Doctor Who User Reviews
Tonight at 11:00 pm PBS (ch 29)
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3 stars
The long awaited return of the Doctor
November 30, 2006I am most impressed wth the return of Doctor Who and the changes made in the quality of the programmng...In the 80's, I (a Whovian) had many arguments with friends who were Treckies (Treckers, or whatever the PC term is that they call themselves now) over which show was better. The said that Dr. Who was a joke because of the Special effects. But my argument was that one did not watch Dr. Who for special effects, but for its writing: deep plots, deep theories, deep characters. Now it seems that the BBC (with the help of CBC) has corrected their long standing problem by producing superior special effects.
It is true that during the final years of the original series, things started going down hill. The writing got crappy, the characters got silly, the plots sillier, and the Doctor himself looked more like a circus clown than his previous incarnations. This is most likely why the show losts its viewership, thus was cancelled. Again, the BBC in its infinite wisdom saw to correct that problem with the new series. Writing and characters are true, three dimentional, and conflict driven. The assistants are no longer machines for writers to cue exposition ("Doctor, I don't understand..."). but characters that move, influence, and react to the plot. But most importantly, they have figured out that the Doctor can still have his eccentric style and being without having to look like a a hobo that was puked on crayon eating birthday clown.
In short, the New Doctor Who will more than satisfy the die-hard fans of the original series, as well as bring new converts to the family. Who knows...maybe these new converts will want more, and start looking into the past to learn who Jon Pertwe, Tom Baker, and Peter Davidson were....Was this review helpful to you? Sign in to rate -
4 stars
The new seasons of this show are excellent!
July 10, 2008Doctor Who started out as a sci fi show with good stories & some questionable effects & acting. It finally ended that way, though some of the "Doctors' managed to deliver some goos performances.
This new series has greatly improved effects, acting and the stories have been excellent!Was this review helpful to you? Sign in to rate -
4 stars
An American Fanatic of the Good Doctor
February 9, 2008Jon Pertwee was my first and favorite Doctor. I saw the early seventies series in the late seventies, on PBS Station WTTW from Chicago, Illinios. The Terror of the Autons is one of my favorite arcs. As a child, I was scared by these episodes.
Doctor Who was dropped by WTTW. In the mid eighties I found Doctor Who on another PBS station. This time the fourth Doctor, Tom Baker, had taken over. At the end of the Tom Baker episodes, station KUAT tried to show all of Doctor Who.
It aired as many of the old episodes it could get hold of as it could. I saw William Hartnell, Patrick Troughton and, my favorite, Jon Pertwee episodes.
As I went through Doctors, I still found the series entertaining. The special effects got better, but the stories and writing were always good.
I was sad to see Doctor Who disappear in the nineties. I didn't realize how much I liked Doctor Who until I saw the first Christopher Eccleston episode. I was alone watching "Rose", when I recognized the Autons and knew the Nestene were back. I gave a Shout of Joy. Seeing Rose Tyler menaced by store mannaquins, I relived Jo Grant's peril in the seventies.
The enjoyment I had as a child continues. Imagine a program you can enjoy all your life. I, like a lot of British, grew up on Doctor Who. I am Happy to See it Back! Doctor Who is not just for the U. K. It's good for the U. S. A. Too!Was this review helpful to you? Sign in to rate -
5 stars
Instant Fan
December 8, 20062 of 2 found this review helpful.
By vegetarainsdeathuponall See all vegetarainsdeathuponall's reviews (1)
When I first saw it, I never ever heard about it. After watching one episode, I was hooked. I am a big Sci-fi fan and the Doctor appeals to all. My family has all taken a liking to the series (even my Wife who doesn't watch Sci-fi), I like it because the plots are written well to the point you want to watch it till the end. I really like the ninth doctor, but the tenth has seem to taken a more stricter approach in dealing with matters, I would like to hear what happenedto him that he had to regenerate from the eight to the ninth Doctor. More backstory on the Time War would be good or maybe a chance encounter with previous incarnations or sidekicks (such as the episode with Sarah Jane Smith).Was this review helpful to you? Sign in to rate -
5 stars
This Yahoo TV Beta Sucks - but the show is GREAT!!
January 4, 2007First off, as of this writing, there are only 2 seasons of this new Doctor Who series - not 3.
Second, stick with one set of air dates. The first season listed here shows the original BBC air dates. Then there is this mysterious "Season 2" listed, and the Season 3 episodes list the USA SciFi Channel air dates. The original airdates are the BBC dates (I'm in the USA by the way).
The least Yahoo could do is hire some teenagers that know enough to go to TV dot com and copy/paste the info from there.
Anyway, on to the show. This new run of Doctor Who is really great. I wasn't sure how I would like Eccelston's portrayal of the Doctor, but it turned out he did a really fantastic job (season 1).
Dave Tennant brings a bit of a manic touch to his portrayal (season 2 - current) and is fun to watch as well.
Billie Piper did a REALLY great job in the first two seasons. I know that some fans felt she took away from the Doctor as center of the show, but it turned out that she offered a nice balance. Too bad she decided to move on. Even though she only stayed for two seasons, she will probably be regarded as one of the better companions of the series - like Elisabeth Sladen (Sarah Jane Smith).
Today's Doctor Who really takes advantage of modern special effects. There is just enough camp and cheese to remind you that this is after Doctor Who, but episodes like The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances show how far the budget has grown. Production value is definietly much higher than in the past.
Overall, this is a great way to spend an hour in front of the tube and to be entertained. The show does not try to be anything other than a campy romp around the universe. Don;t try to read too much into the series, just sit back and enjoy!!Was this review helpful to you? Sign in to rate
