Doctor Who: a triumphant regeneration?

It’s the end of the series so I’m going to talk about myself a while. I’m not suggesting I’m Amy Pond or anything (although I am ginger, a bit Scottish and have quite good legs). But when I was a little boy I had a fictional friend called The Doctor who lived in my imagination (as well as on my television). I’m only old enough to remember Sylvester McCoy , and as much as we’re supposed to think he sucked, the entire thing felt magical. Also like Amy Pond, when I was 10 years old, he left me, and I set about getting into Nirvana and cider and trouble without the shackles of geek. But he taught the little boy things about imagination and exploration and daftness and pacifism that stayed with me. Obviously, my parents did most of it, but I genuinely believe I turned out a better person for having Doctor Who in my life. It is not and should not be hard sci-fi, but it is, I think, one of the reasons we can be proud to be British. Like Amy Pond (I’ll stop soon, I promise), the Doctor came back to me in my mid-20s and it took about seven seconds of the episode Rose to get me hooked again. In that sense, I’m at the exact midpoint of Doctor Who fandom; between the old guard who dogmatically remember the old days, and the new generation for whom Nu-Who were their first flourishes of Timelordy goodness. The point is, Doctor Who is a part of our national collective memory. And so everybody within this hive mind feels an ownership over it – like the NME or the decisions of the England football coach – and has ideas about how it should be. Look how high emotions run on these and other forums – whether it’s love or whether it’s spite, it’s always driven by passion. Versions of Doctor Who fandom are as varied as versions of Doctor Who itself. With all that in mind, with season finale The Big Bang approaching, now is a good time to consider Doctor Who v11.1. Given the quality of the earlier Who episodes he’d written, expectations were insanely high for Steven Moffat as showrunner. Those expecting dark, adult versions of Who every week were always going to be disappointed. Moffat’s instinct was to bring Doctor Who back into the realms of fairy tale and the childlike threat of the monster under the bed. His dialogue was less soapy and more spiky than that of the RTD era, unsurprising for one of the grand masters of Britcom, but it’s led some to bemoan a lack of heart. There was also a lot less death than previously, but when someone did die, such as Father Octavian in Flesh and Stone, it ploughed heavy into the heart. Season 2 Episode 1: The Robot Revolution Episode 2: Lux Episode 3: The Well Episode 4: Lucky Day Episode 5: The Story and the Engine Episode 6: The Interstellar Song Contest Episode 7: Wish World Episode 8: The Reality War Season 1 Episodes 1 & 2: Space Babies / The Devil's Chord Episode 3: Boom Episode 4: 73 Yards Episode 5: Dot and Bubble Episode 6: Rogue Episode 7: The Legend of Ruby Sunday Episode 8: Empire of Death Christmas special: Joy to the World 60th anniversary specials Special 1: The Star Beast Special 2: Wild Blue Yonder Special 3: The Giggle Christmas special: The Church on Ruby Road Flux / Series 13 Chapter one: The Halloween Apocalypse Chapter two: War of the Sontarans Chapter three: Once, Upon Time Chapter four: Village of the Angels Chapter five: Survivors of the Flux Chapter six: The Vanquishers New Year's Special: Eve of the Daleks Spring special: Legend of the Sea Devils BBC centenary special: The Power of the Doctor Series 12 Episode 1: Spyfall part one Episode 2: Spyfall part two Episode 3: Orphan 55 Episode 4: Nikola Tesla’s Night of Terror Episode 5: Fugitive of the Judoon Episode 6: Praxeus Episode 7: Can You Hear Me? Episode 8: The Haunting of Villa Diodati Episode 9: Ascension of the Cybermen Episode 10: The Timeless Children New Year's special: Revolution of the Daleks Series 11 Episode 1: The Woman Who Fell to Earth Episode 2: The Ghost Monument Episode 3: Rosa Episode 4: Arachnids in the UK Episode 5: The Tsuangra Condundrum Episode 6: Demons of the Punjab Episode 7: Kerblam! Episode 8: The Witchfinders Episode 9: It Takes You Away Episode 10: The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos New Year's special: Resolution Series 10 Episode 1: The Pilot Episode 2: Smile Episode 3: Thin Ice Episode 4: Knock Knock Episode 5: Oxygen Episode 6: Extremis Episode 7: The Pyramid at the End of the World Episode 8: The Lie of the Land Episode 9: Empress of Mars Episode 10: The Eaters of Light Episode 11: World Enough and Time Episode 12: The Doctor Falls 2017 Christmas special: Twice Upon A Time Series 9 Episode 1: The Magician's Apprentice Episode 2: The Witch's Familiar Episode 3: Under The Lake Episode 4: Before The Flood Episode 5: The Girl Who Died Episode 6: The Woman Who Lived Episode 7: The Zygon Invasion Episode 8: The Zygon Inversion Episode 9: Sleep No More Episode 10: Face The Raven Episode 11: Heaven Sent Episode 12: Hell Bent 2015 Christmas special: The Husbands of River Song 2016 Christmas special: The Return of Doctor Mysterio Series 8 Episode 1: Deep Breath Episode 2: Into The Dalek Episode 3: Robot of Sherwood Episode 4: Listen Episode 5: Time Heist Episode 6: The Caretaker Episode 7: Kill The Moon Episode 8: Mummy on the Orient Express Episode 9: Flatline Episode 10: In the Forest of the Night Episode 11: Dark Water Episode 12: Death In Heaven 2014 Christmas special: Last Christmas Series 7 Episode 1: Asylum of the Daleks Episode 2: Dinosaurs on a Spaceship Episode 3: A Town Called Mercy Episode 4: The Power of Three Episode 5: The Angels Take Manhatten 2012 Christmas special: The Snowmen Episode 6: The Bells of Saint John Episode 7: The Rings of Akhaten Episode 8: Cold War Episode 9: Hide Episode 10: Journey to the Centre of the Tardis Episode 11: The Crimson Horror Episode 12: Nightmare in Silver Episode 13: The Name of the Doctor 50th Anniversary special: The Day of the Doctor 2013 Christmas special: The Time of the Doctor Series 6 Episode 1: The Impossible Astronaut Episode 2: Day of the Moon Episode 3: The Curse of the Black Spot Episode 4: The Doctor's Wife Episode 5: The Rebel Flesh Episode 6: The Almost People Episode 7: A Good Man Goes To War Episode 8: Let's Kill Hitler Episode 9: Night Terrors Episode 10: The Girl Who Waited Episode 11: The God Complex Episode 12: Closing Time Episode 13: The Wedding of River Song 2011 Christmas special: The Doctor, The Widow and the Wardrobe Series 5 Episode 1: The Eleventh Hour Episode 2: The Beast Below Episode 3: Victory of the Daleks Episode 4: The Time of Angels Episode 5: Flesh and Stone Episode 6: The Vampires of Venice Episode 7: Amy's Choice Episode 8: The Hungry Earth Episode 9: Cold Blood Episode 10: Vincent and the Doctor Episode 11: The Lodger Episode 12: The Pandorica Opens Episode 13: The Big Bang 2010 Christmas special: A Christmas Carol Concerns about Matt Smith’s age and experience were, of course, rashly unfounded. In the event, it took just minutes for nostalgic memories of David Tennant to melt away like so much psychic pollen. It’s his first series, but if this is finding his feet, I shudder with glee to think what is going to come next from the most alien Doctor of them all. Karen Gillan began the series as a revelation, spiky and soulful and sassy and various other words that begin with ‘S’ that aren’t sappy or spineless or simpering. It’s true that at times Amy’s felt a little one note, with a default setting of SHOUTING or enunciating the ends of her sentences! But I’d put all of that down to guest writers responding to a character brief that probably said little more than “feisty redhead”. When the new team started making this series they wanted to call it “series one”, to some consternation. But the fact is, it was – this was a fresh team feeling its way just as the previous one was in 2005. So as we get ready to resolve the most impossible of cliffhangers, how do you think “series fnarg” has shaped up?