@Lavanya Six So a total Reboot of Doctor Who then, not even an attempt to tie it back into the old stuff?
Yup. 100% reboot. That approach got proposed a few times during the 1990s, but Philip Segal (who largely led the efforts for an American-partnered revival) was a fan of the original series, and pushed for it to be a continuation of the original series. But a direct sequel/revival wasn't a given. Especially if you put people in charge who don't have any real nostalgia for the original material.
That the BBC would even partner with a minor network like The WB is my one unicorn in the garden, I'll freely admit. But my reasoning is that ITTL, the Doctor Who brand is a lot less healthy by the mid-2000s, and the BBC doesn't realize they're sitting on such a lucrative IP. If I ever actually write this as a proper timeline, I think I'd include backlash for the BBC selling its magic cow for beans.
I guess Kripke would at least bring some of the Monsters/Horror back to the show- possibly not reinvent the Daleks?
I think the Daleks would appear, more or less in classic form. As for monsters/horror, it'd be heavy on those, to the point that the first season of Doctor Who ITTL would be shown after the watershed. (Season 2 would depend on the dice rolls.) Production values would be more akin to Smallville than the OTL revival. Especially with 22 episodes in a season verses 13, there'd be a lot of "historical" stories wallpapered with cheap vintage clothing.
I didn't mention the dice rolls! Inspired by various quests at the Spacebattles forum, and the "Separated at Birth" Draka TL here, I cooked up a "dice template" to help me figure out the production staff drama.
* Unless otherwise noted, all roles are 1d20.
SEASON [X] PRODUCTION QUALITY
Script quality:
+4 legacy material to riff off from
Direction:
+2 nuts & bolts WB/CW competency
Production:
+3 British cash
Music:
+2 classic rock
F/x:
+3 British cash
NATURAL 1s: For one turn, (-3) to the WB-BBC Relations roll
NATURAL 20s: For one turn, (+2) to the WB-BBC Relations roll
OVERALL PRODUCTION QUALITY = (Sum of "Production" rolls, divided by 5)
1-5: (-4) to critical reception and ratings rolls this turn
6-10: (-2) to critical reception and ratings rolls this turn
11-15: (+2) to critical reception and ratings rolls this turn
16-20: (+4) to critical reception and ratings rolls this turn
SEASON [X] ACTING
John Slattery's material:
John Slattery's performance:
+2 veteran actor
Leighton Meester's material:
Leighton Meester's performance:
Jensen Ackles's material:
Jensen Ackles's performance:
Alona Tal's material:
Alona Tal's performance:
"Material" refers to the quality of the scripts provided to the actor. This covers their arc(s) over the season, their character-centric spotlight episodes, and memorable scenes/dialogue. "Performance" refers to what the actor does with their material.
NATURAL 20:
* The actor gets an Emmy nomination. (Roll individual d20s for the five nominees)
* (+3) to final "Overall Acting" composite score.
NATURAL 1:
* The actor leaves the show or is fired. (DC for show to avoid backlash: 10)
* (-2) to final "Overall Acting" composite score.
COMPOSITE ACTING = (Sum of "Acting" rolls, divided by 4)
1-5: (-3) to critical reception and ratings rolls
6-10: (-1) to critical reception and ratings rolls
11-15: (+1) to critical reception and ratings rolls
16-20: (+3) to critical reception and ratings rolls
Season [X] ratings (America):
+1: it's science fiction
+1: "scary just got sexy" factor
Season [X] ratings (United Kingdom):
+1: "scary just got sexy" factor
+2: 'member Doctor Who? I 'member
Season [X] critical reception (America):
-1: it's science fiction
-1: it's on The WB / CW
Season [X] critical reception (United Kingdom):
-2: perception it should be a family program
-1: it's made by Americans!
WB-BBC Relations:
+1: thankfulness this project is finally getting off the air
-2: not family-friendly (Seasons 1-2; penalty reduced to -1 in Season 3 onwards)
NATURAL 1s: (-3) to all Production rolls next turn.
NATURAL 20s: (+3) to all Production rolls next turn.
1-5: (-1) to all Production rolls next turn.
6-10: (+0) to all Production rolls next turn.
11-15: (+1) to all Production rolls next turn.
16-20: (+2) to all Production rolls next turn.
BLACK SWAN ROLL (d100)
(1): A fatal on-set accident veils the show in controversy. (-4 to all rolls next Turn)
(2-99): n/a
(100): The Queen sends an understated fan letter. (+4 to all rolls next Turn)
SEASON [X] PRODUCTION QUALITY
Script quality:
+4 legacy material to riff off from
Direction:
+2 nuts & bolts WB/CW competency
Production:
+3 British cash
Music:
+2 classic rock
F/x:
+3 British cash
NATURAL 1s: For one turn, (-3) to the WB-BBC Relations roll
NATURAL 20s: For one turn, (+2) to the WB-BBC Relations roll
OVERALL PRODUCTION QUALITY = (Sum of "Production" rolls, divided by 5)
1-5: (-4) to critical reception and ratings rolls this turn
6-10: (-2) to critical reception and ratings rolls this turn
11-15: (+2) to critical reception and ratings rolls this turn
16-20: (+4) to critical reception and ratings rolls this turn
SEASON [X] ACTING
John Slattery's material:
John Slattery's performance:
+2 veteran actor
Leighton Meester's material:
Leighton Meester's performance:
Jensen Ackles's material:
Jensen Ackles's performance:
Alona Tal's material:
Alona Tal's performance:
"Material" refers to the quality of the scripts provided to the actor. This covers their arc(s) over the season, their character-centric spotlight episodes, and memorable scenes/dialogue. "Performance" refers to what the actor does with their material.
NATURAL 20:
* The actor gets an Emmy nomination. (Roll individual d20s for the five nominees)
* (+3) to final "Overall Acting" composite score.
NATURAL 1:
* The actor leaves the show or is fired. (DC for show to avoid backlash: 10)
* (-2) to final "Overall Acting" composite score.
COMPOSITE ACTING = (Sum of "Acting" rolls, divided by 4)
1-5: (-3) to critical reception and ratings rolls
6-10: (-1) to critical reception and ratings rolls
11-15: (+1) to critical reception and ratings rolls
16-20: (+3) to critical reception and ratings rolls
Season [X] ratings (America):
+1: it's science fiction
+1: "scary just got sexy" factor
Season [X] ratings (United Kingdom):
+1: "scary just got sexy" factor
+2: 'member Doctor Who? I 'member
Season [X] critical reception (America):
-1: it's science fiction
-1: it's on The WB / CW
Season [X] critical reception (United Kingdom):
-2: perception it should be a family program
-1: it's made by Americans!
WB-BBC Relations:
+1: thankfulness this project is finally getting off the air
-2: not family-friendly (Seasons 1-2; penalty reduced to -1 in Season 3 onwards)
NATURAL 1s: (-3) to all Production rolls next turn.
NATURAL 20s: (+3) to all Production rolls next turn.
1-5: (-1) to all Production rolls next turn.
6-10: (+0) to all Production rolls next turn.
11-15: (+1) to all Production rolls next turn.
16-20: (+2) to all Production rolls next turn.
BLACK SWAN ROLL (d100)
(1): A fatal on-set accident veils the show in controversy. (-4 to all rolls next Turn)
(2-99): n/a
(100): The Queen sends an understated fan letter. (+4 to all rolls next Turn)
In my test run for the system, Alona Tal got canned after two seasons.