Any Doctor Who fans here?

[Jedikatie]

I love the Doctor, both the classic series and the new version. I think my favorite Doctor is probably Patrick Troughton (the 2nd Doctor), though I'm also fond of Peter Davison (5th), Sylvester McCoy (7th) and of course, Chris and David's versions (9th and 10th respectively). And my favorite companions have been Jamie McCrimmon, Tegan and Turlough, and Ace. Oh, and Captain Jack, too, I suppose he counts as a companion since he did travel briefly with the Doctor in the first season of the new series...

Is anyone else watching (or in my case, rewatching) the third season of the new series which started airing last night on the Sci Fi channel?

ETA--Oh, I forgot to add that Connor likes the new Doctor Who, I think he said it was about as far as he'll go when it comes to British sci-fi. (We got on the topic when we were on the train after Hoshissis mentioned, while we were talking about Harry Potter, that David Tennant had been in the last movie. Connor asked us which Doctor we liked better, David or Chris. I like them both, actually, for different reasons, but then I'm used to the Doctor regenerating so it wasn't a love/hate relationship because Chris left and David took his place for me. The only Doctor I ever hated was the sixth Doctor, who also had the companion I absolutely hated the most--Peri.)

[dark_rain]

You can count me in. I haven't seen much, if any of the old stuff, but I am enjoying (mostly) the new series. I have'nt found anybody to hate yet. I liked "The Master" he was cool.

[Chris]

I've never seen Dr. Who. I've been thinking of getting the first season on DVD. But do you have to have seen the earlier versions to know what's going on, or can you start with the lastest version that's on the Sci-fi channel?

[evcake]

Liked the old ones a lot - used to see them on PBS late at night. Like the new ones a lot too. Christopher Eccleston makes a fine Doctor. I see that he'll be playing the Rider in the upcoming The Dark Is Rising. It will be lovely to see Susan Cooper's work come to the big screen with great effects and all, but it doesn't look like they'll using the actual book much. Ian McShane will be in it too, and it's always a pleasure to see him. I've enjoyed his work since waaaaaaay back in Gypsy Girl.

[Jedikatie]

I've never seen Dr. Who. I've been thinking of getting the first season on DVD. But do you have to have seen the earlier versions to know what's going on, or can you start with the lastest version that's on the Sci-fi channel?

No, you don't really have to have seen the classic series to follow along. There just a few constants to keep in mind in regards to the Doctor:

1. The blue police box is the TARDIS, that's his time machine. The chameleon circuit on it is broken, which is why it always (except for a handful of episodes of the classic series when it was temporarily fixed) appears in that form, no matter how incongruous it is to the surroundings. (The circuit, when operative, is supposed to make the TARDIS blend into the surroundings seamlessly).

2. The Doctor's companions come and go. There's been something like 40-50 of them so far (including the classic series). So don't be surprised when someone you really like as a companion leaves the show. Or if someone you really can't stand as a companion joins up, because they will eventually leave.

3. The Doctor has 13 lives (12 regenerations). Which means the Doctor also comes and goes. Usually less frequently than his companions, but it's the reason why there's been 10* Doctors so far--he's used up 9 of his regenerations.

*Note--this is the "official" count of the Doctors--there's been a number of others between plays, audiobooks, two movies based on the first two adventures of the Doctor with the Daleks, which starred Peter Cushing, even some which had the Doctor regenerate into female form, among others. However, these are not usually considered part of the continuity, though some events/storylines from those other sources have on occasion ended up on screen (for example, the 3rd season of nuWho had a two-parter which was based, at least in part, on a novel written by the guy who did the teleplay for the two-parter).

Once again, remember, even the Doctors people love the best eventually leave, as do the ones you might hate. Tom Baker (the 4th Doctor) lasted the longest, some 7 seasons overall, and is probably the best known (in America) of the classic Doctors for that reason, but usually it's about a 3-5 year run for each individual actor portraying the Doctor.

4. There are certain well-known bad guys that will pop up on the new series that were part of the old series. The writers do a reasonable job explaining who these bad guys are for those who are new to the show, certainly enough to fit into the storylines of the new series. If, after watching some of these episodes, you do want to find out more about the classic villians (and you'll be pretty much able to tell the main baddies, trust me), then I suggest trying Outpost Gallifrey (the largest and best-known Doctor Who site on the 'net) for more information. They also can tell you if the episode has been released on DVD or video, if you're interested in watching any of the classic episodes, as well as a good bit about each of the previous Doctors, his companions, and his various adventures over the 27 years the classic series was on the air.

[Chris]

Thanks for the info JK. I already bookmarked the site you mentioned. I browsed through for a few minutes. It looks like a great site, very indepth. Thanks again.

[boushh]

So JK, which Doctor (of the new series) is CT's favorite? Did he say?

I like both, but I have Tennant leanings.

[CoffeeCat]

ETA--Oh, I forgot to add that Connor likes the new Doctor Who, I think he said it was about as far as he'll go when it comes to British sci-fi.

You'd think the star of "Unexpected" would appreciate Red Dwarf considering Trip pretty much got "Listered" all the time...

[Jedikatie]

^
He didn't much care for Red Dwarf. He liked Space: 1999 and Doctor Who. And he had a crush I think on Wilma Deering (Erin Gray) from Buck Rogers, though I might be misremembering that...

And boushh, he didn't say which he liked best, though he did ask us what we thought of Chris Eccleston's performance (probably because we had started out by talking about Harry Potter, which is how David Tennant got mentioned since he was in the fourth movie, and from there to Doctor Who in the conversation).

[evcake]

Space 1999. Now there's a blast from the past.

[Kevin Thomas Riley]

^
And he had a crush I think on Wilma Deering (Erin Gray) from Buck Rogers, though I might be misremembering that...

Which red-blooded male didn't!

[Jedikatie]

^
You should have seen the look on his face as he was remembering that crush, whoever it was on. I'm pretty sure it was Erin Gray, but like I said, I might be misremembering who he said...

[cherryblossomjen]

THe first I heard of Dr Who was on livejournal. So many of journal's I frequented would have little comments about David Tenant and I would see icons with the TARDIS and whatnot.

WHen the series aired on SciFi I made a point to watch it (Doctors 9 & 10). What fun that show is!

I have to admnit I was really bummed when Rose didn't stay on as companion. I think its interesting that the Doctor still seems to be grieving for her. I'm glad he didn't just forget about her and move on as though she'd had no impact on him.

I thinking SciFi channel is almost an entire season behing th UK in terms of what they've aired. But, I'll be happy with what we've got.

[Elessar]

I started watching Dr. Who when it came on Sci-fi, never having seen it before, and I think I have to admit that I was one of those people who liked it for the most because because I really liked Chrisopher Eccleston. I fell out of watching it before he "died", but later when I caught a few with the new doctor I just didn't like it quite as much. Haven't really kept up with it since, but I might give it another try.

[Linda]

I saw reruns of the very first doctor which were made in the 1960s and William Russell as the sidekick, Those were reruns shown in the 1970's if my memory serves. I liked William Russell because he was in the Adventures of Sir Lancelot that I liked in the 1950's when I was a little kid. Then I have seen a few episodes here and there of later doctors, but nothing recent. How many reincarnations of the doctor have there been. Does anyone know?