Category: Doctor Who

Doctor Who – The Beast Below

The Doctor constantly has some tough choices to make in his travels, but “The Beast Below” may have given him one of his toughest yet.

*Spoiler time, kids*

At first all we know is something big and bad is happening on the Starship UK, but that is all. Oh, and it is something big and bad enough that Amy sends a message to herself telling her to stop The Doctor from investigating the goings on of the space-age British Empire.

Then we find what is at the center of it all, and it is rather quite sad.

It turns out there is a creature guiding the ship, and it is being tortured to keep it going.

Once The Doctor finds the Beast, he has to decide what to do with it. Does he let it keep being tortured to protect the people onboard, set the creature free and kill an entire civilization in the process, or lobotomize the creature so it no longer feels the pain it has to endure? The Doctor is ready to set into motion option number three, but in the final moments Amy gets a realization that changes everything.

“Open your eyes,” The Doctor had told her when they first arrived in the ship. Thank God for everyone that she listened to him. For she was the one who noticed how the creature behaved around the children. And, looking at The Doctor, she remembered what Liz Ten said about when they first found the creature. And she was the one who realized that they didn’t need to torture the Beast for it to continue moving the ship.

“If you were that old and that kind and the last of your kind, you couldn’t just stand there and watch children cry,” she told them. (Quote of the night)

This episode showed the hard choices The Doctor has to make in his life. It also reminded us that sometimes he doesn’t have all the answers and needs someone to show him the right path. Funny that another red-head teaches him this lesson, as Donna was best at doing this for him (as demonstrated by the Series 4 episode “Turn Left”). This season looks to be just as much Amy’s story as it is The Doctor’s.

As always, BBC America gives us a behind the scenes look at the latest episode with Doctor Who Confidential. This gave us a behind the scenes look at everything from cast reactions to set design.

Next week we’re going to get the return of the Daleks and… Winston Churchill? That should be interesting. So tune in next week at 9pm on BBC America for another great adventure with The Doctor and his companion, Amy.

Trust Him, He’s The Doctor

Amy: Who are you?
Doctor: I don’t know yet, still cooking.

Sizzling is more like it.

After weeks of speculation as to whether or not Matt Smith would be a suitable Doctor, I can honestly say that we need not worry. Matt makes the character his own from the moment he jumps out of the TARDIS and into the life of his new companion, Amy Pond. Speaking of the TARDIS, it’s new and shiny too, as is the sonic screwdriver. Even the opening titles have a slightly new theme, although it is essentially the same tune we have grown to love over the years. If anything it is just slightly edgier and darker than what we are used to. Overall I would say stop worrying about Matt Smith and Steven Moffat and just let the show be what it is: a timeless adventure that will make you feel as if you had been running right alongside your beloved Doctor.

Every episode is followed by a special Doctor Who Confidential, which can be found on the BBC America website along with other behind-the-scenes features.

So, all of time and space. Everything that ever happened or ever will. Where do you want to start?

How I Fell For the Doctor

I was going to title this post “Why You Should Be Watching Doctor Who” but I didn’t want to presume to tell anyone what their television viewing habits should be. Instead I thought I’d regale you with a tale of my experience with The Doctor, and why I would describe it as love at first sight.

As a senior in college I have not had the experience with Doctor Who that, say, my father had. I can’t say I grew up with him my whole life or anything like that. Likewise, I cannot talk about how it is an institution here, since the US is really playing catch-up to the level of fandom that the UK has for the show. For that matter, we may never reach the levels of attachment that its homeland has for the series. But that only seems fair.

No, I was first introduced to The Doctor 4 months ago. I met enough people who were obsessed enough with the show that I decided to give it a try during my winter break. Being a lover of sci-fi, I figured it was a good bet I would like the show as well. I was wrong.

I didn’t just like Doctor Who; I loved it. From the moment The Doctor grabs Rose and tells her to follow him I knew this was going to become one of my favorite shows of all time. With each new episode I fell even more in love with every element of the show. The acting is superb, as is the writing. Russell T. Davies and Stephen Moffat never seemed to have a shortage of new and exciting adventures for the Doctor and his companion to enjoy.

Yes, from the moment I started my journey with The Doctor, I was hooked. Countless times the words “One more episode” would be uttered, only to be said again 50 minutes later. By the time I was finished, I had forgotten what a world before meeting the Doctor was like. It was as if I had known him my whole life.

It feels appropriate to share my love for Doctor Who now that the 5th Series premiere is scheduled for tomorrow (April 17th) on BBC America. Even if you haven’t watched a single episode before today, I still highly recommend giving it a chance tomorrow. BBCA will be airing the second half of Series 4 all day tomorrow as well as the specials that aired in between seasons. If nothing else, try to watch The End of Time, as it leads in to the new episode (and is possibly one of the best stories in the series. Russel Davies definitely went out on a high note).

*if you don’t have time to play catch-up, this scene is all you really need to know*

Now is the perfect time to start your adventure with The Doctor for a number of reasons. The show is seeing a new Doctor (Matt Smith), new companion (Karen Gillan), and new producer (Stephen Moffat). Moffat wrote one of my favorite episodes in the series (Blink), so I look forward to seeing what he does now that he is in charge of the whole thing. If I haven’t convinced you Doctor Who is worth checking out, maybe Matt Smith can:

AVC: Doctor Who has always been more of a cult sensation here in the U.S. than in Britain. How would you describe the series to someone here who has never seen it before? What would you say it’s like?

MS: I’d say it’s about a 900-year-old alien who travels around time and space in a blue police box, which is called the TARDIS, having adventures, saving the world, and defeating evil. It’s not bound by space or time or logic or genre, and therefore creatively it can go anywhere and do anything. You can be in the past with dinosaurs one week and in the future the next week, as the world is about to explode. I think it’s full of heart and humor and wit and invention. I think Doctor Who improves your life. And I mean that. It’s not just, like, my mission statement. I do, as a man who’s come to it late on, as well. It’s never too late to get into it. I think we’ve got a new team and a new show, and I think now is the time to start watching.

-excerpt from an interview between AV Club and Matt Smith, the new Doctor (the rest of the interview is the title link for today)

If that doesn’t convince you that Doctor Who is worth your time, then I don’t know what will. I hope you will share in the magical journey with me. I will be posting reviews of the new series as it airs here in the US. I’m sure it will be brilliant.

Doctor Who Countdown

As the US premiere of Doctor Who comes ever closer, Americans everywhere are just trying to not get spoiled. BBC America offers a countdown widget to keep track of the date (as if we weren’t doing that on our own anyway).

The widget also offers a videos, interviews, and a photo gallery to have fun with while you wait. Speaking of fun, did you hear about the new DW game that they are making? It’s going to be four interactive episodes, the first of which will be available in June. Especially cool for those of us who ever wanted to be the Doctor (or his companion).

*Doctor Who Series 5 premieres April 17th on BBC America. Leading up to that all day will be the end of Series 4 starting with The Doctor’s Daughter all the way through to Journey’s End, followed by all the specials (The Next Doctor, Planet of the Dead, Waters of Mars, and The End of Time).*

Doctor Who News

Lots of Doctor Who related tidbits with the new series ready to debut soon.

For those of us in the US, we have two events to look forward to. One is Monday April 12th at The Paley Center. This is going to be offered to members of the Center first before the general public is allowed in. The event is free but seating is limited so they ask you to reserve a seat. Details can be found here. If you can’t make it to this smaller event, there is a bigger one happening at Village East Cinema on April 14th. This is also free but you’re going to want to get there early as it is first come, first served. Details courtesy of BBC America.

In other news, Doctor Who Magazine has won a Guinness World Record as the Longest Running Magazine Based on a Television Series. It joins Doctor Who as the longest running Sci-fi series and most successful Sci-fi series in 2009. The show is brilliant and deserves all the recognition it has been getting recently. Congratulations!
Doctor Who Series 5 premieres April 3 in the UK and April 17th in the US.

The Doctor Is In

Doctor Who has been voted the greatest screen doctor in a recent poll. The runner up was Doctor Brown from Back to the Future.

Doctor Who has been around for generations, but has had a recent surge in popularity with David Tennant’s portrayal of the iconic character in the new series.
Other doctors on the list include Dr. Spock from Star Trek, Dr. Cox from Scrubs, and Dr. Watson from Sherlock Holmes.
Top 10 Doctors:
1. Doctor Who
2. Dr. Brown (Back to the Future)
3. Dr. Kennedy ( Neighbours)
4. Dr. Evil (Austin Powers)
5. Dr. Spock (Star Trek)
6. Dr. Gellar (Friends)
7. Dr. Doolittle
8. Dr. Cox (Scrubs)
9. Dr. Ross (ER)
10. Dr. Watson (Sherlock Holmes)
Who knew going to the doctor could be so much fun?