Doctor Who IV - Everything Whovian - Would you like a jelly baby?

[Jokerz79]

Finally saw it thought Jodie was good already prefer 13 over 10 or 5. I love David Tennant but I dislike the 10th Doctor.

Like the companions so far as a introduction I'd put Unearthly Child, The Power of the Daleks, Spearhead from Space, & 11th Hour ahead of it and put it on par with Deep Breath and Rose.

[Zero Hunter]

After how much I had started to dislike Doctor Who the last couple of seasons this new start was a pleasant surprise. It was not perfect, but it was a fresh new take after the last two years bogging everything down so much. I will be giving it a few more episodes to really hook me, but its off to a good start.

[Enigma]

As a general overview;
Jodie as The Doctor - Yes! Not perfect, but I'm looking forward to seeing her Doctor grow.
The Doctor's Outfit - Wow, so boring... I actually didn't mind it from releases etc, but as soon as I saw it on screen I realised how little character it has.
Companions - I don't know if there were too many or what, but I wasn't feeling them. In fact, I barely even remember what Yaz did...

[Miles To Go]

After how much I had started to dislike Doctor Who the last couple of seasons this new start was a pleasant surprise. It was not perfect, but it was a fresh new take after the last two years bogging everything down so much. I will be giving it a few more episodes to really hook me, but its off to a good start.

It's the popular thing now to bash Moffat, but frankly everything in series nine was better than this episode on an objective level..and I say that as someone who liked this episode. I guess people really do prefer simplistic fodder over complicated narratives. Shame.

I'll take Moffat at his worse than Chibnall at his best.

[Carabas]

I'll take Moffat at his worse than Chibnall at his best.

Chibnall at his best is Broadchurch, but we haven't seen him bring that to Who... so far.

[Miles To Go]

Chibnall at his best is Broadchurch, but we haven't seen him bring that to Who... so far.

Broadchurch is overrated. People would'nt have even bothered watching it if there weren't any DW stars.

[Jim Kelly]

I thought the character death in this episode was unnecessary and was just there to up the stakes--but easily could have been avoided. And the other characters seem to move past it pretty quickly--where on BROADCHURCH moving past deaths is a major preoccupation for the characters. I'm sure future episodes will return to it, but if there had to be a death it should have had more import in this episode. It also reminds me how, on DW, there are some deaths that the Doctor really cares about and tries to prevent and others that he doesn't do much to stop and doesn't worry about after they happen--which undermines his standing as a hero.

I liked that, in-story, the gender swap is not overplayed. The Doctor really wouldn't care that much. What bugs me is pop culture saying "finally" and "about time" like she's the president of the United States or something--because it presumes that a fictional character at some point has to switch gender, like it's an inevitability. Once you open that door, then you have to ask why is the Doctor always white, why is the Doctor always English or Scottish and never Irish or Welsh, why is the Doctor always involved with Britain and not Canada or Australia?

What is actually refreshing is the way the other characters were written. It's a diverse cast, but that's not made a big issue. Whereas, in the past, DW drew attention to its diversity. Real progress is when diversity isn't out of the ordinary. But I don't see how Grace could be a grandmother or that Graham is so old as all that. Those characters are young, from where I'm sitting.

The Companions are not very good friends if they let the Doctor think that's a good look for her.

[Jokerz79]

Am I the only person who thinks Moffat had problems but enjoyed his era more than RTD? I especially didn't enjoy RTD his obsession with Rose and Companions falling for the Doctor.

[Panic]

Am I the only person who thinks Moffat had problems but enjoyed his era more than RTD? I especially didn't enjoy RTD his obsession with Rose and Companions falling for the Doctor.

No, I loved Moffat's episodes in RTD's era, but generally I hated RTD's take on Who.

[Zero Hunter]

It's the popular thing now to bash Moffat, but frankly everything in series nine was better than this episode on an objective level..and I say that as someone who liked this episode. I guess people really do prefer simplistic fodder over complicated narratives. Shame.

I'll take Moffat at his worse than Chibnall at his best.

I disagree. Those last 2 seasons were just a drag to get through. I grew really sick of Moffat and his "special girl" troupe a while ago. I would say of that last 2 season I maybe enjoyed 2 or 3 episodes a season while the rest were just blah. I like Capaldi but alot of his stories stunk.

[Jim Kelly]

Am I the only person who thinks Moffat had problems but enjoyed his era more than RTD?

I've rarely seen RTD on screen; whereas, I've seen Moffat countless times enthusing about the Doctor and the TV series. So I think it's pretty clear that Moffat was enjoying his celebrity as a DW creator.

[Nate Grey]

I liked it a great deal. I like her companions a lot. Chibnall did a lot of setup and it has me interested to see what comes next. I don't mind the Tardis being missing for most if not all of the season, they can still get around apparently.

[stillanerd]

Okay, having watched the episode last night, I'd say things are off to a very good start. Yes, it did seem a bit too inspired by the Predator, but as a first episode to a new season, not too bad.

As for Jodie Whittaker as the 13th Doctor, I thought she did a great job. There's definitely a lot of Matt Smith's 11th Doctor in her performance, with the righteousness of David Tennet's 10th Doctor. The difference is she's a lot more personable and never talks down the companions (all which were great, with Bradley Walsh being a real standout, along with his character's wife). Basically, she's very Paul McGann's 8th Doctor in that regard, and definitely the polar opposite of Peter Capaldi's grouchy "white haired scotman" take on the 12th Doctor.

Also (and I've seen this comparison being made a lot about this episode elsewhere), it's very much like Torchwood in terms of it's production and tone. Basically, imagine a classic Doctor Who episode with a better budget instead of the metatexual romps Steven Moffat gave viewers the past few seasons.

[Somecrazyaussie]

Broadchurch is overrated. People would'nt have even bothered watching it if there weren't any DW stars.

The first series of Broadchurch was absolutely stellar. The second was very uneven. The third turned things around to a degree, but it never recaptured what made the first so good (the rape story was fine. But in the wake of series 2 I felt the third should have depicted Joe Miller being murdered by someone in the community.)

[JKtheMac]

Am I the only person who thinks Moffat had problems but enjoyed his era more than RTD? I especially didn't enjoy RTD his obsession with Rose and Companions falling for the Doctor.

Yes I think you probably are in a small minority. RTD is a much more accomplished and skilful writer of characters than Moffat ever could be, and is acknowledged as such by his peers. I would suggest Moffat would agree with this too, he is not as self assured as he might sometimes seem. Moffat is an excellent writer of comedy and twisting narrative but that can’t compare to the sheer visceral reality of RTD’s emotion and motivations. It was very obvious that Moffat tried to ape RTD occasionally, with mixed results.

As to Chibnall, I suspect he will take a swerve and push for drama and a bit of a soap opera feel. This first episode may not be particularly representative. I wish him luck. Most of his previous Who work has not been great but I have enjoyed many other things he has written. Now he can do what he wants and regardless of quality I will always be watching because it’s Dr Who. Bad Who is still fun and will always make me smile. The show has been blessed with some phenomenal talent since it’s return.