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Time Lords regenerate into new bodies when their old one expires (or, occasionally, when they just feel like changing or are otherwise forced into it). This is the same Doctor, and if the one you recently saw is the newest one, it is number 11.|
Originally Posted by Le Blanc
1. Who is this Dr. And is he supposed to be the same guy as before, or an all new Time Lord
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| 2. How many seasons have there been with this new (to me) guy and should I get the first one on DVD? |
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| 3. Is there a good website that would list any important history stuff between the old (long scarf) Dr. I remember and this guy, if they are supposed to be different people. |
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| 4. I know there have been several Dr.s since the show started, how many have been between this guy in the episode I mentioned, and the one I remember from my youth (long scarf guy)? |
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| 5. There was a hot "warrior" chick in the one I remember from way back. Is she in any more of them? I remember her being really cool. Wore leather and was pretty badass. |
Goodbye may seem forever
Farewell is like the end
But in my heart's the memory
And there you'll always be
-- The Fox and the Hound
Start here and see you in a few weeks:
http://tardis.wikia.com/wiki/The_Doctor
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Keep in mind Dr Who has been running for a VERY long time.
Let me put it this way...the first episodes with the very first Doctor (William Hartnell) are in black and white...yes before the invention of colour ever reached TV...
As mentioned above, the Doctor regenerates, he is the same person but different personality traits will get brought to the fore along with his new appearance.
Sadly you won't find a very large chunk of the older stuff because the BBC, in their infinite wisdom, threw out most of the masters in order to make room (this was the norm back then, older shows were sent to be destroyed since they didn't plan on re-broadcasting them).
Whilst a large chunk was actually saved by a Dr Who fan at the time, more still is now lost forever.
And damn it I want the Planet of the Spiders arc on DVD!
Badge Earned: Wing Clipper
A real showstopper!
Quote:
Looks like you saw the last Christmas Special.|
Originally Posted by Le Blanc
When I was younger my brother watched the show all the time, but I was not that into it. It had a bushy haired guy with this really really long scarf as the Dr. But as I was flipping channels the other day I found a newer (I assume) episode of Dr. Who where he went back in time and changed this dudes past WHILE he was watching his own past on some sort of TV. The storyline really grabbed my attention as well as the acting, so i guess this old Sci-Fi fan should go ahead and give the Dr. a fair shake. So I have some questions, to whit;
1. Who is this Dr. And is he supposed to be the same guy as before, or an all new Time Lord 2. How many seasons have there been with this new (to me) guy and should I get the first one on DVD? 3. Is there a good website that would list any important history stuff between the old (long scarf) Dr. I remember and this guy, if they are supposed to be different people. 4. I know there have been several Dr.s since the show started, how many have been between this guy in the episode I mentioned, and the one I remember from my youth (long scarf guy)? 5. There was a hot "warrior" chick in the one I remember from way back. Is she in any more of them? I remember her being really cool. Wore leather and was pretty badass. Thanks all you Dr. Who fans for your time. Hopefully I can get into a new show. Well, till Big Bang Theory and House come back that is. |
1:
This new Doctor is played by Matt Smith. He's, essentially, the same person from the 60's through the 80's.
The Doctor himself is a humanoid alien called a Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey. What happens is, every now and again, when he is hurt in ways that would normally be fatal to anyone else, his race can "regenerate". This is usually a fairly traumatic experience that results in massive changes in appearance and behavior (and, incidentally, ain't a bad way to bring on a new actor when one is needed). Now, a semi-important canonical issue is that a Time Lord can only regenerate 13 times.
2:
Matt is in his second season as The Doctor right now.
The original Doctor Who program ran for 26 "seasons" (or series) from 1963 to 1989 with 7 incarnations of The Doctor.
It took a hiatus of 7 years and then they attempted to do a "back door pilot" for a new show with a TV special in 1996. The 7th Doctor (Sylvester McCoy) passed the torch on to the 8th Doctor (Paul McGann). This was McGann's ONLY on-screen appearance as The Doctor (though he's done nicely in Audiobooks). Essentially CRAPTASTIC handling of the special (plus the fact that it was pre-empted) by Fox destroyed any chance of picking up a new viewer base here in the US (to this point, Doctor Who had been the purview of PBS stations in the US).
Then, in 2005, Christopher Eccleston took the reins as the 9th Doctor in an absolute SMASH of a first season of the new series. Toward the end of the original program, it'd been plagued by budget cuts and accompanying lousy special effects. The TV movie had been...better...ish. And while the effects for the new season weren't Blockbuster Movie-level, they were several very LARGE cuts ahead of the original television series.
The next three seasons saw David Tennant take over as the 10th Doctor, and three years of PHENOMENAL Doctor Who were had. As well as a spinoff show (the first in decades) called Torchwood, which was aimed at the post-watershed crowd.
Then we had a gap year where, instead of 13-ish episodes, we had 4 "specials". Culminating in the exit of Tennant from the role and the introduction of Matt Smith as the 11th Doctor.
And, we come back to where I mentioned that we're now in the second half of Smith's second season.
If you want to pick up on Doctor Who, viewing all of the previous material isn't strictly necessary. The new series has been fairly scrupulous about either cleanly segmenting the series with each regeneration, or providing enough information in-flight for you to pick up on the particulars. So a recommended starting point would be the begining season of any of the various incarnations.
If you have Netflix, it's REALLY easy for you. You have the first five seasons of the New Series available, PLUS the specials.
3: Hit up Wikipedia. It has a fairly concise breakdown of MASSIVE amounts of Who trivia. The guy with the scarf is Tom Baker, the 4th Doctor.
4: I gave you a basic breakdown of how the original show worked and where you are (in terms of number of actors) who've played The Doctor between then and now. But, in order.
William Hartnell
Patrick Troughton
Jon Pertwee
Tom Baker
Peter Davison
Colin Baker
Sylvester McCoy
Paul McGann
Christopher Eccleston
David Tennant
Matt Smith
5: You're thinking of Leela.
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
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Actually not quite true.|
Originally Posted by Dr_MechanoEU
yes before the invention of colour ever reached TV...
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Color television first existed back in the 30's and the system we in the US know today as NTSC Color was finalized in the early 50's and color televisions were being sold in the mid-50's. The major push to color didn't occur until the mid 60's though.
Though yes, if you're talking about the German PAL standard that was adopted in Europe, yeah. PAL debuted in 1963 along with Doctor Who and color broadcasts didn't start until BBC2 in 1967.
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
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Make that two spinoffs, counting Sara Jane Adventures. Which is aimed in the other direction.
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Originally Posted by Hyperstrike
The next three seasons saw David Tennant take over as the 10th Doctor, and three years of PHENOMENAL Doctor Who were had. As well as a spinoff show (the first in decades) called Torchwood, which was aimed at the post-watershed crowd. |
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Well, it was released on DVD a few months ago. Buy it already. |
Originally Posted by Dr_MechanoEU
And damn it I want the Planet of the Spiders arc on DVD!
|
Goodbye may seem forever
Farewell is like the end
But in my heart's the memory
And there you'll always be
-- The Fox and the Hound
I don't have much to add to answer your questions, but I will say that, like you, I wasn't a classic Dr. Who fan at all. To me, it was just a weird show that PBS broadcast after the British comedies were over. It had cheesy effects and I never knew what was going on, so I never watched it.
And then I stumbled on the first episode of the '05 relaunch with Eccleston. I'm not sure what, exactly, piqued my interest, but something about it left me wanting more and I've been hooked ever since. Eccleston was ok, Tennant was good, and I really love the current run with Matt Smith as the Doctor.
Goodbye, I guess.
@Lord_Nightblade in Champions/Star Trek Online
nightblade7295@gmail.com if you want to stay in touch
Y'know, though I started and got hooked with Tennant, I really liked Eccleston's take when I went back to see that season. It's a shame he got only a season.
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His choice.
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Originally Posted by Tormentoso
Y'know, though I started and got hooked with Tennant, I really liked Eccleston's take when I went back to see that season. It's a shame he got only a season.
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I really should do something about this signature.
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Paul Mcgann. Went on to play the Doctor in a number of Big Finish audios.|
Originally Posted by Tenzhi
, the guy in the Fox TV movie,
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| You're probably talking about Leela. She was only in episodes with Tom Baker's Doctor. |
Given that I'm 43 and English, Dr Who was my childhood.
I really should do something about this signature.
Well, I can't really add any info, since it's all be done.
If you want to get into it, I suggest you start by watching the series from 2005. I believe they have it all on Netflix. Because Doctor Who had been off the air for so long, it's designed to reintroduce the the series and characters for a new audience.
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Meh, original series at it's hight was far superior. Find yourself a copy of "Genesis of the Daleks".
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Originally Posted by Zikar
Well, I can't really add any info, since it's all be done.
If you want to get into it, I suggest you start by watching the series from 2005. I believe they have it all on Netflix. Because Doctor Who had been off the air for so long, it's designed to reintroduce the the series and characters for a new audience. |
I really should do something about this signature.
also Wikipedia has a pretty decent site going for Dr.Who as well.....
Yes, yes, I know all the stuff on Wikipedia isnt always accurate.....still its not a bad site to check out....
You only fail if you give up. - Dana Scully
Time Jesum Transeuntum Et Non Riverentum - Nick Cave
We're not just destroyers, at the same time we can be saviors. - Allen Walker
The series is on Netflix Instant and they start off with the 2005 season.
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You are dead to me. |
Originally Posted by Lord_Nightblade
I wasn't a classic Dr. Who fan at all. To me, it was just a weird show that PBS broadcast after the British comedies were over. It had cheesy effects and I never knew what was going on, so I never watched it.
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FYI I have every Doctor Who DVD release up to Peter Davison's finale. (and will soon have more when I have the money) |
Originally Posted by PRAF68_EU
Meh, original series at it's hight was far superior. Find yourself a copy of "Genesis of the Daleks".
|
While the old series is brilliant, I hardly think it's appropriate for someone who's just getting into the show.
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Planet of the Spiders IS now on DVD. It was released in April of this year (May in the US).|
Originally Posted by Dr_MechanoEU
And damn it I want the Planet of the Spiders arc on DVD!
|
Now go forth and get Spider-y!
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While I've had significant.... issues.... with the new series; I'll agree that someone brought in by the new ones should go through those first and then start dabbling in the old stuff.|
Originally Posted by Zikar
While the old series is brilliant, I hardly think it's appropriate for someone who's just getting into the show.
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But I DO recommend giving the original shows a fair shake. Don't be put off by the old effects. The original series was made on a very low budget with VERY little time; and they still managed to put out some downright amazing material.
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Oh yeah, if you're prepared to view them in context then go right ahead.|
Originally Posted by Cowman
While I've had significant.... issues.... with the new series; I'll agree that someone brought in by the new ones should go through those first and then start dabbling in the old stuff.
But I DO recommend giving the original shows a fair shake. Don't be put off by the old effects. The original series was made on a very low budget with VERY little time; and they still managed to put out some downright amazing material. |
And of course, the stories themselves generally stand the test of time, even if the sets and effects don't always
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|
Originally Posted by Zikar
And of course, the stories themselves generally stand the test of time, even if the sets and effects don't always
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While the originals shows do lack in the parts that required a budget (costumes, sets, special effects), they generally quite made up for them in writing and acting. As long as one can avoid being put off by what they couldn't afford to do right, they are enjoyable.
I've been catching up on old ones via Netflix for a while now.
Too many alts to list.
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Good point.
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Originally Posted by ThugOne
Make that two spinoffs, counting Sara Jane Adventures. Which is aimed in the other direction.
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Quote:
So was clutching the back of a sofa. |
Originally Posted by PRAF68_EU
Given that I'm 43 and English, Dr Who was my childhood.
|
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
Quote:
Well. To be fair. PBS (at least in Chicago) mishandled Doctor who. I'd see two episodes back to back and they'd be from two completely different seasons. It's like someone in programming didn't quite grok the fact that the show was serialized.|
Originally Posted by Cowman
You are dead to me.
|
I didn't start really getting into Who until High School. Had a teacher running the Doctor Who fan club. Got to see it how it was "meant" to be seen. From "An Unearthly Child" onward.
Clicking on the linked image above will take you off the City of Heroes site. However, the guides will be linked back here.
When I was younger my brother watched the show all the time, but I was not that into it. It had a bushy haired guy with this really really long scarf as the Dr. But as I was flipping channels the other day I found a newer (I assume) episode of Dr. Who where he went back in time and changed this dudes past WHILE he was watching his own past on some sort of TV. The storyline really grabbed my attention as well as the acting, so i guess this old Sci-Fi fan should go ahead and give the Dr. a fair shake. So I have some questions, to whit;
1. Who is this Dr. And is he supposed to be the same guy as before, or an all new Time Lord
2. How many seasons have there been with this new (to me) guy and should I get the first one on DVD?
3. Is there a good website that would list any important history stuff between the old (long scarf) Dr. I remember and this guy, if they are supposed to be different people.
4. I know there have been several Dr.s since the show started, how many have been between this guy in the episode I mentioned, and the one I remember from my youth (long scarf guy)?
5. There was a hot "warrior" chick in the one I remember from way back. Is she in any more of them? I remember her being really cool. Wore leather and was pretty badass.
Thanks all you Dr. Who fans for your time. Hopefully I can get into a new show. Well, till Big Bang Theory and House come back that is.
Le Blanc 50 Dark/Dark Scrap
High Huntress 50 Archery/NRG Blast
And a goatload of others. On a goatload of servers.
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