Just finished watching "Asylum of the Daleks." Not quite what I expected, but

Other random observations: the new opening

Interesting bit with Amy and Rory;

Agreed about your last spoiler, Ithilwen -

Next episode:

I'm afraid I can't watch the Baker Doctor without thinking "Puddleglum!"

It's the other way 'round for me...I saw Tom Baker as the Doctor long before I saw the BBC SC. So my response was "Puddleglum's the Doctor!"

So, I actually DID manage to watch Asylum of the Daleks, but I'm not sure about any other future episodes as of yet...

Anyways, I really did like the opener, though I did have some irks about it, most regarding

I really did like the Daleks though. I wonder if some extreme fans took the time to look at screen captures to see if every kind of Dalek would be there, as said. They were pretty menacing.

Was anybody else reminded of

Hope to have more thoughts soon!

1.) When did you first hear about Doctor Who?

About a year or so ago. It was all thanks to Wren and Booky for joking around about "sonic screwdrivers" and "a TARDIS" in the chatroom. My interest was peeked and they recommend checking out The Eleventh Hour. So, I did.... and have been a passive fan ever since.

2.) What was the first episode that you watched?

See above.

3.) Classic Who fan or NuWho fan?

NuWho, but only because that's all I've seen. At some point I want to visit the Classic series.

4.) Who is your favorite Doctor?

Well, of the three from 2005 to present.... Eleven. From what I've seen of Ten, I like him as well. Unfortunately I could never really like Nine... he always came off as a creeper to me. Yes, I know he is a

5.) Who is your favorite Companion?

Amy Pond! Oh and Mr. Gets-Killed-Alot, I mean, Rory. (this may change once I see the Tennant seasons)

6.) Who is your favorite Villain?

Uhh.... The Weeping Angels, The Silence and the Gas Masked People from The Lonely Child/The Doctor Dances.

7.) What is your favorite episode?

Well, all of season 5 and then The Lonely Child/The Doctor Dances, The Doctor's Wife, A Good Man Goes to War, Let's Kill Hitler and Asylum of the Daleks.

8.) How excited are you for Series 7?

Moderately excited... though more optimistic now that it's off to a good start.

1.) When did you first hear about Doctor Who?

My sister was watching it. It looked very unappealing.

2.) What was the first episode that you watched?

A bit of the one with Charles Dickens in it. I was not impressed. I think the next episode I watched was Dalek, and that was when I began to get what the series was about. I'm not sure if I saw any more 9th Doctor episodes for a while, but I do remember being shown The Runaway Bride with the 10th Doctor, and after watching the episode with the Adipose, I started watching regularly.

A while later I found out that my grandma had a copy of the 4th Doctor in The Androids of Tara. That was the first "Classic Who" I saw and having exhausted the new episodes, I am content with the rich history of classic episodes to watch.

3.) Classic Who fan or NuWho fan?
COMPLETELY UNNECESSARY DISTINCTION! The only thing that really changed between the Classic Whos and the NuWhos was the length of the episodes. I watch Doctor Who. No need to distinguish between the old series and the new.

4.) Who is your favorite Doctor?
Impossible to say, as I have not seen all of them yet. I rather like the 2nd Doctor, but the 4th, 10th and 11th are also good choices.

5.) Who is your favorite Companion?
Donna Noble. I'm also becoming fond of Barbara Wright, Sarah Jane Smith, Romana, Wilfred Mott and Rory Williams. But, River Song beats them all.

6.) Who is your favorite Villain?
Ms. Foster. If I had to list monsters I would go: Weeping Angels, Daleks, Jagaroth, Vashta Narada, Silence. My list of scariest monsters would be the same, except I would switch the Silence and the Jagaroth.

7.) What is your favorite episode?
Hard to say. Probably City of Death. I also enjoyed A Christmas Carol.

8.) How excited are you for Series 7?
Reasonably. I'll have to wait until the DVD comes out before I see any of it though, so I have a longer wait than people with cable.

Short commentary on tonight's episode...

Stargate SG-1 meets Doctor Who current season meets Donna Noble.

Interesting... very very interesting

Well, I liked tonight's episode a lot more than last week's. But then, I really hated last week's episode, so I'm not sure what tells you. For me, A Town Called Mercy was just okay. I liked the themes it dealt with. The issue of violence/non-violence has always been a strong theme in Doctor Who, but I haven't seen it as strongly in the Moffat era. And

However, it didn't get me very emotionally invested in this one. And that's rare for Doctor Who. In fact, none of the episodes in this season have really grabbed me. Aside from Oswin (who I loved), I haven't much cared for anything in the three episodes they've shown. At this point, I like Season 7 less than Seasons 5 and 6 (and they weren't favorites of mine, either). I hope it improves once the new companion is officially instated.

The next episode looks kind of interesting. I heard a rumor that

~Riella

Dinosaurs On A Spaceship had some good moments but was decidedly average considering it's promising premise and title. Loved Asylum of the Daleks though and can't wait for A Town Called Mercy.

I know for me personally, I think I got spoiled on the last two seasons where they were very much one storyline broken up into different episodes. Lots of two-parters, carry-over themes, etc. There's nothing like that in S7 so far. It reminds me a lot of DW's 2nd and 3rd Series, honestly. A bit rambly and episodic.

And it seems to be very companion-lite, which is odd considering that Amy and Rory are leaving within two or three episodes. Since this is their swan song, I would have thought we'd see a LOT more of them, just, DO stuff. Instead it's mostly the Doctor with them tailing along. I hope the next episode remedies that; anything that is set in modern day tends to focus more on the companions.

Anyway, I'm hoping the series picks up a bit once Jenna-Louise joins as a regular. I'm very fascinated about her character and we all know that the writers are going to be ramping up the second half of the season in preparation for the 50th Anniversary, so I expect the second half is going to be a lot stronger than the first. At least, I hope so. It's a little hard to get very excited about DW right now because it just feels...like "vintage" DW and not the flashy, jaw-dropping stuff that I loved in the last season.

Agreed that "Dinosaurs on a Spaceship" was pretty average...though there was some fun banter between Rory's father ("Brian Pond" ) and the other characters.

The ads for "A Town Called Mercy" made me think it might be reminiscent of Firefly or even the rather light-hearted Star Trek: The Next Generation episode "A Fistful of Datas" (both good things, by the way).

It did have its light moments

And it seems to be very companion-lite...

And even rather TARDIS-lite compared to earlier seasons.

In "A Town Called Mercy"

Apparently there are only 2 more episodes until the mid-season hiatus, based on a comment made in the "Doctor Who Insider" about "these 5 episodes" and an advertisement for a sneak peak for a new series (beginning October 2) coming during the "Doctor Who Fall Finale."

And it seems to be very companion-lite, which is odd considering that Amy and Rory are leaving within two or three episodes. Since this is their swan song, I would have thought we'd see a LOT more of them, just, DO stuff.

I noticed that too. I'm wondering maybe if it's because they're trying to kind of slowly wean them off the show. Or give the vibe that the Doctor/Amy/Rory knot isn't as tight as it used to be, as a sort of preparation for the goodbye.

I know for me personally, I think I got spoiled on the last two seasons where they were very much one storyline broken up into different episodes. Lots of two-parters, carry-over themes, etc. There's nothing like that in S7 so far. It reminds me a lot of DW's 2nd and 3rd Series, honestly. A bit rambly and episodic. It's a little hard to get very excited about DW right now because it just feels...like "vintage" DW and not the flashy, jaw-dropping stuff that I loved in the last season.

This is the opposite of me. Seasons 2 and 3 were some of my favorites. And I don't like the flashiness of the newer seasons. That being said, I dislike Season 7 so far, because to me it seems so unlike "vintage" DW. Unless you're just talking about the fact that each episode stands on its own, and not storytelling style/quality. You're right that Moffat is going for an every-episode-stands-on-its-own approach. (Probably because fans kept complaining about there being too many multi-parters and season-long plotlines). Although, I have to say, Davies' Era had a lot of two parters as well, along with some overarching themes (like Bad Wolf).

~Riella

I was wondering if you guys would be willing to answer some questions about the show, I've never sat down and watched it, but my goodness does it look weird!

First off, what in the world is it about? What's the point of it?

Secondly, do you have to watch all the seasons in order to understand what's going on?

Thirdly, why do they keep having so many doctors? Are they the same character, just different actors? Are they changing them on purpose?

What season is David Tennant in? I saw some small clips of him, and he looks really funny.

And lastly, what's with the Police Box?

I know these are all probably really dumb question to fans of the show, but this is all complete gibberish to me.

Thank you!

Good questions, AslansChild! I'll take a stab at answering some of them; I imagine the other fans here on the forum can offer more details.

What's it about? - The simplest answer might be that it's the adventures of an alien who calls himself simply the Doctor; he can travel anywhere in time and space thanks to his 'spaceship' (called the TARDIS) which looks more or less like a 1960s London police box.

Watching all the seasons to understand - ideally, that would be best, but it first aired in 1963 and watching them all would be quite a task! (In fact, I understand that some of those early episodes no longer exist, or only exist in audio form).

Watching all the episodes of the current reboot (dubbed 'NuWho') - just into season 7 - would be easier, but even that probably isn't vital - though you might miss some inside jokes and parts of the show's mythology in that case.

I'd suggest jumping right in; things might be confusing at first but you could ask other questions here or search online for the answers to specific questions you might have.

So many doctors - The show originally ran from 1963 to 1989. That's a long time for any actor to play the same role, so they came up with an in-universe explanation for different actors playing the Doctor: he's able to regenerate - change his appearance (to that of the new actor) but he's the same character (though each actor can bring his own distinctiveness to the role).

David Tennant - BBC rebooted the series in 2005 with generally the same continuity and universe as before. David Tennant played the role from seasons 2-4 of this reboot.

The police box is the Doctor's ship, with which he can travel through both time and space. It's 'bigger on the inside' to quote one of the show's common lines. There's an in-universe explanation about how the TARDIS (as it's called) can make itself look like something appropriate for wherever it is, but that circuit got 'stuck' in this form, so it always looks like a police box.

I watched the Power of Three tonight. Still not very impressed by this season. I thought the episode was a bit boring, and the humor a bit cheesy. No worse than the episodes before it, though.

I'm actually glad the Ponds are leaving next week. I enjoyed my time with them. But companions get old after they've stayed on for too long. And I think they've stayed on for too long. I like it much better when the companions are on for a shorter amount of time so that they still feel a bit fresh and fun when they go. Otherwise the last memories of them are more strained and dull.

I'm really starting to feel the same about the Eleventh Doctor as well.

~Riella

I'll take a stab at answering some of them; I imagine the other fans here on the forum can offer more details.

Ah, thank you so much stargazer! I really appreciate it. If I ever get around to watching the show, I'll do as you suggested and just dive in. It would take some viewing to be sure, but I'm not sure that the good Doctor is something I'd really enjoy, not really my cuppa. Thanks for getting back to me however, if I ever watch it, I'll know I can I always come back if I get more questions along the way.

At least give Doctor Who a go. You might enjoy it.