Doctor Who: The TV Movie
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- Author：Gary Russell
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Summary
‘Who am I…？ WHO AM I？’
It's December 1999， and strange things are happening as the new millennium nears。 A British police box appears from nowhere in San Francisco’s Chinatown and the mysterious man inside it is shot down in the street。 Despite the best efforts of Dr Grace Holloway， the man dies and another stranger appears， claiming to be the same person in a different body: a wanderer in time and space known only as the Doctor。
But the Doctor is not the only alien in San Francisco。 His deadly adversary the Master is murdering his way through the city and has taken control of the TARDIS。 The Master is desperate to take the Doctor’s newly regenerated body for himself， and if the Doctor does not capitulate， it will literally cost him the Earth… and every last life on it。
It's December 1999， and strange things are happening as the new millennium nears。 A British police box appears from nowhere in San Francisco’s Chinatown and the mysterious man inside it is shot down in the street。 Despite the best efforts of Dr Grace Holloway， the man dies and another stranger appears， claiming to be the same person in a different body: a wanderer in time and space known only as the Doctor。
But the Doctor is not the only alien in San Francisco。 His deadly adversary the Master is murdering his way through the city and has taken control of the TARDIS。 The Master is desperate to take the Doctor’s newly regenerated body for himself， and if the Doctor does not capitulate， it will literally cost him the Earth… and every last life on it。
Reviews
Tim Drury
，
Even better than the 1996 original， Russell has been able to update， expand and improve on his original book adaptation of the ever watchable TV Movie。
Michael
，
Most movie novelizations end up being a not-quite-final draft of the film's script converted into prose。 There's the occasional deleted scene or expanded character backstory， but it's mostly just a book version of the film， as you'd have seen it。 Doctor Who: The TV Movie is precisely that kind of novelization。 It’s well written， sure， and Russell’s prose adds a fair amount of depth to the story that a ninety-minute TV film simply can’t have。 But it’s still a very safe， very standard novelization Most movie novelizations end up being a not-quite-final draft of the film's script converted into prose。 There's the occasional deleted scene or expanded character backstory， but it's mostly just a book version of the film， as you'd have seen it。 Doctor Who: The TV Movie is precisely that kind of novelization。 It’s well written， sure， and Russell’s prose adds a fair amount of depth to the story that a ninety-minute TV film simply can’t have。 But it’s still a very safe， very standard novelization。 It's a little disappointing compared to how different some of the other recent Target novelizations are to their original stories， but I'm kind of okay with Russell's adaptation being as faithful and safe as it is。 I have quite the soft spot for the TV film， and Russell's novel does a great job of capturing what works about the film。If you’re unfamiliar with the 1996 Doctor Who TV film， it’s Paul McGann’s only televised outing as the Eighth Doctor。 It was a co-production between the BBC and the American-based TV network， Fox。 As such， it’s a weird mixture of reboot and Classic Who continuation。 It strikes an immediately different， more Americanized tone when compared to the classic Doctor Who series， while also somehow feeling as though it’s in the same world。 Sylvester McCoy’s Seventh Doctor opens the film， with a prologue that sees him regenerate into McGann’s Eighth Doctor， and the Master returns as the Doctor’s arch-nemesis， but the film is hesitant to acknowledge much else about the show’s wider canon。 The bulk of the story takes place in San Francisco on December 31st， 1999。 The Doctor is suffering a nasty bout of amnesia after his regeneration and the Master is on the hunt for the Doctor， looking to steal his remaining regenerations。 So， the Doctor teams up with Grace， the woman who accidentally killed him， to defeat the Master and save the Earth from certain doom。 And that’s kind of it。 It’s a very talky film， with not a lot of stuff that actually happens。 It’s one of those films where you can totally see how it was intended to be a pilot for an ongoing series， as opposed to a truly stand-alone story。 There’s a lot of groundwork that gets built but the story， itself， is kind of lacking。 It’s a fun film， but not because of an outstanding narrative。What Gary Russell's adaptation of the TV film gets right is the spirit of the film。 As you're reading his novelization， it's so easy to visualize the scenes from the film and hear the characters saying the dialogue （most of which has been lifted directly from the script）。 For all its pros and cons， the novelization feels like the film。 A lot has been said over the years about the quality of the TV film’s narrative， and while this novelization is technically a republication of the novelization that was published alongside the film’s initial release， Russell has subtly updated it some （mostly to make it adhere with subsequent Doctor Who lore， or to correct mistakes that weren't caught in the original publication）。 So， there must have been the temptation to make significant revisions to his original text。 But he doesn't。 And， to be honest， I’m pretty glad he didn’t。 Yes， I feel like the novelization suffers a bit from just being the film put to prose。 And yes， there’s probably a more compelling way to tell this narrative than the way Russell （or the TV film） does。 But， I think there’s something so fun about the Doctor Who TV film and it’s nice to see it so faithfully captured with this novelization。 It’s such a unique slice of 1990s American sci-fi television， with all of the pros and cons that come with that， and it’s lovely to have it forever immortalized in novel form。That being said， Russell’s novelization does differ from the TV movie in a few ways。 It’s based on an earlier draft of the screenplay， so some of the descriptions and scenes don’t quite match what ended up in the film。 The changes found in the film are fairly minor and are probably better than what was in this earlier draft of the script （aside from the Master’s pretty gnarly-sounding appearance in the novelization’s climax）， but it’s definitely something you notice。 Russell’s novelization also leans a little bit more into Doctor Who’s past。 There’s an extended prologue that recaps much of the Doctor’s life to this point， explaining his connection to Gallifrey， the Daleks， and the Master。 It’s the kind of thing that might have been useful to have in the film， though would have resulted in a significantly slower opening。 Additionally， several of the characters receive far more attention in the novelization than they do in the film—most notably Chang Lee and the Master。 If you’re not familiar with the Master， I feel like the TV film doesn’t do such a great job of explaining who he is and why he’s at odds with the Doctor。 Russell’s novelization doesn’t go into a lot more detail， but it goes into just enough that it helps sell the relationship for people who aren’t already intimately familiar with it。 Chang Lee， on the other hand， gets a lot of much-needed development here。 In the film， his character arc is a bit hard to track。 He’s fairly thinly sketched， so as his allegiances change， it’s hard to fully understand what’s causing them to change。 Russell spends a lot of time in the novelization focusing on Chang Lee—his motivations， his backstory， and his personality。 We understand why he chooses to work for the Master， we understand what makes him start questioning the Master。 He just comes across as a much more layered character here than he does in the film， and that’s nice。Unfortunately， these additions come at the cost of the story’s pacing。 The TV film is already a pretty slow story。 It takes nearly half an hour for Paul McGann’s Doctor to even appear， then it takes another half an hour for him to get his memories back and for the actual plot to start， and then it’s over half an hour later。 This is a story that probably could’ve been told in half the screen time。 So， the very act of slotting more stuff into this story is gonna result in some questionable pacing decisions。 The extended prologue means it takes even longer for the Eighth Doctor to enter the scene， though Russell tries to make up for this with his prose cluing the reader into what’s going on and implicitly promising that things are gonna get more exciting。 We see this problem again towards the climax as Russell spends a great deal of time exploring the motivations of certain characters while jumping back and forth between what’s happening in the TARDIS and what’s happening throughout San Francisco。 It’s the kind of thing that works better on film， when you can rapidly cut back and forth between scenes， but doing it in a novel tends to slow everything down。 To be fair， it’s not like the novelization is a slow read; it’s quite a fast one。 And the pacing is mostly good—or， at least， similar to the film's pacing。 It’s just that， in the context of the narrative， some of these additions do end up slowing things down more than you might like。Overall， if you've seen the 1996 Doctor Who TV movie， then there's not a whole lot on Russell's novelization that'll wow you much。 It's a very faithful， very well-written retelling of the film。 It doesn't take many risks or make many alterations to the story， but it does flesh out a few of the characters a bit more。 Russell's prose is lovely， managing to be that perfect amount of descriptive without over describing， and excelling at diving into the emotions of whichever character is being focused on。 The characters’ voices are captured authentically， with the Eighth Doctor sounding exactly like Paul McGann， and the rest of the characters feeling like their on-screen counterparts。 But ultimately， it's just kind of standard。 And while I do like how perfectly it captures the film， I wouldn't have minded some kind of small twist to the story， some little thing that could have added a new dimension to this familiar tale。 Nothing particularly big， but something that could've just。。。 expanded it ever so slightly beyond a few deleted scenes and extra character beats。 Still， it's a fun read， especially if you're eager to know what happens in the film but don't have easy access to it。 。。。more
Gareth
，
An excellent update on the 1996 version （based on a script different from the one used for the transmitted version） Gary Russell takes full advantage of updating his novelization and adds some more details to the supporting characters as well as a few bits for us Who geeks。
Andrew Foxley
，
The 1996 ‘Doctor Who’ TV Movie represented the first attempt by the BBC （in collaboration with American partners） to revive the series following its cancellation in 1989。 It was an ambitious project with a big budget and one eye on the American market， which met with a mixed reaction， but which ‘Doctor Who’ fans seem to have viewed with an increasing fondness over time， especially as it introduced us to the Eighth Doctor， played by Paul McGann。 Gary Russell’s novelisation， published around the t The 1996 ‘Doctor Who’ TV Movie represented the first attempt by the BBC （in collaboration with American partners） to revive the series following its cancellation in 1989。 It was an ambitious project with a big budget and one eye on the American market， which met with a mixed reaction， but which ‘Doctor Who’ fans seem to have viewed with an increasing fondness over time， especially as it introduced us to the Eighth Doctor， played by Paul McGann。 Gary Russell’s novelisation， published around the time of the original broadcast， has been republished and joins the Target novelisation range in this new edition。As a story， it’s great fun - action packed and full of incident， including a regeneration， the rebirth of the Doctor’s arch nemesis the Master， and the introduction of a new companion in the form of the very likeable Dr Grace Holloway， a heart surgeon。 There’s a race against time on New Year’s Eve 1999 to prevent the Master from stealing the Doctor’s body and destroying the Earth in the process。 Russell had access to an earlier version of the script than that which was eventually televised （and indeed was writing the novelisation whilst it was being filmed）， so it introduces additional elements to those seen on screen。 For anyone who practically knows the script off by heart， it’s occasionally a little disappointing that favourite lines aren’t there in the exact form one might remember them， but generally the variations are improvements。 The author also takes advantage of the medium to flesh out a few sequences and characters， which is very welcome， and drop a few fun nods in to wider ‘Doctor Who’ lore。 These are further expanded upon in the 2021 Target edition， which includes some revisions to the original 1996 text。I’ve a great fondness for the TV Movie and its original novelisation。 It’s an exciting tale， well written and highly enjoyable， and it was a delight to revisit it again。 。。。more
Joe
，
This is my review of the Target Books novelization of the DOCTOR WHO TV Movie from 1996 starring Paul McGann as the Eighth Incarnation of the Doctor。 And， for those not aware， the TV movie is something of a "guilty pleasure"， holding a special spot in my nerdy heart， despite some of its obvious flaws。 That said， this will be an unbiased review based on the novelization， not the original source material。 That said， on with the show。。。In 1996， BBC Books hired Gary Russell （for editor of DOCTOR WHO This is my review of the Target Books novelization of the DOCTOR WHO TV Movie from 1996 starring Paul McGann as the Eighth Incarnation of the Doctor。 And， for those not aware， the TV movie is something of a "guilty pleasure"， holding a special spot in my nerdy heart， despite some of its obvious flaws。 That said， this will be an unbiased review based on the novelization， not the original source material。 That said， on with the show。。。In 1996， BBC Books hired Gary Russell （for editor of DOCTOR WHO MAGAZINE from 1992-95 as well as writer of a number of WHO-related novels， including Virgin Books' DOCTOR WHO: NEW ADVENTURES line to write the novelization of the TV movie， based solely on the script， without any visuals to go on。 The script would go through changes during the filming， as scripts often do， so the book would differ in spots from the actual TV movie。Russell admits in the introduction to the Target Books edition that he polished it up this time round， having actually been privy to the video。 He expanded key scenes， like where the Doctor receives a message in his TARDIS from [SPOILERS] on [SPOILERS] in regard to you-know-who。 This expanded scene， and many others through the story， help make the TV movie flow that much better， offering scenes that now make better sense than they did when it first aired in 1996。Another surprisingly welcome addition was the fleshing out of the characters。 This isn't really a Spoiler per se， but characters like Grace and the Master/Bruce really benefit from this expansion。 It allows them not only some backstory， but also glimpses inside their heads， giving them a more well-rounded perspective。 Even characters like Chang Lee now had moments where I genuinely went "Aww。。"， actually feeling something in regard to a character I really cared nothing for when I first watch the TV movie！Yes， this feels like a different， more better（er） novelization。 But， what it also feels like， for those of us old enough to remember reading the Target novelizations when they first came out in the 1970's and 1980's， it is a perfectly crafted throwback to those books which will always harbor a special spot in my nerdish heart！ Go and get this already， Whovians！ 。。。more
David Keep
，
Cracking good readRussell corrects many of the iffier bits from the TV movie， ramps up the good stuff and adds a few nice touches。 A cracking good read that rattles along at a far pace， this is a better book than the original production deserves
Tony
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There are spoilers here but I suspect almost anyone reading this novel will pretty much know what happens。 I read the original version of this novel when it was first published。 This is a new version， which Gary Russell has tweaked a tad。 As a result， I think it is a better book。 The Doctor arrives on Earth as Sylvester McCoy having been tricked by the Master into bringing his mortal remains from Skaro after he has been executed by the Daleks。 It turns out that the Master isn't quite dead， but t There are spoilers here but I suspect almost anyone reading this novel will pretty much know what happens。 I read the original version of this novel when it was first published。 This is a new version， which Gary Russell has tweaked a tad。 As a result， I think it is a better book。 The Doctor arrives on Earth as Sylvester McCoy having been tricked by the Master into bringing his mortal remains from Skaro after he has been executed by the Daleks。 It turns out that the Master isn't quite dead， but then when is he ever quite dead。 McCoy gets shot in a random accident。 This being America。 Ends up in hospital。 Dies due to no one in an expensive hospital really caring that he has two Hearts。 Regenerates。 Becomes Paul McGann。。。。etc etc。 The Master loses。 The Doctor wins。 Grace Holloway， the cardiologist who killed the Doctor and then became his companion de jour chooses not to travel with him。 The end。 Oh， and Chang Lee， the young Chinese dude who was fooled into assisting the Master gets a bag of gold and some travel advice。 The book tidies up a few more controversial moments of the TV episodes and sprinkles some of Doctor Who's past about the place （which is an addition to this version as， apparently， when he wrote the original novelization he was asked to keep the past out of it as much as possible。） It adds a little depth in my opinion。The Master is at his most batshit crazy - well， until recently - in this story， but is a little flat on the page。 I find Eric Roberts adds a certain something in performance。 It might be OTT， but it was interesting to have a Master that was a creepy guy with a goatee beard。 Sometimes Classic Who showed a distinct lack of imagination with The Master I think。 Find a look， stick to it。 Gary Russell writes clearly， intelligently， and paces the story well。 If Terrance Dicks set out the template for Doctor Who novelizations then Gary Russell does a fine job in following it。 Flaws in characterization must be blamed on the original story。 I always think Grace's denial of who the Doctor seems dim， based on her intelligence， but she needs to be that dim in order to have a reason to call for an ambulance so that The Master can get his hands on the Doctor。 I just think that faced with empirical evidence of the Doctor's alienness she would have to accept that it is true。 Chang Lee's unquestioning acceptance of The Master's story seems better explained in the book: he's greedy， The Master offers him an escape， and - the book makes more clear - The Master is messing with his mind。 Anyway a enjoyable read。 。。。more
Stephen Higham
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The TV Movie moniker never so inappropriateA lot of fun though
Kieran McAndrew
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Lured to Skaro to gather the Master's remains， the Doctor lands on Earth on the eve of the millennium and is shot dead。The Master invades a human host so a regenerated Doctor must prevent the Master from stealing his body， his TARDIS and stop a crisis which threatens to destroy the Earth。Russell's novelisation is well written and this new edition sneaks in a few forward continuity references。 Lured to Skaro to gather the Master's remains， the Doctor lands on Earth on the eve of the millennium and is shot dead。The Master invades a human host so a regenerated Doctor must prevent the Master from stealing his body， his TARDIS and stop a crisis which threatens to destroy the Earth。Russell's novelisation is well written and this new edition sneaks in a few forward continuity references。 。。。more
Paul Griggs
，
Remastered for 2021 with bits that got taken out of the original 1996 edition （plus I suspect some other polishes also） here’s Mr GRussell’s novelisation of Paul McGann’s first appearance as the Doctor finally getting the Target logo it deserves。 I probably haven’t read the original since it was published so a lot of the differences between the book and film come as surprises。
Joe Kessler
，
For the most part， this is a pretty straightforward novelization of the 1996 Doctor Who movie， which isn't great， but certainly has its share of goofy charm。 （It was produced after the original program was cancelled in 1989， and was intended to relaunch the show if contemporary audiences approved。 They didn't， and so the franchise stayed off the air until the modern reboot in 2005。） Availability notwithstanding， I think I'd recommend the film over this book if you need to pick just one， as I'm n For the most part， this is a pretty straightforward novelization of the 1996 Doctor Who movie， which isn't great， but certainly has its share of goofy charm。 （It was produced after the original program was cancelled in 1989， and was intended to relaunch the show if contemporary audiences approved。 They didn't， and so the franchise stayed off the air until the modern reboot in 2005。） Availability notwithstanding， I think I'd recommend the film over this book if you need to pick just one， as I'm not convinced the story's quirky earnestness always translates well to the page。 I'm also a little disappointed that author Gary Russell hasn't seized more of an opportunity with this project to expand on the source material and add his own wrinkles to the series canon as he's done elsewhere， although that may not have been possible / allowed， given how the two titles were released simultaneously and how his foreword says he was working off a script with limited knowledge of final visuals -- or apparently of casting， based on the inaccuracy of certain character descriptions。 I'll be interested to hear whether the new edition of this novel coming out soon corrects any of that， or if things like Grace's strawberry blonde hair will remain curious continuity errors that again mark it as the non-definitive take。 At its best this volume is only as strong as the uneven work it's adapting， and that strain is particularly apparent in the climax， which is effectively an incoherent spectacle of flashing lights and technobabble in either version。 But for fans with an existing fondness for actor Paul McGann's Eighth Doctor， I suppose it's a fun enough way to revisit his debut。[Content warning for racism and gun violence。]Find me on Patreon | Goodreads | Blog | Twitter 。。。more
K
，
This review has been hidden because it contains spoilers。 To view it， click here。 あらすじ1人で旅をするようになったドクターはターディスの模様替えに凝っていたが、それにもやがて虚しさを感じるようになっていた。そんな時、ドクターはマスターからのテレパシーを感知する。マスターはダーレクによって処刑される寸前で、ドクターに遺体を回収してギャリフレイに戻して欲しいと頼んできたのだ。宿敵ではあるが古い友人でもあるマスターの遺志をかなえるべく、ドクターはダーレクに処刑されたマスターの残骸を回収しギャリフレイに向かう。しかし、マスターの残骸を収めた箱が異様な光を放ち、ターディスは挙動不審となる。到着したのは1999年12月末のサンフランシスコ。ドクターはターディスの外に出るが不運にも銃弾を受け、昏睡してしまう。病院に運ばれ、手術を受けるが心臓にカテーテルを挿入され、心停止。死亡宣告を下され、死体置場へ。冷凍庫中でリジェネレーションを果たすが、記憶が全く失われてしまっていた。その頃、ターディスを抜け出したマスターの残骸はドクターを搬送した救急隊員に憑依し、ドクターの身体を奪おうと企んでいた。感想1989年12月に7thドクターのエピソードが放送されたのを最後に途絶えていたDocto あらすじ1人で旅をするようになったドクターはターディスの模様替えに凝っていたが、それにもやがて虚しさを感じるようになっていた。そんな時、ドクターはマスターからのテレパシーを感知する。マスターはダーレクによって処刑される寸前で、ドクターに遺体を回収してギャリフレイに戻して欲しいと頼んできたのだ。宿敵ではあるが古い友人でもあるマスターの遺志をかなえるべく、ドクターはダーレクに処刑されたマスターの残骸を回収しギャリフレイに向かう。しかし、マスターの残骸を収めた箱が異様な光を放ち、ターディスは挙動不審となる。到着したのは1999年12月末のサンフランシスコ。ドクターはターディスの外に出るが不運にも銃弾を受け、昏睡してしまう。病院に運ばれ、手術を受けるが心臓にカテーテルを挿入され、心停止。死亡宣告を下され、死体置場へ。冷凍庫中でリジェネレーションを果たすが、記憶が全く失われてしまっていた。その頃、ターディスを抜け出したマスターの残骸はドクターを搬送した救急隊員に憑依し、ドクターの身体を奪おうと企んでいた。感想1989年12月に7thドクターのエピソードが放送されたのを最後に途絶えていたDoctor Whoが1996年に映画で復活。そのノベライズ版。7thから8thドクターにリジェネレーション。7年ぶりの復活ということもあって、タイムロードに関する色々な情報がつまっている。ドクターのお母さんが人間という設定もこの映画で登場。女心をくすぐるハンサムさんにリジェネできてラッキーだったね、ドクターと言いたくなる。”It’s when our bodies are too old to carry on， or injured beyond repair。 The body literally reconfigures itself， using the existing cells but rearranging them， redistributing them。 A Time Lord becomes what might appear to be a new man or woman but is in fact just a rearrangement of the old one。 The brain stays the same， if a little muddled for a while。” 。。。more
Rosie
，
look i've read 3。5 doctor who novelisations now and this is by far the most fun and good one so fuck it， four stars！ look i've read 3。5 doctor who novelisations now and this is by far the most fun and good one so fuck it， four stars！ 。。。more
Donavon （STComicbookreview。com）
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Does not add much that was not in the film。
Philip
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A fun read， this book does a great job at adapting Paul McGann's short-lived stint as The Doctor。 The first half of this book is excellent， introducing us to the characters of Grace， Chang-Lee and Bruce， and also the mysterious traveller the Doctor。 It also expands a bit on the Doctor's role in transporting the Master's remains， something which was left a bit vague in the movie。The book starts to slip a bit in the second half， Russell chooses to change a few elements of the final battle scene， c A fun read， this book does a great job at adapting Paul McGann's short-lived stint as The Doctor。 The first half of this book is excellent， introducing us to the characters of Grace， Chang-Lee and Bruce， and also the mysterious traveller the Doctor。 It also expands a bit on the Doctor's role in transporting the Master's remains， something which was left a bit vague in the movie。The book starts to slip a bit in the second half， Russell chooses to change a few elements of the final battle scene， changes which I think detract from the story a bit。 But overall very well done and great to see a fan of classic Who write this， as it means die-hard fans have plenty of easter eggs to pick out when reading。 。。。more
Ellie
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Just your basic movie novelization; nothing too special happening here beyond what existed in the film。 I do love this movie a lot， so reading it was fun！ Tidbits of what was added， for the completionist fans who want to know such things:- Backstory for Chang Lee， including names of his family members and a girlfriend。- You might have expected there would be something about why the Master can turn into a snake made of CGI goo。 This is。。。 not elaborated on other than to say that he "ingested a mo Just your basic movie novelization; nothing too special happening here beyond what existed in the film。 I do love this movie a lot， so reading it was fun！ Tidbits of what was added， for the completionist fans who want to know such things:- Backstory for Chang Lee， including names of his family members and a girlfriend。- You might have expected there would be something about why the Master can turn into a snake made of CGI goo。 This is。。。 not elaborated on other than to say that he "ingested a morphic carrier"， which explains nothing。 I love it， thanks。- An interesting exchange of dialogue added to the Doctor & Master's final confrontation in the Eye of Harmony which wasn't there before。 。。。more
Polly Batchelor
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"But it was a childish dream that made you a doctor！ You dreamt you could hold back death。 Isn't that true？ Don't be sad， Grace。 You'll do great things！"- 8th Doctor "But it was a childish dream that made you a doctor！ You dreamt you could hold back death。 Isn't that true？ Don't be sad， Grace。 You'll do great things！"- 8th Doctor 。。。more
Book collector
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This is the original version of the tv movie adaptation。 I love the movie。 It's just great fun。 And I love the book。 Russell does an excellent job with the novel， in many ways it's better than the original tv version it's base on。 I've read this novel so many times over the quarter of a century since its release。 Great book。And now there is a new version。 In 2021 a target book version has been published。 It's a rewritten version。 And I'm about to start reading it。 A review will follow on that ve This is the original version of the tv movie adaptation。 I love the movie。 It's just great fun。 And I love the book。 Russell does an excellent job with the novel， in many ways it's better than the original tv version it's base on。 I've read this novel so many times over the quarter of a century since its release。 Great book。And now there is a new version。 In 2021 a target book version has been published。 It's a rewritten version。 And I'm about to start reading it。 A review will follow on that version。 。。。more
Michael Gleason
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See the full review here: https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=S6Zcq。。。Doctor Who: The Novel of the Film is a brilliant novelization。 It does everything a good novelization is supposed to do， it takes what we saw on screen， expands on it in a meaningful way， and adds in elements that either explain or at the very least， justify some things that the movie just expected us to take at face value。 And Russell was the perfect choice to handle writing it。 The book more than justifies its existence， and for See the full review here: https://www。youtube。com/watch？v=S6Zcq。。。Doctor Who: The Novel of the Film is a brilliant novelization。 It does everything a good novelization is supposed to do， it takes what we saw on screen， expands on it in a meaningful way， and adds in elements that either explain or at the very least， justify some things that the movie just expected us to take at face value。 And Russell was the perfect choice to handle writing it。 The book more than justifies its existence， and for that merit， along with just how enjoyable it is， I can't help but recommend it。 If you've seen the movie， it's a great reference for getting a far more substantial story with all the in-jokes and easter eggs that you'd expect from Doctor Who， and if you haven't， this is by far the superior way to experience the story， since it allows you to visualize the things we didn't get to see， like the Master's decaying form （unseen in the film because Eric Roberts had a bad reaction to the makeup）。 Either way， check this book out if you can find a copy because it's definitely one of the best Doctor Who novelizations out there， warts and all。 The movie isn't great， but the novelization more than makes up for all the film's shortcomings。 Or at least most of 'em。 。。。more
Gavin Waldrop
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This Book Was a great Doctor Who books as it saved me a lot of trouble of trying to buy the movie other than that if this wasn't based on the movie I would have said this was a great Doctor Who Regeneration story or just a great Doctor Who story。 Overall A great books with many things to its merit。 This Book Was a great Doctor Who books as it saved me a lot of trouble of trying to buy the movie other than that if this wasn't based on the movie I would have said this was a great Doctor Who Regeneration story or just a great Doctor Who story。 Overall A great books with many things to its merit。 。。。more
Tracy Smyth
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Great read。 Easy
Ian Banks
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That all too common beastie in media novelisations: the book that is superior to the material that it is retelling。 Mr Russell adapts the then-long-awaited return of Doctor Who with competent prose。 He hits a lot of the right notes: the Doctor and the Master come across okay， as do the supporting and minor characters but the story is a bit pants。 You can tell it's a bit pants because you are having more fun with the characters and their interactions than you are with the plot。 That all too common beastie in media novelisations: the book that is superior to the material that it is retelling。 Mr Russell adapts the then-long-awaited return of Doctor Who with competent prose。 He hits a lot of the right notes: the Doctor and the Master come across okay， as do the supporting and minor characters but the story is a bit pants。 You can tell it's a bit pants because you are having more fun with the characters and their interactions than you are with the plot。 。。。more
Scott
，
As is typically the case with Doctor Who novelizations， this book is constrained by the quality of the source material。 While we don't have to suffer through Eric Roberts's characterization of the Master he still has some truly insipid dialogue。 That problem is not unique to this outing。 The last time the Master was used effectively in a story was forty years ago in The Deadly Assassin and that statement includes his subsequent appearances in the revived series。 This story also spends far too mu As is typically the case with Doctor Who novelizations， this book is constrained by the quality of the source material。 While we don't have to suffer through Eric Roberts's characterization of the Master he still has some truly insipid dialogue。 That problem is not unique to this outing。 The last time the Master was used effectively in a story was forty years ago in The Deadly Assassin and that statement includes his subsequent appearances in the revived series。 This story also spends far too much time regenerating and reintroducing the Doctor， a mistake that was not repeated during the successful revival of the show in the following decade。 This is a passable retelling of a grossly simple tale of good/evil that was less than successful when first produced for television。 。。。more
Tria
，
Not bad， entertaining enough， and the 8th Doctor is a favourite of mine， but the ebook is poorly edited and needs work， especially on the parts that take dialogue directly from the film and are inaccurate in doing so。 3。5 stars。
Shannon Appelcline
，
I think it's pretty rare that an adaptation is truly great， and this one is as mediocre as most。 Any fan of Doctor Who knows that it's burdened by a few canon clunkers， like the claim that the Doctor is half-human。 The core adventure is pretty good with （yet another） final battle against the Master。 But I never felt like I knew who the new Doctor was。Also， the setting of San Francisco is rather horribly depicted。 （The author thinks the Golden Gate Bridge crosses a river！） Further， the big techno I think it's pretty rare that an adaptation is truly great， and this one is as mediocre as most。 Any fan of Doctor Who knows that it's burdened by a few canon clunkers， like the claim that the Doctor is half-human。 The core adventure is pretty good with （yet another） final battle against the Master。 But I never felt like I knew who the new Doctor was。Also， the setting of San Francisco is rather horribly depicted。 （The author thinks the Golden Gate Bridge crosses a river！） Further， the big technological advance at the end of the novel is an atomic clock。 On the eve of 2000， 45 years after they first appeared。 These huge clunkers were bad enough that I felt like I really should give the book two stars 。。。 but since I was entertained by the rest of it， I led them go and stuck with 3。Also see my longer discussion at RPGnet。 。。。more
Wes Herbst
，
Its not going to make you love the movie if you already didn't， but it will make you love the movie more， if you're into that sort of weirdness （which I am）。 Its not going to make you love the movie if you already didn't， but it will make you love the movie more， if you're into that sort of weirdness （which I am）。 。。。more
Leonardo
，
A competent novelization of the well-intentioned but ultimately flawed 1996 Doctor Who TV-movie/pilot， this book is an enjoyable， although slightly nondescript novel that sometimes actually hits the right notes。 Of course， the 50th anniversary of the beloved British series definitively helped to rekindled the interest in that "underdog" regeneration that was the 8th Doctor， so becoming acquainted with the many novels， radio plays， comics， and other output in which the Doctor pursued his adventur A competent novelization of the well-intentioned but ultimately flawed 1996 Doctor Who TV-movie/pilot， this book is an enjoyable， although slightly nondescript novel that sometimes actually hits the right notes。 Of course， the 50th anniversary of the beloved British series definitively helped to rekindled the interest in that "underdog" regeneration that was the 8th Doctor， so becoming acquainted with the many novels， radio plays， comics， and other output in which the Doctor pursued his adventures， between the end of the classic era and the 2005 reboot should be in the to-do list of anyone interested in the show。 Nevertheless， the movie suffers from the same weakenesses as the movie （mainly a shaky plot that aims to introduce too many key elements of the DW universe at the same time， but fails to convince us of their cosmic consequences or implications）， and it lacks Paul McGann's remarkable portrayal of the Doctor as a "dashing young man" （even more remarkable， since it would be his only on-screen portrayal of the character in almost two decades）。 However， the books actually offers a very profound and touching insight into the Doctor's mind in the early stages of a new cycle: the confusion and bewilderement of the character's mind as he tries to understand/remember who he is makes reading the whole book worthwhile。 。。。more
Jody Ruth
，
Ah， yes， the 8th Doctor books。 I had the entire set up until a couple of years ago when I sold them at a stupidly cheap price just to buy food and pay bills。 Twas a dark time。。。 but I never envisaged collecting them all again， but it seems to be happening。 I figured I'd restart reading them as well， as some of them were enjoyable， and I'd never actually read the entire set。So。。。 re-reading The Novel of The Film almost put me off。 It's poorly written， although it is stated the book was worked fro Ah， yes， the 8th Doctor books。 I had the entire set up until a couple of years ago when I sold them at a stupidly cheap price just to buy food and pay bills。 Twas a dark time。。。 but I never envisaged collecting them all again， but it seems to be happening。 I figured I'd restart reading them as well， as some of them were enjoyable， and I'd never actually read the entire set。So。。。 re-reading The Novel of The Film almost put me off。 It's poorly written， although it is stated the book was worked from the script of the film， which wasn't too clever either。 The writing is of high school standard， but if you most of your sentences to begin with 'suddenly'， 'he felt like'， or being told instead of shown， then this is probably for you。Thank fuck I know the rest of the books are better than this。 。。。more
Kelly Cassidy
，
The adaptation of the movie was tons better than the movie itself。 A lot more detail of things that did not make sense in the film made a lot more sense when put into context of the novel。 It's hard to say whether or not Gary Russell added them as he saw those flaws or whether they were in the script and then cut out for broadcast。 Regardless， the book was a proper introduction to the Paul McGann Doctor whereas the film was quite lackluster。 It was not great， but that's also due to the source ma The adaptation of the movie was tons better than the movie itself。 A lot more detail of things that did not make sense in the film made a lot more sense when put into context of the novel。 It's hard to say whether or not Gary Russell added them as he saw those flaws or whether they were in the script and then cut out for broadcast。 Regardless， the book was a proper introduction to the Paul McGann Doctor whereas the film was quite lackluster。 It was not great， but that's also due to the source material， but not the worst novelization ever written of a TV episode either。 It was as good as you could expect it to be， considering。 。。。more
Reference
google book https://www.google.com/search?tbm=bks&q=Doctor Who: The TV Movie
hathitrust digital library https://babel.hathitrust.org/cgi/ls?q1=Doctor Who: The TV Movie&field1=ocr&a=srchls&ft=ft&lmt=ft