Who is The Doctor 2

by Robert Smith and Graeme Burk

[annieb123]

Originally published on my blog: Nonstop Reader.

Who Is the Doctor 2 is the second book deconstructing and celebrating the modern Dr. Who series from 7 (Matt Smith - 2012) up to 11 (Jodie Whittaker - 2018). Due out 17th March 2020 from ECW Press, it's 400 pages and will be available in paperback and ebook formats.

Although this isn't an officially endorsed BBC release, it is scrupulously well researched and accurate. Additionally, the collaborative commentary is incredibly detailed (and geeky), plucking out details that nobody in my deeply committed family had even noticed in a lot of places. The authors tie-in crossover plot info with references to other appearances of characters, places, themes, and episodes.

Each of the episodes (gathered loosely in chapters by each series) is given the same treatment: episode number, title, author credits, airdate, a short precis ("the big idea"), roots & references, adventures in time & space (background, continuity), place in the main story arc, narrative development between the doctor and companion, the high (and low) points in the narrative (and the authors, despite obviously being huge fans are not letting the writers get away with anything), along with overarching critique and commentary.

The authors, and the book, are pretty well structured and easy to navigate for a show with an incredibly dense history and rabidly engaged fandom community. The book also includes appendices covering some of the shows and media which don't fit neatly into the canonical series. Some of the mini-episodes are covered in the appendices, but not all (for example the online-only minis are generally not covered). Really, all things Dr. Who inside the given time frame (ha-ha) are here, or can be further investigated with resources included here.

This would make a superlative choice for a fan of the series, fans of media history, SF and speculative fiction fans in general, geeks, nerds, and other gloriously committed members of the fandom community.

Well done. Four stars for me, likely 5 stars for those who are greatly interested in the series.

Disclosure: I received an ARC at no cost from the author/publisher for review purposes.