Is Doctor Who REALLY a children’s show?

I’m American, and because of that my path to DOCTOR WHO likely differs greatly from the ones taken by the show’s British audience. The first references to Doctor Who I’d ever heard were in articles about comic book conventions. A comic book website would post pictures of costumed convention-goers and inevitably there would be an individual with a long colored scarf. For a long time that’s all I knew about the Doctor, he wore a scarf, that’s it.

The current Doctor and his companions

A few months before TORCHWOOD’s season/series two premiere on BBC America, I learned James Marsters (Spike on BUFFY THE VAMPIRE SLAYER) would be guest-starring in the DOCTOR WHO spinoff’s first episode. This made TORCHWOOD required viewing, and it became my introduction into the world of DOCTOR WHO.

I watched the first two seasons of TORCHWOOD before I even considered watching DOCTOR WHO, and TORCHWOOD was most definitely not a children’s show. So when I did start watching DOCTOR WHO, I believed, like TORCHWOOD, the Doctor’s adventures were largely intended for adult viewing. Nothing in the episodes really argued against this opinion. In every episode of DOCTOR WHO, people died. People assimilated by Cybermen, exterminated by Daleks, and slaughtered by various other alien species. If the Doctor shows up, sure he’ll save the world, but before he does, a bunch of people will usually meet their maker. That’s not something we associate with many children’s programs here in the states, so I was a tad surprised when I read this quote from Alex Kingston in an interview with EW.com:

“The one thing I hope is that more children in America get on board. In England, Doctor Who has always been considered a children’s show, at least by children. My daughter and her contemporaries, they feel like it’s their show. Parents are allowed to watch but it’s the children’s show.”

Calling DOCTOR WHO’s current iteration, complexly plotted by Steven Moffat, a children’s show would be like us in the states calling LOST a kid’s show. Perhaps that isn’t the perfect comparison, but it’s pretty close. The current story arcs on DOCTOR WHO often become insanely complicated. The first ten minutes of the season six premiere had to be watched at least twice to fully understand everything that was happening. As an adult, I love when a show challenges me to keep up. But I have to imagine an 8-year old could be left mightily confused.

"I swear your kids won't have nightmares about me. Now watch as I rip this poor woman to shreds."

If DOCTOR WHO’s only crime as a supposed children’s show was to force kids to keep up with smart complex plotting, this entry wouldn’t be about questioning the children’s show label, but rather proclaiming why all children in the US should be tuning into BBC America every Saturday at 9 PM Eastern Time. But do you see that spooky looking guy above? He’s part of an alien race called the Silence and they were the villains for the two-part premiere. Also, they were pretty damn scary.

Not since the BUFFY episode “Hush” have I seen such creepy creatures on my television screen, and I certainly would never consider that BUFFY episode appropriate for a second grader. There was a chilling scene in last week’s episode, “Day of the Moon”, featuring Karen Gillan as Amy Pond visiting a rundown orphanage filled with members of the Silence. The scene was genius, but it would’ve been right at home in an R-rated horror film like THE DESCENT.

Now DOCTOR WHO does shy away from any sexual content (at most there’s a kiss here or there and maybe a line of innuendo or two) and, despite all the deaths, there never seems to be any blood, but do those things alone qualify it as a children’s show? If DOCTOR WHO didn’t have a nearly 50-year long history in the UK and the current version of the show was judged only on it’s own content rather than on what DOCTOR WHO has historically been, would any objective viewer claim this show was made for children? I can’t imagine they would.

Blog-A-Day Challenge: Day 26

Sunday at New York Comic Con

Before I dive into my Sunday coverage there are a few things I forgot to mention about Saturday. During the Torchwood panel, when asked what her favorite American sci-fi/fantasy show was, Eve Myles answered “BUFFY” almost before the questioner completed the question. This received resounding applause from the audience. And it’s another reason I now love Eve Myles.

I also wanted to tell everyone I have officially mastered the art of line cutting. For years people have said to me, “Oh I didn’t see you there, Erik” or “Erik, why’d you sneak up on me like that?” As far as I can tell I just fade into the background well (like a thinner, less-muscly Batman). These powers served me greatly during Comic Con, as I was able to jump ahead in line for multiple panels. I wouldn’t have gotten into the Watchmen panel if I didn’t and I wouldn’t have had such a good seat at the Torchwood panel if I hadn’t. If you want to attempt to cut in line, here are some rules to follow: 

1. Look for a group of people chatting that aren’t paying attention to who’s ahead of them in line. Work your way in front of them. This is especially easy if the line hasn’t become anything resembling single file yet.

2. Look for tables covered with stickers or fliers next to the line into the panel. Walk over to the table, pretend you’re looking at the fliers. Soon enough you’ve magically become part of the line.

Not once did anyone call me on my line-cutting. Granted I’m 5’8″, weigh 135 lbs, and was dressed like a normal person. If you’re 6’4″, tip the scales at 3 bills, and are dressed like Optimus Prime, my line-cutting strategy probably won’t work as well for you.

Onto Sunday at Comic Con! I walked the show floor a bit when we got there. I picked up some posters (a Buffy one from Dark Horse included) and some free comics. Still no bookmarks (my inner librarian was frowning). I was very impressed by SEGA’s presence at event, they were showcasing all of their upcoming mature-rated Wii games. The Conduit, House of the Dead Overkill, and MadWorld we’re all there and playable. Sadly, I never got a chance to play any of them. Graphically, the Conduit looked AMAZING for a Wii game.  You can tell the guys who made Viewtiful Joe crafted MadWorld as the cel-shaded look is very similar (just devoid of color). Deadly Creatures was playable at the event too, but I really didn’t get a look at it. Overall, it gave you a great impression on how 3rd parties are ready to step up this year on Wii (finally!!!).

Dollhouse
The first panel I attended for the day was for Joss Whedon’s Dollhouse. I was not going to put my line cutting ability to the ultimate test, so I got in line fairly early this time. The panel was just Joss and Tahmoh Penikett. The moderator was Matt Roush from TV Guide. I have to say it was a weird panel. It was a theater full of people who love Joss Whedon but none of them had seen a full episode yet. Ten minutes of footage from the first episode was shown. It didn’t blow me away. I’m still not sold on Eliza Dushku as a strong lead character the way Joss is. Rewatching Buffy recently, I found Eliza’s performance to be brilliant, but I’m not seeing the same thing in the few Dollhouse clips scattered around the internet or in the 10 minutes I saw on Sunday. You can tell Tahmoh’s definitely going to fit in in the Whedonverse, he has that ability to jump from drama to humor. It was fairly evident at the panel. The program of events said we’d all get Dollhouse posters. That did not occur, but perhaps they gave them out at the door upon exiting. I, however, stuck around for the next panel in that theater.

FRINGE
Basically, the entire cast of Fringe was there. I think the observer was the only one not present. The moderator for this panel was AWFUL. He asked questions that were moronic compared to the normal audience queries. And he let the audience start asking questions way too late in the panel. I learned the guy who plays Walter Bishop is just about as crazy as his character. Joshua Jackson is great with the one-liners. Lance Reddick is apparently much more laid back than any of the characters he’s played on television recently.  At one point Josh Jackson recounted his trip to an NFC playoff game where he was in nosebleed seats, freezing his butt off, and he looked at the jumbo-tron and saw the observer (from Fringe) down on the sidelines. And asked himself, “What the hell, Fox!?” Jackson was visually dismayed (hanging his head) when the producer at the panel mentioned they had actually tried to work a deal to get the observer a seat close to the President during the Inauguration.

That was the last panel of the convention for me. I took one final trip around the convention floor and then headed home. I had a good time this year. It’s going to be a long wait until 2010′s NYCC, given it’s been moved to October.

Saturday at New York Comic Con

I’m back from my first day at NYCC and here’s what I saw. I started by walking the (always crowded) show floor, picked up a bunch of free swag (mostly pins, comics and posters, no bookmarks this year, sorry library!), and then I headed to the IGN theater for my first panel of the day:

WATCHMEN/FRIDAY THE 13TH/TERMINATOR SALVATION
So they started with Watchmen, thankfully, and artist Dave Gibbons came out to introduce some footage. It turned out we were going to get to see the first 18 minutes of the movie!!! Followed by an exclusive clip not yet seen anywhere. If you’ve read Watchmen, none of this will be spoilery, if not, you may want to scroll past all of this.

The film opens with yellow and black logos for the production companies and then we head into the Comedian’s apartment. While he smokes a cigar, a fairly old, broken-down Comedian watches television. The TV programs offer exposition as to what’s going on in the world of Watchmen. Dr. Manhattan is mentioned on what looks like a Sunday morning round table show. There’s a clip of Nixon as President in his 3rd term. A shadowy figure busts into the Comedian’s apartment. A smackdown commences. The fight’s much more involved that what’s on the page in the comic book, and you can tell both these guys can throw down. Eventually, the Comedian loses the battle, gets tossed out the window and we’re headed into the title sequence. There’s some slo-mo used here but it’s not on the level of 300, and I didn’t find it distracting. The title sequence is used as another opportunity to offer details about the Watchmen world.  We see clips of super heroics throughout the years (good and bad).  After the opening credits, we head back to the Comedian’s apartment where detectives are investigating his death. When they leave, Rorschach uses his grappling gun to enter through the window. (If you can’t tell from my descriptions, a lot of the cinematography is panel for panel from the comic book.) Rorschach offers some narration while he searches the apartment then he discovers the Comedian’s costume and that’s basically where the clip ended.  

The previously unseen clip they showed next is where it gets extra-spoilery! It opens in a prison cafeteria. Jackie Earle Haley sporting Rorschach’s red hair is in line. One prisoner comes after the unmasked Rorschach attempting to attack him. Rorschach grabs a thing of boiling fry oil and dumps it on the prisoner’s face. The guards grab Rorschach and he starts yelling, “I’m not locked up in here with you! You’re locked up in here with me!”

The audience goes nuts. A Q & A follows. Nothing really revelatory comes out of it. The Friday the 13th section of the panel begins, I watched the trailer (which showed just about everything in the movie) and then I left for other panels.

MARVEL’S CUP O’ JOE
No major announcements made here. I think Joe Quesada casually mentioned Jonathan Hickman would take over Fantastic Four after Mark Millar finished his run. That makes me happy. The Ultimate line will end after Ultimatum and be replaced with “Ultimate Comics.” Have no clue what that means. The good news is Stuart Immonen is leaving Ultimate Spidey when it switches to Ultimate Comics, so I can finally drop that book. Sorry Bendis! The panel was boring me, so I left.

I walked the show floor again. Mark Sheppard from Battlestar Galactica (as Romo Lampkin) and Firefly (as Badger) was just sitting around near the SEGA booth. Sadly, I could not remember his name or either of his characters names at the time. Yes, deduct some of my fanboy points. I just totally blanked. So, ultimately, I didn’t say hello or anything. I guess I could’ve said, “That was a great episode of BSG last night.” As he was actually in last night’s episode….  Enough about my brain fart and onto the next panel:

MARVEL ANIMATION
Panel started by showing off ratings numbers for WOLVERINE AND THE X-MEN on Nicktoons. Apparently, it’s that network’s biggest hit ever. Yay! The show is great if you haven’t seen it. Then a clip of the HULK VS. dvd was shown. That looked quite bad ass. Then we got to see some concept art for the new SUPER HERO SQUAD show. (I don’t know if that’s the exact title.) It looks very kiddie, but it could be a fun show. It’s the first cartoon to feature the entire Marvel Universe. Nerf Herder, who did the Buffy theme song, did the theme for this show too. It sounded quite catchy. They showed a short clip, it was cute but forgettable. Then we got to see a full-episode of the new IRON MAN cartoon the premieres in April. It looks like a mix of computer animation and anime. It’s definitely not my thing. It’s follows a teenage Tony Stark, Rhodey, and Pepper. Next panel:

DEAD LIKE ME
So there’s going to be a Dead Like Me direct to DVD film. I had no idea. Basically, the whole cast was there. Honestly, it wasn’t the greatest panel. It was cool to see the actors from the show but they didn’t have a ton to offer.

TORCHWOOD
This may have been panel of the day. Or as I will to refer to it the EVE MYLES IS THE NICEST, FUNNIEST, MOST BEAUTIFUL WOMAN ON THE PLANETpanel. Eve stole the show here. She was so charming and so nice and cordial to everyone who asked a question. She seemed genuinely disappointed when the panel had to end. Her little giggle is hilarious. And she said the word “cheeky” more times than I could count. A friend came to the panel with me and after it was over I said to him, “I am now in love with Eve Myles.” And he said, “Yeah. So am I. And I’ve never even watched Torchwood.”

Sadly, we couldn’t go to her signing because our parking ran out before that. So we left. And that was my Saturday at Comic Con. Also, I saw the hottest Asian Wonder Woman ever.