Doctor Who: Which Doctor should I start with?

[CrazyGirl17]

Hard to say, since there are so many points to start from. I guess it depends on whether or not you want to see the older episodes or not.

If you're still confused, this guy might set ya straight: http://blip.tv/sf-debris-opinionated-reviews/doctor-who-101-5123833

 

[Thaluikhain]

Well, depends, the story shifted tone a number of times over its decade long run.

IMHO, it remained consistently good, and at times great, for most of its run, got shaky in 5th, got back together again end of 7th, just before it was cancelled.

The new series is almost totally different, mind, and IMHO, not terribly good for the most part.

 

[Donnie Restad]

So, I've only really watched a few episodes of Doctor Who, out of any real order, but I really like it. I was curious what some of other people think I should start with Doctor wise. I think Netflix has most, if not of the seasons, so I wanted to start from the beginning and work my way forward. I don't know if I really should start it from episode 1 ever, or just episode 1 with a certain doctor.

So who is your favorite doctor, and would you recommend someone new to the show start with him?

I'm of the Moviebob mindset on this. You can really start whenever you want. Just pick it up and start watching, and once you find something you don't totally get, go learn more about it.

The really great thing about Doctor Who is that it works with this approach even better than most comics, because (new seasons especially) every episode is really designed to be self-contained.

So don't worry about where to start or who to watch. Every iteration of the Doctor brings something interesting to the table.

 

[Shadowstar38]

The 10th is my personal favorite but, start with the 9th Doctor. Chris Eccleston. As someone who recently got into Doctor Who, I can safely say it introduces the premise well enough and gets you invested in all the characters. Walking into the show with the 10th Doctor will kill the impact of most of the things going on.

Go back and check out the old episodes after that if you get drawn into it.

 

[Ninjamedic]

Hard to say, since there are so many points to start from. I guess it depends on whether or not you want to see the older episodes or not.

If you're still confused, this guy might set ya straight: http://blip.tv/sf-debris-opinionated-reviews/doctor-who-101-5123833

SFDebris link, yep close the thread.

 

[ParanoidEngineer]

My favourite Doctor is still Chris Eccleston. I can't explain it (apart from the fact he was awesome), but his episodes give me warm feelings of contentment. Except episodes nine and ten. Don't watch episodes nine and ten of the Ninth Doctor's series if you have heart problems or a weak bladder.

Are you my mummy?






If you like the current show start with the ninth doctor, you will get pretty much all the information you need. As been said elsewhere the older shows have a different format, 5 or 6 15-20 minute episodes making a story ark, if you deal with that then Tom Baker is your start point.

Did you have to remind me of what was in that two-parter? The nightmares only just stopped damnit!

 

[gigastar]

Im with those for starting with the 9th Doctor. Its where i started watching from all those years ago, so i can reccomend it.

 

[Canadian Fodder]

Definitely start with the 9th Doctor. I haven't gotten around to watching the earlier episodes so my opinion might be a bit bias.

 

[klown]

Well I looked it up on Netflix, and they have the 9th doctor forward, but I can find earlyer ones online. It looks like the general opinion is either start with the 9th, and then go back to Tom, or start with Tom and continue from there.

So if I start with the 9th, as it's the relaunch I guess, they'll explain the mythos as they go, there won't be too much that I'll have no idea as to what it is, or why it is what it is?

 

[Lilani]

So, I've only really watched a few episodes of Doctor Who, out of any real order, but I really like it. I was curious what some of other people think I should start with Doctor wise. I think Netflix has most, if not of the seasons, so I wanted to start from the beginning and work my way forward. I don't know if I really should start it from episode 1 ever, or just episode 1 with a certain doctor.

So who is your favorite doctor, and would you recommend someone new to the show start with him?

I would follow most of the advice here and start with Christopher Eccleston, the 9th Doctor (Series 1 of the new series).

The problem with starting with the old Doctor Who episodes rather than the new ones is that they are very much two different types of shows. The old series is set up very much like the classic pulp/sci-fi shows of the 70s and 80s, in that they look and sound VERY much like they're from the 70s, the episodes string together in 4-6 episode mini-series (in other words, 1 episode is often not a complete story), and it follows many conventions of that time (the females of the early Doctor Who episodes, even well into the 5th and 6th doctors, didn't do much except scream and get captured and rescued).

The new series feels much more like a modern show, and apart from the few overarching storylines that follow the whole season, most episodes are self-contained (sometimes there are 2-parters, but not too often). And the style is much less grating if you don't like the 70s pulp/sci-fi feel.

So if you do decide to start with an earlier Doctor that is perfectly fine, I don't think you would have a very difficult time figuring things out. But just be aware the new series is a very different beast from the old one, and there are many key differences that make both of them worth looking into.

 

[Evil Smurf]

Definitely start with the 9th Doctor. I haven't gotten around to watching the earlier episodes so my opinion might be a bit bias.

Start from the beginning. The first few episodes are hilarious and you see the daleks the first time. You owe it to yourself

 

[Rule Britannia]

Christopher Eccleston or David Tennant.

 

[Lonely Swordsman]

Don't.
I've been trying hard to get into Doctor Who and it's just not possible. Every single time I start warming up towards the show it does something incredibly stupid. Spare yourself the time, it will only aggrevate you.

 

[The Harkinator]

The Doctor is The Doctor. I started with Tom Baker, but I ended up watching EVERY EPISODE EVER. If you're drawn to the idea of the new Doctor Who series, only watch that, because Old Doctor Who is very drawn out. Story Arcs would go for many episodes, with quite a few showing just filler. The Sixth Doctor had a single Story Arc last the entire season.

Short of being born before 1963, or counting reconstructions as watching episodes, it's not actually possible to have watched every Doctor Who episode ever, given the unfortunate destruction of many of the 1960s episodes with Hartnell and Troughton in them.

The missing episodes do still exist in audio format, so it is sort of possible to have seen it.

It will one day be possible to properly see them again. They're using the audio to remake the lost episodes as animated ones.

On topic, I would say that you should start with Christopher Ecclestone as the Ninth Doctor. Apart from him being my favourite Doctor his episodes are really good and they got an entirely new generation back into Doctor Who.

If you are curious about Classic Doctor Who, then do get the episodes. If you have to get any one of them, get Genesis of the Daleks. A truly excellent Tom Baker story that shows how the Daleks were created and introduces their creator Davros.

 

[bigfatcarp93]

So, I've only really watched a few episodes of Doctor Who, out of any real order, but I really like it. I was curious what some of other people think I should start with Doctor wise. I think Netflix has most, if not of the seasons, so I wanted to start from the beginning and work my way forward. I don't know if I really should start it from episode 1 ever, or just episode 1 with a certain doctor.

So who is your favorite doctor, and would you recommend someone new to the show start with him?

Since the 2005 relaunch is a more or less the best "stepping on point" in the show's history, I'd strongly reccomend starting there, with the 9th Doctor, Chris Eccleston.

 

[Agow95]

Well it's currently impossible to start from the very beginning and see them all, because 63 episodes are missing, if you have any of them in any form (audio, cassettes, etc) apparently you get a reward for sending them to the BBC. I'd start with the reboot with Christopher Ecclestone, there isn't any prior knowledge required from that point.

 

[omicron1]

Nine gives you a clean-break start (very little continuity missed between 7/8 and 9, as opposed to 9-10) and a coherent, albeit often silly (Plasticman?) introduction to the Whoniverse.

Eleven is also a good starting point/clean-break, although you'll miss Tennant. The Eccleston/Tennant seasons really offer an encapsulated "show within a show" that I would not recommend missing.

 

[Ninjamedic]

It will one day be possible to properly see them again. They're using the audio to remake the lost episodes as animated ones.

Have you seen the Recreations of the missing episodes for The Invasion?

On topic, I would say that you should start with Christopher Ecclestone as the Ninth Doctor. Apart from him being my favourite Doctor his episodes are really good and they got an entirely new generation back into Doctor Who.

If you are curious about Classic Doctor Who, then do get the episodes. If you have to get any one of them, get Genesis of the Daleks. A truly excellent Tom Baker story that shows how the Daleks were created and introduces their creator Davros.

I'd say for Baker, just get all of the episodes of his first season. From Robot to Revenge of The Cybermen you get a good feel for the show along with the best Dalek Story(Genesis) to date.

 

[chozo_hybrid]

Roll a Ten (I would say eleven, but no such die) sided die. Seriously, it's how one of my friends started! Besides, you can always go back and look at previous ones etc anyways.

If I had to pick one though... Either 3, 4 or 5 I guess out of the older ones, new ones I would start with 9