It's just Alasdair on this one, offering an hour-plus worth of solo thoughts on something he's particularly qualified to discuss: how "The Power Of The Doctor" incorporates the classic series. As Allison and Alasdair won't both be available to record together until next month, the latter jumps on the mic for what turns out to be much longer than planned (but probably not longer than he honestly should have expected) to talk about Ace, Tegan, and, well, a few other aspects of the 13th Doctor's fi...
Oct 25, 2022
We're back from one of our customary unexpected hiatuses because, well, frankly Russell T. Davies simply demanded it. But first, we talk about what we've been up to in 2022 (some lovely stuff, some distinctly less than lovely stuff) to explain just why the podcast was on hold for a bit, as well as our plans to talk about the 13th Doctor specials in the near future. But then we get into all the recent news, including Ncuti Gatwa's casting as the new Doctor, the announcement that David Tennant and...
May 22, 2022
We had plenty more to say about the finale, as it turns out there was A LOT going on in this one. Allison has some more praise for Jodie Whittaker's performance, while Alasdair reports on their rewatch of "The Wedding Of River Song" for what we're sure were good and useful reasons. Then we look closer at Diane, the Great Serpent, the Sontarans, the fate of Professor Jericho, and a bunch more!
Dec 18, 2021
After five weeks of being more or less on the same page about Flux, Alasdair and Allison are split on the finale. Alasdair dug it! Allison very much did not! We discuss how the episode really does seem to ignore the whole destruction of the universe thing, but then Alasdair submits... what if that's fine actually? We talk quite a bit about poor Karvanista and the offscreen genocide of his people, and then look at the episode's central conceit with the Doctor(s). We also look at the final scene b...
Dec 10, 2021
We're back and possibly even sillier than we were in our last discussion of this episode. We discuss what works -- the performances, mainly -- and what really doesn't about all the business with the Doctor and Tecteun. We look at this in comparison with "The Timeless Children", and we're not exactly thrilled to say that the earlier episode comes off looking better. We also generally examine past episodes that served to set up big finales, and see how this stacks up next to the likes of "The Stol...
Dec 04, 2021
We keep not planning to make these two-part conversations, and then we hit the hour mark and realize we haven't even started talking about all the Barbara Flynn stuff (for the second time in two weeks!). In the meantime, we discuss a bunch of other parts of an episode we both enjoyed but also think is probably the least effective of the season. We spend a lot of time on just what exactly was going on with Yaz, Dan, and Jericho. We look at the Grand Serpent's path through UNIT history, and Alasda...
Dec 03, 2021
We're back for more Angel chat! Topics this time around include how this episode stands up on a rewatch, Jamie Magnus Stone's generally excellent direction, Annabel Scholey and her wonderfully unselfish performance, just how awesome Segun Akinola's score is for this episode (even if we're not *really* the right people to be discussing music in-depth), Bel's side-story with guest star Blake Harrison, and what to make of the great-uncle of it all.
Nov 27, 2021
Yep, once again, we're making this a two-parter. We weren't sure heading in, as you can hear from Alasdair's uncertain intro, but by the hour mark it was pretty clear that, yeah, we have just about as much to say on this episode as we did "Once, Upon Time." So, in this first part of our discussion, we talk about Kevin McNally's beautiful performance as Professor Jericho, why this is such a good outing for the Weeping Angels as monsters, and a few issues that Alasdair has with the underlying stor...
Nov 24, 2021
We're back as promised to continue our discussion of our an episode we dug the first time around and dug even harder on the rewatch. We discuss some more about just why this episode is such a breath of fresh air, then start discussing specific things we love about it, starting with Barbara Flynn's mysterious woman. We also discuss the Weeping Angels and their role here ahead of their big return tomorrow, plus look even more closely at the Doctor and Yaz's relationship and just how mean the Docto...
Nov 21, 2021
We had so much to say about this one that we couldn't fit it into a single episode! So here's what turned out to be the first part of our discussion of this frankly stunning episode. We talk about how this feels ambitious in a way even this era's best stories generally haven't. We look at how Flux is progressing Yaz and the Doctor's relationship at long last. We marvel at all the several great performances, and we talk about the big surprise guest star. (No, not Barbara Flynn. To Alasdair's grea...
Nov 18, 2021
Friend of the show Kate Kulzick stops by to help Alasdair offer our long-awaited (hopefully, otherwise they're just late) thoughts on the second chapter of Flux. We discuss how well the episode dusts off the Sontarans for their first significant non-Strax appearance since 2008. We consider what the Crimean War setting lends to the episode. Kate shares her worries about Yaz's eventual fate, and we remain charmed by Dan, with or without his implausibly young parents...
Nov 15, 2021
Hi friends! Sorry we haven't had a chance to get you an episode on "War of the Sontarans", even though it's a week later and, uh, slightly after the next episode aired in the UK. As Alasdair hops on briefly to explain, we had some scheduling issues this week, but a full episode on "War of the Sontarans" with guest cohost Kate Kulzick will be here soon, and then we'll endeavor to get back on schedule. Thanks for your understanding!
Nov 14, 2021
We give our thoughts on the first episode of "Flux" -- sorry, sorry, the first *chapter* -- and, honestly? We kinda dug it. Allison opens with discussion of a character Alasdair wasn't entirely expecting. We go surprisingly long on the internal logic of the episode's goofy sci-fi thing. Alasdair pledges their allegiance to the walking embodiment of Liverpool (also known as Dan) and uses the word "vibes" a lot. We struggle to remember the name of that one series 12 episode. But mostly, we're liki...
Nov 04, 2021
We talk about the upcoming premiere of series 13, which Allison is very upset to hear is starting with an episode called "The Halloween Apocalypse." We get into what we're hoping for from this six-episode season, which honestly turns into a therapy session for our frustrations with the Chris Chibnall era. Also, unexpectedly, a defense of the relative merits of "Fear Her." Join us next week for our reactions to the premiere -- whatever our issues with the past two seasons, we still find ourselves...
Oct 28, 2021
Fire up the emergency podcast klaxons, because we've got some absolutely wild news to talk about! Russell T. Davies is coming back as showrunner on Doctor Who, and we give our thoughts on just what that means. Like... what, if anything, might he bring back from previous eras, including his own? Should we read into the BBC emphasizing that he's back for the show's 60th anniversary year? Do we have to go watch "Years & Years" now? And just how ridiculous can we get by deep-diving the latest (a...
Sep 28, 2021
We're back from yet another of our trademark hiatuses to discuss the recent news about the show's future. Series 13 is set to be the last for both Jodie Whittaker and Chris Chibnall -- though, as we discuss, nobody has said anything yet about Mandip Gill, who we can only assume is going to take over Doctor and showrunner duties going forward. We look at what the news that the upcoming series is a single, six-part story might mean, and why we're alternately very worried and maybe just the slighte...
Aug 03, 2021
Alasdair and Allison take a look at a very eventful New Year's special, as we see big returns, big departures, and a tease of a big new addition. All that and, oh, right, the Daleks! We both enjoyed this one a lot, especially for various character moments that made us think maybe, just maybe, Chris Chibnall has figured out what he wants to do with these characters. We revel in Captain Jack's big return, and wonder whether maybe a little bit of Torchwood was exactly what this incarnation of Docto...
Jan 04, 2021
We're back for our third live show of 2020! Here's the recording of our Crowdcast hangout with a couple dozen of our lovely listeners, in which we field all manner of intriguing questions, including: What is the best episode of series 8, and why is it "Mummy On The Orient Express"? (Taken verbatim, that one.) *Did* Clara meet the Doctor's pre-Hartnell selves in "The Name Of The Doctor", what with the whole Timeless Child thing and whatnot. Would we want to see an animated version of Doctor Who? ...
Dec 17, 2020
Reminder: We have a live show this Saturday, December 12, at 6:30 p.m. Eastern! Go to https://www.crowdcast.io/e/ddw-live to sign up or just join us on the day. As for today, here's the first installment of a new occasional series in which Alasdair and a rotating team of cohosts look at works that Doctor Who luminaries (Whominaries?) worked on before the new series. Kev Koeser of the great podcast Talking Who To You joins Alasdair to discuss the Russell T. Davies-written, David Tennant-starring ...
Dec 11, 2020
There's just so much news to talk about! Enough to lure Allison back on for another episode during what is increasingly inaccurately being called a "hiatus", even! We break down the newly released trailer for the upcoming special, "Revolution Of The Daleks", and for some reason the newly revealed guest cast launches Alasdair on tangents about Law & Order: UK and the Mystery Science Theater 3000 entry Time Chasers. (Surprising amount of Law & Order: UK talk in this episode, honestly.) The...
Dec 02, 2020
Fire up the news klaxons, we've got a big return to discuss! Doctor Who turned 57 on Monday, and it was kind enough to get us a birthday present: a tiny teaser for the upcoming festive special, "Revolution Of The Daleks", revealing that Captain Jack will once again be back. We somehow manage to spin forty minutes of discussion out of this, including what kind of continuity we expect, just how rare it is for someone to come back in such a featured role after so much time away (counting this as a ...
Nov 25, 2020
The world got busy around us once again, but Doctor Who is coming back, which means Debating Doctor Who must as well. Except, in both cases, we're improvising through the circumstances around us. For us, that means Allison is taking a little break through the holidays, meaning Rorypalooza must wait until the new year. But! We'll still both be doing a live show on Saturday, December 12 at 6:30 Eastern/5:30 Central. And Alasdair is going to enlist friends old and new to start exploring some potent...
Nov 20, 2020
We wrap up our trilogy of Clara episodes with a look at some stories from her final season aboard the TARDIS. We examine what "Under The Lake"/"Before The Flood" has to say about her willingness to do what needs to be done to save the day, and then how "Face The Raven" reveals just how dangerous acting like the Doctor can be. Also, we briefly reconsider "Sleep No More", and even Alasdair admits they've met their match on this one. We also talk generally about why this is probably our favorite se...
Oct 31, 2020
Our deep dive into all things Clara Oswald somehow gets even deeper in the second edition, as we look at no less than four of the episodes from series eight. That's a third of the entire season! We look at her re-beginnings in "Deep Breath", then Alasdair mounts a spirited defense of "In The Forest Of The Night", much to Allison's patient bemusement, and then we wrap up by taking another looking at the finale, "Dark Water"/"Death In Heaven." Honestly this whole season just seems to get better an...
Oct 22, 2020
Our long-awaited (by us, anyway) deep dive into Clara Oswald begins! We take a look at a pair of stories from Series 7B, when Clara was more a mystery than a character and the 11th Doctor was kind of... is awful too strong a word? In "Journey To The Centre Of The TARDIS," at least, 'awful' doesn't feel unjustified, as he's on his very worst behavior there. But anyway, we take a look at that and "The Rings Of Akhaten" to see what we can find in Clara's early days. There's a leaf, we can say that ...
Oct 08, 2020
We get back (after an unexpected but at this point probably not surprising delay) to our regularly scheduled programming with a look at a pair of Danny Pink stories, "Listen" and "The Caretaker." The former still stands as one hell of an episode, with plenty to say about all sorts of things, Danny very much included. The latter... well, it's not very good. And honestly, that's probably the most charitable way we can put it, considering we have way worse to say in the episode proper. Plus toward ...
Sep 29, 2020
We'll be back soon with our regularly scheduled look at companion showcase episodes -- Danny Pink is next! -- but first, we wanted to take an episode to remember a legend of film and television. Diana Rigg died last week at 82, so we revisit her absolute delight of a performance as Mrs. Gillyflower in "The Crimson Horror." Sure, the rest of the episode isn't all that great, but! It's Diana Rigg having a complete blast as the villain, acting alongside her daughter Rachel Stirling, who is the othe...
Sep 16, 2020
First thing's first: Allison has a book out! It's called "How TV Can Make You Smarter", available now at Bookshop.org and elsewhere! Plus she has a special offer for our listeners who get the book! As for the episode, well, before we return to the Capaldi era with our Danny Pink episode next week -- a prelude of sorts to the much-anticipated Clarastravaganza/Clarathon -- we take a wee break to open the mailbag. We talk some more about the specifics of Jodie Whittaker's performance, kick around a...
Sep 04, 2020
Going to be honest with you, friends: We really didn't expect being able to fill an entire hour with nothing but Nardole discussion. We... we apparently aren't familiar with our own show as we should be, because yeah, we talked at length about how Nardole grew from his initial performance, and how "Extremis" is, leaving aside all its other virtues, a tremendous showcase for all that Matt Lucas brings to the role. Also, some upcoming episode announcements at the start for what we're doing next we...
Aug 27, 2020
We're back, and after a perfectly normal intro that is completely like all the others we've done, we get into discussing Bill Potts in a pair of episodes the proved very Bill-centric indeed. So, well done us. First up is "Thin Ice", one of our favorite entries from series 10. Will it still stand up? Oh hell yes, give or take one moment we have mixed feelings about. Which, somewhat shockingly, ends up being our updated take on "The Lie Of The Land", which we didn't care much for first time around...
Aug 20, 2020
