Dr. Who - a show for the truly decrepit

[Warnersister]

Harbone

No one's dissing the show.

At least, not on this thread. New Adventures refers to some fan-produced stuff, I think, and no one's really dissed that... of course, I haven't seen any of the New Adventures stuff (but I heard some Big Finish shows and I liked those.)

Not sure how canon the series is, but the New Adventures are fully licensed, not fan-produced. It's a series of getting on for a hundred books, set after the last episode of the Seventh Doctor's tenure and before the TV movie with the Eighth Doctor. No, I tell a lie, the last in the series is set just after the TV movie.

You can read a few of them online here (along with some Past Doctor adventures): http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/ebooks/

Lungbarrow & Dying Days go for ridiculous sums on eBay, so reading them at the BBC for free is a great plan. Human Nature was adapted for the new TV series with Tennant.

The New Adventures series ended when the TV movie was out because the BBC needed the licence back to produce their own books around the TV movie, as well as the past Doctors. If you read the BBC ones, you'll find a lot of the authors started out on the New Adventures. In fact, RTD wrote an NA, albeit an icky one.

After the licence went back to the Beeb, Virgin continued with the adventures of Bernice Summerfield, an ex-companion. I think they had studiously to avoid all mention of the Doctor, the TARDIS or anything else trademarked, but other than that they were in a similar style.

DW  

[Harbone]

Oh. I just like watching the TV Show, mostly. I could never really get into the book stuff. Since it has to be adapted before the show writers even mention it, it can all get a bit bewildering.

Ah heh.  

[patienceisavirtue86]

okay so I am totally confused we are talking about the Doctor Who show that they on SciFi all the time right, you know he's all britishy and there is that one b***h who seems to ask a lot of ******** questions...that is the same show right?...I used to watch that show with my dad...I never really got all that much into it...I like cartoons more...and my neice seems to like that...um anyways....could someone please tell if that is the show we are talking about it would be appreciated.  

[patienceisavirtue86]

nevermind...I am slow and didn't realize that there was link to clickity click...I have no idea what those movies are...I guess I am not old enough to know anything about this conversation..sorry. sweatdrop  

[Mrs_Black_Bear]

Harbone

Oh man, yeah! William Hartnell was a total a**! I loved him, and he was a very popular cranky old man.

Back in the days when Dr. Who first got started, all the action hero stuff was left up to his earthling companions (that Ian Chesterton character played by William Russel, for instance.)

Hartnell himself was an excellent character actor and if you have a chance, you may want to seek out some of his films. At times they're a bit avant garde, but often thoroughly enjoyable!

Thank you for the advice hehe we are slowly collecting all of the doctor who series we can save for those that the bbc threw away which pisses me off because that means i can't ever see those episodes that makes me very sad indeed.  

[Harbone]

Great! I hope you enjoy it.
I think you'll find watching some of those old episodes a rewarding experience (word of warning: they are MUCH slower-paced than the modern show. This was 60s daytime TV, after all!)

By the way, the um... lady... or guy, as the case may be, who asks the doctor all the stupid questions is called a Foil. This is usually the role of the Doctor's companion, because it wouldn't make sense for a guy with supposedly superior knowledge to say "Why is that happening," a question which the audience very much needs asked.

The purpose of a foil is to reveal the inner life or thinking process of another character in a more naturalistic way than, say, a soliloquy. Rather than just having the main character TELL the audience what he or she is thinking (or becoming aware of), you can have a close friend or companion ASK what the main character is thinking, feeling or becoming aware of - the bond of trust established between the two characters allows you to give the Foil (and, by association, the audience) some necessary information. In the ancient Greek theatre, the foil was often the role of the second player, or deuteragonist.

So it's an old trick.

Science fiction shows often need a character like this, just to make sure everyone in the audience is up to speed. Good writers can circumvent it, and Russel T. Davies and crew did well with many of the Rose (Billy Piper) Martha (Freema Agyeman) and Donna Noble (Katherine Tate) episodes, but, sometimes, yeah, the companion is gonna sound a little thick.

(Incidentally, this very phenomena is the reason why Captain Ryker, in the Star Trek the next generation show, had to paraphrase almost everything anyone on the ship told him into the form of an everyday metaphor. "You mean, it's like a water balloon and we can't turn the faucet off?")  

[Momma Mira]

I love Doctor Who. I used to watch it with mom and dad when it came on the local PBS station, and now I watch the new series with Hubby.
My favorite doctor is the Fourth, though the Tenth is coming up fast. And my favorite companion was Romana. (Though I'm not sure if she counts as a Companion as she was another Time Lord)
And I scared Hubby when I realized the Master was making a comeback on the new series. (I cheered).

And I love Captain Jack. So far I've been unsuccessful in watching Torchwood though. After seeing the final episode for last season in US, I REALLY want to see that now.

Has BBC made a season after that? I heard Tenant was doing Hamlet so that it was put on hiatus. And I also heard rumors of an animated series. Is it true?

ninja  

[Corbin Noir]

I liked Eccleston's Who, Tennant's is very hit and miss. I can't stand any of the older series; much too dry and boring. sweatdrop  

[Nikolai Tesla]

I'm already missing Tennent and he's not even gone yet.  

[luckygirl2113]

I'm actually glad that there's going to be a new Doctor. I liked David Tennant's Doctor, but it's time for someone else to have a turn.  

[Karill]

I love the new Doctor Who. I (amazingly enough) managed to get my mother interested. In fact, so interested that she Netflix'd every single episode of the old Doctor Who she could get her hands on.
And, yes, I'm sure I'll be torched for blaspheme, but I really wasn't impressed with the older ones. Maybe I'm too young of a geezer. Though, we just got "Time Warrior", and I'm liking young Sarah Jane.  

[lostphrack]

Twighlight Mira

I love Doctor Who. I used to watch it with mom and dad when it came on the local PBS station, and now I watch the new series with Hubby.
My favorite doctor is the Fourth, though the Tenth is coming up fast. And my favorite companion was Romana. (Though I'm not sure if she counts as a Companion as she was another Time Lord)
And I scared Hubby when I realized the Master was making a comeback on the new series. (I cheered).

And I love Captain Jack. So far I've been unsuccessful in watching Torchwood though. After seeing the final episode for last season in US, I REALLY want to see that now.

Has BBC made a season after that? I heard Tenant was doing Hamlet so that it was put on hiatus. And I also heard rumors of an animated series. Is it true?

ninja

There are four seasons of NuWho right now, I think there's supposed to be about 4 specials throughout '09 with a new season coming on '10, sans Tennant. I think BBC America's going to be kicking off their run of NuWho season 4 next weekend..?

We've only had two seasons of Torchwood, I think I liked the second one better. I thought the first was a bit uneven. There's supposed to be a third, shorter season of Torchwood coming in '09. I heard somewhere that they were going to treat it more like a serialized story, so basically.. six episodes, six chapters, one season long story.

Ooo.. we're also getting a second season of the Sarah Jane Adventures too, can't forget that. I thought the first season was surprisingly fun.  

[Momma Mira]

Ooo more Sarah Jane! I really liked that one (speaking of which has anyone ever seen the original Sarah Jane adventures they did? I heard about it from my Doctor Who: A Celebration book (first through fifth doctors).

I'm going to miss Tennant, but it's always fun to see a new Doctor.

ninja  

[Tanith_4486]

I like Dr who. but all I have seen are comic-book things and an advertisment( for the show in england a couple of years ago).

If anyone would like to tell me more, please do.  

[Zander_Rose]

I can't watch it here