Can someone explain Doctor Who? (1 Viewer)

[DeathStar1]

This is going to seem extremly lazy, but here goes ..

I've caught Snippets of Dr.Who on the Sci Fi channel, and like what I have seen so far. But, I seem to remember a different version with a phone booth in my chopped up memory...

can someone explain to me the basis and basic plot of the series? If season 1 is released on the new show, I might just pick it up..

Thanks

 

[Jeff Jacobson]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dr._Who

 

[andrew markworthy]

The Wikipedia entry is likely to give you everything you need to know. However, in brief - the current Dr Who is a revived version of an old series that had been off-air for a long time. A useful (though not totally accurate) anaology is Star Trek:TNG and the original Star Trek.

The earlier series of Dr Who had far less sophisticated special effects, and were composed of series of half hour episodes. A lot of the acting may now seem a little stilted and set design was often just a bit on the cheap side. You also got used to the fact that nearly every alien planet looked remarkably like a gravel pit just outside London.

The new series is composed of 40-45 minute episodes, usually with self-contained stories, but sometimes two-parters. It's a lot livelier in its pacing and often far jokier than the earlier version. The special effects are a lot better, though still not necessarily up to movie standard (incidentally, it's filmed in standard definition because high definition special effects are too expensive for the programme's budget). It's fair to say that the new incarnation of Dr Who has been a massive success in the UK.

A key feature of the Dr Who series is that the Doctor can regenerate his body when mortally injured or nearing the end of his mortal life. This has been a handy device for replacing the lead actor throughout the series' long run.

Hope this helps.

 

[Robert Floto]

Also, the "phone booth" (actually a British Police Call Box) is in fact a disguise for a time/space craft called a TARDIS. It's still in the new series even though Police Call Boxes are no longer used in England...and therefore makes a less inconspicuous camouflage.

 

[JeremyErwin]

I believe they were being phased out in 1963, so it would not have been particularly unusual to see a police box in a junkyard. The chameleon circuit was "fixed" for one episode (probably 5th or 6th doctor)