Challenge: Doctor Who popular in the United States

[Nitzkrieg]

I have the nasty feeling you’d end up with an “adaptation” like the American versions of “Life on Mars” (Bad), and “Kath and Kim” (Appalling).

I liked the American version of Life on Mars very much. Yes, some of the story pacing was wonky, but that was partly due to the fact that it was cancelled before the end of the first season (and then they tried to scrounge up some sort of ending in time). It had a lot of potential.

I'm an American, I quite enjoy Dr. Who (though the new seasons have been mostly bad, I'll admit). While it is certainly niche in our culture, most geeks I know are at least familiar with it. If the new season goes well, which isn't too unlikely, I can see it becoming better known.

 

[gtrof]

I'm a major fan of the new Doctor Who. Caught it first on Scifi then eventually started watching it more regularly. Now own all of David Tenants series as the Doctor, and looking forward to the start of Series 5.

For any U.S. Who fans you can catch the start of Series 5 on April 17th on BBC America.

 

[NCW]

Apparently it's the most popular programme on BBC America - Top Gear is second, and Top Gear certainly seems to have a reasonably high profile in the US these days...so yeah.

So maybe one way to make Dr Who more popular would be to have a Dr Who spin-off series in the 1970s aimed at more of an adult audience. This might catch on in the US and increase the popularity of Dr Who by association.

Best candidate in the 1970s would probably be something featuring the Daleks. They were cultural icons and even achieved something of an independant existance in the form of children's annuals. This is somewhat unnusual - consider that books about Klingon grammar and Ferengi Rules of Aquisition only came into existance after those races stopped bing the Big Bad in Star Trek.

So the BBC create a series based upon UNIT fighting off a Dalek Invasion without the Doctor's help. The cast could feature a couple of American actors to try and appeal to a US audience as well. As the Daleks tighten their grip, the surviving UNIT members become something of a guerrilla band, fighting back where they can, trying to get help from the subjugated humans who survive under the rule of the Daleks.

Of course, if there were such a series, it would probably butterfly away Blake's Seven.

Cheers,
Nigel.

 

[Orville_third]

I'm a major fan of the new Doctor Who. Caught it first on Scifi then eventually started watching it more regularly. Now own all of David Tenants series as the Doctor, and looking forward to the start of Series 5.

For any U.S. Who fans you can catch the start of Series 5 on April 17th on BBC America.

So SyFy has dropped any airings of its best current show? This REALLY upsets me...
(Of course the CBC has also dropped the Doctor...and they provide the funding!)

 

[G.Fieendish]

I'm a major fan of the new Doctor Who. Caught it first on Scifi then eventually started watching it more regularly. Now own all of David Tenants series as the Doctor, and looking forward to the start of Series 5.

For any U.S. Who fans you can catch the start of Series 5 on April 17th on BBC America.

You mean Season Fnarg, don't you...?
(Stephen Moffat jokingly called Series 5, this in his "production notes" Column, for Doctor Who Magazine a couple of months ago, & it seems to have stuck in some fans head's... Fnarg is however, apparently a even number though...).

 

[The Vulture]

The Doctor is an angsty-yet-talented high school student, and the Master is the obnoxious popular kid. Instead of fighting Daleks, the crisis is that the prom's tomorrow.

Dr. Who is now fit for American consumption.

Oh, did anyone see the American version of Red Dwarf? I have a feeling it'd be an adaption like that.

 

[MerryPrankster]

I found some of my uncle's Dr. Who novels when I was a kid, in the late 1980s or early 1990s.

One of them was "Day of the Dinosaur" or something like it.

They looked really 1970s.

(I'm American, BTW)

 

[peepingsignal]

I know that this thread has gone nearly a year without a post, but a website recently launched that has some good info about Doctor Who being aired in overseas countries. There's a page for the US:

http://gallifreybase.com/w/index.php/United_States

One thing I noticed was that NBC considered buying the airing rights a few times, but ultimately decided not to. Does anyone think that could be a good POD for the show's American popularity?

 

[SunilTanna]

Did I hear Blake's 7 fans? And Avon and Vila ones too?

Here's some stuff for ye all (spoilers for those who are watching my movie nights, since we've only got up to the first third of Series 2 right now with Episode 5 of Series 2 coming up on Sunday) Ah, memories....

The Story of Avon and Blake

Series 1 Trailer (couldn't find one without new CGI though)

Series 2 Trailer

Series 3 Trailer

Series 4 (couldn't find a proper trailer, so this video has to suffice, WARNING: contains very major and story enjoyment killing spoilers if you haven't seen the whole series before!

Compilation of Avon's Insults and Jibes

Dystopian, but generally well written and jolly good fun all round.

As for making Doctor Who more popular in the mainstream overseas...hmmm, could be tricky. It was a children's show after all, but with darkness thrown in. Peculiarly British in many respects, but some would say that is what makes it popular amongst some outside of Blighty.


Sargon

Thanks for those links.

Pity they go to all the trouble of redoing the CGI, and they don't check the spelling of Calendar in the 1st shot of the 1st video!

 

[seancdaug]

One thing I noticed was that NBC considered buying the airing rights a few times, but ultimately decided not to. Does anyone think that could be a good POD for the show's American popularity?

It wouldn't hurt, to be sure, but I don't know that it's a sure path to success, either. It wasn't exactly unheard of for American networks to purchase foreign (and especially British) television programs for domestic broadcast: probably the most famous example was The Avengers. But even then, they were usually buried in non-prime time slots, which is poor breeding ground for a bona fide hit.

You'd need to significantly change American television viewing habits, or at least the industry perception of those habits. Maybe have television science fiction more mainstream by having Star Trek succeed commercially, leading networks to look for more sci-fi to fill their lineups, and at the same time have British imports like The Avengers make a more significant splash. Both sci-fi and British television were cult hits, but that was probably insufficient in an era with only three or four channels per media market. But short of waving a magical ASB wand, I'm not sure how to approach that level of change.

 

[AHIMPERIALIST]

So maybe one way to make Dr Who more popular would be to have a Dr Who spin-off series in the 1970s aimed at more of an adult audience. This might catch on in the US and increase the popularity of Dr Who by association.

Best candidate in the 1970s would probably be something featuring the Daleks. They were cultural icons and even achieved something of an independant existance in the form of children's annuals. This is somewhat unnusual - consider that books about Klingon grammar and Ferengi Rules of Aquisition only came into existance after those races stopped bing the Big Bad in Star Trek.

So the BBC create a series based upon UNIT fighting off a Dalek Invasion without the Doctor's help. The cast could feature a couple of American actors to try and appeal to a US audience as well. As the Daleks tighten their grip, the surviving UNIT members become something of a guerrilla band, fighting back where they can, trying to get help from the subjugated humans who survive under the rule of the Daleks.

Of course, if there were such a series, it would probably butterfly away Blake's Seven.

Cheers,
Nigel.

This sounds like the less than popular "War of the Worlds" tv series.

 

[avon1985]

What can I say about DW and Blakes 7, just this. I just received The Mutants with Jon Pertwee in the mail today. I own almost all the DVDs out now. Love the new show and have watched the old one sense around 1982 as for Blakes 7 just look at my name for the board.

 

[Nik]

Taking a wild tangent...

You could set a Dr Who series in 'Hazzard County', with the Dukes & Daisy providing local support...

Think 'Tremors'...

 

[Thande]

You could set a Dr Who series in 'Hazzard County', with the Dukes & Daisy providing local support...

Think 'Tremors'...

That is both incredibly stupid and ridiculously awesome at the same time.

 

[TxCoatl1970]

Dr. Who poised to make all kinds of converts with online streaming

Doctor Who depends on a peculiarly British sense of absurdity and wordplay that I suspect most American SF fans would completely miss, drool over the Doc's companion, and make a drinking game of spotting how cheap the sets were. Some though will dig it. Who do you think pledged on PBS for it the last thirty years?

Trekkies would enjoy the sense of mission to Dr. Who and menace of the week, but dear good lord, you should hear the broken base nerd fights about what's canon and not in Trek's myriad versions. Dr. Who would cause mass Web DOS attacks between different factions of fans flaming each other.

Really, with Netflix and other online streaming, Dr Who will find an audience and be able to compare seasons with ease undreamt of.

BTW, love Farscape which owes a debt of concept to Blake's 7 (only with Muppets!!!! IDK if Blake's 7 brought the BSDM fetish gear with as much brio though ) The Aussies tend to take absurdity as just the beginning and go gleefully into the abyss or at least they did with Farscape.

I've looked on Amazon for Blake's 7 to do my own comparison, but apparently it hasn't been released for sale or distribution here in the States yet.

 

[Glen]

Doctor Who depends on a peculiarly British sense of absurdity and wordplay that I suspect most American SF fans would completely miss,

I didn't. And I was a kid when I started - don't know if that was a detriment or advantage....

drool over the Doc's companion,

Well, later on, maybe a little bit...

and make a drinking game of spotting how cheap the sets were.

Never! I saved that for Star Trek.

Some though will dig it. Who do you think pledged on PBS for it the last thirty years?

A palpable point, sir!

Trekkies would enjoy the sense of mission to Dr. Who and menace of the week, but dear good lord, you should hear the broken base nerd fights about what's canon and not in Trek's myriad versions. Dr. Who would cause mass Web DOS attacks between different factions of fans flaming each other.

Let the battle begin!

Really, with Netflix and other online streaming, Dr Who will find an audience and be able to compare seasons with ease undreamt of.

True - I watched with my children the entirety of available Doctor Who from the first episode to the modern age a few years ago through Netflix, so I'm fairly fresh in my memory of them. I have to say, there was something a bit amazing to me to be watching for the first time the episodes of the very First Doctor (and the Second) with my children.

BTW, love Farscape which owes a debt of concept to Blake's 7 (only with Muppets!!!! IDK if Blake's 7 brought the BSDM fetish gear with as much brio though ) The Aussies tend to take absurdity as just the beginning and go gleefully into the abyss or at least they did with Farscape.

Farscape was great - my wife loved all the blue people!

I've looked on Amazon for Blake's 7 to do my own comparison, but apparently it hasn't been released for sale or distribution here in the States yet.

Yeah, I've heard the legends, but never had the chance to watch Blake's 7.

 

[Deathsheadx]

what's with the twelve month necro?

 

[Glen]

BroaDWcast at http://gallifreybase.com/w/index.php/Main_Page is a pretty darn useful resource for anyone planning to improve the history of Doctor Who.

 

[Glen]

what's with the twelve month necro?

Part of the Pop Culture Renaissance in After 1900....

 

[Makemakean]

Oh, come on, if I knew what Doctor Who storylines and episodes to write that would make that show mainstream in the United States while still remaining true to the spirit of the show, I wouldn't be posting them on forums like this, rather I'd be working for the BBC and having Steven Moffat bring me my coffee.