The 13th Doctor

[Sir Honkers]

I like the smaller, human scale of the new series. It's more interesting. Each to their own as my nanna use to say.

[Devius]

Originally Posted by Devius

New Year's Day Special Preview | Doctor Who: Resolution

It was OK (when compared to the recent series), but I will delay further comment for now...

I guess sufficient time has elapsed to allow me to pontificate...
What I liked about Doctor Who: Resolution - the opening sequence with Lin encountering the Dalek host, and Lin's subsequent takeover by said host. I found that quite creepy, and had fully expected Lin to end up as a Dalek drone (see below example from "Asylum of the Daleks"), so I was somewhat surprised when that didn't happen.



What cheesed me off - well besides the suspension of U.N.I.T., Jodie Whittaker's (still) hyper Doctor. When compared to previous Time Ladies like Romana, The Rani, Missy or Doctor/Donna, the 13th Doctor feels undefined, and as bloke57 stated, lacking gravitas. Breaking ground with the first female Doctor is all good and well, but where is her identity, apart from being so hyperactive?
Yaz was still invisible, and how in God's name did 9th century humans beat a Dalek (was it injured following its arrival to Earth)? And BTW: would a gay security guard mention his sexuality so openly to a stranger?

As I said "Resolution" was OK, but overall this season has been disappointing and apart from Jodie Whittaker's debut, will not last long in the memory...

[Sir Honkers]

Originally Posted by Devius

I guess sufficient time has elapsed to allow me to pontificate...
What I liked about Doctor Who: Resolution - the opening sequence with Lin encountering the Dalek host, and Lin's subsequent takeover by said host. I found that quite creepy, and had fully expected Lin to end up as a Dalek drone (see below example from "Asylum of the Daleks"), so I was somewhat surprised when that didn't happen.



What cheesed me off - well besides the suspension of U.N.I.T., Jodie Whittaker's (still) hyper Doctor. When compared to previous Time Ladies like Romana, The Rani, Missy or Doctor/Donna, the 13th Doctor feels undefined, and as bloke57 stated, lacking gravitas. Breaking ground with the first female Doctor is all good and well, but where is her identity, apart from being so hyperactive?
Yaz was still invisible, and how in God's name did 9th century humans beat a Dalek (was it injured following its arrival to Earth)? And BTW: would a gay security guard mention his sexuality so openly to a stranger?

As I said "Resolution" was OK, but overall this season has been disappointing and apart from Jodie Whittaker's debut, will not last long in the memory...

I don't care about how unlikely it would be for 9th century humans to beat a Dalek...or how they even had descendants if they were guarding their bit of the body to the exclusion of everything else, that's just a plot hole and TV thrives on them... but looking back at the season overall, it pains me to admit that you make very valid points.

[Sir Honkers]

After much reflection I have changed my mind and have to admit the naysayers (I'm looking at you D and Carlton) have the argument. I like the human scale sized stories, but the plots are only so so, the Spider one being the exception and I like Whittaker in the role, but her 'me and my mates'll stop ya' lines are cringeworthy. Since when is the Doctor a Londoner?

[Devius]

Originally Posted by loosegoose

After much reflection I have changed my mind and have to admit the naysayers (I'm looking at you D and Carlton) have the argument. I like the human scale sized stories, but the plots are only so so, the Spider one being the exception and I like Whittaker in the role, but her 'me and my mates'll stop ya' lines are cringeworthy. Since when is the Doctor a Londoner?

In their efforts to make Doctor Who more "relevant" and more focused on the human condition, it appears they forgot to make the last series exciting. The standalone episodes didn't work for me, and I hope showrunner Chris Chibnall will return to the story arc approach, which will allow loose ends from earlier stories to be resolved with an epic finale - sorry, but “The Battle of Ranskoor Av Kolos” didn't feel like a noteworthy conclusion to the last series.

I also hope all involved will look to work on Whittaker creating a personality for the 13th Doctor. As I stated previously, it is not enough to be just the "First Female Doctor". Yes the Doctor was always seen as super-intelligent. But the Doctor is also lonely, enigmatic, sometimes funny, sometimes scary (Tennant's Time Lord Victorious was a good example), a person capable of great acts of humanity and great acts of rage when provoked too far, and ultimately always one step ahead of his/her friends and foes. All we've seen from Jodie Whittaker thus far is a hyperactive Doctor, who is somewhat over-reliant on her sonic.

Bradley Walsh as fellow traveller Graham has been a joy in the last series. But while Tosin Cole as Ryan has progressed, Mandip Gill’s character (Yaz) has been meaningless - even in episodes which were supposed to promote her.

Better bad guys for the new Doctor are needed as well - it's all good and well wanting to keep the appearances of the Daleks and Cybermen to a minimum, but replacing such classic villians with the forgettable “Tim Shaw” and the ridiculous Crazy Frog reject from 'The Tsuranga Conundrum' (who I NEVER want to see again) is not progress.

The next series will be a big test for Doctor Who...

[Sir Honkers]

Originally Posted by Devius

The next series will be a big test for Doctor Who...

I fear you're right. I don't want to see it disappear for another twenty years...or Whittaker be remember as the actor who killed The Doctor.

[bacchus1221]

Regarding the poll: favorite Doctor is #2 (Troughton) and favorite companion is Leela. Second place Doctor for me is #4 (Baker, who biggest fault is that someone needesd to shake him and say "it's a screwdriver dammit!") and #2 companion is Craig Owens (from 2011).



I managed to catch the first six or seven episodes of #13 last year at my sister's home. There's less of Bergmanesque angst (as in Igmar Bergman) that infected much of the writing for #12, but the writers still need to be fired. I do find #13 and her companions to be very likeable -- they seem to be the most likeable group in Doctor Who history. I'm not really sure though that that's necessarily a good thing. Some of the charm of the series is the inept Time Lords and his completely befuddled companions muddling through. (When #10 says "no one needs to die here", you know that a massacre will follow.)


So my take on #13 is that she's neither the best of Doctors, nor the worst...

[intersex2500]

I feel like my kids (16 and 14) are a good test for this. They both like the idea of Whittaker as a doctor, but find that she doesn’t have a personality. It’s a bit of the Peter Capaldi problem, a great actor who isn’t clicking sight the show, maybe because they aren’t given the latitude to.

[Mr Lucas]

Originally Posted by loosegoose

I hope I'm wrong, but I don't think a female doctor will work. Not because such an icon role should be always for some reason be male, but because of an ingrained misogynist mindset in our culture.

Where's this then?

We live in a misandrist culture, and have done for at least 30 years.

[Sir Honkers]

Originally Posted by Mr Lucas

Where's this then?

We live in a misandrist culture, and have done for at least 30 years.

Well you might...meanwhile back in the other universe where all the sane people live...