Who's Who 2010

Well, you might've heard, the new Doctor Who to follow David Tennant has been announced: Matt Smith.Yes, he's a virtual unknown, but then, so were most Doctors when they were cast, especially out here in the North American steppes. At 26, he's the youngest to ever play the Doctor, and here I thought they were going to step away from Tennant's boyishness and go for someone older. But I shouldn't be surprised, since Steven Moffatt's episodes have tended to be quite romantic and relationshipy. A more fatherly Doctor wasn't really in the cards.

I'm up for it though. Smith shares his last name with the Doctor already, and besides has an interesting face. Here's the extended interview from Doctor Who Confidential:

And with Moffatt at the helm, the writing should be especially good. I don't know what Smith brought to the audition, but it was in line with what Moffatt wants to do. I trust because I love.

Truth be told, the only thing I've ever seen Matt Smith in before is his appearance in Billie Piper's erotic comedy Secret Diary of a Call Girl and he's not really what I was looking at. Speaking of which, for some truly awful coverage of this story, check out the News of the World, who lead with "New Time Lord has already bedded Tardis babe Billie". So yeah, he's already better than Tennant if you look at it like that.

So what do you think of the 11th Doctor's potential?

Comments

Madeley said…
I'm really looking forward to it, and the more I think about it the more I like the idea of a Doctor who looks fairly young. It's a new kind of twist, and I trust the production team implicitly. If any set of people have earned the benefit of the doubt on pretty much anything, it's them.

Also, I think Tennant's made us all a bit comfortable with a chummy Doctor. I hope we get a bit of oddness about the new one.
Matthew Turnage said…
I'll trust Moffat's judgment on this. I haven't seen Smith in anything, but I like Peter Davison so the idea of a young doctor is fine with me. Apparently he brought something new to the role in his audition, which is all I really want anyway.
Siskoid said…
Nice to hear some positive comments, frankly. The internets are already full of "too young" "too handsome" "too unknown" and "the show's now over".

I mean really people.
De said…
Going by looks alone, I have a feeling he'll be a bit more arrogant than cheeky. Doesn't matter to me, just bring on more Doctor Who.
Sea-of-Green said…
Ahhhmmmm ... Well, I was originally skeptical about Tennant, but he grew on me. I'll withhold judgement until I actually get to see Smith as the Doctor in a couple of episodes.
FoldedSoup said…
After watching Neverwhere for the first time over the holiday, part of me really wanted Paterson Joseph to get it. And, I must admit, I have absolutely no idea who this bloke is.

But, I'm going to trust and wait. There really is no telling, is there?
Anonymous said…
Siskoid, try read the official Classic Site's episode guide commentaries. Every time the Doctor changed this happened. Eccleson was only the Doctor for a season, so maybe he didn't grow on the fans as much as Tennant has.

Personally, I don't know Smith well enough..actually, I don't recall ever seeing him in action, so I can't say how good he will be. I'm just glad Russel T.'s leaving. Maybe we'll get a non-Rose companion that lasts for more than a season, and a season arc ending that doesn't make the Doctor into White Guardian Lite. I do give him credit for bringing Who back, but I'm not sure of the directions he went at times.
Siskoid said…
I know full well there's been serious backlash every single time. I've been a Whovian for maybe 25 years now and it never ceases to amaze me how divided this chunk of fandom can be.

I guess it goes with the idea that every Doctor is SOMEone's Doctor, and they get very territorial about it. I'm what I would call a pure fan, that is to say that I'm a fan of the format which can - nay, MUST - feature a change of Doctors (and of production approaches) every once in a while.

My excitement at upcoming changes should thus not be seen as an indictment of the past 4 years. A story has been told, that's all, and it's now time to move on to the next.
I'm openminded about this, still, I find it fun that the cute factor is hitting everywhere, even characters that aren't meant to be particularly cute at all.

I guess it's a symptom of our age of facelifts, paper white teeth and fake boobs.
Siskoid said…
Maybe it's me, but I don't really think of him as handsome at all. Too much of an odd duck.
Anonymous said…
The thing that makes me most optimistic about Smith as the Doctor is that fiddly thing he did with his fingers while answering the first question in the extended interview. It was just so endearingly strange that I can't help but look forward to the new series. Not that I was not looking forward to it anyway.
Siskoid said…
Me too. Be became Doctorish right at that point.
Marc Burkhardt said…
Actually, I've liked each of the actors who've played the doctor to date ... the only problem with Colin Baker and McCoy were sub-par scripts in my book, not performance or approach.

I saw Matt Smith in a Victorian crime drama that starred ... wait for it ... Billie Piper. Seems like his ascension to Who status was somewhat pre-determined judging by the Rose factor.
Generic Viagra said…
Even though Matt Smith is not well known at all, I'm sure he is gonna do a great job as the Doctor Who. I had the opportunity to watch some of his series, and he really has talent.
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