Ah Doctor Who.
My first Doctor was Tom Baker. We got the series in Canada where I lived, but several years after it had been broadcast in the UK. So I was watching his first episodes in about 1980.
I was so excited about Baker’s cameo in Day of the Doctor. As soon as I heard that
voice, I was a kid again.
Tennant very quickly became “my” Doctor, though. I was quite sad when he left.
I all but stopped watching during the Matt Smith years. I had high hopes, but...so much of felt like it was done just to spread Whovian Fandom. I don’t think Smith hit his stride till his last series. I liked his restrained, more mature, but slightly mad Doctor.
Capaldi...brilliant, lots of humour and gravitas, but let down by so-so stories, IMHO. By the end of his time I was sold on him. I will miss him, too.
Speaking of “miss”, though Michelle Rodrigues was fun and batty - yet wonderfully menacingly sociopathic - as Missy... I did not like the idea at first. It was obviously a test for how people would react to a female Doctor...and thus it felt
too obvious. Ah well. I do think she was marvellous in the role but I never could think of her as having been The Master... she really was her own unique malevolent character, in my eyes.
Which brings us to — oops, I skipped Eccleston. I quite liked him as the first “new” Doctor. Too bad it was so brief for him. Imagine if they’d explored his character over a few series... A missed opportunity but I understand why he quit.
Anyway that brings me to Jodi Whittaker as the newest Doctor. I think (and hope) she’ll be great. I thought she was fantastic in Broadchurch. Her acting has depth and she can be quite funny.
Above all I hope Chris Chibnall writes stories for her that don’t feel like they were written in incomplete bullet points, like the outgoing dude wrote.
