Neil Gaiman’s first script for Doctor Who only took forty-nine years. Thankfully, fans didn’t have to wait that long for a second script from the best-selling author.
Gaiman is back this week with a story featuring the return of the Cybermen.
Gaiman has been a fan of the long-running series for a while now and he was recently asked if he’d like to take over the reigns of producer when Steven Moffat leaves.
“I would love to do more Doctor Who. There’s so much stuff I’d love to do. Right now, it’s impossible. Right now I’m looking at it with that kind of horrible feeling that you genuinely can’t stop and raid the sweet shop. You’re on the bus and you’re going past and you’re going to be late for school if you go… so I tend to laugh when people say “Would you like to be the next showrunner after Moffat?” I don’t even have time to write an episode! You want me to be showrunner? Nothing else will happen in my entire life!” Gaiman says.
Of course, Gaiman said after “The Doctor’s Wife” he wasn’t sure when he’d be back for another installment. So, hopefully he can find time to pen another episode of two soon.
It just looks like he won’t be back as show runner.
I’ve always felt that Gaiman is bit over rated. While I respect and enjoy some of his works like Neverwhere, I just didn’t fall in love with the Doctor’s Wife like other people did. I don’t know what this weeks episode will bring I’m sure it will be good. Even when Doctor Who has a down weeks its still fairly good. But running the show…yeah. There was a story a few years ago about how when Space The Canada Scifi Channel first got Doctor Who they asked Gaiman advise about which order to air the episodes. Mr. Gaiman as a fan suggested you show the episodes in the order they were made. It Bombed. It wasn’t until much later that Doctor Who found and audience on Space by showing Tom Baker.
My fear with Gaiman as show runner he would think to much like a fan, and you guys know fans have terrible judgement. Let him keep writing scripts is brings a different favor than most of the other writers currently working on Doctor Who, and while I might not be huge fan of that favor I see the value in it. Now if we could get JMS to run Doctor Who that would be amazing!