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Doctor Who: Jodie Whittaker announced as the 13th Doctor!
- Thread starter SpaceWolf
- Start date
I like that its suggested that the General had been female before, very cool.
Perhaps I didn't phrase my opinion well enough: I meant that Silence in the Library, where River Song first appeared and helped Tenth, was a great episode that instantly made me interested in her character.
Then she showed up in Season 5 onwards, and I didn't like her then despite really liking her introduction. I surmise it's mostly because of Moffat. Moffat-era Who just doesn't do much for me. It's not exactly an uncommon opinion to hold that the series started to go to crap once he became showrunner, so I don't know why you're acting so surprised. Again, maybe I just phrased my post poorly.
[EDIT] The one exception is Rory. I usually don't care for male sidekicks, but he's great in a way Mickey can only dream to be.
Same... All the hand waving cuteness with the story got so old that I was done basically after impossible astronaut and the doctors death nonsense... It's really a robot!! Didn't like a lot of the earlier seasons bad endings but Moffat made me not care.
So I don't care about the new lead as i stopped caring a long time ago
It is - the character says
"Back to normal" and that all her previous incarnations bar that one had been female
D
Deleted member 231381
Unconfirmed Member
It does sort of seem that way - most Time Lords we've observed seemed to have preferred to stick to one or the other, if not absolutely. Might be like styles - you try a new hairdo, doesn't work out, go back to a variation on the old look.
Lonewolf_92
Member
As someone who has watched Who since the early 80's (American, so my first Doctor was Tom Baker), I'm looking forward to this. And for those complaining about "liberal agenda" in Doctor Who, like it's a new thing, where were you during the Classic Doctor stories like "The Green Death", or Sarah Jane Smith's run as the Doctor's companion? There was always a liberal lean to Who stories from at least the 3rd Doctor on.
I mean, isn't it supposed to be? The Doctor is over 2000 years old and has regenerated 13 times now and every time he's ended up with a male body. It also took a really long time before the Master ultimately regenerated into a woman. I think we've probably been meant to infer that regenerating into a new gender is probably a relatively rare thing for Time Lords/Ladies,
even if it certainly isn't unheard of in relation to their society.
There's probably a biological reason why The Doctor has regenerated into a male body 13 times. Otherwise, he'd look like something of an oddity himself.
Possibly, although I'd hope that doesn't factor into casting choices going forward. Hopefully they'll pick whoever's best for the role going forward, and not go back to another string of men as the history of the show suggests being a different gender is rare. The reason it was rare is due to the gender politics of the time and I'd rather not have that influence the lore of the show.
To address your edit: there's no in-canon biological reason for the Doctor to remain a single gender throughout the show, and there shouldn't be. This casting shouldn't be seen as a gimmick one-off. We should ignore the fact that external factors lead to so many males in a row, and just accept that this is the new status quo going forward.
Alternatively, if you want to acknowledge the string of male incarnations, then we can say when the Time Lords gifted the Doctor a new regeneration cycle it fixed whatever was wrong with the process that kept him stuck as male all that time. Now they can be whatever gender the regeneration happens to take them to.
The Futurist
Member
Never seen Doctor Who, other than maybe one or two random episodes that I found so terrible that I wrote the entire series off.
With that said, is there any reason in the Doctor Who mythology that says it must be a man?
For example, does the doctor have an actual name if it's the same person? Like his name is John, and now they've just turned into Joan or something to that effect?
If not, are people just crying because it's a woman after being a man for so many years?
With that said, is there any reason in the Doctor Who mythology that says it must be a man?
For example, does the doctor have an actual name if it's the same person? Like his name is John, and now they've just turned into Joan or something to that effect?
If not, are people just crying because it's a woman after being a man for so many years?
Well, if you think about it, now the Doctor is about to become a woman...you could make an argument that he's statistically more like to regenerate into a woman in the future now that's become his body's default setting, in a similar way that he was a male by default before.
Ignatz Mouse
Banned
I would think anyone truly upset by a perceived political agenda would have bailed on this show from the Eccleston period, honestly. The show (nuWho, anyway) has always been very progressive, with interracial couples, able female companions, bisexuals, calling out racism and classism, etc. Most recently is has had Master-as-Missy and Bill, a black gay companion.
Are these people complaining even watching the show? I wonder how many are expressing outrage from a distance, and aren't even fans?
Are these people complaining even watching the show? I wonder how many are expressing outrage from a distance, and aren't even fans?
I think the doc has a name but only a couple people know it. The character always goes by "the doctor"
His name is Doctor Who =p
Moffat's greatest contribution is making this canon.
His name is the greatest question! The biggest, most important question in the universe! Reality itself would rip itself apart if it is ever mentioned!
Man, I hated all that stuff. Moffat really went off the rails for me as a writer after Series 5 wrapped up.
And his worst was beating us over the head with it.
He really wanted the job, clearly.
Captain Jack is supposed to be immortal, isn't he? He looks kinda old now. Is his immortality supposed to include everlasting youth, or just veeeeery slow aging?
Actually, this makes me wonder: The Doctor tends to default to Doctor John Smith if he needs a human-sounding name... I wonder what Whittaker will use? Part of me thinks that she'll just use John, in character due to not understanding why that would make the Daily Mail types' heads explode... and in writing because... well, because it'd make Daily Mail types' heads explode.
Valdfellgar
Banned
It's why I think it's important to establish it as a character thing. The impression I've gotten is that regeneration has a bit of a choice to it. Not flawless, but there is some sort of control/input from the Timelord regenerating. So I see it as, in universe of course, the Doctor choosing for his past 13 incarnations to be male.
I think then to make sure its done right it needs to be the Doctor's choice to veer away from his established persona. It then ensures long term that it'll feel natural for the Doctor to jump back and forth between genders. My biggest concern is getting this one right so that it doesn't ultimately end up say, 5-10 years from now, viewed as a gimmick, that one singular time the Doctor was a woman and then permanently skirted.
Spoilers but:
Isn't Jack the face of Bo or whatever from the first couple seasons? So he just ages stupid slow?
He may or may not be the Face of Bo, so I guess he is on a different aging/evolution trajectory all together.
Veeeeery slow aging is sort of canon courtesy of the series 3 finale.
I think Jack could come back for an anniversary special but they need to be careful. The worst thing the show could possibly do is lean on RTD-era nostalgia. Needs to be its own thing.
Mighty Chin
Banned
So that's where Eccelston ended up.He may or may not be the Face of Bo, so I guess he is on a different aging/evolution trajectory all together.
bengraven
Member
I was having a good time watching the reactions but then getting a few disappointed people really kind of pissed me off. I'm not judging them by their character but just the reactions were the kind of stereotypes you would expect.
It would be different if they were saying "man that's ridiculous making him a woman that stupid". But but getting very very quiet staring into nothing and saying "this honestly breaks my heart" in a calm voice makes me even more furious.
On another note, I can finally relate to girls during the tenant, Davidson and Smith run. I finally get to say that the doctor is fucking hot.
It would be different if they were saying "man that's ridiculous making him a woman that stupid". But but getting very very quiet staring into nothing and saying "this honestly breaks my heart" in a calm voice makes me even more furious.
On another note, I can finally relate to girls during the tenant, Davidson and Smith run. I finally get to say that the doctor is fucking hot.
Missy said it was "Who".
..How ?
The worst I saw from the feminists were "Awesome, but let's remember that being a white woman means a lot to the PoC representation on the show"
River says his name.
A full-fledged black male companion might not be a bad idea as a counterpart. We've had Mickey and Riggsy, but each has only been in a couple of episodes and Riggsy hasn't even had a TARDIS trip.
Or a timelord. He is literally shot down and go by his 11 regenerations on a season. His last one is a woman and she kills herself
CloudyTuba
Member
When speaking of the Corsair, the Doctor also made it seem like gender swapping was less common.
Seems like it's a rarity but not extraordinary.
This is a cool video.
Alex Kingston was doing a Q&A thing at a convention at the same time they announced the 13th Doctor and found out by the audience telling her: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZTSEKPumEY
Alex Kingston was doing a Q&A thing at a convention at the same time they announced the 13th Doctor and found out by the audience telling her: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=JZTSEKPumEY
Yes, he's named after an UFO song.
Pagusas
Elden Member
No. River was able to speak the name to the door quietly so no one saw/heard it.
Yes it was a complete cop out. And I'm still confused by that episode, esspecially the doctor telling River 'you should have faded by now" Like wtf does that mean? Also (I'm on season 8 right now) Do we ever see River farther into the future than that? As obviously that was while she was in the computer system. Is it ever explained how she was able to exist in that moment of time, how the doctor could see her, and why she continued to exist even after Clara disappeared?
CloudyTuba
Member
Edge Lords. There's a great new villain concept for Doctor Who! They can travel to the far edges of reality with their logic distortion fedoras.
"The name" for that episode largely exists as an Unreveal. Which makes sense (although I never understood why Moffat then kept bringing it up)
We don't see River farther into her personal timeline as far as I can tell.
Pagusas
Elden Member
Sad. I never understood why she couldnt be brought out of the system like the other people were. I just assumed it was saved for a time when the show needed a new plot, and bam "we re-materialized River, in a new body (because the actress is too old now)."
Napoleonthechimp
Member
Why do you ask the question when it is clear you know the answer?
Stallion Dan
Member
Lame. Cannot give a female lead her own show so gotta steal one. It the only good sci-fi where the male lead not all guns and action as an answer to problems.
*DISCLAIMER*
To prevent shitpost replies, please be aware use of word 'steal' not literal.
*DISCLAIMER*
To prevent shitpost replies, please be aware use of word 'steal' not literal.