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18 February 2007
Doctor Who - better than I remembered
3 of 3 found this helpful I'm a Doctor Who fan from 35 years back, when Tom Baker played the role, and PBS was the only place to see the series broadcast. To put it in perspective, home computers were fanciful talk, vinyl records and cassette tapes ( yeah, even 8 track) were the media of the day, and special effects for a TV show involved no computer generated images, just whatever you could cobble together under budget, and if the plot couldn't hold it up, the show would be doomed.
Fast forward to now. I own some of those Tom Baker episodes from back in the day, and will, as the budget allows, get more of the early stuff; but the "New"
Doctor Who series, which hooked me instantly when I saw episodes on BBC America (on cable TV), hooked me instantly back in to the whole bit. The actors are good, solid, believable. The storylines more than hold their own, dialog is well thought out, effects are a vast improvement over what was possible back in the old series episodes, but ( at times ) somewhat less than we have come to expect, having been "spoiled" by the stunning effects now possible in huge budget movies. Suspend a little disbelief, and you're right there. The continuity between episodes is flawless to my mind, and the links between the old series and the new is what makes this true to itself, the major difference being that, now the Doctor is the LAST Time Lord, in the last Tardis; home world and race having been otherwise wiped from the universe. This doesn't stop him from being the same interloper in earthly near disasters as before, but he has some additional "baggage" now, and isn't beyond needing to learn a thing or topabout himself in harsh circumstances (as in the episode, "Dalek", when the example of that nemesis race gives the Doctor a "compliment").
I'm very pleased , and have also purchased the complete second season. Will keep up with new releases as they come out. So long as the writing stays up to the new standard, and the series remains true to itself, this Fan won't have to pine for "the good old days".