The 13th Doctor Reveal Thread

[Cathbad]

It seems like petty bickering and deep prejudices. If the Doctor never knows what he/she is going to look like after regeneration, why haven't there been more females? The show could've been rightly accused of being misogynistic. But now, as old stereotypes are falling, those in charge are feeling safer to introduce a female Doctor.

They should be praised for this, or at least be asked why it took them so long; but not condemned out-of-hand for doing it!

 

[Overread]

The thing is changing the Dr to a woman is the same as if you did a re-write of Alien and changed Riply to a man. It's not that the other gender can't do it, its that you had a character (not a role) that was one gender and now you've shifted it to another. In a day and age of "political correctness" instead of it feeling like a story element it more feels like a political move.

In my view a stronger female lead wouldn't be taking a male character and turning it female; but actually making a spin-off series where you introduce a female lead totally of her own character. Indeed a shift to a totally new Time Lord who is female with the original Dr making camo-appearances would have been an ideal choice. Indeed instead of getting around the regenerations in odd ways they could easily have introduced a new Time Lord character a while back. Would have been a neat way to shift to the Dr to a role model/drop-in position within the world and to introduce a fresh character with fresh ideas and direction.

It doesn't really anger me at all as I've not really enjoyed the reboot of the Dr for the most part. I felt that the actors and general behaviour of the Dr was kind of wrong - the first iteration being totally wrong in class and style; the others feeling too young (yes I know regenerations and all but it was too young in a "cool" sort of way). The latest I felt was the best throwback to the Dr and yet the writing of scripts was just getting daft. So this doesn't anger me as I'm kind of viewing it from the sidelines of the fanbase. I do, however, feel that they missed an opportunity to make a female lead of her own character and instead have piggybacked it off a male role model.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

It's not the same as changing Ripley to a man. That's not a character that regenerates periodically into someone new. The Doctor changes into a new person every once in a while. If you can be a different person, you can be any different person. The time to complain about the Doctor becoming someone new was when Hartnell became Troughton. It's a little late to worry about it now.

 

[Cathbad]

The thing is changing the Dr to a woman is the same as if you did a re-write of Alien and changed Riply to a man. It's not that the other gender can't do it, its that you had a character (not a role) that was one gender and now you've shifted it to another. In a day and age of "political correctness" instead of it feeling like a story element it more feels like a political move.

I don't agree with your comparison.

Ripley didn't regenerate. And when you clone a female... you get a female.

The Doctor comes from a race that is obviously not as hung upon the differences of the sexes as we humans are.

Just like the absence of female Captains in TOS was based solely on our world's prejudices, so was the Doctor never regenerating into a female. It was always a random regeneration, so it never made real sense there was never a female.

It's not a political move - it's a representation of how we've evolved. We can now risk female Captains of Star Ships, and randomly regenerating Time Lords randomly becoming female. Once again, Art mirrors Society.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

I was just saying that on Facebook. Someone asked, "why now?" As in, after all these years, when he's always been male.

The question is not so much "why now" as it is "why not before". And the answer is that society's prejudices, as you say, have been so entrenched in the entertainment through those decades. You have only to look at the early companions to see how badly entrenched. I've been watching Classic Who for the first time, since I found BritBox, and I couldn't even stand to watch the whiny, helpless, fainting flowers of the early years, who were kindly allowed to make tea while the menfolk did the thinking. In the world that produced that, there was no way the Doctor would regenerate as a woman. But our world is different now, and we don't (mostly) think of women that way, so it makes sense that it can happen.

 

[thaddeus6th]

Not watched the series since a few episodes into Capaldi's time (a shame as I rather like the snarky older Doctor approach, but the writing...). I wonder if they'll have mostly male companions from now on.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

Not watched the series since a few episodes into Capaldi's time (a shame as I rather like the snarky older Doctor approach, but the writing...). I wonder if they'll have mostly male companions from now on.

I saw where someone had craftily suggested John Boyega.

 

[Venusian Broon]

I've been watching Classic Who for the first time...and I couldn't even stand to watch the whiny, helpless, fainting flowers...

I know, the moaning from the conservative old codgers on this subject has been deafening in some places. (i.e. the Mail online)

As you said TDZ, why not before? It's been far too long.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

Well, if it's any consolation, you may notice that the "like" and "love" on the Facebook posts are running better than 10 to 1 over the "anger" ones.

 

[Vladd67]

Facebook is one thing, the important thing though will be viewing figures.
Doctor Who Series 10 (2017) UK Ratings Accumulator | Doctor Who TV

 

[Serendipity]

Women have long since been underrepresented in science fiction - so having a female Doctor Who goes a little way to filling that gap.

Now the real question is are they going to change 'Time Lord' to 'Time Lady'?

 

[Dave]

I saw where someone had craftily suggested John Boyega.

That is possibly because Jodie Whittaker and John Boyega both got their breaks in Attack the Block (2011) with Nick Frost. People are tweeting photos of them as Doctor and companion.

 

[Vladd67]

I doubt it, Romana was a Time Lord, it's the name of their race, or it was, now it might just be a title.

 

[Dave]

I thought Romana was often referred to as a "Time Lady"? The whole thing is a non-issue for me, but I'm watching the huge furores it has caused with interest.

 

[TheDustyZebra]

 

[Ursa major]

Pure self-promotion.

I recall the endless mentions of the death of a character** in The Archers a few years back, mentions that seemed to go on for months, with little attempt to justify their existence or relevance. A few of them concerned the duration of the fatal event -- based on the event's sound effects -- for various reasons, none of them at all interesting.

Pathetic.



** -

Spoiler: Please try to resist looking to see which bland, cardboard cut-out character it was

Nigel Pargetter

 

[TheDustyZebra]

That is possibly because Jodie Whittaker and John Boyega both got their breaks in Attack the Block (2011) with Nick Frost. People are tweeting photos of them as Doctor and companion.

Ahh, I don't know that show. I thought it was because of the Stormtrooper thing.

 

[Danny McG]

There was a similar fuss when Dogma was released at the cinema "What? Jesus as a woman! How daaaaare they?"

 

[Ursa major]

When Tom Baker took over from Patrick Troughton [...] we all thought...

"What the hell happed to Jon Pertwee...?!"

is the same as if you did a re-write of Alien and changed Riply to a man

It's much more like the (not on the screen, because it occurred before the events depicted on the show) change from Curzon Dax to Jadzia Dax in Star Trek: Deep Space Nine.

 

[Dave]

Ahh, I don't know that show. I thought it was because of the Stormtrooper thing.

It was a low-budget independent film. Aliens attack a housing estate in South London. It wasn't very good. Sort of Only Fools and Horses meets Independence Day. It was good for a first effort from a new director on a small budget, and anything that isn't Hollywood has to be supported, but I wouldn't recommend it.