![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
The Greatest Mystery of All
May. 6th, 2013 03:26 pmSo, on another site, I'm discussing Doctor Who and story structure. And I started thinking about something that is plaguing Doctor Who these days: Expectation!
If I was to tell a group of you that I have found the best present you could ever imagine, and will be giving it to you for your birthday, you would all imagine something great. Something that you really want. Some of you might imagine approximately the same thing...maybe, a new car, or a pony. But you wouldn't imagine the same car or pony. And, worse, even though a car or a pony might be a great gift, some of you will be disappointed to get that gift. Why? Because you had imagined the most amazing gift YOU could think of...which was...different. Maybe it was, I don't know...a trip to Ireland. Or a box of chocolate. Or a backstage visit to David Tennant when he does his next play. Or a month of free babysitting.
The writers for New Who have mastered the art of exponentially increasing expectation. They don't just write good stories, they write EPICS. From Bad Wolf to "The final question: Doctor Who?" they have seeded their stories with hints and promises of greater things to come. Who is the Doctor? Do we really want to know? Or would we rather keep our expectations of his greatness? Can any reveal measure up once our expectations are raised to these heights?
The upcoming 50th Anniversary, they tell us, will be the most epic thing ever, just as Parting of the Ways, Doomsday, Journey's End and the End of Time were all the most epic thing EVER at the time they aired. It isn't that they don't deliver on their promises. It is that the promise itself is getting old. And each time it is made, a few more people are left disgruntled...carless...ponyless..without chocolates. Whatever they have to tell us about Clara or the Doctor at this point, has already been overshadowed by the expectations they've created in our minds. They might please a few of us, but most of us will be disappointed.
If I was to tell a group of you that I have found the best present you could ever imagine, and will be giving it to you for your birthday, you would all imagine something great. Something that you really want. Some of you might imagine approximately the same thing...maybe, a new car, or a pony. But you wouldn't imagine the same car or pony. And, worse, even though a car or a pony might be a great gift, some of you will be disappointed to get that gift. Why? Because you had imagined the most amazing gift YOU could think of...which was...different. Maybe it was, I don't know...a trip to Ireland. Or a box of chocolate. Or a backstage visit to David Tennant when he does his next play. Or a month of free babysitting.
The writers for New Who have mastered the art of exponentially increasing expectation. They don't just write good stories, they write EPICS. From Bad Wolf to "The final question: Doctor Who?" they have seeded their stories with hints and promises of greater things to come. Who is the Doctor? Do we really want to know? Or would we rather keep our expectations of his greatness? Can any reveal measure up once our expectations are raised to these heights?
The upcoming 50th Anniversary, they tell us, will be the most epic thing ever, just as Parting of the Ways, Doomsday, Journey's End and the End of Time were all the most epic thing EVER at the time they aired. It isn't that they don't deliver on their promises. It is that the promise itself is getting old. And each time it is made, a few more people are left disgruntled...carless...ponyless..without chocolates. Whatever they have to tell us about Clara or the Doctor at this point, has already been overshadowed by the expectations they've created in our minds. They might please a few of us, but most of us will be disappointed.
What? No Romana?
May. 4th, 2013 12:42 amI just watched the Tom Baker tribute special. And they discussed Sarah Jane Smith and Leela and K-9, but not Romana. Romana 2 does have a brief appearance, but how can you not list her with the Four companions? Are they doing another special just on the Time Lords? That would make some sense, I suppose. But I still think Romana should have been mentioned. And I'm not even a HUGE fan of the character. I could see not mentioning Nyssa, Adric and Tegan because they are more Five than Four.
Anyway, it was a slapped together bit of business this tribute and I expected better for Tom. He is, after all, the defining Doctor for many people. Though, it was good to see Tom and have some of his insights.
Anyway, it was a slapped together bit of business this tribute and I expected better for Tom. He is, after all, the defining Doctor for many people. Though, it was good to see Tom and have some of his insights.
Doctor Who: Some Rose Tyler Quotes
May. 2nd, 2013 09:51 pmI was off looking for a quote about Rose for a buddy of mine and I came across a whole sheaf of them. Since, I love having my OTP acknowledged...I thought I would share these again, I'm sure I've shared most of them before...but those who say Moff hates Rose...need to see the last one.
“From the moment they meet, the Doctor and Rose are soul mates. They understand and complement each other.” – Russell T Davies
“What Rose brings to the Doctor’s life is completion. It’s completing a circle – he’s male, he’s alien, he’s a traveler. Between the two of them together they complement each other and discover each other. And are in love with each other – absolutely, unashamedly, unreservedly.” – Russell T Davies
“It’s a love story…it’s like love at first sight, in a way.” – Christopher Eccleston
“The Doctor is literally thrown into this bizarre new circumstance before he’s properly gotten himself together after saying farewell to Rose, who was the love of his life.” – David Tennant
“I think Rose was unique in the sense that she loved him and he loved her back. And it was more than just a hint, it was deeply emotional.” – Freema Agyeman
“The Doctor and Rose love each other. I think it’s that simple.” – Euros Lyn
“She’s the one woman, the one human, that can make him better – that can make him a bigger character, a better man.” – Julie Gardner
“From first holding the Doctor’s hand to a farewell on a beach, Rose is the Doctor’s reason to fight, to endure, to ensure there’s light in the darkness. Together they can achieve anything. As Episode 9 describes it, they are the stuff of legends.” – Julie Gardner
"If Rose is over there and she's all you want in the universe, and you're desparate to get to her, you want to be able to run flat out" - David Tennant
"There they are on a Dalek ravaged street, the furthest distance apart, her with a big gun, him with the TARDIS and they run toward one another...like the biggest romance you've ever seen in your life." -- Russell T Davies
“Obviously and quite overtly, really, the subtext of this show is that the Doctor is hopelessly in love with Rose.” – Steven Moffat
And to Moff's credit, he never tries to make the Doctor hopelessly in love with anyone else. He does have a bad case of my companion is fancier and more dazzling and capable than any other, but (and perhaps this is simply because he can't write epic love stories)...he never lets his Doctor emotionally engage beyond a passionate sort of interest in others. Eleven is fascinated by the quirky charming mystery of River (and Amy and Clara, as well) but he doesn't love any of them in the way that Nine and Ten loved Rose. There is no danger of his becoming desparate to reach them if they appear on a distant street corner.
“From the moment they meet, the Doctor and Rose are soul mates. They understand and complement each other.” – Russell T Davies
“What Rose brings to the Doctor’s life is completion. It’s completing a circle – he’s male, he’s alien, he’s a traveler. Between the two of them together they complement each other and discover each other. And are in love with each other – absolutely, unashamedly, unreservedly.” – Russell T Davies
“It’s a love story…it’s like love at first sight, in a way.” – Christopher Eccleston
“The Doctor is literally thrown into this bizarre new circumstance before he’s properly gotten himself together after saying farewell to Rose, who was the love of his life.” – David Tennant
“I think Rose was unique in the sense that she loved him and he loved her back. And it was more than just a hint, it was deeply emotional.” – Freema Agyeman
“The Doctor and Rose love each other. I think it’s that simple.” – Euros Lyn
“She’s the one woman, the one human, that can make him better – that can make him a bigger character, a better man.” – Julie Gardner
“From first holding the Doctor’s hand to a farewell on a beach, Rose is the Doctor’s reason to fight, to endure, to ensure there’s light in the darkness. Together they can achieve anything. As Episode 9 describes it, they are the stuff of legends.” – Julie Gardner
"If Rose is over there and she's all you want in the universe, and you're desparate to get to her, you want to be able to run flat out" - David Tennant
"There they are on a Dalek ravaged street, the furthest distance apart, her with a big gun, him with the TARDIS and they run toward one another...like the biggest romance you've ever seen in your life." -- Russell T Davies
“Obviously and quite overtly, really, the subtext of this show is that the Doctor is hopelessly in love with Rose.” – Steven Moffat
And to Moff's credit, he never tries to make the Doctor hopelessly in love with anyone else. He does have a bad case of my companion is fancier and more dazzling and capable than any other, but (and perhaps this is simply because he can't write epic love stories)...he never lets his Doctor emotionally engage beyond a passionate sort of interest in others. Eleven is fascinated by the quirky charming mystery of River (and Amy and Clara, as well) but he doesn't love any of them in the way that Nine and Ten loved Rose. There is no danger of his becoming desparate to reach them if they appear on a distant street corner.
So, some of my friends have told me they are now watching and enjoying Doctor Who again, because of the changes this season. Others have had questions about my new fic Idle & Blessed and how all of it works. I've done a bit of explaining within the fic, but maybe not enough to clarify it all.
I thought my thoughts on things, my view of New Who Now, which I am applying to the canon as well as to my fic, might help people to see where my head is on Doctor Who. I sent this explanation of I&B to a friend via PM, but realized that you all might like to see it, too. So...
( Read more... )
I thought my thoughts on things, my view of New Who Now, which I am applying to the canon as well as to my fic, might help people to see where my head is on Doctor Who. I sent this explanation of I&B to a friend via PM, but realized that you all might like to see it, too. So...
( Read more... )
Doctor Who 2010 - casting spoiler...maybe
Mar. 10th, 2009 06:49 pmHonestly, I do not know if this is a true casting spoiler or just a rumor. But I thought I would report on it anyway...nothing to do with the Pony in this spoiler...just some random thoughts...under this cut ( Read more... )
A Poem for the Doctor
Feb. 21st, 2009 12:38 amGood news...and bad news...I am writing again...but it's the Wild Geese sequel rather than more Gum...still...good news for some, yes?
And...while looking for a suitable Mary Oliver poem...I came across one that is so appropriate right now for the Doctor...( Read more... )
And...while looking for a suitable Mary Oliver poem...I came across one that is so appropriate right now for the Doctor...( Read more... )
Doctor Who...another way to fix JE...
Feb. 19th, 2009 06:04 pmSorry I haven't posted in a long while...but my RL situation has been draining the sparkle and fizz from me for some time now. Still, I had a Gum On Your Shoe dream this morning...so things are looking up I guess. And as I woke from that dream I had a thought about another very easy way to correct the last few minutes of Journey's End without doing a major rewrite. Probably there is fic out there with this correction already...but just in case there isn't...I will stick this under a cut...( Read more... )
Rae
Rae
Doctor Who Children in Need Special 2008
Oct. 13th, 2008 09:08 pmThis post contains one HUGE Doctor Who casting spoiler...and a mention of something in Torchwood.
And a lot of random speculation on my part...please do not spoil me for Christmas 2008 or the Specials. If I want to know something...I can go find out for myself.
Please do not spoil me.
( Read more... )
Rae
And a lot of random speculation on my part...please do not spoil me for Christmas 2008 or the Specials. If I want to know something...I can go find out for myself.
Please do not spoil me.
( Read more... )
Rae
Moffat Has His Own Ideas
Sep. 28th, 2008 04:15 pmYes, he does.
But I'm not sure I hold with the majority of my fellow Rose/Doctor shippers in thinking that Moffat is anti-Rose. I think he is anti-emoDoctor. And you know, so am I. I know that much is made of his remark about dumping a slightly clingy girlfriend with a human clone...but, at the time, I thought he might be smokescreening with that remark. People in attendance at ComicCon assured me that he was only making a joke. Probably, given what RTD has expressed about the fandom...he thought we all hated Rose and thought of her as self-centered.
So, he joked about something that we took seriously...and he learned that even the nerd-squad took what happened in JE to heart. Who is to say that Moffat doesn't take it seriously, too? It is going to affect him creatively no matter what happens.
I have creative differences with Moffat. I don't think his stand-alone episodes are quite in touch with the characters. They are brilliant pieces and they easily win him awards, but they don't fit the tone of the story as RTD tells it. Unlike RTD, I would not be able to tolerate GitF or River Song in the middle of things.
But we've now learned from RTD's book that RTD, himself, didn't quite understand the epic nature of the love story he was writing, either. Not until he tried to write his way out of it with something lame. Then his characters began yelling in his head...and his production staff began yelling outside of it.
So...back to Moffat...drawing a line through Jekyll and Coupling...while adding in River Song...and that lonely Doctor at the end of GitF...I wonder if the idea of 10.2 as 11 wouldn't appeal to Moffat. Because then, he would have David Tennant and a character with true duality. Bringing back the Time Lords wouldn't solve THAT issue...it would lead to more conflict and drama. The Doctor would be an outsider everywhere and truly unable to reconcile some of his conflicting impulses.
He would be a completely unique being, literally one of a kind, part Time Lord/part Human by virtue of a weird-ass accident. And, as I've said, by removing the spectre of Rose from the future of the show...you can have the Doctor admit to being able to love...and be completely free to love again, yet reluctant to go there. This is true even if 10 just goes to Rose and lives out her lifetime with her...he will have lost her and be reluctant to go that route again.
10.2 as 11 is just better for everyone because...( Read more... )
Rae
But I'm not sure I hold with the majority of my fellow Rose/Doctor shippers in thinking that Moffat is anti-Rose. I think he is anti-emoDoctor. And you know, so am I. I know that much is made of his remark about dumping a slightly clingy girlfriend with a human clone...but, at the time, I thought he might be smokescreening with that remark. People in attendance at ComicCon assured me that he was only making a joke. Probably, given what RTD has expressed about the fandom...he thought we all hated Rose and thought of her as self-centered.
So, he joked about something that we took seriously...and he learned that even the nerd-squad took what happened in JE to heart. Who is to say that Moffat doesn't take it seriously, too? It is going to affect him creatively no matter what happens.
I have creative differences with Moffat. I don't think his stand-alone episodes are quite in touch with the characters. They are brilliant pieces and they easily win him awards, but they don't fit the tone of the story as RTD tells it. Unlike RTD, I would not be able to tolerate GitF or River Song in the middle of things.
But we've now learned from RTD's book that RTD, himself, didn't quite understand the epic nature of the love story he was writing, either. Not until he tried to write his way out of it with something lame. Then his characters began yelling in his head...and his production staff began yelling outside of it.
So...back to Moffat...drawing a line through Jekyll and Coupling...while adding in River Song...and that lonely Doctor at the end of GitF...I wonder if the idea of 10.2 as 11 wouldn't appeal to Moffat. Because then, he would have David Tennant and a character with true duality. Bringing back the Time Lords wouldn't solve THAT issue...it would lead to more conflict and drama. The Doctor would be an outsider everywhere and truly unable to reconcile some of his conflicting impulses.
He would be a completely unique being, literally one of a kind, part Time Lord/part Human by virtue of a weird-ass accident. And, as I've said, by removing the spectre of Rose from the future of the show...you can have the Doctor admit to being able to love...and be completely free to love again, yet reluctant to go there. This is true even if 10 just goes to Rose and lives out her lifetime with her...he will have lost her and be reluctant to go that route again.
10.2 as 11 is just better for everyone because...( Read more... )
Rae
And my reaction to it. Spoilers for the book...and for S4 Journey's End...so I will go under a cut ( Read more... )
So, I heard of TROCK (Time Lord Rock...songs about the Time Traveling World of Doctor Who), a blatant rip-off of WROCK (Wizard Rock...and that would be songs about the Wizarding World of Harry Potter) a little bit ago.
And I thought, "Okay, that's lame and a little bit redundant." But having nothing to do this evening, I decided to go listen to the original TROCK band, Chameleon Circuit. Just so I would be a "true Who fan" and such, you know?
And, much to my surprise, I found myself smiling along with the founding nerd of Trock. This guy...explaining it all...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PyV9N3fR7U
And here is the song Blink which is quite good and by (yes, that's his real username)Charlieissocoollike, who is performing it live for the first time in this vid.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wejl_daRVZU
Rae
back to working on my cynical grumpiness now.
And I thought, "Okay, that's lame and a little bit redundant." But having nothing to do this evening, I decided to go listen to the original TROCK band, Chameleon Circuit. Just so I would be a "true Who fan" and such, you know?
And, much to my surprise, I found myself smiling along with the founding nerd of Trock. This guy...explaining it all...
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9PyV9N3fR7U
And here is the song Blink which is quite good and by (yes, that's his real username)Charlieissocoollike, who is performing it live for the first time in this vid.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wejl_daRVZU
Rae
back to working on my cynical grumpiness now.
It seems Moffat has been mouthing off about what his reign of terror...ehm...time as producer will mean for Doctor Who. Here is a link to an article about some of his ComicCon comments.
http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/54182/BBC-spoilsport-kills-off-Daleks
Of course, there will be some S4 spoilers in this article so if you haven't seen the finale...don't go there.
Or here...I reckon...( Read more... )
http://www.express.co.uk/posts/view/54182/BBC-spoilsport-kills-off-Daleks
Of course, there will be some S4 spoilers in this article so if you haven't seen the finale...don't go there.
Or here...I reckon...( Read more... )
Vizzini: INCONCEIVABLE
Jul. 22nd, 2008 10:43 pmInigo Montoya: You keep using that word. I do not think it means what you think it means.
This one is about the I.B.M.*. Spoilers for Doctor Who S4 all the way to the finale. ( Read more... )
This one is about the I.B.M.*. Spoilers for Doctor Who S4 all the way to the finale. ( Read more... )
The Afterlife...Humperdinck
Jul. 20th, 2008 11:38 pmMore about DW S4...episode 13...one day I will stop posting these...but today is not that day...This one is about Pete's World!
Also there are four pictures from the finale...not so dial up friendly and, of course, spoilers...apparently you can't use two cuts in one post...sorry if I spoiled anyone accidentally.( Read more... )
Also there are four pictures from the finale...not so dial up friendly and, of course, spoilers...apparently you can't use two cuts in one post...sorry if I spoiled anyone accidentally.( Read more... )
The Trinity Test...Humperdinck
Jul. 13th, 2008 09:05 pmThis one is about Ten. And it is very very long...sorry about that.
Did anyone know that the first test of an implosive plutonium bomb was at a test site known as Trinity? ( Read more... )
Did anyone know that the first test of an implosive plutonium bomb was at a test site known as Trinity? ( Read more... )
:Le Sigh:
There will be spoilers in this post for S4 Doctor Who...all the way to the finale.
So let's do our LJ cut...I can only hope all of you lovely unspoiled people come back here in a few weeks and read all this. I'm surprised I haven't been defriended for my obsessive ranting. ( Read more... )
There will be spoilers in this post for S4 Doctor Who...all the way to the finale.
So let's do our LJ cut...I can only hope all of you lovely unspoiled people come back here in a few weeks and read all this. I'm surprised I haven't been defriended for my obsessive ranting. ( Read more... )
Humperdinck! DW S4 Spoilers-- ROSE
Jul. 11th, 2008 09:25 pmAnd now...for the first of my Humperdinck posts...see most of you much, much later...:smirk:
This one is about Rose. ( Read more... )
Rae
This one is about Rose. ( Read more... )
Rae
