Fannish regions of the Internet are all abuzz today, with the introduction of Matt Smith as the next actor to play the lead role in Doctor Who. Sadly, this is not the Matt Smith I went to college with (who would’ve been a really unusual choice for the part…)– he’s still comfortably obscure to anyone not receiving fundraising letters from the Class of ’93.
This is probably as good an occasion as any to make an admission/ provocative statement: I don’t get Doctor Who. Probably to an even greater extent than I don’t get Buffy the Vampire Slayer. I’ve watched it on occasion since the days when PBS re-ran Tom Baker episodes, and I just don’t really see the attraction.
I don’t hate it, mind you– as I said, I’ve watched a fair number of episodes over a period of many years. But its main appeal for me is pretty much on the level of kitsch– chuckling at the charmingly inept special effects, the character affectations, the deus ex machina endings of most of the plots, and that sort of thing. It’s goofy and fun, but I have a really hard time taking it seriously.
The show has legions of passionate fans, though, probably at least as many as are in the Cult of Whedon, and some of them are really smart people. So, if anybody wants to try explaining the show’s appeal, please leave me a comment.