- Release Date: November 18, 2008
- Publisher: BBC Video
- Price: $64.99 on Amazon.com (Buy It
)
- Rating: Not Rated
- Run Time: 687 minutes
- Special Features: Children in Need Special “Time Crash,” David’s Video Diaries, Deleted Scenes, Trailers & Teasers, Commentaries, “The Journey (So Far),” Doctor Who Confidential Segments
- Starring: David Tennant, Catherine Tate, Freema Agyeman
- Genre: Sci Fi
I don’t enjoy a lot of British shows but as a complete nerd, “Doctor Who” is obviously one of the exceptions. While it can’t compare to some of the top-notch American sci-fi shows, it is still a very good show that almost all fans of the genre will enjoy.
For those who don’t know, “Doctor Who” features The Doctor, the last surviving time lord from another planet who travels around time and space in his TARDIS (a space ship that looks like an old British police box). He travels into the past and future and to many other planets to help solve problems that occur. The good thing is that “Doctor Who” is actually one of the few science fiction programs that you can watch right away without catching up (a good thing, since even though this is called the “fourth series” it really is the 30th season). Sure, you’ll miss a few minor plot points and certain villains do recur (the daleks in particular) but it really isn’t that big of a deal.
David Tennant returns as The Doctor for his third season. He’s very good in his role but I still miss Christopher Eccleston from the first season. I thought Eccleston was slightly better but Tennant was a good replacement. The one casting decision I wasn’t as thrilled with was the change in The Doctor’s companion. I liked both of the prior companions but absolutely hated the new one played by Catherine Tate. I didn’t like her character (Donna Noble) in the Christmas special she was in earlier and this season didn’t change my opinion.
Since “Doctor Who” is a British show you have to realize that the production quality is obviously lower than they are on American shows. Some of the special effects are cheesy but in a way, this almost adds to the appeal.
While the season four episodes are all great on their own, a large amount of special features just adds to the package. Over four hours of quality features are added including commentaries, deleted scenes, and various featurettes. I enjoyed most of them and I’m not even a huge fan of bonus features. Of course, with a price tag of $64.99 for just 13 episodes, a lot of special features had to be added to make it worth it.
Even though “Doctor Who” is British and the production looks like it was made in the late ’90s, almost all sci-fi fans should enjoy it. Even with a ton of bonus features, the price tag is a bit high but still probably worth it for fans of the genre. Highly recommended.
