What a viewing today! The Time Warrior was the first story in the eleventh season of Doctor Who, and although I had never seen it before it was just like visiting home after being away for years. There were just so many firsts in this story, starting off with this:

Right off the bat it's the familiar time tunnel that began literally every single episode of Doctor Who that I watched as a boy in the 70's, combined with the iconic diamond logo that was used for the remainder of the decade right up through the end of Tom Baker's reign as the Fourth Doctor. Within the first few seconds of treadmilling this morning I had a stupid grin on my face, and the hits just kept on coming.

Let's talk about that.

The Time Warrior - Parts 1 & 2

(TARDIS Data Core recap)

At the very end of the new credit sequence, the next First sneaks in: Ever since the show stopped having individual episode titles, each show has been presented with the story title and then "Episode 1" (or whatever number it is). With this story the nomenclature changes to "Part 1", and it remains that way until the end of the Classic series (with the sole exception of Destiny of the Daleks).

After those glorious opening credits, another First leaps right out: the first (and only) Third Doctor story to take place in a historical setting. Every other Pertwee story takes place either in contemporary (or very near future) Earth, in the far future, and/or on another planet. The Time Warrior is the singular time that Three goes backwards, visiting medieval England.

After a quick establishing scene, we get the next huge First: the first appearance of a Sontaran, as the warrior Linx lands in his damaged spaceship and forms an alliance with the local strongman Irongron.

Before that has a chance to settle, we get the first appearance of perhaps the single most beloved companion of the Classic era (and arguably of the entire series) - Sarah Jane Smith. The only other companion who might compete with her is Jamie McCrimmon, but in my opinion even he does not hold a candle to Sarah Jane. Smart, resourceful, resilient, and always willing to question the Doctor and call him on his own B.S., the character as performed by Elisabeth Sladen was a truly iconic figure in Doctor Who lore, and one who did the impossible by coming back in her own successful spinoff series a full thirty years after she left the show. And now here she is for the first time in my viewing, and I am just so dang happy to see her!

But the firsts aren't over quite yet, oh no. The homeworld of the Time Lords is finally given a name, and for the very first time we hear the word Gallifrey. After eleven years (or six months, depending on how you count), it is like magic to finally hear the Doctor's planet be given a name. Have I mentioned the stupid grin I had for nearly the entire hour I spent on the treadmill this morning?

So, there is also a plot going on here. The Sontaran warrior is kidnapping scientists and equipment from as far in the future as he can reach in order to repair his ship, which coincidentally happens to be from the same time period where the Doctor continues to act as scientific advisor to UNIT. Sent to investigate the missing scientists, the Doctor uses a device to trace the disturbances and follow them back to the source. He unknowingly brings along journalist Sarah Jane Smith, who has stowed away on the TARDIS and promptly ends up captured by Irongron.

It's early days for Sarah Jane, who at first has no idea that she has actually traveled in time and who then goes on to believe that the Doctor is the bad guy who has been kidnapping the scientists. By extension, that means that she as a character gets to immediately strike out on her own initiative and not be coddled along by the Doctor. She is immediately a fiercely strong character, and a true role model. I love her so much.

So yes, at the halfway point I am loving this story mostly for all of the strong nostalgia elements, but also because it is well-written on its own merits. I haven't counted it out, but I think it's pretty safe to say that from now until at least Christmas my daily viewing of Doctor Who is going to be like wearing a comfortable old sweater - just all warm and cozy and delightful, and I couldn't be happier about it.

STATS:

Doctor(s): Third
Companion(s): Sarah Jane Smith, Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart
Episode(s): The Time Warrior - Parts 1 & 2
Steps Walked: 6,308 today, 1,226,868 total
Distance Walked: 3.14 miles today, 605.79 miles total
Weight: 261.70 lbs (five day moving average), net change -45.60 lbs