Comments | doctorwho: Two questions about the Doctor's name

alumfelga in doctorwho

Two questions about the Doctor's name

Apr 04, 2016 20:49

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Comments 11

stars_inthe_sky April 12 2016, 19:31:55 UTC

At this point I've lost track of what's canon and fanon and headcanon, but I always thought it was a sort of statement of true love, like the only person who can know your real Gallifreyan name is that, and so saying it aloud is like a whole other level of saying "I love you." And he never thought he'd be able to say it, because he never thought he'd meet such a person-especially after the seeming extinction of his entire kind, who'd be the only ones to understand the meaning of it ( ... )

alumfelga April 15 2016, 14:52:09 UTC

Hi! Thanks for such a long comment, I think your idea makes sense. There's no canon to suport it - unless there was a mini episode about it, I haven't seen them all - but it's a possibility. I don't know if it fells right to me - because the Tenth Doctor seems to be terrified when he hears it and I hate when the character needs to do something because he knows he already did it, oh those loops - but it's something.

stars_inthe_sky April 15 2016, 15:34:04 UTC

Yeah, I can't explain the terror. Maybe it's a way of saying goodbye. Although I'd think, after his horrorshow with the Master not that long before SitL/FotD, Ten would be wary of anyone seeming to be Time Lord-y, especially given that he doesn't know how/why River's got that element going for her. *shrug* I'm sure Moffat has an answer...

alumfelga April 15 2016, 18:42:23 UTC

If he thought about the Master, maybe he shouldn't have been so keen on trusting River? This is really odd because he's terrified but decides "they're good"; very mixed signals. Maybe it's what Moffat wanted.

dbskyler April 12 2016, 20:40:15 UTC

when and why did the Doctor tell River his name?

This drives me crazy too, and I was very disappointed when we didn't get the answer to it in "Time of the Doctor." That whole "Silence in the Library" set of scenes certainly underscores that "there's only one time I could" is a very important, very unique situation, and it doesn't seem to be a happy situation, I agree. Your idea of it being his final death is a very intriguing one.

ravena_kade April 12 2016, 22:01:38 UTC

I might be bad, but I just assumed it was in moment of intense...umm...intimacy ;-)

alumfelga April 15 2016, 14:41:47 UTC

Oh, so it's not only me! Thank God, I had a feeling that everyone else has moved on and doesn't care anymore. Well, I do.

It's not my idea about it being his final death, I read it somewhere but I think it makes sense.

kathminchin April 12 2016, 20:46:46 UTC

Do we have to be shown it? I recall River saing something like "I kept bugging him" so my general thought is it happened off camera.

alumfelga April 15 2016, 14:38:32 UTC

Well, since it seems to be such a big deal in "Forest of the Dead", I'd say "yes". Important scenes should be shown, as far as I'm concerned.

ibishtar April 23 2016, 22:18:40 UTC

I was also disappointed by not getting a proper answer to "only one time I ever could". If River saying that she made him tell her wasn't underwhelming enough, there's also the fact that for a moment Clara knew his name because she read it in a book in the TARDIS library in Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS. Poor David Tennant acting his heart out for nothing, in retrospect.

alumfelga April 24 2016, 15:36:57 UTC

O, I forgot about Clara and the book. If anyone can read the Doctor's name there, what's the point of the mystery?

Poor David Tennant acting his heart out for nothing, in retrospect.
It's such a powerful scene, and it would be even more powerful if there was an explanation. Well, I suppose I just have to accept the fact that there's no answer.