everything you ever cared to know and more about my thoughts on who
Someone just posted this in the doctorwho comm recently, and somewhere along the line, as I was filling it out, I realised it had turned into epically huge tl;dr. So I thought I might as well post it to my journal properly, for the enlightenment and edification of any of you who care for such things.
1. Who is your favourite Doctor, why?
~ I really am incapable of narrowing it down to favourites. That being said, I lovelovelove Three, Five, Six, Eight, and the New Who Doctors. I also am very fond of Two, though less familiar with him than the others. Four and Seven I know are the universally loved Doctors, but for some reason, I've never really been able to get hugely into them.
2. What do you think of the Daleks?
~ I think they're a great concept for a villain, with a fantastic character design. When used correctly, they can be quite scary. When they come back once or twice a season, as in New Who, they lose all that punch.
3. Your thoughts on RTD and Moffat.
~ They both have their strong points. RTD, as others have pointed out, is great with emotional resonance, with sketching out characters that you really care for. I wept during 'Doomsday,' absolute ridiculous tears. Same for 'Journey's End.' I also enjoy his shout-outs to Classic Who, and the constant, unobtrusive presence of alternate sexualities and gender presentations in his Doctor Who (Torchwood, while certainly full of alternate sexualities and gender presentations, could never be called unobtrusive). However, he does also tend to fall down somewhat when it comes to plotting, and is way, way too fond of the deus ex machina. I understand that it's sci-fi, man, but come on. He also rather labours under the notion that bigger is better, which is something that unfortunately tends to reflect in his finales.
Moff is a great writer when it comes to stringing together tight plot and clever dialogue. I loved the finale to this series-- all that timey-wimey nonsense and going back and forth and forth and back, but Moff wrote it in such a way that it worked. He's also excellent at scares, and his episodes during RTD's tenure have routinely been some of my favourites. Empty Child/Doctor Dances, Blink, Girl in the Fireplace-- all excellent. As if in direct opposition to RTD, though, Moff's writing does not emphasise the emotional in the long term. At least not in real terms. We had, for example, a lot of good, genuine emotion contained in Girl in the Fireplace, but I think he rather falls down at maintaining an emotional investment to Amy, for example, over the new series. His characters tend to be less fleshed out than RTD's, and will frequently just be there to serve a purpose in one of his plots. Also, I think he should just NEVER EVER EVER open his mouth in interviews. Ever. Because boy, do I have issues with some of the stuff he comes out with.
4. What is your favourite Christmas Special? Why?
~ Ummm, probably Runaway Bride? I do love the madcappery of that episode, and Donna is terribly fun. Christmas Invasion is also good, because awww, Ten, I forget how much I loved you when you were still young and bouncy and happy.
5. Your favourite companion?
~ Oh, now that's a hell of a question. Again, I am incapable of choosing favourites, so I'll make a list of companions I'm fond of. Taking into account non-televised Who media.
Jamie McCrimmon
Liz Shaw
Jo Grant
Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart
Vislor Turlough
Peri Brown and Erimem (I 'ship them like burning, so they get a listing together)
Evelyn Smythe
Fitz Kreiner
Charley Pollard
C'rizz
Rose Tyler
Donna Noble
Rory Williams
6. Least favourite companion?
~ Mel? Notttt a fan of Mel. Martha also does not do a whole lot for me.
7. Least favourite Doctor?
~ As I mentioned above, One, Four, and Seven are the Doctors I haven't really been able to get into. I don't dislike any of them, per se, I'm just not wildly enthusiastic about them. I can say, though, good goddamn, I was tired of Ten by the end of his tenure. I was just waiting for him to kick the bucket and regenerate into someone less gallingly apt to wallow in self-pity and emo.
8. Favourite episode/arch/storyline?
~ Oh god, how can you ask that? Um. I love the entirety of Series 8, does that count? The Three series where the Master was the villain in every single serial. New Who... I do love Utopia. That is a fantastic episode.
In the audios, I enjoy the Divergent Universe arc for Eight and Charley, and more recently, the City of Spires trilogy with Six and Jamie.
9. Your OTP/OT3/OT4? Why?
~ Doctor/Master takes trumps every time. I also love Doctor/TARDIS. Generally I don't do the Doctor/Companion thing, but I have been known to 'ship the Doctor with Jamie, Charley, Fitz, Turlough, and Rose. Sometimes with their corresponding canon Doctors, but I like to play mix and match with timelines. I also love Liz/Jo and Peri/Erimem, as far as companion 'ships. And I can be persuaded into Eleven/Amy/Rory. Though only if Rory's involved; I hate Eleven/Amy on its own.
10. How did you get into Doctor Who?
Back in... 2007, one of my friends pimped it to me. I started with Series 1 of New Who, watched all the way up to what was then current-- the end of Series 3-- and then proceeded to do ALL THE RESEARCH about Classic Who. Three was my first Classic Doctor, and I absolutely fell in love.
11. If you could meet any of the actors/actresses/writers/directors/staff from DW who would it be?
~ Well, I've met Paul McGann, India Fisher, and Frazer Hines, as well as some of the people on the non-actorly side of things-- Nick Briggs, Rob Shearman, Jason Haigh-Ellery-- all of whom were quite lovely. I say Paul was lovely, but I didn't so much talk to him as just perv quietly from a distance. The others I chatted with enough to confirm that yes, quite lovely.
I would love to meet Tennant or Smiff, from New Who. Tennant, just because he seems like such a boundless font of fannish enthusiasm. Matt Smith I just want to, I dunno, hang out with for a day. He seems like a ridiculous goofball. Oh, ok, and also Katy Manning. I have heard fantastic things about that woman at conventions.
Also Mark Gatiss. I would... possibly not give limbs, but I would give something else large and significant to meet Mark Gatiss and have a chat over tea.
... Or Colin Baker. I should probably just stop listing people now.
12. What do you think of K-9
~ He's amusing? I don't know, I don't have any great opinions on him.
13. Do you watch the spin-offs
~ I resisted watching Torchwood for ages, on principle, but eventually gave in after RPing for a while with a really excellent Ianto. I will admit, I watched mostly for Ianto. I don't care for Captain Jack, and the show seemed to me largely an exercise in fairly juvenile self-indulgence. I thought Children of Earth was excellent though; really rare, good telly. I have watched a few episodes of SJA, mostly if they had the Doctor in, or some other guest star whom I enjoy. Otherwise, eh. Children's programme, doesn't really do much for me.
14. Classic/New Series?
~ Love 'em both! I would probably choose Classic, though, if pressed. Or else the audios. WHICH ARE EPIC AWESOME.
15. If you could be part of any episode (say for instance you were a companion) which episode would you like to be in?
~ Something with Delgado!Master. Because that, to use the common parlance of the kids these days, is one GQ motherfucker.
16. Favourite planet/time explored on DW?
~ Again with all these favourite questions. Erm. I don't know! I love me some historical stories; the Victorian era or the Industrial Revolution or Ancient Egypt. Logopolis as a concept is pretty awesome. As is the library from Silence in the Library, etc, because soooooo many books.
17. Favourite minor characters?
~ Loved Lucy Saxon in SoD/LotTL, I choose to ignore her reappearance in EoT, because way to completely undermine everything that made that character interesting, RTD; way to fuckin' go.
1. Who is your favourite Doctor, why?
~ I really am incapable of narrowing it down to favourites. That being said, I lovelovelove Three, Five, Six, Eight, and the New Who Doctors. I also am very fond of Two, though less familiar with him than the others. Four and Seven I know are the universally loved Doctors, but for some reason, I've never really been able to get hugely into them.
2. What do you think of the Daleks?
~ I think they're a great concept for a villain, with a fantastic character design. When used correctly, they can be quite scary. When they come back once or twice a season, as in New Who, they lose all that punch.
3. Your thoughts on RTD and Moffat.
~ They both have their strong points. RTD, as others have pointed out, is great with emotional resonance, with sketching out characters that you really care for. I wept during 'Doomsday,' absolute ridiculous tears. Same for 'Journey's End.' I also enjoy his shout-outs to Classic Who, and the constant, unobtrusive presence of alternate sexualities and gender presentations in his Doctor Who (Torchwood, while certainly full of alternate sexualities and gender presentations, could never be called unobtrusive). However, he does also tend to fall down somewhat when it comes to plotting, and is way, way too fond of the deus ex machina. I understand that it's sci-fi, man, but come on. He also rather labours under the notion that bigger is better, which is something that unfortunately tends to reflect in his finales.
Moff is a great writer when it comes to stringing together tight plot and clever dialogue. I loved the finale to this series-- all that timey-wimey nonsense and going back and forth and forth and back, but Moff wrote it in such a way that it worked. He's also excellent at scares, and his episodes during RTD's tenure have routinely been some of my favourites. Empty Child/Doctor Dances, Blink, Girl in the Fireplace-- all excellent. As if in direct opposition to RTD, though, Moff's writing does not emphasise the emotional in the long term. At least not in real terms. We had, for example, a lot of good, genuine emotion contained in Girl in the Fireplace, but I think he rather falls down at maintaining an emotional investment to Amy, for example, over the new series. His characters tend to be less fleshed out than RTD's, and will frequently just be there to serve a purpose in one of his plots. Also, I think he should just NEVER EVER EVER open his mouth in interviews. Ever. Because boy, do I have issues with some of the stuff he comes out with.
4. What is your favourite Christmas Special? Why?
~ Ummm, probably Runaway Bride? I do love the madcappery of that episode, and Donna is terribly fun. Christmas Invasion is also good, because awww, Ten, I forget how much I loved you when you were still young and bouncy and happy.
5. Your favourite companion?
~ Oh, now that's a hell of a question. Again, I am incapable of choosing favourites, so I'll make a list of companions I'm fond of. Taking into account non-televised Who media.
Jamie McCrimmon
Liz Shaw
Jo Grant
Brigadier Lethbridge-Stewart
Vislor Turlough
Peri Brown and Erimem (I 'ship them like burning, so they get a listing together)
Evelyn Smythe
Fitz Kreiner
Charley Pollard
C'rizz
Rose Tyler
Donna Noble
Rory Williams
6. Least favourite companion?
~ Mel? Notttt a fan of Mel. Martha also does not do a whole lot for me.
7. Least favourite Doctor?
~ As I mentioned above, One, Four, and Seven are the Doctors I haven't really been able to get into. I don't dislike any of them, per se, I'm just not wildly enthusiastic about them. I can say, though, good goddamn, I was tired of Ten by the end of his tenure. I was just waiting for him to kick the bucket and regenerate into someone less gallingly apt to wallow in self-pity and emo.
8. Favourite episode/arch/storyline?
~ Oh god, how can you ask that? Um. I love the entirety of Series 8, does that count? The Three series where the Master was the villain in every single serial. New Who... I do love Utopia. That is a fantastic episode.
In the audios, I enjoy the Divergent Universe arc for Eight and Charley, and more recently, the City of Spires trilogy with Six and Jamie.
9. Your OTP/OT3/OT4? Why?
~ Doctor/Master takes trumps every time. I also love Doctor/TARDIS. Generally I don't do the Doctor/Companion thing, but I have been known to 'ship the Doctor with Jamie, Charley, Fitz, Turlough, and Rose. Sometimes with their corresponding canon Doctors, but I like to play mix and match with timelines. I also love Liz/Jo and Peri/Erimem, as far as companion 'ships. And I can be persuaded into Eleven/Amy/Rory. Though only if Rory's involved; I hate Eleven/Amy on its own.
10. How did you get into Doctor Who?
Back in... 2007, one of my friends pimped it to me. I started with Series 1 of New Who, watched all the way up to what was then current-- the end of Series 3-- and then proceeded to do ALL THE RESEARCH about Classic Who. Three was my first Classic Doctor, and I absolutely fell in love.
11. If you could meet any of the actors/actresses/writers/directors/staff from DW who would it be?
~ Well, I've met Paul McGann, India Fisher, and Frazer Hines, as well as some of the people on the non-actorly side of things-- Nick Briggs, Rob Shearman, Jason Haigh-Ellery-- all of whom were quite lovely. I say Paul was lovely, but I didn't so much talk to him as just perv quietly from a distance. The others I chatted with enough to confirm that yes, quite lovely.
I would love to meet Tennant or Smiff, from New Who. Tennant, just because he seems like such a boundless font of fannish enthusiasm. Matt Smith I just want to, I dunno, hang out with for a day. He seems like a ridiculous goofball. Oh, ok, and also Katy Manning. I have heard fantastic things about that woman at conventions.
Also Mark Gatiss. I would... possibly not give limbs, but I would give something else large and significant to meet Mark Gatiss and have a chat over tea.
... Or Colin Baker. I should probably just stop listing people now.
12. What do you think of K-9
~ He's amusing? I don't know, I don't have any great opinions on him.
13. Do you watch the spin-offs
~ I resisted watching Torchwood for ages, on principle, but eventually gave in after RPing for a while with a really excellent Ianto. I will admit, I watched mostly for Ianto. I don't care for Captain Jack, and the show seemed to me largely an exercise in fairly juvenile self-indulgence. I thought Children of Earth was excellent though; really rare, good telly. I have watched a few episodes of SJA, mostly if they had the Doctor in, or some other guest star whom I enjoy. Otherwise, eh. Children's programme, doesn't really do much for me.
14. Classic/New Series?
~ Love 'em both! I would probably choose Classic, though, if pressed. Or else the audios. WHICH ARE EPIC AWESOME.
15. If you could be part of any episode (say for instance you were a companion) which episode would you like to be in?
~ Something with Delgado!Master. Because that, to use the common parlance of the kids these days, is one GQ motherfucker.
16. Favourite planet/time explored on DW?
~ Again with all these favourite questions. Erm. I don't know! I love me some historical stories; the Victorian era or the Industrial Revolution or Ancient Egypt. Logopolis as a concept is pretty awesome. As is the library from Silence in the Library, etc, because soooooo many books.
17. Favourite minor characters?
~ Loved Lucy Saxon in SoD/LotTL, I choose to ignore her reappearance in EoT, because way to completely undermine everything that made that character interesting, RTD; way to fuckin' go.