08.12.09 By: Sci-Fi Squad Staff
By: Monika BartyzelAs a child, I watched a little of everything. There really was no rhyme or reason -- Incredible Hulk, Muppet Babies, MTV (videos), Cosby, and even some Tom Baker wrapped in a large, striped scarf. But it wasn't until Christopher Eccleston became Doctor Who that I really started to pay attention to the sci-fi icon and his Tardis adventures.
Through a change to Tennant and a myriad of both silly and super creepy stories, The Doctor became ever more addictive, and I wished that he would head for the big screen. Sure, there's a chance that feature film could become an absolute reality, but recently I had a different thought: What if Torchwood brought Who to the big screen?
Torchwood: Children of Earth was a jaw-dropper. The series had started slowly, but as characters succumbed to the dangers of their job, the show became better and better until the long miniseries made it into an entirely new experience. It was epic, dangerous, shocking, and pretty much all the adjectives that would make a good feature film. I might even go so far as to say a better feature film than Who could make, because there was more cinematic intrigue in Torchwood's latest story, and that's more widely marketable than a quirky man who carries a magic wrench travels through time and space. So why not merge the two?
It's been well-established that Captain Jack Harkness is obsessed with The Doctor. He's always waiting for him, or looking for him, and if he didn't have his own show, would make for one hell of a companion. So following the devastation created by Children of Earth, Jack could finally find The Doctor once again and set off to save the world from someone or something. The reunion has to happen, and there's no better place for it than in a darkened theater on the brink of imminent danger. Jack and his team could provide the adult darkness while The Doctor serves up comic relief and ingenious problem-solving. ...and it wouldn't hurt if James Marsters showed up...
Well-made, flashy, and engaging, I can't help but think that both Torchwood and Doctor Who would become infinitely bigger and more marketable. We're in a time where lots of science fiction and classic geek fare has found a mainstream audience, so isn't it time a Timelord and his never-can-die friend get a little love?
Filed under: News/Reactions
Tags: Doctor Who, DoctorWho, Fan rant, FanRant, Torchwood
Bill.W.grat 8-12-2009
Sounds good to me. I think the effects in most Doctor Who episodes look spectacular and I could imagine some amazing visuals like that on the big screen. But the question is: Could Doctor Who/Torchwood go Hollywood and remain as good as they are? The only possible way would be to have it made in England and find wide distribution in America. As it is, those of us without BBC America have to wait and see reruns of Doctor Who on PBS (which is certainly better than no Doctor Who.)
Mattat 8-12-2009
And what if it turns out that Children of Earth was a fluke? Torchwood was okay before, but nowhere even close to the quality of Doctor Who until CoE aired. Doctor Who has had its silly stories, but it wouldn't be hard to write the gripping, dramatic ones for the movie (think Blink, Silence in the Library, etc.) Sure, The Doctor will always have his humor, but that's what sets him apart from mopers like Gwen and Jack on Torchwood, and it's part of why Doctor Who remains the better, more compelling show. The Doctor has seen so much tragedy and yet we still get a witty quip about his brilliance every once in a while, even in the midst of great tragedy. Jack's humor revolves around bonking everything on two legs, which can be okay....but isn't exactly great for a dramatic Sci-Fi feature film. No, I say Doctor Who and Torchwood don't really need to be movies at all, but if one of them has to be it should most definitely be Doctor Who. That said, I would want Jack as a character, here's the characters I'd like to see, in fact:
The Doctor
Donna
Rose
Parallel Doctor
Captain Jack Harkness
Sarah Jane Smith
The Master
Daleks
martaat 8-13-2009
I would like to see the conversation between Jack and The Doctor about Jack's actions in Children of Earth. What would The Doctor do with Jack after something like that?