The BBC science fiction series Doctor Who is a powerhouse legend in television. It initially ran almost continuously from 1963 - 1989. That's 26 years! After a lengthy hiatus (filled by a plethora of novels and Big Finish full-cast audio productions), the series recently returned to production with great success. David Tennant is a splendid Doctor. It can be seen on the Sci-Fi Channel here in the States, and, of course, on DVD.

My first experience with Doctor Who came in the 1980s, when WVIZ, channel 25, a PBS station in Cleveland, aired the show each Saturday night. I grew up with the Third, Fourth, Fifth, and Sixth Doctors, and the program remains close to me as it was an important component to my childhood imagination.

For the uninitiated, Doctor Who follows the exploits of an alien Time Lord named the Doctor as he travels through time and space in a cavernous vehicle called the TARDIS. Typically, he goes on adventures with companions - often from Earth. His ability to regenerate when facing death allows for a new actor to assume the role, perhaps in part explaining why the series has been able to last for 45 years. Thus, each new actor becomes a numbered Doctor. David Tennant is the tenth actor to assume the role, for example, so he is the Tenth Doctor.

Doctor Who: The Infinite Quest is an oddity for this venerable titan of television science fiction. It's an animated story originally told in a series of short episodes on a children's television program about Doctor Who called Totally Doctor Who. Clearly set during David Tennant's second season as the Tenth Doctor, it features him as well as his traveling companion at that time, Martha (also voiced by the original actress - Freema Agyeman). In it, the Tenth Doctor and Martha basically breeze through several alien settings in search of an ancient spaceship called the Infinite - with bad guy Baltazar hot on the trail as well. For this DVD release, BBC Video has spliced together these episodes into one "feature-length animation."

Doctor Who: The Infinite Quest is an enjoyable animated romp for Doctor Who fans; however, there are some limitations. First, BBC Video's description of this program on the DVD's front cover is dubious at best. The program runs just under 47 minutes, or roughly the length of a single episode of the revamped Doctor Who. I don't think that really justifies as "feature-length." Second, while the backgrounds and character designs are inventive at times, the animated versions of the Tenth Doctor and Martha leave a lot to be desired. Their motions are herky-jerky, and their facial expressions just don't seem human. And finally, like Star Wars: The Clone Wars, this incarnation of Doctor Who is strictly action-heavy kids stuff.

Despite these limitations, as a long-time Doctor Who fan, I enjoyed the novelty of seeing the Tenth Doctor in this format. While the story itself is thin, the Doctor and Martha visit several visually interesting alien worlds. The cast is filled out by several good actors with distinctive voices. Anthony Stewart Head (of Buffy the Vampire Slayer fame) and Toby Longworth are the most notable. Both are familiar voices in the Big Finish audio line of Doctor Who stories. Head provides the deep and evil voice of Baltazar effectively, while Longworth - who is an excellent comic voice talent - is fun to listen to as well.

Doctor Who: The Infinite Quest, in sum, is an entertaining animated side-step for Doctor Who fans - though hardly required viewing. Recommended.

The DVD

Video:

Doctor Who: The Infinite Quest is made available in a very nice looking 16x9 anamorphic widescreen presentation. Colors are strong and details are sharp - not surprising given the computer animation.

Sound:

The sole audio track is Dolby Digital 2.0 Stereo. I was disappointed with the audio quality of this film. Dialogue is often drowned out by effects work - and this is most true at the beginning, where the audience has to strain to make out what the Tenth Doctor, Martha, and Baltazar are saying on board his ship. It seems to improve as the animated special proceeds, but issues regarding the perceptibility of dialogue pop up throughout.

Optional subtitles in English are available.

Extras:

Ads for Primeval and BBC America precede the main menu.

More significant, of course, are the contents of the Extras menu. First up is Character Profiles, a rather simplistic text and image dictionary of the characters featured in Doctor Who: The Infinite Quest. Actor Interviews, the next menu item, is a fun option featuring several quick clips of various vocal talent discussing their work on this animated program. Featured are David Tennant, Freema Agyeman, Anthony Head, Toby Longworth, and Gary Russell. Animation Tests (0:42) offers a few silent clips of the Tenth Doctor. Photo Gallery is an interactive gallery of stills. Behind the Scenes - With the Animators (2:32) and Behind the Scenes - With the Voice Artists (3:11) are entertaining but too short behind-the-scenes looks at the making of the show. Dialogue Recording - Episode 1 (4:03) and Dialogue Recording - Episode 9 (3:59) are the actors filmed performing the respective episodes in a sound studio. Animatics & Deleted Scenes (9:17) provides early art and discarded scenes. In sum, these were neat extras, but having them spaced out like this seemed excessive. I would have preferred a developed behind-the-scenes featurette that incorporated these various interviews and other material into one unified piece. In any case, all the extras are in anamorphic widescreen, which is nice.

The Extras menu also has trailers for Doctor Who - Series 4 and Sarah Jane Adventures.

It should also be noted that the menu system is extremely impatient. After only one go-round with a music clip, the Extras menu automatically returns to the main menu. After a go-round with a music clip there, the main menu automatically begins playing the feature. So, make your selections quick.

Final Thoughts:

Doctor Who fans may be entertained by this 47 minute animated curiosity featuring the voice work of David Tennant, Freema Agyeman, Anthony Stewart Head, and Toby Longworth. It's far from perfect, but recommended nonetheless.

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