I finished the (new) series - well, almost, I still haven't see the latest christmas special, and, well... Here's my trajectory.
1° Pre-new-series, I simply loathed Dr Who. It was that odd clumsy weird-looking series that everyone was mentionning instead of its "concurrent", the incredibly awesome Prisoner. So, no interest at all. I have recently try to get into them, and I still can't stomach their pace and clumsily theatrical filming style.
2° The new series started. I saw glimpses of it, and just couldn't get it. It looked like a terribly cheesy attempt at suspence, taking itself too seriously for the effects or plots it provided.
3° Started watching it seriously. A full episode is enough to explain its tone, indeed half-way between tension and self-aware cheese. Easy-going writing, not talking itself seriously, yet managing to smuggle in some real emotions. I completely adored it.
4° I adored Eccleston (and his darkness), I'm both frustrated by his short run, and thinking that it's what made it so intense. I also adored Tennant. These both runs are almost flawless to me. Despite the Dr Who clichés (the tedious last minute reset button plot device), there is no not-completely-awesome episode I'm aware of. I loved Rose, I found Martha a bit too bland (a bit unrealistically "perfect"), I adored Donna. Great series.
Parenthesis : I watched Torchwood, and found it very immature, as most series trying to "look mature", or catering to a public who wants to "feel mature". The later seasons got way more watchable than the first one, but still, not really my thing. Paradoxally, I found Captain Jack much more cool and attaching in Torchwood than in Doctor Who (he annoyed me in Doctor Who), but the rest of the characters were way too unlikeable for me to care for them, and this neutralized too much of the intended drama. I also watched a bit of Sarah Jane Adventures, and, well, okay, like most people above 5 years old, I am not the targetted audience. I think that trying to split Dr Who into more targetted by-products was a mistake that harmed the whole franchise, even after the end of these secondary series.
5° I wasn't convinced by Matt Smith at the beginning, he seemed to "try too much" acting super drwhoishly. But he got better and turned out a great doctor. I liked his supporting cast a lot, too. But I ceased to enjoy the plots. It seemed to orientate itself towards a more kiddy audience (coloured plastic Daleks, etc). I still enjoy the gratuitously over-complicated plots (the "and now it gets complicated" line in the Pandorica episodes was a real joy -and burst of laugh- for me), but I ceased to care for their stakes. I also don't care much for the River Song character (although the very principle of opposing timelines is totally sweet). And, well, I ended watching it exclusively for the characters banter, and forgetting the plots right after each episode. These seasons have the only episodes that I can have glimpses of without recognising them, or remembering whether I saw them already (although I know I've seen them all systematically). In contrast, each episode of the Eccleston/Tennant era is memorable to me.
6° This trend continued with Capaldi. I find him cool as a character, I like an older and more sociopathic Doctor, although his acting doesn't always 100% convince me. I also think that he balances the Oswald character way better than Matt Smith did - as she acts basically like an 11th doctor duplicate. Still, extremely forgettable plots, and also, the editing itself worsened a lot (the filming of "Mummy in the orient-express" actually reminded me of Garth Marenghi's Darkplace, not a good sign).
7° Suprisingly, the last two episodes ("Dark Water" and "Death in Heaven") really stood out, and I rate them as Eccleston/Tennent-era quality. Maybe because of their touch of darkness. But not only. The characters (the Missi - btw thanks a lot for the spoilers, guys), their acting, the surprising plot itself (the plot function of the dark water)... Cool stuff.
Globally, I think I like the Moffat style. Many of my favorite episodes were written by him, and, as I said, I enjoy absurdly convoluted plots, as well as sneaky season archs. However, there are things that annoy me increasingly with that series. The increasingly heavy HEAVY heavy-handed political messages make me cringe, even though they are totally inline with my own worldviews. The plot devices that support them are sometimes just dishonest, especially as, thanks to various deus ex machina, no difficult ethical choice ever comes at any real cost. Also, the recurring lampshading of the Doctor's demiurge ambiguity (if he dangerously overpowered, is he an evil irresponsible goody-two-shoes, etc) are terribly superficial. The "Water of Mars" era dealt with it fantastically. But nowadays, the answer is "am i good am i evil, none, i'm just dumb lol" (cue to dilemma-lifting deus ex machina). That is lazy, cowardly, and unforgivable as the question (itself not necessarily a honest, relevant one) is openly asked without being honestly tackled.
So, there we are. I'm still following that series out of habit. But my excitement has progressivel faded during Matt Smith's tenure, not due to the actors or characters, but to the plots. I sometimes wonder if their quality is objectively decreasing, or if it's a subjective effect of my fatigue (you can chew on that gum only so long), but it may very well be an effect of both - and possibly of the writers' fatigue as well. How many times, how many ways, can you recombine the Dr Who obligatory tropes, before looking completely artificial...
Breja: I think he is scottish.
Yeah,
much more than Billie Piper.
