Cloyingly sentimental? Exuberantly uplifting? That's not what our favorite family SF/adventure/horror saga has been about, with rare exceptions, over the last almost-50 years. And yet we fans can still turn to it when things are looking a little grim. There's something that Doctor Who does to brighten our day without even trying…
Share and enjoy!
Feel good doesnt necessarily mean sentimentality. We watch Doctor Who, especially a repeat, to enjoy a story. To feel good.
You say punching the air. Most modern watchers seem to need that extreme of emotion to feel good. To raise their emotions to something visible, external.
The rest of us oldies can feel good without reaching for the sky.