Woo Who

So, Dr Who.

Really rather good wasn't it? Minor spoilers for the new series below...

I still remember my reaction when the new series was announced - a mixture of excitement and trepidation. The excitement was natural enough - I grew up on Dr Who after all, starting from Tom Baker and then only rarely missing an episode. I adored the series, the concept and even the execution (I was a terribly undemanding critic in my salad days). The trepidation is natural enough as well I suppose - looking back at some of the stories near its previous end it's easy to see why many thought the Doctor was past his prime when he was taken off the air. Sylvester McCoy did an admirable turn as the Doctor, but he wasn't well served by the scripts or the BBC's production values at the time. Would things be different now? Did the will exist to produce not just a new Doctor Who series, but a Doctor who fit for a new audience after such a long absence? I had my doubts, but at the same time, perhaps after 16 years he was overdue back on our screens.

I didn't find the early signs terribly encouraging, however. Although I thought Christopher Eccleston was a fine actor (if you haven't seen the Russel T. Davies scripted "The Second Coming" I highly recommend it - it was a great showing by Eccleston and a remarkably brave commission from a mainstream channel), he was far from my idea of the Doctor. I felt it even more so when I saw the first publicity shots. But where's the flair? The eccentricity? The absurdly long scarf? The ever lasting stick of celery? The trademark question marks? All gone, leaving us with what? A rather ordinary looking man such as you might pass in the street anywhere. An impostor surely!

Still, as is fairly obvious by now, I was wrong - probably about as wrong as it's possible to be. The new series has shown itself to have many strengths, but chief amongst these has been Eccleston's performance. It's true that many of the Doctor's familiar characteristics were present and correct - his vast intelligence, whimsical sense of humour, and dedication to righting the universes wrongs, but Eccleston also brought a new edge to the Doctor. It was revealed in the first episode that the Doctor had only just survived a massive war. It was an intriguing plot thread, the ramifications of which were quickly made clear. We soon learned just what the scope of that war was - Gallifrey was destroyed and for the first time the Doctor was truly without a home, truly alone. It's a tricky thing do deal with - your view may be contrary, but I've never viewed the Doctor as an overly emotional character - passionate yes, but not given to melancholy, or self-loathing. To his credit (and that of the writers) Eccleston imbued his Doctor with the perfect amount of pathos, depicting the Doctor with a new humanity, as a man scarred by his actions and their terrible, terrible consequences. All of a sudden, his need for companionship was made clear. Whereas in times past the Doctor seemed to end up with his assistants with little in the way of rhyme, reason or explanation, here were present with the simplest and most understandable - and human - of reasons: He was lonely.

And kudos to the writers too - Billie Piper's Rose was no mere assistant as in times past, but an integral character to the series. She wasn't to be taken for granted and she often gave the Doctor a run for his money. Her sparring with Eccleston was always fun to watch, and their relationship seemed far deeper and far more believable than those from series prior. Her trust in him wasn't blind either and the writers weren't afraid to put it to the test. The result was a relationship more believable and more touching than almost anything I believe we've seen before. It'll be fascinating to see how their relationship evolves. Oh, and I haven't even mentioned the delightfully liberated Captain Jack Harkness. Suffice it to say I I hope we see his like again in series to come.

The scripts and scripting were also extremely strong for the most part - Both Eccleston and Piper managed to convey comedy extremely well ("Hello Rose, I'm the Doctor - now run for your life!", "Lots of planets have a north"), but sometimes it felt like the writers were trying a little too hard to make things funny - the farting Slytheen for example. It's not a huge complaint, though, and much of the humour was indeed welcome, and sometimes necessary to counteract one of the series other great successes: It was scary! Over time the notion of Dr Who sending a generation of children to hide behind sofas has become something of a joke - we look back on the Dr Who of old, with it's dodgy special effects and cardboard monsters, and laugh rather than quiver with fear. There was no way a child of today, immunised against fear by the omnipresent 24 hour internet led media saturation, would ever have their spine tingled by something as archaic as Dr Who. Or was there? Oh yes there was. Several episodes (I'll single out "The Unquiet Dead", "The Empty Child" and "The Doctor Dances") managed to be far darker and altogether more disturbing than anything I ever expected to see on BBC1 early on a Saturday evening. Monstrous ghosts and zombie children are certain to have haunted the imaginations and dreams of a new generation of children over the last few months. My 12 year old nephew testified to being alternatively delighted and unnerved by the new series and I don't think we should underestimate what an incredible achievement that is.

I think perhaps my biggest frustration with the new series has little to do with writing or acting but rather with the American styles teasers for the following weeks episode at the end. In several cases, particularly where the Daleks were concerned, what should have been a tremendous surprise, turned out to be something of a damp squib instead, since we found ourselves sitting around waiting for something to happen, rather than being surprised when it actually did. As someone who cherishes surprises I may have an especially strong opinion on this. Still, I can understand the reasons for it - the Daleks are a big draw and the new series needed viewers to succeed - publicising the return of the Daleks to our screen is a necessary evil. And since we've been rewarded with not only a second series, but a third, I can't complain too much - I'll just be certain to reach for the off switch a little earlier when the Doctor returns once more. Fortunately they left us with one fantastic surprise at the very end, and I'm grateful that wasn't spoiled for me.

And as for the future, I'll confess a profound disappointment that Eccleston chose not to return. His was a remarkable performance, and I quite honestly believe that a large part of the new series success rests firmly on his shoulders. That said, I do have high hopes for David Tennant. If you haven't seen Casanova (another Davies scripted miniseries - the man is annoyingly prolific) I'll personally buy you a copy - just give the word. I'm serious - it's a wonderful bit of television and deserves as wide as audience as possible. Tennant certainly has a wide range as an actor, and once I would have considered him ideal Doctor material, but I'm not certain he'll be able to bring the same intensity to the role as did Eccleston. But of course, I doubt he'll try to ape Eccleston in any case, which leaves me curious to see where he will take his Doctor. Needless to say I'll be there.

In the end there's a simple way to sum my views on the new series. As the new Doctor put it himself rather perfectly:

And before I go I just want to tell you, you were fantastic. Absolutely fantastic.

And you know what? So was I.

And you know what? So he was.

Thought iMark at June 23, 2005 07:43 PM | TrackBack