Rose

There was some bad feedback a few weeks ago from someone who had seen the pirated copy of the pilot episode "Rose", about which I was immediately skeptical. The review, that is. It seems my feelings at that time were wholly justified, because I've recently watched said copy myself, and couldn't disagree more. I intended to avoid peeking at it until it showed up on my own TV, but I hadn't figured at this point we Yanks would still be waiting for any word of a network picking it up. Out of courtesy to the current BBC regime, who rule all in time and space for bringing Doctor Who back, I wanted to wait a few days until it launched in England before I wrote my review. Though I don't think anyone should worry since my thoughts are encouraging after all. And I know I'm still going to watch it in its PROPER setting of my television via my cable connection. Let me just start from the top and work forward...

If that pilot episode's a caterpillar, there's probably one effin' sexy butterfly on the way...

The title music isn't the final version in what I saw. I've heard the new arrangement played in several different settings, from the trailers to a snippet aired on one of the BBCs morning shows, and it is a testament to the original's awe and mystique, which literally serves as the backbone for the meat that Murray Gold has grafted onto it. Frankly, I'm dying to hear it in clear digital stereo as soon as some network, ANY network in this land of opportunity decides to pony up for the rights to air the thing! I'm not 100% sure that the title sequence is the final version, either, but I like what I see, and can't wait to see it married to the proper melody.

Now here is where people are going to have the most problem with this episode. It suffers from the exposition syndrome. Folks, you need to get over it. If you want Doctor Who back you're going to have to suffer through the obligatory period of introductions, explanations and plot development. The great news is that, whereas the 1996 TV movie shoe-horned more established history into ninety minutes than anyone could digest without the aid of pharmaceuticals, this one succeeds brilliantly at the same effort in half that time with a sensibly leaner plot.

Some will say that the choice of villain is lame. Some will say the means by which the Doctor handles and resolves things is too easily achieved. Some will say they should have shot from the left in stead of the right. But you know... we're not running the show here. What they've done is the only thing they could do in a case like this. INTRODUCE THE DOCTOR! That's what it's all about, nothing more. The fact that he's got the solution to the whole situation literally up his sleeve is beside the point. By way of character Rose's point-of-view, we get swept up in the Doctor's world, and as you will perceive, events are already under way. Through her eyes, we've just stumbled into the midst of it all, and the fact that these events whizz by at an unsettling pace, brilliantly brings the viewer into Rose's humdrum life and how she herself is struggling to cope with what she's found herself suddenly involved in. But of course, that has always been the place and purpose of the Doctor Who companion: to be the on-screen manifestation of the viewer's interest. Since we can't ask the Doctor "what's going on?" they serve that purpose for us. Some may find the first chunk of the show (I'm not saying how many minutes go by, because that'd give away when things turn interesting!) rather dull, but that's the point. Rose's life is very uninteresting. When she runs into a life-threatening situation there's only one way out, and I'll give you an obvious hint: she doesn't escape on her own.

One thing I noticed was the parallels between this story and the 1996 FOX movie. Certainly, both were out to achieve the same ends, the re-introduction of the Doctor's character. But while the movie went to the length of showing the Doctor regenerate from the last actor from the original series into the new actor, this outing neatly steps past that event and, frankly, I don't miss it. I was delighted to see, as I'm sure many will be, that they even made a brief nod to his most recent regeneration (which apparently took place not too long before the story began!). And the nature of the reference is an even subtler nod to a moment in Tom Baker's post-regenerative recuperation.

This goes a long way to explaining what I'll just call Christopher Eccleston's somewhat over-the-top delivery. The Doctor is apparently still coming to grips with his new body and apparently, in regards to the above-mentioned moment, has dressed himself without a mirror. His demeanor is almost defiantly cheery and his body language has more spring in it's step than a staircase built from Serta mattresses. Once again, some will groan, "Ohhh, no, too much!" But these mannerisms are all the more effective when the flow of chaos is broken by a sudden moment of dramatic lucidity, like when the Doctor explains to Rose who he is is such a way that one is left feeling both transported and at the same time a little saddened at the hint of his inner loneliness.

I mentioned "parallels" between this story and the TV movie. The aforementioned moment of lucidity is similar in mood to a scene in the movie where the Doctor reminisces to his companion Grace about stargazing in his youth, leading unexpectedly to a charming moment involving the fit of his new shoes. The scene in Rose's home reminded me of when Grace brought the Doctor to her house to examine his health. Different events transpire but the way in which each Doctor picks things out from his surroundings and "makes a moment" for the viewer to appreciate. And in the end, the Doctor finds himself restrained and on the verge of destruction, leaving the companion to heroically show their mettle by saving the day by saving him. Hell, I even made connections between things like shots of Doctor and companion running at - and past - the camera hand-in-hand, and the fact that in both cases, the Doctor was seeking an essential something that they only eventually found with the companion's assistance. In the movie it was an atomic clock (or a piece of it), and in this case it;s a transmitter.

Don't get me wrong, I'm not implying plagiarism or re-hashing of old plot devices at all. I'm saying that what this production crew did was take the bare bones elements that the TV movie used and employed them to a much greater effect! And once again I ask, nay, BEG all the viewers, fans and non-fans alike, to consider these things when they have their chance to see it. Once the whirlwind exposition is past, we can settle in and enjoy the ride. Remember the first episode of Buffy? Compare that to subsequent episodes if not the future history of that series, and you can forgive the occasionally frenetic pace.

Christopher Eccleston's Doctor is weird! But in the way that leaves a grin lingering on your face. This is due in part to the post-regenerative recovery I believe he's getting through, but also stems from the aforementioned loneliness that seems to be lurking beneath the surface. His is a Doctor that has lived nearly 1000 years, has been to one side of the universe and back as well as from one end of time to the other. He probably hasn't yet seen it all, but he's certainly seen enough to give anyone a melancholy perspective on the nature of everything. They say it's the worst to be alone in a crowd, so what does one feel when that "crowd" encompasses the collective mass of life throughout the history of the universe? (And to any writer working on the series who may be reading this, you're welcome to quote that question in a future script : ) ). When someone with so little life like Rose brushes against someone who's lived more life than anyone probably ought to, there's bound to be an equalizing effect on them. Many have been the murmurings of the new Doctor's "love" for Rose, and when you take this dynamic into account, it's apparent that they need each other. With the Doctor's irritable exclamation to Rose that he can't afford to focus all his emotional energy on the death of one human while he's trying to save ALL of the "stupid apes on this planet", we get an idea of the scale of his sense of responsibility, possibly mixed with a dose of self-imposed guilt.

The "scary" factor is fairly middle-of-the-road this time out with alien forces moving zombie-like towards their human victims amongst other moments. But I will say there was one part in particular that gave me a bit of a chilled feeling. A character is killed and duplicated, and at a later moment the doppelganger is sitting, speaking with the deceased's friend. I found it mildly unsettling each time the double's face snapped back to a smile when they finished talking. Maybe others won't see it like that, but I found myself thinking, "Hey, that's actually kind of creepy."

Now, I said at the beginning that I had some criticism, but really, it is nothing that can't be laughed off. By process of elimination it's awfully petty. The first thing is the choice of music at the story's climax. For a scene involving a potential mass-slaughter, it sounded awfully "doot, de-doot, de-doo" perky to me. I forgive this by saying that once again, it's ONLY the first episode for cryin' out loud, and they're trying to establish a sense of wondrous adventure. In the end the Doctor saves the day and you want more! He even advises Rose that it's always that dangerous in his world.

The other thing takes place when a character is absorbed by the enemy and afterwards they actually cap the experience off with a "belch" sound. Okay, I can forgive a lot, including this, but really, now! BELCH?

Oh, and another thing about the music... the negative review totally panned all of it, and I honestly can't see why. Other than what I've said, I felt it was perfectly acceptable.

One other thing original series fans might suffer from is whiplash from the speed of the plot. It's been said many times before in different settings that people have learned all of the old TV and movie story-telling devices from the past sixty years, so when a story is told today it moves at a faster pace, getting to the heart of the matter, whereas many years ago, the viewer would have to have things established in detail in order for the story to progress. Since sixteen years have passed between the end of the old series and the dawn of the new, one is bound to have a sense that it's not Doctor Who-like because it's moving "too fast". I'm sure we'll all get over soon enough, though. I can't wait to see the first two-parter and judge how it feels compared to a traditional 90-minute story. There'll probably be so much going on in that story as a whole it'll be very exciting, if this 45-minute sample is anything to go by.

And then there's the TARDIS. What can I say? It's the most beautiful, not to mention HUGE set that a BBC production of the show has used since the original pilot. The concept of the Doctor being akin to a space-traveling hippie with the TARDIS being his van, is so apt, one wonders why they never thought of it before. The control console is supposedly a lash-up of whatever pieces and parts he could find from whatever time periods he visited grafted onto the futuristic equipment already there. This isn't actually addressed in the first episode, and I don't know if they'll actually explain this, but that's how the production team came up with the new look. For the moment we get a few good tantalizing glimpses within, but not much beyond that. It will be interesting to see what lies beyond the inner door, leading deeper into the ship.

Bottom line is: forgive the hyperactive pace, be patient and let the future episodes unfold and keep an open mind. For those who really enjoy this, especially those who've either sneaked a peek at the bootleg or taken a trip north of the border to catch it on April 5 when those lucky, stinkin' Canadians get it, you may find yourself really feeling pissed at the Sci-Fi Channel for being so shortsighted. Wasn't that network originally established to be a haven for the sci-fi geeks out here? A place that's supposedly capable of recognizing that there's a thing called "Doctor Who" which has a solid base of fans in this country who are hungry for a new chapter in their favorite story? A friend of mine and I were having fits over it not long ago, exclaiming sarcastically, "God! If only someone would come up with a TV network that actually showed, you know, science-fiction. Where shows like this or Wonderfalls or Dead Like Me could find a home and thrive there. Oh, yeah... I think there is one and it's called THE SCI-FI CHANNEL!!!"

The wait is worth it. You will enjoy!