Who Is Moffat Making The Series For?

[StCoop]

I'm just wondering because it certainly doesn't seem to be being made for the mainstream non-SF loving audience who helped propel it to the top of the ratings chart anymore. And it doesn't seem to being made so children can understand it anymore either. (My 10 year old nephew was totally baffled by last night's episode and last series' finale.)

In fact it seems to me that Moffat's target audience now is hardcore SF fans (and Americans). We've started off this year with what's going to be the lowest rated series opener since the show returned (even once the timeshifted figures are added in) and the reports I've been reading on the shooting of Episode 13 would seem to indicate a story that's not going to make much sense without an in-depth knowledge of the last two years worth of episodes.

Moffat was handed a massively successful series on a plate and while no one would expect him not to make his own mark on it, at the end of the day he's only the series current Producer and shouldn't be taking the show in directions that are going to be harmful to its long-term health.

Now feel free to all pile in and tell me that I don't know what I'm talking about and that the series is better now than it's ever been. (Though as we're all SF Nerds here you will kind of be proving my point for me.)

 

[od0_ital]

If the franchise can survive the Sixth Doctor, it can survive whatever Moffat does with the 11th Doctor.

*runs and hides from OmahaStar*

 

[The Mirrorball Man]

I think it's an interesting question. I would say that it is quite obvious that Moffat is making the series specifically for me, because he's putting in it pretty much everything I enjoy in genre fiction. That being said, I've always thought that Doctor Who was at its best when it was being made to appeal to everyone, and it is true that we're starting to lose that a little.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

I'm not going to lie. I was disappointed by last night's episode. I thought, at first, that it simply wasn't living up to the hype machine that the BBC and BBC America have been building the last month. Then, I realized I just wasn't engaged by the episode.

Moffat, for the first time, bored me.

At the risk of being as misguided as Lawrence Miles can be, I blogged this morning that "The Impossible Astronaut" was Steven Moffat at his most Brannon Braga-esque.

And no, that is not a good thing.

I applaud Moffat that he has enough faith in his audience that he could launch a season with a surprisingly incidentless and undramatic season opener. I realize that many of the problems I had with the episode are likely to be resolved next week because this episode was all set-up and no pay-off.

My gut feeling? Given the rapturous reactions the premieres in London and New York had, the BBC erred badly in not showing the two parts of the story back-to-back. Taken on its own terms, "The Impossible Astronaut" was not engaging and was the weakest season opener since the show's revival.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

Granted, I'm used to sci fi shows and time travel, so I didn't find it all that confusing, but I don't think it's targeted solely at sci fi fans. The niceties of paradoxes aren't easy to figure out, but for a time travel show, they're often necessary. I don't know if it's exceptionally more difficult than the three parter with the Master either.

As for children vs. non-children, Doctor Who has been dark in the past. It's never exclusively a children's show, but I think it's still possible for them to watch and enjoy. The basic concept is they're traveling back in time to prevent the Doctor's death and there's a monster that people don't remember when they look away.

ETA: I really don't understand how people thought the episode was boring. I thought it was very tense and suspenseful towards the end and, at the beginning, there was this big mystery of what the Doctor's plan was. Certainly, the Doctor doesn't have to be always running for it to be interesting. Then again, I enjoyed some of the old school 6 part serials of Doctor Who and they were slow, so maybe I'm just forgiving of slowness.

 

[bigdaddy]

So we are already complaining about series 6 when we have seen one half of a story? Impressive.

 

[The Doctor]

So we are already complaining about series 6 when we have scene one half of a story? Impressive.

Indeed. It's also impressive to call an episode in which The Doctor dies permamently 'incidentless.' Of course, wibbly-wobbly and all that, but we've never actually seen, on screen, The Doctor just die. It was stark, brutal, and a ballsy way to open the series.

That isn't to say that the episode didn't have fault: the tone was relentlessly grim for Doctor Who and I think that even with the weighty matters at hand, it just didn't seem like Who with all that gravity pressing down on the episode. It felt a little like the air being sucked out of a room.

Ah well, I'm hopeful for the conclusion and Matt Smith was fantastic as The Doctor and his older incarnation.

 

[Avon]

but kids like scary grimness!

 

[Bob The Skutter]

6.5m viewers. 36.7% of the viewing audience. These are not small figures, over a third of the viewing public watching... add to that Saturday was the hottest day of the year and a bank holiday weekend. We'll see what the figures are like once the timeshift and catch up numbers are added but I don't think they'll be too worried with a share like that.

 

[The Doctor]

6.5m viewers. 36.7% of the viewing audience. These are not small figures, over a third of the viewing public watching... add to that Saturday was the hottest day of the year and a bank holiday weekend. We'll see what the figures are like once the timeshift and catch up numbers are added but I don't think they'll be too worried with a share like that.

Indeed. Doctor Who isn't going anywhere anytime soon.

While the total numbers are lower than the Christmas special, the percentages aren't much different (39% to 36.7%.)

 

[Alidar Jarok]

So we are already complaining about series 6 when we have scene one half of a story? Impressive.

Also, filming the episode in America and explaining to a new audience what's going on in the Doctor Who universe is somehow "Americanizing" the show.

 

[od0_ital]

^

Well, its already been Frenchified & Canadied...can't wait to see if they Japanify it next season!

 

[Brent]

The question about the ratings, is to see how they compare next week. We knew the season opener would be a big one for ratings, it was hyped beyond belief, so the real question is, how many of those people are coming back next week.

Overall, I share some of the concerns the OP does, upon first viewing it felt all over the place, and a bit jarring. However, upon second viewing, I enjoyed it more. I encourage you to watch it a second time if you weren't satisfied the first time.

 

[Jax]

Reading some posts and actual critics in the media, I cannot believe Moffat is being bashed in some sections for making the show more complex and not dumbing down plots Are you kidding me and really give the audience more credit even the younger ones.

6 Years into the reboot, Moffat is playing to his own audience, new fans should of come aboard last year or back in 2005, there is nothing stopping anyone from buying DVD's to catch up. If a time travel show didn't at least semi confuse you, its clearly not doing its job properly and if you want something simple to watch then go watch Britian Got Talent.

The ratings are not low 37% of the entire TV viewing public was watching and the finals will probably up those figures.

 

[JRoss]

I actually did not care for series fnarg, but this one is starting out great. Suspense, creepy aliens that are sure to have kids hiding behind the sofa for the first time in years, mystery, it was all there.

Boring? I can't imagine why. As has been stated before, it begins with the Doctor having a lot of fun for 200 years on vacation, getting perma-killed and then delving into a crazy mystery.

Don't you think calling him Brannon Braga-esque is a bit much? It's a two-parter for crying out loud. Can't really judge a two-parter based on the first part alone. That's like calling a sporting match halfway through.

 

[Jax]

My gut feeling? Given the rapturous reactions the premieres in London and New York had, the BBC erred badly in not showing the two parts of the story back-to-back. Taken on its own terms, "The Impossible Astronaut" was not engaging and was the weakest season opener since the show's revival.

The 2005 pilot was the weakest opening the show had. BBC never shows back to back episodes, its a 2 parter all SCI-FI shows have them. You tune in next week to find out what happens.

 

[The Nth Doctor]

So we are already complaining about series 6 when we have scene one half of a story? Impressive.

Indeed. It's also impressive to call an episode in which The Doctor dies permamently 'incidentless.'

Actually, this is probably my sole complaint with the episode. While the scene was wonderfully executed by all involved, I felt there was absolutely no drama behind it because we know The Doctor isn't actually dead or stay dead in whatever form.

That being said, I otherwise completely agree that it's silly to be judging this story from just the first half. I also find it surprising that some people found the episode was boring. I was more shocked that the episode was over than the twist itself because I found it so engaging.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

The question about the ratings, is to see how they compare next week. We knew the season opener would be a big one for ratings, it was hyped beyond belief, so the real question is, how many of those people are coming back next week.

It's not a competition. No one's personal viewpoint of the quality of an episode is vindicated by ratings. It's also not even close to being in danger of cancellation. At the moment, it's still a British institution and essentially a flagship show on the BBC.

 

[JRoss]

Complaining about "Americanization"

I'm curious as to why people feel that DW is being "Americanized?" They have had what, three stories set in the U.S. since 2005? Out of 40? How is that America taking over? I think that it was done for the sake of a good story. Consider:

Dalek: Would you rather it have been a nasty Englishman as the villain than a nasty American? Does that sound like pandering?

Daleks in Manhattan: For the Daleks' plan to work, they needed a structure like the Empire State Building, at the time the tallest skyscraper in the world. Set there for the story only.

The Impossible Astronaut: It's about an astronaut, guess what only America and Russia had in 1969? A space program. I think that SM is perhaps writing this one story in the US as a bit of a thank-you to American fans.

Consider that for years, decades in some cases, American fans have had to make do living mainly off of low-rent, poorly-scheduled reruns of their favorite show and being isolated from other fans. The average American will say "That's the show with the phone booth, right?" when an American tries to explain their hobby to someone. We've been very loyal for a long time, and have never asked for more American stories.

We don't complain when America is portrayed negatively, such as the idiot president whom RTD just had to kill off or the "Space American" couple on the Starship Titanic who wore tacky clothes and were morbidly obese. We love the show and endure these jabs because we have felt that the show is just great. To get a single story that focuses on where we live is, I feel, just a bit of a thank you.

I'm curious, did anyone think that it was pandering when they introduced Peri? Well, pandering to Americans (she was already pandering to men)? Did they think that it was pandering when The Five Doctors premiered in the US before it did in the UK? The Beeb said that was just to thank loyal, lonely US fans for their support.

Yes, BBC America is now co-producing the show. BBCA is still a British company. The Beeb has taken great pains to market the show here, and it is paying off. Wouldn't you rather have more fans across the globe and a better budget for a more profitable show than the alternative?

I don't want to see America take over the show. I know of no American fans who would like to see that, either. Perhaps a nice shout-out from time to time would be fun, but this is an English show and English it should remain. You all have nothing to bother you.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

Re: Complaining about "Americanization"

It feels most of the complaints are related to explaining it to a new audience rather than anything specifically "American" about it. Sure, they want Americans watching the show, but I didn't see anything in the episode designed specifically to appeal to Americans (if there were, they were poorly done, since I didn't catch them).