#Martha didn't try to understand how much the Doctor was hurting because of Rose

[sailforvalinor]

Seeing your post got me thinking. How did you feel about Ten's ending? Especially the fact that he "didn't want to go". That hit me rather hard when I first watched Ten's ending. It was rather unlike Five's for instance where he accepted his fate. I forget in what order I watched it, I think I watched Five's story after, but I digress. I don't know, it felt so human to me, and raw and David Tennant delivered it flawlessly. So I wondered your thoughts on it.

I loved it. I loved it I loved it I loved it. I was a bit too emotional at the time to post anything coherent about it, but…yeah. If it tells you anything, my dad cried—and he’s seen it at least three times before 😂.

Here’s the thing about the “I don’t want to go” line: Series 1 and 2 is a positive character arc for the Doctor. At the beginning of Series 1, he is at his lowest, the Time War having just occurred. He is angry, closed-off, refuses to be “domestic”—i.e., he’s refusing to get attached again. But Rose drags him back into all of that anyway—and this arc is a lot of things, it’s about him rediscovering joy, confronting grief and guilt, but most importantly, he is allowing himself to care again.

But to care is to leave yourself vulnerable to loss, and that’s what happens when he loses Rose—and it’s inarguably devastating for him. His characterization takes a definite shift here, he’s lost a bit of his joy (and even at times when he does express happiness or joy it can feel like a mask, or at least somewhat forced), and he becomes so unwilling to let go—think of the “I can do this, I can do anything” scene where Astrid dies in “Voyage of the Damned.” To me, Series 3 and 4 and the specials are a negative character arc for Ten, though a subtle one, one you don’t realize is occurring until it culminates with the Time Lord Victorious—a slow, agonizing trainwreck. He’s lost so many people by this point—not just his Rose, but Martha, Donna, the Tylers, Mickey, Astrid—and he’s been isolating himself to avoid getting attached again, to avoid hurting anyone else, but when he comes to care for the crew of Bowie Base One and loses them, he snaps. And we all know what happens—he falls for the lure of power, the illusion of control. And he himself falls.

“The End of Time” is the consequence of that fall, and I would argue that the Doctor finds himself much in the same position as he was in at the beginning of Series 1–desperately lonely, but unwilling to get close, so so scared of loss. Though in a very different way, I think Wilf helps Ten relearn the same lesson Rose taught him all those years ago, that he has to care, to try to force himself to be apathetic is so much worse, but Wilf (and the Ood) help give him the second half: he also has to learn to let go. It’s a constant cycle: “you have to love -> you have to lose -> you have to love -> you have to lose,” and Ten finally, finally understands—but as he’s dying. He’s finally grasped the truth, he’s seen the light, but he’s seen it too late. And that’s the tragedy of it. As I watched the specials, I got the sense that he wanted his time to end—it’s never explicit, but you can sense it, he seems tired, makes references to having lived too long. He had all that time he wasted self-isolating and alternately wallowing in despair or trying to force apathy, but it is on his last day, at the sound of four knocks, that he finally realizes that he wants to live. And he can’t.

I think that Matt Smith was an absolutely brilliant casting choice as Eleven, because it would be impossible to not resent any other replacement after that. Smith’s Doctor is just so sweet and goofy and joyful that it’s hard to dislike him for long. Honestly, my personal headcanon is that Eleven is like that because of Eleven, trying to make up for Ten’s lost joy.

Anyway, sorry about the ramble, I had more thoughts about this than I realized.

[twelvemonkeyswere]

Love, Loss, and Doctor Who

I know there are about 15 years of experiences for Russel T Davies that have probably influenced the approach with which he's written 14th and Donna's storyline, but I also think there's something to say about the Doctor's growth as a character since 9.

Doctor Who has never been terribly consistent about many things, but something every NuWho Doctor has had in common is how the love for his/her companions influences the story's themes around loss. 9 came out of a war, furious and hurt, and didn't want anyone at his side. Then he met Rose. He allowed himself to become her friend, and he died saving her, in an act full of quiet bravery and determination. Along came 10, who fell in love with her, but he never told her directly, wasn't brave enough. Her loss made him show his cruel streak, as he mistreated and ignored Martha, and Martha calling him out on it made him more aware of how he approached Donna. He was more honest with her about who he was and what he wanted, and then she became his best friend, and she saved the universe, and he had to effectively erase all of their time together, all of her adventures and their friendship, in order to save her. He lost her anyway, in one of the worst ways possible, and that broke him enough he almost became his worst possible self. When she couldn't be there, her grandfather was, holding her place. 10 went as far to sort of voice he saw Wilf as a father figure, in spite of the overwhelming age difference, but nothing more. He died, like 9, for love, saving Wilf even though he very much was not ready to die. 10 wasn't ready for many things.

After that, 11 had a teenage-like approach to most of his relationships (I feel like this is Moffat's writing choices more than anything else), and the result was that he kept most people at bay and it never allowed him true closeness to most of them, even though he had River Song during this time and a lot of love for Amy and Clara. Yet there's always a gap. The madman with a box, the impossible man, always something grandiloquent. He ages for thousands of years, and is very tired by the end and very lonely. But then 12 came along, and that's when things actually turn beautiful.

12 is famously grumpy, but that's because he deeply cares (you can't care about others or the world without constantly getting angry, I think). He creates with Clara what he couldn't have with her while he was 11 - he asks her to see him for who he is, for what he is. 12 offers earnestness. Kindness, not niceness. They become inseparable. His loyalty and fierceness reach glorious highs. He realizes his face is a reminder of something he learned from Donna - that even when the worst happens, you have a choice regarding the good you can do, even if it's small. He holds himself to it, to the last consequences. He still avoids traditional expressions of affection (it's so hard for him to accept hugs at the beginning), but he shows it at every turn. In what he does and *doesn't* do. He spends literal billions and billions of years trying to get out of a timelocked prison because he needs to save Clara. He goes right to the end of the universe to preserve her. He ends up wiping up his *own* memory, this time in a consensual understanding with his companion, because one has to go for both of them to survive, for the universe to survive. They force themselves apart, and 12 keeps to himself for decades after that, until Bill shows up. And it reminds him how beautiful friends are, and the thrills of finding someone with a perspicacity that rivals yours and a curiosity that moves their very life. 12 says he shouldn't make her his friend, but they become friends anyhow, mentor and mentee. 12 constantly said you had to act as if you had already won, and when he is shot, he refuses to die. He has lost too much and too many by this point and the injustice makes him angry, so he doesn't want to lose anything else. It takes him a while to make peace with his departure, but meeting his past self allows him to understand what letting go means for him. He upholds his promises till the very end, best he can. When he regenerates, he has closed down his story with River Song, with Clara and Bill and his own self. He allowed himself to belong to someone again and it HURT him and it could have potentially hurt many more, but he lets go of who he had been, ready to embrace new frontiers.

And when 13 shows up, she immediately pack-bonds with others, showing pure admiration and love for the magnificent world around her. She makes friends with Yaz, Ryan, and Graham and she quickly gets close to them. Her newly found openness gets her to the point she begins to fall in love with Yaz as well. But this time, she's learned from what her past self did to Rose and to Martha, from what 12 achieved and lost. And 13 is cautious and kind, too. She is very aware of the differences between her and Yaz, and where they are the same, and what they could never have, and what they're risking to lose. She isn't quite getting the hang of it yet, and when she returns to old habits and begins pulling back, her friends call her out. But she listens this time, because she's learned she needs to listen. It's cruel and disrespectful to decide for your friends what they can and cannot take. Her relationship with the master deepens, too, in a way neither of them likes, but the Doctor discovers while being 13 that her very past was taken away from her, all those lives she had lived and had been forcibly removed from, she had lost more than she had ever known. So when Dan comes along to remind her to be honest about her feelings, 13 does what 10 couldn't, and admits to Yaz that, were circumstances different, she'd like to make what they have official. But she won't put Yaz in that position, which would only hurt Yaz. They talk about their feelings sitting on a beach, watching the ocean. 13 says if she could she'd make it every day like this, just keeping each other's company, in a clear contrast to the adventure-laden lives she had lived before. She's learned to appreciate the quiet moments again, she's not trying to drown the sorrow with loud noises. And when it's 13's turn to regenerate, she says goodbye quietly too, watching the earth with Yaz one last time. She sends Yaz to her friends. The Doctor's companions find friendship and support in each other while, simultaneously, 13 goes to a cliff to watch the sunrise. She's alone, as she knew she'd be, but her last act is to express gratefulness. She's sad and scared, but looking back with appreciation for all she found and all she had, and looking ahead to whatever life may bring.

And then 14 takes over, and he doesn't know why he has 10's face. But he's here admitting that he deeply loves Donna, that he loved Wilf, that he would like just sitting down for a cup of coffee with Donna, just to spend time with her, that that's an option they could have. They both still love their adventures, of course, but this is a stark change from the fast-paced life they used to have. Now he's here cradling her with a loving gaze as she fades out, no pity or shame, just devotion. He comes after a long line of other faces putting effort into relearning over and over how to love someone who goes away far too quickly, and how to express it. He seems to have a better understanding that the ephemeral nature of both ourselves and our relationships with others is not something to avoid or fear, but rather what challenges us - demands of us - to give our full attention to the present and what we have. The very fact he gets to see Donna again and they get to be themselves with each other after so many years is a miracle on itself. Donna suggests 14 came to say goodbye, I believe that too. But I feel like the power of hindsight is an invaluable gift, and second chances even more, so I can't wait to see what 14 and Donna make of it.

[renshartac]

I am rewatching season 3 right now and I must disagree.

Yes, at first Ten doesn't see her as a proper companion, but this is completely understandable! He's only lost Rose not long ago, just the thought of finding another companion would sound like he's trying to replace her, and that is painfully unacceptable for him. So Ten offers Martha, who proved herself as a very smart think-outside-the-box person, an adventure that she totally deserves, but just as a ONE-TIME TRIP (because, as I said, it's too hurtful for him even imagining getting a new companion at that moment). And that's why he doesn't want to tell her much about himself - he's afraid to open to someone again, especially if they're going to part soon.

He starts to actually see her differently at the end of "Gridlock", when he decides to open to her and tell an honest story about his past and Gallifrey, because he understands how unfair it is to her - Ten knows pretty much about her life and she's travelling with someone she barely knows, almost a complete stranger.

Then, in the beginning of "Lazarus experiment", he wants to leave her, because their "one-time trip" kinda "dragged on" and he didn't promise her anything more. That saddens Martha, because she faces the cruel reality: she can't replace Rose for the Doctor and he won't allow her to, all this time she was just a temporary passenger. In the end of the episode, when Ten offers her another trip, she declines, because it'd be sorta masochistic and cruel to herself - continue travelling with a man she realised she loves just to be never loved in return, not being seen even as a proper full-time companion. But after that Ten responds to her, he agrees to make her a long-term companion and to treat her properly. He gives her a key to TARDIS and upgrades her phone. So she joins him again not as a "temporary replacement", but as Martha Jones, the Doctor's companion. And in the next episodes she still has this one-sided crush on the Doctor, but she learns to live with it, because she understands how actually important Rose was and how hard it is for Ten to get over it.

In all episodes she is portrayed as a genius, amazing woman, who never gives up, who believes in the Doctor, but can make a great move herself as well.

I don't think it's fair to say that she was undertaken and underwritten by scriptwriters, because everything I've described above I've seen in the series.

I've been thinking about the mistreatment of Martha Jones a lot today - specifically how such a powerful character can frequently tank in companion polls - and for some reason, I've come to the conclusion that she was just not written to be loved. When it comes to the most popular companions, we tend to see them through the eyes of the Doctor: Donna is the most important woman in the universe, Rose perfect and beautiful, Amy the feeling of home. I dislike Ten and Martha's dynamic as viewer, but as a fan, I dislike the way RTD wrote it. We see a season of an amazing yet pining woman almost dragged along for the ride by a man who barely looks twice at her. Narratively, this just about makes sense with Ten losing Rose, but if thinking about this through the lenses of Martha's mistreatment, there is no real admiration generated for Martha as a character because there's barely any generated for her on-screen. It takes a step back and a moment of thought to recognise her qualities, and how the narrative and her relationship with Ten barely lets these qualities shine through.

Somehow, the gorgeous, ambitious, intelligent and assertive companion always gets relegated to the 'rebound with a crush', simply because that's the uncomfortable baseline of her writing, and the surface level of Ten's perception of her. Obviously, there's so much more to the mistreatment issue than this, but this little facet has been niggling away at me all afternoon. Anyway. Respect my queen x