Doctor Who v Star Trek?
September 17th, 2010 . by Tim Babb (TANcast's #1 Host/Editor Fan)
Day 17
Yesterday I got an e-mail from a certain TANcasty named CJ. YOU may remember him from his epic children’s story about Andy the monkey who wore crocodiles on his feet. Well apparently he took exception with something I said in a recent episode…
“We’re talking about real shows not Doctor Who.” -Tim Babb
Dear Timothy,
I was deeply offended by a comment made on the most recent episode of TANcast in which you said that Doctor Who was not a “real show.” Well, for once, I’ll leave the Crocs aside and actually defend Andy for the first (and probably last) time. Doctor Who is the longest running science fiction programme and consistently receives nine million viewers for new episodes each week.
How many viewers does Star Trek get each week for their new episodes? Oh yeah. None! Because that piece of sh!t (sorry, Mormon) is off the air.Lick my Timelord balls,
CJ
Fascinating.
So Dr. Who is long running you say? Well so is the Young and the Restless, but that’s crap too! But why don’t we compare the Star Trek movies with the Dr. Who ones? Oh…we can’t? They didn’t make any? How odd. Star Trek has had 11 you know. The most recent was one of the highest grossing films of 2009. Just food for thought. Oh and can you help me out? I’ve been searching for a Dr. Who the Experience but I can’t find one. I found Star Trek: The Experience which had a ten year run in Las Vegas and was hugely popular…Nothing for Dr. Who, though. Weird, huh?
Star Trek is a real show because people know of it. You could mention Kirk, Spock, or even Data and Picard and people know who and what you’re talking about. Does Dr. Who have that? Um…no
“You ever watch that scf-fi show about the doctor?”
“Who?’
“Exactly!”
But as for those ratings, lets look at the ratings for Star Trek: The Next Generation over it’s run shall we:
Fall 1987 – Spring 1988: 8.55 Million
Fall 1988 – Spring 1989: 9.14 Million
Fall 1989 – Spring 1990: 9.77 Million
Fall 1990 – Spring 1991: 10.58 Million
Fall 1991 – Spring 1992: 11.50 Million
Fall 1992 – Spring 1993: 10.83 Million
Fall 1993 – Spring 1994: 9.78 Million
Hmmmm looks like your nine million viewers can suck it.
Viva La Trek!!! Oh wait…there’s more to your e-mail…
P.S. I actually really enjoy Star Trek and I mean it no harm.
Oh…heh heh. Well um…everything I just said…never mind. (In truth, I’ve never seen Dr. Who. When I was a kid, Dr. Who was on the same station as some show I liked. So when Dr. Who came on, I knew my show was over and that sucked. Apparently there is some residual resentment there. My bad.)
What now? There’s even more to your e-mail?
P.P.S. I don’t want to break the streak. Andy, Crocs are ugly. Your son is ashamed of you.
Awesome.
September 18th, 2010 at 4:11 am
CJ, you rock!
Also, I’m increasingly wondering if I should have been a Doctor Who fan. Seems like it’s a big nerd show and I am a nerd.
September 18th, 2010 at 2:45 pm
Sorry CJ, but I’ve watched a few Doctor Who episodes and it SUCKS. I’m a huge nerd for Sci-fi (especially when it comes to aliens and time travel) but I could never get Dr. Who, it just seems too silly and convenient when they’re caught in a certain death situation. Sure Star Trek had it too but there was something fun with Trek.
To summarise, Klingons kick Daleks’ asses (or whatever they have).
P.S. Of course, everyone is entitled to their own opinion. Chances are I’d have done the same thing if this was over Mass Effect.
September 18th, 2010 at 7:10 pm
CJ is awesome, Breeno can suck dingleberries off Timelord Taint, and the Doctor’s sonic screwdriver can take down a Bird of Prey anyday. Geoff, you should definitely check it out, and I recommend starting with the 9th Doctor (the beginning of the new run).
Oh and PS – I do like Star Trek too, and I really do repect the opinions of the non-Whovians. But when else am I going to get to say “suck dingleberries off Timelord Taint?” 🙂
September 19th, 2010 at 1:06 am
@Melanie For most people I would suggest starting with the eleventh because it is considerably less sci-fi-ish. But I agree that Geoff should start with Eccleston. If you have Netflix Geoff it is on their instant watch selections. It is the one that came out in 2005, Doctor Who Series 1.
September 19th, 2010 at 4:22 am
I’ve never seen Dr. Who, either, but I’ve always been slightly intrigued (though not intrigued enough to actually put it on my Netflix queue) because it’s been around so long and seems to have so many fans. When a friend came back from Comic-Con with a “sonic screwdriver,” I asked what the show was about, and was told “It’s about a guy who travels around the universe in a phone booth and kidnaps young women.”
September 19th, 2010 at 11:12 am
@Jenn – I”d say your friend’s description is fairly accurate.
And my Dad has a sonic screwdriver. Loves it. Oh Daddy… 🙂
September 19th, 2010 at 11:14 am
[I really should read *all* of the new comments before posting…sorry…]
@CJ – I think you’re generally right about #11, but Eccleston really gave it a great opening, and I think it’s helpful to have the background on that particular companion. To me, that’s a really compelling line that follows through Tennant’s entire run.
September 19th, 2010 at 7:44 pm
Thanks for recommendation! I do indeed have netflix, and Doctor Who season 1 is now in my instant queue. I still don’t really understand the whole ‘different doctors’ thing or why I wouldn’t start watching the show at season 1, but I guess I will find out.
September 20th, 2010 at 12:47 pm
CJ should be Tancast’s number one fan for that email. Doctor Who rocks. Sorry Tim, I bet you 2 out of every 3 18-35 year olds know what Doctor Who is. I would ask the same question about Star Trek, but I would probably ask people at retirement homes in hopes of the same 2-3 ratio…just fucking with you.
September 20th, 2010 at 7:10 pm
@Logan – love it!
@Geoff – With Dr Who, you can kind of start anywhere, but I think it’s good to start at the beginning of a Doctor (9, 10, 11, whatever). As for going back to the real Season 1, I *just* read a bit on http://www.nerdist.com that talks about how many of the original episodes were actually junked by the BBC, which at the time didn’t see a desire by people to watch them in the future, so there are probably very few eps remaining. Nerdist has a great series of blog posts going on right now that recaps the first 2 Doctors, and I bet will go through them all.
September 22nd, 2010 at 2:34 am
Tom Baker as Dr. Who — good (only because most of my friends became fans in the 1980s)
Louise Jameson as Leela in a buckskin miniskirt — better