Following Morning’s Minion’s post on The Sopranos, I thought I would write a brief commentary on my favorite television series, and the relevant discussions which evolve from it.
For those who do not know, I’ve been a huge fan of the British Science Fiction series, Doctor Who, since I was a young kid. In the UK, it is a “family show” where it appeals to people of all ages; the kids like all the monsters and being frightened, science fiction fans enjoy the complex plots and themes. Until recently, no one enjoyed the special effects, but with the relaunch of the show in 2005, Doctor Who now satisfies there as well. With the new production, more and more women have become fans of the series, in part but not limited to the inclusion of soap opera elements into it. In the last few years, it has received many prestigious awards, such as a 2006 Hugo Award, and once again, for the British public, it has become one of the most popular shows around.
Probably one of the main reasons why Doctor Who is now so popular is because it is the kind of show we are lacking in the United States: it is a family show. The whole family can come around the television and find something to enjoy in it. More importantly, it gets them talking.
The hero of the show is person known as The Doctor; he is a Time Lord, from the planet of Gallifrey. He travels through space and time, often encountering great evils, and finding a way to deal with them. He tries to find the most peaceful resolution, but often those around him do not allow it. In the updated series, which began in 2005, the Doctor has had to come to terms with many things: his race, the Time Lords, were in a great war with the greatest, most powerful threat in the universe — the Daleks. The war ended badly for all who was involved. It was, as to be expected, a “Time War.” The Doctor believes himself to be the last of his species left, and thought all of the Daleks had been wiped out. The rest of the universe suffered: many species were destroyed in the slaughter of the war, and the Doctor, normally a pacifist, had himself engaged in the war. Psychologically, he is wounded; he suffers not just with guilt of survival, but also guilt in partaking of the war itself. He has to find a way not only to forgive others, but also to forgive himself. He can’t get over the fact that he failed to save anyone.
Now I am not saying I agree with everything I’ve seen in the new series (there is way too much sexuality in it, of a kind and level the older series never had). But it is a rather enjoyable show, contains something for everyone, and many of its stories address important societal themes in a way which still keeps me in awe.
Take for example the story, New Earth. The setting is in the far future; there is a hospital, founded by some religious order of cat-like nuns (and obviously not Christian). They found a way to cure all known diseases, and use it to treat the citizens of New Earth. The Doctor is curious about this, because the cures are far more advanced than they should be. By the end of the story, he finds out how this was done: through the use of clones. They were used as guinea pigs, grown in tanks, and then implanted with all the sicknesses known to humanity. Each individual clone is infected with a wide range of diseases, and then is experimented upon to see if some cure could be found. The dehumanizing cruelty of this is further explored by the fact that the clones are kept locked up, and never allowed any human contact (after all, with all the diseases pumped into them, they would be infectious). When the Doctor learns of this, he is furious. By the end of the story, he finds a way to cure all of the clones in the hospital, and he gives them a new lease on life, freeing from their their prison-like existence. More importantly, the clones gain what they never had: their human dignity.
Whenever I watch this episode, I keep thinking about the debates over embryonic stem cell research. The whole claim that “it will find a cure for people” is the same justification these the nuns gave to justify themselves. They had a history of being a healing order, but got frustrated with all the diseases they found in humanity; they couldn’t find the cures fast enough and decided upon this method as a quick solution. Did Russell T. Davies, the author, realize this connection? It certainly is an episode I would recommend to anyone, even though there are elements of it which might seem weird and confusing if you have not watched the rest of the series.
It is certainly not the only story which brings about such deep and thought provoking responses. Throughout the new series, we are constantly encountering new questions, and one of my favorite themes is that of forgiveness– sometimes on levels few could ever imagine. Most characters, even the Doctor, struggle with it; they have to overcome their prejudices to find a way to embrace those who were once their enemy: we see this, for example, in the stories Dalek, Boom Town, New Earth, and Daleks in Manhattan. The very nature of the Doctor, including his faults, is brought up in the story, Human Nature ,which is one of the most thought provoking stories in the whole series, and will go down as a classic in television drama.
Doctor Who is the kind of series we need to see more of; it is the kind of show which can bring the family together, entertain them, and yet offer grand themes which ultimately make the viewer better in the end. No, not all of the themes are as grand, and yes, the sexuality of the new series has left me more than a little annoyed; but even at its worst, it is far tamer than similar kinds of shows in the United States.
What is wrong with current American society that we can’t make quality programming like this here? Moreover, what are some of your favorite television shows, and what do you think of the themes contained in them? Do you learn anything from them? Do they influence you in any way?
[Slightly updated 1 p.m, 6-15-07]
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