# The Doctor Who Essentials **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [October 30, 2002, 3:42pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549 "2002-10-30T15:42:20Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 16\ **Page:** 4
**Author:** ![Futile\_Gesture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f05b48/32.png) [@Futile\_Gesture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Futile_Gesture)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2002, 5:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/61 "2002-11-07T17:20:13Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SpazCat \* > \*\*Essential component of the Doctor is that he has dignity. Loads of it. Even that smarmy Colin Baker had dignity. \*\* Er, did you see _anything_ of Sylvester McCoy??? Stephen Fry would be much better, dignity, a sense of humour and a massive brain. Nor would he show much interest in any nonsense with attractive young female companions. Don’t know how he’d fancy running around disused quarries though. ---
**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:** [November 7, 2002, 6:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/62 "2002-11-07T18:08:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Enola Straight \* > \*\*How about Robbie Coltraine as the Doctor? > > Fat, wise-assed, a real man’s man. Probably the most interesting would-be Doctor since Tom Baker. > > Hasn’t done much since Cracker, right? \*\* Yeah, if you consider his commitment to Harry Potter as not doing much. 🙂 ---
**Author:** ![Enola\_Straight](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/dec6dc/32.png) [@Enola\_Straight](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Enola_Straight)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2002, 6:33pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/63 "2002-11-07T18:33:35Z")
Aw, shit, forgot about that! ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [November 7, 2002, 6:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/64 "2002-11-07T18:54:05Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Futile Gesture \* > \*\* > > Er, did you see _anything_ of Sylvester McCoy??? > > \*\* Yeah. Why? 😕 ---
**Author:** ![Legomancer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/779978/32.png) [@Legomancer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Legomancer)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2002, 6:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/65 "2002-11-08T18:11:11Z")
So, we pretty much know what we want…how about what we don’t want. Can you think of any decisions that were made regarding the show that you felt were poor ones, that you would avoid the second time around? I’ve already said how much I disliked the “half-human” bit from the TVM, and I’m not crazy about how Gallifrey got manhandled towards the end. I also would play the Master card a lot less often and keep him somewhat focused - towards the end of the run he was a really weak villain with silly plans. The guy is nearly immortal and can travel through space and time - what more could he possibly want, and why would he care about some of the weak stuff he was trying to pull? ---
**Author:** ![AncientHumanoid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/ancienthumanoid/32/278_2.png) [@AncientHumanoid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AncientHumanoid)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2002, 6:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/66 "2002-11-08T18:19:10Z")
huh huh, you said mastercard ---
**Author:** ![hazel-rah](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/h/73ab20/32.png) [@hazel-rah](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hazel-rah)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2002, 6:40pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/67 "2002-11-08T18:40:24Z")
I thought the Master hit his high point in Logopolis where he tried to blackmail the entire universe. It just doesn’t get any more ambitious than that. His constant appearance during the Third Doctor’s stay on Earth wasn’t bad. It was bad writing that did him in with later appearances. Obviously he’s obsessed with controlling Earth for some reason, so there’s still some mileage to be had for “Master tries to take over Earth” stories… but it would refreshing if he didn’t start by trying to take over a small farming village in Northern England. Because really. _Really_. -fh ---
**Author:** ![Legomancer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/779978/32.png) [@Legomancer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Legomancer)\ **Post date:** [November 8, 2002, 7:08pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/68 "2002-11-08T19:08:32Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by hazel-rah \* > **I thought the Master hit his high point in Logopolis where he tried to blackmail the entire universe. It just doesn’t get any more ambitious than that.** Well, except that he talks to the universe over a microphone, announces that he’s going to destroy them unless they give him “One _Million_ Dollars” and then…what? Does he give them a phone number to call with their answer? Does he bother to explain who the hell he is and why they should listen to him? Imagine you’re watching TV and suddenly this guy pops in and says, “I am going to destroy the world unless you worship me. You have 30 minutes to comply.” What would you do? Would you really be brought to your knees? It’s a weird, goofy moment for him, and, I think, indicative of most of his poorly thought out plans. There’s a good villain in the Master, but I’m not sure what it is. ---
**Author:** ![Futile\_Gesture](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/f/f05b48/32.png) [@Futile\_Gesture](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Futile_Gesture)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2002, 1:19pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/69 "2002-11-09T13:19:24Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by SpazCat \* > \*\*Yeah. Why? 😕 \*\* Dignity is not a word I’d associate with McCoy. It wasn’t entirely his fault, but his portrayal of the Doctor finished the programme. He simply didn’t command any respect. And then they introduce Bonnie Langford, the painted dwarf stage-school graduate, and celebrity turns like Ken Dodd…… :smack: > [@](#): > > _Originally posted by Legomancer_ > \*\* I also would play the Master card a lot less often and keep him somewhat focused - towards the end of the run he was a really weak villain with silly plans. \*\* Agreed. The point of the Master was to be the Doctor’s arch rival. Half his schemes were supposed to be dumb, just ways of annoying the Doctor. Games that were an entertaining battle of wills. Why else would he care about Earth at all? But in later episodes of Dr Who he’d turn up in the lamest schemes that **weren’t** designed to get the Doctor’s attention. The Master was supposed to be evil and psychotic, but he wasn’t stupid. Dumb, trivial plots that didn’t bug the Doctor would be pointless I think the script writers saw him as an easy peg to hang every plot on when they couldn’t be bothered thinking up more bad-guys with a plausable motivation. He became a cartoon Dick Dastardly who would pop up almost inevitably at the end of episode two. ---
**Author:** ![Catamount](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/catamount/32/2840_2.png) [@Catamount](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Catamount)\ **Post date:** [November 9, 2002, 2:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/70 "2002-11-09T14:30:20Z")
> [@](#): > > \*Originally posted by Futile Gesture \* > \*\*Dignity is not a word I’d associate with McCoy. It wasn’t entirely his fault, but his portrayal of the Doctor finished the programme. He simply didn’t command any respect. > > And then they introduce Bonnie Langford, the painted dwarf stage-school graduate, and celebrity turns like Ken Dodd…… :smack: > > \*\* I see. PBS only showed about ten McCoy episodes before pulling the plug on the whole Dr. Who broadcasts around here, so I have absolutely no idea what that second paragraph is about. The only companion I remember McCoy having was Ace the Leather Jacketed. This is the same PBS affiliate that later cancelled Red Dwarf, so I can safely say that they suck muchly. ---
**Author:** ![Legomancer](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/l/779978/32.png) [@Legomancer](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Legomancer)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2002, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/71 "2002-11-10T01:03:53Z")
Here’s another thing about a series revival. The show started as a kid’s show. And honestly, it really wasn’t until possibly ‘The Deadly Assassin’ or maybe as late as John Nathan-Turner’s reign that it started to be viewed by its creators as more than that. Sure, there were stories that were clearly for more mature viewers (‘Kinda’, ‘Warrior’s Gate’) but in general the show was something fairly mainstream, not too hard sci-fi or convoluted. I have noticed that many of the books coming out now wish to shed that image and be more serious. “Too broad and deep for the small screen” they say about themselves, but from what I’ve read, it just means they’re convoluted and completely out of the spirit of the show. I don’t think the show needs to get into hard sci-fi, or incredibly dense postmodernist epic sagas. The character of the Doctor always had a sense of wonder and fantasy about him, and the show did as well. It was at its best when it kept to that spirit. And again, this is not to say that the show can’t explore other tones from time to time. Sometimes that sort of thing works, sometimes it doesn’t. I’m not advocating a series in which every story ties everything up neatly and happily - that wouldn’t be in the spirit either (see ‘Warriors of the Deep’ and ‘Ressurection of the Daleks’ for examples). ---
**Author:** ![CaptMurdock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/captmurdock/32/11736_2.png) [@CaptMurdock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaptMurdock)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2002, 1:42am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/72 "2002-11-10T01:42:31Z")
The Virgin Books series of New and Missing Adventures were, as any novels based upon a TV show, hit-or-miss. Anything by Paul Cornell (who was quite prolific) or Ben Aronovitch (less prolific, but so brilliant he made up for it) was worth the price. Lance Parkin or Craig Hinton were usually pretty good as well. Some of the others, crap. At this point, I think only a total reboot, but with the standard elements that made the original program so beloved, would be feasible. As a longtime **Who** fan, I will say that I did not find the Fox telemovie _completely_ objectionable (the half-human thing, I could have lived without). ---
**Author:** ![CaptMurdock](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/captmurdock/32/11736_2.png) [@CaptMurdock](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/CaptMurdock)\ **Post date:** [November 10, 2002, 1:48am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/73 "2002-11-10T01:48:14Z")
The Virgin Books series of New and Missing Adventures were, as any novels based upon a TV show, hit-or-miss. Anything by Paul Cornell (who was quite prolific) or Ben Aronovitch (less prolific, but so brilliant he made up for it) was worth the price. Lance Parkin or Craig Hinton were usually pretty good as well. Some of the others, crap. At this point, I think only a total reboot, but with the standard elements that made the original program so beloved, would be feasible. As a longtime **Who** fan, I will say that I did not find the Fox telemovie _completely_ objectionable (the half-human thing, I could have lived without). ---
**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:** [November 11, 2002, 4:23am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/74 "2002-11-11T04:23:05Z")
[ul][_] **George Lazenby**. The One-Time James Bond seems to have been keeping busy with bit-parts in movies and recurring roles on TV. He’d bring a certain dignity to the role.[_] **Billy Connolly**. This Scottish comedian has loads of potential in the offbeat department. Definately worth a try. **Cameron Daddo**. An Australian who is perhaps best known for his portrayl of Rollie Tyler in “F/X: The Series” and was last seen in the Earthquake episode of “Monk”. At 37, he may be a bit young to play The Doctor but his experience as the eccentric F/X man could make up for that.[/ul] ---
**Author:** ![Ben](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/b/df788c/32.png) [@Ben](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ben)\ **Post date:** [November 11, 2002, 5:53am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/75 "2002-11-11T05:53:46Z")
One thing that bugged me about the original was the fact that (at least during the Pertwee years) the Doctor would periodically spout some profound-sounding statement about the Meaning of Science, but he would oftentimes get it totally wrong-headed. (I remember once he went on about how there’s no scientific evidence that smoking causes cancer, but we know it’s true anyway, etc. etc.) Given the show’s sense of wonder and the status of the Dr. as Scientific Hero, it would be nice if a remake were written by people who really understood what science is all about, and could include some things along the lines of, “Imagination is more important than knowledge,” “chance favors the prepared mind,” etc. ---
**Author:** ![PolishSausage](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/a9a28c/32.png) [@PolishSausage](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PolishSausage)\ **Post date:** [November 12, 2002, 3:34pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549/76 "2002-11-12T15:34:08Z")
Looking at the amount of post to this tread over a sustained period of time; is there any doubt that a new well done Dr. Who series would kick ass? Looking at what we wrote about what we’d like to see, there are no major disagreements. It seems almost seems like a no-brainer. It would all boil down to style with substance. I think that’s what we are looking for; not just a time traveler, Not just a sci-fi show, not just an eccentric British bloke. Maybe if The Avengers movie would have been a hit the powers that be might have seen Who as a viable property. ~t [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-doctor-who-essentials/134549.md?page=3)