mondojohnson

Some of you have been puzzled by my silence on the subject of Doctor Who over the past few months. Your confusion is understandable — after all, we’re eight episodes into the latest series, and not a peep? What gives? One reader thought that I had been stunned into silence by the show’s radical overhaul; that I had been left traumatized and mute by the sight of a new TARDIS.

I’m sorry to disappoint, but the explanation is far more ordinary: work. I just couldn’t find the time to see any of the new shows until recently. But now I’m caught up, having had my own little Who marathon over the past week. And now that I’m up to speed, I can assure you that I’m anything but traumatized by the new directions. Indeed, let me declare: Matt Smith is an outstanding Doctor, perhaps one of the best.

There was much hand-wringing over the choice of Smith to succeed David Tennant, the most popular actor to inhabit the role. How could a 27-year old actor, however talented, summon the eon-scupted complexities of the 907-year old Time Lord, memorably portrayed by 10 acting heavyweights? Well, the fears are unfounded. I don’t know how, but Smith nails it capably.

The Doctor’s indefatigable curiosity and quirky tics are all there, often performed with subtle homage to his first ten incarnations. Echoes of Tom Baker, Sylvester McCoy, and Tennant all reverberate through the performance without ever lapsing into mimicry. Smith has truly inhabited the role.

His skill is especially apparent in scenes that touch on the Doctor’s ancient burdens. The sharp, plosive rage emitted by the Doctor in the episode “The Beast Below” is one fine example: “No one human has anything to say to me today,” he curtly declares to a room of his beloved, yet infuriating homo sapiens. Smith managed to pack the Doctor’s immeasurable back story into his delivery of the line. He also did a great job in the difficult task of portraying the Doctor’s second meeting with River Song –the mysterious woman from the future whom the Doctor met on her last day. He knows their relationship will become extraordinary, but he doesn’t know how because the keep meeting out of sequence. For Smith to wrap his head — and heart — around such a crazy relationship is testimony to his skill. (Alex Kingston must also receive kudos for her reprisal of the role, the best new scifi character on the block, in my book.)

In the days to come I’m going to write up individual episode reviews for the new season. But like the Doctor’s friendship with River Song, I will probably post them out of sequence, as whim takes me. But, as you may have noticed, I am completely on board with the new series. The bold and radical changes — not just the casting Smith, but also the promotion of Stephen Moffat to head writer — were a gamble that paid off, for this fan, at least. It is shaping up to be one of my favorite seasons, and that is saying something.

BlogtorWho has delivered the delicious news that the new series of Doctor Who will begin in the US on April 17th, a mere two weeks after the UK airing (seems the Beeb has learned a bit about the futility of making the Yanks wait forever for new episodes…..)

Here is the trailer for the upcoming series, which is a sure-cure for any geek suffering from erectile dysfunction

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The sun rose brightly today in the Doctor Whoniverse, as Lalla Ward appeared on this morning’s BBC Radio 4 program Midweek with Libby Purves.

The honorable Lady Ward appears to discuss her current exhibit of wildlife thread paintings in London, but she also gives us nerds some deliciously dorky anecdotes. To wit: Patrick Stewart‘s admonition not to waste her time doing television (least of all science fiction!), how Douglas Adams introduced her to current hubby Richard Dawkins, and how she still enjoys “seeing old friends” when she does Doctor Who audio dramas.

You can listen to the show by following this link to the Midweek show and podcast. Get there quickly, as the Beeb has a tendency to restrict access to their shows after a short shelf life.

It doesn’t get any better than this. To promote Russell T. Davies‘ book Doctor Who: The Writer’s Tale, BBC Books is making several Doctor Who scripts available for download online.

Among the scripts available are both parts of The End of Time, The Waters of Mars, and one of my favorites, The Next Doctor. Follow this link to the download site.

[Major hat-tip to io9.com]