Topic: The TV Show Thread

@Th3solution Rose is a huge part of the first Tennant season as well and she’s still my favourite companion by a long shot. I like the Ecclestone run because I was quite literally 4 or 5 when it first aired and it scared the living s**t out of me, especially The Empty Child which probably is a bit laughable now.

@RogerRoger I loved the start of Matt Smith’s tenure but the River Song arc did my absolute head in and went a long way towards my eventual dissatisfaction with the whole show. I wasn’t sold on Peter Capaldi until the excellent finale two-parter when he was in that castle thingy. Then his final season was really quite good and I was sorry to see him leave when I felt the stories were getting into the swing of things.

@Foxy-Goddess-Scotchy Yeeeeah, I remember it being a big deal coming back because my dad had watched the Tom Baker episodes growing up! It’s scaring me a bit how long ago New Who actually started 😅

@Foxy-Goddess-Scotchy @RogerRoger @nessisonett @colonelkilgore Thanks for the input folks. I think the best plan might be to try “Dalek” first and if I seem to be warming up to the show’s concept and charm then I’ll skip to season two with Tennant. Maybe it will spur me to at least stick with it. Also, knowing that the initial season was extra quirky and things get better makes me curious to stay with it. Probably will do more Sherlock first though.

@Th3solution Me and the wife starting watching the older new Who a few years ago and the visual effects in the Ecclestone episodes are pretty laughable now.

Hopefully it sticks at some point for you though as it is a good, fun show with some excellent cameos along the way. It gets a little tricky skipping series as doctors and companions mostly don't change at the same time but that's not the biggest worry.

I always found Ecclestone a bit of a funny one for playing the doctor and the fact he jumped ship so quickly meant he never really established himself that well.

I just watched the fresh Prince reunion show. It was actually really good and I am so glad I watched it. I kind of don't normally go in for these reunion type affairs but the fresh Prince is one of my favourite TV shows ever. I used to come home from school and watch it every day at 6pm on bbc2, I'd be crying with laughter or just crying because Carlton took drugs or had his rich kid bubble burst when he gets pulled over by police or when Will got shot or when he meets his absentee father.

It was really done well, I was apprehensive because will smith is always the loudest person in the room on all his public appearances these days but the reunion has a good balance and everybody's voice is heard. It is sad and funny but well worth watching if you were/are a fan of the fresh Prince!

@RogerRoger it is good and there are some particularly "real" moments about the reunion show that I don't want to spoil. It's not like all happy and reflectively sad. Serious grievances between certain cast members get aired which is not something you would expect from this type of show.

The original show isn't on Netflix at the moment actually! Unless it's on in another country and you use a VPN. It's currently on iPlayer and NowTV Entertainment pass. The reunion itself is only on now tv (and I'd assume by extension, sky)

@RogerRoger I had a look when you mentioned it and I couldn't find it so I guess not! These shows always move around the different services, 8 months after seeing a thumbnail on Netflix you think, "I'm in the mood to watch that now" only to find it's been moved to Amazon prime or something

@ralphdibny @RogerRoger Fresh Prince has just landed on both Sky Comedy and BBC iPlayer so I assume Netflix were outbid!

@RogerRoger Picard is finally out on blu ray this month too!

There are far too many streaming services and I hear it's much worse over in America. I didn't know Netflix was so expensive now, I use my dad's account for it so I wonder if he will cancel it soon. I might rush to watch the new series of Disenchanted just in case. Otherwise yeah, it's mainly trash you just put on when your bored. I've watched all of the marvel shows and they're not making any more.

I couldn't get very far into Altered Carbon either, it was the narration that did it in for me. It looks interesting and I like the lead actor so I'd be willing to give it a try some day. I've heard umbrella academy is good so again, i'd be willing to give it a try but I've never been a fan of Elliot page films (except X men 3) and I can't stand that Robert Sheehan guy ever since all those e4 adverts of him smashing his head into a locker on that programme misfits which I never watched. So it doesn't have a lot to tempt me except the positive word of mouth. I haven't read the books either, I've read the milk wars JLA/doom Patrol crossover that Gerard way did for DC but it was confusing and a bit unoriginal in its concept so again, not so keen on watching an adaptation of another of his works!

Out of the new Doctor Who, I'd say Peter Capaldi is my favourite. David Tennant is a very close second. And Christopher Eccleston is narrowly behind in third, who I think is the most underappreciated of the new doctors.

@crimsontadpoles Honestly, I think all the Doctors have been great in their own ways - it’s the quality of writing which has seen its ups and downs.

@RogerRoger @Foxy-Goddess-Scotchy So I made it through “Dalek” and I think it’s probably the best of the 3 episodes I’ve watched... although that is faint praise indeed.
The Dalek was a weird creature (?) for sure and I do have to say that it was still plenty corny with the voice and the sucker and all. Actually, the best part was when the creature opened the metal casing and exposed itself to the sun and basically surrendered its life. For a brief moment the show actually resonated with me. Yet the campy rendition of Sci-Fi permeated through the episode aplenty, with the relatively nonsensical plot holes and logic defying character reactions. I’m probably coming across overly critical, which I apologize for, but perhaps I’m not in the right state of mind. 😄

Something you both said made me question— Are Dalek’s actually a thing in the UK? I’ve never heard of one before.

Anyways, I’m not sure the show inspired me with adoration yet, but I’m going to try a Tennant episode. However, when I look at the episodes, it looks like he actually appears at the end of season 1. Is this correct? I’m strictly going from the thumbnail photo of the episode but it looks like season 1, episode 13 “The Parting of Ways” has him there. Should I jump to that episode or straight to season 2, episode 1 “New Earth”? (Speaking of thumbnails for the episodes, I can’t help but notice a picture of Dalek, or a Dalek, also present in the photo attributed to “The Parting of Ways”, so I guess he/she/it makes a comeback)

@RogerRoger Oh, and I will say (because I can’t remember if I said much about it on here) that Umbrella Academy is actually pretty good. It is a little bit like an X-men knockoff, but it’s an infinitely more dysfunctional bunch. The entertainment is largely from the flawed and broken aspects of the family. Anyways, it is quite enjoyable once you get past the first couple episodes where you’re trying to learn each of the characters.

@Th3solution I guess he “appears” in the final episode of the first series of the reboot as that’s when the regeneration occurs (you know about that whole thing right?).

It was essentially a teaser that he would be the new doctor when the next series started so there’s not much you’ll miss there.

Did anyone ever see the series of Casanova that Tennant did pre-Who?

It was good fun and you can see why they chose him for the role of the Doctor based on that.

@Thrillho I think I know about regeneration, although I’m just assuming some things. I have pieced together that the alien being that is the Doctor inhabits various human forms. I just don’t know if it’s as a result of the previous form dying, or if it’s some kind of purposeful evolution or voluntary invasion of someone’s body, or if there’s some other time limit of each physical form.

@Foxy-Goddess-Scotchy Lol, yeah I thought the voice was pretty goofy alright. It reminded me of the little boy’s voice in The Shining. “Redrum... Redrum” 😅
And the Americans in the episode were certainly unintentionally humorous in their own way. But it fit with the overall camp and datedness of the series. (“I own the internet...” 😂)

Maybe I need to do “The Christmas Invasion” because I did see that one listed. I feel like I need to see Tennant get introduced as the Doctor even if the episode isn’t up to the better standards that follow. I’ll let you know how I get along. 😄

@RogerRoger Sorry, my friend - I just now saw your post after writing that above. Yeah, the headspace I’m in atm is weird anyways, so I don’t mind a little trial and error on a couple Who episodes. Namely because my gaming mojo has taken a hit, and so I’ve been dabbling more into TV. I think the fact that it’s more passive and requires less energy as a form of escapism is why I’m gravitating toward TV and movies instead of gaming. Anyways, thanks a ton for all the recommendations. I’ll certainly post thoughts.

And yes — The Umbrella Academy is an acquired taste due the initial frustration of the dysfunctional family dynamic of the characters. But one thing it does is really provide strong characters of wide representation with plenty of diversity. Interestingly I noticed the credits changed from “Ellen” to “Elliot” in the second season (probably have retroactively changed the first season by now) It’s easy to spot because he’s the first name in the end credits usually.

@Foxy-Goddess-Scotchy 😂 Ahhhh, marmite... I’ve suppressed that traumatic experience.

I still have my jar of it. I think the shelf life is like 3 years or something (probably because it has some ungodly preservatives that add to the putrid taste) so I could always open it back up and eat it while watching Doctor Who to get the full effect. I wonder if it will enhance the experience or exponentially nauseate me. 🤔

@RogerRoger nice one! I'm still waiting, perhaps in vein for a ln agents of shield season 6+7 blu ray announcement. I still haven't watched those two seasons!

Fair enough about UC, like I say, I do get tempted to try it out because of the positive word of mouth. It looks a bit like a less funny version of Doom Patrol (which is easily the best DC show that's ever been made). I'm not saying Elliot Page is a bad actor or anything, I think it's just that you gel with certain actors over the years and I never really gelled with Robert Sheehan or Elliot Page. But you know, there could be that one show that sets me on the path to being a mega fan. I used to hate Lee Mack but now I'm halfway through season 4 of Not going out!