I am a huge fan of the contemporary DOCTOR WHO but my interest waned when Jenna Coleman left the series and it began to feel like the brilliant Steven Moffat was weary and had run out of ideas in series 10. I had hesitations when it was announced that Chris Chibnall was going to pick up the reigns for the 13th Doctor. I had found his previous episodes had two major drawbacks, the sonic screwdriver became a magic wand that got the crew out of every imaginable mess and he dumped too many elements into each episodes making the story lines muddy and eclectically weak. I feel the first female Doctor suffered under his helmsmanship. I even put off seeing the 13th series because I didn’t hold out much hope for the story arcs. However, when I binged THE FLUX episodes in one day, I found that his annoying habit of making an episode an encyclopaedia of Who cannon, really worked well when measured over a season. The season’s story arc blossomed as most of the iconic threats were resurrected for his “end of days” narrative. I was pleasantly surprised. The first 7 seasons of the contemporary WHO will always be 10 (perfect) out of 10 for me. Seasons 8, 9 & 10 fell to 9s (superb) or 8s (great) and then to 7s (good) but the Chibnal years (seasons 11 and 12) barely hung on to 6s (fair) and 5s (meh), but I’m raising my rating for series 13 back up to a high 8 (really great) for Chibnall’s finale season. I’m so looking forward to Russel T Davies picking up the reigns as show runner in the fall of 2022. [Classic SciFi]
As of Season 12 :
This show takes me on a true journey and one that I won't forget in a hurry. I truly believe that every doctor and companion stood out in there own right and brought a new element and batch of life to the show. I will admit that some episodes can be hit or miss. I don't particularly like the season 1 episode World War 3 or the Season 9 episode Sleep No More but these episodes are interspersed among so many greats.
Then that's not to mention the amazing actors/actresses that appear in this shoe. Some of my favourites being Catherine Tate as the magnificent and witty companion Donna Noble, David Tennant as the tenth Doctor, Maisie Williams as Ashildr. Then we had cameos from superstars such as Kylie Mingogue who appeared in a Christmas special and absolutely shone. I do have a few continuity issues with the 12th season episode The Timeless Children but I'm hoping that this will be more fleshed out in season 13 which is set to release later this year. I'm also hopeful that they bring back River Song, she was probably one of my favourite characters in the David Tennant/Matt Smith/Peter Capaldi eras and I've really missed her while Jodie's been flying the TARDIS and I think re-introducing River Song could be quite interesting now that her husband is a female. So that's what I'm hoping for but we'll see!
Anyway this is an amazing show that's not without its flaws but it has some truly heart wrenching moments. Definitely, give this a watch!
I'm reviewing all the Chis Chibnall episodes of Doctor Who in anticipation of him ascending to show runner this next season. I loved BROADCHURCH, but when I dipped into his Doctor Who scripts: 42 (3x07); The Hungry Earth (part 1), Cold Blood (part 2) (5x08, 09), Dinosaurs on a Spaceship (7x02), The Power of Three (7x04), and a group of 2012 mini-episodes: POND LIFE (5 parts) and P.S. (available on YouTube), I thoroughly enjoyed the mini-series - they were top-notch, heart-felt and memorable. Unfortunately the individual episodes were less memorable and diminished by an over abundance of great ideas/plot points/interesting characters all crammed into one episode. This may, however, foretell a strength - as a show runner he could plant this plethora of ideas over the series arch allowing his writers room (a new concept to UK series development but common to US television) to flesh out each of them in the individual episodes. He also had a bad habit of resolving all the crises with a wave of the sonic screwdriver, which is a costly error for anyone creating fantasy worlds, begging the question, why did the magic only seem to have it's ability in the nick of time. Chris Chibnal has also written for LIFE ON MARS (UK), TORCHWOOD, LAW & ORDER (UK), UNITED (film), THE GREAT TRAIN ROBBERY (BBC film). Personally I'm really looking forward to Chibnal at the head, and Jodi Whittaker taking up the mantel next year. It can't come soon enough!
I've never seen the seasons from before 2005— I tried, but no matter what I couldn't stand watching more than 5 minutes of the show, its low quality effects and the black&white; cinematogrpahy- but I grew attached to the 2005+ show.
That said, until now the seasons were intelligent, interesting, made sense and the show always had a direction from early on.
There was plenty of fun, anxiety, creepiness, love...deep emotions...duh.... whatever, this season was totally episodic, made no sense, and, there was no exciting/meaningful story around it. What I dislike the most about season 8 is the britishness of The Doctor and Missy. Up until season 8 I accepted the fact The Doctor was crazy about the brits, but as of now he's turned british... and Missy, aka. The Master embodies all British Characteristics, being the modern version of an evil Mary Poppins. Sure, Doctor Who is all about crazy, irrational stuff, but this is not the kind of crazy irrational stuff I expected.
Contrary to popular opinion I liked S8's character focus and I'll definately miss Clara- although, I don't think we've seen the last of Clara Oswald. She is the strangest assistant/friend the doctor's ever had on his team and I'm generally dissatisfied about this finale; we still don't know who exactly she is. Capaldi's a great Doctor, I'm looking forward to Xmas 2014.
Doctor Who is a sci-fi show about an alien who can travel through time and space and he has a human companion with him and they go on adventures.
The alien, the doctor, looks human but wears the realistic nature of being an alien and the weight of the experiences he's been through, along with his great age.
The show originally started in the 60s and went on for decades, but this show from 2005 onwards is a soft reboot, and no knowledge is required from the original show, and enough is explained in this show to not need to have seen episodes of the previous show.
The adventures they go on encompass all kinds of sci-fi and fantasy stories, from campy to far future to historical to horror.
Being able to travel through time and space provides many opportunities for interesting adventures, and the show often takes advantage of that premise, giving full, interesting experiences, rich characters and emotional depth.
You will meet some of the most interesting fictional aliens and alien mythology. Doctor Who has one of the most interesting fictional universes ever.
Although it can seem silly sometimes, and the premise seems farfetched, people die all the time in the show, and there's many dark moments throughout. The character of the doctor is very interesting, as are the companions as they come to be explored through the show.
There are many good alien designs and villains and mythology of alien races, it's all often interesting. Most episodes are standalone, but each season also has it's own arc.
It's a good show, and it's good for a long time.
Even if you don't like the doctor or a companion or the era, it will eventually change to an era you might like better. It makes the show constantly fresh.
Remember to watch the christmas specials because some are important.
Here is a watch order. Included are minisodes, which you don't need to watch. Also included are spinoffs such as The Sarah Jane Adventures and Torchwood. Both of these are good shows, especially Torchwood later on, but they're not necessary to understand what goes on in Doctor Who.
https://www.geekyregards.com/p/doctor-who-complete-nuwhoniverse.html
Also don't read the trivia spoiler section on IMDB if you haven't seen future seasons. And don't read the normal section if you want to be surprised.
One of the problems with doctor who is the messy continuity, which becomes more promiment with each showrunner. Compounded by the classic show and spinoffs, but it's all not fatal or necessary for understanding Doctor Who, as each showrunner likes to start fresh, so it's like a soft reboot within the show each time.
Doctor Who is quite good for a lot of seasons, and has some great episodes and great moments with consistent depth. And being good for a lot of seasons is a long time, much longer than most shows, so it shouldn't be surprising the show begins it's decline later on. Even with the decline, Doctor Who is still mostly an entertaining show to watch with a lot of good episodes. All in all, Doctor Who is an essential show to watch as a sci-fi fan.
I'm not sure how I feel about Capaldi yet. Although the last half of the new episode started to feel like Dr Who again.. That first one is always so awkward. 50 years and running, I love this show. Smith was okay, but too boyish for me, I can't wait to see how Capaldi becomes the Doctor. Too everyone saying he's old.. well, so is the Doctor.
For years I swore of Doctor Who. Despite enjoying a hell of a lot of sci-fi I could not bring myself to watch it, thinking the BBC couldn't possible pull off the concept in a way that I would enjoy. Anyway as it was everywhere for the 50th Anniversary I suddenly decided to give it a go, primarily because I have enjoyed Christopher Eccleston in other things. Season 1 was a casual watch for me with some good moments but it wasn't until a key Season 2 episode - The Girl in the Fireplace that my interest was piqued. The moment when it took off and became must watch TV was the introduction of "Spoilers" :) and the fact that this show is accessible to everyone but is never dumbed down either. The humour helps a lot too! Both Tennant and Smith have been superb and I have been impressed with how each of the Companions has not simply been another version of each other but all have been interesting with the exception of Martha. Some truly impressive villains as well - The Weeping Angels are incredibly creepy and my favourite - and I like the fact they keep things fresh with and unpredictable. Changing companions and Doctors every three or so years has been brave not least because most have been really good, but it has allowed for some great emotional moments and they have done a sterling job of ensuring the replacements have been good. Let's hope Capaldi measures up - but I have a feeling he will!!
Review by tayBlockedParent2015-05-02T23:35:17Z
I gave DW a ten as rating because it's still my favorite show and because i feel very loyal to it. The show got all my love with its first 4 series, thanks to Eccleston and Tennant as doctors, and RTD as showrunner. However, watching Moffat's era to me felt like one of those old [bad] habits you can't quite 'get rid of' even if you wanted. I know many people might think 'But if you don't like it so much right now, why don't you just quit?' My answer would be: because DW isn't Moffat's show [lol someone should tell him that], it belongs to us fans. It's much larger than his incredibly annoying, self-indulgent, irritating storylines that have been ruining the show since series 6. I enjoyed s8 more than his other series simply because of Capaldi's good performance and the incredible Jenna, but yet it's not enough for me to fully enjoy it as i used to. My only hope is that Moffat leaves the show in hands of someone who would know how to write proper storylines without plot holes/continuity errors/sexism, and bring it to its former glory. And i hope that's going to be soon.