TV Tyrant

The latest Doctor Who, Victory of the Daleks, is not a terribly original or interesting entry into the series. Mark Gatiss, member of the superb comedy troupe the League of Gentlemen, gives us a very pedestrian entry mixing two of the more tired elements of Doctor Who throughout its history – Daleks and historical bigwigs (this time Sir Winston Churchill).

This could have been any Doctor, with any companion, and the new Daleks look like they’re candy-coated. We’d say they look like M&Ms, our friends across the pond would call them Smarties. Either way, it’s far less frightening to run from candy than the dirty, war (and Doctor) scarred pepperpots of old.

My fellow Americans,

You’re about to be re-introduced to a character as old as Kennedy Conspiracy theories, TV’s the Doctor of BBC’s Doctor Who. Throughout the nearly fifty year history of the science fiction show, Americans have had to wait as much as years for their fix of the quirky, other-worldly hero who travels around in a blue box.

Wait no more. Well, you can wait two weeks, but it’s hardly the formerly glacial pace. BBC America is rebroadcasting Britain’s Doctor Who only two weeks behind their Uncles from Across the Pond.

After a ground-breaking tenure by enthusiastic and ebullient David Tennant, we’re given a still-younger Doctor. In his mid twenties, the new Doctor, played by Northampton’s Matt Smith makes it rather hard to remember that the character once started as a geriatric who was called “Grandfather” by his co-star. But things change – he was so much older then; he’s younger than that now. I’m hip, and you all will be too, because the new Doctor is terrific.

Whereas David Tennant played the Doctor like mankind’s biggest fan, the new one has a more fluid relationship with our species. He constantly searches for trust in the eyes of his new companion, the adorable Karen Gillan, playing the spritely Amelia “Amy” Pond. He’s sensitive in a way the previous Doctor wasn’t – more touchy-feely.

The first episode, the Eleventh Hour, spent most of its time setting up the new companion and new character for the Doctor, but found time for a very solid little science fiction story, centering a chameleon like entity called a “multiform” who went by the name Prisoner Zero. Through a bit of time-jumping, we learned how annoying a Timelord can be, particularly one who consistently misses the target by ten or so years.

But we’re given an idea how romantic, in spite of or because of his unreliability, this itinerant traveler from the stars can be. He’s so romantic that his new companion jumps at the chance to travel with him, despite having a rather important appointment the next day, despite the fact that the Doctor has a habit of showing up years too late. Just what does Amy Pond want out of this alien?

The second episode, the Beast Below, shows a bit of new head writer Steven Moffat’s particular talent – his ability to give us the willies. And he’s used that talent to great effect when working under the last head writer, Russel T. Davies. From the gas-masked children asking if we’ve seen their mum to the statues that move when you’re not looking, Moffat has a real talent for subtle horror. His new creation, called, the “Smilers” are genuinely creepy, so watch out for them.

After seeing the first two episodes of the “new” new Doctor Who, I can honestly say that the show’s in safe hands, and that given quality writing like this, the show has at least another fifty years left in it. Doctor Who’s American Premiere is Saturday, April 17, at 8pm on BBC America.