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Now is it just me, or was the Doctor Who 1996 movie absolute crap. I mean seriously, it might be alright if, say, you didn't know what Doctor Who was and you just watched it with a open mind. But really it takes the essence of Doctor Who away terribly. Thank god for Russel T Davies

It was a tv movie more than a film movie.

Paul McGann was fine, but yes, it was not very good.

The Paul McGann TV movie was no film it was attempt to resurrect Dr Who for the American market. The result was a flop but in my opinion it fell short of delivering the goods, just a run of the mill TV movie.

Yeah Paul McGann was good as the Doctor, just as shame everything else wasn't as good.


Here's a question... if you could go back in time and were there when the film makers were deciding on a story for the film, what would you suggest?

'For the love of God do not make this movie,' that would be my suggestion.

I would believe you.

I'd say, don't bring in Sly McCoy.

It was nice for the fans to see him regenerate (even if he went out rather shabbily), but useless for getting any new viewers interested.

Sly himself says it was a mistake (adding that he didn't regret it because 'the money was very good', obviously with a smile as he said it) and they should have let the new Doctor stand on his own two feet first, and then maybe later done the transition in flashback.

Speaking about the new series, Russel T Davies said that if he had started it with Paul McGann dying and then regenerating, with only the classic fans knowing what it was all about, he'd have lost most the audience in the first ten minutes.

He's right, and Sly is right- fans aside, it was simply not a good way to kick things off, and ate up time badly needed by the actual plot!

As for the portrayal of the Master and all this half-human business... meh...

What was it about?

It was about the Doctor trying to catch the Master after he escapes his execution on Skaro (why the hell the Daleks were trying the Master is never explained).

The Master escapes to Earth, and the Doctor is accidentally shot dead when he lleaves the TARDIS there when he gets caught up in a gang fight.

New Doctor runs around with (medical) Doctor Grace Holloway trying to catch the Master in 1999 USA, suddenly reveals he is half-human, kisses her and, in a very weird ending indeed, uses the TARDIS to reverse time so the dead people come back to life at the end.

New Doctor (Paul McGann, number 8) played fine, it was just a mostly lousy and impenetrable script. And the Master wasn't much cop in it.

rofl im a homo

Originally posted by Ushgarak
It was about the Doctor trying to catch the Master after he escapes his execution on Skaro (why the hell the Daleks were trying the Master is never explained).



May be he doubled crossed them?

This is going to end up with people looking too much into something that is worthless. Let's face it.

Originally posted by Koenig
May be he doubled crossed them?

Maybe he sold them dodgy timeshare apartments.

It doesn't matter how you rationalise it, it was a very odd thing to throw at the viewers and never explain.

Originally posted by Ushgarak
Maybe he sold them dodgy timeshare apartments.

No chance that's well below the Master's standards

My problem with the film was its very "americaness..." It seemed a cynical attempt to turn Dr Who into yet another disposable action hero.... I had the same problem with the Judge dredd film... it took away all the englishness of the strip.... perhaps if they had allowed Terence dicks, or ian marter, or Philip Hinchcliffe to write the story, it might have turned out better....

I would not call that Americanness, I would just call it suckiness. For instance the John Pertwee Doctor was certainly an action hero and that was some great Who.

Maybe if the writers had actually read the shows bible and had any idea about it, it would have been decent. For instance the Eye of Harmony is most certainly not in the Doctor's tardis.

Should this be in the TV forum after all it was a TV movie?