Doctor Who classic moments: “It’s alive!” (The Eighth Doctor’s birth)

Paul McGann’s first scene in Doctor Who, in which his Doctor is “born”, is a moment that’s surprisingly effective and beautiful to watch.

Ok, I’ll admit it. This is a bit of an odd pick for me. I’ve already stated that, for the Seventh Doctor, at least, the TV movie is an absolutely terrible regeneration story. Or rather, it’s a weak exit for McCoy’s Doctor, as he dies not by saving the universe, or even just one single life, but by medical negligence.

The regeneration itself is also…interesting. There’s a lot of gurning between McCoy and McGann, something that even they’ve joked about over the years.

However, despite that, what stands out about this scene is less the regeneration itself, and more what happens next.

For a moment, the body of the new Doctor seems to be lifeless. Then, the fingers twitch. A single, long breath comes out. The eyes open.

Intercut with all of this is the classic 1931 adaptation of Frankenstein, which the morgue attendant Pete is watching in the morgue. As the Eighth Doctor is “born”, we hear that classic movie quote:

"IT’S ALIIIIIIIVE!"

Rebirth

I’ll be honest: this scene shouldn’t work. Frankenstein is an incredibly obvious homage to use for this key moment, and the fact that actual film clips are intercut with the Eighth Doctor’s first ever scene should make this scene cheesy. And perhaps it is.

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But it somehow, it does work. Beautifully, I might add. The breath, the eyes opening, the way the light perfectly shines on them: it’s all beautifully shot, and with some fantastic music on top. Altogether, it’s a scene that gives me chills every single time. There are scenes that feature both great direction and cinematography in the TV movie, and this is definitely one of them.

This is the funny thing about regeneration. You can have a terrible exit for one Doctor, but at the same time, a fantastic entrance for another. And that’s exactly what we get with this moment. I don’t think any other regeneration has captured the very idea of “re-birth” quite as effectively as this single scene does. It’s a very different look at regeneration, but also quite an interesting one. As such, this key scene from the movie has always stood out to me, for all of the right reasons.

What are your thoughts on this regeneration? Do you think it’s an effective one? Is it a strong start to the Eighth Doctor’s life? Let us know in the comments below.