The 13th Doctor: S/he ain't here yet.

[Llywela]

17 minutes ago, Locutus said:

Time for another Randomizer installed.

Hehe, yeah, but the randomiser has to be used consciously - I'd like to see the controls actually broken, if only for a short time, as that would generate a whole bunch of storylines both for the Doctor and companion(s), without having to graft a plot on externally. The Doctor would have to spend some time trying to repair the controls, while also dealing with whatever situations they blundered into while travelling blind. The Doctor would have to come to terms with no longer being in control of the TARDIS, effectively coming full circle. The unplanned companion would have to come to terms with being trapped aboard the TARDIS, unable to go home at least in the short term - possibly not ever. The Doctor and the companion would have to get to know one another while dealing with all of the above. See, loads of ongoing storyline potential, all built on a single event.

[starri]

If they're going to with a solo male companion, just cast Alfred Enoch and close the circle.

[benteen]

6 hours ago, Llywela said:

I vote for both - I'd love to see a proper ensemble cast, that's been the best thing about having Nardole around this season: having that more varied team dynamic, rather than simply a partnership. I vote for two companions, preferably from different times and places so that as well as getting to know the Doctor they are also getting to know one another, forming a relationship of their own. And not necessarily two people who instantly choose to drop everything to travel with the Doctor, either - ever since New Who started, I've wanted to see the TARDIS break again, if only for a while, so that whoever has dashed into the TARDIS with the Doctor to escape danger in the moment of it breaking finds themselves stuck with him, like it or not - a very classic set-up, but something totally fresh for New Who, which has always focused on willing and eager travellers. Let's have an unwilling traveller now, and watch their journey - forget plot arcs grafted on from the outside, you'd get a whole built-in story arc then about this person having to come to terms with their situation, coming to terms with possibly never being able to go home, learning to love their travels, having to face big choices when the TARDIS was repaired again, etc.

I liked having another companion in the Tardis myself who wasn't related to the primary companion.  My only issue was that I felt that Nardole took too much away from Bill and what she contributed to a mission.  But two equal companions I would definitely like.

Wouldn't mind the randomizer acting up myself.

[ganesh]

I think the show is far along enough that the Doctor doesn't need a regular companion. 

[Lantern7]

Some people weren't too "taken" with "The Deadly Assassin," the only arc without a companion.

If Jack comes back, I think he'd just be friends. "Look, I know that I hit on everything and everyone. But you were way too old for me back then, and I'm not feeling it now. Sorry."

[Florinaldo]

On 2017-07-19 at 6:23 PM, Lokiberry said:

I've read this from several people about Romana's regeneration, but it didn't happen. All of the forms she tried on were female.

You are correct. And yet I had that distinct image of Romana coming out as a Gengis-Khan like barbarian. The strange tricks memory can play.  Even discounting Joanna Lumley's turn as the Doctor in the Comic Relief Curse of Fatal Death and that jokey and absurd Romana scene in Destiny of the Daleks, not one of Douglas Adams most clever inventions, it remains that in recent memory the show has shown twice the possibility of Time Lords crossing the gender line in their regeneration.

Considering that the character has gone through quite a variety of male personas, across many personality types and a good chunk of the age spectrum, this casting news was almost inevitable. Just as one day we may get a non-Caucasian Doctor, or a subtly gay or pansexual one. It opens up new story possibilities and it adds variety to the show, so there was every reason to do it from a creative and scriptwriting point of view.

7 hours ago, ganesh said:

I think the show is far along enough that the Doctor doesn't need a regular companion. 

Companions are useful for exposition purposes and for creating sub-plots and jeopardy. It also brings some variety to the dynamics inside the TARDIS instead of having the Doctor in a succession of soliloquies. I think some multi-companion teams were especially successful, like Jamie-Zoe, Nardole-Bill or Teegan/Adric-Turlough-Nyssa.

22 hours ago, Lantern7 said:

If the story sucks, the writers are to blame. I think Colin Baker has that monogrammed in Latin somewhere.

Indeed. He has proven in the series of audio stories from Big Finish how great a Doctor he can be when provided with good scripts. One of my three favourite Doctors, even considering only the TV stories.

[eXiled]

1 hour ago, Florinaldo said:

Indeed. He has proven in the series of audio stories from Big Finish how great a Doctor he can be when provided with good scripts. One of my three favourite Doctors, even considering only the TV stories.

I like seeing others who appreciate Six/Colin Baker. I think he's wonderful and if he'd been given good scripts and a fair run at it, he could have been a great Doctor. In fairness, though, when I think if him, I think of his older self doing conventions, voice-overs and documentaries. He's so game and has such a great voice.

[Lokiberry]

2 hours ago, Florinaldo said:

You are correct. And yet I had that distinct image of Romana coming out as a Gengis-Khan like barbarian. The strange tricks memory can play. 

I believe you're thinking of Tom Baker's first story, Robot. After regenerating, he goes through a series of wacky costumes (including a barbarian) before finally deciding on the one he's known for.

[ganesh]

5 hours ago, Florinaldo said:

Companions are useful for exposition purposes and for creating sub-plots and jeopardy.

I don't think a regular companion is necessary. The specials have had the Doctor run across plenty of people. The Doctor could pick people up here and there. It still serves the exposition purposes. 

Edited July 22, 2017 by ganesh

[Locutus]

I wonder if a season of rotating former companions would be good. Martha and Jack back for a 2-3 parter, then drop them off and run into someone else for another set of episodes. I'd even take Rose showing up, as long as she brought Human-Ten and her mother.

Edited July 22, 2017 by Locutus

[starri]

7 hours ago, ganesh said:

I don't think a regular companion is necessary. The specials have had the Doctor run across plenty of people. The Doctor could pick people up here and there. It still serves the exposition purposes. 

Do you have any time to form an emotional attachment to any of the characters if they're only there for an episode or two?  Would Bill's cyber-conversion have had any power if we hadn't gotten to know her?

Not to mention the gut punch of seeing the Doctor fighting off the Regeneration while at the same time flashing back on all of his companions (except Rory, for whatever reason).

I don't need (and really don't want) a companion who is some kind of season-long mystery, because those were highly annoying.  But I cannot imagine these last twelve years without Donna Noble, the scared temp for Chiswick who saved the multiverse, or Rose the shopgirl who realized that reality is so much bigger, and weirder, and wonderful than she ever thought possible, or the Boy Who Waited...

Hell, my absolute favorite episode of nuWho is "School Reunion," which is all about what being a companion does to a person.  I was in tears by the end of it, and I'd never seen a classic episode before then.

[Mabinogia]

1 hour ago, starri said:

Do you have any time to form an emotional attachment to any of the characters if they're only there for an episode or two?

Exactly. Those some of the one offs have been fine, I didn't really care about them. I loved watching Donna, Martha, Amy & Rory, Bill all change and grow over their time with the Doctor. I think having a revolving door of companions would be even worse than when Clara was just a weekender companion, going about her life and hanging with the Doctor when it's convenient. Plus, one "it's bigger on the inside" is enough per season. I don't want to have to watch multiple people adjust to the Doctors world, and I especially don't want people so hip and jaded that it doesn't phase them at all.

I would like a non-contemporary companion though or even a non-Earth companion. One good thing about a female Doctor is it lessens the chance of getting a spunky young female sidekick who takes over the show.

I do second not wanting the whole season to revolve around the companions uber specialness. What I loved so much about Bill is that she was just Bill, a normal girl going about her life who gets swept up in this crazy world of time and space travel. Rose started that way until they went the romance angle and ruined it. Martha was that way as was Donna. All my favorites. They all were normal humans who did something extraordinary.

[starri]

1 hour ago, Mabinogia said:

Exactly. Those some of the one offs have been fine, I didn't really care about them.

I think the only one I ever felt true affection for was Kylie Minogue's Astrid, and that's probably only because I like Kylie so much.

I don't honestly think I liked any of the four David Tennant Specials season, and actively hated Planet of the Dead.  I liked most of the Moffat-era ones, except for The Doctor, the Widow, and the Wardrobe, which I found so cloying I had to turn it off, and The Time of the Doctor, which was Moffat Moffating to the extreme, but that was because they mostly involved the established companions.  Or, in the case of A Christmas Carol, was mostly about the guest stars.

[ganesh]

5 hours ago, starri said:

Do you have any time to form an emotional attachment to any of the characters if they're only there for an episode or two?

If I'm attached to the Doctor and the Doctor cares about helping these people, then wouldn't I care too?

The reason people feel like they need a steady companion is because there's always been one since the start of the new era. Which I don't think is a reason. I get the point is that the companion is the audience stand in and exposition, etc., but at this point I don't think it's necessary. 

[starri]

1 minute ago, ganesh said:

If I'm attached to the Doctor and the Doctor cares about helping these people, then wouldn't I care too?

Because I'm not sure I would be as attached to the Doctor if I didn't see the way s/he interacted with the Companions?

I don't think S4 would mean nearly as much to me if it wasn't the Doctor and Donna running around the universe being best friends.

[smorbie]

On 6/30/2017 at 10:53 AM, Lantern7 said:

Does anybody else read Doctor Who Magazine? Years ago, somebody wrote an essay about the most Doctor-like performances. The top slot: Gene Wilder as Willy Wonka

I was just thinking that today.  The twinkle in the eye, the unpredictability of the character.  And plus, I just loved Gene Wilder and I adored him as WW.  Ten and Eleven certainly encompass that.

I'm just going to say it.  Throw things at me if you want, I don't care.  I want the next doctor to be a white, British male.  I've had my fill of characters being changed to meet some social-justice quota.  I recently finished season one of a show.  I enjoyed the show and thought the story was good, but I won't be back for the next season.  The story comes from a series of graphic novels and it has altered and destroyed many of the characters that have been around for generations in an effort to represent different groups.

You know what the effect has been?  I was on the forum looking at what would happen next season, and all people could talk about was whether they FINALLY introduce a transgendered person.  Really?  The show ended on a cliffhanger, but no one cared.  All they cared about was representation of all the politically-correct groups.

I say let's not ruin something we've enjoyed for many years.  Let's at least let our Doctor have some continuity.

[Mabinogia]

I think the show would get pretty tedious if we had to go through a new companion wrapping their head around the whole travelling through time and space thing and would get annoying if the show skipped that part and expected us to just understand that the Doctor has explained it all before their adventure began. I also wouldn't want all the companions to be so cool they don't need it explained to them.

I just don't see any benefit to not having a steady companion. I like the Doctor having one constant. I don't want to see the Doctor constantly interacting with strangers that aren't going to develop into friends. And bringing back old companions, while it would be great to see some of my favorites again, I just don't know. It would feel off to me. I think a full time companion gives the Doctor a much needed mate.

[starri]

2 minutes ago, Mabinogia said:

I think a full time companion gives the Doctor a much needed mate.

You want him *to mate*!?!?!

[Mabinogia]

" You're not mating with me, sunshine!" (I love that scene) And that is the kind of relationship I want the Doctor to have with his/her companion. A bit of fun, a bit of support, lots of growing and learning together. Can't do that with a revolving door of companions. Unless the Doctor does start to mate again, in which case, ditch that companion post haste! I don't want another angsty love story. I want light, fun buddies in space (and time)

[starri]

1 hour ago, smorbie said:

Throw things at me if you want, I don't care.  I want the next doctor to be a white, British male.  I've had my fill of characters being changed to meet some social-justice quota

I'm fresh out of things to throw, so all I can say is this:

I don't understand why the knee jerk reaction is always to hurl accusations of needing a box checked.  Why can't it just be that they want to try telling a story a certain way?  Because what you're describing, the story about the white guy?  They've told that one twelve times now, and it's gotten rather stale of late.  Do they not have the right to try something new?

[ganesh]

1 hour ago, starri said:

Because I'm not sure I would be as attached to the Doctor if I didn't see the way s/he interacted with the Companions?

Obviously this is YMMV so I don't know why it's an argument and clearly it's not going to happen, but the fundamental point is that a companion isn't necessary at this point in terms of "audience stand in". The show is over a decade old and I think most viewers get what the premise is. Obviously, when Nine debuted, a companion was essential. 

I don't think it's a big deal at thing point if the Doctor wants to travel alone. He has in the specials already, and off screen. 

I tend to think much of the "the Doctor needs a companion" stems from this is how it's been done so this is how we expect it to be, and it really doesn't have to be so formulaic. They could write it effectively otherwise, which I know itself is a stretch. 

 

32 minutes ago, starri said:

Why can't it just be that they want to try telling a story a certain way? Do they not have the right to try something new?

I know this is taken out of context, but that's essentially my point. 

[starri]

1 minute ago, ganesh said:

I know this is taken out of context, but that's essentially my point. 

Firstly, there's no indication that they're going to try telling the story without Thirteen having a Companion.

Secondly, even though they'd certainly be within their rights to do it, we've seen episodes and specials where the Doctor hasn't had a Companion (at least not one who lasted beyond the episode), and that hasn't always worked out well.  They've never had a female Doctor before.  It's kind of apples and oranges.

[supposebly]

Well, with a revolving door of people coming into the TARDIS and having adventures, every time, reasonably we will get the "it's bigger on the inside/yes it travels through time and space" sequence. As far as I remember, the TARDIS is pretty special in most times and spaces, so even advanced aliens would have a reaction. 

With 13 episodes and 13 adventure companions, that could get old really really fast. Unless no one ever gets to see the TARDIS.

And the Doctor alone in the TARDIS for a whole season muttering to herself probably even faster. Again, unless we never see her in the TARDIS.

I don't think a constant companion is necessary as an audience stand-in but they are necessary for story-telling purposes simply because the alternative is worse. No TARDIS inside on screen!

Edited July 22, 2017 by supposebly
Pronouns need to be feminine now!

[smorbie]

companions serve the purpose of having someone to be explained plot points to. Otherwise it would just be the doctor doing things and we wouldn't know why or have any understanding of why such actions are necessary.  There have been times when there weren't companions but he always had someone to explain the whole story to.  And I think that would get old on a weekly basis.  I would be up for just him and Nardole traveling for awhile, though.  I rather like the idea of a nonhuman companion.

[call me ishmael]

2 hours ago, smorbie said:

I say let's not ruin something we've enjoyed for many years.

And i say i don't think they are ruining anything just trying something new.  Sort of the whole point of the Doctor's adventures isn't it?

[ganesh]

My point too. You can have one episode alone, 3 more with a new companion, etc. Maybe an alien who has heard about Time Lords and finally got to meet one. 

If you have literally all of time and space at your disposal, it's kind of ridiculous that it's the same thing over and over again.

Edited July 22, 2017 by ganesh

[Blergh]

FWIW, the way I look at it is that "Dr. Who" being a British show and Great Britain being a monarchy, it's high time for there to be a female Dr. Who just as Great Britain has had interesting times under its female monarchs despite them being rarer than male ones.  I'm interested to see if the Female Doctor will be hetero, lesbian, bi or even asexual and how she will relate to those of the opposite gender that she herself had been the previous twelve incarnations!  I also hope Miss Whittaker gets presented to Her Majesty while she is embodying the role.

[Mabinogia]

I imagine that changing genders is more change than a certain set of fans can handle. Female and no constant companion might just push them over the edge. lol

I don't think the companion is an audience substitute anymore, and if that were so, a constantly changing one would suit that purpose. The companion is someone the Doctor can build a relationship with, a friendship with. I imagine it would get really lonely for the Doctor to travel around with people who are basically always strangers to her. The Doctor is the one who wants a regular companion and I don't really see that changing.

[ganesh]

Is that true though? Eleven traveled for 200 years 'off-screen' without a companion. Or was on Trenzalore without one. 

[TwirlyGirly]

7 minutes ago, ganesh said:

Is that true though? Eleven traveled for 200 years 'off-screen' without a companion. Or was on Trenzalore without one. 

In "The Time of the Doctor," on Trenzalore, wasn't "Handles," the Cyberman head, a stand-in for a companion, though? So, the Doctor does have a companion, in one form or another, most of the time.

[call me ishmael]

21 minutes ago, ganesh said:

Is that true though? Eleven traveled for 200 years 'off-screen' without a companion. Or was on Trenzalore without one. 

I'm not sure how relevant this is though.  That was a special situation where he wasn't going anywhere and didn't want anyone else to waste their time in a last stand before he died.

[ganesh]

200 years is a long time. I dispute the point that the Doctor can't travel on his own and see what's what in the universe, and whether there's points in their life where they don't feel the need for a companion. That doesn't mean there's points where the Doctor does prefer a companion, just that the Doctor doesn't necessarily *need* one.

Quote

The Doctor became capable of carrying the entire dynamic of the show’s original ensemble entirely on his own, as action hero and wondering child and magical trickster all at once.

https://www.vox.com/culture/2017/7/21/15999684/doctor-who-woman-doctor-jodie-whittaker-thirteen

And they're talking about the classic era here.

Edited July 23, 2017 by ganesh

[foreverevolving]

interesting read:

https://www.vox.com/culture/2017/7/21/15999684/doctor-who-woman-doctor-jodie-whittaker-thirteen

[Lokiberry]

Why would the first female Doctor not have a companion when all the male ones did? Why would she need to travel on her own, occasionally meeting strangers to share an adventure with? Why would she be the only one denied the friendship that the Doctor has always sought? Why should she be treated differently than every other Doctor?

Companions aren't audience stand ins, they're integral parts of the story.  A good companion can help lift a mediocre story, a bad one can sink a season.

[supposebly]

11 hours ago, foreverevolving said:

interesting read:

https://www.vox.com/culture/2017/7/21/15999684/doctor-who-woman-doctor-jodie-whittaker-thirteen

I love that characterization of the First Doctor.  "....he was like a Mary Poppins whom you couldn't quite trust." I would argue that is still somewhat the case continuing in Moffat's catch phrase: "The Doctor lies." Still, Mary Poppins, he is not anymore.

[clack]

I want a companion that the Doctor recruits for a reason. That's why I preferred Clara and Amy to the other companions.

If you step back and consider the matter, the Doctor is being a criminally irresponsible dick in picking up some random  shop girl or cafeteria worker that he happens to bump into and dragging them along to fight against some of the most dangerous forces in the universe.

How about bringing along someone with useful skills? A scientist? Detective? A 25th century time agent?

[Lantern7]

How about Strax? He delivers a ridiculous one-minute monologue. Cut to the Doctor: "I'm really okay with this [gesturing to herself], but I'm trying to ease into it, and he can't tell the genders apart. Why confuse him?"

[ganesh]

7 hours ago, Lokiberry said:

Why would the first female Doctor not have a companion when all the male ones did? Why would she need to travel on her own, occasionally meeting strangers to share an adventure with? Why would she be the only one denied the friendship that the Doctor has always sought? Why should she be treated differently than every other Doctor?

Apparently you haven't been following this particular thread and jumped in the middle. I say it every time there's a regen. Why should the Doctor have a companion is as valid a question as why shouldn't the Doctor not have a companion in that there's no law or rule to it either way, and it's essentially a tv cheat that really isn't necessary. 

It's got nothing to do with being a woman Doctor and I resent the implication of the initial quote. Given how tragic most of the endings are for the companions maybe the Doctor reflects on how she's ruining these people's lives and maybe hold off for a little while. I'm also not the only one with this thought. 

14 hours ago, ganesh said:

The Doctor became capable of carrying the entire dynamic of the show’s original ensemble entirely on his own, as action hero and wondering child and magical trickster all at once.

 

18 hours ago, TwirlyGirly1 said:

In "The Time of the Doctor," on Trenzalore, wasn't "Handles," the Cyberman head, a stand-in for a companion, though? So, the Doctor does have a companion, in one form or another, most of the time.

Splitting that hair awfully thin there. I'll concede that Trenzalore was a unique situation though and may not be a relevant argument here. 

 

49 minutes ago, clack said:

I want a companion that the Doctor recruits for a reason. That's why I preferred Clara and Amy to the other companions.

If you step back and consider the matter, the Doctor is being a criminally irresponsible dick in picking up some random  shop girl or cafeteria worker that he happens to bump into and dragging them along to fight against some of the most dangerous forces in the universe.

How about bringing along someone with useful skills? A scientist? Detective? A 25th century time agent?

And that's kind of where I'm coming from. It's been basically, 'well, the Doctor needs a companion to travel because he always has one' without asking why. There's a severe lack of self awareness with the Doctor, and it would be nice at least for the Doctor to reflect. When you think about it, Martha was the only really capable on (at the start; I like Donna because she grew to be brave), and Martha was the only one that walked away. I suppose Rose was ok. But I mean, Twelve got Bill cyberized. 

[Llywela]

It's mostly only been a New Who thing that all the companions have tragic endings, which says more about today's style of storytelling than it does the history of the Doctor's travels with companions. But the show does work better as an ensemble, and the Doctor as a character works better when he has an ongoing relationship with someone travelling with him.

I still say we need to go back to the days when the Doctor couldn't steer the TARDIS so that anyone who was aboard at the time it took off was effectively stranded with him - sometimes by accident. No tragic ending required, beyond the bittersweet sorrow of parting when the time comes to go their separate ways, but plenty of story to be told in the meantime.

[ganesh]

Maybe they need to get back to the classic set up then because at this point it's making the Doctor look cold and careless. *Especially* with Bill being turned into a Cyberman. Twelve just woke up, and as far as he knows, she still is. Some remorse would be nice for a change. 

[call me ishmael]

27 minutes ago, ganesh said:

Maybe they need to get back to the classic set up then because at this point it's making the Doctor look cold and careless. *Especially* with Bill being turned into a Cyberman. Twelve just woke up, and as far as he knows, she still is. Some remorse would be nice for a change. 

I agree with this.  I wonder if part of the problem with NuWho hasn't been the overemphasis on identification.  I always wanted Four's scarf as a kid but it wasn't because I identified with him.  And i loved Ramona and Leela but i hardly adopted their POVs.  It is NuWho with the sense that you can only watch someone that you identify with that has upped the emo quality and with it the doomed relationship and companion business.  If they were just friends or companions the Doctor saw sometimes you wouldn't need tragedy to bring about a separation.  And if you took that out people could go back to having good fun without worrying if the story was going to achieve Wagnerian proportions.

[supposebly]

Personally, I didn't identify with any of the companions of NuWho. I think what RTD did well was make me sympathize with them. I found them all relatable on some level, certainly more than I related to the Doctor. In my mind, I'm not supposed to sympathize with him all that much.

I can relate to the 19-year-old shop girl who gets swept off her feet by Nine and Ten although I have never been a shop girl and I have been very far from 19 for a long time. I can relate to the aspiring doctor who falls for Ten and I can relate to the allure he had for her. I sympathized with Donna, at my age I understand missed opportunities and regrets, even the ones I can't even remember why I might have regretted in the first place. I don't identify but I can relate. 

I could somewhat relate to Amelia and older Amy but she did get reduced to a catch phrase (the girl who waited) and only made more layered by missed motherhood and a boyfriend. I hate Clara and I stopped watching. I loved River, not because of her characterization but because of Alex Kingston. Not because I could relate to her. I still don't buy this eternal love that started the moment she had poisoned him. It never really worked for me. If nothing else, I'm eternally grateful that Moffat is NOT writing for a female doctor.

Rose, Martha, and Donna (and to an extent Sarah Jane in School Reunion) made the Doctor more interesting to me because he was shown through their lens. He became a little bit what they saw.

I might be alone in this but by herself, the Doctor isn't all that interesting and at worst, she's kind of an asshole. I like her that way but I do think I need someone I can actually relate to. So, I think the companion is important because they make the Doctor interesting and give him layers.

[ganesh]

I do like that the Doctor can inspire people to be better than they are or can achieve things that they didn't think they could. I think they've strayed away from that recently though. If you have to have a companion, maybe they should try to get back to that. My point was that the audience doesn't *need* a companion per se as a stand in at this point. I would personally prefer the Doctor being like, "oh I really messed up with Bill and maybe I need some alone time for a while". That only has to last 4-5 episodes out of a 13 episode season, because the Doctor could essentially have traveled for 100 years over that episode span.

[Lokiberry]

3 hours ago, ganesh said:

Apparently you haven't been following this particular thread and jumped in the middle. I say it every time there's a regen. Why should the Doctor have a companion is as valid a question as why shouldn't the Doctor not have a companion in that there's no law or rule to it either way, and it's essentially a tv cheat that really isn't necessary. 

It's got nothing to do with being a woman Doctor and I resent the implication of the initial quote. Given how tragic most of the endings are for the companions maybe the Doctor reflects on how she's ruining these people's lives and maybe hold off for a little while. I'm also not the only one with this thought. 

 

 

 

I have been following this thread and what I've picked up is a call to change the structure of the show after 26 classic  and 10 NuWho series right after the Doctor changes gender. Switching genders is minor compared to getting rid of the companions. Apart from some specials and the classic serial, The Deadly Assassin, companions have always been there. I'd don't mean what happened off screen, or a book, or Big Finish; the show itself has always had companions.

There has always been 3 constants in Doctor Who: the Doctor, the TARDIS, and the companions. Why does that need to change? Why does it need to change now? How does it impact the story if it's only the Doctor interacting with strangers? Why can't the 13th Doctor have the same things her predecessors had? If it's a question of how tragically companions end in NuWho, that's on the last 2 showrunners.  The long history of DW doesn't support that.

What it comes down to is I don't want to see the Doctor roaming around in an empty TARDIS because the message to me will be that no one is willing to follow this woman around  time and space like they did when she was a man. No one is as devoted to her, admires her as much as they did when she was a man.

[truther]

2 hours ago, Lokiberry said:

 

What it comes down to is I don't want to see the Doctor roaming around in an empty TARDIS because the message to me will be that no one is willing to follow this woman around  time and space like they did when she was a man. No one is as devoted to her, admires her as much as they did when she was a man.

This is what I dread -- that everything will now be viewed through this particular lens, and the show will suffer for it because nothing will ever just be about the story anymore.  Think of all the episodes of Doctor Who, all the speeches, all the criticisms, all the foibles and faults, where if the Doctor had been female you could read some kind of misogyny into what was going on.  

[starri]

Completely off the subject, I've found myself wondering what from the previous Doctors she's going to bring into her performance.  I assume, just like all the other nuWho Doctors, she was forced to watch as many of the old serials as possible.  Capaldi seemed to take both his costuming cues and his general attitude from Three.  Smith admittedly loved Two's twitchiness, and that's why he would always be fidgeting and rubbing his hands together.  David Tennant seemed to have borrowed from Tom Baker.

So, if Jodie is going to bring some stuff forward into Thirteen, I hope it's Seven.  I'd just like to see her as the cool professor who teaches the one awesome class everyone wants to take.

[ganesh]

38 minutes ago, starri said:

So, if Jodie is going to bring some stuff forward into Thirteen, I hope it's Seven.  I'd just like to see her as the cool professor who teaches the one awesome class everyone wants to take.

That's actually me irl and please yes.

[Daisy]

12 hours ago, starri said:

Completely off the subject, I've found myself wondering what from the previous Doctors she's going to bring into her performance.  I assume, just like all the other nuWho Doctors, she was forced to watch as many of the old serials as possible.  Capaldi seemed to take both his costuming cues and his general attitude from Three.  Smith admittedly loved Two's twitchiness, and that's why he would always be fidgeting and rubbing his hands together.  David Tennant seemed to have borrowed from Tom Baker.

So, if Jodie is going to bring some stuff forward into Thirteen, I hope it's Seven.  I'd just like to see her as the cool professor who teaches the one awesome class everyone wants to take.

and if she's Seven - she'd also have the dark-side factor to her too. which would be kinda cool.

[Chip]

We have a new thread for discussion of Doctor 13: 

[benteen]

15 hours ago, starri said:

Completely off the subject, I've found myself wondering what from the previous Doctors she's going to bring into her performance.  I assume, just like all the other nuWho Doctors, she was forced to watch as many of the old serials as possible.  Capaldi seemed to take both his costuming cues and his general attitude from Three.  Smith admittedly loved Two's twitchiness, and that's why he would always be fidgeting and rubbing his hands together.  David Tennant seemed to have borrowed from Tom Baker.

So, if Jodie is going to bring some stuff forward into Thirteen, I hope it's Seven.  I'd just like to see her as the cool professor who teaches the one awesome class everyone wants to take.

DT borrowed a lot from his favorite Doctor Peter Davison.