My Hero: Doctor Who

The familiar sound of the TARDIS fills the air. When the blue police call box finally materializes, the door opens, and a figure appears with a smile on his face. One can never deny that Doctor Who, is an adventurer. You’ve never heard of him? Well, let me introduce you…

Doctor Who is a familiar name in our household. Beginning in 1963 the television show from Great Britain hit the airwaves. Containing over 600 episodes and 2 TV movies, the show was the answer for science fiction fans all over the world. Lasting until 1989, the TV series allowed the viewer to travel through time and space, experiencing other cultures and fighting evil along the way.

In the story, Doctor Who is a time lord from the planet Gallifrey, traveling through time and space to experience history and battle injustice and evil. His spaceship is a 1950’s style British Police box on the outside, but when anyone ventures inside, it’s huge, because of the differences of time and space. It’s named the TARDIS, which are the initial letters of Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space.

As a time lord, the Doctor can regenerate if near death, thus extending his life. He “becomes” other actors, and according to the original series, the Doctor can regenerate twelve times, or become thirteen different actors over time. Each reincarnation doctor has his own quirks, but his memories remain from the previous reincarnations. Every doctor also brings along at least one companion, usually a human from current day earth.

In 2005, the program was re-launched with new faces and exciting fast-paced plots. The ninth doctor, Christopher Eccleston (also of Heroes fame), was, in the doctor’s own words, “fantastic”. He had a companion named Rose Tyler (Billie Piper) who joined him on his many travels. Although only contracting for one season, the ninth doctor brought Doctor Who back to the sci-fi forefront.

In the past, Doctor Who had been battling the Daleks (they look like giant salt-shakers), Cybermen and the Master (a time lord who’s gone bad), and those same antagonists came right along for the updated series. The ninth Doctor and Rose met Charles Dickens, traveled to the end of time, and battled various evil entities including mannequins and aliens attacking the earth in other episodes.

After Christopher Eccleston’s contract was up, the Doctor reincarnated into David Tennant as the tenth doctor. He traveled with Rose for a while, but due to a problem with the Cyberman, had to leave Rose and her friends and family in a parallel universe. He then met Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman) and, with Martha’s help, has saved the universe more than once from numerous other evil forces.

Our family loves this series. The plots are amazing, and we consider it the best television series to watch today. Along with the Doctor Who shows (which air on the Sci-Fi channel and BBC America), other spin-offs have been created, including Torchwood and an upcoming series about one of the Doctor’s old companions called The Sarah Jane Adventures. We’re hoping some un-answered questions will finally be put to rest in one of these series, such as “Is Captain Jack really the face of Bo, and if so, what happened to him?” and “will K-9 make a comeback or just still be the tin dog?”.

If you’re a Doctor Who fan, this will all make sense. If not, hunt for the show on television or on video. I can guarantee that the new Doctor Who series will not leave you disappointed and you’ll be craving more, just like our family.