Because Doctor Who is back on this Sunday, and because I'm lazy, I'm reposting a blog I wrote on Facebook on October 6th. Now I really must get on with some decorating.
Doctor Who fans far and wide, following months of fact drought, were blessed with at least 3 little nuggets of newsworthiness yesterday. Filming in Llandaff, just a couple of miles down the road from my own abode, on-set pictures emerged very quickly on blog sites and established web tomes such as the SFX website (though not the official BBC Who page, unsurprisingly).
New pictures! Must pick apart! Oh, wait, 'the fans' have already done it. Well, the Eleventh Doctor is wearing the Tenth Doctor's ragged clothes, so he's just regenerated... The ice cream van is probably the Tardis... That's not an acceptable skirt to wear with a police uniform, she must be a stripper... And so on. Yawn. If SFX hadn't published these pics, I wouldn't have seen them until the show goes out next year, as I tend to stay well away from forums and fan sites nowadays. I've had many a film or TV show spoiled by over-speculation, so I'm shying away slowly from clicking on any non-official Who-links from now on. Series 3 was all about the Master... as we all found out months beforehand due to people clamouring over their sticky keyboards to be the first to spoil it for everyone. I bet they were bullied in school. And if they weren't, they should have been. Bastards.
I want to enjoy Doctor Who the way it was intended... without little idiots ruining the whole thing in some faceless popularity contest. I watched The Keys of Marinus last night, starring William Hartnell. I went in with no preconceptions, and it is one of only a few Doctor Who serials I had never seen before. I enjoyed it thoroughly. It reminded me of a simpler time... if you can cast your minds back that far, when Rose was first shown back in April 2005... Admittedly, there had been a huge build-up of hype just prior to it, and this was before every child across the land (my own included) became hooked on/obsessed with it. When the opening titles started, that was the first time I had seen them. They were very, very impressive, faithful to what had come before, a new version of the music... hmm, no gurning Doctor face in the time vortex, but that's fine... oh, and here's the new logo that Russell T. Davies has been bleating on about... ah. Okay.
OW! MY FUCKING RETINAS! Well, this was different. They were proudly announcing that the Doctor was back... and oh, look, it's long and narrow, perfect for DVD spines. It certainly worked. It was brash, loud, and would have been perfect for Colin Baker's Doctor, had they wanted to shy away from 1980s neon piping. Don't get me wrong, I've never been a fan of it, but it did the job. Everybody was worried about Billie Piper being the companion, and now everybody seems to love her, despite the fact she looks like a botoxed chipmunk with a children's wig. Despite a minor change, that logo now looks a little tired. And so are my eyes. Ouch.
So, the Beeb announced yesterday that the Eleventh Doctor will have a new logo, and that they were revealing it this morning at 8am on their site.
And here it is.
So, the Beeb announced yesterday that the Eleventh Doctor will have a new logo, and that they were revealing it this morning at 8am on their site.
And here it is.
To get an idea of how the Beeb will use these in trailers and promotional stuff, click here to view the reveal video.
Ah, that's better. I won't have to use eye drops whenever I watch the programme now. Nice cool colour scheme, a stark contrast to the camp supernova of the Russell T. Davies era. For that, I thank Steven Moffatt and whoever he commissioned to design the new logo.
Ah, that's better. I won't have to use eye drops whenever I watch the programme now. Nice cool colour scheme, a stark contrast to the camp supernova of the Russell T. Davies era. For that, I thank Steven Moffatt and whoever he commissioned to design the new logo.
So, breaking it down, what do we have? It's very similar to the twin logos of the Pertwee/McGann Doctors, and actually reminds me of an early 90s Marvel logo. The 'DW' Tardis logo is very much a branding... that'll be the image they'll probably attach to the start of trailers, though it is perhaps a little fanboyish. It's a lot easier on the eye, and I'm hoping it'll be indicative of the kind of Doctor that Matt Smith will play; more subtle and less brash than his two predecessors, more thoughtful and less... shouty. Don't get me wrong, I've loved Eccleston and Tennant in the role, but it really is time for a change. I am wondering if they'll incorporate Matt Smith's eyebrowless face into the opening titles, perhaps with a Rod Serling-type voiceover telling you not to adjust your set.
I wouldn't normally write a blog on something so mundane as a logo for a TV programme, but as a Doctor Who fan, I'm quite excited. It's defining a new era for the show, and hopefully a slight move away from the RTD style of the past 5 years. Not an entire move away, but chipping into the foundations a bit and building upon it. If Moffatt can make the sonic screwdriver a last resort device that needs powering up over a few episodes, or just get rid of it altogether, then great. I truly believe that Matt Smith will make a very good Doctor, based on what I've seen of his acting so far. If I'm wrong, this entire paragraph will be subtly removed at a later date. We still have the new Tardis interior to come, which I hope will harken back to the old roundels in some way. But before that, we still have 3 more episodes with the Tenth Doctor, not to mention his two appearances in The Sarah Jane Adventures later this month. If you're not aDoctor Who fan, I hope you had fun reading this article. Have a splendid day!
Oh, spoiler alert for the photos at the start. Oh, too late.
I wouldn't normally write a blog on something so mundane as a logo for a TV programme, but as a Doctor Who fan, I'm quite excited. It's defining a new era for the show, and hopefully a slight move away from the RTD style of the past 5 years. Not an entire move away, but chipping into the foundations a bit and building upon it. If Moffatt can make the sonic screwdriver a last resort device that needs powering up over a few episodes, or just get rid of it altogether, then great. I truly believe that Matt Smith will make a very good Doctor, based on what I've seen of his acting so far. If I'm wrong, this entire paragraph will be subtly removed at a later date. We still have the new Tardis interior to come, which I hope will harken back to the old roundels in some way. But before that, we still have 3 more episodes with the Tenth Doctor, not to mention his two appearances in The Sarah Jane Adventures later this month. If you're not aDoctor Who fan, I hope you had fun reading this article. Have a splendid day!
Oh, spoiler alert for the photos at the start. Oh, too late.
Update: here's another version the Beeb have just released...
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