Knock, knock. Who's there? Doctor.

Doctor who to be precise. Doctor Who has been a sci-fi phenomenon for over fifty years. The show originated in 1963 and run through 1989, totaling twenty six series (in the UK series = seasons). Then the show was revived in 2005 and is currently on its seventh series. In total there have been eleven doctors, the most current doctor is played by Matthew Smith.

The protagonist, the Doctor is the last of the Time Lords, an alien race, who travels through time and space in his TARDIS (Time and Relative Dimension in Space). Along his many journeys and adventures, the Doctor meets many companions that then travel along with him throughout the universe and time. Besides companions, the Doctor also aquires many enemies. Enemy number one are the Daleks, an genetically altered (can only feel hate) alien race that fought against the Time Lords in the Last Great Time War (in which both the Dalek and Time Lord races were wiped out). The Daleks were able to repopulate and still try purging the rest of the universe of a non-Dalek race. 

  Doctor Who will have you on the edge of your seat, laughing along with the characters, and routing for the Doctor.

An Unearthly Child, a.k.a. Ha ha! More Doctor Who!

Oh hi, everyone. You thought that Doctor Who was over, right? You figured that since series 6 ended two weeks ago, I'd be done talking about the series? No. You're wrong. Go fly into the Time Vortex. And while you're there, say hi to the Bad Wolf for me.

This is part of the very first episode of the first serial of Doctor Who. Filmed in 1963, the entire episode was shot live to tape, which means that all of the visual effects happened during filming. Most of the scenes took place in the studio, including the TARDIS shots and the junkyard. This shows how possible -- if limited -- it is to film without fancy VFX, and provides insight on how to make something so practical look so good. Because there is no room for error, every shot, every movement, and every position has to be perfect. Sure, if you look closely in this episode, there are a few glitches here and there; but that's to be expected of a show that a) had a low budget, and b) was probably going to be canned anyway. (SPOILER: It wasn't.)

What really shines here is how different the story was in the beginning. In the latest series, the Eleventh Doctor was a bombastic young man who was friendly with his companions and had a legacy that nearly killed him. The First Doctor is an old man who would rather be alone than have stowaways, stumbles over his words, and tends to work in the shadows instead of run headlong into danger. We don't know much about the Doctor or his companions or his travels yet; but it's great to watch the story unfold from here. Of course, if you watch every single Who episode from this point, it might be a bit of a trauma.

Also, you'll start hearing the TARDIS sound whenever the wind blows. (It's not fun. I'm beginning to look like a crazy person.)

Next week, we'll take a look at something different. Maybe.

The Wedding Of River Song

That's it. That's the end. This is the end of the series. You can all stop groaning at me now. ...Nah, just kidding! I could throw 26 seasons of the classic Doctor episodes at you! Muwahahaha!

I'll skip the story for this blog post. If you want to know what happened, you'll have to watch. Of course, the acting on everyone's part was impeccable. I'd expect nothing less from a BBC show that's now entering it's 49th year.

What really stood out about this episode was how bizarre it was. Something is wrong with time, meaning that all of history is happening at once. The effects team needed to therefore find out how to put pterodactyls in a park in London. The set designers had to build a secret evil lair inside of the pyramids. Make up designers had to create a horde of the Silence using only prosthetics and body glue. So many intricate parts went into making this episode look as good as it was supposed to; but together they helped deliver a visually beautiful ending to this season.

Things to look out for as far as this episode goes: Dorium, who's all blue. The fight scene between the Ponds, Kovarian, and the Silence. Any scene where they aren't on Earth. The cinematography helps the effects as the effects help the final product. The best thing about high-profile big-budget sci-fi shows is that when they're done well, they're done really well, and everything clicks together in harmony.

Get psyched for Autumn 2012. I already am.

Night Terrors

Let's talk about what worked with this about. And really, there wasn't much that didn't work. So let's just talk about Night Terrors. This is not only classic sci-fi writing at its best, it's a wonderful piece of televised cinematography.

On the Mohs Scale of Science Fiction, which ranks believability on a scale from 1 to 6 (with 6 being the most believable science fiction,) this episode ranks a 4. Most good Doctor Who episodes fall in this category. A 4 on the scale means that there are only a few minor changes in reality that do not affect normal human life (or otherwise.) This ensures that the story won't be marred by wacky "facts", technobabble, or other elements that may confuse the viewers.

In Night Terrors, the story centers around a young child's fears and closet which he locks them away in. His plea of "Save me from the monsters" reaches the Doctor, Amy, and Rory, and the Doctor decides to make a "house call." But once they reach the child's flat, they realize that these fears are spiraling out of control, and that -- in true TARDIS fashion -- nothing is as it seems. The story is not too bizarre and not too boring; the resulting happy medium is just as exciting as it is creepy.

The cinematography really adds to this episode. The lighting is spot on, matching the scene of a child scared of the dark. Shots are blocked beautifully. The first shot after the intro of the TARDIS materializing in the puddle is perfect; CGI, color, and the atmosphere of the shot all work together. This theme continues throughout the episode. It keeps you on the edge of your seat; or, rather, behind your seat, as you might be cowering in fear of the dolls that turn you into one of them. As far as non-CGI makeup goes, the doll costumes were certainly effective at causing viewers to pee their pants.

This is a classic Who episode, hands down. Next week looks like a Doctor-lite episode set in a futuristic world. All I know from the preview is that Rory smashes the Mona Lisa over a robot. Nice.

Big Bang, Big Characters

For the longest time I protested watching the show The Big Bang Theory. In 2010 when Jim Parsons won best lead actor at the Emmy Awards for his portrayal the annal scientist, Sheldon Cooper, I was confused at how such a show could win. Finally this summer my friends convinced me to watch the show and I found to my surprise the show was not only hysterical, but it's characters were relatable on some level (despite large involvement in science and science fiction). I thought since I do not like science and I'm very into science fiction I would not get most of the jokes, but I found out that the writes realize that it is uncommon for most people to understand most of the dork/nerdy jokes, in fact they depend on it and the lack of understand leads to most of the hilarity.

The humor is not the whole thing that keeps the audience coming back, like it most other comedies, the jokes aren't always the key part of the show and eventually you start to shape a outline of an on going plot with developing characters. For me well developed characters that an audience can relate to is a major key to success. Though for the most part the characters on Big Bang are caricatures, they are relatable on some level and you come to love their quirks. A lot of people relate to Penny the new girl who moves across the hall from Leonard and Sheldon. Penny is not very smart so when she befriends Leonard and Sheldon as well as their two friends Raj and Howard, she tends to get lost among the guys geek/nerd talk. Leonard is another character a lot of people relate to because even though he is very nerdy, he tries the hardest to blend in with the rest of society and wants to be excepted by others. As they grow closer Penny and Leonard teach each other about their culture and they both start to understand their world. In a way the audience is taken on the journey of socialization through these characters.

Now that I am done watching the show I am very much looking forward to what the writers have in store for the upcoming season of The Big Bang Theory. The characters have greatly developed over the the last four seasons and has turned the series from comedy show with funny characters to a show with interesting characters with a growing plot that happens to be funny. It is the diversity of the characters and intrigue of what funny situation they will get into next that keeps the audience coming back.