The new era
Five episodes into the new series era of Doctor Who and it is a new era. New Doctor, new companion, new TARDIS, new sonic screwdriver and, probably most important, new show runner.
With all those changes I was slightly worried that the show would feel completely different. But fortunately it doesn't. It's different in many ways, but the spirit is still the same. There's still the Doctor and the monsters. It can still be scary and funny and heartbreaking at the same time. There are still riddles and wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey stuff that make your head spin. Who is Amy? Why doesn't she remember the Daleks? And why is that crack following her? What is it with the duck pond without ducks? Who is River, whom did she kill and how can she be even more annoying? Why do we get two versions of the Doctor? And what is it the Doctor in his TARDIS doesn't see/know? It is still, fundamentally, the same show. The one thing that really needs getting used to is, just like from series 1 to series 2, the new Doctor.
I miss Ten. There is still no doubt that he is and will always be my Doctor. And part of me will always miss him and part of me will always expect him to step out of the TARDIS or rush around the corner, sonic screwdriver in hand. Just like I constantly did during the first two or three episodes of series 5.
But just because, for me, no one can compete with Ten and no Doctor can ever completely fill the void he left, that doesn't make Eleven any less brilliant. And he is brilliant. And so is Amy. &hearts
From the first moment I saw Matt Smith in another role - I think is was on Secret Diary of a Call Girl - I was convinced that he was the perfect choice. Yes, he is young. Honestly, David was young and Matt is even younger, but he can look so old. Just look into his eyes. How can you not believe they've seen 907 years? He doesn't have Ten's character depth (yet?) but then again it took a while until I could see that in Ten. After all, I'm still getting to know Eleven and he is still getting to know himself.
So, yeah, if the TARDIS materialised in my garden, brakes left on of course, and Eleven would step out offering me to travel through time and space with him, I'd go in an instant. No second thoughts. I have fully accepted him as the Doctor. Not MY Doctor, but THE Doctor. Funny thing is, I accepted him a lot faster than I was able to accept Ten. Maybe because, while they are different on many levels, Ten and Eleven have a lot more in common than Nine and Ten did.
There is even one specific scene, the one in "Flesh and Stone" when the (future?) Doctor comes back to Amy, who is sitting there, compleley helpless with her eyes closed. And he takes her hand and asks her to trust him and to remember what he had told her when she was seven years old. It was that moment when I think I actually fell in love a little bit.
So I am fully back to travelling with the Doctor. He is still a brilliant "madman with a box", he still protects the earth and he still makes up his plans as he goes along. Everything is like it always was, just different.
With all those changes I was slightly worried that the show would feel completely different. But fortunately it doesn't. It's different in many ways, but the spirit is still the same. There's still the Doctor and the monsters. It can still be scary and funny and heartbreaking at the same time. There are still riddles and wibbly-wobbly timey-wimey stuff that make your head spin. Who is Amy? Why doesn't she remember the Daleks? And why is that crack following her? What is it with the duck pond without ducks? Who is River, whom did she kill and how can she be even more annoying? Why do we get two versions of the Doctor? And what is it the Doctor in his TARDIS doesn't see/know? It is still, fundamentally, the same show. The one thing that really needs getting used to is, just like from series 1 to series 2, the new Doctor.
I miss Ten. There is still no doubt that he is and will always be my Doctor. And part of me will always miss him and part of me will always expect him to step out of the TARDIS or rush around the corner, sonic screwdriver in hand. Just like I constantly did during the first two or three episodes of series 5.
But just because, for me, no one can compete with Ten and no Doctor can ever completely fill the void he left, that doesn't make Eleven any less brilliant. And he is brilliant. And so is Amy. &hearts
From the first moment I saw Matt Smith in another role - I think is was on Secret Diary of a Call Girl - I was convinced that he was the perfect choice. Yes, he is young. Honestly, David was young and Matt is even younger, but he can look so old. Just look into his eyes. How can you not believe they've seen 907 years? He doesn't have Ten's character depth (yet?) but then again it took a while until I could see that in Ten. After all, I'm still getting to know Eleven and he is still getting to know himself.
So, yeah, if the TARDIS materialised in my garden, brakes left on of course, and Eleven would step out offering me to travel through time and space with him, I'd go in an instant. No second thoughts. I have fully accepted him as the Doctor. Not MY Doctor, but THE Doctor. Funny thing is, I accepted him a lot faster than I was able to accept Ten. Maybe because, while they are different on many levels, Ten and Eleven have a lot more in common than Nine and Ten did.
There is even one specific scene, the one in "Flesh and Stone" when the (future?) Doctor comes back to Amy, who is sitting there, compleley helpless with her eyes closed. And he takes her hand and asks her to trust him and to remember what he had told her when she was seven years old. It was that moment when I think I actually fell in love a little bit.
So I am fully back to travelling with the Doctor. He is still a brilliant "madman with a box", he still protects the earth and he still makes up his plans as he goes along. Everything is like it always was, just different.