# Doctor Who Noob Here... **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [July 10, 2013, 8:46am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117 "2013-07-10T08:46:46Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 15\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Yllaria](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yllaria/32/3452_2.png) [@Yllaria](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yllaria)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2013, 1:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/41 "2013-07-11T01:16:23Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > . . . If for no other reason than the realization that my lack of Doctor Who knowledge was a serious, gaping hole in my “nerd credentials”. . . . Is it too early for me start arguing about which actor is the best Doctor? . . .! If you’re going for nerd credentials, then it’s never too early to start arguing about which Doctor is the best. Just assume that you might change your mind later and jump in. Arguing over “which Doctor?” is a very nerdy thing to do. Although there’s a t-shirt [with an opinion](http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/988c/). And, ahem, Tom Baker. ---
**Author:** ![Inner\_Stickler](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/inner_stickler/32/318_2.png) [@Inner\_Stickler](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Inner_Stickler)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2013, 2:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/42 "2013-07-11T02:11:10Z")
> [@catnoe](#): > > Donna Noble is still the best companion. Always and forever. ---
**Author:** ![LawMonkey](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/d6d6ee/32.png) [@LawMonkey](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/LawMonkey)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2013, 3:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/43 "2013-07-11T03:03:45Z")
> [@catnoe](#): > > Donna Noble is still the best companion. > [@Inner\_Stickler](#): > > Always and forever. Amen. ---
**Author:** ![Yookeroo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/yookeroo/32/323_2.png) [@Yookeroo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Yookeroo)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2013, 4:01am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/44 "2013-07-11T04:01:17Z")
> [@catnoe](#): > > Donna Noble is still the best companion. Worst, not best. Maybe I just don’t like the actress. Or maybe I’ve never been able to get over her introduction where she was intolerable. But I never warmed to her. ---
**Author:** ![MrDibble](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mrdibble/32/114_2.png) [@MrDibble](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MrDibble)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2013, 8:05am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/45 "2013-07-11T08:05:37Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Yeah. A black leather jacket and jeans just aren’t that distinctive. Of course they are. They are distinctive as the uniform of a U-Boat Captain 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Bakhesh](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/3da27b/32.png) [@Bakhesh](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Bakhesh)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2013, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/46 "2013-07-11T13:40:57Z")
> [@Yookeroo](#): > > Worst, not best. Maybe I just don’t like the actress. Or maybe I’ve never been able to get over her introduction where she was intolerable. But I never warmed to her. i find Catherine Tate incredibly annoying, and was gutted when I found out she was going to replace Martha, but have to say, she completely won me over. Great actress, and nice to have a companion who wasn’t just eye candy. Not that there is anything wrong with eye candy. A lot of Who fans I’ve spoken too haven’t really warmed to Clara yet, but at the moment, she is the prettiest thing on the planet in my opinion ---
**Author:** ![msmith537](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/d9b06d/32.png) [@msmith537](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/msmith537)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2013, 2:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/47 "2013-07-11T14:27:56Z")
> [@The\_Hamster\_King](#): > > Spoilers, sweetie. . Spoilers? I thought that was like Season 1, Episode 1, pretty close to line 1 from Eccleston’s run. They’ve done a pretty good job of casting each Doctor and companion IMHO. In the sense that I’m usually like “oh that sucks he/she is leaving the show”, but I usually have forgotten about them once the new Doctor or companion starts their run. Except the Ponds. Talk about overstaying your welcome. My only complaint is that Matt Smith is a bit too much like a slightly younger David Tennant. They both have a kind of similar gangly youthful style ---
**Author:** ![Scubaqueen](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/c0e974/32.png) [@Scubaqueen](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scubaqueen)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2013, 7:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/48 "2013-07-11T19:40:11Z")
> [@Sampiro](#): > > Sadly, Elizabeth Sladen died of cancer at the height of her Sarah Jane fame renaissance. > > Re: Eccleston- he has a fan base, but when you go to a sci-fi con you’ll see easily a hundred Matt Smiths and eighty David Tennants for every one Christopher Ecclestons you see in costumes or T-shirts or the like. Eccleston still remains my fave doc. I regularly wish he’d done at least another year and was quite disappointed he chose not to appear in the 50th. What a thing to be able to tell son Albert some day that he participated in tv history. Tennant is a fair second of course (is there a prettier man on the planet???) and of course Tom Baker still holds a special place in my heart ---
**Author:** ![The\_Hamster\_King](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/t/8edcca/32.png) [@The\_Hamster\_King](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/The_Hamster_King)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2013, 8:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/49 "2013-07-11T20:30:50Z")
> [@msmith537](#): > > Spoilers? I thought that was like Season 1, Episode 1, pretty close to line 1 from Eccleston’s run. No, I meant that what I posted in my spoiler box was a spoiler. ---
**Author:** ![Drunky\_Smurf](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/drunky_smurf/32/449_2.png) [@Drunky\_Smurf](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Drunky_Smurf)\ **Post date:** [July 11, 2013, 9:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/50 "2013-07-11T21:22:00Z")
> [@LawMonkey](#): > > Curious: Can it stand on its own? Lots of folks have told me to check it out, but here’s the thing: I started watching Torchwood w/ S1. Watched the whole thing and then… missed the last episode. As I recall, I did more or less the same thing with S2, except maybe I missed a few more episodes than just one. And I’m not particularly interested in watching S1/S2 again–I’m not sure it’d stand up now that I’m steeped in Who. But I’d give Children of Earth a shot if I don’t need to know exactly how S1/S2 ended. It totally stands on it’s own. If you know who Captain Jack is then you know all you need. > [@catnoe](#): > > Donna Noble is still the best companion. Hated her at first and then loved her the most by the end. My favorite bit of her. Don’t watch if you don’t wanna get spoilered. Also it’s only 5 seconds long. https://www.youtube.com/embed/Dj4nTkxHYGQ?feature=oembed&wmode=opaque > [@Yllaria](#): > > Although there’s a t-shirt [with an opinion](http://www.thinkgeek.com/product/988c/). And, ahem, Tom Baker. I have that shirt and wear it regularly. > [@msmith537](#): > > Spoilers? I thought that was like Season 1, Episode 1, pretty close to line 1 from Eccleston’s run. No, the stuff in the spoiler box is from a Season 3 episode, Gridlock, with Martha. One of my favorite episodes. It’s got so much. Branigan, the different car decorations, the description of the Doctors home world and best of all the Face of Boe. I’m naming my next cat Branigan. ---
**Author:** ![Mister\_Rik](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mister_rik/32/491_2.png) [@Mister\_Rik](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Mister_Rik)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 3:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/51 "2013-07-12T03:30:01Z")
> [@miss\_elizabeth](#): > > She should really give Who another shot then. tell her a lady on the internet said so. 😉 Well, that might work — my other sister is named Elizabeth 😃 (Well, she spells it with an S instead of a Z, and actually goes by Betsy…) For the sister in question, her main complaint seemed to be that Torchwood featured too much “same-sex snogging”. Said complaint doesn’t surprise me, given that my _other_ sister and I are convinced that she is a closeted/in-denial lesbian who is conflicted because she’s also a devout Christian. But from what I’ve seen of Doctor Who so far (I’m up to about Ep. 10 of S. 2), I think I can reassure her that Doctor Who won’t raise the same objections. Well, there was that one episode where Captain Jack kissed The Doctor after he kissed Rose, but hey, it was played for laughs and it was a rather chaste kiss 😃 > [@Yllaria](#): > > If you’re going for nerd credentials, then it’s never too early to start arguing about which Doctor is the best. Just assume that you might change your mind later and jump in. Arguing over “which Doctor?” is a very nerdy thing to do. Star Wars? Check. Star Trek? Check. Dungeons & Dragons? Check. WoW? Check. Linux/UNIX? Check. Know HTML? Check. Nerdcore Hiphop? Check. Doctor Who? Oh, damn, better get on that 😛 ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 3:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/52 "2013-07-12T03:56:55Z")
> [@Drunky\_Smurf](#): > > Branigan Played wonderfully by Ardal O’Hanlon, who was just coming off a 44-episode run as George Sunday/Thermoman on “My Hero”. ---
**Author:** ![BigT](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/bigt/32/12044_2.png) [@BigT](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/BigT)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 1:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/53 "2013-07-12T13:40:01Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > (bolding mine) > > Eh, Star Trek: TOS debuted the year I was born (1966) and I still love it. I bolded the “Sone very good stories” bit in **Broomstick** ’s post, because that’s ultimately what matters. One of my favorite SF movies is still the old B&W “The Day the Earth Stood Still”. > > Oh, and [Mary McDonnell from BSG](http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Mary_McDonnell). There’s a certain resemblance. Honestly, it has less to do with the special effects and more to do with how the episodes were organized. Every story is multiple episodes long, and thus move more slowly than you might expect. While some stories keep the excitement up throughout (generally the ones regarded as good), most don’t, and I find those are much better when abridged by people on YouTube or by recap reviewers. I find most people get bogged down on those emptier story and never make it through. I suggest that, if it’s not a story regarded as a classic, feel free to skip it if you get bogged down, so you won’t feel overwhelmed. Oh, and Nine has a lot going for him. I think he’s the only new Doctor who pulled off actually looking (and not just acting) alien. Ten is much more human, for lack of a better word, although some of his old ways come in, usually in anger. I haven’t seen a lot of Eleven, but he seems much more alien again. ---
**Author:** ![Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/eyebrows_0f_doom/32/3119_2.png) [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Eyebrows_0f_Doom)\ **Post date:** [July 12, 2013, 3:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/54 "2013-07-12T15:13:56Z")
> [@Mister\_Rik](#): > > For the sister in question, her main complaint seemed to be that Torchwood featured too much “same-sex snogging”. Well then she \*really \*wouldn’t like “Miracle Day.” 😃 ---
**Author:** ![Infovore](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/infovore/32/420_2.png) [@Infovore](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Infovore)\ **Post date:** [July 15, 2013, 4:33am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117/55 "2013-07-15T04:33:17Z")
> [@Lute Skywatcher](#): > > Played wonderfully by Ardal O’Hanlon, who was just coming off a 44-episode run as George Sunday/Thermoman on “My Hero”. When we first saw this episode, the spouse turned to me and went, “That’s Father Dougal!” “No!” I said. But he was right. Father Dougal as a cat guy. 🙂 And FWIW, Ten is my Doctor. I could watch David Tennant go from manic goofy to dead-cold serious in two seconds all day long. Forever. Favorite companions are Donna (whom I hated at first and she totally grew on me, especially after I found out she and Tennant are BFFs) and Sarah Jane (especially in “School Reunion”). Though I do agree that Clara is about the cutest thing around. The spouse and I are convinced that if she and Tennant appeared on screen together, the resulting firestorm of their combined adorableness would simply engulf the universe. We’re looking forward to the 50th Anniversary Special so we can see if we’re right. 🙂 [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-noob-here/663117.md?page=2)