The Ever Expanding Universe of Doctor Who
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Doctor in Henry Van Statten’s underground compound in Utah {Doctor
Who “Dalek”). Roughly two seasons later, the TARDIS materializes in
New York City in the year 1930 {Doctor Who “Daleks in Manhattan”).
In Seasons Six and Seven, the Doctor returns to these two locations, with
one additional episode in the western town of Mercy. Based upon the
choice of backdrops for the American episodes, it would seem that the
British have a very dichotomous view of the United States. The main
settings for these episodes fall into two categories: New York City and
the desert. When taking a closer look at the individual episodes, we do
see a few other iconic American locations as well; the Oval Office and
Cape Canaveral. Outside of these two brief excursions, both in a single
storyline framed by the Utah desert, all seven American episodes, and
indeed all nine if including New New York, fit into one of these two
locations. This suggests that the British people see New York City as the
center of the United States and the rest of the country as unimportant or
barren.
This depiction of America leads to an interesting question—is
this truly Britons’ idea of the U.S. or is this simply their assimilation of
America’s self-portraits in cinema and television? Hollywood films are
disseminated throughout the world, and oftentimes their storylines use a
similarly polarized view of the United States. Though tending to include
more than just New York City when representing the idea of civilization,
big American blockbusters still do often focus on two or three major
cities to portray the U.S. This distorted image that America itself projects
may be to blame for the narrowness of the locations shown in Doctor
Who.
Another transatlantic pop-cultural exchange is hinted at in the
series. The trade of music between the United States and Great Britain is
also seen through the Doctor’s travels. In one episode, characters must
answer a series of questions to get through a corridor of locked doors.
One of the tougher questions for the two Brits is regarding ‘“Classical
Music: Who had more pre-download number ones, Elvis Presley or The
Beatles?”’ (“42”). Correctly answering Elvis, the pair goes on to help the
Doctor save everyone on board the spaceship. Later in the series, but
earlier in time, the Doctor and his companions meet in the Utah desert.
While in a stereotypical American diner, Adele is playing in the
background. Although this British artist is popular in the United States, it
is noteworthy that the show should choose a British song rather than one
by an American. The choice of song is not out-of-place; rather it seems