I have such mixed feelings about the Martha/Mickey relationship.
On the one hand, from a Doylist point of view, it just felt very tacked on. The whole bit with RTD thinking it would be fun to have another 'Smith & Jones' was a bit cringe-worthy, plus it only seemed to cement the ultimate lack of real interest he seemed to have in both Mickey and Martha's character arcs. It was as if they were a second thought and it was all 'oh, wouldn't it be handy clever if I paired them up at the end so I don't have to think about what to do with them'. While I always felt the Tom/Martha relationship was a bit awkward and forced as well, I think it would have been nice to have acknowledged a bit about how it ended instead of it being this weird mystery of Martha being engaged to Tom (and possibly marrying?) and then suddenly being married to Mickey out of the blue. I don't mind things happening off screen (it gives great fodder for fanfic), of course, but that was a bit much!
On the other hand, from a more Watsonian point of view, I really love that Martha ended up with someone like Mickey, who is not only one of the most awesome characters in the Whoniverse, but also someone I think would really love and appreciate Martha in a way she truly deserves. I think they have similar temperaments and I can easily see them fighting aliens together. I like this idea of their life (even if I wonder about Martha's abandoned medical career sometimes). I also like that they seem like one of the few stable couples in the Whoniverse and I can really see them making it in the long term.
From a fannish point of view, I'm admittedly still a staunch Doctor/Martha shipper at the end of the day. I love a complicated relationship and I love the amazing chemistry Freema and David had with one another (a big reason why I was never able to buy that the Doctor wasn't attracted to Martha, because I never felt any chemistry when he was with Rose/Billie, but with Martha/Freema -- PHWROAR!). I can't imagine ever seeing that ship on the show though and that's cool (the show would probably screw it up), so at the end of the day, I'm happy Martha ended up with Mickey. She truly did get the best new!Who companion ending, methinks.
plus it only seemed to cement the ultimate lack of real interest he seemed to have in both Mickey and Martha's character arcs. I have thought this as well--that is lack of character development, but both Martha and Mickey's characters are allowed to grow more than the others and are given more real life competence than Rose and Donna who are only "good" whatever the heck that means, when they are with the Doctor. When you speak of the "Ultimate lack of real interest" are you referring to the how Davies allows the Doctor to dismiss Martha and Mickey?
When you speak of the "Ultimate lack of real interest" are you referring to the how Davies allows the Doctor to dismiss Martha and Mickey?
No, it's hard to articulate, but I guess I mean that I feel like those characters weren't at the forefront of Rusty's thoughts. In many ways it seemed they were simply ciphers or vehicles for other things for him -- Mickey, the mundane, bloke-y 'idiot' that existed to pale in contrast to the Doctor (so, of course, Rose would choose the Doctor over him), and Martha, the sounding board for Ten's Rose-grief and someone to reject to prove his love for Rose.
Personally, I don't believe these things about them at all, of course, and I think that's the thing -- in way things backfired because I think, for example, the audience perhaps wasn't supposed to love Mickey so much and side with him (and Jackie) over Rose's selfishness (to be fair, I think this changed as S2 went on and they celebrated Mickey more in the text) or cheer for Martha when she left, siding with her and thinking Ten was a total dick at the end of S3. They became beloved characters even when the script reluctantly admitted how awesome they were.
I'm not sure they were ever viewed as fully fleshed out characters for Rusty, though. Which, yes, is good because they are given a lot of room to grow, especially in fandom's imaginations, but also a bit sad in some ways. Still, I think Rusty destroys the things he loves most, so maybe his lack-of-love for them is what ultimately saved them from a horrible fate.
Backfires a good word. I believe Davies when he says he was writing a typical story of unrequited love between Martha and the Doctor, because everyone has gone through an episode of rejection in their lives. However, his attempts at making the Doctor indifferent towards Martha just went overboard by the time we get Human Nature, it appears as if the Doctor is deliberately wearing away Martha's self-esteem. Fans either had to take the tack of the Doctor=Jerk, or Martha=Weak/Whiner.
I think Rose admits in Season One and Season two that she treats Mickey shabbily and at least in Boomtown she says it. And as Davies does develop Martha more in Torchwood, which he claims was his intent after all.
And Martha is more developed by the Sontaran Episode. I was truly fascinated by how fans reacted to Martha couselling Donna to be more honest with her family and to be careful with the Doctor. Some people thought she was trying to turn Donna against the Doctor, which she was not.
Although Mickey calls himself the Tin Dog, he manages to get beyond that, and this is mainly due to Noel's dissatifaction with the direction the character had been. I think Mickey's development came in the Army of Steel episode. You see him relate to his grandmother, declare his independence twice from the Doctor and Rose.
Unfortunately, Mickey growing up meant Noel had to leave the series--which is better than the Black guy dies first, but as Noel had to go out win Bafta's and make movies, there wasn't much Russell could do.
On the one hand, from a Doylist point of view, it just felt very tacked on. The whole bit with RTD thinking it would be fun to have another 'Smith & Jones' was a bit cringe-worthy, plus it only seemed to cement the ultimate lack of real interest he seemed to have in both Mickey and Martha's character arcs. It was as if they were a second thought and it was all 'oh, wouldn't it be handy clever if I paired them up at the end so I don't have to think about what to do with them'. While I always felt the Tom/Martha relationship was a bit awkward and forced as well, I think it would have been nice to have acknowledged a bit about how it ended instead of it being this weird mystery of Martha being engaged to Tom (and possibly marrying?) and then suddenly being married to Mickey out of the blue. I don't mind things happening off screen (it gives great fodder for fanfic), of course, but that was a bit much!
On the other hand, from a more Watsonian point of view, I really love that Martha ended up with someone like Mickey, who is not only one of the most awesome characters in the Whoniverse, but also someone I think would really love and appreciate Martha in a way she truly deserves. I think they have similar temperaments and I can easily see them fighting aliens together. I like this idea of their life (even if I wonder about Martha's abandoned medical career sometimes). I also like that they seem like one of the few stable couples in the Whoniverse and I can really see them making it in the long term.
From a fannish point of view, I'm admittedly still a staunch Doctor/Martha shipper at the end of the day. I love a complicated relationship and I love the amazing chemistry Freema and David had with one another (a big reason why I was never able to buy that the Doctor wasn't attracted to Martha, because I never felt any chemistry when he was with Rose/Billie, but with Martha/Freema -- PHWROAR!). I can't imagine ever seeing that ship on the show though and that's cool (the show would probably screw it up), so at the end of the day, I'm happy Martha ended up with Mickey. She truly did get the best new!Who companion ending, methinks.
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No, it's hard to articulate, but I guess I mean that I feel like those characters weren't at the forefront of Rusty's thoughts. In many ways it seemed they were simply ciphers or vehicles for other things for him -- Mickey, the mundane, bloke-y 'idiot' that existed to pale in contrast to the Doctor (so, of course, Rose would choose the Doctor over him), and Martha, the sounding board for Ten's Rose-grief and someone to reject to prove his love for Rose.
Personally, I don't believe these things about them at all, of course, and I think that's the thing -- in way things backfired because I think, for example, the audience perhaps wasn't supposed to love Mickey so much and side with him (and Jackie) over Rose's selfishness (to be fair, I think this changed as S2 went on and they celebrated Mickey more in the text) or cheer for Martha when she left, siding with her and thinking Ten was a total dick at the end of S3. They became beloved characters even when the script reluctantly admitted how awesome they were.
I'm not sure they were ever viewed as fully fleshed out characters for Rusty, though. Which, yes, is good because they are given a lot of room to grow, especially in fandom's imaginations, but also a bit sad in some ways. Still, I think Rusty destroys the things he loves most, so maybe his lack-of-love for them is what ultimately saved them from a horrible fate.
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I think Rose admits in Season One and Season two that she treats Mickey shabbily and at least in Boomtown she says it.
And as Davies does develop Martha more in Torchwood, which he claims was his intent after all.
And Martha is more developed by the Sontaran Episode. I was truly fascinated by how fans reacted to Martha couselling Donna to be more honest with her family and to be careful with the Doctor. Some people thought she was trying to turn Donna against the Doctor, which she was not.
Although Mickey calls himself the Tin Dog, he manages to get beyond that, and this is mainly due to Noel's dissatifaction with the direction the character had been. I think Mickey's development came in the Army of Steel episode. You see him relate to his grandmother, declare his independence twice from the Doctor and Rose.
Unfortunately, Mickey growing up meant Noel had to leave the series--which is better than the Black guy dies first, but as Noel had to go out win Bafta's and make movies, there wasn't much Russell could do.
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