Doctor Who's New Season Kick-Off! New Doctor, New Companion, New Show-Runner

The latest run of Doctor Who is kicking off with a tremendous shake up. Russel T Davies has been the show runner for the entire run since the 2005 return, but he stepped down after the last season in favor of Stephen Moffat. David Tennant's also bowed out, in favor of new-comer Matt Smith. And a new companion in Karen Gillian.

New companions and Doctor's are nothing new to a Who fan, so I wasn't too worried that a change would drive me away from the show, there's always a period of transition while you get used to the new characters, and the actors settle into their roles. More troubling was the idea of the guy responsible for all of my experience with the Who universe leaving the scene, until I realized that Moffat was responsible for writing some of my favorite episodes. Still, so many changes, I was expecting to be a little uncertain of the early episodes.

I can now report that I couldn't have been more wrong, this first episode was simply fantastic. Smith's Doctor I don't know about, he was exceptionally quirky, but that's typical of a new Doctor, since it's the result of his regeneration, which not only changes his appearance, but a great deal of his personality as well. The new companion, Amy Pond, on the other hand, I found instantly likable, she's easy on the eyes of course, but more importantly, she's neither meek nor a moron. She's reasonably smart and witty, and doesn't take crap from anyone, even the first time traveler she meets.

As for the episode itself, this is what most made me excited for what the rest of the series will bring. The direction was superb, it was tense, wondrous, frantic, and a little scary. It's a fun episode, and I highly recommend that anyone who has never watched a Who episode, or who hasn't watched one in awhile, check it out. Of course, if you were already a Who fan, you don't need my prompting to go and watch it.

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