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[infiniteloop]

My Doctor Who 50th bluray came today from Amazon. No shipping box, the Bluray was just tossed haphazardly in front of my door...

I now have this image of someone stealing my packaging, opening it and going "Oh fuck Doctor Who" and tossing it back at my door.

lol.

Years ago, I ordered a ton of classic Who DVDs from an online site that was having a sale. I got home to find the box on my doorstep was open and all the DVDs were missing. I enjoyed thinking how disappointed someone must've been to not find video games or the latest blockbuster movie, but lots of old B&W British TV.

 

[Akahige]

People liked Jenny? News to me.

 

[APZonerunner]

Some interesting tidbits from DWM I haven't seen widely posted

Moffat on Eccleston and the 50th - would Eccleston have taken the John Hurt role if he'd agreed?

Yes, but I was pretty certain Chris wouldn't do it, although he did agree to a couple of meetings. So we instead had the challenge and excitement of introducing a BBC audience to a brand new Doctor.

Yes, [Chris would've been the one to end the war] but d'you know, I was always nervous of that one, because it doesn't fit with Rose at all. He's a brand new Doctor in Rose, he's absolutely, definitely new. It couldn't have been Chris who pushed the button in the Time War, 'cos that's a new man, very explicitly, in that episode. I also had trouble, I have to be honest, imagining it being Paul McGann's Doctor.

So all of this led me to the idea that if you're going to sell to the Not-We audience a Doctor who essentially they haven't seen before, then you have a freer hand in saying it has to be one of the ones you've already had. And it was predicated in getting an enormous star to be able to do it. We got John Hurt, so that was cool!

 

[Fiktion]

Moffat trying so hard to dance around the fact that Eccelston dicked them over.

 

[infiniteloop]

Moffat trying so hard to dance around the fact that Eccelston dicked them over.

yup, although he does have a point about Chris being new as he admires his new reflection in 'Rose'.

 

[APZonerunner]

I think the "he's a brand new Doctor" thing is shite, because other than the ears comment, there's all the other stuff - all the pictures of him alone that Clive has boarding the Titanic and at JFK's assassination and things - and RTD's series is constructed so tightly (similar for Tennant's time) that he doesn't leave many gaps where things could fit in. In the case of 9, I can't think of a single gap where he wouldn't have Rose. You can construe a story reason for that, obviously, but I just concluded that the pictures Clive has are from pre-Rose from the Doctor's perspective.

A bit more from Moffat:

Three Doctors together can work, providing there's some definition. The third one has to be completely different, which is what we've got with John Hurt. That was the other thing that I was worried about if we had used Paul. Would he just be the third face of a modern Doctor? Dashing, young and handsome. I know he's actually older, but he doesn't look it!

 

[infiniteloop]

True. I know some people like to use that bit at the end of Rose where he leaves on his own and comes back for Rose, as an opportunity for him to do stuff on his own.

 

[GodParticle]

That storyline should have just been scrapped if they couldn't get eccleston. Hurt was an awful inclusion

 

[Blader]

Wait, Ninth was newly regenerated in "Rose"? Wouldn't there have been a century that passed in between the Time War and S1? War Doctor says he's 800 and RTD introduces the Doctor as 900.

Or is this just one of those things that should be ignored

That storyline should have just been scrapped if they couldn't get eccleston. Hurt was an awful inclusion

wtf? Hurt's Doctor is one of the best things the show has put out in the last 8 years.

 

[APZonerunner]

Wait, Ninth was newly regenerated in "Rose"? Wouldn't there have been a century that passed in between the Time War and S1? War Doctor says he's 800 and RTD introduces the Doctor as 900.

Or is this just one of those things that should be ignored

Well, the Doctor's age is all over anyway.In the classic series he says he's over 1000 a few times, then 900 in 2005, etc. The War Doctor never says he's 800 flat, though, he just says the Eleventh is about 400 years older, roughly. That's like a 21 year old saying to a 47 year old they're 20 years older. They're not, there's more to it than that. The War Doctor is probably in his very late 800s or something.

 

[GodParticle]

wtf? Hurt's Doctor is one of the best things the show has put out in the last 8 years.

Seriously? He looked like a deer in headlights the entire episode. Some of the worst acting I've seen. Not to mention the whole screwed up continuity

 

[infiniteloop]

BBC Worldwide has announced the release of a new Doctor Who boxset, currently titled 'Time of the Doctor and other Matt Smith Specials'.

It will be available from Monday 13 January on DVD (£20.42) and Blu-ray (£25.52).

http://www.cultbox.co.uk/news/headlines/8747-doctor-who-matt-smiths-specials-boxset-announced

No sure what else is in it, maybe Day + Widow?

 

[APZonerunner]

It probably won't be Widow, as that's in the Series 7 set now. It'll probably just be Day + Time, especially for 20 quid. Day on its own is 12 to 15.

 

[Fiktion]

Seriously? He looked like a deer in headlights the entire episode. Some of the worst acting I've seen. Not to mention the whole screwed up continuity

Whatever you think of his impact on continuity, his acting was more than adequate in the 50th.

 

[TrueBlue]

Seriously? He looked like a deer in headlights the entire episode. Some of the worst acting I've seen. Not to mention the whole screwed up continuity

Eh? His acting was absolutely fine, I'd even say he was the best out of the lot.

 

[GodParticle]

Whatever you think of his impact on continuity, his acting was more than adequate in the 50th.

I might have been impressed if the master had burst out of his chest. It might have saved that trainwreck of an episode =P

 

[APZonerunner]

Hurt is quite literally the finest actor ever to take on the lead role in this TV show, and I love all of them, really.

 

[Zen]

Seriously? He looked like a deer in headlights the entire episode. Some of the worst acting I've seen. Not to mention the whole screwed up continuity

I felt this way, but by the end I got over it and felt like either he got better as the episode went along or I adjusted to it and the story was that good anyway.

I don't agree that they should have scrapped it without Eccleson. I loved his Doctor, but I also think that he's kind of a douche for not wanting to appear. Especially considering his Doctor is so tied to the reboot, and it was the 50th of all things.

I would have liked them to take things even further though, even without Eccleson we could have had an appearance by McGann, and the first Doctor etc as played by the fellow in "An adventure in space and time'. I would have loved it had Sussan appeared out of nowhere, and they could bring up how he essentially abandoned her. I still enjoy the episode a lot as is.

 

[peanutbutterlatte]

I'd go so far to say that without Hurt the 50th would have been fairly standard, for me anyway. Smith (and Tennant) both have a lot to learn from that man.

He was a deer in headlights. He's just seen his imminently happy future selves after he considers himself a monster and believes he will die.

 

[APZonerunner]

I would have liked them to take things even further though, even without Eccleson we could have had an appearance by McGann, and the first Doctor etc as played by the fellow in "An adventure in space and time'. I would have loved it had Sussan appeared out of nowhere, and they could bring up how he essentially abandoned her. I still enjoy the episode a lot as is.

They've done a recast once before, and it is largely regarded by the fanbase (and people like Moffat, who were fans before they were production) as a mistake, an abomination and greatly disrespectful to the original actor. I agree, really. That aside, David Bradley actually doesn't do a particularly good impression of Hartnell's version of The Doctor - but he does play a good version of Hartnell. The two things are, obviously, quite different.

 

[peanutbutterlatte]

They've done a recast once before, and it is largely regarded by the fanbase (and people like Moffat, who were fans before they were production) as a mistake, an abomination and greatly disrespectful to the original actor. I agree, really. That aside, David Bradley actually doesn't do a particularly good impression of Hartnell's version of The Doctor - but he does play a good version of Hartnell. The two things are, obviously, quite different.

That was the one thing that bothered me about Adventure in Space and Time; vocally, Hartnell and Bradley are incredibly different. It's noticeably jarring when he's doing dialogue from the Susan scene.

 

[V_Arnold]

So much hyperbole in this one. I have got too much love for both Smith and Tennant to ever say some of the stuff in here. Hurt better? Okay, I wont debate it. But better Doctor? Nope.

No one jumping into a role for an episode will be better than Smith who is currently clocking at 4+ years as the Doctor. Same goes for Tennant as well. Nope. Just nope.

Or you can believe that, but then how can you *stand* a show where the main actor is just not good enough so that some legend can just waltz in with outside experience and be considered better..nope.

Would you guys say the same if Hurt were to play an alternate Sherlock with Cumberbatch? Just cause he is Hurt, he would win that? Or any other long-running show...Breaking Bad? Better Walter? Better main actress than Tatyana in Orphan black?

 

[peanutbutterlatte]

Would you guys say the same if Hurt were to play an alternate Sherlock with Cumberbatch? Just cause he is Hurt, he would win that? Or any other long-running show...Breaking Bad? Better Walter? Better main actress than Tatyana in Orphan black?

Wow that's totally exactly the same thing

 

[odiin]

So much hyperbole in this one. I have got too much love for both Smith and Tennant to ever say some of the stuff in here. Hurt better? Okay, I wont debate it. But better Doctor? Nope.

No one jumping into a role for an episode will be better than Smith who is currently clocking at 4+ years as the Doctor. Same goes for Tennant as well. Nope. Just nope.

Or you can believe that, but then how can you *stand* a show where the main actor is just not good enough so that some legend can just waltz in with outside experience and be considered better..nope.

Would you guys say the same if Hurt were to play an alternate Sherlock with Cumberbatch? Just cause he is Hurt, he would win that? Or any other long-running show...Breaking Bad? Better Walter? Better main actress than Tatyana in Orphan black?

This is one of the most bizarre arguments I have ever seen, and I've watched FOX news on more than one occasion.

 

[APZonerunner]

So much hyperbole in this one. I have got too much love for both Smith and Tennant to ever say some of the stuff in here. Hurt better? Okay, I wont debate it. But better Doctor? Nope.

No one jumping into a role for an episode will be better than Smith who is currently clocking at 4+ years as the Doctor. Same goes for Tennant as well. Nope. Just nope.

Or you can believe that, but then how can you *stand* a show where the main actor is just not good enough so that some legend can just waltz in with outside experience and be considered better..nope.

Didn't really say any of those things. I said Hurt is the finest actor to play the role, and he is, as you admit. Never said he was better in the role, just that he's of a higher profile and more generally respected than the others who have taken the role in the past. He is. He's highly respected, and the type of actor Tennant & Smith couldn't believe their luck to be working with (Look up interviews! They talk about how inadequate they feel next to him!) He was a big get. The same way Derek Jacobi is hands-down the finest, most respected actor to play The Master on the show, really, even though he played the character for all of five minutes.

It doesn't mean HE'S THE BEST DOCTOR EVER, fucking hell. He's just on a different sort of sort of level as an actor - not as a Doctor - in terms of profile to anybody who has ever played that character. There's no shame in that.

 

[Blader]

Or you can believe that, but then how can you *stand* a show where the main actor is just not good enough so that some legend can just waltz in with outside experience and be considered better..nope.

No one is shitting on Tennant or Smith, and it's not as if the show is less watchable because it doesn't star Hurt or someone of his calibur. Tennant and Smith are great, sometimes really brilliant, actors. But better actors exist and always will. This is true for every TV show and movie.

 

[Fiktion]

The same way Derek Jacobi is hands-down the finest, most respected actor to play The Master on the show, really, even though he played the character for all of five minutes.

I know it doesn't work in canon or out, but Jacobi versus Hurt in a Time War setting is an amazing fantasy.

 

[evilwart]

I think the "he's a brand new Doctor" thing is shite, because other than the ears comment, there's all the other stuff - all the pictures of him alone that Clive has boarding the Titanic and at JFK's assassination and things - and RTD's series is constructed so tightly (similar for Tennant's time) that he doesn't leave many gaps where things could fit in. In the case of 9, I can't think of a single gap where he wouldn't have Rose. You can construe a story reason for that, obviously, but I just concluded that the pictures Clive has are from pre-Rose from the Doctor's perspective.

At the end of 9's first episode he leaves without Rose then comes back seconds later for her. Non-Rose adventures could have happened in that gap before he decided to come back for her.

 

[APZonerunner]

At the end of 9's first episode he leaves without Rose then comes back seconds later for her. Non-Rose adventures could have happened in that gap before he decided to come back for her.

While this works, I think the same of this as I do of the suggestion Smith's Doctor does the same when he takes the TARDIS for a run in at the end of The Eleventh Hour and has some untelevised River adventures in that time.

It makes sense in the canon, but it sort of ruins that moment for Rose & Amy, which is why unless it's explicitly said I'll probably never adopt either into my personal canon.

 

[V_Arnold]

I appreciated Hurt in the 50th, I really did. I just do not think that he outplayed Smith or Tennant, really. Even with the War Doctor being tailored specifically around him.

 

[Htown]

Seriously? He looked like a deer in headlights the entire episode. Some of the worst acting I've seen. Not to mention the whole screwed up continuity

This is the most insane thing I've read in one of these threads in a long time.

 

[Kano on the Phone]

I appreciated Hurt in the 50th, I really did. I just do not think that he outplayed Smith or Tennant, really. Even with the War Doctor being tailored specifically around him.

I really never felt like he was supposed to. The special seemed to be really tailored toward Matt Smith rather than Hurt.

 

[Fiktion]

Just picked up the Day of the Doctor bd at Barnes and Noble. They're also doing 50% off all British TV, which the special falls under so it's even cheaper than Amazon.

Was a nice surprise actually.

Would like to thank this guy for bringing this deal to my attention. I dropped by my nearest Barnes and Noble and turns out that today is the last day of the deal. $15 for The Day of the Doctor in 3D is fair, I think.

I appreciated Hurt in the 50th, I really did. I just do not think that he outplayed Smith or Tennant, really. Even with the War Doctor being tailored specifically around him.

He was given less screen time and fewer lines, probably by design.

 

[Blader]

I actually think Tennant was the weaker link of the three, but maybe it was just the haircut. What happened to all of that glorious gel?!

 

[BocoDragon]

I finally got around to watching The Tenth Planet. I knew they were humble origins for both the Cybermen and the first regeneration, but I was surprised how humble.

The plot investigates the nature of the Cybermen very little; they don't seek to convert others (I don't recall hearing so). They basically serve as the usual enemy adversaries, but metal. Their appearance and voice are more interesting though. Quite creepy mouth movement and speech pattern. I think modern Cybermen have devolved into an even more generic robot.

And the regeneration just sort of happens. Hartnell complains about feeling weak, and at the end of the episode, he collapses into a regeneration. Cue credits. I guess I shouldn't have expected much more, seeing as how even much later classic Who regenerations were rather abrupt transformations.

 

[Joqu]

While this works, I think the same of this as I do of the suggestion Smith's Doctor does the same when he takes the TARDIS for a run in at the end of The Eleventh Hour and has some untelevised River adventures in that time.

It makes sense in the canon, but it sort of ruins that moment for Rose & Amy, which is why unless it's explicitly said I'll probably never adopt either into my personal canon.

I think it works great for Rose and Amy actually. The fact that The Doctor would actually bother to return for them after going on adventures says a lot to me, you know. I guess that's a different way of looking at it though.

 

[Kilrogg]

I actually think Tennant was the weaker link of the three, but maybe it was just the haircut. What happened to all of that glorious gel?!

Tennant also looks significantly older. The odd wrinkle, maybe? Anyway, he wasn't at the top of his game and felt a bit like an imitation of himself.

 

[Joqu]

Tennant also looks significantly older. The odd wrinkle, maybe? Anyway, he wasn't at the top of his game and felt a bit like an imitation of himself.

Yeah, I was thinking this too when I was watching the episode. Actually thought for moment that I just don't like Tennant's Doctor as much anymore, but rewatching some of his episodes quickly proved me wrong there.

Still, it was great to see him do the role again, I wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

 

[Vinci]

Frankly, I loved all three I them - Smith, Tennant, and Hurt - in that episode. They were great together, and it was fun to see a technically younger Doctor chastising the other two for their childishness.

 

[Boem]

Seriously? He looked like a deer in headlights the entire episode. Some of the worst acting I've seen. Not to mention the whole screwed up continuity

Just out of curiosity: how familiar are you with Doctor Who? Are you 'just' a fan of the new series, or are you a fan of the classic series as well? I'm not trying to say that you're not entitled to that opinion if you have/haven't seen the classic series, but I'm just curious what your perspective is.

For me, I got into the series with Ecceston, watched it on and off during the RTD years (while I liked the concept, RTD's vision of the show doesn't match mine), and I fell in love with the series during season 5. I went back and watched all (all) of the classic series, and these days I guess I'm a bigger fan of the classic series than the new one. I was actually one of those people that was secretly hoping to see all the (living) classic doctors show up, but in the end I'm kinda glad that Moffat chose story over fanservice. John Hurt worked perfectly for me, because he both represented the idea that the show should always feel new, suprising and familiar at the same time (while presenting some light sci-fi/philosophical ideas). The way he talked and presented himself felt like a great representation of the calmer, more eloquent classic Doctors, while avoiding the awkwardness of, for instance, the 6th Doctor showing up while he's noticeably older/fatter/CGI/played by someone else. None of those scenario's would have really worked, I think.

Just as an example, I loved the small moment in the beginning where he's mumbling over the box containing the Moment, wondering about a big red button. It's not a joke that makes you laugh out loud, but it gives a sense that he still has that same sense of humour that the Doctor has always had, both in the classic series and the new one, but with a sense of weariness that the war brought. After his reveal in Name of the Doctor I wasn't sure how to feel about an 'evil' version of the Doctor, but his lovely, warm and subtle performance in Day of the Doctor completely convinced me that he is, indeed, the Doctor. He totally fits in with the rest of the Doctors for me. Keep in mind, while 10 and 11 are often dancing around and waving their arms, most of the Doctors where never near that 'manic' (and I suspect that Capaldi will dial that back a bit when it's his turn. It'd be interesting to see how fans of the modern shows will react to that). He bridged the gap between the classic and the new more than McGann or Eccleston would have done, for me.

Anyway, you're obviously entitled to your opinion, but I loved his addition and he is a big part of why Day of the Doctor is so memorable for me. I still think it would be nice if the other classic Doctors would have gotten a small part (even if it was just a couple of shots of them saying couple of lines while in their respective Tardises in the big scene at the end), but taking the story for what it is I think it's one of Moffat's best.

 

[GodParticle]

It's too bad 9 had to be a dick and not show up. Would have been interesting

Just out of curiosity: how familiar are you with Doctor Who? Are you 'just' a fan of the new series, or are you a fan of the classic series as well? I'm not trying to say that you're not entitled to that opinion if you have/haven't seen the classic series, but I'm just curious what your perspective is.

For me, I got into the series with Ecceston, watched it on and off during the RTD years (while I liked the concept, RTD's vision of the show doesn't match mine), and I fell in love with the series during season 5. I went back and watched all (all) of the classic series, and these days I guess I'm a bigger fan of the classic series than the new one. I was actually one of those people that was secretly hoping to see all the (living) classic doctors show up, but in the end I'm kinda glad that Moffat chose story over fanservice. John Hurt worked perfectly for me, because he both represented the idea that the show should always feel new, suprising and familiar at the same time (while presenting some light sci-fi/philosophical ideas). The way he talked and presented himself felt like a great representation of the calmer, more eloquent classic Doctors, while avoiding the awkwardness of, for instance, the 6th Doctor showing up while he's noticeably older/fatter/CGI/played by someone else. None of those scenario's would have really worked, I think.

Just as an example, I loved the small moment in the beginning where he's mumbling over the box containing the Moment, wondering about a big red button. It's not a joke that makes you laugh out loud, but it gives a sense that he still has that same sense of humour that the Doctor has always had, both in the classic series and the new one, but with a sense of weariness that the war brought. He totally fits in with the rest of the Doctors for me. Keep in mind, while 10 and 11 are often dancing around and waving their arms, most of the Doctors where never near that 'manic'. He bridged the gap between the classic and the new more than McGann or Eccleston would have done, for me.

Anyway, you're obviously entitled to your opinion, but I loved his addition and he is a big part of why Day of the Doctor is so memorable for me. I still think it would be nice if the other classic Doctors would have gotten a small part (even if it was just a couple of shots of them saying couple of lines while in their respective Tardises in the big scene at the end), but taking the story for what it is I think it's one of Moffat's best.

I have been a fan since the early 80s,. Met a couple of the original docs(3 and 5) and some of the original cast, so I have a lot of vested interest

 

[Blader]

Yeah, I was thinking this too when I was watching the episode. Actually thought for moment that I just don't like Tennant's Doctor as much anymore, but rewatching some of his episodes quickly proved me wrong there.

Still, it was great to see him do the role again, I wouldn't have wanted it any other way.

I literally had all of these same thought processes. :lol

 

[odiin]

Hey Who-gaf. I've been doing a new-Who rewatch lately. I just finished Love and Monsters and I'm about to get ready to watch Fear Her...

I know none of you here really know me, but in case I don't make it back alive I just wanted to say, from the bottom of my heart, that a lot of you are fucking weirdos. Like seriously... you know who you are.

 

[M.Bluth]

I know none of you here really know me, but in case I don't make it back alive I just wanted to say, from the bottom of my heart, that a lot of you are fucking weirdos. Like seriously... you know who you are.

I've been lurking on GAF for ages, and this is probably the most confusing thing I've ever seen here. Is this an account suicide attempt...?! Wha...?!

 

[Mariolee]

Hey Who-gaf. I've been doing a new-Who rewatch lately. I just finished Love and Monsters and I'm about to get ready to watch Fear Her...

I know none of you here really know me, but in case I don't make it back alive I just wanted to say, from the bottom of my heart, that a lot of you are fucking weirdos. Like seriously... you know who you are.

I don't know how to respond to this.
I'm guessing you're joking about how had Fear Her is, but why did you insult us? Shock humor?

 

[odiin]

Good lord that was actually somehow worse than I remembered, but at least I survived! Oh! Did I say "weirdos"? Oh my. This is a bit awkward. What I meant to say was "Very peculiar individuals with interesting viewpoints that conflict with my own but are in no way less valid." My mistake. You know how difficult the English language can be.

 

[SpacePirate Ridley]

Lol, I read more fucking weirdos as being in jest more than an actuakl insult really.

 

[Savitar]

Been wondering for some time now, why does Terry Nation and his estate own most of the rights to the Daleks? I know he had his hand in their creation but Raymond Cusick did their design and never got any rights to them. And considering they were producing something for the BBC shouldn't it be the sole owner of the Daleks? It was their show. What makes Terry Nations situation so different or was it the sole popularity of the Daleks that enabled him to be given said rights.

 

[maharg]

Been wondering for some time now, why does Terry Nation and his estate own most of the rights to the Daleks? I know he had his hand in their creation but Raymond Cusick did their design and never got any rights to them. And considering they were producing something for the BBC shouldn't it be the sole owner of the Daleks? It was their show. What makes Terry Nations situation so different or was it the sole popularity of the Daleks that enabled him to be given said rights.

My understanding is that hings were just different then. They didn't foresee rebroadcasts being a big deal, let alone home video, so this was one of the ways that creatives in television could get a long term income from the things they created. They didn't always get it, but it happened.

 

[JoeM86]

Been wondering for some time now, why does Terry Nation and his estate own most of the rights to the Daleks? I know he had his hand in their creation but Raymond Cusick did their design and never got any rights to them. And considering they were producing something for the BBC shouldn't it be the sole owner of the Daleks? It was their show. What makes Terry Nations situation so different or was it the sole popularity of the Daleks that enabled him to be given said rights.

It was the way they did rights back in the 60s. Even though the Daleks were written for Doctor Who, Nation kept half of the intellectual property rights of the Daleks, with the other half being for the BBC.

As such, they need to negotiate with his estate in order for the Daleks to be used. If I recall correctly, the contract stipulates that the Daleks have to appear at least once a year.