Kappa's Commentaries #2: Doctor Who Edition
I’m both so far into NuWho and so far behind I feel like I don’t have anything to add to the discussion, except I enjoy the show quite a lot. I’ve seen all of Nine, and most of Ten and Eleven. Mostly, I’ve missed the specials and a couple of series finales. (I’m pretty well spoiled, though, and don’t care if I’m spoiled further, so don’t worry about editing yourself in the commnets.)
I’ve been a fan of all of the doctors and couldn’t pick a favorite, though I do have a soft spot for Nine, because he was my first Doctor, so in a way he’ll always be my Doctor, you know? I’ve also been a fan of basically all of the companions, but I do have favorites there: Donna, Rory, and Captain Jack. I think Martha would be right up there at the top, too, but she had the misfortune of being with the Doctor while he (and I) was dealing with the emotional fall-out of losing Rose. In terms of companions I’d most like to have lunch with, it’d definitely be Donna, Rory, Jack, and Martha. Maybe someday I’ll do a more detailed season-by-season review.
I'm looking forward to Capaldi's Doctor. It'll be nice to have an older actor playing the Doctor, to switch up the Doctor/companion chemistry. I'm hoping it helps Clara become more interesting. I don't fault the actress, but the version of Clara that we spent most of her run with just isn't that interesting. I much preferred Victorian!Clara and Dalek!Oswin/Clara. I don't know, I just kept thinking how much more fun a lot of the late Eleven episodes would have been with Victorian!Clara as the companion.
And in honor of the departed Eleventh Doctor, eleven of my favorite NuWho episodes, in no particular order (and two-parters count as one):
1. Empty Child/Doctor Dances: Creepy as all get-out, introduces Captain Jack, sonic technology jokes, and "Everybody lives!"
2. The Eleventh Hour: What a fantastic introduction to a new Doctor and a new companion. Does so much in establishing who they are in a very brief time.
3. Vincent and the Doctor: Bawled my eyes out. Want a copy of the Van Gogh-ified TARDIS for my wall.
4. The Doctor's Wife: Also made me bawl my eyes out. I love that the TARDIS gets to really and truly be a character and have a voice, if only for one episode.
5. Midnight: I love a good "trapped in a confined space" episode, and this was brilliantly done. I think this is probably one of David Tennant's best performances, too.
6. Human Nature/Family of Blood: To me, this is the very best of the "Doctor can't have a normal life" episodes. Brother Dear's narration is absolutely haunting.
7. Turn Left: Why I love Donna Noble.
8. Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead: The other reason I love Donna Noble--the guy with the stutter broke my heart. Also the reason I love River Song. Plus, the Vashta Nerada are quite possibly the creepiest of all Who villains, because there's no reason why they do what they do; they're just insatiable.
9. Blink: I knew the twist to this episode before I saw it, which takes away some of the punch, but I found the stories of the people the Weeping Angels sent back in time very interesting.
10. The God Complex: Very nightmarish, and really gets at the Doctor's weaknesses. I wished the doctor (I can't remember her name!) had gotten to stick around as a companion. She was cool.
11. Snowmen: Not really my favorite episode, but I love, love, LOVE, Madame Vastra, Jenny, and Strax. I want a spinoff of those three.
I tried one Original Who story, “The Caves of Andronazi,” which according to several websites is one of the best Original Who stories of all time. If that’s as good as it gets, I’m not sure I have the willpower to try another one. It was painful to watch.
This is not a budget/special effects snobbery thing, either. I’m pretty adept at suspending disbelief when it’s clear a show is doing the best it can with what it’s got-and honestly, I’m better at overlooking problems with practical effects than I am with bad CG.
This is a plain and simple failure to connect with the story or characters. This series of episodes is praised as having one of the best storylines of the series. Sure, it had a couple of “gotcha”-style twists, but on the whole, it was a pretty standard “corporate bad guy screws with society by controlling supply-side economics” crossed with a pretty standard “damaged mad scientist/Phantom of the Opera terrorizes invaders.” The really interesting moral issues surrounding the accessibility of medicine and the consequences of some people being able to achieve effective immortality were never even touched on. Nobody but the Doctor had anything remotely like the fun, zippy dialogue I’ve come to expect from NuWho, either.
And as for characters, with the exception of the Doctor himself (this was a Five/Peter Davison episode, if you’re curious), whom I thought I could get to like given a bit more time, I was either completely indifferent to or actively disliked everyone else. The companion Peri was my absolute least favorite. When the Doctor died to save her at the end, I kept thinking, “Dude, I hate to say this, because I know you can regenerate, but this chick is so not worth it.” Her only purpose seemed to be getting captured, whining, and discovering deadly things by falling into them. (Plus, her “American” accent really grated.)
If I ever do attempt Original Who again, I think I’m going to have to go by who the best companion is, rather than what others consider the best story. My feeling is that that’s Sarah Jane Smith, correct? If any of you have braved Original Who, any recommendations for episodes to try?
I’ve been a fan of all of the doctors and couldn’t pick a favorite, though I do have a soft spot for Nine, because he was my first Doctor, so in a way he’ll always be my Doctor, you know? I’ve also been a fan of basically all of the companions, but I do have favorites there: Donna, Rory, and Captain Jack. I think Martha would be right up there at the top, too, but she had the misfortune of being with the Doctor while he (and I) was dealing with the emotional fall-out of losing Rose. In terms of companions I’d most like to have lunch with, it’d definitely be Donna, Rory, Jack, and Martha. Maybe someday I’ll do a more detailed season-by-season review.
I'm looking forward to Capaldi's Doctor. It'll be nice to have an older actor playing the Doctor, to switch up the Doctor/companion chemistry. I'm hoping it helps Clara become more interesting. I don't fault the actress, but the version of Clara that we spent most of her run with just isn't that interesting. I much preferred Victorian!Clara and Dalek!Oswin/Clara. I don't know, I just kept thinking how much more fun a lot of the late Eleven episodes would have been with Victorian!Clara as the companion.
And in honor of the departed Eleventh Doctor, eleven of my favorite NuWho episodes, in no particular order (and two-parters count as one):
1. Empty Child/Doctor Dances: Creepy as all get-out, introduces Captain Jack, sonic technology jokes, and "Everybody lives!"
2. The Eleventh Hour: What a fantastic introduction to a new Doctor and a new companion. Does so much in establishing who they are in a very brief time.
3. Vincent and the Doctor: Bawled my eyes out. Want a copy of the Van Gogh-ified TARDIS for my wall.
4. The Doctor's Wife: Also made me bawl my eyes out. I love that the TARDIS gets to really and truly be a character and have a voice, if only for one episode.
5. Midnight: I love a good "trapped in a confined space" episode, and this was brilliantly done. I think this is probably one of David Tennant's best performances, too.
6. Human Nature/Family of Blood: To me, this is the very best of the "Doctor can't have a normal life" episodes. Brother Dear's narration is absolutely haunting.
7. Turn Left: Why I love Donna Noble.
8. Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead: The other reason I love Donna Noble--the guy with the stutter broke my heart. Also the reason I love River Song. Plus, the Vashta Nerada are quite possibly the creepiest of all Who villains, because there's no reason why they do what they do; they're just insatiable.
9. Blink: I knew the twist to this episode before I saw it, which takes away some of the punch, but I found the stories of the people the Weeping Angels sent back in time very interesting.
10. The God Complex: Very nightmarish, and really gets at the Doctor's weaknesses. I wished the doctor (I can't remember her name!) had gotten to stick around as a companion. She was cool.
11. Snowmen: Not really my favorite episode, but I love, love, LOVE, Madame Vastra, Jenny, and Strax. I want a spinoff of those three.
I tried one Original Who story, “The Caves of Andronazi,” which according to several websites is one of the best Original Who stories of all time. If that’s as good as it gets, I’m not sure I have the willpower to try another one. It was painful to watch.
This is not a budget/special effects snobbery thing, either. I’m pretty adept at suspending disbelief when it’s clear a show is doing the best it can with what it’s got-and honestly, I’m better at overlooking problems with practical effects than I am with bad CG.
This is a plain and simple failure to connect with the story or characters. This series of episodes is praised as having one of the best storylines of the series. Sure, it had a couple of “gotcha”-style twists, but on the whole, it was a pretty standard “corporate bad guy screws with society by controlling supply-side economics” crossed with a pretty standard “damaged mad scientist/Phantom of the Opera terrorizes invaders.” The really interesting moral issues surrounding the accessibility of medicine and the consequences of some people being able to achieve effective immortality were never even touched on. Nobody but the Doctor had anything remotely like the fun, zippy dialogue I’ve come to expect from NuWho, either.
And as for characters, with the exception of the Doctor himself (this was a Five/Peter Davison episode, if you’re curious), whom I thought I could get to like given a bit more time, I was either completely indifferent to or actively disliked everyone else. The companion Peri was my absolute least favorite. When the Doctor died to save her at the end, I kept thinking, “Dude, I hate to say this, because I know you can regenerate, but this chick is so not worth it.” Her only purpose seemed to be getting captured, whining, and discovering deadly things by falling into them. (Plus, her “American” accent really grated.)
If I ever do attempt Original Who again, I think I’m going to have to go by who the best companion is, rather than what others consider the best story. My feeling is that that’s Sarah Jane Smith, correct? If any of you have braved Original Who, any recommendations for episodes to try?