Yep, agree about Stargate. Universe is the only one that’s looked vaguely interesting.

The comparison was really between British and US programme making, an enduring bug bear of mine, and I heaped Dr Who in with sci-fi to make my point. Having said that, I have to agree with what you’re saying, Simon.

You can’t really compare Doctor Who to modern adult Sci-Fi dramas from the US. It’s supposed to be a sci-fi show for all the family, or “Non Ageist Fantasy Fiction” (“NAFF”). A fairer comparison would be between Doctor Who and the stuff they come up with in Vancouver (Sanctuary, Stargate etc), although having said that even the Stargate crowd are trying to mimic the BSG reboot with Stargate Universe.

Bu really, criticising a NAFF show for being naff is like crticising a child for being childish. I mean, to put Doctor Who in the same league as BSG you’d have to kick the Doctor out for starters – you can’t develop a drama of any substance around an indefatigable character who always wins and is always one step ahead of everyone else – as any Steven Seagal movie can testify.

Anyway, that’s my 2 cents

But I digress.

I am a Lost fan, having gotten into it in season 3, and then spent a whole weekend sequestered in front of the TV watching the prior seasons on DVD.

My personal take is that the Island may be Atlantis, after all, the story of Atlantis was originally an Egyptian story told to Plato, and this may be why there are Egyptian hieroglyphs originate. Perhaps the island is a proto-Egyptian proto-Greek civilization that attained great technological ability (like the ability to move the island… which itself may be artificial).

As for Jacob, the Smoke Monster “the other guy”, and Richard Alpert, who form a kind of immortal trio, your suggestion that they may be aliens is just as good as any at this point.

What Russell T and others have failed to do with Dr Who is develop a proper story arc, the like of which we see in nearly all US sci-fi. Instead, each ep follows a more-or-less standard format, with the season ending with a giant confrontation with the Daleks. It’s just not going aywhere.

Lastly, Abrams’ Start Trek most certainly did not throw away the heritage of the original!

Meanwhile, our new Doctor Who (Which doesn’t bear any resemblance to Quantum Leap, if you ask me) actually tends to be London-centric, even if we recognise the locations as Cardiff. The show has evolved significantly from the older Who, without throwing away the show’s heritage, as Abrams did with the Star Trek universe. The Daleks are suffering somewhat from the law of diminishing returns though, I agree!

As for Lost, I sincerely hope Jacob and his nemesis are not extraterrestrials. I think Abrams has already stretched that show’s credibility to breaking point with the time travel plot from the last season.