Last of the watchlogs

[petronia]

S04E12-13 The Stolen Earth / Journey's End: in isolation the Doctor 2.0 bit is terribly fanfictional, but thematically speaking it's a reification of existing dualities, contradictions... did I just use the word "reification" again. orz What I didn't expect was the sort of sardonic deflationary treatment once Rose actually came back: she was pivotal in "Turn Left", here she uhh blasts a coupla Daleks and peers non-interactively at computer screens. Oh, and gets the Doctor shot. XD;; I don't know if the cliche in that scene was played straight, but I found I couldn't read it as played straight.

It's not that the Doctor manages to replace Rose, or that he gets over her (the Tenth Doctor doesn't get over people), but he's no longer in the bubble. He's reestablished his original (I assume - I mean pre-Nine) pattern of paradoxical intimacy, whereby he actually has tons of friends who give a damn about him (as Sarah Jane observes) but at the end of the day he's on his own. Which, aren't we all... But I've always bought, even as a given, that this would have meant something v. different pre-Gallifrey's destruction; yawning psychological gap between not going home and not having a home to go back to. And everyone else slots into this paradigm, willingly or unwillingly, except Rose. For that matter maybe the show was hinting that Rose was settling, too, back in S2, conforming to the Doctor's outlook, not with massive qualms or even consciously but still (to make a real call on this I'd have to rewatch, which I've studiously avoided doing XD). So structurally yes, Rose needs a special ending, the details of which I find headachy to think about (aren't the human bits of Doctor 2.0 Donna? does he even know fixed time from flux?) and will leave to ficcers to rationalize. XD; I would complain mildly about the pacing but canis_m sez the tide was going out.

OKAY SO MY ASSUMPTIONS FOR EVERYTHING TO STAY COHERENT AND IN-CHARACTER IN MY HEAD:
1) The Tenth Doctor and Rose were not sleeping together while they were travelling together
2) At some point the Doctor must've thought "the only upside to being human would be the ability to care about other humans without any of the inevitable BS in eg. my life". And then was a dick to Mickey** some more
3) At some later point someone must say OH BITE ME ARWEN UNDOMIEL

Then I realized the really satisfying emotional payoff for me was the second I realized, oh wow this thing was meant to be flown with a big crew. That was poignant, somehow. XD; And if Donna had been allowed to stay that denouement would have remained pleasantly poignant and not HEARTRENDINGLY TRAGIC.

This is me vs Davros: hey it's that dude! That dude with the eyes in the thing! Did the Time War make nihilists of both sides or were they special snowflakes already.

The Next Doctor: romp I, the proper steampunk - Cybermen look much more fetching in this context. Jackson Lake is absolutely the sweetest character but he didn't want on, and the Doctor isn't taking applications. And anyway he's got a kid. And is prone to fugue states. XD;; I thought they had tons of chemistry though. Note for future ref: STOP APPLAUDING YOU DOLTS IT WILL GO TO HIS HEAD FOR REALS.

Planet of the Dead: romp II, the genderswitch Eroica xover - not gonna lie, I had fun. XD Lady Christina appeals to a different side of the Doctor and while she's not what you might call a force for morality she could well be a force for eff-this-noise-we're-outta-here practicality. But she would break his heart etcetcetc oh cheeseball emopaws. One must look to long term before scoffing: in much the same way as Labyrinth was one of the best career moves David Bowie ever made there are masses of 10-year-old girls eating this shiz up with consequences for 2020 Converse sales.

The Waters of Mars: HOLY SHIZNIT THAT WENT PEAR-SHAPED REALLY FAST. If the point was to stop my gob re: dodgily picking up younger women then congrats I will never complain about it again, pls just don't travel solo anymore mmkay. The literature seems to count Adelaide as a for-real Companion which really makes it dark as fuck... The downside of this Doctor's regeneration into the context of responsibility (by default/guilt) rather than trickster figure, plus the bleeding edge from Rose etc. (Pompei Redux, so Donna was the one he really needed here. It's like he can't close himself off, so he ends up saving ppl out of selfish desire for it not to hurt. Plus that teenager-y ego he has, but I'm not gonna blame everything on Rose. XD) I think the point here is that neither of those things is ultimately good for the Doctor, in that they run counter to his nature - whether that means Time Lord nature or just him - and sooner or later he was bound to crack. Which is ballsy and improves the series as a whole IMO, because normally it sells you the upside so hard. Either that or there's always some downside, not that I assume that's how the Doctor goes every time. Taking sides: dying of old age vs. in battle vs. cracking up like Denethor vs. getting hit by falling piano (I wonder if this is possible? XD).

Anyway: the "Utopia" structure, namely 50 minutes of by-the-numbers followed by sudden!creepy!Tennant then full-out 19th-century gothic apparition THE BELL TOLLS FOR THEE. Not that the space zombies weren't effective - sororial unit thought they were - but no surprises on my jaded end. Inappropriate LOL: Time Lords can track Wikipedia changes telepathically?

The End of Time I-II: Davies' writing sort of has what a movie review I read long ago called a Good Brando / Bad Brando thing. Namely, you know Good Brando when you see it, and holy bejesus do you ever know Bad Brando when you see it. I pretty much figured Bad Brando here once it hit, like, noble savage Ood mysticism + satanic female prison warden cult, but as a whole it was... better? XD; Mixed, eg. Vito Corleone wearing the ice bucket hat from The Island of Doctor Moreau. Normally I'm one of those ppl who never pick up on plot holes the first time around; also since mid-S2 I've developed the habit of tuning out David Tennant's actual words once he starts talking very fast. The actual words never matter. XD;;

But Time Lords! On some level I have been waiting for them to show up since S1, you know me. The two big plot twists of the drums*** being implanted and Gallifrey not being collateral damage, those were badass. The character moments were good too, eg. the Doctor and Wilf sitting in a cafe or the Doctor and the Master having proper conversation, such a relief just to watch quite good actors doing their thing sans explosions. XD; (I did start wondering if Davies was going to use GENUINE TAXPAYER MONEY to shoot himself some live-ac slash fanfiction.) It's the mechanics layer in between that's FUBAR. I srsly sat for minutes wondering why everyone in the room was going along with the pretense that the Doctor would be shooting anyone with Wilf's service pistol when both antags have JEDI POWWARZ. Would it have been so hard for the Lady in White to do something handwavy to it? Or for that matter, for the Doctor to have taken an escape pod down and not jumped unprotected out of a strafing spaceship to faceplant on a marble floor? Haaaaa.

The scene with the Doctor ranting at Wilf was Not Nice, but felt necessary. (The fact that he's losing his sense of scale means it's time to go! Or is it that he's human enough in this incarnation to properly value his own life?) Oddly enough, it reminded me of Liam Neeson's last bit in Schindler's List, which always stuck in my mind as unnecessary, Spielberg overegging it - and had diametrically opposite content. For dramatic restraint the regeneration should have happened then, but the more I think about it the more I enjoy the fact that Davies let the air out of his own tires and went all Korean drama. XD On a purely fan-squishy level! Bringing it full circle! Even though we said goodbye to all these ppl at the end of S4! And even though I was afraid he wouldn't make it back to the TARDIS and would pop off right there in Rose's courtyard c. 2005, cos wouldn't it be exactly Ten to fark up his own timeline as his last act in this world. XDD Anyway now that they've made regeneration all angsty I bet future production teams don't resist the temptation.

** Mickey skips around the multiverse with ease, by hitching rides when they pass and not sweating it when they don't. That is Zen, my friends.

*** sororial unit pointed out this was merely the OPENING THEME, ha ha ha very ha

In conclusion re: Eleventh Doctor, redheaded Companion = I am onboard, never claimed not to be cheap. (Also I have Theories, but not to wave about in advance; just to watch and chortle to myself. XD)

Comments

[xparrot.livejournal.com]

Then I realized the really satisfying emotional payoff for me was the second I realized, oh wow this thing was meant to be flown with a big crew.

YES. Loved on that scene SO HARD.

I did start wondering if Davies was going to use GENUINE TAXPAYER MONEY to shoot himself some live-ac slash fanfiction.

And here I thought that's what he did!

(I think it was the commentary for Last of the Time Lords that he was talking about how they're husbands...)

a Good Brando / Bad Brando thing.

AHAHAH yes, that is very apropos. When he's on he's on, and when he's not...and EoT was very mixed. Am curious how it plays watching all at once like this, rather than months between to process and debate and wonder and hope that Donna might be fixed (tragedy shmagedy, I wanted my favorite companion to have a truly happy ending dangit :(((()

[canis-m.livejournal.com]

I don't know if the cliche in that scene was played straight

Oh no, RTD lols about it in the Confidential. I lol too although if Ono Fuyumi doesn't leave out the Dalek youma imma fly to Japan and strangle her with my bare hands.

but at the end of the day he's on his own

And he's on his own because he abandons people. It's a self-perpetuating thing, not just loli-pervy but masochistic to be always hanging out with a species whose lifespan relative to yours is that of rodents to Homo sapiens. Then again the logistics of the show are such that actors leave etc. so there can never really be any alternative to serial ephemeral relationships, the variation is in how (or whether) the writing addresses that fact.** In retrospect you (I) wonder wtf was wrong with the writers the Doctor back in Old Who, that he just severed all connections, ditched companions and almost never revisited them, cf. Sarah Jane's righteous criticism in "School Reunion." Evil ex-boyfriend antagonists recurred, but very rarely friends. One can call Ten especially teenagerish and it's not inaccurate--and/or he's swung too far into codependency XD;--but I wonder if the old Doctor(s) wouldn't look emotionally stunted by comparison. Not sure as I haven't rewatched most if it in ~20 years.

Regeneration has been angsty before, though! But ngl the only one I remember is Five -> Six, and I only remember that because @ age 9 I watched it over and over and criiiiiied.

** Anyway I expect Moffat will address it differently and in a way that makes me want to thumb my nose at him more, but I too am weak vs. redhead, sob, p.s. your Theories, I wish to hear them.

Also

[canis-m.livejournal.com]

1) The Tenth Doctor and Rose were not sleeping together while they were travelling together

Yeah, and both RTD and DT purport to have been operating on the no-nookie principle (though there's enough ~ambiguity~ in esp. late S2 that one could read contrarily if one really wanted and some parties do, cf. certain unbuttoned costume choices in "Fear Her," obvs alert viewers are alert to these things). But S4 finale just makes less sense if they were already banging before. In light of this some of my favorite fics are not post-S4 altverse but post-S2 fixit AUs that do the job without resorting to Ten 2.0, Official Sex-Enabled Version. XD;

Btw I do have moar recs under tag "disco daleks," just keep in mind what my idea of a good time is--there are reams and reeeams of Nine/Rose/Jack and prolly Ten/Master not to mention Ten/Ten II with or without Rose for the really horny fangirls but idk I never read 'em XD;;;

[petronia.livejournal.com]

It is masochistic! I kind of assumed it was his avoidant personality, i.e. if he went back he would have to have Uncomfortable Conversations like with Sarah Jane. And since he has a time machine he could always drop by anytime, and when you can it's easier not to. Evil ex may also be a clue here - bigger and more longterm consequences when you date yr own ppl. XD;; Baldly speaking humans can't chase him around time-space blowing shiz up along the way, and you have to imagine some of them would've been tempted.

Eleven will only be less needy, I imagine - apart from everything else even the in-narrative thesis seems to be that Ten's codependent streak isn't sustainable.

I do wonder why we Homo sapiens happen to look exactly like legendary Time Lords on the outside! ...These are not productive thought processes, are they.

[petronia.livejournal.com]

YES. Loved on that scene SO HARD.

I'm a big sucker for those Everybody Meets Everybody scenarios. XD Though damn, this thing sprawls more than Buffy.

And here I thought that's what he did!

WITH MAKEOUTS. Though you're right, no one on my flist would've marked that Gen if it were theirs. XD; Inappropriate LOL from me, too, cos as soon as the Master went for the mindmeldy thing I knew in my soul that the next words out of the Doctor's mouth were going to be a variation on "there is something in your brain holy crap I assumed you were just batshit". BECAUSE THAT IS THE KIND OF CLOD HE IS.

Am curious how it plays watching all at once like this, rather than months between to process and debate and wonder and hope that Donna might be fixed

Probably I see it as more thematically coherent? It'd be like me to forget about shiz along the way. XD; But yeah I'd've been more disappointed if I'd had time to convince myself Donna would be fixed and build it up in my head. Davies does admit in the Confidential that the temptation was great. :/ Maybe after she's happily married and a multi-millionaire she'll become some sort of force in the world, memories or no memories, and maybe at that point she would choose to stay even if she remembered - I do think Donna's the kind to be Mom first and foremost (as eg. Martha is definitely not), and that seems to be in line with Moffat, but he's not likely to show any of it.

[xparrot.livejournal.com]

...I have actually just embarked on watching Buffy for the Very First Time (yes, I have been steadfastly avoiding it for years via logic of 7 SEASONS zomg, but was finally cornered). But Who is the ultimate sprawler, I should think, what with its decades of canon and now being written by fans who want to explore all their favorite bits.

Davies does admit in the Confidential that the temptation was great.

Did he?? Have not watched any s4/09special confidentials...ARRRRRGH DANG IT WHYYYYYY. I can definitely see Donna becoming a Force (of Good) memories or no memories, but no, do not believe Moffat will go there. RTD how could you fail me :((((

(I never was convinced Donna would be fixed but I had hopes & hopes...but EoT's finale seemed rather a slate-wipe, Moffat getting his own cleared board to play on. Le sigh.)

Re: Also

[petronia.livejournal.com]

Yeah, actually it would be more interesting to explore alternate post-S2 rather than post-S4, cos we see what happens post-S4. (Well, not in otherverse, but it's almost too open. XD;)

Ten/Ten II with or without Rose

Oh, Fandom.

[petronia.livejournal.com]

Haha I have never watched Buffy either! (Well, maybe two episodes. And I know a great deal of plot via osmosis.) It is known for multimedia sprawl though. Then again it looks worryingly possible to consume nothing but DW media and never come to the end of it.