An era of fights, great stories and worryingly shaped props. Good times.
The show, for me, changed distinctly in this era. Seasons were shorter but there were very good whole seasons, notably Pertwee's first, season 7. The stories themselves seemed to come to the forefront more. The show also feels a lot more grown up - yes, the companions are there still to ask silly questions but the show stops trying to talk down to us. The exile on earth gave the show a whole new dimension, even if they did cheat on it every other week...
Pertwee himself is a massive change from Troughton and the silly hats have mostly come to an end. There was some unecessary gurning on his part early doors but this settled down pretty quickly. His performance will always remain one of the defining Doctors for me. A bon viveur and an action man
The is a massive change in the dynamic of companions - Individual companions but with an ensemble in the background to the point where the companions relationship with the Doctor defines a lot more of the show...
Liz Shaw is almost his equal. Her underuse and early departure are a great shame.
My view of Jo Grant has improved considerably having seen the stories in sequence. She grows in confidence and is incredibly useful. It’s rare a companion has the skills Jo has. The Mutants is an excellent example of her taking control and being the catalyst for action in a way few companions to this point have.
The era also sees the introduction of SJS who basically treads the line between the other two.
I came into this stage of the process concerned that I would end up disappointed in my oldest memories. Only one story really fell short of my memories (Death to the Daleks) but even there I could see why I loved it as a child.
I was fortunate enough to meet Pertwee a couple of times at conventions. Utter gentleman and as we approach the show's 50th I do hope he gets the recognition he deserves as one of the finest actors to portray the Doctor.