A fairly topical matter- Peter Capaldi as the 12th Doctor

A new series of Doctor Who is always a big event in the nerd world. But a new series with a new Doctor: we're talking major stuff now. So what was he like? How does he compare? Is he really too old? Hush, hypothetical reader. I'm going to talk about my opinions on Peter Capaldi as the 12th Doctor in this very post. Who could have seen that one coming? Also, this isn't an episode review. Although I will do a review of the whole series at the end. But this is a pressing matter.

I'm going to take you back to a bit over a year ago. There was a big televised announcement where the 12th Doctor would be announced in a fashion only TV really does. And so, the big moment arrives. "And the 12th Doctor is..." at which point Malcolm Tucker from The Thick of It walks on. Many were confused, some were angry, some had conflicting emotions. At which point, we flash forward to Friday 22nd of August. The series premiere is tomorrow. People are anxious. There are multiple issues people have had with the casting choice. Prime examples: too old, never heard of him or (my biggest one) that he is Malcolm Tucker, one of the rudest, funniest and unforgettable characters comedy has given us in a very long time. And this was a problem because I was worried he would be this character in my mind, not the doctor, not some ancient,fascinating and quite wacky being. But while waiting for the new episode, I realized something. The man who made this decision was Steven Moffat. The man responsible for all of Doctor Who since series 5 and for Sherlock. This man obviously knows what he's doing. So trust him. And I did. Deservedly so.

Peter Capaldi's doctor is definitely the doctor but not a doctor we've ever seen before. He is the wacky, lovable and off the wall character we've learnt to know and love. Of course, the first episode of a new doctor is always a strange one. The doctor has to find his feet and the audience (alongside Clara) have to find the Doctor. It's also a fact that the first episode can be a rough transition. Matt Smith had a rough first episode and he became an excellent interesting. And it was very interesting because (as with the series 3 Sherlock opener) Steven Moffat sneakily addressed the issues the audience had with Peter being the Doctor through Clara and Madame Vestra's conversations about him "not being my doctor any more". It's always refreshing to know that the people making TV shows with big fan bases are willing to listen to their audience, the driving force behind keeping these shows alive. And also, I didn't see him as Malcolm Tucker. I saw him as the 12th Doctor. Mission accomplished, Mr Moffat.

The episode itself was a good one as well. It brought back some fan favourite characters, had great special effects and an interesting story. It's also setting a darker tone for this series than we have seen before which is something I can't wait to see explored further. And there were some interesting plot-lines set up including the bit at the end where the villain ended up in "heaven". I have a feeling that we will be seeing more of this and I'm interested to see what direction it heads in. And while the dinosaur was unnecessary, it's good to see the effects department stretch their muscles. Also, congrats to the BBC for being open and actually having a lesbian kiss before the watershed on a prime-time TV show. It shows real acceptance over something that shouldn't even really be an issue at this point.

Overall, I'm excited. Peter Capaldi has real potential as the Doctor. Steven Moffat is still creating worlds and stories to care about. And the little cameo from Matt Smith helped reassure us that it will all be brilliant. I can't wait to see how the rest of this series turns out and how Peter Capaldi develops but I'd say that it's going to be good. To be honest, this picture sums it up.