Mr.MofuWhats your Pick for the "First Doctor Who Episode to Show Friends"?
MantisToboggonThe one with daleks doing butt stuff.
Big fan of Burn With Me
thenextguyBlink
The Family of Blood
The Empty Child
The Girl in the Fireplace
The Family of Blood
The Empty Child
The Girl in the Fireplace
thisbenzingringthe first Matt Smith episode shows a good example of what the Doctor is about
dadarobotPossibly controversially: Blink.
It’s one of the best ever episodes. It doesn’t involve timelord-sonic-magic or the TARDIS and is located on earth.
It’s similar to the way Iain M. Banks wrote his first Culture novel from the perspective of an outsider and their situation.
bizarrolandI would try to find the old Doctor Who episode where they land on a marshmallow world and, like, at the end, the marshmallow world melts because it’s made out of marshmallow.
Gryphon@bizarroland @Mr_Mofu Ah, right. “Toast the Moon.”
Euan
Tenebris NoxEdge of Destruction. You can’t beat the best TARDIS-based adventure.
Look, Blink, The empty child, Partners in crime and a bunch others are some of my favorites. But the proper entry point should be The eleventh hour.
I don’t think any other episodes explains The Doctor better than this. Is not the best episode but by the end you get a sense of who The Doctor is.
Iris_gotten_eaten46@jesusOmar. I feel like Heaven Sent and Hell Bent, Demon's Run, and Water on Mars was great. HS/HB shows the Doctor's endurance and perseverance, Demon's Run is shows how the Doctor is seen as a force of nature rather than a person, and Water On Mars shows how that perspective of the Doctor influences the Doctor when he's really desperate (other people think of him like a god and treat him as something greater than a person therefore he forgets that he is just a person himself).
Also, that one scene in The Husbands of River Song where she is adamant that the Doctor doesn't love her proves even further that even with the people he is most close with sees him as more than a person. "Loving the Doctor is like lovong the stars themselves, you don't expect a sunset to love you back".
She sees the Doctor like nature's magnificance uncapable of love.
katy ✨
MystValkyrieRose. For better or worse, it definitely feels like all of Doctor Who distilled into a single episode, in addition to being the first New Who episode and establishing the core themes and concepts well. The Doctor being mysterious and charismatic, the feelings of adventure, the great character moments and thought-provoking concepts, and yes, that the show is often incredibly hokey.
I kind sort of just think that Doctor Who isn’t for everyone, and I promise I don’t mean that in a gatekeeping way. Different eras resonate more than others, and that’s awesome, but most of New Who has the same campy DNA. Some people will find the camp and low-budget effects endearing, some will be completely turned off by it and stop watching, and others will be willing to look past it because they’re sold on everything else.
There’s some good one-shot episodes that probably don’t do a good job representing what Doctor Who is, warts and all, or in a ways that establish continuity and theme. I’ve known quite a few people in my day who were introduced famous self-contained episodes, but then fall off quick after trying to watch the show.
It really is great. I got into New Who late, but I’m really glad I started at the beginning (relatively speaking). That first episode does a fantastic job establishing everything you need to know and what to expect, even in The Doctor’s very first lines - “Nice to meet you, Rose. Now run for your life!” I was hooked from the start.
I understand Eccleston had a rough time with shooting and had every reason to step away, but I really would have loved even one more season with him.