I love Doctor Who! It's clever, funny, exciting, and mostly clean. However, it's a niche thing; you either hate it or love it. I'm very difficult to please when it comes to entertainment because I have high standards for morals and for quality, but love this show. Still, I'm a geek, others might not like it as much even though it is very good quality.
Most all of the shows are brilliantly clever, well plotted, and deep. This is probably one of the only shows on which shows that there are consequences for actions and has solid role models. And they're not just role models- they're people like us. Believable. They don't always do the right thing, but they almost always learn a lesson when they don't. But more than that, there are rich, complex themes to mull over and dwell on, and ethical tangles where you have to think through the grey areas. What would I do if I were so-and-so? The show can be enjoyed passively, but is far, far, greater when you take time to think through it.
Every show has laugh out loud moments and tender, sad times. I've cried in numerous episodes, which is saying a whole lot for me! The situations which come up may be "unrealistic", set on a planet far away with a mad man and his box, but at the heart of it, there are truths and realities which every one of us can relate to. The characters really grow on you, because they are so realistic.
I approved this for ages twelve and up. Some younger kids may be able to watch it, but the episodes are very scary. I was a sensitive child who would have been scarred for life had I watched these as a kid. However, some kids can handle it. It all depends. Violence isn’t a big deal. There’s nothing remotely gory, just scary monsters. One thing which delights me is that the Doctor doesn’t use force and weapons to save the day, he uses his wit. This makes the shows cleaner, more interesting, and more ethical.
In the shows, there are a handful of words which I don't approve of, and God's name is taken in vain, but there are no plug-your-ears-and-run-for-the-hills moments.
Sex is an issue to be considered. While there is nothing remotely explicit, there are some innuendos. While they're not so bad that I feel affronted, they're the kind of thing where some naive, unsuspecting kid might quote something inappropriate and have no clue. As another reviewer said, they're no worse than what you would hear on the school bus. And sometimes... they're actually kind of FUNNY, as much as it gals me to admit it. Also, some females dress in a revealing way. However, you’d be confronted with far worse images just by taking your kids shopping at the mall, so I don’t feel that it’s such a big deal. I wouldn’t dress that way, but it’s not a major turn-off because it isn’t worse than anything someone might be wearing at the grocery store.
All in all, Doctor Who is a delightful, brilliant, funny, and overall enjoyable show with surprisingly decent content.