Big Chief Studios - 1/6 Doctor Who - #10 David Tennant

[ProgMatinee]

What is this about the Doctor supposed to be relatable? That's not his role. That's the companions role. The Doctor is the character you admire and be awestruck by, not relate to. That's not to say kids can't run around pretending to be him, but he not the one you say "that could've been me". You do that with the companions. Fans relate with Frodo not Gandalf. Luke not Obiwan. Arthur not Merlin. Harry not Dumbledore. Jem not Atticus. Rose not The Doctor.

 

[pixletwin]

My money is ready, I would love the notification tonight!

Mine is already paid for! I need Tennant to come home to his 1:6 Police Box.

Edit: actually no. It's Baker who is paid for. Tennant has two more payments to go.

 

[The Mike]

I disagree with that a bit. I would love to be The Doctor, the same way people would love to be Superman or Wolverine. The thing is that people know it isn't going to happen for multiple reasons (being an Alien, etc) so people can relate to The Doctor the same way they relate to other "larger than life" heroes in Pop Culture. What the companions do is give a "If the Doctor was real I could totally go with him" which is a great hook into the show especially for kids but just like people would want to be Batman over Robin, even though in theory Bruce Wayne could pick you and train you etc, I'd wager a lot of people want to be The Doctor than a companion. You find relatable things in your favorite heroes no matter how small.

 

[ProgMatinee]

Duh everyone wants to be the doctor. That's not the point of "relate" to. You can't relate to the supreme character. You relate to the one with less control. Different thing entirely.

 

[The Mike]

I don't think so. I can relate to the way The Doctor values life, I can relate to the way The Doctor values knowledge, I can relate to the small frustrations that he sees in his companions. I can relate to his virtues. I can relate to his sense of wonder. Hell I can even relate in his frustrations of how slow time goes

There are aspects of every character no matter how "supreme" that you can relate to, that is what makes them good characters. A character that cannot be related to in anyway but through side characters isn't a successful one.

What people relate to Superman with is his humanity, how he is so incredible but has a huge sense of what it is to be a human. The Doctor loves humanity, he adores and protects it no matter how flawed. They have similar aspects IMHO.

 

[ProgMatinee]

Well a lot of good points that I didn't initially consider. I guess I look at it more as he is the one driving rather than the one on the ride. I find it rare in this life that were the ones driving. Call me a pessimist. Lol

 

[DGTWoodward]

Guess you never had a relationship with your Grandfather.

One wonders, even after the back-peddling explanation...how else this could taken, other than personally?

This is pretty typical of the nasty, patronising, belittling response to my thoughts on Capaldi's casting. First, I think he's a great actor, and I think he will do a great job with whatever material Moffat produces for him. But that doesn't mean he's right for this part, or that children will fnd it easy to identify with him. Even before he opens his mouth his age makes him unnecessarily idiosyncratic. The most successful children's heroes - Luke Skywalker, Harry Potter, the Tenth Doctor - have a certain blankness to them which children can fill by pretending to be those characters. He's starting without that. Now, you can think what you like about my opinion, but I think it's a valid opinion and being hated on about it isn't nice or deserved - I haven't come on here saying I hate Capaldi and hope he fails. Quite the reverse - as always with Doctor Who, if I'm not happy about something then I'm willing the show to prove me wrong.

Second, I don't think the Hartnell comparisons are apt - virtually nothing that was done in the Hartnell era could be done now. It was a different planet then. And the Doctor was not the hero then, but the Merlin figure with Ian as the hero.

And third, 'kl241' you have absolutely no ****ing idea what kind of relationship I had with my surviving Grandfather, but I have nothing but respect for people older then me. I'm closer to Capaldi's age than Smith's, so if anything I admire him on a personal level for having bagged the part.

Whilst I may disagree with Cap:B on smaller points, he does indeed raise some interesting thoughts, worthy of consideration.

My personal take it that CA is in part correct, but that's not all there is to this idea of acceptance. Children could strive to be the the hero (the Doctor, the Skywalker etc) but also identify on a more personal level with the companion...knowing that the companion is essentially they themselves.

 

[Captain Britain]

Finally, a great discussion without hate. Love the points Mike has been making.

As for Moffat making the Doctor older because he had **** from fans about Smith being too young... we don't know of course, and I think Smith as a great choice no matter what his age (and maybe Capaldi will be too). But I do wonder if Moffat is too influenced by fans sometimes, by that middle aged fanbase on forums which he'd be a part of if he wasn't showrunner. RTD was a fan but he didn't let fans influence him.

 

[momaw]

I rewatched the Fires of Pompeii tonight and came to two conclusions:

1. I still miss the 10th Doctor
2. I just don't see Capaldi as the Doctor. I don't feel any presence from him.

I hope I'm totally wrong, but until I see some episodes I don't see him as the Doctor.

 

[Liz10]

I rewatched the Fires of Pompeii tonight and came to two conclusions:

1. I still miss the 10th Doctor
2. I just don't see Capaldi as the Doctor. I don't feel any presence from him.

I hope I'm totally wrong, but until I see some episodes I don't see him as the Doctor.

Me too actually. That ep is one of my favs and suddenly all those Ten feelings came back. *sigh*

PC is missing a certain special something a Doctor needs, he's just an average older guy. Could play a companion's father maybe, although Wilf had much more charisma. When Matt was announced I could instantly picture him as the Doctor (I didn't find him attractive back then so that has nothing to do with it) and I think he was 100% believable as a centuries old timelord despite his age.

 

[pixletwin]

Every Nu-Doc failed to win me over until after seeing their first 2 or 3 stories. I have no reason to believe PC will prove different. But I do like the "idea" of him as the Doctor. That's a change.

 

[yodasan]

So how about a woman Doctor? and a man as the companion.

 

[DGTWoodward]

Me too actually. That ep is one of my favs and suddenly all those Ten feelings came back. *sigh*

PC is missing a certain special something a Doctor needs, he's just an average older guy. Could play a companion's father maybe, although Wilf had much more charisma. When Matt was announced I could instantly picture him as the Doctor (I didn't find him attractive back then so that has nothing to do with it) and I think he was 100% believable as a centuries old timelord despite his age.

If you are really using Wilf as a comparison, you seem to be judging him on lack of charisma of a character that he has not actually played yet?

 

[Liz10]

If you are really using Wilf as a comparison, you seem to be judging him on lack of charisma of a character that he has not actually played yet?

If I don't find him to be charismatic as himself or another character, I can't imagine him having any more charisma as the Doctor. Of course that's only my personal perception/opinion.

 

[Niceman]

Could play a companion's father maybe, although Wilf had much more charisma. .

Did you know Wilf almost played Dr. Who? He lost out to some guy named Tom Baker!

 

[DGTWoodward]

Did you know Wilf almost played Dr. Who? He lost out to some guy named Tom Baker!

Of course he'd already been in WHO, after a fashion, one of the two Peter Cushing movies.

 

[Darklord Dave]

One thing that Gaiman said that if it were up to him in dealing with the 13 regenerations was that he'd have it be a rule, an idea that the Timelords treated it like the Speed Limit and that they'd enforce that rule but now that they're gone there is no one to really enforce anything and that like breaking the Speed Limit where things get ultimately more dangerous the more to go over it that regenerating past 13 would be the same way, that it'd create new complications and new problems for The Doctor and ultimately reveal why the Timelords had that limitation. Personally for me I think that is more the way they'll go with it and that's more the way you'll see Moffatt (or whoever is show running at the time) handling the final regenerations. I think the show will continue until it becomes unpopular and then eventually rebooted seriously in a few years past that time.

Not that I want to keep the off topic going in this thread about BIG CHIEF DOCTOR 10, but I love the above idea. So after 13 regenerations (and there's some indication that Capaldi is 13, not 12) things can start to go wonky - he regenerates as a woman, or split into 2 people or as an alien...

 

[DGTWoodward]

Not that I want to keep the off topic going in this thread about BIG CHIEF DOCTOR 10, but I love the above idea. So after 13 regenerations (and there's some indication that Capaldi is 13, not 12) things can start to go wonky - he regenerates as a woman, or split into 2 people or as an alien...

Sorry DLD but...We just need to drop this 'the Doctor comes back as a woman' idea, it's been dragging around for ever and it really needs to die.

There are male Time Lords.
There are female Time Lords.

That's it. It's old news and its established.

 

[The Eleventh]

Sorry DLD but...We just need to drop this 'the Doctor comes back as a woman' idea, it's been dragging around for ever and it really needs to die.

There are male Time Lords.
There are female Time Lords.

That's it. It's old news and its established.

It's also been established that Time Lords can change sex upon regeneration.

 

[pixletwin]

It's also been established that Time Lords can change sex upon regeneration.

Because of one throwaway line? Nope.