Doctor Who season 2
So, Doctor Who’s second series. My overall thought is one of disappointment to be honest, which possibly surprises those of you who’ve read my weekly reviews. Yes, there were fantastic episodes. But even in the best of the series there were gaping plot holes that you just couldn’t ignore. And I’m not saying there weren’t plot holes last year, because there were, but somehow the rest of the story overcame them. Now I’m the first to admit I’ve been a lot more critical this year, and I’ve seen season 2 a lot more than season 1. I’m a rather strange person you see. Yes, I get obsessed but because of that, because I love something a lot, I’m more worried about what other people think. I don’t want people to hate something I love, so I become more critical of that thing. My initial reaction may well be squee. After all, I’ve just watched something I love. But once I think about it, watch it again, I pick out all the things that non-fans might hate and criticise. Just so you know. :)
So anyway, that went off the point a little bit! What I’m trying to say is that I might simply be disappointed in season 2 because I’ve looked at it too closely. Maybe I still prefer season 1 because I watched it more casually. Whatever the reasoning, I do believe the flaws this year have been more detrimental.
Let’s start with character. What the hell happened to Rose this year? I loved her last year. OK, her ‘specialness’ was emphasised a bit too much, but Nine was obviously so damaged that he *did* need someone to cling to. And her character did grow, and she stopped to think about her actions a bit more, and she didn’t need rescuing quite so often. And in the end, she would do anything to help the Doctor, something Nine needed. Then, in the Christmas Invasion, we even had her taking control, doing her best in the absence of the Doctor, showing how well she’d developed.
And then season 2. She’s soppy, clingy, whiney and, actually, a bit of a spoilt brat. She’s also already lost some of her human-ness, and she’s more excited about the things she’s seeing than caring about what’s going wrong. As a character, she was annoying. She didn’t care about anything other than being with the Doctor. Jackie and Mickey were pretty much pushed to one side, to the extent that when Rose tells Elton off for upsetting her mum in Love and Monsters, it’s actually laughable that she cares enough. Then suddenly she changed again. She’s proactive, thinking for herself. Unfortunately she’s still obsessive and slightly selfish, but we can’t have everything. I suppose I should be grateful there was actually *some* consistency! To give the writers their due, I did start to care about Rose again by the end of the series but oh my, there were times I wanted to slap her! I’m not sure I’ll ever forgive her for reaction to Mickey joining the Tardis! I do wish we hadn’t left her as a quivering wreck though. Yes, we know she’s trying to live by the Doctor’s ideals, carving out a career at Torchwood, but it would have been nice to see her as a strong young woman, upset at losing the Doctor and this fantastic life, but ready to move on, and not seeing her current existence as second best.
Mickey and Jackie however, have had wonderful character arcs. There is such a difference from Rose to Doomsday. Let’s face it, Mickey was pretty pathetic back then, but we’ve seen him move on from that to someone who can help the Doctor and Rose. He has the courage to admit it’s not the life for him at that point. In season 2, his development continues. He’s accepted the Doctor will always be more important to Rose than he is, and he doesn’t resent it as much, because he’s moving on. He obviously still loves Rose, but he isn’t dependent on her. And he finally makes that decision to see what he’s been missing. And that’s what it is. He’s not following Rose, he’s there because he wants to know what’s out there. The Doctor knows this and (mostly!) accepts Mickey as part of the team, even if Rose doesn’t. He’ll still rip the piss out of the poor boy, but it’s in a much more matey way. And even the Doctor ends up respecting Mickey. Because Mickey gets his big moment. He sees a way he can make a difference, and he takes it, even though he’ll never see Rose again and will be putting himself in almost constant danger. And he does it with dignity. In a way, it’s a shame they made his return to our universe all about Rose (‘Anything to find Miss Rose Tyler’), because it was a step backwards, but at least she’s not his main concern anymore. He’s his own man, a hero, and we love him for it. :)
And Jackie - someone else who now accepts the Doctor for what he is, after a slightly shaky start. I think it’s great the way she moved on from being scared of who he was and what he might want with Rose, to realising that the Doctor was now an important part of her daughter’s life, and would always do his best for Rose, and finally through tolerance to, imo, love for this alien. She accepts him as part of her family and although the Doctor doesn’t like domestic, maybe this is something else he needed after the Time War. Not only that, Jackie protects him, and we get the feeling that it’s not just because Rose is with him. And then in Army of Ghosts, she really fits in as a companion for him. She’s not scared, and instead of arguing over everything, she goes along with what he says and does. Yes, she gets scared by the Cybermen, but they even scare the Doctor! And even when she’s being held captive, her first thought is for Rose, not herself. All the way through both series, her love for Rose is the most important thing - but she doesn’t use it to smother her daughter. She became a fabulous character and in some ways I’m more upset that she and Mickey have left than Rose!
Finally we get to the Doctor. I’m still in two minds about Ten. There have been some episodes where I adored him, some where I thought he was OK, some where he’s made me cringe and one where I just downright disliked him. Ten is very much in love with the fun side of travelling, and sometimes that blinds him to the danger/scariness that others might feel. Which I suppose highlights his alienness, but it’s gone a bit too far in some episodes. My major problem with Ten though is that he doesn’t seem to have a lot of authority. This is the Oncoming Storm for goodness sake, the one being a Dalek is scared of. Yet he’s reduced to impotently shouting after two humans who just ignore him, and he ends up sounding like a whiney human himself. And let’s not forget shouty, spittle producing Ten in the Idiot’s Lantern, who can’t seem to do anything useful without shouting about it. There have been maybe three episodes where we’ve seen a Doctor with power and authority - School Reunion, Army of Ghosts and Doomsday (although Doomsday is questionable). It was only in these episodes that we got any real sense that Ten was a 900 year old alien, the last of a powerful race. The rest of the time he’s flippant, and often doesn’t seem to care. When we do see him caring however, Ten can be magnificent. His interaction with Sarah Jane, Reinette, Tommy and the crew of Sanctuary Base 6 was wonderful and almost totally redeems any mistakes in the rest of the series.
Now all this makes it look as if I don’t like Ten, and I do. I still believe that Ten could be one of the best incarnations ever. But he’s not there yet. I don’t mind him having a lot of fun - hell, I’d be the same in his place, and I still love New Earth for his enthusiasm. And I love the way he’s such a History fanboy and gets carried away with things, but a more thoughtful Doctor would be truly great. And some angst! I know Ten has come to terms with the extinction of his race, more than Nine had at any rate, but it would be nice if it still affected him in some way (there’s a reason one of my favourite parts of Doomsday is his conversation about the Time War!). Angsty!Doctor is a more grounded individual, and although we’ve seen glimpses this year, I want more!
Part two
Part three