Then one day, in 2007, I was at a punk gig when a mutual friend said, Oh, do you know Tom Box? He's over there. He's just moved up to Wellington. There in a sea of black-clad punks, jumping up and down at the front of the mosh pit, was this guy in a pale blue Star Trek uniform. To me, as a person unfamiliar with Star Trek, he looked like he was wearing pyjamas.
One of the greatest things about is that the Doctor often wins the day by yelling at people. As signature action hero moves go, this is one of the most thrilling and, oddly, pacifist. Ten years ago, on November 7, 2015, Doctor Who aired "The Zygon Inversion," the conclusion of a Season 9 two-parter which gave us one of the best Doctor Who speeches ever. Not only has this moment gone down as one of the greatest speeches in the show, ever, but it's also demonstrative of how Who is capable of turning a goofy concept into something profound and unforgettable.
Capaldi's take on the heroic Time Lord was much darker in Season 8, and the finale of that season not only brought back the Cybermen for the umpteenth time, but also hastily introduced Michelle Gomez's new version of The Master, now known as "Missy." In short, for all of its strengths, Season 8 felt rushed, and so, when Doctor Who came back a year later on September 19, 2015, with Season 9, it did something extremely smart. It slowed down.
The long-running BBC sci-fi series, which first ran from 1963 to 1989 and then from 2005 onwards, has never been nominated for a Primetime Emmy award, which is shocking given the calibre of performances over the years.