Bok choy dance party!
I'm still slowly working on the alphabet meme from billions of years ago, but I wanted to write the R entry before this Saturday. And then I started writing tangents and rambling and it sort of got out of hand, so the R entry is going to be posted by itself (yeah... THANKS, par_tay).
R is for Rose Tyler (claimed by par_tay) First off, let’s not get into any misconceptions. I like Rose. A lot. She was my first companion to watch on Doctor Who, like many of us who started off with the New Series. I loved the fact that she was, for the most part, a normal person. She wasn’t stick-skinny like the girls you see on American television, she had curves to her body. She had her faults (jealously and selfishness come to mind), but who doesn't? Having not-so-good qualities fleshes out characters more, I feel. We wouldn't want someone who is so squeaky clean and absolutely perfect, would we? Not me, that's for damn sure!
I adored her relationship with the Ninth Doctor. Here was a man who had been crushed with grief from an inconceivable devastation. By the second episode, Rose only knew the basics. His world was gone, his people were gone and he was alone. How do you even deal with anything like that? Or even comprehend it? But just her presence and her bright outlook on life, the universe and everything helped him begin to heal. I love shots where he’d watch her reaction at her new surroundings for the first time while Rose was completely oblivious. He was watching the universe through her eyes.
I think my favorite “defining” Rose moment was in “Rose” where she swung on the chain to kick the Autons and save the Doctor. It's nothing spectacular, but there's that moment just before when she hesitates. Both the Doctor and Mickey are telling her to run, but she chooses to stay and help. She uses her gymnastic skills (though I'm still having difficulty figuring out how does swinging have anything to do with gymnastics) and rescues him. And maybe, that's when the Doctor figures that she'd be a good companion.
And then he had to go and break our hearts by regenerating to save her life. The second season of Who was quite different from the first one. The look of it, the roles of the characters, and apparently, their behavior. I watched S1 and S2 within a week, so I just zoomed through those episodes. Since then, I’ve discovered that while many people liked Rose’s character in S1, they weren’t a fan of her in S2, calling her “clingy” and “emotional” and “weak”. Looking back, I can see that, but when I watched S2, I saw her relationship with Ten as someone who had a brand new boyfriend. I’m not saying that they WERE involved with each other. I’m just saying that’s how they behaved. I can identify with Mickey and Jackie, being the observers on the outside looking in. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve dealt with friends of mine who were quickly in a new relationship with a guy and completely dropped all their friends because their whole world was suddenly focused on one person. And the only time you’d see said friend was when they were arguing or were broken up with that boyfriend. Not a very healthy relationship, right? So I can see where her relationship with Ten can be not good for either one of them, but they're so oblivious to everything else, they can't see it. I have said it before that while Rose was the best companion for Nine, Donna is the best one (so far) for Ten. But honorable mention to Dr. Martha Jones, too. I don't think either Rose or Donna would have spent a year walking around the world to spread the word and tell stories (and play her banjo) about the Doctor. She's an impressive girl, that one.
That being said, I do ship the Doctor and Rose. I'm just not as outspoken about it as other members of this fandom. Heads up, folks! There are people in existence who like Doctor/Rose, totally ship other characters with the Doctor besides Rose (and vice-versa), are perfectly fine with people not liking/not seeing said ship, and don't go around shoving “OMG D/R IS THE BEST OTP 4EVAR!11!!” down other people's throats. In other words, there are normal, not-crazy fans. I'm of the mindset that there is no 100% OTP in this show, unless you want to pair the Doctor and his TARDIS (in a non-squicky, sexual sort of way) because they''ve been constant throughout the history of this series.
And I'm not as outspoken about it because I just don't care. I don't care about these shipwars or companion wars or Rose vs. Martha that you see constantly. It's downright embarrassing, that's what it is. Almost as bad as the Harry Potter fandom. I know shipwars exist in every fandom, but since this is the first one I've sort of been active in (outside of my own circle of friends, that is), so it just seems that they're overwhelming. I see so much negativity on all sides towards other characters and other fans. Can't stand it! I hate character bashing. Absolutely hate it. Just recently, I saw a scan of the Radio Times with Rose, Martha and Donna standing next to Tennant. And in the comments, someone had the balls to write something to extent of “Yay, Rose is in the front, Martha's in the back... WHERE SHE BELONGS.” .... The hell? So unbelievably uncool. I don't even know where to begin about how horribly wrong this sort of behavior is. Poor form, folks. I hated seeing people in an uproar about River Song because OMG she's getting in the way of mah OTP!!1! Ummm... so? Who cares? So is the poor man never allowed to look at another woman again? That's gonna be tough, seeing as how 80% of his companions have been female.
I refuse to believe that Rose is in Pete’s World wasting away to nothing, as I’ve seen in so many post-Doomsday fic. She’ll grieve, sure! I can totally understand that. She was violently ripped away from her best friend/love of her life/call him what you will and she can never see him again. I would be torn up, too. But the character that I watched in those two seasons would realize that the Doctor wouldn’t want her to be mopey all over him. He told her to have a fantastic life in the Emergency Program. With her new status in the AU, she has the opportunity to influence others. She told the Doctor in ‘Doomsday’ that she was going to work at Torchwood. She can take everything she’s learned from her travels with the Doctor and use it and teach others. Sort of a “pass it on” deal. It'll be tough, but I firmly believe that Rose will try her damn best to have that fantastic life. She's come a long way from that shopgirl we saw in the first episode, I feel.
I've mentioned before that I'm a bit wary about Rose returning for the finale, which is why I wanted to get this done before it actually airs. On the plus side, I'm glad that the Doctor and Rose will be able to see each other again (hopefully) because they (or at least, the Doctor since we haven't seen Rose's POV post-Doomsday) need closure. I definitely don't think Rose is going to stay in this universe. I think she'll feel that Pete's World is her responsibility to protect since there is no Doctor there and go back. Anyway, yes. Closure so the characters can move on with their lives.
And at the same time, I wish they would have left it alone. While one or two mentions are fine about previous companions, I don't particularly like how it seems the show has turned into “The Rose Tyler Show” because it's unfair to the other characters. Yes, she's going to be in the finale, but what about all the other companions (among other cameo appearances that are rumored) that are coming back? Unless, they're specifically being kept out of the trailers to maintain the surprise, which is good... I guess... humph.
So... yeah. There are some thoughts. It went on a bit longer than I had planned on, but isn't that the whole point about this meme? Oh well.
PS. Happy (early) Birthday to air_and_angels and spellingwitch!
R is for Rose Tyler (claimed by par_tay) First off, let’s not get into any misconceptions. I like Rose. A lot. She was my first companion to watch on Doctor Who, like many of us who started off with the New Series. I loved the fact that she was, for the most part, a normal person. She wasn’t stick-skinny like the girls you see on American television, she had curves to her body. She had her faults (jealously and selfishness come to mind), but who doesn't? Having not-so-good qualities fleshes out characters more, I feel. We wouldn't want someone who is so squeaky clean and absolutely perfect, would we? Not me, that's for damn sure!
I adored her relationship with the Ninth Doctor. Here was a man who had been crushed with grief from an inconceivable devastation. By the second episode, Rose only knew the basics. His world was gone, his people were gone and he was alone. How do you even deal with anything like that? Or even comprehend it? But just her presence and her bright outlook on life, the universe and everything helped him begin to heal. I love shots where he’d watch her reaction at her new surroundings for the first time while Rose was completely oblivious. He was watching the universe through her eyes.
I think my favorite “defining” Rose moment was in “Rose” where she swung on the chain to kick the Autons and save the Doctor. It's nothing spectacular, but there's that moment just before when she hesitates. Both the Doctor and Mickey are telling her to run, but she chooses to stay and help. She uses her gymnastic skills (though I'm still having difficulty figuring out how does swinging have anything to do with gymnastics) and rescues him. And maybe, that's when the Doctor figures that she'd be a good companion.
And then he had to go and break our hearts by regenerating to save her life. The second season of Who was quite different from the first one. The look of it, the roles of the characters, and apparently, their behavior. I watched S1 and S2 within a week, so I just zoomed through those episodes. Since then, I’ve discovered that while many people liked Rose’s character in S1, they weren’t a fan of her in S2, calling her “clingy” and “emotional” and “weak”. Looking back, I can see that, but when I watched S2, I saw her relationship with Ten as someone who had a brand new boyfriend. I’m not saying that they WERE involved with each other. I’m just saying that’s how they behaved. I can identify with Mickey and Jackie, being the observers on the outside looking in. I can’t tell you how many times I’ve dealt with friends of mine who were quickly in a new relationship with a guy and completely dropped all their friends because their whole world was suddenly focused on one person. And the only time you’d see said friend was when they were arguing or were broken up with that boyfriend. Not a very healthy relationship, right? So I can see where her relationship with Ten can be not good for either one of them, but they're so oblivious to everything else, they can't see it. I have said it before that while Rose was the best companion for Nine, Donna is the best one (so far) for Ten. But honorable mention to Dr. Martha Jones, too. I don't think either Rose or Donna would have spent a year walking around the world to spread the word and tell stories (and play her banjo) about the Doctor. She's an impressive girl, that one.
That being said, I do ship the Doctor and Rose. I'm just not as outspoken about it as other members of this fandom. Heads up, folks! There are people in existence who like Doctor/Rose, totally ship other characters with the Doctor besides Rose (and vice-versa), are perfectly fine with people not liking/not seeing said ship, and don't go around shoving “OMG D/R IS THE BEST OTP 4EVAR!11!!” down other people's throats. In other words, there are normal, not-crazy fans. I'm of the mindset that there is no 100% OTP in this show, unless you want to pair the Doctor and his TARDIS (in a non-squicky, sexual sort of way) because they''ve been constant throughout the history of this series.
And I'm not as outspoken about it because I just don't care. I don't care about these shipwars or companion wars or Rose vs. Martha that you see constantly. It's downright embarrassing, that's what it is. Almost as bad as the Harry Potter fandom. I know shipwars exist in every fandom, but since this is the first one I've sort of been active in (outside of my own circle of friends, that is), so it just seems that they're overwhelming. I see so much negativity on all sides towards other characters and other fans. Can't stand it! I hate character bashing. Absolutely hate it. Just recently, I saw a scan of the Radio Times with Rose, Martha and Donna standing next to Tennant. And in the comments, someone had the balls to write something to extent of “Yay, Rose is in the front, Martha's in the back... WHERE SHE BELONGS.” .... The hell? So unbelievably uncool. I don't even know where to begin about how horribly wrong this sort of behavior is. Poor form, folks. I hated seeing people in an uproar about River Song because OMG she's getting in the way of mah OTP!!1! Ummm... so? Who cares? So is the poor man never allowed to look at another woman again? That's gonna be tough, seeing as how 80% of his companions have been female.
I refuse to believe that Rose is in Pete’s World wasting away to nothing, as I’ve seen in so many post-Doomsday fic. She’ll grieve, sure! I can totally understand that. She was violently ripped away from her best friend/love of her life/call him what you will and she can never see him again. I would be torn up, too. But the character that I watched in those two seasons would realize that the Doctor wouldn’t want her to be mopey all over him. He told her to have a fantastic life in the Emergency Program. With her new status in the AU, she has the opportunity to influence others. She told the Doctor in ‘Doomsday’ that she was going to work at Torchwood. She can take everything she’s learned from her travels with the Doctor and use it and teach others. Sort of a “pass it on” deal. It'll be tough, but I firmly believe that Rose will try her damn best to have that fantastic life. She's come a long way from that shopgirl we saw in the first episode, I feel.
I've mentioned before that I'm a bit wary about Rose returning for the finale, which is why I wanted to get this done before it actually airs. On the plus side, I'm glad that the Doctor and Rose will be able to see each other again (hopefully) because they (or at least, the Doctor since we haven't seen Rose's POV post-Doomsday) need closure. I definitely don't think Rose is going to stay in this universe. I think she'll feel that Pete's World is her responsibility to protect since there is no Doctor there and go back. Anyway, yes. Closure so the characters can move on with their lives.
And at the same time, I wish they would have left it alone. While one or two mentions are fine about previous companions, I don't particularly like how it seems the show has turned into “The Rose Tyler Show” because it's unfair to the other characters. Yes, she's going to be in the finale, but what about all the other companions (among other cameo appearances that are rumored) that are coming back? Unless, they're specifically being kept out of the trailers to maintain the surprise, which is good... I guess... humph.
So... yeah. There are some thoughts. It went on a bit longer than I had planned on, but isn't that the whole point about this meme? Oh well.
PS. Happy (early) Birthday to air_and_angels and spellingwitch!