Doctor Who (1963 - present)

Blunt Instrument wrote:

Even if I'd been in time to get a ticket for the screening of 'The Day Of The Doctor' at Odeon Belfast, the price of £13 would've given me pause. Robbing shits ... no other cinemas here showing it either, from what I can see.

Another cinema IS now showing it, and for £7.60 to boot ... the ticket is bought and on my fridge underneath a Dalek magnet :D .

2 trailers for The Day Of The Doctor are now out ... it's looking spectacular, especially the Time War. And I couldn't help but grin at Tennant's 'Oh, you've redecorated ... hmm, I don't like it' about the current Tardis interior and Smith looking affronted at same.

Blunt Instrument wrote:

2 trailers for The Day Of The Doctor are now out ... it's looking spectacular, especially the Time War. And I couldn't help but grin at Tennant's 'Oh, you've redecorated ... hmm, I don't like it' about the current Tardis interior and Smith looking affronted at same.

A nice throwback, the 2nd Doctor says virtually the same to the 3rd in the 'The Three Doctors' of course and I think it cropped up in Moffat's children in need segment.

I was a bit puzzled by what sounded like Hurt's voice saying 'I'm looking for the Doctor' an odd phrase if he is one and the same, then there is the portent of the fall of the 11th teased before when Hurt would make the current Doctor the 12th. But I suppose it can be made to fit either way around.

The Doctors end up back in Elizabethan England which might indicate we will see the Doctor meet Elizabeth I tying up the ending of the Shakespeare episode.

When the term Time War was first mentioned I had a grand vision of a war that affected time, but too often it seems to be presented as just another conflict, ideally if the time Lords and Daleks are wiped from history as they have the potential to be their name and presence goes with it....a more robust and deeper reboot than the Doctor had with the Dalek memory wipe perhaps?

Plenty to look forward to but my main worry is that going large is not usually consistent with playing to the series' strengths - certainly it was consistently RTD's undoing, the more he built the story the cheaper and more inept the resolution seemed to become.

Heh, I quite like them 'going large' and flaunting the increased budget/effects technology available to them nowadays :) .

Possible spoiler ahead....




A new still photo was released today on the Doctor Who twitter page of a group of women dressed in red. They bare quite a resemblance to the Sisterhood of Karn who appeared in 1976's The Brain of Morbius. The Sisterhood had an elixer which they shared with the Time Lords in order to help with their regenerations.

It would be interesting, if that is the case, since The Brain of Morbius is pretty well known for the scene where the Doctor's past regenerations are shown. However, it continues past Hartnell and features unknown faces. Many people today write this off as images of the past incarnations of Morbius and not the Doctor, but the producer at the time, Philip Hinchcliffe said "We tried to get famous actors for the faces of the Doctor. But because no one would volunteer, we had to use backroom boys. And it is true to say that I attempted to imply that William Hartnell was not the first Doctor".

So if it is them...it would certainly be interesting to see if that angle has anything to do with it or how it all ties in with the Hurt Doctor if at all. Could be something completely different....

Moore wrote:

Possible spoiler ahead....

It would be interesting, if that is the case, since The Brain of Morbius is pretty well known for the scene where the Doctor's past regenerations are shown. However, it continues past Hartnell and features unknown faces. Many people today write this off as images of the past incarnations of Morbius and not the Doctor, but the producer at the time, Philip Hinchcliffe said "We tried to get famous actors for the faces of the Doctor. But because no one would volunteer, we had to use backroom boys. And it is true to say that I attempted to imply that William Hartnell was not the first Doctor".

So if it is them...it would certainly be interesting to see if that angle has anything to do with it or how it all ties in with the Hurt Doctor if at all. Could be something completely different....

At the time of the Morbius story the longevity of the timelords has no real limit, as the 2nd Doctor states in the War Games 'we can live forever barring accidents'. The dialogue associated with the mind duel is also clearly aimed to suggest Morbius is forcing the doctor back through his regenerations...how long have you lived he crows clearly winning till the brain begins to fry. It's just one of those continuity glitches that fans vainly try to rationalise though the real fault lies with the 13 limit later introduced, the goalposts got moved. The key here is perhaps the idea of a new set of regenerations though as I think Moffat is tackling that issue (and the gift River gave him perhaps only saved the one) but is that going to be done in the anniversary story or the Christmas special?

Moore wrote:

Possible spoiler ahead....




A new still photo was released today on the Doctor Who twitter page of a group of women dressed in red. They bare quite a resemblance to the Sisterhood of Karn who appeared in 1976's The Brain of Morbius. The Sisterhood had an elixer which they shared with the Time Lords in order to help with their regenerations.

It would be interesting, if that is the case, since The Brain of Morbius is pretty well known for the scene where the Doctor's past regenerations are shown. However, it continues past Hartnell and features unknown faces. Many people today write this off as images of the past incarnations of Morbius and not the Doctor, but the producer at the time, Philip Hinchcliffe said "We tried to get famous actors for the faces of the Doctor. But because no one would volunteer, we had to use backroom boys. And it is true to say that I attempted to imply that William Hartnell was not the first Doctor".

So if it is them...it would certainly be interesting to see if that angle has anything to do with it or how it all ties in with the Hurt Doctor if at all. Could be something completely different....

The 'sisterhood' from The Fires Of Pompeii were red-robed women too, and Peter Capaldi and a pre-Amy Karen Gillan were in that episode. Hmmm ...

For those who haven't seen it don't miss it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U3jrS-uhuo


it is one of those OMG moments for fans.

saint mark wrote:

For those who haven't seen it don't miss it.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=-U3jrS-uhuo


it is one of those OMG moments for fans.

Indeed quite revealing!

Well....that was amazing! So glad they did that!

Spoiler:

Possibly a MAJOR MAJOR casting spoiler for the 50th.

Spoiler:

Must ... not ... click ... on ... that *resists temptation*.

I've only watched the trailers, the McGann 'minisode', and 2 of the clips (the brief 'That's impossible!' one and the one that premiered on Children In Need). That'll do until Saturday night, I think.

I don't blame you. I accidentally clicked on the link and there it was. But oh well, no big deal. If it turns out to be true everyone should be very thrilled. Can't wait for Saturday to get here.

'An Adventure In Space And Time', the Mark Gatiss-scripted docudrama of Who's creation is on Beeb 2 tonight at 9 and an in-full screening of 'An Unearthly Child' follows on Beeb 4 at 10:30.

An Adventure In Space And Time was lovely ... warm, affectionate and nostalgic about Who's origins, and hugely poignant in its depiction of how William Hartnell was forced to leave the show due to his health problems. Beautifully written by Mark Gatiss and superbly played all round.

I'll not spoil the little bit of artistic licence (for those of you who may not have seen it yet) that they allowed themselves at the end, but I had 'something in my eye'.

Happy Day Of The Doctor, my fellow Whovians ... enjoy tonight's special, be it at the cinema or in front of your telly  .

Spoilers below if you haven't seen it....






Ugh, what a disappointment. The 50th was just a convoluted mess.  Too many storylines were attempted with no fulfilling resolution to any of them. Nothing gripping about the "story", very little tension, no excitement. They would have been better off just having a standard 42 minunte episode focusing on the Tennant/Smith/Hurt storyline. The Zygons and Rose were pointless. After all that they just "work things out." Really? Even though they did do a decent job of wrapping up one concept with the Moment, it still felt pretty damn anti-climatic when the special ended. I was left with a "That's it?" feeling.


So that was the bad, what about the good? The scene where all the past Doctors join in to save Gallifrey was brilliant. And as if it couldn't get better Peter Capaldi was included! I enjoyed that! One of the few moments of interest in the special.

The dialouge between Smith/Tennant/Hurt was pretty good.


And the Tom Baker cameo at the end! It was nice seeing that.



All in all, the very breif 10 second trailer for the Xmas special gives me some hope. It looks like Moffat might actually tie up all the loose ends from the Smith era. Here's hoping it is much better than the 50th.

Oh. I really enjoyed it. And that's the first negative review I've read, to be honest.

If you'll permit me a little indulgence, my Facebook tribute -

' 'It all started out as a mild curiosity in the junkyard, and now it's turned out to be quite a great spirit of adventure' - The First Doctor, 'The Sensorites'.

'Oh, you like to think you’re a god. But you’re not a god. You’re just a parasite eaten out with jealousy and envy and longing for the lives of others. You feed on them. On the memory of love and loss and birth and death and joy and sorrow. So … so come on, then. Take mine. Take my memories. But I hope you’ve got a big appetite. Because I’ve lived a long life and I’ve seen a few things. … I walked away from the Last Great Time War. I marked the passing of the Time Lords. I saw the birth of the universe and I watched as time ran out, moment by moment, until nothing remained. No time, no space — just me. I’ve walked in universes where the laws of physics were devised by the mind of a madman. I’ve watched universes freeze and creations burn. I have seen things you wouldn’t believe. I have lost things you will never understand. And I know things. Secrets that must never be told. Knowledge that must never be spoken. Knowledge that will make parasite gods blaze! So come on, then! Take it! Take it all, baby! Have it! You have it all!' - The Eleventh Doctor, 'The Rings Of Akhaten'.

On Saturday the 23rd of November 1963 (around teatime), the first episode of a new sci-fi drama (entitled 'An Unearthly Child') was broadcast on BBC1 (and repeated the following Saturday before the second, as the continuing coverage of the assassination of President Kennedy on the 22nd had had a detrimental effect on the audience figures). Amongst the modest hopes of its creators was that the travels back in time of the main character (a time-travelling two-hearted humanoid alien Time Lord, from the planet Gallifrey) to historical events and meeting of historical figures would prove educational to younger viewers. The drama was, of course, Doctor Who.

And here we are at Saturday the 23rd of November 2013, 50 years of adventures in space and time later ... from William Hartnell's irascible-yet-twinkly grandfather figure to Matt Smith's gangly-limbed, bow-tied and floppy-haired incarnation, (and nine distinctive and intriguing Doctors in between); The Day Of The Doctor. Now that's nothing to a time-traveller, but it's really quite an extraordinary landmark in television. Tonight's special anniversary episode is being 'simulcast' around the world in something like 90 countries, and is also in 3D in cinemas. I will be popping along to the Odyssey cinema, and hoping for a thrilling, creepy, funny rip-roaring adventure with 'nods' to both the Doctor's past and his future shared with fellow fans ... something tells me I'll get it. In the Moff we trust.

People much smarter than me have analysed the show's many aspects, and good luck to 'em. All I know is it is firmly embedded in pop-culture consciousness, around the world but especially here in the UK ... the Doctor is a fascinating, compelling figure around which to weave adventure stories (and when you can go anywhere in space and time, the capacity for storytelling is endless). His various regenerations (and what a brilliant idea that was, allowing changes of the lead actor every so often and ensuring the show's continuation) reveal different aspects of his character and the pace, complexity of plotting and the emotional content have all been 'upped' since the show's return in 2005, but the basic tenets remain the same ... an eccentric (his ship is a Police Box from the 50s, for God's sake) alien with an, um, UNIQUE dress sense, quirky sense of humour and deep sense of right and wrong who (mostly) prefers to use his vast intelligence to outwit his enemies, with violence being a last resort. Things like the Tardis and the sonic screwdriver are recognisable even to non-fans, and as the likes of the Daleks, Cybermen and Autons terrified my generation so the Judoon, Weeping Angels and the Silence terrify this current one (actually, so do the new incarnations of the first three mentioned). 'NuWho' has made me laugh, cry, be thrilled and creeped out, not to mention grin at the ingeniousness of the storytelling ... and all within 45 minutes. It's utterly unique. And my fandom has been almost overwhelmingly positive, it has bolstered existing friendships and helped me make new ones ... I've met some utterly lovely people 'due to Who'.

As a now middle-aged man with a pretty mundane life, the show's spirit of adventure appeals to me. I mean, all of time and space ... that's GOTTA be worth a look, right? I (and millions of others across the globe) just want to keep watching to see what happens to the Doctor and his companions next, be it Jon Pertwee's dandified action-man scientist, Tom Baker's long-scarfed boggle-eyed grinning loon or David Tennant's pinstripe-and-Converse lovelorn 'chic geek' (and from Christmas onwards, Peter Capaldi's 12th Doctor ... am excited to see what this brilliant actor (and lifelong fan) will bring to the part).

So, in summation ... to my fellow Whovians it's Allons-y, Geronimo, jelly babies and neutron flows with reversed polarities all round. Here's to the NEXT 50 years ... enjoy The Day Of The Doctor!  (And if you read all that, thank you KINDLY).

*Tardis dematerialising noise* '

It's not that I hated it, I just thought it could have been much stronger. I did enjoy it very much, but I think it certainly had some flaws.

If anything though, I'm really glad the Time War story has been brought to a conclusion. I was getting tired of all the "I'm all alone" sad/brooding speeches. It seems like Moffat is setting up the Search for Gallifrey as the main theme for Series 8.

Also, did you see the 5 Doctor Reboot directed by Peter Davison? If not, you should definitely check it out. It's a half hour piece about the classic Doctors trying to convince Moffat to let them be in the 50th anniversary. It's really well done and quite fun seeing the old Doctors having a grand old time. Highly worth checking out!

Quote :

It's utterly unique. And my fandom has been almost overwhelmingly positive, it has bolstered existing friendships and helped me make new ones ... I've met some utterly lovely people 'due to Who'.

The thing I love about Who is the fandom is like a family in a sense. Sure, everybody loves a certain Doctor or they might really dislike a certain one, but at the end of the day everybody seems to get along and wish them all the best. It's also great seeing the past actors (minus Eccleston) still so involved in the community and have a fun time with it all.

Quote :

As a now middle-aged man with a pretty mundane life, the show's spirit of adventure appeals to me. I mean, all of time and space ... that's GOTTA be worth a look, right? I (and millions of others across the globe) just want to keep watching to see what happens to the Doctor and his companions next, be it Jon Pertwee's dandified action-man scientist, Tom Baker's long-scarfed boggle-eyed grinning loon or David Tennant's pinstripe-and-Converse lovelorn 'chic geek' (and from Christmas onwards, Peter Capaldi's 12th Doctor ... am excited to see what this brilliant actor (and lifelong fan) will bring to the part).

The thing I love about the show is that no matter how old I am it always brings out the inner child in me, whether it be classic or modern Who. There's nothing better than being trapped inside on a rainy or snowy day, popping in a Who episode and getting whisked away into some crazy adventure. No matter how cheap looking or wobbly the sets may be, it's still a thrill watching these stories.  There's very few films or TV shows that give me that feeling. Even James Bond doesn't always do that for me, but with Doctor Who is it almost always a sure bet.

Blunt Instrument wrote:

If you'll permit me a little indulgence, my Facebook tribute -
....

That's a terrific tribute BI I heartily applaud those sentiments and loved the anniversary story warts and all. Yes the Zygons do get short shrift but the main narrative plays out brilliantly and the trio of Doctors are a joy to behold. I was delighted that Billie Piper was not Rose here and that 'Bad Wolf' has an earlier root than the drivel RTD knocked out, it had a element or two of Christmas Carol in there which is no bad thing, Hurt was mesmerising and spoke many lines I felt needed to be said - even if they were in the form of jokes and will probably go unheeded.

Moore wrote:

If anything though, I'm really glad the Time War story has been brought to a conclusion. I was getting tired of all the "I'm all alone" sad/brooding speeches. It seems like Moffat is setting up the Search for Gallifrey as the main theme for Series 8.

This is the real joy and celebration, it seems such an age since we had anything wholeheartedly positive to celebrate in Who, its always tinged with misery or overwhelming self import but here is a reset button that makes sense of it. I concede I was quite affected when Doctors joined 'Hurt' and were about to press the button, that moment of forgiveness and understanding would have been enough but we got so much more and all via a rational use of time and space. Flaws yes, but against so much achieved they really matter not - old Who and New have at least become the whole they always should be in my mind.

The only real issue I feel now exists is continuity of 'The Last of the Timelords'... to my mind one of the worse stories in the series history and one I would love could be reset but nevertheless one whose content must be relevant in the light of this... errr... revelation.

Yes, I think the 'search for Gallifrey' is what Moffat meant by the special bringing about a change in how the Doctor goes about his travels from now on. Y' know, can't escape a sneaking feeling that the creation of Hurt's 'War Doctor' and the whole 'Doctor goes back and ends the Time War in a much more positive way' thing (thereby making Ninth's brooding in particular pointless) might've been Moffat's 'revenge' for Eccleston's frankly shitty attitude.

Loved Hurt effectively being the first 'grumpy old man' Doctor since Hartnell ... 'Timey-wimey? Must we talk like children?' 'Are you capable of talking WITHOUT flapping your hands about?'.

Yes, caught 'The Five(ish) Doctors Reboot' ... a proper hoot, it was. Loved McCoy mentioning The Hobbit at every opportunity, an in-labour Georgia Tennant ringing hubby David from the delivery-room table to warn him that father-in-law Davison would likely be in touch, and Tennant (after hanging up) all *Hmm, wasn't there something I was meant to ask her about?*, and John Barrowman agreeing to be involved in their 'campaign' after they discover his 'secret' wife and kids.

Oh, and thank you very much lachesis  . BTW, anyone else still trying to figure out whether Tom Baker's 'Curator' was a somehow-elderly version of the Fourth Doctor trying to help out the Eleventh, or just a illogical yet fan-pleasing cameo (kinda like the DB5 in Skyfall having the Connery-era gadgetry)? Baker and Smith's dialogue was so in-joke laden, it was difficult to tell!

lachesis wrote:

Blunt Instrument wrote:

If you'll permit me a little indulgence, my Facebook tribute -
....

That's a terrific tribute BI I heartily applaud those sentiments and loved the anniversary story warts and all. Yes the Zygons do get short shrift but the main narrative plays out brilliantly and the trio of Doctors are a joy to behold. I was delighted that Billie Piper was not Rose here and that 'Bad Wolf' has an earlier root than the drivel RTD knocked out, it had a element or two of Christmas Carol in there which is no bad thing, Hurt was mesmerising and spoke many lines I felt needed to be said - even if they were in the form of jokes and will probably go unheeded.

Moore wrote:

If anything though, I'm really glad the Time War story has been brought to a conclusion. I was getting tired of all the "I'm all alone" sad/brooding speeches. It seems like Moffat is setting up the Search for Gallifrey as the main theme for Series 8.

This is the real joy and celebration, it seems such an age since we had anything wholeheartedly positive to celebrate in Who, its always tinged with misery or  overwhelming self import but here is a reset button that makes sense of it. I concede I was quite affected when Doctors joined 'Hurt' and were about to press the button, that moment of forgiveness and understanding would have been enough but we got so much more and all via a rational use of time and space. Flaws yes, but against so much achieved they really matter not - old Who and New have at least become the whole they always should be in my mind.

The only real issue I feel now exists is continuity of 'The Last of the Timelords'... to my mind one of the worse stories in the series history and one I would love could be reset but nevertheless one whose content must be relevant in the light of this... errr... revelation.

Out of all the horrible Doctor Who stories, if I could erase one for all time it would be The Last of the Time Lords. Yes...I'd even choose it over Time and the Rani. The Last of the Time Lords is an absoultely horrific piece of work. I dislike pretty much every single second of that story. I don't even know where to begin. The crappy story....the Master being horrifically bad....the Doctor being sidelined for the whole story as a tiny, aged dwarf locked in a bird cage who saves the day when everybody chats his name like he is the messiah.

Ugh...I do feel in modern Who the Doctor is a little too "powerful" and god like. He knows pretty much every species, location, etc. I would like to see him go to a place and have no clue as to what species he is fighting or where he is....he has no idea what they are capable or what they might do.

I like to see him in a bit of a struggle to save the day. I like to see him facing crazy odds. But what they did in Last of the Time Lords was just way too much.

I would discuss the issue of continuity but I've tried to erase every moment of that story from my mind.

Blunt Instrument wrote:

Oh, and thank you very much lachesis  . BTW, anyone else still trying to figure out whether Tom Baker's 'Curator' was a somehow-elderly version of the Fourth Doctor trying to help out the Eleventh, or just a illogical yet fan-pleasing cameo (kinda like the DB5 in Skyfall having the Connery-era gadgetry)? Baker and Smith's dialogue was so in-joke laden, it was difficult to tell!  

My take (and a theory that is quite popular on the Who forums at the moment) is that Baker is a future incarnation of the Doctor in retirement and not the 4th Doctor. Remember.... at the beginning of the story Queen Elizabeth makes the Doctor curator of the museum. Seconds before Baker- the Curator- appears, 11 muses about retiring one day and becoming the Curator. Baker responded something to the effect of "oh, I think you just might."

11 mentions "I never forget a face," acknowleding he recognizes this person.

It seems like Baker is not the 4th Doctor or an alternate fourth, but a future regeneration of the Doctor in retirement. He looks like the 4th Doctor because, as he mentions after 11 says "I never forget a face..." he says "You might find yourself revisiting one or two of the old favorites."

Plus the way the two of them talk about Gallifrey....there is no other person it could be but the Doctor...he practically tells 11 that his plan worked and that Gallifrey is "lost" but is out there somewhere.

Now it's clear he is saying he IS the Doctor...but it is not clear if he is an aged version of the 4th or a future incarnation. But judging by the fact 11 is made the curator...followed by his "Maybe I'll retire and be the curator one day..." and that is then followed by a Curator who is the Doctor... it seems like a future version of the Doctor is a much more likely answer than the a 4th or alternate 4th.

While most of all it was definitely in there to give the fans of jolt for the 50th, there is no doubt (in my mind at least) that it was a form of a future Doctor.

Also some people pointed out... look at the wall of the museum...

[img]

It looks like the roundels from the TARDIS.  Some have suggested he hides the TARDIS by cloaking it as part of the museum.