11/23/17 Happy Anniversary, Doctor!

Well, guys. We're finally here. Turkey Day, and the Doctor's birthday (the 54th, to be exact), and both happen to coincide on the same day. Who woulda thought, huh? So whether you're baking your turkeys in the oven like  dear old Mom used to, or in a turkey roaster, or in a time machine, I hope thanksgiving for everyone (basically) is absolutely, brilliantly, fantastically, geronimically (I don't think that's a real word but what the heck) awesome.

I wonder what turkey cooked in a time machine would taste like. Never mind, I'm thinking about it and it doesn't sound very good for some reason.

History wise, Thanksgiving Day has been around WAY longer than Doctor Who has. Which doesn't make it lame in any way, by the way. Sometimes the best things happen at intervals. But 54 years ago, A woman named Verity Lambert came up with the most oddball idea: a time-traveling alien with two hearts, traveling through time and space in a box that has impossible interior dimensions, picking up friends along the way (dubbed the very much beloved term "companions"), And interestingly enough, the idea stuck with BBC. I didn't exist in 1963 unfortunately, which means that I wasn't there for the historic day of November 23rd, 1963. But I think the fanbase called Whovians is a wide mixture of young and old. Some were there since the beginning, and some picked up where the show left off going from 2005 when the reboot was done to 2017. It's a show that's amazing in some places, quirky in others, and sometimes it's a little sad. It's also a show that can literally begin again every few seasons, which I think is pretty impressive.

So this poem is from a lovely little book called Now We Are Six Hundred, written by James Goss, and illustrated by the former Doctor Who executive producer, Russel T Davies. The lyricisms in the book are absolutely fantastic and the whole thing I think would make a great read-aloud. I find this poem, which happens to be the second-to-last one in the book I think, quite special to me, because it lists all the companions, and then includes you, the reader/watcher/listener. It's rather a sweet gesture, I think.

On youtube, you wouldn't believe the amount of Doctor Who fan videos that people make. And they're awesome. This one is my favorite. It's stop motion, with a great way of telling a pretty cool story in a way that's beautifully simple. Plus the video does have a Coldplay song in it, which isn't too bad either. 

I think the Rings of Akhaten speech was one of my favorites of series 7. It was a proclamation of a wounded, tired old soul. It was also an opening up of sorts, a river of honesty. Don't know if that makes sense or not, but I guess that's why it's one of my favorites. I think it's one of the moments where Matt did a gorgeous job of being the doctor and showing so much character, it was insane. 

This is another Doctor Who short of mine. It's simple animation, and there's a story told, but it's in a quiet way, which is one of my favorite forms of storytelling. It only goes till the 11th Doctor but the way the video ends it's a kinda of a hats-off to the future and all that entails.

Whovians. So. Much. Talent. 'Nuff said. I love how it does a countdown of Doctors and manages to blend in a menagerie of companions. 

Ok. So, there's this lovely little poem at the end of the book of Who verse about Verity Lambert, the Female Producer of Doctor Who, which was basically a big deal, for a girl to want to produce a tv show in the 60's when there was a bit of a glass wall in the world of business and the ladder of position and whatnot. I tried to make a canva thing with the poem typed out but I couldn't get it to work, so here is the author of the poem, James Goss himself, reading it at a book press tour. (At least I think that's what it is.)

One of my favorite things about Doctor Who is that they never really let the past go. There are still audio dramas with all the classic doctors (1-8) and the stories never cease to amaze. I've had a little thing though, for classic Doctors reading things like speeches and monologues from New Who. I have a lot of favorite speeches, I will admit, but this one finishes up in a bedtime story-esque way. It has that magical lingering feeling of hope which is something I admire about storytelling. Plus it's Paul McGann reading, so it's the best of both worlds, am I right?

This one, though. Is particularly heartwarming but also sad at the same time. It's like a beautiful sad, almost. I get teary-eyed every time I watch it. It was emotional when Matt spoke the words on camera, but there's something about Peter reading it that just enhances the feels. Might be just me, though.

And here is a birthday message from the Ultimate Time Traveler's Wife, River Song. I couldn't have put it in better words, but she has.

Ok. Before I continue, I have a MASSIVE confession to make. So. I did make a video. And I uploaded it to youtube. But I didn't tell you guys. I know, that wasn't very nice, but I wanted to have the element of surprise. Couldn't resist having some "spoilers" of my own for a while. And I DID say that I was thinking about putting up the video a day or two after christmas. Well, I lied. I did think about putting it up after christmas, and how it would be a good idea. I've been thinking about it some more recently, and this is what I have decided: I think, since it's the 54th anniversary and all, I might as well put the video up on my blog now, because it's november 23rd, and what the heck. Might as well celebrate the Doctor's existence any way you can. I'm going to warn you, though; it's not a professionally made video (so don't expect Christopher Nolan magnificence, all right?) Ok, here goes. 

Gosh, I kinda felt nervous putting that up. How is copying and pasting a link that nerve wracking? At least I did it. Yay, me.

Thanks for reading and watching guys, and happy thanksgiving/anniversary!