Doctor Who Marathon Night 1

And so it begins. Have you ever gone back and looked at old photos of yourself and thought, "I was really a different person back then." When I first started watching Doctor Who I was living with Corey Scharrer and a girl named Heidi in a small apartment. I never dreamed that a few years later I would be married and living in China. But I'm not the only one who has changed: Looking back on Doctor Who, it is truly a different show.

Let's get down to it, shall we?

"Rose"

Location: London Time: 2005 Enemy: The Autons

The Bad

Walking mannequins, burping trash cans, and a plastic Mickey. Writer, Russell T. Davies really shows his cornball side in this first season. But corniness isn't the thing that hurts this episode the most, somehow there is a lack of excitement. I can't put my finger on it, but i'm just not "feeling it". Thank God the series gets better or it would never have survived.

The CGI was also... not good.

The Good

Christopher Eccelston (The Doctor) has some great moments in this episode including this line:

"I can feel it. The turn of the Earth. The ground beneath our feet spinning at a thousand miles an hour. And the entire planet is hurtling around the sun at 67,000 thousand miles an hour and I can feel it. We're falling through space, you and me. Clinging to the skin of this tiny little world"

It's moments like this that save Russell T. Davies episodes of WHO. The Doctor is enigmatic enough to keep the audience watching just one more episode, one more season. And believe me, it is worth your time.

The Geeky: The Doctor first fought the Autons in the 1970s during the Third Doctor's first episode

Nods to the future:

"The Shadow Proclamation"

Cool Quotes:

"The Doctor is a legend woven throughout history. When disaster comes, he's there. He brings a storm in his wake and he has one constant companion: death"

British-isms:

Half the time I still can't understand what characters are saying:

"Mucking about" "Beans on Toast" "Eat Chips" "Go watch the telly"

R.I.P. Clive: Conspiracy Theorist till the end

Brock's rating = 7 (Rose tries hard but misses the mark)

"The End of the World"

Location: Platform One Time: 5,000,000,000 Enemy: Cassandra

Now this is more like it! Yes its cheesy but the overload of sci-fi masks this a little

The Good:

"The End of the World" has more palpable excitement in the first minute than "Rose" did in it's entire episode. It was like the Cantina bar scene in "Star Wars" meets "Armageddon".

"This is who I am! Right here, right now! Alright? All that counts is here and now and this is me!"

I think that The Doctor is best when he gets angry. That doesn't go for every actor who has played the timelord but at least every actor that has played him in the last ten years.

The Bad:

"Sun Filter Falling, Sun Filter Rising. Destruction of Earth: 10 Seconds"

It seems that to this day Doctor Who is still full of annoying computers that repeat things and don't shut up. I wonder if this is related to the London Underground "Mind the Gap"

Nods to the Future:

The Face of Boe becomes important. Very important some would say.

Bad Wolf reference. Did you hear it? The little blue guy said it.

Cool Quotes:

"It's better to die than live like you; a bitchy trampoline."

R.I.P. Tree: An interesting character but, ultimately, made of wood

Brock's Rating = 8 (Gives us just enough interest to keep us watching)

Next Time

We will be skipping episodes 3 - 5. If you would like to watch farting aliens go ahead and watch these. Otherwise join us next Sunday with episode 6 and episode 8:

Dalek & Fathers Day