Doctor Who (1 Viewer)

[Jeffery_H]

From the BBC's head of communications:
@ed_staronsunday it's taken from comments saying he won't be doing it forever. He'll be around for a good while yet.
— Sam Hodges (@Sam_Hodges) August 31, 2012

Smith's under contract through November of next year, and he'll probably stay on at least another year after that.

I sure hope not, I'm not a Matt Smith lover and this would mean he will have had the lead role longer than any other of the NEW Doctor's that have played his role. Would've loved to have Tennant around longer, in fact EW ranked him as the #1 actor of all time for the role with #2 being Tom Baker. Personally, I think 3 seasons is long enough for most any of them and if they don't change it up then it gets quite stagnant. But, I have never cared much for Smith's take on the Doctor and was hoping the Christmas special would be his last.

 

[JohnS]

BBC Home Entertainment has officially announced that it will release on Blu-ray Doctor Who: Series Seven, Part One. The two-disc set will include all five episodes and will be available for purchase on November 13th.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

I sure hope not, I'm not a Matt Smith lover and this would mean he will have had the lead role longer than any other of the NEW Doctor's that have played his role. Would've loved to have Tennant around longer, in fact EW ranked him as the #1 actor of all time for the role with #2 being Tom Baker. Personally, I think 3 seasons is long enough for most any of them and if they don't change it up then it gets quite stagnant. But, I have never cared much for Smith's take on the Doctor and was hoping the Christmas special would be his last.

Smith's Doctor is "my" Doctor, so as far as I'm concerned he can stay around as long as he likes. I'm glad they're switching up the companions, though. I've really enjoyed Amy and Rory, but it's time for a change.

 

[Stan]

I sure hope not, I'm not a Matt Smith lover and this would mean he will have had the lead role longer than any other of the NEW Doctor's that have played his role. Would've loved to have Tennant around longer, in fact EW ranked him as the #1 actor of all time for the role with #2 being Tom Baker. Personally, I think 3 seasons is long enough for most any of them and if they don't change it up then it gets quite stagnant. But, I have never cared much for Smith's take on the Doctor and was hoping the Christmas special would be his last.

Have to agree with Jeffery on this one. David Tennant, especially with Catherine Tate were my favorites. Very sad when they left the series, and it was tough to watch.
Not to say that Matt Smith and Amy Gillan don't work well, but they don't quite have the chemistry that David and Catherine had (of course they had Russell T. Davies writing, while now we have Stephen Moffatt taking over a lot of those duties, so things are going to be different). Stephen does seem to throw in some comedy/puns etcs. but his writing requires you to put a little more brain power into things to understand the shows.
I'm finally catching up on the 2011 episodes, especially with BBC America's little mini-marathon before the new season, so am a bit behind (and all new episodes stay unwatched on the DVR until I catch up), so things may change, plus the fact I really only started getting into this show less than five months ago, so I'm certainly no expert. I avoided the show because I hate jumping into the middle of an already established series, and frankly thought I'd be completely lost. But BBC America has done a good job of showing most of it in order, at least starting with the Christopher Eccleston episodes.
Still some gaps to fill in, but I'll continue searching to find ways to view them, regardless of whether my county libraries carry them.

 

[Dave Scarpa]

I always thought Tenant could be overly Manic and Smith can be Tenent wound up to 40. Can the next Doctor be a bit reflective, maybe a Jon Pertwee type.

 

[Stan]

I always thought Tenant could be overly Manic and Smith can be Tenent wound up to 40. Can the next Doctor be a bit reflective, maybe a Jon Pertwee type.

I see your point. He was a tad hyper at times, almost manic as you say, although not Sally Field "ER" level manic, he had his moments. But they were enjoyable to watch.
I guess that's what is so nice about the regeneration, new actors slide into the role and we get a whole new perspective on the show.
Mentioned in an earlier post about the Amy Pond character being somebody different. I was confused, still learning and am quite the newbie to this show. She "will" be replaced later this season and will not be part of the 50th anniversary if what I'm reading is correct. Matt Smith will be staying. First article I found dates back to December 2011, so plenty of planning to write her out gracefully.

 

[David Weicker]

Mentioned in an earlier post about the Amy Pond .... She "will" be replaced later this season and will not be part of the 50th anniversary if what I'm reading is correct. Matt Smith will be staying. First article I found dates back to December 2011, so plenty of planning to write her out gracefully.

We do know she (and Rory) will be replaced later this season.
As for her being part of the 50th anniversary... Well, nothing is known about that.
No information has come out, in any way, shape, or form about what might happen for the 50th. Several people are on record as wanting to appear in it.
This current series (33 or 7) will be concluding sometime next spring/summer. The 50th, officially, is November 23rd, 2013. Whether Series 34/8 will be broadcasting then, or some type of 'Special' episode is unknown.
The 10th and 20th both were multi-Doctor stories, with the 20th also bringing back many previous companions.
Given the way these things tend to go now, sometime next summer rumors will start to flow. There will be some confirmations, but there may also be some withheld surprises (provided leaks can be prevented).
David

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Karen Gillan is on the record as saying once she's gone, she's gone. She doesn't want to dilute the effect of Amy Pond's exit by constantly making cameos the way Billie Piper did.
There's definitely a huge manic quality to Smith's Doctor but a big part of that is an act. Every now and again you get glimpses at the very old, very angry and very self-hating person underneath. When Tennant's Doctor wanted to get serious, he would shout. When Smith's Doctor gets serious, he almost whispers.
I think someone else mentioned it in this thread before me, but my dream Doctor would be John Noble after he leaves "Fringe". We're due for an older Doctor, and he has all of the qualities the Doctor needs in spades.
If they ever do a Doctor Who movie, I hope they cast Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor. I'd love to see how the Time War ended, and the circumstances that caused him to regenerate into the Ninth Doctor.

 

[David Weicker]

If they ever do a Doctor Who movie, I hope they cast Paul McGann as the Eighth Doctor. I'd love to see how the Time War ended, and the circumstances that caused him to regenerate into the Ninth Doctor.

I've always felt they missed a great opportunity in The End Of Time - Part 1/2 in not using Paul McGann in some capacity.
Instead of having the High Council discussing the Doctor and his proposed actions, it would have been perfect (to me) to show McGann at that point.
David
As for what Ms Gillan is on record saying, that may be true, but people have changed their minds before, and only time will tell.
And I don't feel that Billie Piper 'diluted' her effect by re-appearing. IMO, It was a well-written epilogue, and a nice coda to her story.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

I've always felt they missed a great opportunity in The End Of Time - Part 1/2 in not using Paul McGann in some capacity.
Instead of having the High Council discussing the Doctor and his proposed actions, it would have been perfect (to me) to show McGann at that point.
David
As for what Ms Gillan is on record saying, that may be true, but people have changed their minds before, and only time will tell.
And I don't feel that Billie Piper 'diluted' her effect by re-appearing. IMO, It was a well-written epilogue, and a nice coda to her story.

I agree on both points. When I stated that "she doesn't want to dilute the effect of Amy Pond's exit by constantly making cameos the way Billie Piper did," those were Karen Gillan's feelings and not mine. I liked that toward the end the different players of the whole RTD era started interacting. The moment at the end of "Partners in Crime" where Donna Noble walks up to a random stranger, and it's Rose Tyler was a wonderful surprise, right up there with Jenna-Louise Coleman's early appearance.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

I've actually read that each of the five titles will be unique and have something to do with the story they precede. Last night's definitely fits that model.

This definitely looks to be the case as tonight's logo was dinosaur-skinned.
Tonight's episode was probably my favorite of Chis Chibnall's episodes, but still couldn't hold a candle to last week's premiere. It's strange, because I enjoyed a lot of Chibnall's work on "Torchwood", but his episodes of "Doctor Who" never seem to grab me like the ones by other writers do. This one mixed elements from both of his previous "Who" stories:

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

Silurians as in his "Hungry Earth"/"Cold Blood" two-parter, and a runaway spaceship as in "42"

I did think the dialog was a whole lot sharper than his previous efforts, and there were two bits that moved the larger story forward:

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

The Doctor's willingness to kill Solomon, and the revelation that he's been slowly weaning Amy and Rory off of him.

Mark Williams was a delight as Rory's father. I got a chuckle out his name, too; I hope it was a tip of the hat to the NBC Nightly News anchor, and that Chibnall wasn't oblivious to the name's American connotations.
Next week's episode looks like a lot of fun. A western from the writer who brought us the return of Sarah Jane, vampires in Venice and a Minotaur in a hotel out of The Shining.

 

[NeilO]

Mark Williams was a delight as Rory's father. I got a chuckle out his name, too; I hope it was a tip of the hat to the NBC Nightly News anchor, and that Chibnall wasn't oblivious to the name's American connotations.

Yes, he was quite a delight. Did we see any of Rory's parents at their wedding?

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Last night's episode was pretty standard stuff, your usual "Doctor Who" tropes grafted onto a Western setting. I wish Ben Browder's character had stuck around a bit longer.
It was worth it for the beautiful Spanish scenery, though. The episode was shot at Fort Bravo Studios in Almeria, Spain---the Western town built for The Good, the Bad and the Ugly in 1966.

 

[Jeffery_H]

Didn't care too much for that episode. How unoriginal can one get? The "cyborg" looked almost just like a "Borg" from Star Trek. At least if you are going to do a cyborg come up with something a bit different. I wasn't impressed with the script at all either and felt this was just a very bland filler show that really did nothing when there are only 5 shows until later.

 

[JohnS]

I loved the first episode of this season and the second episode was average, but the third episode wasn't exciting. At this point I'm ready to be done with the Ponds. I want the new companion already.

 

[Jeffery_H]

I loved the first episode of this season and the second episode was average, but the third episode wasn't exciting. At this point I'm ready to be done with the Ponds. I want the new companion already.

Yes, I quite agree. The problem you have is running the characters into the ground to the point people are fed up. We only had one season with Martha and Donna, which I thought were both superb and could've gone one more season longer. But now we are going on 3+ with the Ponds and it has gotten boring and predictable with little in terms of character development.
I also think the same can be said for Matt Smith, he's been there long enough and I have never grown to like his take on the Doctor. Even for those that do like him, you have the same problem as you do with the Ponds in overstaying your welcome.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

We only had one season with Martha and Donna, which I thought were both superb and could've gone one more season longer. But now we are going on 3+ with the Ponds and it has gotten boring and predictable with little in terms of character development.

It's not just that. It's that we know they're leaving in episode five. It's hard to see these episodes as anything other than marking time until the new companion arrives.
Which points to one disadvantage that Smith has had during his tenure: a stagnant line-up. Tennant's Doctor had one season with Rose, one season with Martha, and a season and a Christmas special and season with Donna, Each companion shaped his Doctor in different ways. The Doctor's just had Amy and Rory. Even the two Christmas specials featured them to some extent. We've never seen what the Eleventh Doctor is like without Amy. That's part of the excitement for me; what will this new companion draw out of the Doctor.
So far this season:
"Asylum of the Daleks" -- Fantastic episode, right up there with "Eleventh Hour" for my favorite opener.
"Dinosaurs on a Spaceship" -- Lightweight fun but nothing more.
"A Town Called Mercy" -- Even the wonderful setting and scenery couldn't make up for the tired, standard-fare "Doctor Who" story.
Next week's episode looks really weird and different, another Chris Chibnall script.

 

[Adam Lenhardt]

Lovely episode tonight. Completely unlike every other episode of the Moffat era, more similar to some of the RTD era episodes but even among the Nine and Ten stories there's isn't a really close match. A lot less wiz-bang than Moffat usually prefers, but a whole lot of great character stuff. That ending is heartbreaking, given what we know is coming next week. After two episodes that felt stale, this was a really nice change of pace.
EDIT: Re: The trailer for next week:

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

I'm glad the Weeping Angels are back to "killing" people by sending them through time or space. I always thought that was creepier than literally killing as they did in the Series 5 two-parter.

 

[David Weicker]

I had mixed feelings about tonight's episode. I definitely like it better than the prior two, and it had a much better 'feel' about it.
But it was almost like two different episodes. I think the pacing was the worst part. I liked the meandering in the beginning, even though it was just meandering and therefore a bit confusing (I wasn't sure if it was supposed to be going somewhere or not). But the ending felt rushed and crammed in, and a bit "what are they talking about"?

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

The villain(s) (we've never heard of) came out of nowhere, spoke unclearly or in gibberish, disappeared (I think?), and then were vanquished rather quickly.

Rory's Dad, again, was a gem.

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

And the Kate Stuart reveal was absolutely BRILLIANT. I didn't catch her last name when she originally introduced herself, but when the Doctor identified her, it made every scene with her afterwards special.

I also agree with Adam's spoiler for next week. My son and I were discussing that specific thing, and he made the same comment/complaint Adam did.
Overall, I liked more than I didn't, and it was better than the last two.
David

 

[Jeffery_H]

I had mixed feelings about tonight's episode. I definitely like it better than the prior two, and it had a much better 'feel' about it.
But it was almost like two different episodes. I think the pacing was the worst part. I liked the meandering in the beginning, even though it was just meandering and therefore a bit confusing (I wasn't sure if it was supposed to be going somewhere or not). But the ending felt rushed and crammed in, and a bit "what are they talking about"?

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

The villain(s) (we've never heard of) came out of nowhere, spoke unclearly or in gibberish, disappeared (I think?), and then were vanquished rather quickly.

Rory's Dad, again, was a gem.

Spoiler: Warning: Spoiler!

And the Kate Stuart reveal was absolutely BRILLIANT. I didn't catch her last name when she originally introduced herself, but when the Doctor identified her, it made every scene with her afterwards special.

I also agree with Adam's spoiler for next week. My son and I were discussing that specific thing, and he made the same comment/complaint Adam did.
Overall, I liked more than I didn't, and it was better than the last two.
David

I would tend to mostly agree with that. But I have always been someone that liked at least 2 part episodes or even the pacing of the classic Doctor Who much better. This is also why I haven't cared that much for Moffet at all with what he has done with the show. I like an episodic story that is detailed and not rushed so much because you can do so much more with the script. They should've devoted WAY more time talking about Kate's Father, the Brigadier, that was such a close friend with the Doctor. It's rushed because they only make 12 shows, sometimes not even yearly and want to squeeze in too much in way too little time. They should at least do more 2-3 part shows even if it means fewer stories and tell those few in a much better style of writing.
This also opens up another BIG problem with the show. So the Doctor is now supposed to be this close to the Ponds when in none of his past lives he was with anyone else? What about Sarah-Jane, Leela, Tegan, Ace, and the host of others? I mean they all were to have meant a lot to the Doctor as well and yet he never got that attached to them to keep going back in time to get them again and again. To me, there's no continuity to the show at all and they just make it up as they go. Even some of the things Matt Smith's Doctor has done goes against some of things stated in prior shows with Tennant and Eccleston. It's like they just pull crap out of thin air and pass it off as Doctor Who related without keeping in tune.