"Doctor Who" take two on Sci Fi

Warning: Proceed through this post with caution, 'cause it's about to get awfully geeky in here.

The news from the Sci Fi Channel seems to get better all the time. Though I've been a little disappointed with "Eureka" (so far), Thursday morning came an announcement that made the month of September a lot brighter.


Starting with a two-hour premiere sometime in September (details to come ASAP), the second season of "Doctor Who" will be coming to Sci Fi. It will start with the "Christmas Vacation" special in which David Tennant (best known, I suppose, as Barty Crouch Jr. in "Harry Potter and the Goblet of Fire") is introduced as the new Doctor.

This is a no-brainer for Sci Fi, of course, since 1.5 million viewers a week tuned in to watch Christopher Eccleston as the good Doctor in season one. What possessed Eccleston to walk away after just one year I'll never understand, but the show will definitely go on without him.

I'll admit I'm a late bloomer to the "Doctor Who" world. My first introduction was watching season one on Sci Fi, and I thoroughly enjoyed it, so I'll definitely be back for more.

Mr Gilliam and Mr. Dick?

If this one turns out to be true, it could make for the most interesting biopic in years.

With Paul Giamatti already being lined up to star as sci fi writer Philip K. Dick in the story of the author's life, Terry Gilliam is now rumored to be directing the project. This is now, officially, what I'm going to be thinking about all morning instead of my job.

Gilliam, if he's kept at least a little bit under control, would seem perfect for this, which will take an odd approach to biography. Along with giving the details of Mr. Dick's life, it will weave throughout elements from his last work, "The Owl in Daylight." It sounds a lot like the technique used for "American Splendor" to me, which could be an epic success or a royal failure.

And Mr. Gilliam is certainly familiar with both. I remember watching "Lost in La Mancha," the great documentary about his failed attempt to make a movie about Don Quixote. It's funny at first, as you watch Johnny Depp and his bella companion Vanessa Paradis toiling in the desert for a project you already know won't fly. But by the end, it's just painful to watch a genius director fall so hard.

My money is on much better results with this one. No word yet on how fast they'll move with this profect, using a script by Tony Grisoni, but i'll definitely keep an eye on the proceedings.