# I'm being pulled into Doctor Who...og help me! **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 13, 2011, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486 "2011-01-13T18:14:28Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 1
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 6:14pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/1 "2011-01-13T18:14:28Z")
It all started with _Torchwood_… The week before Christmas I was looking for new TV shows to watch via Netflix instant streaming. When _Torchwood_ came up in my search I vaguely remembered hearing/reading good things about it, and I recognized John Barrowman’s name from a recent thread about accents, so I figured I’d check it out. I added the first season, and started watching…and quickly became a little obsessed. 🙂 It took me a couple of episodes to realize that _Torchwood_ was a spinoff of _Doctor Who_, but after watching all three seasons over the course of a week (including two weekends) I found myself wanting to watch the episodes of _Doctor Who_ that feature Captain Jack Harkness. I’m enough of a geek to have been into shows like _Firefly_ and _The X-Files_, but watching _Doctor Who_ had always struck me as being a whole other level of geek-ness – that said, I didn’t know much about it other than it had been an old show with a cult following that had recently been remade. I vaguely remembered there being a kerfuffle when David Tennant replaced Christopher Eccleston, so I had an idea that the Doctor character regenerated rather than died, but that’s all I knew about the show (except I somehow also knew that the blue police call box = TARDIS). I couldn’t have even told you David Tennant or Christopher Eccleston’s names. However, my interest in seeing more Jack Harkness didn’t fade, and after learning that he first appears just nine episodes into the first season (of the “new” _Doctor Who_, all of which is available via streaming), I decided to try starting that show with the first episode. Ok, so, now I’m about halfway through the second season and am hooked on this, too. 😃 _Then_, just a day or two ago, I learned that Peter Davison – who I loved as Tristan Farnon in _All Creatures Great and Small_ – played the Doctor for a few years in the '80s. So now I’ve looked up the episodes of his that are available via streaming and have added _them_ to my queue. Is it only a matter of time before I decide to watch every single episode of _Doctor Who_ that was ever made? :eek: 😉 ---
**Author:** ![Scuba\_Ben](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/278dde/32.png) [@Scuba\_Ben](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Scuba_Ben)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 6:25pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/2 "2011-01-13T18:25:06Z")
> [@Misnomer](#): > > Is it only a matter of time before I decide to watch every single episode of _Doctor Who_ that was ever made? :eek: 😉 If you’re fortunate, that’s how this will play out. I’m sure someone will be along shortly to recommend must-see episodes from the original run. I suggest watching _The Three Doctors_ followed by _The Five Doctors_. And then a Dalek story or three. If you don’t, say it with me people YOU WILL BE EX TERM IN ATED! ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 6:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/3 "2011-01-13T18:30:44Z")
I believe [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9P4SxtphJ4) will explain everything. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 6:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/4 "2011-01-13T18:52:10Z")
> [@Scuba\_Ben](#): > > And then a Dalek story or three. If you don’t, say it with me people YOU WILL BE EX TERM IN ATED! Yeah, I’ve seen a couple of Dalek stories already. And don’t think it’s not freaking me out that I now know what a Dalek is. 😉 > [@gaffa](#): > > I believe [this](http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=M9P4SxtphJ4) will explain everything. I don’t want to click on that in case there’s a spoiler. 🙂 (I can’t get to YouTube from work, anyway, but tell me there’s no spoiler and I’ll check it out at home later.) ---
**Author:** ![howye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9adbd/32.png) [@howye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/howye)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/5 "2011-01-13T19:08:17Z")
> [@Misnomer](#): > > Yeah, I’ve seen a couple of Dalek stories already. And don’t think it’s not freaking me out that I now know what a Dalek is. 😉 > > I don’t want to click on that in case there’s a spoiler. 🙂 (I can’t get to YouTube from work, anyway, but tell me there’s no spoiler and I’ll check it out at home later.) No spoiler, other than you will see the actor who currently plays the Doctor. But you are going to watch those episodes anyways. (It is the awesomely weird cold open from the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson - Doctor Who special) Also, if you already are fan of Firefly and X-Files, you pretty well fit into the geek category anyways. Just remember, you don’t have to like all of it. I find some of it to cross the line from “soft” sci-fi to childish babble. Even then the emotional themes keep me watching. Peter Davison is my favorite, his Doctor was the first I saw from the beginning. But the current incarnation played by Matt Smith has a lot of potential. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 7:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/6 "2011-01-13T19:35:14Z")
> [@howye](#): > > No spoiler, other than you will see the actor who currently plays the Doctor. But you are going to watch those episodes anyways. (It is the awesomely weird cold open from the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson - Doctor Who special) To be fair, he was trying to explain the Doctor to an audience who had never seen the Doctor: > [@](#): > > In 1963 the BBC premiered a show about an alien who traveled through space and time to combat the powers of evil. > > Sid the rabbit: He’s a force for good in an otherwise uncertain universe. > > Craig: You are correct in your summation of his character my profane rabbit friend. > > Craig: The show has been running in Britain almost fifty years, with many different actors in the role of The Doctor. > > Wavy Rancheros the Alligator/Crocodile: The Doctor doesn’t die he just regenerates. …and > [@](#): > > One thing is consistent though and this is why the show is so beloved by geeks and nerds. > > It’s all about the triumph of intellect and romance over brute force and cynicism. > [@](#): > > Also, if you already are fan of Firefly and X-Files, you pretty well fit into the geek category anyways. Just remember, you don’t have to like all of it. I find some of it to cross the line from “soft” sci-fi to childish babble. Even then the emotional themes keep me watching. Very true. I get annoyed at how the Sonic Screwdriver has become so sufficiently advanced a piece of technology that it has become indistinguishable from [a] magic [wand]. > [@](#): > > Peter Davison is my favorite, his Doctor was the first I saw from the beginning. But the current incarnation played by Matt Smith has a lot of potential. As they say, you never forget your first Doctor. Mine was Tom Baker, and that bit from _School Reunion_ left me a blubbery mess. ---
**Author:** ![Candyman74](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Candyman74](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candyman74)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 7:58pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/7 "2011-01-13T19:58:58Z")
> [@Misnomer](#): > > I’m enough of a geek to have been into shows like _Firefly_ and _The X-Files_, but watching _Doctor Who_ had always struck me as being a whole other level of geek-ness That’s an odd inversion in my mind. \* Doctor Who \*is pretty mainstream if viewing figures are anything to go by - and I can’t think of a better definition of mainstream. Firefly is far more obscure and geeky than _Doctor Who_. Even _Buffy_ is obscure in comparison. I guess it not being popular locally might skew your perception of it, but trust me - it’s popular. ---
**Author:** ![gaffa](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/g/e68b1a/32.png) [@gaffa](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/gaffa)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 8:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/8 "2011-01-13T20:19:30Z")
> [@Candyman74](#): > > That’s an odd inversion in my mind. \* Doctor Who \*is pretty mainstream if viewing figures are anything to go by - and I can’t think of a better definition of mainstream. Firefly is far more obscure and geeky than _Doctor Who_. Even _Buffy_ is obscure in comparison. > > I guess it not being popular locally might skew your perception of it, but trust me - it’s popular. It’s an institution in the UK, but it has long been a very obscure cult show in the US. The reboot and the explosion of cable channels have made it much more popular, but I started watching Tom Baker episodes when it was on late at night on Public Television, and it was obscure even at Science-Fiction conventions, the Geekiest Place on Earth. I’m a huge fan of two of both Doctor Who and Kate Bush, and neither are especially well-known in the US. ---
**Author:** ![amanset](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/8dc957/32.png) [@amanset](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/amanset)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 8:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/9 "2011-01-13T20:23:29Z")
> [@Misnomer](#): > > Is it only a matter of time before I decide to watch every single episode of _Doctor Who_ that was ever made? :eek: 😉 And then you find that this isn’t actually possible due to some crazy decisions made in the 60s and early 70s and get really depressed. ---
**Author:** ![Candyman74](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Candyman74](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candyman74)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 8:24pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/10 "2011-01-13T20:24:23Z")
Just following up on my previous post, I did some googling. Doctor Who gets 10-12 million viewers for most episodes. > **[List of most-watched television broadcasts | United States](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/List_of_most-watched_television_broadcasts#United_States)** > > Though the Apollo 11 Moon landing is the most watched television event in American history, it is considered a news event, meaning that Fox's live telecast of Super Bowl LVII in 2023 holds the record for the largest average viewership of any live single-network U.S. television broadcast, with 115.1 million viewers. During this broadcast, the halftime show was watched by 118.7 million viewers. Super Bowl XLV's live broadcast in February 2011 helped Fox become the first television netwo The above page lists the most watched finales ever in the US. An average Who episodes would come in at roughly position 65-70 in that list. Notably, an average Who episode is far more mainstream than the \*finales \*of the following genre shows (not counting non-genre shows like Sex in the City, etc.): 24 (8.9M), Star Trek Voyager (8.8M), Alias (6.7M), DS9 (6.6M), Angel (5.3M), Buffy (4.9M), Star Trek Enterprise (3.8M), BSG (2.4M). These are the finales, mind you, not average episodes. Obviously we’ve never had - and probably never will, the BBC being the BBC - a pre-announced \*Doctor Who \*series ever finale. It doesn’t compare to things like MASH, Seinfeld and Friends, for obvious reasons (namely that there aren’t enough people in the UK to actually reach those figures). It gets twice the domestic audience share in the UK that ST:TNG got in the US; and ST:TNG is the highest listed show in that list. (Hell it beats Moonlighting and stuff like that - _very_ mainstream!) So, in short, \*Who \*ain’t uber-geeky. It’s the most mainstream genre show there is! There’s a reason it was recently awarded the Guinness World Record for most successful sci-fi show ever! ---
**Author:** ![Candyman74](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Candyman74](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candyman74)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 8:26pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/11 "2011-01-13T20:26:03Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > It’s an institution in the UK, but it has long been a very obscure cult show in the US. As I said, local popularity might skew your perception of it. But just because it isn’t popular where you live doesn’t mean it’s not incredibly popular, any more than the weather being cold where you are means global warming doesn’t exist. It’s watched by more people than almost any genre show ever. Certainly more than the cited _Firefly_ (which is awesome, but _is_ cult and uber-geeky!) ---
**Author:** ![Czarcasm](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/czarcasm/32/4050_2.png) [@Czarcasm](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Czarcasm)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 8:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/12 "2011-01-13T20:27:50Z")
> [@amanset](#): > > And then you find that this isn’t actually possible due to some crazy decisions made in the 60s and early 70s and get really depressed. A lot of the early episodes are lost, or in such crappy condition as to be unwatchable. A good starting point would be _Robot_-the first Baker episode. ---
**Author:** ![howye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9adbd/32.png) [@howye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/howye)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 8:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/13 "2011-01-13T20:41:40Z")
> [@gaffa](#): > > It’s an institution in the UK, but it has long been a very obscure cult show in the US. The reboot and the explosion of cable channels have made it much more popular, **but I started watching Tom Baker episodes when it was on late at night on Public Television,** and it was obscure even at Science-Fiction conventions, the Geekiest Place on Earth. > > I’m a huge fan of two of both Doctor Who and Kate Bush, and neither are especially well-known in the US. Saturdays at 11:30 pm on my local PBS station, right after whatever British comedy they were showing at the time. Star Trek nerds had it easy, they had conventions and syndication and even movies and books and there was talk of a new television show. But if you were a Doctor Who fan, you had to find your crappy PBS broadcast station to watch your show late at night with the sound turned down so as not to wake your parents. Ahhh good times. ---
**Author:** ![Misnomer](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/misnomer/32/14897_2.png) [@Misnomer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Misnomer)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 8:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/14 "2011-01-13T20:43:54Z")
> [@howye](#): > > It is the awesomely weird cold open from the Late Late Show with Craig Ferguson - Doctor Who special > [@gaffa](#): > > To be fair, he was trying to explain the Doctor to an audience who had never seen the Doctor I’ll still hit the link when I get home, but isn’t it stuff I already know by now after 1.5 seasons of the new show and all of _Torchwood_? > [@Candyman74](#): > > That’s an odd inversion in my mind. \* Doctor Who \*is pretty mainstream if viewing figures are anything to go by - and I can’t think of a better definition of mainstream. You seem to be using a different definition of “geeky” than I am: “popular” and “geeky” are not mutually exclusive. In fact, in _Doctor Who_’s case I’d say that its very popularity contributes to its geekiness: I’ve never met a geek who doesn’t love the show, even if there are raging debates about things like which Doctor is the best. _And_ it spans several geek generations. > [@amanset](#): > > And then you find that this isn’t actually possible due to some crazy decisions made in the 60s and early 70s and get really depressed. > [@Czarcasm](#): > > A lot of the early episodes are lost, or in such crappy condition as to be unwatchable. A good starting point would be _Robot_-the first Baker episode. I will keep that in mind…as I cry… 😉 ---
**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:** [January 13, 2011, 9:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/15 "2011-01-13T21:40:06Z")
> [@Candyman74](#): > > So, in short, \*Who \*ain’t uber-geeky. It’s the most mainstream genre show there is! There’s a reason it was recently awarded the Guinness World Record for most successful sci-fi show ever! I’m not sure who you think you’re arguing against. No one denies that \*\*Doctor Who \*\*is a massively popular and well-known show in the UK. But the fact remains that, _in the United States_, it is \*nowhere \*near as mainstream as in the UK, and while episodes of the previous Doctors have aired on PBS channels, it is only with the reboot and airings on Sci-Fi and BBC-America that the show has increased in popularity beyond a \*very \*cult following. ---
**Author:** ![howye](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/a9adbd/32.png) [@howye](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/howye)\ **Post date:** [January 13, 2011, 9:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/16 "2011-01-13T21:45:30Z")
> [@Misnomer](#): > > I’ll still hit the link when I get home, but isn’t it stuff I already know by now after 1.5 seasons of the new show and all of _Torchwood_? Yup. Nothing new. You’ll laugh, you’ll cry. Actually, just laugh. ---
**Author:** ![WotNot](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/w/e19b73/32.png) [@WotNot](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/WotNot)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 12:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/17 "2011-01-14T00:20:01Z")
> [@Misnomer](#): > > I will keep that in mind…as I cry… 😉 Brave heart, **Misnomer!** There are always the novelisations… and original novels, short stories, comics and audio dramas – hundreds of each, not even counting the spin-offs. You need never be without Doctor Who-based entertainment again. On which topic, have you seen any _Sarah Jane Adventures_ yet? ETA: Oh! There are computer games, too! ---
**Author:** ![Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/b38774/32.png) [@Attack\_from\_the\_3rd\_dimension](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Attack_from_the_3rd_dimension)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 12:26am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/18 "2011-01-14T00:26:35Z")
> [@WotNot](#): > > On which topic, have you seen any _Sarah Jane Adventures_ yet? > > ETA: Oh! There are computer games, too! Wait till you have kids before you do _Sarah Jane_. It’s great for sucking them into the Whoniverse. **Attacklad** and **Attacklass** are hard-core Who fans now, and SJA was the entry point. We’ve finished the reboot and are looking for a source for the Baker years. Any ideas? ---
**Author:** ![Candyman74](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/ad7895/32.png) [@Candyman74](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Candyman74)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 12:30am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/19 "2011-01-14T00:30:57Z")
> [@](#): > > I’m not sure who you think you’re arguing against. The statement “I’m enough of a geek to have been into shows like Firefly and The X-Files, but watching Doctor Who had always struck me as being a whole other level of geek-ness” > [@Eyebrows\_0f\_Doom](#): > > But the fact remains that, _in the United States_, it is \*nowhere \*near as mainstream as in the UK I’m not sure what that (“in the US”) has to do with it. “It’s not popular where I happen to be” is not the same as “it’s not popular”. It’s more popular than almost every genre show ever - period. It’s not popular in my mother’s house (she doesn’t watch it), but that doesn’t mean it’s not popular. ---
**Author:** ![MsWhatsit](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/eb8c5e/32.png) [@MsWhatsit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/MsWhatsit)\ **Post date:** [January 14, 2011, 12:37am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486/20 "2011-01-14T00:37:42Z")
> [@Candyman74](#): > > The statement “I’m enough of a geek to have been into shows like Firefly and The X-Files, but watching Doctor Who had always struck me as being a whole other level of geek-ness” > > I’m not sure what that (“in the US”) has to do with it. “It’s not popular where I happen to be” is not the same as “it’s not popular”. It’s more popular than almost every genre show ever - period. Nobody is arguing with you. Just imagine that the OP said “watching Doctor Who _where I happen to be_ had always struck me as being a whole other level of geek-ness.” Yes, objectively speaking, it is a very popular show. No, here in the United States it has not really been all that popular of a show until recently and it’s still only a niche market. I don’t think anyone in this thread will argue with any of this. I hope. **Misnomer** , I watched some of the Tom Baker episodes when they reran on PBS in the 90s, and loved them. I have to admit that I tried to go back and rewatch some for nostalgia purposes, but the reboot has totally spoiled me. I don’t enjoy the old-school eps nearly as much as I used to. They’re still fun, though. I had a friend in college whose mom knitted him a Tom Baker-style scarf. [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/im-being-pulled-into-doctor-who-og-help-me/567486.md?page=2)