Doctor Who: 2-hour premiere on Sci-Fi Friday 3/17 9pm

[Woochifer]

With the season finales of Battlestar Galactica and Stargate now completed, Sci-Fi Channel will now premiere the new Doctor Who series in the 9pm Friday night slot. The entire first season has already aired in the U.K., Australia, and Canada, and in fact, it has already come out on DVD in those countries.

This new series is indeed a continuation of the classic Doctor Who series that aired on the BBC from 1963 to 1989, and got picked up by several PBS stations starting in the mid-70s (and continued to be broadcast by PBS affiliates until the BBC pulled the U.S. broadcast rights to the older episodes from those stations a couple of years ago in anticipation of the new Doctor Who series). The relative merits of Doctor Who compared to other science fiction series are always debated, but IMO Doctor Who is an undeniable landmark series that featured some of the best sci-fi writers around (most notably Douglas Adams, who authored several Doctor Who episodes before writing Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy).

I hope that Sci-Fi can pull a good audience for this new series because they only agreed to an option on the second season (which is scheduled to start airing soon in the U.K. and Canada). The tough luck with Sci-Fi's scheduling is that both St. Patrick's Day AND the first round of the NCAA basketball tournament also fall on Friday.

http://www.scifi.com/doctorwho/

[Kam]

hmmm that Billie Piper is enough to swing my eyes over to scifi friday night for a gander :)

[dean_martin]

Interesting. I thought Eccleston was good in Shallow Grave. Kam, I have to agree with ya on Ms. Piper.

[GMichael]

The DV-R is already programed to record a 3 hour block starting at 8 every Friday. Won't have to change it. I am looking forward to this more now that I know Douglas Adams wrote a few episodes.

Thanks Wooch.

[Woochifer]

The DV-R is already programed to record a 3 hour block starting at 8 every Friday. Won't have to change it. I am looking forward to this more now that I know Douglas Adams wrote a few episodes.

Thanks Wooch.

Actually, Douglas Adams won't be writing any episodes for the current Doctor Who series, or any other for that matter. He passed away a little over a year ago before Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy was released in theaters (he did see the rough cut though). :(

Should have written that more clearly -- Douglas Adams was a writer on the classic Doctor Who series during its late-70s heyday with Tom Baker playing the 4th Doctor. He went on to write the Hitchhikers books in the early-80s after his stint on Doctor Who.

[GMichael]

Actually, Douglas Adams won't be writing any episodes for the current Doctor Who series, or any other for that matter. He passed away a little over a year ago before Hitchhiker's Guide To The Galaxy was released in theaters (he did see the rough cut though). :(

Should have written that more clearly -- Douglas Adams was a writer on the classic Doctor Who series during its late-70s heyday with Tom Baker playing the 4th Doctor. He went on to write the Hitchhikers books in the early-80s after his stint on Doctor Who.

Oh, sorry. Didn't pick up on how current this is. I thought that these were aired on the BBC more than a few years ago. My bad. I felt that he had great ideas that could have been more than what the 1st or 2nd movie showed us. I was lucky enough to pick up a copy of his book that has all the printing upside down. I thought, I should have known, but it was the only copy on the shelf this way.

Anyway, thanks for the update on Dr Who. I'll still look forward to it.

[Glen B]

I look forward to this new Dr. Who with tempered enthusiasm. I watched the original series as a kid and from the previews of this re-incarnation on the Sci-Fi Channel, Dr. Who's character seems to be portrayed as buffoonish. We'll see when the show airs.

[RGA]

Eccleston is going to be tough to get used to for fans of Baker era. I felt the first episode "Rose" was one of, if not, the weakest episode in the season which is unfortunate since it's the show that gives viewers the first impression. That is, I suspect, why they are airing both of the first two episodes as one long premier hoping viewers will ride out the rough start to get the much stronger visually and intellectually second episode.

The second episode "The End of the World" has more special effects sequences than any other episode in the series and doubles the amount in the film Gladiator.

Billy Piper is both gorgeous and a very very strong companion -- after watching the series a second time Eccleston grew on me as the series went on such that I think he is the second best they had. Piper is the best I have seen in the companion role. It's been revamped so the special effects are no longer hoaky -- they are not as strong as the better Sci-fi efforts from the States but they're not laughable anymore and there are far less SET oriented episodes so there is outdoor feel - they traded some budget for this rather than the usual on set set pieces of shows like Star Trek TNG.

IMO the new show has a contemporary more realistic feel and is more told from the companion perspective which is what Russel T. Davis (Casanova and ***** as Folk) was after. "What would it be like to meet a time and space travellor and go ont he journey with him...rather than the old series where the Doctor knew all and the companion was a helpless screamer. Russel T Davies also does not shy away from satirizing views of love relationships and the future of game shows.

I also think the new series on the whole takckles some big issues and also has a LOT more human drama than the old show.

It's so important to have the human story with big issues especially for the primary target age group. The Show Dalek and Father's Day (around the 6th episode is where this show really begins to hit it's stride.

I have my doubts that American viewers are going to like this series because the camp elements are there and tongue is still in cheek much of the time -- that will no doubt not be overly enthused about with dark brooding dank and boring shows like Enterprise.

I have the Space Channel up here and have not seen a single advert for Doctor Who -- I wonder if it has a Canadian viewership blackout since it aired on the CBC last year. I also hope you get the Christmas Special with the new Doctor David Tennant. With the show being nominated for best Drama, Best actor and actress, best writing, etc the show will probably have a considerably larger budget for season 2 to improve some of the effects a touch more (CGI fire never quite seemed believable).

[RGA]

Yeah Billie Piper.

[RGA]

Definitely worth watching just for her: