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User:riverajessica @timeAndDate(1294857023)
Doctor Who
Originally conceived as a children's show with sci-fi dressing to allow for history and science lessons, ''Doctor Who'' is one of the most successful science fiction series of all time, not to mention one of the longest running. Think cheesy special effects, nonsensical science and adventure. It's a British institution, not unlike Saturday Night Live or The Simpsons in the US, with exactly as much complaining and arguing about what era was the best. In the US, the show has cult status; once a staple of public television, it can now be found on BBC America.
Background
Because ''Doctor Who'' is such a long running series, a quick rundown of things you need to know won't be easy. The condensed version:
* A man known as the Doctor travels through time and space, with general weaknesses for Earth and humanity.
* He's an alien from Gallifrey, and is known as a Time Lord.
* He travels with a human companion, usually a younger female. He's also been known to travel with other aliens and a robot dog.
* The Doctor travels in a TARDIS, which stands for Time and Relative Dimension in Space, shaped like an old blue London Police Box; it's bigger on the inside.
* The Doctor prefers not to use weapons, and instead utilizes a sonic screwdriver, which can unlock doors and manipulate electronics, amongst other things.
* All evil doers fear the Doctor or learn to do so very quickly, except the Master, who is insane.
* Time Lords don't die so much as they regenerate, taking on a new persona and a new physical presence (or new actor) while still being technically the same person.
* In the Doctor Who universe, time is pretty malleable; events that are supposed to happen will happen, but occasionally, you can save a family from Pompeii or save an alien race from slavery.
The Doctor
So far the Doctor has had eleven regenerations, each with a distinct personality. Fans refer to specific incarnations of the Doctor by their number, the fifth being Five and the eleventh being Eleven and so on; in the show, he is known only as the Doctor. The tone of the show can change with a regeneration as well; in recent series, grumpy, shelllike Eleven.
Companions
The Doctor rarely travels alone, instead preferring to take on a human to assist him and generally keep him from going (more) mad with loneliness. They also tend to run and scream a lot; this coupled with their tendency to be young females, often leads to accusations of sexism towards to the show, but as a rule, you have to be made of tougher stuff to travel with the Doctor.
Companions leave or get left behind more often than the Doctor changes, though some accompany the Doctor across regenerations. Notable companions include Susan portrayed with great heart by comedian Catherine Tate, and current companion Amy Pond.
Enemies
The Doctor has countless enemies. The easiest way to get on his bad side? Mess with humans. The Daleks are often the first enemies that come to mind; homogeneity-obsessed aliens in robotic armor bent on destroying all life not like their own. The Cybermen are cyborgs intent on invading Earth and in recent incarnations, converting all humans into Cybermen. The Doctor's very own Moriarty comes in the form of the Master, a fellow Time Lord who parallels the Doctor: where the Doctor wants to explore and help, the Master only wants to dominate and destroy. There are also the Ice Warriors, the Slitheen, and the Sontarons, amongst many others.
How to Start
If you're new to ''Doctor Who'', the best place to start is with the recent series. Full season DVD sets are your best bet: work your way through series 11989 run. The fourth and fifth Doctors are fan favorites, and either would be a great first exposure to the old series. You can also seek out specials which allow multiple Doctors to interact, like the 20th anniversary special, ''The Five Doctors''.
Of course, there's more to ''Doctor Who'' than a television series. There are books which detail unseen stories between the Doctor's television adventures, as well as novelizations of episodes. There are also spin offs, radio dramas, comic books, action figures, a magazine and the occasional, not entirely official film.
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