Doctor Who: The Complete First Series [Blu-ray]

To anyone unsure as to whether to upgrade to the Blu-ray - do it. You will not be disappointed! This is the series that started it all, revitalised and rebooted Doctor Who for a new generation and upon watching it back, I have more than just fuzzy, fond nostalgia; this is a genuinely clever, ambitious and incredibly well produced series that sets the bar for everything that precedes it. Christopher Eccleston electrifies the screen as the ninth Doctor. Haunting, pained and filled with the inner self hatred and regret from the time war, Ecclestons Doctor is edgy, dark and unpredictable without ever being melodramatic. Billie Piper astounds as Rose Tyler - an average 19 year old from a London council estate. The writing for Roses character is very well defined. Rose could be anyone we all know. But it is Pipers warm and grounded portrayal of an innocent, wide eyed girl from inner city London taken across time and space that makes Rose, personally, my favourite of all the new companions so far. Piper gets a chance to really shine in this series too, showing off her diverse range of acting skills from terror to wonder, to confusion, anger, and raw, heart wrenching emotion. Those performances, alongside the brilliant chemistry of the two leads and you have yourself a very intelligent debut series. I won't reel the episodes off in stars or review them or anything like that; it's been done before. But what I will say is this; series 1 of Doctor Who has a clever story arc, new monsters, old scares (yes, the Daleks are back!) and a genuinely inventive finale that weaves everything from the previous 12 episodes together. The writing is sharp and the characters relatable; no easy feat considering the madness of the stories. From a technical standpoint, Doctor Who series 1 has never looked better. As has been previously pointed out, this is not absolute, true HD; it can't be - the source material simply doesn't allow for a true HD transfer. What we get, however, is the quality upgraded from the DVD to as close to 1080p as can be. There is a very noticeable difference, too. Colours are more realistically balanced, the image quality is definitely sharper, and there's clarity like never before - it's definitely worth the upgrade in my opinion. Also, the blu rays spread over 3 disks which is nice! Often overlooked, series 1 of Doctor Who is a masterpiece in modern television, and this blu - ray, FINALLY available separately, is a great starting point. But it - the upgrade is absolutely worth it.

With 42 years of history, and a 26-year long TV show to match up to, the BBC have braved the wrath of millions in bringing back this historic show. It could have been done with top of the range effects, distracting from the storylines, or it could have been done with wobbly sets and cheap costumes, which seems to be about all anyone can remember of the classic series. Instead it nicely covers the balance, Making a fine distinction between being able to use top quality effects, and actually using them. The storylines, in general, have been faultless. A trip to see the end of the World, fighting the remains of an alien civilization with Charles Dickens, creating a tear in time which can only be solved by a sacrifice, and a child moving around London during a World War 2 air raid, looking for his mummy, and not stopping for anyone. I suppose that now is the time I should mention the Daleks. These have been brought back bigger, better, and shinier than ever. The episode "Dalek" is pure class. Incredible drama is provided by Chris Eccleston, and the Dalek scenes are well handled, without looking tacky or predictable. My only complaint (and it is stupid, but it's the only way I can really fault this episode) is the overuse of "Exterminate". In the very first Dalek story, that word was never even used! Once a Dalek said "They shall be exterminated", but that was it. Now, it seems to be its entire vocabulary! What possible reason did it have for using "Exterminate" as its last word? By far the best episode though was The Empty Child. Physical injuries acting as a plague, moving from person to person, infecting everyone the Child touches, turning them all into mindless gas-mask wearing zombies, looking for mummy. Creepy on every level, highly dramatic, and superbly directed. The risk you often run with a longer story is making the second half live up to the first. "The Doctor Dances" remains highly dramatic. The horror of the first episode is gone, but the thrill is still there. Chris Eccleston has his finest hour, and it's hard to stop smiling when he is so cheerful at the end. He has reason to be happy, and when he so gleefully cries out "just this once, everybody lives!" it's a magical moment, showing just how fine an actor Eccleston really is. As with any TV show, there are both ups and downs, but such superb episodes as "The Unquiet Dead", "Father's Day", and of course "Dalek", "The Empty Child" and "The Doctor Dances" make this boxset worth buying even if you didn't want the others. In all honesty, I can't stand the last three episodes, but the others are so wonderfully done that it doesn't matter. Buy this. You won't regret it.

This series is absolutely terrific. The first season has the ninth Dr played magnificently by Christopher Eccleston. He insisted on having only a one season contract despite his success in the role because he wanted to avoid becoming type cast. The effective impression he made guaranteed that the show kept the older audience of the previous series and added a new generation. A real surprise was the excellent acting of Billie Piper as Rose. She created a character with a genuine innocence, strength, and intuition which won over many viewers. Many feel that in the second series she was more uneven but that may partly be owing to the fact that the relationship between Rose and the 10th Dr just didn't have the electricity that was in the first season. But while David Tennant is good, Eccleston was a very hard act to follow. As a whole the first season is worth getting. In the first three episodes the writer Russell T. Davies was working out the character relationships and the story arc as a whole was more-or-less finding its feet. In general these early episodes are entertaining. episodes 4 and 5 form a two part alien invasion plot which also has some good moments but isn't wholly convincing. But with "Dalek", Dr Who hit its stride! One episode after another was superb. "The Long Game" has a remarkably relevant theme of a population controlled and brainwashed by a media. It also links into the great apocalypse that ends the season. "Father's Day" {with multiple ironies on the title} is one of the most moving examples of the time loop that I've ever seen; Billie Piper's performance is amazingly good. Then comes another two part set which is far better than the earlier "Aliens of London" sequence {ep 4 & 5}. "Boom town" is an unfortunately weak episode that picks up the thread from that earlier sequence and except for a revelation about the Time Machine, is little more than a 30 minute bridge to the two part season finale And that finale is AWESOME!! We have tremendous moments for both of the leads and an apocalypse worthy of a really great series.

Great series and very entertaining 🥳

I ordered this Box-Set last month and I have to say for what it's worth it was money well spent at £14.99 (£15.00.) I have watched through all the episodes witch live up to their stranded and where as good as they where when they aired and some even better! ("Dalek", "The Long Game", "Empty Child" 2 prater and "The Parting of the ways.") Although the Box-Set isn't perfect they still did a great job for the first series considering they didn't know if Doctor Who would work or not in the 21st Century but thankfully it did and the BBC went on to make another 5 series and 6 Box-sets getting even more things right as they went along. The only problem I have with this Box-Set is the slip cases as sometimes I feel like i'm going to break the disc case trying to fit it in so the sides where worn down after the first use rather then after multiple uses that is why I gave this Box-Set 4/5. Overall this is a fantastic Box-set worth all the £15.00 paid for it and a must have in anyone's Doctor Who arsenal. Amazon where also great as usual selling things cheaper than what they would normally be and arriving 2 days early! I would highly recommend ordering this of Amazon.co.uk and have just ordered Doctor Who - The Complete Series 5 [DVD ]

In 2005 the BBC revived Doctor Who, one of the iconic science fiction shows of all time and a staple of British popular culture. Doctor Who originally ran between 1963 and 1989 and in 1996 a television film was released, which unfortunately failed to revive regular production of the shows. The first season of the new TV series attempts to adapt the show for a new season and it is fairly successful in this. I must admit, to my shame, that I've never watched any of the original Doctor Who episodes or the television film but I was very impressed with the first 4 seasons of the new series and I watched them religiously a few years ago. Season 1 consists of 13 forty-five minute episodes, 6 of which form 3 two-part stories. The first episode, Rose, introduces us to the Ninth Doctor (Eccleston) and his new companion Rose Tyler (Piper), as well as her boyfriend Mickey Smith (Noel Clarke) and her mother Jackie Tyler (Camille Coduri), both of whom become recurring characters throughout the season. Although the opening episode lacks a memorable villain, it effectively introduces the show's characters and it's funny and clever. The second episode, The End of the World, has some great visuals but its plot is unremarkable and it misses the opportunity to delve deeper into the culture shock that Rose experiences during her first trip to the future. In fact, the episode fails completely at this as the aliens that we see, although they exist in the far future, are very similar to people today. However, the show's third episode The Unquiet Dead, is fortunately much better. The action in this episode takes place in Victorian Cardiff. Simon Callow gives a great performance as one of the Victorian era's most celebrated writers, Charles Dickens. The episode also includes a great performance by Eva Myles as Gwyneth, a clairvoyant servant who in a brilliant scene while looking into Rose's mind foresees The Big Bad Wolf. The Bad Wolf is an essential part of the main storyline of this season, which culminates in the two-part ending. The following is the show's first two-parter and it consists of the episodes Aliens of London and World War Three. This is the first story to take place in contemporary London since the season opener and it features as villains the rather silly Slitheen. The story is fun and light-hearted, which makes it a romp, but it lacks a genuine sense of menace. However, it shows the repercussions of Rose's decision to run away with the Doctor as she comes back to her home much later than expected. This leads to some interesting interactions between her and her mother and boyfriend, which definitely improve the story. This two-parter also features a great performance by Penelope Wilton as Harriet Jones, MP for Flydale North. The next episode, Dalek, is also excellent and it introduces us to one of the Doctor's greatest enemies. This episode shows a different, more ruthless side of the Doctor as we see that despite his good nature, there are beings that even he despises and is willing to do anything to stop. The next episode, The Long Game, is rather unimpressive. The Long Game is supposed to take place in the distant future but it is set in a world that is very similar to ours and it makes a rather clumsy attempt to satirise journalism. However, it is followed by the excellent Father's Day, which focuses on Rose's dead father and makes up for the lack of a palpable sense of menace with its strong emotional impact and the excellent acting of Billie Piper and Shaun Dingwall as Pete Tyler. The show really picks up with the following story - the two-parter made up of The Empy Child and The Doctor Dances. The setting is London during the Nazi bombing campaign/the Blitz in the Second World War. The Doctor and Rose find the British capital terrorised by a young boy wearing strange mask who is stubborngly looking for his mother. This two-part story includes two excellent guest star performances by Florence Hoath as Nancy, a young woman who seems to be somehow connected to the child, and John Barrowman as Captain Jack Harkness, who ends up joining the Doctor and Rose. The charismatic Captain Harkness is a charismatic rogue Time Agent and his sleek spaceship and professional demeanour represent a stark contrast to the Doctor's TARDIS and his easy-going attitude. The penultimate story of Season 1 is Boom Town, which takes place in Cardiff and focuses on one of Slitheen who survived the events portrayed in World War Three. The episode presents an interesting moral conundrum for the Doctor but in the end it fails to deliver due to the use of deus ex machina. The main storyline of the season about Bad Wolf culminates in the show's two final episodes - Bad Wolf and The Parting of the Ways. The Doctor, Rose and Captain Harkness find themselves separated on Gamestation/Satellite 5, which they had already visited in The Long Game. Bad Wolf is a parody of reality television programmes and it features an exciting cliffhanger. It is an excellent episode but I feel that once again it suffers from the fact that the world portrayed it too familiar - I find it difficult to believe that thousands of years from now people will watch programmes so similar to what is on television today. Personally I find that Doctor Who's episodes set in the future suffer from a lack of imagination on the part of the writers but Bad Wolf is nevertheless a very strong episode that features excellent acting by the show's main stars. In The Parting of the Ways the Doctor faces his greatest enemy and is once again faced with a moral dilemma. Although the episode is incredibly entertaining and very well-acted, it also resolves the main problem through a deus ex machina. I think that this is the main problem with this, which is otherwise very strong. In conclusion, I would say that Season 1 of the new Doctor Who is very good and it features some classic episodes. I very much enjoyed Christopher Eccleston's performance as the Doctor and his use of the word 'fantastic.' I was initially ambivalent about Rose Tyler as I found her annoying but I gradually grew to like her. John Barrowman's Captain Jack Harkness is also terrific and his inclusion in the cast from The Doctor Dances definitely makes the rest of the episodes more engaging. I do have one minor gripe, however, and that is the fact that deus ex machina was used in at least 2 episodes. I believe that this was the case because the writers did not what to do otherwise. That is a persistent problem with Doctor Who as the Doctor, his companions or someone else comes up with all sorts of outlanding solutions that somehow manage to resolve the crisis at hand. If you are a fan of hardcore science fiction and enjoy logic, you are unlikely to enjoy Doctor Who unless you are able to disregard the outlandish plot developments throughout the series. Personally I think that it's worth forgiving the series writers for these minor failing as they've managed to create an incredibly entertaining and engaging series that can be viewed by both adults and children. As the Doctor would say, it is 'fantastic, absolutely fantastic.'

a great tv series that looks and sounds great on blu ray with billie piper looking so young and gorgeous and bought for a good price.

OK then, technically this should be titled series 27 but for whatever reason the BBC have decided to call it series 1. Apparently this is so that the younger viewers will not get confused???? This will probably confuse them even more because most of them will have already heard of Doctor Who anyway. Rose - A delightful little episode introducing all the main characters and the general idea of the show. A bit like a 45-minute trailer for the rest of the series. Also my first ever episode of Doctor Who. Not bad, not bad at all. The End of the World - An entertaining little "whodunnit" set on a spaceship in the year 5,000,000,000. The Unquiet Dead - A bit slow, even for 45 minutes! Aliens of London/World War Three - The first two-part story of the series. A bit silly with a rather run-of-the-mill plot. Dalek - Much improved and in my opinion the best Dalek story since Genesis of the Daleks!! The Long Game - A mediocore story which is saved by Simon Pegg. Father's Day - Very sad and emotional whilst also original. The best standalone story of the series. The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances - The scariest in the series and also the best story alongside Father's Day. Written by the brilliant Steven Moffat. Boom Town - Return of the Slitheen. Boooo!!! Bad Wolf/The Parting of the Ways - Return of the Daleks. Hurray!!! A (as Christopher Eccleston's Doctor would say) fantastic collection of stories and extras in this boxset although I would never pay anything over £40 for it.