Doctor Who in theaters, fan experience

On Nov. 23, 1963, a new sci-fi show made it’s debut on television. Now, fifty years later, on Nov. 25, 2013, Doctor Who made an appearance in theaters to celebrate it’s 50th anniversary.

Fans of all ages flocked to theaters ready to enjoy the event, eager to see the episode celebrating the show’s milestone. 50 years leaves a lot to live up to, and “The Day of the Doctor” did an absolutely fantastic job.

The room filled with cheers and applause as the trailers came to a halt and the iconic theme song began playing. Instead of using the more recent opening sequence and theme, the original black and white version was used. The episode makes many tributes and nods to the originals, delighting new fans and old fans.

One of the dangerous things about writing for Doctor Who is the time travel aspect. After seeing so many franchises handle time travel, multiple timelines and paradoxes so horribly, one almost expects movies and shows to mess it up somehow. Doctor Who, however, being a show that revolves around the idea of time travel and paradoxes, handles the aspect beautifully.

There’s not much I can say without spoiling it, but the episode involved a lot of time travel and loose ends, all of which were tied up and explained wonderfully, leaving no plot hole or problems that I could see.

For those of you who don’t want the details spoiled, don’t read on. The opening theme wasn’t the only nod to the previous installments of the series; every incarnation of the Doctor showed up, even the soon-to-be Doctor, played by Peter Capaldi, who will be taking the role over this Christmas. (The current actor playing the Doctor is Matt Smith).

Archived footage of each of the Doctor’s regenerations were used in the show, many of the actors who played him and are still living appeared (causing a lot of cheers and applause in the theater).

Many, including myself, presumed the classic Doctors would not appear in the 50th anniversary episode, due to false information spread by the writers as to not spoil the episode’s surprises. The writers did quite well with this, because many nods and appearances were a delightful surprise.

Seeing David Tennant, who played the Tenth Doctor, and Billie Piper, who played Rose Tyler originally but portrayed a character called “The Moment”, reprise their roles was delightful. Both acted their parts wonderfully, as if they hadn’t been gone from the show at all.

Among the familiar faces were some new ones, such as John Hurt’s character, referred to by some as the War Doctor. The War Doctor is a regeneration of the Doctor never previously mentioned, as the Doctor himself tried to forget that part of him. He was the one who fought in the Time War, the war against his people, Time Lords, and the Daleks.

I was skeptic of the character at first, but his humor and sarcasm won me over. The regeneration of the Doctor that he portrayed had large moral and emotional struggles, the decision of ending the war and saving the universe but destroying his people or letting the war continue weighing on his shoulders. Hurt did a fantastic job at taking on the crucial role of playing that incarnation of the Doctor.

The whole episode captured the future, present, and past of Doctor Who magnificently, not trying to be bigger than it could, but not a weak storyline. It was sprinkled with wit and charm, and just the right amount of references to it’s past fifty years without overwhelming the audience with them.

It was bittersweet, filled with comedic moments but serious and occasionally heartbreaking moments. I couldn’t find one thing I didn’t like about it, not one plot hole, not one minuscule error.

Overall, without spoiling anything, the episode turned the tables for the Doctor Who storyline, and I, for one, cannot wait for the Christmas special to see what’s in store for the Doctor, his friends and the fans.

It’s become more than just another sci-fi show, uniting fans, young and old, writers, crew members and actors together, celebrating 50 years of the show they all love. To Doctor Who, and it’s whole crew, have a fantastic, brilliant next 50 years.

For more reviews, read the Dec. 4 article, Cafe Via offers Italian comfort food.

Follow The Feather via Twitter and Instagram: @thefeather and @thefeatheronline. This writer can be reached via Twitter: @ejLadd