Peter Capaldi Is The 12th Doctor

Never has so much fuss and/or excitement been made -- either somewhat orchestrated by network execs or indeed genuinely from fans -- over the arrival of a new actor in the role of the Doctor on BBC's wildly popular Doctor Who.

If David Tennant's tenth Doctor captured a whole new batch of fangirls (and boys), Matt Smith's eleventh eventually did much the same -- after, of course, a lot of fuss was made about Tennant leaving the role. Well, we knew it to been coming for a couple of months now, but Smith's exit will be happening in the 50th anniversary special of the show on November 23rd, which means we were gonna get wind of his replacement sooner rather than later.

Announced during a special half-hour program Sunday evening, that replacement is none other than Peter Capaldi, the 55-year old actor best known for his role as the electric, foul-mouthed Malcolm Tucker on the political comedy show The Thick Of It and its feature spin-off In The Loop. We're big, big fans of Capaldi at ScreenAnarchy.

So while Capaldi is very much a safe choice (Both Helen Mirren and Chiwetel Ejiofor were fan's dream casting) for the role of The Doctor, he is nonetheless an exciting pick, and seems to fit in with any sense of tradition the show has in casting lineage -- in that there have been a good number of skinny, eccentric and white British men in the part.

As showrunner Steven Moffat's version of Doctor Who has edged closer and closer to the 50th anniversary of the character, it's more than hinted at that we're about to get some pretty dark storylines having to deal with the Doctor's past (as in WHO is the Doctor?). So while Capaldi will in no way be cursing up a spout (this is a children's show after all), he does seem a great choice for a more tortured, possibly even maniacal incarnation of the character.

Are you pleased with Moffat's choice for the twelfth doctor? Is it too safe? Too boring? Make some noise in the comments.