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is anyone else here a fan of the british series Doctor Who?! i used to watch it all the time on public television when i was growing up in new england. i've purchased three of the stories on dvd in the last year or so, and they're a ton of fun. it seems like bbc video tends to put them out rather slowly, though. i'm especially keen to purchase "the brain of morbius" when it comes out.

for those of you who are unfamiliar with the series, it's about a guy called "the doctor" who zips around time and space in a machine called "the tardis", which usually happens to look like a blue british police phone booth. it's supposed to change appearances with whatever time period and environment it materializes in, but if i recall correctly, it was somewhat broken.

the doctor himself was not human. he's a time lord from the planet galifrey, and he usually travels with one or two companions, usually comely young girls. at certain periods in the series he also had a robot dog named k-9 with him, much to the chagrin of the viewing audience. throughout the series, which is still running, a number of different actors have played the title role. this was written into the storyline, because the doctor dies every so often, and regenerates in a new body, in the same place where he died. he retained all of his knowledge, but his characteristics were prone to change a bit from actor to actor.

perhaps one of the most celebrated portrayals of the doctor was that of tom baker, whom you might recognize as the villain from "the golden voyage of sinbad". tom baker was the fourth actor to play the doctor, and he was clearly the most fit for the part. his characterization was brimming with eccentricity, intellect, and heroism.

throughout the series, a number of different themes and atmospheres were explored, including everything from gothic horror to futuristic sci-fi, with the doctor and his companions squaring up against every sort of imaginable threat, such as renegade time lords, giant monsters, vampires, mysterious energies, and most popularly, cold and ruthless robots bent on the utter decimation of all humanity.

there were a number of laughable or weak elements in the writing and visual effects throughout the series, namely a dependence on nonsensical techno jargon, contrived story resolutions, and rediculous-looking foes. however, the underlying message of the series is an eternal one: freedom, refusal of prejudice, temperment, and love can save anyone from anything.

I like the second, third, and fourth Doctors.  I liked Peter Davison as the Doctor, but his episodes tended to be not so good.  Colin Baker was the worst Doctor and had the worst episodes.  Sylvester McCoy had some good episodes but he was a little bland in the role.

The new series is AWFUL.  It's a lot like the Stargate series minus anything good.  I've been unable to watch more than a couple of episodes.

My favorite Dr. was Tom Baker, Number 4.  I don't think I've seen any episodes with Dr's 1-3, however, so I cannot comment on those.

I think there are quite a few Dr. Who fans on this forum.

Are you talking about the old series or the new series?

I've seen most of the available episodes of the old series, and all of the Doctors were in an episode I liked very much.

As for the new series, while it is not playing, where I live now, while I was up in Vancouver (B.C), I did see one of the episodes of the new series, and I liked that one very much, as well. I especially liked the acting and writing, which I feel is  much better than that found in most of the American sci-fi series, except, for perhaps, "Lost." I just hope that someday, the new series will play, where I live, so I can watch all the episodes of that one, as well.

It took a couple of episodes, but I got hooked on the new Doctor Who pretty easily. More surprisingly, my wife, who hasn't really seen the original show, and doesn't go much for SF, loved it too.

I think a good deal of the appeal is that they captured what made the show good - entertaining stories that transcended the limited budget, adventure with a sense of humour, and a Doctor who was silly and whimsical, yet someone to be taken seriously. It doesn't put realism and scientific nitpicking ahead of having fun. And it gives just enough nods to the old show to make me happy as a fan.

We're just nervous that they've regenerated the Doctor already, after just one season. Chris Eccleston's Doctor is one of the things we liked best.

i haven't seen any of the new stuff. i think i stopped watching after the 7th doctor, or so. 3rd, 4th, and 5th, really being the only ones i care much for, while there are a few random serials for all of the doctors that i'm likely to look into.

I was a huge Dr Who fan when I was growing up.  I wanted a big scarf like Tom Baker's, and big frilly shirts like Jon Pertwee's, and boy, did I want a sonic screwdriver!

The first Doctor was old and a bit 'crotchety grandfather'-like.  The second was a bit more comical.  The third aimed for a combination of extravagance and eccentricity, whereas the fourth skipped the luxuriance and went straight for the strangeness.  Tom Baker was fantastic.  Peter Davison's run was very good, with great storylines and awesome music from the BBC Radiophonic Workshop, but they freakin' killed it with Colin Baker.  Then the plots became tedious and incomprehensible in Sylvester McCoy's time.

Paul McGann as the Doctor in the movie was ... almost forgotten.  Eccleston isn't bad at all, almost a kind of prankster-badboy with his shaved head, leather jacket and boots.  I do believe they are making/have made a second season with a new Doctor already.  The new series lacks a lot of the charm of the older seasons, but I think it tries to bring some of it back, as well as add some more modern humour.

One of my favourite dialogue sequences in the new series is when the Doctor unexpectedly arrives at Billie Piper's house, and meets her youngish mother:

Mother: "Oh ... there's a strange man in my house!"

Doctor blinks: "Yes, there is!"

Mother: "And I'm only in my dressing gown ... !"

Doctor looks at her: "Yes, you are!"

Mother twists dressing gown and bats eyelids: "You know ... ANYthing could happen ... !"

Doctor: "... Nah!"

~Archivist~

sounds interesting, but i dare say that nothing could truly compete with the sheer charm of tom baker's performances. "the talons on weng-chiang" has a few such priceless moments.

I've seen them all except for the new series and my favorite has always been Jon Pertwee (Dr. # 3). He was the most physical of all of them and he could kick some ass when required (Venusian karate is something to see). Although he was exiled to earth he managed to have some pretty good adventures and a couple of cool vehicles. It was during his tenure that the Master (a rebel time lord like the Doc only with a megalomaniacal streak) was introduced. He is also the one who introduced the sonic screwdriver and Sarah Jane Smith.

Even though the various Doctors had their individual weird personality traits one thing they all shared was their intelligence and arrogant attitude.

doctor 3 was sort of fun, what with his car, and crazy clothing. his last episode "planet of the spiders" is a favorite of mine. was he the first doctor to pal around with the brigadere?

by the way, if anyone knows of a site where i can find episode guides with screen caps, or character pictures for EVERY 3rd, 4th, and 5th doctor episode, lemme know. outpost gallifrey is pretty good, but i wish they had more screen caps. gets the memory jogging.

The second Doctor,  Patrick Traughton (an excellent character actor), originated the sonic screwdirver and was the first to meet the Brigadier.

The  The Classic Dr.Who (http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/) page on the BBC website has a lots of pictures and other information about the show.

Thanks for straightening me out on the sonic screwdriver thing akiraturbo.

By the way, Sean Pertwee (Event Horizon, Soldier, Dog Soldiers, Equilibrium) is the son of Jon Pertwee.

Sean Pertwee is almost as cool as his dad.

An actual question from the original Trivial Pursuit game reads like this.



Q:  Who fought the Daleks?

A:  Exactly

Tom Baker was the current Doctor when I first started watching the show. Saw a bit of Pertwee, earlier on, but for me, Baker was the Doctor. I remember being freaked out by some of the really wacky monsters of the Baker years - Morbius, the Zygons, Davros and others I can't name.

Davison was in the role when I was old enough to appreciate the show (high school). Thought Teagan was hot, then thought Peri was hotter. Started discovering the previous Doctors when the show was being rerun here (with story parts joined into single episodes) in the mid-80s. From Hartnell to Tom Baker, I think each Doctor was better than the last. The Hartnell and Troughton episodes get extra points for their charm. From Tom Baker to McCoy, the opposite is true. Watched a bit of Colin Baker, and totally lost interest in McCoy. Davison was the last Doctor who was any good, before Eccleston.

Loved the episodes when the doctor teamed up with himself. One of the best lines was Hartnell, upon seeing Pertwee and Troughton, lamenting that his future selves were "a dandy and a clown." The Five Doctors was simply amazing.

Been enjoying the references to the original show in the new one, from the appearances of the Daleks to the Doctor being known to the British government, thanks to his past work with UNIT.

Hmmm... randomly turned on the TV today and one of the local channels had two back to back episodes of Doctor Who showing, which was fun.

The Doctor was one of the Bakers though I can't remember which one.

[And who doesn't love that cool theme song!]

I've been a vague fan of the show for a while, through sporadic viewings over the years.  I enjoy it when I do watch it, but I haven't watched nearly enough to consider myself a true fan I guess.  I did quite enjoy the latest series with Eccelston and Billie, since it was a nice change of pace to the usual programming that they had on at the time, but I'm not enough of a fan to judge how it compares to previous outings.

trek_geezer Wrote:
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> The  The Classic Dr.Who page on the BBC website
> has a lots of pictures and other information about
> the show.
-------------------------------------------------------

yeah, it's pretty great, but what i'm really looking for is a database of episode summaries that has screen captures for every episode within it. outpost gallifrey comes damned close, but a lot of their summaries are without pictures. while some of the stories sound vaguely familiar, i know that even just a picture of the monster, some of the characters from the episode, or even some captures showing the sets would certainly jog my memory...

thanks, though.

I always found it a rather amusing show- the guy's always doing his own thing and he really isn't too bothered by everybody else's absurd ambitions and plans for conquest- he just steps in, foils them, tips his hat and leaves again. Tom Baker is definitly the one I remember, he seem to fit the bill the best. Definitly a bargain basement show, but all the better for it. The more money put into a project, the less freedom it has...

good point, some of the episodes were made on a very small budget, and i'd still put episodes like "the talons of weng-chiang", or "the leisure hive" up against half of the glossy, million-dollar garbage that hollywood pumps out.

also, am i the only one who's collecting the dvds of the original series? it seems like they're coming out at an incredibly slow pace, but perhaps they require lengthy remastering sessions.

ToyMan Wrote:
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> good point, some of the episodes were made on a
> very small budget, and i'd still put episodes like
> "the talons of weng-chiang", or "the leisure hive"
> up against half of the glossy, million-dollar
> garbage that hollywood pumps out.


I fully agree with you, though I'm more of a Daleks fan than anything else. EXTERMINATE!

Love Dr. Who.  Tom Baker was my introduction to the series, so he's what I think of when I think of Dr. Who.  Haven't gotten any of the series DVDs yet, but they're on my list (though I need new glasses & contacts, need to have a dental checkup, and probably should have a medical check up too.)

I did get a Dr. Who movie starring Peter Cushing (IIRC) that is a bit different from the series.  It just doesn't work for me.

yeah, i saw the collection that anchor bay put out, and after reading up on it, i figured it wasn't something that would interest me. i mean, right off the bat he's just some genius earth scientist who created the tardis himself? not too exciting.

I thought I add this. I just heard on another board that beginning in March of this year, the SciFi Channel will start airing the first season of the Eccleston episodes of the new "Dr. Who." No word as to the day and time.

i'd rather have classic episodes. not a fan of eccleston's acting.

I've always enjoyed Doctor Who. I used to watch it on PBS when I was a kid, barely old enough to understand anything that was going on, and later on NJN. Naturally, I was happy as a lark to hear of the series' revival. I've enjoyed it thus far, flawed though the new season was. The next season looks to be taking a more traditional approach to it. It'll be nice to see K-9 and Sarah Jane Smith again, and David Tennant just seems somehow more "Doctor-ish" than Eccleston.

having eccleston as the doctor seemed to make about as much sense as casting vin diesel. okay, perhaps that's an exaggeration, but eccleston seemed way too "slick".

But that's the great thing about the Doctor. His personality can change wildly from one regeneration to the next. Eccleston is a little more of a fast-talking smartass than the other doctors, but I think he's got some of the same nutty charm that made Tom Baker's Doctor so great.

he doesn't even look disarmingly goofy. just ain't right. i'll take classic coke and tom baker any day, thanks.

Just thought I'd mention a cute story about my daughter. She's just old enough to sit in the high chair, which has legs that taper out with casters on the bottom, as most do. Recently saw my wife rolling her across the kitchen floor in it, navigating around the table, and had to laugh at how much the movement resembled a Dalek. So, the first thing out of my mouth was "Ex-ter-minate! Ex-ter-minate!" Which made my wife laugh. Now, we do that whenever we roll her around in the chair. She's the cutest little Dalek around.

A cute story, AndyC. With parents like that, you'll have your daughter a fan of "Doctor Who" in no time at all.

just bought "the pyramids of mars" today. i'll probably watch it over the weekend, and thoughts will be posted on my dvdaficionado page.

I first started watching 'Dr. Who' on my local public television station when Peter Davison was the Doctor. They would show both him and Tom Baker a lot at first. It was weird (for me anyway) to see Davison as the Doctor because he'd been on the tv-series version of 'All Creatures Great And Small'. Sure, there were no production values to speak of, but that was made up by great acting and storytelling. I haven't seen an ep in years, and would like to see the series in order (including the newer eps).

just picked up "horror of fang rock" at borders on friday. not bad. pretty mediocre compared to the other tom baker discs i have, but the extra features make it worthwhile.

i think i'm going to try to track down a copy of "the key to time" next.

my cousin gave me three burned discs containing the 2005 series. it actually isn't as bad as i figured it'd be.

even still, i felt i needed to purchase the 6 disc, 26-episode "The Key to Time" boxed set from borders when i was on my way home from work on friday. pretty good stuff. the discs themselves are pretty light on extra features compared to some of the stand-alone discs, but considering that they include both commentary tracks and production info subtitles, i really can't complain too much.

Davison also starred in the Campion series, which seems to be what he bases his Doctor Who on.     The man can run the acting gamut from A to B....

Shadowphile Wrote:
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> Davison also starred in the Campion series, which
> seems to be what he bases his Doctor Who on.
>   The man can run the acting gamut
> from A to B....

I thought 'Campion' ran a nearly decade after he was on 'Dr. Who'....

Yes, or to be more precise, "Campion" ran some six to seven years after his first appearance on "Dr. Who."

i finished watching the 05 season the other night. the two-part finale was AWESOME. it's just a masterfully directed story.

i'm wondering, did anyone else catch the suggestions that captain jack is bisexual?

just bumping this up, for the sake of convenience.