A retrospective on the Doctor’s relationships: Rose and the Ninth Doctor
I wrote this a long time ago, intending to clean it up and actually finish it. Though we canceled Netflix, I've been checking out Doctor Who videos from the library on an almost weekly basis. I'm almost through season 5 now. It seems silly to keep sitting on this since I obviously won't be getting back to it any time soon, and it seems equally silly to have written it and not share it. So here it is, in all of it's rough glory. Maybe once I've satiated my addiction to watching "new" (to me) episodes, I'll circle back and revisit some of the thoughts I've had throughout. It's hard to find time. I'll resist the urge to make a Time Lord pun.
August 25, 2011, 15:56
Part of the reason I enjoy Doctor Who so much is that it really is an escapist fantasy. I’ve always loved the fantasy and science fiction genres for this reason. As a kid, I always was waiting for that time when life would sweep me out the door on an adventure. Reading these kinds of stories and watching these genre shows has been a bit of wish fulfillment for me. Pretty man traveling through space and time? Yes, please!
The Doctor seems to have this capacity to care very deeply for other people very quickly. It happened with Rose and Donna, and now it’s happening with Martha (present side-note: I was in the middle of season 3 when I originally wrote this). Early in season 1, I commented that the Doctor’s affection for Rose didn’t make sense. She didn't do much of anything. In the first two-part episode, she comes up with the “brilliant” solution that the Nestene Consciousness has taken up residence under the London Eye. That’s her big contribution to the episode, other than lots of running, a lame plastic boyfriend, and a big swing to victory at the end. And her realization was pretty obvious and unexciting with the London Eye spinning around behind the Doctor as he’s excitedly describing it (another present side-note: I later had a thought about this that helped to resolve the dissonance I felt this scene had - perhaps will share in the future). It seems like a being so old and smart as he should have connected the dots faster than that. Based on the events of these episodes, I didn’t really understand why he extended the offer to join him. Don’t get me wrong, I was glad he did! But something didn’t seem to add up.
In The End of the World, Rose’s only purpose seems to be the damsel in distress. She is uncomfortable with the Doctor, realizes she doesn’t know him, that she’s far away from her family - that her family is dead! - and she begins to question her decision to travel with him. Other than smirking some at Cassandra, what does she do? Gets trapped in a room and nearly incinerated. I liked this episode, though I thought it was cheesy. The Doctor and Rose’s relationship seemed to be in an appropriate place. She had proven (arguably) useful in their previous adventure, and in this episode, the Doctor seemed to have more of a connection with Jade than Rose (much to Rose’s displeasure and discomfort). I loved the scene when Jade identified the Doctor as a Time Lord. As a new fan to the series, I was still trying to understand this fascinating character, and I relished every additional morsel of information.
Next came The Unquiet Dead. This is the first episode that Rose seemed to be marginally useful, although once again, her character fell into the role of damsel in distress. The Doctor’s empathy with the Gelth’s predicament was understandable, as was Rose’s distaste for their proposed solution. To this point, we had seen the series from Rose’s perspective, but the audience has come to trust the Doctor’s expertise in the extraterrestrial. When the Doctor says that he will allow the Gelth to use corpses temporarily, I felt uncomfortable. I wanted to trust that the Doctor was right, and that it would all turn out okay, but the thought of using dead people just made my skin crawl. Rose felt the same, and expressed how wrong it was. The Doctor didn’t listen, feeling closer to the Gelth than Rose. He should have listened to Rose. I thought the following scene was a little over-the-top, with the Doctor fretting about dying. It was obvious that they weren’t going to die, and it seems like after everything he’s faced, he should have somehow known that this was going to end well (present side-note: this probably isn't a fair criticism on my part). In retrospect, Rose didn’t do much, but she was cleverer in this episode than she had been previously. Though, I didn’t feel her costume was period-appropriate, and that bothered me.
The next two-parter is when I began to think their relationship had developed too fast. The Slitheen were annoying and childish with all of their fart jokes. The show was definitely targeting juveniles with this one. Despite them, I was more or less pleased with part 1, Aliens of London. It had just the right amount of intrigue. A decoy spaceship, sent from Earth to crash into Big Ben? Gripping! As many fans have complained, the cliffhanger would have worked better without the “next time” spoiler immediately following. The Doctor’s line from part 2, World War Three, which also appeared in the spoiler, was the first hint that this relationship had moved to the serious: “I could save the world, but lose you.” Now, not to sound unsympathetic, but he barely knows her. They’ve had a couple adventures together, in which Rose has proven herself not at all to marginally useful. In all of his years, has he really come to care for a human that much, so quickly? Although I delighted in it (escapist fantasy, remember?), it also seemed a bit much.
The next episode, Dalek (gee, I wonder who will be the villain in this episode?), is when I really began asking, “What does he see in her?!” She wanders off on her own, sets a Dalek free, and once again is the damsel in distress. The Doctor closes the door to isolate the Dalek from the rest of the people, urging Rose to run. She doesn’t make it. Great acting from CE - he seems devastated by the loss. When he learns that she has survived, and the Dalek is using her as a hostage, he opens the door, because he “killed her once and can’t do it again.” The Dalek tells him that he will kill the woman he loves; if an unfeeling Dalek can see it, there must be something there. Rose still hasn’t proven herself to be particularly good to have around, and has wound up being more detrimental than helpful to the Doctor. Why does he care so intensely for her?
It was around this time that I read a bit of fascinating trivia: a previously planned (and subsequently unwritten) episode would reveal that the Doctor had been manipulating Rose’s life from childhood so that she would be the ideal companion for him. Fascinating! What a great explanation! I find it incredibly disappointing that this idea didn’t come to fruition, even if only in some one-off line. It would explain so much, so deeply, so well. It puts everything into a riveting perspective.
Although it was never written, I choose to believe that this is what happened (and for a man with as long and mysterious a history as the Doctor, it’s easy to believe this to be one of his many secrets). How can the Doctor come to care about Rose so quickly, despite her apparent ineptitude? He’s known her for her entire life! And why does Rose come to trust him so quickly, abandoning her loved ones and life? She’s been hardwired to respond to him that way. He’s changed small things about her personality and history to make her more companionable to him. There is the devious Doctor that I enjoy! After spending years on “developing” her, it’s easy to see why he would be terrified of losing her. Only a handful of adventures before his ideal companion bites the dust? Who wouldn’t be upset at that prospect? This revelation makes him more invested in her.
Still it’s a selfish move, and I wonder how Rose would have reacted if she had known. Would she have cared for him as much? If she had wanted not to, would she have been able to change? Or were his manipulations so ingrained in her that she couldn’t have? Did he take things a little too far? Did he anticipate (or arrange) for her to fall in love with him? When viewed in this light, not only does their unusual relationship make a lot more sense, it becomes that much deeper and darker. It introduces ideas of philosophy and ethics that the show has otherwise avoided (to date - season 3, remember?). Is it morally wrong? The point could be debated endlessly. Not including this information was the biggest mistake the show has made to date.
Armed with this bit of trivia, I began to see the series in a new light (coincidentally, around this time, I noticed a substantial improvement in the show’s quality - less cheese, more excitement). It was also around this time that I learned of CE’s imminent departure at the season’s end; I was dreading it. At this time, I still wasn’t crazy about Rose, despite the psychological interest I now had in her. I was watching the series for the Doctor, and I thought he was perfect in every way. I didn’t think there was any way his replacement could fill his shoes. However, there was nowhere to go but forward. And I still had 7 episodes in the season to come…
Part 2:
I was disappointed that Adam had been extended companion status (something the Doctor did to keep his pet happy?). In the opening sequence in the next episode, The Long Game, I was glad to see he didn’t get billing rights. The episode was solid and suspenseful, and I was glad to see him go, leaving the Doctor and Rose together as it should be. This episode really stepped it up a notch, getting at issues that felt relevant.
Finally, Father’s Day hit on the time-traveling issues I was waiting for: what happens when you change an event that alters history? This was the best acting we have seen from Piper to date. It was nice to see Rose carry the action when the Doctor vanished.
The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances were even better, and it was this point that I knew I was hooked. The child wandering London in the gas mask was sufficiently eerie. We received some lovely character bits from the Doctor, a great supporting cast, and the introduction of Captain Jack Harkness. At first, I was a little nervous at the introduction of a new member to the TARDIS crew, but he won me over by the end of The Doctor Dances, and I loved the dynamic he brought to the crew for the rest of the season.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
That's where I stopped. There was obviously more to be said, and even more now that I'm further into the series, but I'll leave it at that for now. Besides, only a person with either a lot of free time or a deep love of Doctor Who would actually have read that entire essay. :-)
More later. Someday. Maybe even a real update about my life? Who knows.
August 25, 2011, 15:56
Part of the reason I enjoy Doctor Who so much is that it really is an escapist fantasy. I’ve always loved the fantasy and science fiction genres for this reason. As a kid, I always was waiting for that time when life would sweep me out the door on an adventure. Reading these kinds of stories and watching these genre shows has been a bit of wish fulfillment for me. Pretty man traveling through space and time? Yes, please!
The Doctor seems to have this capacity to care very deeply for other people very quickly. It happened with Rose and Donna, and now it’s happening with Martha (present side-note: I was in the middle of season 3 when I originally wrote this). Early in season 1, I commented that the Doctor’s affection for Rose didn’t make sense. She didn't do much of anything. In the first two-part episode, she comes up with the “brilliant” solution that the Nestene Consciousness has taken up residence under the London Eye. That’s her big contribution to the episode, other than lots of running, a lame plastic boyfriend, and a big swing to victory at the end. And her realization was pretty obvious and unexciting with the London Eye spinning around behind the Doctor as he’s excitedly describing it (another present side-note: I later had a thought about this that helped to resolve the dissonance I felt this scene had - perhaps will share in the future). It seems like a being so old and smart as he should have connected the dots faster than that. Based on the events of these episodes, I didn’t really understand why he extended the offer to join him. Don’t get me wrong, I was glad he did! But something didn’t seem to add up.
In The End of the World, Rose’s only purpose seems to be the damsel in distress. She is uncomfortable with the Doctor, realizes she doesn’t know him, that she’s far away from her family - that her family is dead! - and she begins to question her decision to travel with him. Other than smirking some at Cassandra, what does she do? Gets trapped in a room and nearly incinerated. I liked this episode, though I thought it was cheesy. The Doctor and Rose’s relationship seemed to be in an appropriate place. She had proven (arguably) useful in their previous adventure, and in this episode, the Doctor seemed to have more of a connection with Jade than Rose (much to Rose’s displeasure and discomfort). I loved the scene when Jade identified the Doctor as a Time Lord. As a new fan to the series, I was still trying to understand this fascinating character, and I relished every additional morsel of information.
Next came The Unquiet Dead. This is the first episode that Rose seemed to be marginally useful, although once again, her character fell into the role of damsel in distress. The Doctor’s empathy with the Gelth’s predicament was understandable, as was Rose’s distaste for their proposed solution. To this point, we had seen the series from Rose’s perspective, but the audience has come to trust the Doctor’s expertise in the extraterrestrial. When the Doctor says that he will allow the Gelth to use corpses temporarily, I felt uncomfortable. I wanted to trust that the Doctor was right, and that it would all turn out okay, but the thought of using dead people just made my skin crawl. Rose felt the same, and expressed how wrong it was. The Doctor didn’t listen, feeling closer to the Gelth than Rose. He should have listened to Rose. I thought the following scene was a little over-the-top, with the Doctor fretting about dying. It was obvious that they weren’t going to die, and it seems like after everything he’s faced, he should have somehow known that this was going to end well (present side-note: this probably isn't a fair criticism on my part). In retrospect, Rose didn’t do much, but she was cleverer in this episode than she had been previously. Though, I didn’t feel her costume was period-appropriate, and that bothered me.
The next two-parter is when I began to think their relationship had developed too fast. The Slitheen were annoying and childish with all of their fart jokes. The show was definitely targeting juveniles with this one. Despite them, I was more or less pleased with part 1, Aliens of London. It had just the right amount of intrigue. A decoy spaceship, sent from Earth to crash into Big Ben? Gripping! As many fans have complained, the cliffhanger would have worked better without the “next time” spoiler immediately following. The Doctor’s line from part 2, World War Three, which also appeared in the spoiler, was the first hint that this relationship had moved to the serious: “I could save the world, but lose you.” Now, not to sound unsympathetic, but he barely knows her. They’ve had a couple adventures together, in which Rose has proven herself not at all to marginally useful. In all of his years, has he really come to care for a human that much, so quickly? Although I delighted in it (escapist fantasy, remember?), it also seemed a bit much.
The next episode, Dalek (gee, I wonder who will be the villain in this episode?), is when I really began asking, “What does he see in her?!” She wanders off on her own, sets a Dalek free, and once again is the damsel in distress. The Doctor closes the door to isolate the Dalek from the rest of the people, urging Rose to run. She doesn’t make it. Great acting from CE - he seems devastated by the loss. When he learns that she has survived, and the Dalek is using her as a hostage, he opens the door, because he “killed her once and can’t do it again.” The Dalek tells him that he will kill the woman he loves; if an unfeeling Dalek can see it, there must be something there. Rose still hasn’t proven herself to be particularly good to have around, and has wound up being more detrimental than helpful to the Doctor. Why does he care so intensely for her?
It was around this time that I read a bit of fascinating trivia: a previously planned (and subsequently unwritten) episode would reveal that the Doctor had been manipulating Rose’s life from childhood so that she would be the ideal companion for him. Fascinating! What a great explanation! I find it incredibly disappointing that this idea didn’t come to fruition, even if only in some one-off line. It would explain so much, so deeply, so well. It puts everything into a riveting perspective.
Although it was never written, I choose to believe that this is what happened (and for a man with as long and mysterious a history as the Doctor, it’s easy to believe this to be one of his many secrets). How can the Doctor come to care about Rose so quickly, despite her apparent ineptitude? He’s known her for her entire life! And why does Rose come to trust him so quickly, abandoning her loved ones and life? She’s been hardwired to respond to him that way. He’s changed small things about her personality and history to make her more companionable to him. There is the devious Doctor that I enjoy! After spending years on “developing” her, it’s easy to see why he would be terrified of losing her. Only a handful of adventures before his ideal companion bites the dust? Who wouldn’t be upset at that prospect? This revelation makes him more invested in her.
Still it’s a selfish move, and I wonder how Rose would have reacted if she had known. Would she have cared for him as much? If she had wanted not to, would she have been able to change? Or were his manipulations so ingrained in her that she couldn’t have? Did he take things a little too far? Did he anticipate (or arrange) for her to fall in love with him? When viewed in this light, not only does their unusual relationship make a lot more sense, it becomes that much deeper and darker. It introduces ideas of philosophy and ethics that the show has otherwise avoided (to date - season 3, remember?). Is it morally wrong? The point could be debated endlessly. Not including this information was the biggest mistake the show has made to date.
Armed with this bit of trivia, I began to see the series in a new light (coincidentally, around this time, I noticed a substantial improvement in the show’s quality - less cheese, more excitement). It was also around this time that I learned of CE’s imminent departure at the season’s end; I was dreading it. At this time, I still wasn’t crazy about Rose, despite the psychological interest I now had in her. I was watching the series for the Doctor, and I thought he was perfect in every way. I didn’t think there was any way his replacement could fill his shoes. However, there was nowhere to go but forward. And I still had 7 episodes in the season to come…
Part 2:
I was disappointed that Adam had been extended companion status (something the Doctor did to keep his pet happy?). In the opening sequence in the next episode, The Long Game, I was glad to see he didn’t get billing rights. The episode was solid and suspenseful, and I was glad to see him go, leaving the Doctor and Rose together as it should be. This episode really stepped it up a notch, getting at issues that felt relevant.
Finally, Father’s Day hit on the time-traveling issues I was waiting for: what happens when you change an event that alters history? This was the best acting we have seen from Piper to date. It was nice to see Rose carry the action when the Doctor vanished.
The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances were even better, and it was this point that I knew I was hooked. The child wandering London in the gas mask was sufficiently eerie. We received some lovely character bits from the Doctor, a great supporting cast, and the introduction of Captain Jack Harkness. At first, I was a little nervous at the introduction of a new member to the TARDIS crew, but he won me over by the end of The Doctor Dances, and I loved the dynamic he brought to the crew for the rest of the season.
----------------------------------------------------------------------
That's where I stopped. There was obviously more to be said, and even more now that I'm further into the series, but I'll leave it at that for now. Besides, only a person with either a lot of free time or a deep love of Doctor Who would actually have read that entire essay. :-)
More later. Someday. Maybe even a real update about my life? Who knows.