You're the old man - you're older than me!

Continuing my trip up Empire's top 20 TV of 2023

#17 :  Doctor Who

Doctor Who’s longevity has always been attributed to its propensity for rebirth – the Doctor’s ability to regenerate offering endless potential for starting anew. And what a rebirth the latest edition of the show has already been – not only bringing the fearless Russell T Davies back at the helm, but reuniting fan-favourite Doctor-Donna combo David Tennant and Catherine Tate for three ambitious specials. But rather than looking solely to the past, it proved an emotional evolutionary leap forward – as the 14th Doctor (a distinct incarnation from Tennant’s original 10th) ruminated on the return of one of his familiar faces, and Donna got to move beyond one of the saddest companion farewells in the show’s history. With added budget courtesy of Disney+ and a trio of distinct stories (one funny, one eerily existential, one simply bonkers), the show’s hearts are undeniably beating again. A perfect launchpad for Ncuti Gatwa’s era.

Amazingly enough, this is another one I'd watched beforehand - I got through a surprising amount of up-to-date TV last year.  And this is an interesting one...

...because it's perfectly fine in places, but I struggle to imagine anyone but the most die-hard Whovian declaring this to be amongst the finest telly of 2023.  It was nice to see David Tennant and Catherine Tate back together (obviously having a blast, with the added bonus of Catherine being less annoying than usual) and they do manage to wrap things up nicely with an unexpected regeneration, a satisfying conclusion and a nod to Bernard Cribbins.  But, even so...

If you wanted to watch this, then you'll already have done so and if you're not so inclined then there's nothing here to make me go "no, you should check this out" because there was far better sci-fi on telly last year - but if you really want to check it out, then it's on iPlayer (and probably will be for centuries).  And seriously Empire, what were you thinking?!?

#18 - A mostly enjoyable slog
#15 - Enjoyable nonsense

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