The Torchwood Institute

CONvergence

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Mon, 30 Jun 2008 22:54:00 +0000

As always, there will be a bunch of Doctor Who and related panels at Minnesota's Science Fiction convention CONvergence this weekend. I'll be on a few.

Since this convention has an additional day, one of the ideas is to have one panel for each decade of the show -- usually, when you cover Doctor Who, you don't really cover the whole history as much as you would really like.

Time	Room	Panel
Thu 5:00pm - 6:00pm	Edina TV	Doctor Who by Decade: The Sixties Covering the 1960's era Dr. Who, this is the first in a series of four panels exploring the rich and varied history of the classic British science-fiction series, focusing on the Hartnell and Troughton eras. Ben Ellis, Steven Manfred, Charlie Paulsen, Michael Scott Shappe, Michael D. Thomas
Fri 5:00pm - 6:00pm	Edina TV	Doctor Who by Decade: The Seventies Covering the 1970's era Dr. Who, this is the second in a series of four panels exploring the rich and varied history of the classic British science-fiction series, focusing on the Pertwee and T. Baker eras. Ben Ellis, Brian Jonas, Michael Lee, Emily Stewart, Michael Zecca
Fri 6:30pm - 7:30pm	Edina TV	Doctor Who: Series Four This panel discusses Donna Noble's year aboard the TARDIS and will contain spoilers and speculation around Series Four of Doctor Who and beyond. Also, what can we look forward to during the "gap year?" Michael Lee, Steven Manfred, Kelly McCullough, Lynne Thomas, Michael Zecca
Fri 9:30pm - 10:30pm	Edina TV	Torchwood Beyond the government, yada yada yada. Basically, this is an hour long opportunity to squee over Ianto, Captain Jack, and Captain John. Oh and talk about how much an improvement the second series was over the first as well. Christa Dickson, James Gottfried, Mara Kapp, Charlie Paulsen, Lynne Thomas, Dayna Jean Wolter
Sat 3:30pm - 4:30pm	A4 HotDish	What Does Franchise Continuity Mean to You? Continuity, or what is canon, is a very personal thing. Which Buffy Season 8 do you count - the comic version, the novels, or both? Do you consider animated Trek the last two years of the 5-year mission? Where do Doctor Who audios fit in? What about the Babylon 5 comic books or Star Wars video games? Or does it even matter at all? Remember - no one is "right" or "wrong" - come and share some of your more inventive and interesting canon theories in this respectful round-table discussion. Dave Benhart, Paul Harmeyer, Christopher Jones, Michael Lee, Video Team, Michael D. Thomas, Greg Weisman
Sat 3:30pm - 4:30pm	Edina TV	Reimagining of TV Shows It seems like the movie-remake craze of the past several years has filtered down to our television sets. What makes a remake successful? When should a show be rebooted (BSG) vs. making it a continuation (Trek: Next Gen, Doctor Who)? Daren Dochterman, Derek Mahr, Joan Marie Verba
Sat 5:00pm - 6:00pm	Edina TV	Doctor Who by Decade: The Eighties Covering the 1980's era Dr. Who, this is the third in a series of four panels exploring the rich and varied history of the classic British science-fiction series, focusing on the Davison, C. Baker, and McCoy eras. It probably would have been easier to say the JNT era, huh? Michael Lee, Charlie Paulsen, Lars Pearson, Michael Scott Shappe, Michael D. Thomas
Sat 11:00pm - 11:59pm	Edina TV	Cool Britannia Doctor Who isn't the only British import worth checking out. There has been a resurgence of sci-fi in the UK recently. Come learn about other series worth your while, like Primeval, Life on Mars, Hyperdrive, Jekyll, and many others. Ben Ellis, Brian Jonas, Michael Lee, Michael Zecca
Sun 9:30am - 10:30am	Edina TV	Sarah Jane Adventures It may be the least talked about/acknowledged of the current run of Doctor Who spin-offs, but it's definitely worth discussion. Is The Sarah Jane Adventures far better than it has any right to be? Rob Callahan, Heidi Johnson, Steven Manfred, Lynne Thomas, Michael D. Thomas
Sun 2:00pm - 3:00pm	Edina TV	Doctor Who by Decade: The Nineties Covering the 1990's era Dr. Who, this is the fourth in a series of four panels exploring the rich and varied history of the classic British science-fiction series, focusing on the expanded universe (audios, books, comics) and the 1996 McGann TV Movie. Heidi Johnson, Lars Pearson, Michael D. Thomas

I read it in the Times

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Sun, 15 Jun 2008 13:26:00 +0000

Today's new york times has a profile of Russell T Davies.

Sir Russell?

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 21:42:00 +0000

Not yet -- but congratulations to Russell T Davies for being made an Officer of the Most Excellent Order of the British Empire. Very impressive!

Meet The New Boss

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Fri, 13 Jun 2008 18:38:00 +0000

I found a website devoted specifically to Steven Moffat, which I'd link to in any case.

I've got all of Coupling -- one of my favorite comedies, as well as the easy-to-recommend Jekyll. I haven't seen much of the rest of his work -- not being easily available here -- but it's interesting to read up on his career as he moves to his biggest job...

Impossible Things

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Tue, 10 Jun 2008 23:17:00 +0000

For me, one of the other improbable events if you sent this cartoon five years back in time is that it's now not unthinkable for there to be a Doctor Who reference in a modern American political cartoon...and it isn't Tom Baker.

That's as great a shock as any of the rest of it!

Hanging Out With The Dream King

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Wed, 28 May 2008 04:31:00 +0000

Unsurprisingly, the rumor that superstar Neil Gaiman might write for the 2010 series of Doctor Who is starting to make the rounds.

It's no secret that Neil is a fan of the series -- including the new series, and of new showrunner Steven Moffat's episodes in particular. So he's obviously on the short list of plausible writers for Doctor Who.

I figure it is one of those things that if it is meant to happen, it will -- but Neil is obviously a very busy individual, and he'd be difficult to work out a schedule on, especially given that he's primarily based in the US.

Would this be something to get excited about? You bet. Is it something that I can see happening? Sure. Less likely things in the history of Doctor Who have happened, after all.

But there is a long path until the episode gets in front of a camera -- and so even if he's a possible candidate to write an episode, there are a number of things that can make it fall through. It has happened in Doctor Who history many times in the past, after all.

I dream, quite frequently...

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Fri, 23 May 2008 22:53:00 +0000

io9 justified its existence this week with a set of survey results comparing Doctor Who fans and Star Trek fans.

I think the age breakdown is very interesting as well.

I'd also be interested to see some other long-running franchises -- how would Star Wars or Battlestar Galactica fit into this mix?

Grand Moff

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Tue, 20 May 2008 22:24:00 +0000

Well, it is official. Steven Moffat will be the new Doctor Who show runner.

And really, it could never be anyone else -- he's more than proven his capabilities with his previous Doctor Who contributions. With Curse of Fatal Death he managed the best televised Doctor Who of the 1990s without even having official status, and The Empty Child, Girl in the Fireplace, and Blink have all been highlights of the revived series.

It has been apparent that we were heading to the end of an era for some time now -- and it is a statement to Russell T Davies contribution to the series that his replacement is taking the same sort of recognition that a change of cast would have. Obviously, there are people that have had criticisms of Russell's era of the show -- but it is undeniable that he's made Doctor Who more successful than anyone could have reasonably managed.

Thanks to everyone involved with the current era of Doctor Who -- Russell, Phil, and Julie. It's been a fantastic run, and one everyone can and should be proud of.

And the best part is, we know that there will be great Doctor Who in the future -- it is a format bigger than any one person behind or in front of the camera. It's always capable of changing -- but still having that continuing thread.

Congratulations and good luck. The moment has been prepared for.

Ood enough

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Sat, 10 May 2008 04:13:00 +0000

I'm disappointed to see that the BBC is being a little over zealous in protecting their trademarks when they ask to removes a Doctor Who fan’s knitting patterns from the Web.

It's this sort of fan activity that kept Doctor Who alive for the period of time between 1989 and 2005 -- and it was this sort of fan activity that encouraged people like Paul Cornell, Mark Gatiss, Gary Russell, and lots of other people that have now worked on the new television series.

I'm sure it's some over enthusiastic person somewhere in the BBC -- and I certainly respect that the BBC needs to protect their property -- but I think there should be a way for people to celebrate their love for the show in creative ways -- and to share that amongst other fans.

Very sad to see.

[found from Boing Boing]

Here Comes the Commentary!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 02:24:00 +0000

It is nice to see that the commentary track dropped at the last minute on the US DVDs for Series three is now available on the BBC America website.

I can't imagine anyone listening -- and pausing -- with it while it's actually airing on BBC America. (Especially in case they make any sort of episode cuts -- the episode was heavily cut on Sci Fi, after all...)

But, really, very very cool.

It's just the way my brain works...

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Fri, 11 Apr 2008 02:09:00 +0000

Ok. Sometimes, I think there are some times that I can't escape Doctor Who.

I'm watching the following video of Jonathan Coulton performing his song Still Alive in the UK, and well, they've got a bunch of faces on sheets of paper... and one is clearly Colin Baker from when he was playing the Doctor... why, I don't pretend to understand.

I think there's some fine tuned "Doctor Who" sense that goes off whenever there's something with a connection to the series...

You know, for Kids!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Wed, 09 Apr 2008 22:13:00 +0000

I think the advertising for the Sarah Jane Adventures on Sci Fi has made it clear that this spin-off is much more a children's show than Doctor Who is.

The main reason why I was skeptical about an American distribution was that I couldn't quite see how it would get sold here -- but the teenage cast should make it clear that it's target audience.

It's an enjoyable show -- but really, the intended audience is completely different than something like Battlestar Galactica -- and that is one of the things views of the show have to be aware enough to realize.

Russell T Davies Interview To Read

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Sun, 06 Apr 2008 15:48:00 +0000

This interview with Russell T Davies has some interesting little spoilers and cameo reports that I'm sure will be very interesting to some of you.

Shocking - Merlin on NBC!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Fri, 04 Apr 2008 04:00:00 +0000

It's probably because of the recent writers strike, but it is highly unusual that something like Merlin would get a first run on one of the major american networks like NBC. Obviously, NBC and the BBC have an existing relationship, in fact, that's probably one of the reasons why Doctor Who ended up on NBC's Sci Fi channel.

In a way, I can only imagine that it's because of the success of Doctor Who on Sci Fi that something like this would even be possible. It's obvious that Merlin is being done "for the Doctor Who slot" on the BBC -- all the more important with the year off for the series -- but I suspect that it also helped make it easier for NBC to take the risk of airing a first run UK program like this. (Though it's probably less of a risk than repeats due to the lack of development.)

Very, very interesting.

Amusing Doctor Who is everywhere...

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Mon, 24 Mar 2008 05:06:00 +0000

This might not be meaningful for everyone, but I'm terribly amused that Neil Gaiman can make jokes about the depths of Steve Manfred's Doctor Who knowledge.

Next Month!

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Fri, 21 Mar 2008 01:30:00 +0000

We've got the shortest delay between the UK airing of Doctor Who and the Sci Fi channel airing of the series.

It'll start on BBC One in April 5th, and it'll be on Sci Fi by the end of the month.

Why Father's Day was ahead of its time...

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Wed, 19 Mar 2008 04:17:00 +0000

It got here before everyone else on the internet did.

a twenty year plan

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Tue, 11 Mar 2008 02:47:00 +0000

One of the things that Russell says in an upcoming interview with SFX is that there's literally a 20 year plan for Doctor Who. That doesn't mean that Russell will be Executive Producer for life -- that's not what he said -- just that he's well aware that Doctor Who is a 45 year old franchise, and really *should* be around forever. And it is worth the BBC making plans now about how to continually keep it fresh.

I'd be curious how other franchises that could well be around several decades from now are managed, and if that sort of thought is given -- we can assume there will be a Superman or Spider-Man in twenty years. The Disney characters will still be around in twenty years. There will probably be a Star Trek and a James Bond.

I think what's unusual is that this is one of the few times I've heard the story runner actually think about how to keep the concept fresh over that long sort of run -- perhaps that's because of the BBC's public ownership, but it's still something that I think is fascinating to think about.

Primeval bought by BBC America

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 14:33:00 +0000

It has been called the ITV answer to Doctor Who, and I've heard good things about it, so I'm happy to see that it has been bought by BBC America.

There's one episode by Paul Cornell in the bunch, and I've heard some positive reviews -- so I'm happy to see it cross over as well.

The Sarah Jane Adventures on SCIFI

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Wed, 27 Feb 2008 14:26:00 +0000

The Sci Fi channel has a web page up with the press release about the The Sarah Jane Adventures starting on Sci Fi in April. Apparently they've also purchased some little known program called Doctor Who to air in April as well.

From what I understand Sarah Jane starts on April 11th and the new series of Doctor Who starts on April 18th.

The Time Lord Regenerates To Mate

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Fri, 22 Feb 2008 00:42:00 +0000

One of the fascinating panel discussions at this year's Gallifrey One convention was about how sexuality has been placed into the new series, as well as in the original series. There certainly was a time where the first fact we learn about the Doctor -- that he is a grandfather -- is disputed as controversial. That's less so in the modern era, as there has been more sexual tension in the foreground of the series.

But one of the things that this discussion led into meant that it looks like Time Lords regenerate to match in their surroundings. Someone described it as a "mating form", and that's not entirely wrong. It was partially led into with the realization that despite there being some sexual tension between the first Romana and the Doctor, there's certainly a whole new level of tension between the second and the Doctor, and it almost appears that she deliberately regenerated into a form (and personality) *more* like and compatible with the Fourth Doctor.

But this isn't the only case of this -- almost every other regeneration we've seen on screen has been some sort of reaction to the people around them. Going backwards, we've got the Master -- where the Saxon Master is very much one that is a mirror image of the Tenth Doctor. The Master even says that the goal of his regeneration is to be just like the Doctor, after all.

But it's not also about two of the regenerations outside the Doctor -- almost every regeneration of the Doctor qualifies as well. The Tenth Doctor regenerates to be more compatible with Rose -- in a deleted scene, it's pointed out that his new incarnation takes his accent from Rose.

The Sixth Doctor regenerates into a personality bright and obnoxious -- maybe not with an American accent -- but more compatible with Peri (in a bizarre, twisted way) -- and while it might not be successful, you can see the connection between the sixth Doctor and Peri.

And then the Fifth Doctor -- a younger form to match the very much younger companions around him.

And the Fourth Doctor has a remarkable compatibility with Sarah Jane Smith -- into one of the most successful Doctor and companion pairings in the series.

The only other regeneration that we see is the one from the First to Second Doctor -- and while the full nature of this regeneration is difficult to see with the loss of the Tenth Planet and Power of the Daleks -- you've got a feeling that the younger, more whimsical Second Doctor was because of his proximity to Ben and Polly. We get someone who regenerates into a Beatle haircut around the two companions the most of the 1960s.

And this perhaps explains why we get so many old, dry men whenever we go to Gallifrey -- they all regenerate to be *like each other* -- where the only Time Lords that have real personalties like Drax or the Meddling Monk get them once they leave -- and even more so once they regenerate.

One of the best things, in my mind, about Doctor Who is that I doubt that much of this was explicitly thought of -- most of the compatibilities between Doctor and Companion (and the Master) come about due to the requirements of good drama. But as you look at it, one of the incredible things is how well it all ties together.

So, is “Captain Britain and MI:13” the Marvel version of Torchwood?

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Wed, 20 Feb 2008 05:43:00 +0000

Like Torchwood, it looks like we've got another project that started as Excalibur changing into something else -- Paul Cornell's new book for Marvel will be called “Captain Britain and MI:13”.

And of course, Paul has to include Alistaire Stuart -- a name instantly recognizable to Doctor Who fans.

It really goes without saying that this is going to be appealing to the Doctor Who and Torchwood audience. I can't wait to read it.

The American Success of Doctor Who

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Sun, 10 Feb 2008 14:19:00 +0000

Considering how long it took the first season to cross over -- Doctor Who fans have long memories, after all -- it's very nice to see an article about the success of the Doctor Who franchise in the US.

It's interesting that the success of Torchwood on BBC America is what led The Sarah Jane Adventures to Sci Fi. When it first was in production, we were led to believe that Sarah Jane wouldn't be exported at all, and certainly a children's show is going to be an interesting sell on Sci Fi.

My favorite quote from the article is that Doctor Who has "a loyal viewership so fanatical that most of the show's entry on Wikipedia actually appears to be correct".

The other big part is that like Torchwood series two, the window between the UK and US airings of the next year of Doctor Who has shrunk a great deal. This is certainly a good thing -- for example, the window means that the cover of Doctor Who magazine won't be a spoiler, as it takes DWM a couple of weeks to get on the shelves over here.

Kevin Stoney

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Tue, 05 Feb 2008 00:00:00 +0000

I'm sad to hear about the passing of Kevin Stoney. He's really the main force driving both The Dalek's Master Plan and The Invasion. I watched The Invasion fairly recently, and it's his performance that is by far the most memorable, and one that is one of the greats in the entire history of the series. It's an intense, larger-than-life villain in the James Bond mold, and really he was the model of this sort of villain in the show.

Poll Campaigning

noreply@blogger.com (Michael Lee) — Fri, 01 Feb 2008 22:50:00 +0000

i09 is having a poll about What's The Most Underrated TV Show? Since Torchwood is on the list, you know what to do...

I mean, it's either that or Flash Gordon....