Sci Fi Friday

By: Jason Davis
Date: Monday, March 13, 2006

I'm of two minds this week, so the column will reflect that state with an abrupt change in subject halfway down. As you might have noticed from the title, SFC's Friday night line-up is the subject of this week's words and it's going to focus first on the outgoing season of BATTLESTAR GALACTICA which finished last Friday before moving on to the American debut of the new DOCTOR WHO which hits US screens this Friday. For those uninterested in the former (or wary of spoilers, which will be forthcoming), skip down to the triple asterisks dividing the two subjects and read all about Christopher Eccleston, Billie Piper, and the wonder that is new WHO.

As I've not yet sat down to write my formal review of GALACTICA's second season finale (which I've now screened three times), I thought I'd share with you a few general thoughts and observations on what is, in my humble opinion, the best show on television. Back in February, at the DOCTOR WHO convention I keep going on about, there was a panel discussing GALACTICA. Before the panel, I was outside talking with an old friend and I suggested that, at some point in the near future, it would be a rather bold move for GALACTICA to do as ALIAS had done in its second season and leap into the future. My friend suggested that such a move would likely be unwise in his estimation and I half-heartedly agreed noting that the move had been the death knell for ALIAS.

Almost a month later, "Lay Down Your Burdens Part 2" airs and I must say that I was absolutely floored when Michael Rymer filled the frame with President Baltar's head. I knew what was happening. Before the caption faded in, I knew that Ronald D. Moore and his sadistic band of associates had, in fact, done the very thing I theorized only a few weeks earlier. To be honest, I'm not sure what scared me more, my seeming precognition or the fact that my favorite show was taking such a dangerous leap in shark infested waters. Going back to ALIAS for a moment, let me make it clear that I think the series could have capitalized quite powerfully on its two year lapse. As it happens, I think the writers leapt without looking and lost their balance on the other side of the temporal crevice. It needn't have been the first sign of the show's decline.


Returning to GALACTICA, I remain convinced that Moore's story will justify the narrative gap. He and his people have only offered up a single mediocre episode in the 37-hour run thus far (I was not a fan of "Black Market" for those wondering, but still thought it better than the best of other shows), but my imagination cannot yet wrap itself around how will accomplish this feat. Alas, we'll have to wait until next October to find out the answer.

* * *

Of course, whilst BATTLESTAR GALACTICA is away, the Brits will play...so to speak. Russell T. Davies, the man who devised the original (and infinitely superior) UK version of QUEER AS FOLK along with the magnificent SECOND COMING and BOB AND ROSE , is behind what truly must be one of the greatest labors of fan-love in the history of TV. For those who never had the pleasure, DOCTOR WHO began in 1963, a little like this:

In 1963 London, two schoolteachers, eager to discover the origins of a brilliant but under-achieving student follow her to a scrap yard late one night and they make a rather bizarre discovery. Susan, the girl, is being raised by her grandfather, an eccentric old Doctor, and he's not keen on strangers. Upon entering the yard, Ian and Barbara, the teachers, come to the conclusion that Susan is being held prisoner in a police box, an antiquated phone booth employed by officers in a time before handheld radios. After an argument with the Doctor, the teachers force their way into the police box only to discover that it is dimensionally transcendentalbigger on the inside than is possible from the outside. Susan explains that they've entered the TARDIS, a vehicle capable of travel throughout time and space and that she and her guardian are alien exiles from a distant future. Fearing that the teachers will reveal their existence to the authorities, the Doctor activates his ship hurtling the four passengers onto the adventure of a lifetime.

It really is a magical concept, one that powered the series through 26 seasons until its exhausted demise in 1989. Over the years, the Doctor's traveling companions come and go, choosing to live out their lives on one of the planets they've found themselves adventuring on, or meeting less idyllic ends. The Doctor continues to travel, returning often to Earth, his favorite world. Along the way, the cantankerous old man gives way to a idealistic crusader against the evils of the cosmos. Every so often, the Doctor is able to regenerate his body, essentially becoming another person (though the core values and personality remain the same) in order to compensate for a new actor assuming the role. In a sense, the series is a romance the Doctor shares with the whole of the universe and his companions are like neighborhood kids he takes along to share the wonders of infinity with.

A cultural institution in the UK for much of its original run, DOCTOR WHO was something of a cult classic in the US where it frequently aired on PBS stations reaching its height of popularity in the mid-1980s. Since the end of the original series, it's been kept alive by a popular series of novels (one written by a young Russell T. Davies), audio plays, and comics. A failed attempt to Americanize the series in 1996 yielded a movie of the week with the excellently cast Paul McGann portraying the Doctor in a poorly written teleplay that attempted to be everything to everybody and found the task impossible. Luckily, the new series has not made the same mistake. Sure, there are plenty of continuity references for fans of the original, but the 2005 series knows that it must enthrall a new audience who, for all intents and purposes, came of age long after the original past into memory. It's been a huge hit in the UK where it's captured audiences of over ten million viewers.

Friday night, the Sci Fi Channel premieres the first two episodes. Christopher Eccleston (28 Days Later, The Others) stars as the Doctor. Billie Piper stars as Rose Tyler, the real star of the show and that's saying something given Eccleston's revelatory performance. There are thirteen episodes of the first season and fourteen more of season two on the way if these win viewer support. I will be honest and tell you that the show didn't win me over until the third episode. I enjoyed the first two well enough, but the third won me over. The eighth through the tenth are some of the best television I've ever seen. So, give the show a look if you haven't already. If you've got kids, watch it with them... and prepare to run for your life!

MONDAY, MARCH 13

24 (8 PM PST, Fox) "Day 5: 7:00PM 8:00PM" Halfway through Day 5, changes in administration at CTU begins to complicate things for Jack.

MEDIUM (10 PM PST, NBC) "Lucky in Love" Allison dreams here brother was involved in a bank robbery.

TUESDAY, MARCH 14

SCRUBS (9 PM PST, NBC) "My Own Personal Hell" Dr. Cox is named Best Doctor by a local publication while Elliot's relationship with Keith becomes public.

SUPERNATURAL (9 PM PST, WB) "Faith" (R) Dean is electrocuted fighting a monster and SUPERNATURAL bids adieu to its Tuesday night timeslot to take up residence next door to Clark Kent on Thursday.

SCRUBS (9 PM PST, NBC) "My Life in Four Cameras" (R) NBC continues it's "Best of SCRUBS series with Sarah Chalke's favorite episode.

THE SHIELD (10 PM PST, FX) "Of Mice and Lem" Only two weeks left before another Mackey-free run of months when your lust for violence will have to be sated by Tony Soprano and the other side of the law.

WEDNESDAY, MARCH 15

LOST (9 PM PST, ABC) "House of the Rising Sun" (R) Michael's profound stupidity is demonstrated as he blunts the axe and breaks the handcuffs in one profound instant of mental deficiency that would come to be the character's hallmark as the series continued.

VERONICA MARS (9 PM PST, UPN) "Versatile Toppings" A blackmailer seeks to out Neptune's closeted homosexuals
as this fantastic series finally returns to the air. Someone try to revive the fans who were holding their breath between episodes...

INVASION (10 PM PST, ABC) "The Key" Enjoy this week's episode because we're back on hiatus next week.

THURSDAY, MARCH 16

SMALLVILLE (8 PM PST, WB) "Lockdown" (R) Lex and Lana are at the mercy of a deranged deputy in this rerun.

MY NAME IS EARL (9:00 PM PST, NBC) "Dad's Car" Beau Bridges guest stars when Earl realizes he's never given his mother a decent Mother's Day present.

SUPERNATURAL (9 PM PST, WB) "Nightmare" (R) Sam has a dream and his show wakes up on a new night in anticipation of the CW's fall schedule.

THE OFFICE (9:30 PM PST, NBC) "Take Your Daughter to Work Day" Wow, this will probably be like going to the office supply warehouse with my dad when I was little...only funny.

FRIDAY, MARCH 17

STARGATE: SG-1 (8 PM PST, Sci Fi Channel) "Ripple Effect" (R) Alternate realities plague SG-1 in this bit of Friday night filler before the main event...

DOCTOR WHO (9 PM PST, Sci Fi Channel) "Rose" The longest running SF TV series returns to American TVs with Christopher Eccleston and Billie Piper starring in the fast-paced premiere.

LITTLE BRITAIN (9:40 PM PST, BBC America) If, and only if, you've already watched the new DOCTOR WHO, you may pop over to BBC America and catch the new series of the UK's most perverse sketch comedy, LITTLE BRITAIN, which, incidentally, is narrated by former DOCTOR WHO star Tom Baker.

MONK (10 PM PST, USA) "Mr. Monk Gets Jury Duty" USA's neurotic detective spends his final hour of t he season in court.

DOCTOR WHO (10 PM PST, Sci Fi Channel) "The End of the World" A double helping of this British import sees the Doctor and his companion discovering something amiss at a celebration of the planet Earth's passing.

SATURDAY, MARCH 18

HU$TLE (7 PM PST, AMC) The first three episodes of series two get slightly edited (about seven minutes) repeats before the premiere of:

HU$TLE (10 PM PST, AMC) "Episode 10" An attempt to run a con at an auction house goes awry when a crooked cop wants in on the action.

JUSTICE LEAGUE UNLIMITED (10:30 PM PST, Cartoon Network) "Far From Home" The columnist has not only added this series, but he's gotten the time right too! All praise the Great Video God of Varos! Special virtual pat on the back to anyone who nails that reference.

SUNDAY, MARCH 19

THE WEST WING (8 PM PST, NBC) "Two Weeks Out" Place your bets, ladies and gents. Who will inherit the Oval Office from Jed Bartlet?

DESPERATE HOUSEWIVES (9 PM PST, ABC) "One More Kiss" (R) I've just read the synopsis for this episode, and I'm utterly befuddled so I'll get back to you when I've watched the last ten episodes and figured out how it got to this confusing place.

THE SOPRANOS (9 PM PST, HBO) "Join the Club" I'm guessing this is a direct continuation from last week's "Members Only." Yes, my deductive powers are astounding, aren't they?

GREY'S ANATOMY (10 PM PST, ABC) "Superstition" James D. Parriot, creator of the fondly remembered VOYAGERS! and MISFITS OF SCIENCE, pens this story about a series of deaths that heighten superstitious leanings around the hospital.

BIG LOVE (10 PM PST, HBO) "Viagra Blue" Who needs morticians when you have polygamists?