The Thirteenth Doctor

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Mon Oct 08, 2018 10:56 pm

JCC wrote: ↑Mon Oct 08, 2018 10:39 pm Yes, another annoyance with BBCA is the stupid clips of the episode embedded in ads. They do that bullshit for most/all their new shows. They did this for series 10 of Doctor Who too. Another reason I am just going to watch it on Amazon a day later, free of ads.

That's what I was referring to when I said it annoys me too. I shoulda quoted Daveman because hepcat came between us.

Stefan Stirzaker · Post by **Stefan Stirzaker** » Tue Oct 09, 2018 7:43 am

Loved the new dr. Companions look interesting. Havent warmed to a new dr so quickly before

Defiant · Post by **Defiant** » Wed Oct 10, 2018 8:59 am

You see, even more of the kind of unrealistic timey-wimey hand-waving I talked about:

New Doctor Who slammed as ‘unrealistic’ after showing working train between Sheffield and Manchester

Defiant · Post by **Defiant** » Wed Oct 10, 2018 9:00 am

Honest trailers for New and Classic Doctor Who:

JCC · Post by **JCC** » Thu Oct 11, 2018 6:02 pm

Both of these trailers are quite funny - as the HT's generally are.

Daveman · Post by **Daveman** » Mon Nov 26, 2018 11:57 am

So the end of the season is coming up soon and so far this has been a very forgettable season in my opinion. For the most part I like Jodi Whitaker as the Doctor but only really like Graham as a companion. The other two just fade into the background... I think having an all new Doctor plus 3 all new companions was too much at once.

Greatest concern to me has been the stories. They've all been random monster-of-the-week episodes that don't seem connected to any season-long arc, and haven't featured any hint of past characters or villains... anything to link this show to the Doctor Who we know and enjoy.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Mon Nov 26, 2018 12:45 pm

Maybe that's why I'm enjoying it? I've tried watching various seasons since they restarted the series back in 2005 and it never clicked for me. I was a super casual viewer in the Tom Baker era as a kid as a point of reference. I think the last time I really tried giving it a serious attempt was in 2010 and after a few episodes I lost interest.

Anyway, I've been keeping up with this new season and have enjoyed Jodi Whitaker as the Doctor, her accent/dialect in particular is awesome with it's blunt-force delivery.

Malificent · Post by **Malificent** » Mon Nov 26, 2018 12:53 pm

Daveman wrote: ↑Mon Nov 26, 2018 11:57 am So the end of the season is coming up soon and so far this has been a very forgettable season in my opinion. For the most part I like Jodi Whitaker as the Doctor but only really like Graham as a companion. The other two just fade into the background... I think having an all new Doctor plus 3 all new companions was too much at once.

Greatest concern to me has been the stories. They've all been random monster-of-the-week episodes that don't seem connected to any season-long arc, and haven't featured any hint of past characters or villains... anything to link this show to the Doctor Who we know and enjoy.

I think this was deliberate with Steven Moffat leaving as showrunner. He was very big on season-long arcs, and I think they decided to go back to more old-school style with weekly episodes unconnected. I enjoy the new doctor and companions. I miss the arc, but that's also my style of show.

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Mon Nov 26, 2018 12:58 pm

I thought the Rosa Parks episode was one of the best in a long time, lame villain notwithstanding.

JCC · Post by **JCC** » Mon Nov 26, 2018 9:07 pm

The season has been what I expected (and to some extent feared). I like the 13th Doctor fine - more than fine - she is great. I like all the companions even if I like Graham the most and wish it were just him and the Doctor. I think the show looks and sounds amazing. I was and am a fan of Murray Gold's music from all the previous seasons, but the new guy's music is all about atmosphere and it works well.

But I was worried about Chris Chibnall as new head writer/showrunner. He wrote perfectly good, but never great Doctor Who. When he said there would be no arc I rolled my eyes as the season arcs were the best change about new Who whether they were the subtle ones (of the Davies era) or the more convoluted ones (of the Moffat era). I get that some fans were turned off by the convoluted arcs and unsatisfactory resolutions of the Moffat era (I preferred his arcs even when they didn't usually have great endings) but going back to random stories just feels like the show is lacking something.

I am in the minority but I found the Conundrum episode to be by far the best (and at the same time the best Chibnall penned) story by far. Even with the silly little monster it was the most riveted I have been all season. None of the other episodes are bad, but I really miss the arcs and I miss things being truly scary (kudos to the pretty cool transformation from this week's episode which would have probably scared me as a kid).

But again, I really miss the arcs and think the show is missing something without them.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Mon Nov 26, 2018 10:00 pm

The birth of Pakistan episode was my favorite so far. The Rosa Parks episode was good, but it was too safe and by the numbers for my liking. Every other episode I have to struggle to remember.

Whitaker’s constant mugging is getting on my nerves, but she’s a passable doctor. I think the biggest problem so far is the way she’s handled by the writers. It feels like they’re afraid to let her establish a unique personality for this Doctor.

Kraken · Post by **Kraken** » Mon Nov 26, 2018 11:08 pm

I just have a soft spot for time-travel stories involving historical figures and events. The Pakistan ep was okay until it turned to the City on the Edge of Forever trope. (I haven't watched the most recent ep yet.)

I do agree that introducing three companions was a bad idea. Maybe if they gelled better as a Scooby gang...as it is, I think the writers have to work too hard to keep them all busy, and none of them have emerged as strong personalities. I would not miss any of them if they were written out next week.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Tue Dec 04, 2018 2:40 pm

I can't decide if It Takes You Away was great TV, or really ridiculous.

JCC · Post by **JCC** » Tue Dec 04, 2018 7:04 pm

It was a very interesting idea that my wife and I thought was pretty much ruined by the frog.

I also felt this was the first story all season where the special effects looked sub par. It looked to me like they were pinching pennies on this one.

Still, my wife and I loved the last scene. "awwwwwwww....."

MonkeyFinger · Post by **MonkeyFinger** » Wed Dec 05, 2018 10:47 am

Kraken wrote: ↑Mon Nov 26, 2018 11:08 pm I do agree that introducing three companions was a bad idea.

I saw an interview early on where they specifically said that they no longer have "companions" (being all enlightened and stuff), they are "friends" of The Doctor now.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Wed Dec 05, 2018 12:11 pm

I hate to admit it, but I fear there may be some truth to the complaint that they're weakening the show by forcing too much "woke" material into it. Moderation be damned.

$iljanus · Post by **$iljanus** » Tue Jan 01, 2019 4:16 pm

So as we're at the end of the first season of the new Doctor I have to say that other than Rosa, Demons of the Punjab and the evil Amazon episode I've been really underwhelmed by the writing for this season. That final regular season episode was pretty meh. I enjoy all three companions and I like the Doctor but the script writing isn't up to the quality of the actors. I'm hoping that the next season will be better and I'm still looking forward to tonight's New Years special. And it probably isn't fair to the new composer but I'm missing Murray Gold's soundtrack work. There's no punch in the new guy's stuff but I'm hoping he'll find his "voice" in the next season.

JCC · Post by **JCC** » Tue Jan 01, 2019 7:53 pm

I like the cast (although IMO a 4 person TARDIS crew doesn't work in 45 minute length stories). I agree the writing is sub-par. I would be much happier if either Davies or Moffat came back to run the show again but that isn't going to happen. Hopefully tonight's special will be good since it's all we are getting this year.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Wed Jan 02, 2019 10:57 am

I thought they chose an exceedingly 2 dimensional, boring big bad for the season.

JCC · Post by **JCC** » Wed Jan 02, 2019 1:14 pm

I thought last night's special was pretty awesome. By far my favorite 13th Doctor story. By far the best Chris Chibnall penned story. Well done.

$iljanus · Post by **$iljanus** » Wed Jan 02, 2019 10:18 pm

I wanted to like the New Years Special more than I did but I’ll just hold out hope for a better season in 2019.

Max Peck · Post by **Max Peck** » Wed Jan 02, 2019 10:45 pm

$iljanus wrote: ↑Wed Jan 02, 2019 10:18 pm I wanted to like the New Years Special more than I did but I’ll just hold out hope for a better season in 2019.

There isn't going to be one in 2019. The last I heard, the next series will air in 2020.

$iljanus · Post by **$iljanus** » Wed Jan 02, 2019 11:10 pm

Max Peck wrote: ↑Wed Jan 02, 2019 10:45 pm
$iljanus wrote: ↑Wed Jan 02, 2019 10:18 pm I wanted to like the New Years Special more than I did but I’ll just hold out hope for a better season in 2019.
There isn't going to be one in 2019. The last I heard, the next series will air in 2020.

Ahh, that’s right! That kind of sucks.

Max Peck · Post by **Max Peck** » Tue Jan 08, 2019 12:08 am

If anyone needs a Doctor Who fix for 2019, Twitch is presenting a classic Doctor Who marathon this month. From 5-25 Jan, they are streaming a block of about 11-12 hours of episodes per day starting at 10AM PST, repeating once. They will be running all surviving complete stories, with the exception of the Dalek stories that were not written by Terry Nation. The only incomplete story that will air is The Web of Fear (episode 3 is partially reconstructed), which is notable for the initial appearance of Alistair Lethbridge-Stewart.

As of today, they are finishing off the William Hartnell era and getting started on the all-too-few Patrick Troughton stories.

JCC · Post by **JCC** » Tue Jan 08, 2019 8:41 am

The most amusing/amazing thing about the Doctor's meeting with "the Brig" (or the Colonel in the Web of Fear) is that it doesn't happen on screen. The Doctor just shows up with him in a scene explaining he met him. Obviously, the most iconic Dr Who friend/companion was not in any way planned to be such.

Daveman · Post by **Daveman** » Tue Jan 08, 2019 9:24 am

I enjoyed the New Years special a lot and thought it was by far the best episode of the season. It had a strong villian that was an intereting twist on an old classic. I could nitpick a lot of the details around the villain but the same could be said about them in any episode. I'd mentioned before I didn't like the "clean slate" approach they'd taken so far this season and really appreciated a touch of the old. I also loved the little callback to UNIT, brief as it was... but that's all I really need, just some sense of continuity. Elsewhere someone had commented "After years of helping defend the Earth from alien threats, UNIT was ultimately defeated... by Brexit."

The one small thing I missed, again after so many years of how the new series has worked, is that this didn't feel at all like a "holiday special". In varying degrees they've all been fun, mostly lighthearted Christmas episodes but this one was probably the darkest episode all season. The idea of a New Years special as a change up was interesting but besides the "fireworks" at the start and the Doctor's one "resolution" line there was nothing "special" about it.

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Wed Jan 01, 2020 2:51 pm

As a reminder, the new season (?) of Doctor Who starts tonight, here in the colonies:

$iljanus · Post by **$iljanus** » Wed Jan 01, 2020 2:53 pm

I really want the new Doctor and companions to succeed so I hope the writing is better this season. There were some good episodes last year but on the whole I felt kinda meh about it.

Daveman · Post by **Daveman** » Wed Jan 01, 2020 3:46 pm

A lot of my excitement for the show dried up last year despite liking Jodi Whitaker and her take on the role. Still willing to give this new season a try though!

$iljanus · Post by **$iljanus** » Wed Jan 01, 2020 11:15 pm

I’m very happy that I didn’t read any spoilers for tonight’s episode and it was a good one...

Hrdina · Post by **Hrdina** » Wed Jan 01, 2020 11:49 pm

JCC wrote: ↑Mon Jul 17, 2017 8:08 pmI think the season 9 episode "Heaven Sent" may be the best hour of TV I have ever seen. (Even if the followup was a bit of a disappointment.)

Sorry for quoting an old post, but I got a kick out of this.

I've only been watching the Doctor for the past year or so. My wife and I tend to watch old TV during dinner, so after finishing whatever previous show we watched (Red Dwarf I think), we started with Season 1 of Classic Who on BritBox.

Once we finished the original run of 7 doctors, we saw that BritBox had the rebooted series, so started watching that.

On NYE we were watching Heaven Sent, and at about 23:55 (half-way or so through the show) we switched to watch the ball drop. At about 00:02 we switched back, only to find that apparently BritBox lost rights to stream the rebooted show as of January 1.

NOT
COOL

Smoove_B · Post by **Smoove_B** » Thu Jan 02, 2020 12:47 pm

I liked it (despite not understanding the "big reveal"), so I guess that means true fans of the series hated it?

Max Peck · Post by **Max Peck** » Thu Jan 02, 2020 5:29 pm

Any true fan who didn't like the "big reveal" simply hates joy.

hepcat · Post by **hepcat** » Fri Jan 03, 2020 8:42 am

I liked it but

Spoiler:

JCC · Post by **JCC** » Fri Jan 03, 2020 5:44 pm

hepcat wrote: ↑Fri Jan 03, 2020 8:42 am I liked it but

Spoiler:
True joy at that reveal is hampered by a lack of Michelle Gomez in the role. She’s always going to be my favorite.

Yeah I unfortunately got partially spoiled before I saw the episode but...

Spoiler:

$iljanus · Post by **$iljanus** » Fri Jan 03, 2020 7:48 pm

hepcat wrote: ↑Fri Jan 03, 2020 8:42 am I liked it but

Spoiler:
True joy at that reveal is hampered by a lack of Michelle Gomez in the role. She’s always going to be my favorite.

Spoiler:

Daveman · Post by **Daveman** » Fri Jan 03, 2020 8:13 pm

That was a great start! The trio of companions weren't incompetent, the villains were creepy and the reveal at the end a nice nod to continuity.

Smoove_B wrote: ↑Thu Jan 02, 2020 12:47 pm I liked it (despite not understanding the "big reveal"), so I guess that means true fans of the series hated it?

If you haven't looked it up and want a no-frills explanation...

Spoiler:

Jaymon · Post by **Jaymon** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 3:45 pm

Daveman wrote: ↑Fri Jan 03, 2020 8:13 pm That was a great start! The trio of companions weren't incompetent, the villains were creepy and the reveal at the end a nice nod to continuity.

Smoove_B wrote: ↑Thu Jan 02, 2020 12:47 pm I liked it (despite not understanding the "big reveal"), so I guess that means true fans of the series hated it?
If you haven't looked it up and want a no-frills explanation...

Spoiler:
The Master has been a long-running villain on the show from back in the original series. He's a renegade Time Lord like the Doctor but evil. He has a TARDIS, can regenerate, etc. The modern series has played up the notion that he is brilliant but insane, if not deranged. His behavior in those last few minutes suggests they're sticking with this interpretation.

The show tested the water with a regeneration sex change a few seasons ago when "The Master" returned as a woman who liked to be called Missy (short for Mistress). The Master has repeatedly died only to return in classic arch-villain style but we viewers saw Missy go out in a way that hinted at it being "for real" but what do you know, he survived.

Spoiler:

I really enjoyed the episode, and glad to see one in which the companions had stuff to do, and they went and did it.

JCC · Post by **JCC** » Mon Jan 06, 2020 11:52 pm

Really enjoyed the 2nd episode. After eschewing a story arc (I don't count the tooth fairy being in the first and last ep as an "arc") and most continuity for his first season Chris Chibnall definitely seems to be diving deeply into them now. There was definitely a very "inside baseball" classic reference in this week's episode which was amusing. I'll be interesting to see where he goes with this latest change to the Whoniverse.

Spoiler:

JCC · Post by **JCC** » Wed Jan 08, 2020 1:41 pm

So, I just became aware today that Prime has lost all of its "free for Prime users" Doctor Who content. Warner bought the exclusive rights to stream Doctor Who in the US for their HBO Max streaming service. The problem is that HBO Max isn't coming until May. So, apparently a lot of Prime users are pissed.

Just an FYI for anyone looking for it on Prime and wondering what happened.