Friday, April 23, 2010

Doctor Who 2010: Good First Impression

Tonight, Vicki and I watched the "Ultimate Guide to Doctor Who" special that Space (the Imagination Station) showed last Saturday, along with the first episode of the current season. Vicki got more out of the special than I did, as I knew at least a little of the show's history. Even so, it was good to see the most recent Doctors, as I'd had no exposure to them. I was somewhat gratified to see that the old reliables, Daleks and Cybermen, are still causing trouble, albeit with slightly - and I do mean slightly! - better special effects. I'd never heard of the Weeping Angels before, though, and I have to say that they sound like a pretty strange combination of creepy and silly.

Matt Smith, or "the 11th Doctor", really won me over. He's got a great handle on the character right out of the gate and delivered most of his best lines with just the right panache. His hilarious scenes near the start where he discovers just what food his new body likes and doesn't like were terrific! The humour inherent in the character now seems somewhat "Whedonesque" but of course it actually predates Joss...literally! (Doctor Who, the character, is the same age as me, and therefore one year older than Mr Whedon.)

The debut of the new season was quite engaging, even if it did borrow somewhat from The Time Traveler's Wife in the setup with Amy Pond and the Doctor. Karen Gillan, as Amy, was probably upstaged ever so slightly by the young actress playing Amelia as a little girl, but Gillan was still very good. The Doctor's always at his best when he has a strong companion, and Amy may turn out to be a classic.

We're going to give this latest incarnation a try and see if it continues to work for us.

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