Saturday, February 13, 2016

Doctor Who: The Doctors Revisited (on DVD)


At the time of the 50th anniversary of the British science fiction series Doctor Who, in 2013, a series of “specials” was produced, celebrating the different eras of of that show. The series is built around the adventures of a time-traveling alien adventurer — The Doctor — who, when faced with death, has the ability to regenerate into a fresh new body, with a completely new appearance and personality. Over the course of the first 50 years of the show, that had allowed the role of The Doctor to be played by eleven different actors (now 12, as the series is in its 53rd year). There were 11 episodes of The Doctors Revisited produced, which featured interviews, behind-the-scenes footage, and clips from famous episodes to feature each specific “Doctor”. Each The Doctors Revisited documentary was accompanied by an entire serialized storyline from the time period that each actor portrayed the character, from the first Doctor, William Hartnell and his storyline “The Aztecs”, through the Eleventh Doctor, Matt Smith.

For anyone who is only vaguely aware of the cultural phenomenon that is Doctor Who, this trio of DVD Boxed Sets — set one covers Doctors 1 through 4, set two covers Doctors 5 through 8, and the final set covers Doctors 9 through 11 — is an absolutely perfect way to find out what the show is all about. Each short documentary covers the actor who played the Doctor, his traveling companions, the main “villains” he faced during his tenure, and the major storylines that were introduced during his era on the show. These were wonderfully-produced and informative specials, and the actual Doctor Who episodes that accompanied each documentary are fine examples of the show. The 12th Doctor is now Peter Capaldi, and episodes of his run can be watched on BBC America, or in series boxed sets here at the library.

[ Internet Movie Database entry for this mini-series ] | [ official www.doctorwho.tv web site ]

Recommended by Scott C.
Bennett Martin Public Library

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