Do I have to repeat myself again?
(
)
7 Likes
Billie’s Rose is a big part of why Series 1 is so fantastic. Eccleston was (and still is, of course) AMAZING, but Rose reached out to that new audience as well. She was fresh, young, pro-active and, above all (as @Tian rightly says), she felt like a real person.
Though I was somewhat less fond of the way Rose came across in Series 2 (I don’t blame Billie in the slightest - I believe it was a combination of the different chemistry between her and Tennant as well as the writers leaning a little too far in that direction), I will ever champion how wonderful Rose was in Series 1. It is a big part of the reason why I - like so many others - am so excited for the new range of 9th Doctor / Rose audios later this year. Rose and Nine had a really superb and unique connection as companion and Doctor. She was exactly he needed at that point in his (long long) life. Beautifully, he was also precisely what she needed to realise her potential and make a difference.
He gave her adventure and vast horizons. She gave him back his soul.
Stunning.
11 Likes
I was in a US Gender History class, and for our last class on Monday, we had a “campfire” of sorts where we all brought in an item somehow connected to how we experience gender. I meant to bring in the tie that I wore for my Tenth Doctor cosplay (I left it at home and showed a photo of it instead). I talked about how as a kid, even before I knew that I was agender or queer or autistic, I still felt like there was something that put an invisible barrier between myself and a lot of other people (I still feel that way even with my gender and sexuality figured out and a list of diagnoses the length of a CVS receipt), and that although that barrier was partially there because I wouldn’t shut up about Doctor Who, I still found so much solace in the show and the characters. I fantasized about being the Doctor, especially 10, my favorite. The Doctor Who special interest was gone from early 2020 to early 2024. By the time it came back, I was more secure in my identity (both gender, sexuality, and various diagnoses). I remember rewatching SJA last summer and immediately thinking that Luke was autistic. I love Ncuti Gatwa’s performance and having such an unapologetically queer actor play the Doctor. Earlier this year at Gallifrey One, I cosplayed as the Tenth Doctor, and I have never felt so much gender euphoria in my life. Anyways, ramble over, but Doctor Who has had a large positive impact on my life. Shoutout to Doctor Who, the best special interest I could ask for.
9 Likes
Perfectly said. It’s that sheer range of storytelling. Though I can really enjoy a good story with epic stakes at times, I often feel that Doctor Who does particularly well with the small scale and the intimate stories. Stories set in a single house (or room, for that matter). Stories where the cast is limited and the stakes are more personal.
In many ways, Horror of Fang Rock is such a story, as was The Story & the Engine. Yes, the stakes in Horror are life and death, but on a relatively small scale for Doctor Who. Nevertheless, the story is (for me, at least) utterly riveting. Similarly, though no-one dies in The Story & the Engine, and the setting is very limited in scope for much of the screen time, the sense of betrayal and the rich thematic nature of the threat to storytelling and belief is its own reward.
Though I know that big, epic finales have become the televisual norm for Doctor Who (and for most fantasy/sci fi shows it seems), it doesn’t have to be this way. Stakes can be much smaller and still lead to compelling storytelling if they matter to the characters we care about.
10 Likes
Oh, I love stuff like this! I wore one of my Pertwee style velvet jackets to work today. I can get away with that - I’m an academic. I’m either out in the field (in which case, practical clothes are the order of the day) or in the lab/lecture theatre where I can dress how I please (within reason) and it pleases me to pay homage to various Doctors. I don’t so much cosplay as develop my own “Doctor” themed spin on professorial chic. Anyway, some students from a different department commented on how fine my jacket was. Now, I’m pretty sure they were taking the proverbial. I’m not great at determining human intent, but I know the sort. Anyway, I could not have cared less. I beamed - because I felt like pure class. Pertwee was with me in that moment, all light bulb brilliance and twinkle.
8 Likes
I also want to add that Thirteen seems (to me at least) autistic and I love that
9 Likes
I think this is very much a thing. I mean, we can acknowledge several telling traits in her portrayal:
-
Fast, tangential speech patterns
-
Difficulty processing or responding to social cues in conventional ways
-
Highly focused enthusiasm (“geeking out”)
-
Awkwardness in emotional expression or physical intimacy
-
A strong sense of justice combined with occasional difficulty understanding emotional nuance
It’s definitely channeled in Jodie’s performance. Whether by accident or design, it is there… and it sings.
Seeing her brief scene in The Reality War made me realise… I really miss Thirteen.
Audios coming from July though. Happy days! 
12 Likes
Chris Chibnall said she was written as such so that’s a win for us!!
9 Likes
Do you know what interview that was from? I believe you, but I’d like to read it for myself.
3 Likes
The wiki says the source is from Twitter someone who met Chibnall & asked. I swear I read him actually confirming it himself somewhere though !
3 Likes
You don’t have to repeat yourself, no.
If you want to extol the manifold virtues of ol’ Sixie, then I’d be up for it. Two thirds of the way through my Season 22 rewatch (for the umpteenth time) and, well, he is so good. People often critique the argumentative nature of his relationship with Peri, but that misses many (very many) lovely little moments. Genuine affection. Even a lot of the ribbing is done with affection. He deserved so much better than he got.
4 Likes
There’s so much that you say which I completely relate to. I’m picking on this element, though, because I think it needs underlining. There was such a lot of subtltey in Jodie’s performance. I think, a bit like happened to Peter Davison for a long while, her subtle acting meant that she didn’t stand out in the same way as the often louder personalities who had previously played the Doctor. For that, some read her as lacking. Remember the whole “wet vet” stuff that used to get said of Davison? Well, she DOES stand out, but in (as you correctly note) a very different - a delightfully unique - way. She’s special. No less the Doctor, but a less bombastic Doctor. And, yes, it’s often in what she holds back. There’s a deep well of intelligence in her performance - and I really don’t think she got the credit she deserved for that.
9 Likes
What a fabulous love fest this has been reading over this thread. As many of you know I started off watching the classics but that “Yowzah” moment for me was with “Rose”
I was SO excited for the reboot and to see where Dr Who would go next. I was literally on cloud 9. Rose had more depth than most of the companions before. Of course 15 years was a long wait and technology had gotten much better 
4 Likes
Aha! My plan has worked!
4 Likes
Where would it go next?
To The End of the World… actually, an episode I enjoy more and more with every rewatch. It’s full of weirdness, fun and depth. That wonderful sense of alienation that Rose feels. Really astute storytelling. And then back for chips (and guess who was buying?)
5 Likes
Oh yeah for sure! Eccleston truly wasnt given enough credit.
He was really really good.
The writers shoulda let him use the sonic to do this more offten 
More of this please
7 Likes
I feel like I hype up Six everyday, everywhere in my life, so instead of drafting an entirely new essay, which I have already done a number of times, I’ll just paste an abridged/revised version of what I have written in a previous thread:
-
I love Six’s characterization. I love how brash and pompous he is. He’s intelligent and he knows it, refuses to dumb himself down for anyone. He’s cultured, well-read, well-spoken, well versed in the arts and he’ll make sure you know it. He doesn’t care if he dresses differently from others, or if he’s considered “weird” because of the way he speaks and acts. To quote Kendrick Lamar, he won’t fake humble just 'cause your ass is insecure. I also love how a lot of Six’s appreciation of literature and theatre (and other things) is because Colin also has a love for those things. Actors usually play roles that are far removed from their actual selves, but Six fits him so well. Colin even changed a few of his lines to strengthen the vocabulary.
-
And yet he has a playful side. He may come across like he’s serious to a fault, but he knows when to not take himself too seriously. He’s a teddy bear deep down (and keeps one in his pocket!), and when he loves, he loves hard. You have his loyalty for life, and he wears his hearts in his sleeve. I love how he canonically suffers from depression and existential crises that bring him great anxiety. He bottles a lot in, but he isn’t afraid to hurt. I can tell that people who rag on Fifteen’s single tear haven’t dived into Six’s era, because Six makes Fifteen look like a stoic. He is constantly beating himself up for something.
-
I also appreciate how visibly autistic he is. I find his characterization to be very relatable. Years ago I actually wrote an entire 17k essay comparing his characterization to the autistic diagnostic criteria. He does align with the qualifications needed for diagnosis.
-
The relationship between him and Peri cannot be feigned. There is no acting there. Their relationship is as strong as it is because Colin and Nicola are the epitome of soulmates (friends can be soulmates). Six has a great rapport with his other companions, but he and Peri are something special. There’s a reason why she calls Six “her Doctor” and he says Peri is “his companion”.
And on and on.
7 Likes
I gotta agree with you here. Though Peri was not with 5 any amount of time, could tell she had good potential when she dealt with the Master. But there was still no connection. But with 6… they were like 2 puzzle pieces that fit together. Same with Clara and 12. With her and 11 I didnt get that “Magic” or soul mate feel but it was there with 12.
6 Likes
I agree!
Jackie is one of those characters who just has IT. The X factor, kant, big Jennifer Coolidge energy, whatever you call it. She is a gay icon just by virtue of existing and the sort of person you’d want to hang out with all the time. And Camille - who is also a gay icon, but in a much more mellow way - plays her to perfection.
7 Likes
I understood that reference
4 Likes