Hypable Staff reactions to the ‘Doctor Who’ 50th anniversary:
Kyle says:
Even as a relatively new fan to Doctor Who, I feel robbed. I’m absolutely interested in all of the past Doctors, and I want to watch Classic Who, so having the living Doctors appear throughout the episode in some form would’ve satisfied my thirst for more of the classic era. They could’ve thought of a really creative way to incorporate them into it, but instead they decided to go the lazy route and not have anyone but Tennant? Lame!
Eccleston I understand because he just seems like a prick who can’t get over the past, but the BBC making a conscious decision to not include the past Doctors is just as stupid as their decision to not include Barrowman. This special better knock my socks off otherwise I’m going to be thoroughly dissapointed.
Kristen says:
While I am a fairly new Whovian (heck, I hadn’t even heard of the series a year ago), and I may not have recognized or understood the appearances of the former Doctors in the upcoming 50th anniversary special, I do understand what it means to honor the history of a fandom, especially one as rich and detailed as Doctor Who. It is a serious disservice to the throngs of loyal fans that watched Classic Who as children, and have now embraced the reboot eras, to completely ignore all the doctors and companions that have come before.
While Tennant and Piper made their mark, and everyone will be glad to see them back, there are a myriad of other faces that will be missed. Realistically, this is a once in a fandom opportunity, as many of the former Doctors are getting up there in years and will likely not be able to participate in further celebrations. This is the time to embrace the lineage and bring the entire history of the show into one episode that can be saved for posterity and remembered for decades to come, but instead, fans will be denied this momentous occasion without any reasonable explanation. It’s simply disappointing.
Laura says:
Realistically, no one expected the current actors to make an appearance as themselves, but a cameo as an alien or as another person would have been fantastic in this monumental moment in TV history. For example, in the JJ Abrams Star Trek reboot the voice of the computer is Majel Barrett (the original Nurse Chapel and Majel is the widow of the founder Gene Roddenberry). Doctor Who is not just celebrating it’s 50th. It’s the longest running sci-fi show in TV history, and it’s a British series.
Its success and passion among fans was built by those being excluded. They deserve their legacy on film for this event. I’m actually wondering if Chris Eccleston pulled out because he realized the classic Doctors were excluded. He initially left the show because of behind the scenes actions that he found repugnant. I can only speculate after taking meetings to discuss the show, he has pulled out for the similar reasons.
Selina says:
As much as I personally would have loved to see Eccleston back, for me, the biggest disappointment here is that the decision has been made (for whatever reason) to exclude the original era Doctors completely. And considering that Tennant wasn’t even the original New Who Doctor, bringing back Ten and Rose now feels like it’s going to fall a bit flat.
As excited as I am to see them again, this isn’t celebrating the past 10 years of Who, it’s celebrating all 50. And considering how many of the past actors are still around, this seems like the ultimate wasted opportunity.
Colleen says:
I’m also new to Who, and haven’t seen any Classic Who, so I don’t have an attachment to any of the earlier Doctors. But what a great opportunity the 50th anniversary is to introduce a new generation of Doctor Who fans to what’s come before. Granted, incorporating all of the past Doctors into the storyline would be too complicated, but even a cameo would be nice. For a show that normally incorporates so many winks and nudges, not at least including some earlier Doctors in the background of a scene seems outrageous. I know Moffat’s said he wants to focus on looking forward at what’s to come for the Doctor, but it is, after all, a 50th anniversary special.
There’s no point in commemorating the 50th anniversary if you’re not going to pay tribute to what’s come before. That’s what the fans are tuning in to see. Choosing David Tennant as the only one coming back (disregarding Eccleston’s apparent refusal) smacks of trying too hard to appeal to the newer, younger generation of fans, tuning in for the adorable Doctors with great hair. Granted, I am one of those fans, but I realize that Doctor Who is so much more than that, and I feel like neglecting to include his predecessors cheapens Tennant’s return.
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