Dr Who Essentials


Benchpresser

 

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Also wanted to ask, what's that about BBC hating Dr Who? Why would any suit hate a show that makes them money?
You'd think wouldn't you?

I really can't think of a suitable reason, only that from the '80's onward, every Controller and/or Director General of the BBC wanted to show dead.

Fortunitly now the BBC seems to have thrown money at the new Doctor Who which means whoever is in charge either likes the show or is at least indifferent and just likes the viewing figures


 

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Originally Posted by Starsman View Post
From what I gather there have been 11 doctors
...
Well to be technical, there "have been" 10 doctors. Matt Smith hasn't aired in the role yet, though they're filming stuff with him.


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Originally Posted by Starsman View Post
Also wanted to ask, what's that about BBC hating Dr Who? Why would any suit hate a show that makes them money?
You are assuming they are motivated by money.

With a state-subsidized system, not so much.

In the BBC, a massive amount of decisions have resulted purely from internal politics and sometimes personal wars between department heads.


-np


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Originally Posted by Smurch View Post
I feel again obligated to post this video.

Because the Daleks are just this cool.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BjqKXX4RMr4
Massive spoilers for the newbies, Avoid!


 

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Originally Posted by Cowman View Post
So alone....
Now, to be fair, I love Colin as the Doctor. I thought he got the short end of the stick at the BBC, that his Doctor has some good, solid stories (Vengeance on Varos and Mysterious Planet were especially good) - and I think that he acquitted himself and his doctor marvelously in the Big Finish stories. Hell, I even kind of like the coat.

It's just that Twin Dilemma set up the Doctor all wrong.


 

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Originally Posted by Fleeting Whisper View Post
Well to be technical, there "have been" 10 doctors. Matt Smith hasn't aired in the role yet, though they're filming stuff with him.
I got to say I'm worried about that doctor (darn am a noob and already whining about who will be the doctor next) seen quite a few shots of him around the web and he looks too emo...


 

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Originally Posted by NinjaPirate View Post
You are assuming they are motivated by money.

With a state-subsidized system, not so much.

In the BBC, a massive amount of decisions have resulted purely from internal politics and sometimes personal wars between department heads.


-np
Oh wait, the BBC is government owned? I was under the impression it was a private entity like Fox or ABC. Where I come from government owned stations only focus on educative stuff (arts/politics/news) not on fiction.


 

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Originally Posted by Starsman View Post
I got to say I'm worried about that doctor (darn am a noob and already whining about who will be the doctor next) seen quite a few shots of him around the web and he looks too emo...
You'll always get regeneration jitters.

Steven Moffet is the new lead writer though and he did some of the best episodes of new Series. Wait until "The Lonely Child" and you'll feel much better


 

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Originally Posted by Starsman View Post
Oh wait, the BBC is government owned? I was under the impression it was a private entity like Fox or ABC. Where I come from government owned stations only focus on educative stuff (arts/politics/news) not on fiction.
It's not government OWNED as such, but it is government supported.

In the UK, to own a television, you must purchase a "Television Licence" (that's per household, not per person) this licence is paid yearly, think of it as a sort of mandatory subscription fee.
This money goes into running and supporting the entirety of the BBC, everything from Radio, to News, to Dramas and to Doctor Who. It also means that in the UK BBC channels have no advertising whatsoever.

This all stretches back to when TV was new and the BBC was the only TV channel. The government felt we needed out own channel that would "Inform, Educate and Entertain" or something like that. And they didn't want adverts.


 

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Originally Posted by Zikar View Post
It's not government OWNED as such, but it is government supported.

In the UK, to own a television, you must purchase a "Television Licence" (that's per household, not per person) this licence is paid yearly, think of it as a sort of mandatory subscription fee.
This money goes into running and supporting the entirety of the BBC, everything from Radio, to News, to Dramas and to Doctor Who. It also means that in the UK BBC channels have no advertising whatsoever.

This all stretches back to when TV was new and the BBC was the only TV channel. The government felt we needed out own channel that would "Educate and Entertain" or something like that. And they didn't want adverts.

Yikes... so I know it's a whole different topic... but lets say I want a TV only to play my XBox and don't want actual TV... do I still have to pay that yearly subscription?

But the ads thing makes me see how British that come to the states go crazy with the amount of ads.

All that said, given there is no actual revenue from the shows I guess they can kill them on a whim... other than loosing potential international licensing that is... and the fact that this new series is partially founded by some Canadian station.


 

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Wow, so many replies already saying pretty much everything I wanted to say

All I can do is reiterate what has already been said, treat the early stuff with a big amount of helthy cynicism and fun, they are great shows but not to be compared to modern stuff, or even stuff of the same era, like Star Trek!

But damn, it's been a good long run

Most of all.......Enjoy, you're in for 45 years worth of great sci-fi and entertainment


We built this city on Rock and Roll!

 

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Originally Posted by Starsman View Post
Yikes... so I know it's a whole different topic... but lets say I want a TV only to play my XBox and don't want actual TV... do I still have to pay that yearly subscription?
I believe so yes.
I should point out that the Licence Fee has been controversial for quite some time now, but it's generally been kept around because most people aren't that bothered by it, it's just a few groups and the occasional polititian (and the BBC's rivals )

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But the ads thing makes me see how British that come to the states go crazy with the amount of ads.
There's another things as well, on our channels that show adverts (that is, any non-BBC channel, and we have LOTS) we get 1 adverts break in a half hour show. Where as in America, you get two I believe. (of course, out 1 advert is twice as long, so we get the same amount of adverts, we just aren't constantly being interrupted )

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All that said, given there is no actual revenue from the shows I guess they can kill them on a whim... other than loosing potential international licensing that is... and the fact that this new series is partially founded by some Canadian station.
Well, just killing a popular show doesn't go down very well. Although they don't get revenue in the saw way, they are still have to serve us, the viewing public. They need to keep high viewing figures to justify the Licence Fee, because if they can't keep the numbers, they'll be deemed to not serving the public interest and the top bods will either be hoofed out or they could lose the Licence Fee.
I mean, with Doctor Who, they didn't just cancel it, they just tried to bury it so when it's viewing figures dropped enough they could cancel it... and it just just refused to be buried


 

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Originally Posted by Starsman View Post
Yikes... so I know it's a whole different topic... but lets say I want a TV only to play my XBox and don't want actual TV... do I still have to pay that yearly subscription?

But the ads thing makes me see how British that come to the states go crazy with the amount of ads.

All that said, given there is no actual revenue from the shows I guess they can kill them on a whim... other than loosing potential international licensing that is... and the fact that this new series is partially founded by some Canadian station.
no, ownership of a TV in the UK means by law you have to have a licence as they still have the ability to recieve the signal from the BBC.

I have heard rumours of people getting TV's without the relevant bits in to recieve the signals and only using them for Video/DVD/Games etc but it's always been a bit of an urban legend tbh.

I think the BBC do make some revenue from their programming, sales worldwide etc and DVD's and the like, but I'm not certain. I think I'll page Dreamweaver for that sort of info


We built this city on Rock and Roll!

 

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Well, given that recommendations for episodes to watch have been given, I thought I would give a comparison of the Doctors, so you a) know what to expect and b) can tell which you would like for being closest to Eccleston, and which you might like for being totally different.

First Doctor - It was said in The Five Doctors, and I believe it, he really was "The best of the Doctors". He can be grouchy and grumpy at times, but that's probably due to his age. He really has a grasp of the situation and a mind for plots that really doesn't come up again until the Seventh Doctor. I would call him more irascible than sarcastic. This is also prior to the revelation of his background, and so he acts more like a intelligent but eccentric human than a mysterious alien genius.

Second Doctor - The Second Doctor is usually described as "a clown", primarily because he was the first to act strangely or ramble in order to throw foes off guard. He would tend to be more of a sarcastic type, but doesn't have the harder edge of the Eighth and Ninth Doctors. As mentioned previously, though, when he goes off on his "geez, I can't believe you are all this stupid" mode, it's hilarious.

Third Doctor - The Third Doctor is very much cut in the mold of 1960's secret agent movies, as that was the time period in which it is made. He reminds me at times of John Steed of The Avengers, or Napoleon Solo from The Man From UNCLE. He can be very flamboyant (a trait the Fourth Doctor later inherited) and extremely active, moreso than most early Doctors. Actually, the Ninth and Tenth Doctors do engage in fisticuffs and swordplay a lot, so this would definately be similar. His personality seems very restrained, though, he's more serious and down to earth than later Doctors. (But this is the Doctor I have seen the least of, so I could be wrong about that)

Fourth Doctor - Well, if it's true that "You never forget your first Doctor", this was the one for me. The Fourth Doctor has a great deal of the Second Doctor's wit and charm, while having the adventureous spirit and active nature of the Third. He also is the best at seemed to be bumbling along, and then all of a sudden you realize he had this all planned in exquisite detail all along. I wouldn't call his style sarcastic, but it is definately quirky, and even a bit mischeivous. There is almost none of the later darkness, this is the Doctor that spares the Daleks when he had the chance to destroy them, because he doesn't feel he has the right to take their lives, a decision he later comes to regret.

Fifth Doctor - The most human and emotional of the Doctors, he is not sarcastic or even quirky at all. He's somewhat eccentric, but only about small details, like his love of cricket. He seems more intelligent, but only because he's letting his plots show as he forms them. And things seem to go wrong for him more often, this is where the darkness starts to show up, as he takes his failures very personally, and worries about his companious. It's almost like the magnitude of what he has doing has finally hit him, and he's starting to hestitate and question himself. He doesn't yet have the anger of the later Doctors, though.

Sixth Doctor - Although most people say they hate this Doctor, I actually really like him. I like to refer to him as a failed Regeneration, though. He's sort of stuck halfway between the Fifth and Sixth Doctors, he's lost the humanity and compassion (at least outwardly) that the previous Doctor has, but has not yet regained that steel trap mind that the Doctor is supposed to have. This is also the most arrogant and convinced of his own superiority Doctor, even in the face of obvious failures. He actually IS quirky and sarcastic, he has some absolutely hilarious put down lines in Trial of a Time Lord. He comes off as such a jerk, though, that it kind of falls flat. Underneath it all, though, there is a darkness to this Doctor, almost as if he is trying to recover from the destruction he has witnessed before, and return to what he was.

Seventh Doctor - This is my favorite Doctor. I agree with the previous poster who called him a "Chess Master". This is the Doctor going back to his roots, the eccentric genius who cuts through the diabolical plots of his enemies, figuring out exactly what they are up to, and countering with his own. He's not as violent as the Sixth Doctor, or the later Doctors post the Time War, but there's still a darkness to him. You get the impression he could plot something dastardly if he had to. He does try to keep Ace's more violent tendencies in check, though, and as she tends to be somewhat destructive, this takes a lot of his time.

Eighth Doctor - Eh, just one movie isn't enough to form much of a picture. He seems very like the Seventh Doctor, and started out as the Seventh, at the start of the movie. As he spends most of the movie in Regeneration, he really is experimenting with his personality more than having formed it.


 

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Originally Posted by Zikar View Post
This all stretches back to when TV was new and the BBC was the only TV channel. The government felt we needed out own channel that would "Inform, Educate and Entertain" or something like that. And they didn't want adverts.
In Yank terms, the BBC is pretty close to PBS. Itr's not exactly the same, but that's pretty close.

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Originally Posted by Jade_Dragon View Post
Eighth Doctor - Eh, just one movie isn't enough to form much of a picture. He seems very like the Seventh Doctor, and started out as the Seventh, at the start of the movie. As he spends most of the movie in Regeneration, he really is experimenting with his personality more than having formed it.
The Big Finish audios, on the other hand, have done quite a bit with Doctor 8. Oh sure, some of them are clunkers, but there are a great many that rock, too (like Invaders from Mars).

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Originally Posted by Zikar View Post
I mean, with Doctor Who, they didn't just cancel it, they just tried to bury it so when it's viewing figures dropped enough they could cancel it... and it just just refused to be buried
One of the documentaries on the Trial of a Time Lord boxed set is a look at the mid to late eighties where the BBC heads were gunning for the show, including some interesting and frank interviews with the (then) heads of Series and Serials David Reid and Jonathan Powell. It's well worth getting the set just for the documentary.


 

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Seems I read about this license just in time, they made a reference to it in episode 12.


 

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Originally Posted by Starsman View Post
Seems I read about this license just in time, they made a reference to it in episode 12.
Oh and just for your own reference. That 142.50 British pounds is actually 231.87 US dollars when you do the currency conversion I always thought the license fee was a scam as do many other UK citizens. Unfortunately it's imposed by the government and there is just no way around it. Think of it this way. How would you feel if you had to PAY just for the privilege to watch ABC,NBC,CBS, and Fox. With the kind of programming they offer you'd feel pretty damned gipped wouldn't you?

Additionally since the BBC is basically beholden to the UK government for their backing that means that their news coverage and policies are basically pretty PC and pro-government since the station is not going to bite the hand that feeds it. Here is also something spooky for you to consider. The US government is trying to institute something similar here in the states with this Fairness Doctrine they are always trying to push. With the doctrine in place or a version of i which they are pushing pretty hard. It would basically give the government to fine or revoke the broadcasting license of any channel or station that didn't put out content or news programmes that conform to the government's idea of 'fair' or 'even handed coverage'.


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Originally Posted by Lord_of_Time View Post
Oh and just for your own reference. That 142.50 British pounds is actually 231.87 US dollars when you do the currency conversion I always thought the license fee was a scam as do many other UK citizens. Unfortunately it's imposed by the government and there is just no way around it. Think of it this way. How would you feel if you had to PAY just for the privilege to watch ABC,NBC,CBS, and Fox. With the kind of programming they offer you'd feel pretty damned gipped wouldn't you?
I'd rather pay £142 a year than have to sit through adverts
I doubt most people think it's a "scam", although I'm sure many doubt it's relevancy now that it's not the only channel out there.

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Additionally since the BBC is basically beholden to the UK government for their backing that means that their news coverage and policies are basically pretty PC and pro-government since the station is not going to bite the hand that feeds it.
Of course, independence doesn't guarantee un-biased news media *coughfoxcough*

Always get your news from multiple sources


 

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Originally Posted by Lord_of_Time View Post
How would you feel if you had to PAY just for the privilege to watch ABC,NBC,CBS, and Fox. With the kind of programming they offer you'd feel pretty damned gipped wouldn't you?
If The Big Three offered the quality shows that the BBC does and ran without commercials, I would gladly pony up 250 bucks a year. In a hot second I would! Seriously, I don't watch TV any more thanks to the oceans of crap out there and the 12 minuets of commercials in a half hour program. Last show I watched with any regularity was B5.


 

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Originally Posted by Lord_of_Time View Post
Think of it this way. How would you feel if you had to PAY just for the privilege to watch ABC,NBC,CBS, and Fox. With the kind of programming they offer you'd feel pretty damned gipped wouldn't you?
Since I pay over $100 a month (damn you, Comcast! *Shakes fist*) so I can see Doctor Who and Top Gear, which are both on BBC America only (at least it's a form of BBC), I think $230 a year is well worth it.

Especially since I hate commercials and their massive change in volume over the show I'm watching!

Man, do I hate that. ^_^


"I may," he said with a grin that would have sent sane men scampering for the trees, "have been imagining it."

 

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Man, all this talk about Doctor Who episodes and no mention about the big crossovers.

The Two Doctors

The Three Doctors

The Five Doctors



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