for. Part of his charm was the various elements of the so-called "Cartmel Master Plan". Even as a wee shaver I took notice in "Rememberance of the Daleks" when the Doctor makes a verbal slip that implies he worked on the original time travel technology with Rassilon and Omega.
"Survival" is the 7th Doctor's swan song, even though he returned for the TV movie. It's the last time we really see him on screen running the show, and it showcases great deal of what made him so cool. You see the humor, the kindness, the charm and the ruthlessness. You also see the evolving relationship with Ace, always a favorite companion, and of course Anthony Ainley's last "real" performance as the Master, finally allowed to be something other than a two-dimensional Evil Overlord (tm).
There's a lot that works in this story. Even the make up on the Cheetah People is rather decent. The story is tightly plotted and intesting, and reveals quite a lot about Ace and her life before she met up with the Doctor. In fact the only real complaints I have is that the story is rather short at only three parts, certain character's deaths were very, very telegraphed and the puppet cat looked just dreadful.
Despite those complaints, this was well worth seeing, and it's therefore somewhat surprising that despite the fact that I've been a fan of the show for about twenty years, I'd not seen this episode until a few days ago. But I'm happy to have seen it now.
The DVD is crammed with the usual extras the BBC throws onto these, including commentaries and behind-the-scenes stuff. Very illuminating is a documentry on the end of the original series, where you also get to hear some vague ideas on what might have been had they been on the air longer.
All in all, while this is not the best "Doctor Who" episode, it is very good, and a reasonably decent farewell for the show. It wasn't the send off the deserved, but it was better than what, say, "Enterprise" got, where their last episode was a decent "Next Generation" episode. Watch and enjoy the end of an era.
GOOD "WHO," BUT DOESN'T WORK AS A FINALE. December 14, 2007
"Survival," the final televised serial of the classic "Doctor Who" series, is a fine entry into the "Who" universe. While the story is a bit flawed, and the editing is kinda choppy, Sylvester McCoy, Sophie Aldred and Anthony Ainley give great performances, and the rest of the cast do a good job as well. Sadly, this would be the final time the good Doctor would fight evil on TV until the 1996 TV Movie, and the 2005 revival. And it is obvious that this was not intended to be the final story, as their really is no closure at the end of it. Still, it is a fine "Doctor Who" serial, and comes with a plethora of good extras on the DVD. Fans of "Doctor Who" will want to own this for the historical value of the program.
Movie/DVD Grade: B+
 Season 3 Continues the High Quality Norm Established in Seasons 1 & 2 November 8, 2007
0 out of 5 found this review helpful
A pretty good 3rd series of the revival of Doctor Who. This series goes from strength to strength, before falling a bit flat at it's conclusion in the final episode because of the deus ex machina ending.
Tennant in two seasons has firmly imprinted himself upon the role and in the years to come, will likely be THE Doctor for a whole generation of fans, just like Tom Baker was to those of us who grew up watching the Classic series.
Highlights of the season would be the stories Gridlock, 42, the Human Nature 2-parter and Blink (a Doctor-lite episode that is a full 5/5 stars regardless).
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