#the doctor can be a time lord and a hero and they're still the same as some working class human who can't afford food

[matrixbearer2024]

The more I think about it the more I realize how different my three takes on Ford are, three being how I see and write him as close to canon as possible- my time lord twins AU and my modernity AU. Just a cumulation of how many things can significantly change how a character is and I didn't notice by how much until I was talking about it with a friend and things made a surprising amount of sense. Case and point, this phrase!

"You're a good man."

There's three replies to that with how I understand Ford's character and please forgive me for rambling about this shit because I REALLY love picking up this man and dissecting him into atoms maybe I should make a youtube video-

Anyway, first off- canon!

"I try my best."

I genuinely think that after all of the things Ford's done, forgiveness is a barrier but not something impossible. In canon, ultimately he tries to make mends and he is atoning. For somebody who can hold a grudge for that long, I would think having your own faults must be hell on earth to live through as well. You can't exactly forgive yourself and you can only give as much as you have.

That's kind of the whole point to the series' ending in my mind. He just becomes more painfully aware of himself and the people around him not in the paranoid sense but just- how he is percieved or the consequences of his actions. He believes he can be good and is trying. Hence that response. Stanford's not refusing the idea, but he's not outright accepting it either because he's still working towards it.

Who said an old dog can't learn new tricks? Next!

"You don't know what you're talking about."

In my time lord twins AU, Stanford's hero complex and obsession with being special is cranked up stupidly high! On the run from Bill all across the multiverse he stumbles upon Gallifrey and realizes the state they're in is pretty damn precarious thanks to the Daleks and the Time Lords at WAR. In his mind at the time, all he could think of was saving as many people as he could.

Honestly, nobody would want to be in a war and frankly if it wasn't for the Time War and his Time Lord mentor things would likely be the same as canon. Ford believed too much that he was meant for great things and bit off more than he could chew!

Now carrying the title of the doctor, he doesn't believe he is a good man. He outright refuses it. A good man wouldn't have blood on his hands, a good man wouldn't have entire planets and civilizations kneeling at the mention of his name. A good man is respected, but that respect isn't born out of fear.

Stanford as the Doctor refuses this. He is not a good man. He damn well tries to be, but he knows not even forever could mend his mistakes and sins. He walks among the destruction of his own making, and he just lives with it.

Pretty depressing! Okay, let's look at something happier!

"I'm glad you think so. Thank you."

In the modernity AU, Ford hasn't done many if not most of the regrets that his counterparts often have. Yes he bickers with Stan a lot but it's never something that tears them apart, they could be having a word war over lunch but at the end of the day they're best friends again.

Ford still has his sense of justice and strong morals but in this case, it's not something he regrets and he doesn't exactly develop a hero complex because he doesn't believe he is special. He doesn't have that disparity with Stan and fundamentally that changes a lot of how he thinks.

It also helps that growing up, he's been humbled repeatedly by his brother or his peers. In this AU, he's always kept on his toes because the edge he has is only competitive enough against the many who are more than willing to work themselves to the bone for the same level of achivement.

If somebody tells him he's good, Stanford is just glad that's the perception of him and reacts accordingly. He's not often good at recieving compliments or god forbid flirting his poor brain can't keep up- but this much he is just thankful for the acknowledgement.

Tell me your thoughts or what you think about all this HAHAHAHA

[ssaalexblake]

I'm forever astounded at all the Gallifrey/time lord society stanning that goes on in fandom? It's the monkey paw!!!! Read the small print!!!

So much of dw's canon will Entirely pass people by, literally spanning from the earlier years of classic who to the present day, if you can't identify that Gallifreyen society is rotten to the core.

The Doctor couldn't be the hero if they continued to sully themselves in a brutal empire's name.

(it's the british empire. but space. british empire bad. very bad. come on.)

[midwesternvibes]

Time for more Seperated Leo Human AU! (I really need a name good lord-)

As promised, we now get to look into Leon's lore! He's a funky little guy, and shockingly well adjusted!

Lore drop under the cut!

His full name is Leonardo Tomás Esposito, and he is quite proud of it! He picked it out himself when he was about 10 years old, and he's happy to say that he still loves it to this day! (Fun fact: all of the names have double meanings to them hehe)

But anyways, his Mamà is in fact, NOT Big Mama (but it was a solid guess!), her name is actually Mia Esposito! (+10 Fandom points to anyone who can guess her full first name) She is a full time nurse and used to travel around the several NYC hospitals as an on-call nurse, but once Leon was born she stuck her roots down to one and has been there ever since!

She's actually an incredibly interesting character (with her very own arc!) with a lot of depth and meaning. She grew up with her Puerto Rican mother and Italian father, but after a series of misfortunes and despair, she ended up immigrating to NYC to start a new life for herself. About 10 years later she began raising a baby all on her own as a single immigrant mother in New York City (Sound familiar?). Whenever Leon asks about his father she tells him that she doesn't remember his Papá, only that he had the same almond-shaped brown eyes as her baby boy....

But ultimately she doesn't remember him hahaha maybe Leon should stop asking questions and get back to studying!

(Leon knows that she's hiding something, but ultimately he doesn't care about his father that much, he just assumes that he did something to hurt his Mamá and wants nothing to do with the man at all)

Leon and his Mamá are very close, they're very similar to Percy and Sally Jackson from the PJO series, and they would definitely fight God for each other.

Leon was raised very much with the mentality of "It takes a village" and has many aunts and uncles and relatives in the hospital staff that he considers family. Mia couldn't really afford childcare as Leon grew up, as it often came down to food or rent for the month. The hospital staff saw this and absolutely adored little baby Esposito, so they were more than happy to raise him alongside their own children. Mia owes her life to this staff and considers them her family through and through.

As he grew up, Leon saw all his favorite people as nurses and doctors and considered each and every one of them heros. He decided very early on that he wanted to be a doctor when he grew up, and after a terrible injury when he was 14 it cemented the fact that he wanted to be a pediatric surgeon, to help kids just like him.

But the issue is, Leon and Mia definitely do not have enough to cover medical school for Leon on a single nurse's income, even with all the jobs that Mia and Leon have taken over the years. That's why Leon NEEDS the athletic and valedictorian scholarship, without it he won't be able to achieve his dream. The only thing standing in his way is.....

THE HAMATOS

(Except Michael, he's a gift)

Leon is willing to do ANYTHING to get those scholarships, but his Mamá always reminds him that the Hamatos might need it just as badly as he does, and that's about all that's keeping him from REALLY doing anything to hurt/sabotage them. His Mamá has instilled a really strict moral code into his psyche and he won't actually do anything to them, he just....really wants to give his Mamá a better life, one she deserves.

Although, he is kinda curious as to why the Hamato brothers have the same eyes as him......

First // Previous // Next

Whew! That was pretty much just a really intense ramble, sorry there was no actual structure to that, I just really wanted to talk about my Leon lore! Props to anyone who figures out the significance of all the names, and to clear up any confusion, Mia is Half Puerto Rican, half Italian, and Leon is 1/4 Puerto Rican, 1/4 Italian, and 1/2 Japanese (but shhh he doesn't know that yet) and obviously he's got that amazing vitiligo (shout out to anyone and everyone with vitiligo, y'all are amazing and beautiful)

Thanks for reading my lore dump, see ya next time for..... huh idk yet, vote ig

See ya next time!

[legitimatesatanspawn]

As poorly as he said it, All Might wasn't entirely wrong to say "you should become a doctor or policeman". Just not for the reasons he meant.

Hero Academia shows heroes functioning as cops in cosplay, employed or sponsored by the state to maintain some semblance of control over superpowers. But due to how it works, petty criminals are lumped in the same title of "villain" as terrorists the moment their quirk is involved. This furthers discrimination against "undesirable" powers (no I'm not talking about Hitoshi's quirk) and people with "scary" physical alterations. And to make it worse, later in the series the heroes conscript child soldiers to fight terrorists and insurrectionists and straight up human rights riots. (SPECIFICALLY ones from UA, like I know they're the main characters of a shounen series but where the hell are all the other hero schools' students? WHERE ARE ALL THE OTHER HEROES?!)

This is to say nothing of how the title and flashy costumes hide what the job really is. Literally the whole entry exam is "how quickly and how many robots can you punch, and do you see other potential rivals as people in need of help". The license test itself is "how many quirked people can you punch, and how do you handle civilians in need of help during a villain attack". Heroes help people... but heroes are graded on their ability and willingness to fight. Which is expected of a shounen series but in a 'real world' setting it casts a different light on things. There's heroes down to fight (whether it's bloodlust or "to protect others"), but there's also heroes just there for the fame. We know that it's not recent either because Torino became a hero just to get away with using his quirk.

No one should be a hero if it's about helping people. But what else is there?

Do emergency services still exist in MHA or have they been over time replaced by Rescue Heroes? Do child services still exist or are they in bed with HPSC for quirk oversight? How does quirk counseling even work and how much does the perception of a quirk play into how it is handled? How many existing structures have been tossed aside for some other agency or group to handle just because of how varied and initially terrifying quirks have been? We know hospitals still exist but can doctors use medically useful quirks or does it take a provisional non-hero license issued by the HPSC? Do any heroes investigate white-collar crime or is it only when it comes to threats like the MLA?

I love certain characters and the setting is fun to play around with but good lord I have so many questions.

[clueingforbeggs]

Lyrics are in the original description, but in case Tumblr/YouTube doesn't like you clicking on the embed (which it doesn't like me doing), I'll put them below the cut as well.

(opening: Sgt. Pepper's Lonely Hearts Club Band) It was 60 years ago today Lady Lambert got the show to play And I know it's had its ups and downs But there's a reason why it's still around So let me introduce to you The man who kicked it off in style... Billy Hartnell's Cranky Time Lord Band...

(I Am The Walrus) I am Who and Who are You and where is Sue And take your business elsewhere See how I flick this real specific switch, See how we fly Not lyin'

Prehistoric caveman Fire from the cave of skulls Superstitious witches Never been a hero Funny thing is fear it Makes companions of us all I M not Foreman We're on a tour, man I am the Doctor Hmm? Doctor Who?

Static city, Thals are pretty, Polycarbon mutants run the show See how they talk in adenoidal squawks See how we rise I'm dyin'...

Me and Marco Polo... in the court of Kublai Khan Sacrifical Aztecs, 'nachronistic priestess Open up the door mid-flight And now we're very small

I'm the original (you might say) I am the first one (sort of) I am the Doctor - Hmm? Doctor Who?

Post-apocalyptic London Where a love can bloom One day I'll come back, I really will, Until then have a pleasant time.

Bye Susan Foreman More is in store, man I am the Doctor, Hmm Doctor Who? Hm Doc-

(Eleanor Rigby) Bennett and Vicki Trapped on a planet where no hope for rescue is clear No one comes near 'Cept for Koquillion. He's a big monster who threatens them never to leave Would you believe? They are the same people And Barbara shot your dog

(Tomorrow Never Knows) Relax into the vibe of ancient Rome Such a hot party... fires are starting And float like the Menoptera do at home Flitting smartly... ('no') over Zarbii... The warriors with crosses in their eyes They are crusading... they are crusading So run before the Dalek fleet arrives Evil is scheming... Ian is leaving... Barbara is leaving... someday we'll be memeing

(spoken) 'London 1965!' (someday we'll be memeing) 'London 1965!' (today we are memeing) 'London 1965!'

(Eleanor Rigby) Steven the pilot Stuck on a planet of hostile geodesic domes Heck of a home Hifi the panda His only friend and the only thing helping him deal He's not even real

(paperback writer) Excuse me mister, where did you get that? It's the year 1066 and all that You're gear and fab, but cannot yet fab gears So who brought the watch? well, I doubt it was a Normandic settler it's the time meddler... It's the time of legends, and if we're on course, gonna see a few guys about a horse Vicki's fallen for a boy from Troy She should read a play and that play should be Troilus and Cressida May the gods bless ya... It's the Myth Makers... it's the myth makers...

(Yellow Submarine) Sara Kingdom kept the peace Katarina never saw the like in Greece As companions, they're unmatched But I wouldn't get too attached They won't live through the Dalek's Masterplan The Dalek's Masterplan The Dalek's Masterplan

(I Am The Walrus) Hmm? Doctor Who? Hmm? Doctor Who? Some Caucasian dude with Asian clothes made me play Towers of Hanoi See how they clown, take Billy Bunter down, I'm just a hand... I'm dying...

Where's the nearest dentist? Let's check the OK corral. Steven's going savage, WOTAN in the tower Pleased to meet you, Polly, Ben, won't see this face for long I'm the original (you might say) I am the first one (sort of) I am the Doctor - Hmm what's that who? Hmm what's that who? Quite right... Everybody loves one... everybody loves one... Everybody keep warm... everybody keep warm... Everybody keep warm... everybody keep warm...

(Spoken) 'Oh, Barbara' 'Now you've squashed my favourite Beatles'

[kerryweaverlesbian]

This is further removed from destiel but JOHN was the doctor-type-character and he disappears from the TARDIS one day and Dean and Sam were his companions so they fly it around time and space trying to find him. Cas is a teleporting alien who can smite people who's part of a hivemind which was supposed to just be monster of the week through a few episodes arc but obviouslyyyy he became a fan and writer favourite immediately because he's Castiel so he's brought back a lot. OR he's a modified cyberman and when he's 'recalled to heaven' he's literally getting his brain chips reprogrammed. But I like making a new alien species more than rehashing the old ones for eternity.

It's important, I think, for Sam and Dean's characters that they are mortal and vulnerable. Sam absorbed some Time Lord Energy (or something) from the Yellow Eyed Alien who John was tracking down on Earth who killed their mom and John was like. Fuck. I guess I'll take these kids. A) I want to feel like a hero B) maybe they'll stop me going too far C) Sam is my best and only lead. The boys find out at some point that John was using Sam's Energy to find potential co-ordinates for YEA and they have a crisis about it.

They tell Cas about it, horrified, and he's like :) ah you were serving your purpose :) as is correct 😌 and Sam punches him lol.

John'd drop them off for school and stuff on Earth so they DO have earthly ties but He'd often forget which school it was so, eclectic childhood, and Sam leaving and Dean pulling him back in initially still happens.

Victor Henrikson is in UNIT trying to track down the TARDIS bc he firmly believes that the Winchesters have stolen it and are doing Space Crimes for the same reason he thinks they're serial killers in canon. Crowley is The Master. We know this. Picture Mark Sheppard as the Master PSYCHE that's literally just Crowley.

Let's get some women in here. Charlie used to work in a subdivision of UNIT but after meeting Sam and Dean she ends up pivotal to the ultimate "save the world from YED" scheme. Lisa is an alien with stretchy powers (lol).

Jo and Ellen run a space bar in space and they do a bottle episode there where it's under attack and Jo stows away on the TARDIS for a while. She throws her phone out the door when they try and call her mom and she's the only one of them who can remember the coordinates to drop her back there because she wiped the UPS (Universal Positioning System) memory when she first snuck in. Her rooting around in the memory system leads them to finding some of the places John had last been and thus finding more central mystery cues!

John had taken her dad as a companion for a while and he never came back. Turns out, he'd been dropped on a planet somewhere and either a) survived but couldn't find a way home and the planets atmosphere makes people age rapidly so he died before he could make it or b) they have a tearful reunion and she takes him back home. Depending on whether the series needs a win at that point.

At some point they go to a planet that's trying to entice Dean to stay (to eat him) and it conjours a fake Mary from his memories á la the the djinn episode BUT it's met John before...AND...Mary's mom Deanna who had a clearer picture of her than either Dean or John and the memories get all mixed up and confused. And it doesn't effect Sam bc of his Energies so Sam is able to save Dean and through this they find out Mary was a badass space traveller as WELL.

AND. SHE had retired from space faring to be their mom until they were old enough but SHE thought THEY had died in the YEA fire so she's been Han Soloing through space (minus the chewbacca. Or she has a little furry weirdo alien creature companion who doesn't talk and that's Ketch lmao) not allowing herself to get attached or heavily involved with anything because her grief checked her out of things.

This Mary stuff is after the season 1 finale John and YEA confrontation where they do also have to save Earth from YEA's space lasers with the help of all the friends they've made along the way. John sacrifices himself for Dean, we know how it goes, but I think we leave off the "I want you to kill your brother if yoy have to" I don't think the BBC would go for that, it's a family show.

OH UM. DESTIEL. Dean and Cas kiss each other eventually. Xnzhhzbdn.

*wakes up in a cold sweat, the ghostly touch of 2014 just barely on my skin* destiel doctor who au….

[fightxxmexxshiggy]

🥟📎 awww you're too sweet!!!!! I'm glad you like my ideas so much even though they just ramble on and on.

But, as long as you're enjoying, I'll add on cause I'm slightly overflowing with them at the moment (adhd brains. 0 or 100. Very very little I between.)

So imagine how helpless Kiri Bakugo would feel while their partner is pregnant and then when they go into labor. Like, over all there isn't that much they can do. Yes throught everything they can help her stay comfy and what not but got how they wish they could just take on some of the bad stuff.

And lord help them if they start googling different labor complications. Like no matter how unlikely, the stats say they are the guys are gonna high key Low key be terrified. They learned not to tell you after you turned into a sobbing mess when they brought up one and you made them have the of it's between me or the baby convo (how that went is up to you). Like they may be terrified but they don't wanna relive that night.

Then I see two hilarious labor scenarios. granted there are infinite. But I'll pluck out these two.

A) You go into labor relatively normally. Get to the hospital get settled, or at least as settled as you can when you're gonna have a person come out of you. The guys are on edge. Like the hospital had to send in their strictest, toughest old guard nurse to put the fear of god into them so they'd stop acting like chickens with their heads cut off. I personally headcanon it as a labor with no epidural for personal reasons but like reader insert man. Regardless of pain meds or not, Kiri is gonna say you're super manly™️. He'll even harden his hand so you don't have to worry about breaking (not that you would frankly care at this point) but it's handy 😏. And then you get to pushing a both pro heros who have seen plenty of blood and gore nearly faint. Still can't decide who/how they decide which oen gets to cut the cord but I feel like it's the one time Bakugo knows better than to make it a competition, cause he and Kiri just wanna keep watching you smile down at the (kinda gross covered in goo) beautiful, perfect infant on your chest. Time passes, the three of you are left alone to bond. Eventually you begin to nod and off and Kiri says he's gonna take the baby to the waiting room to meet the squad/families. While neither guy likes being separated from either you or the baby this is once again where two husband's comes in handy cause at least both mom and baby are protected. Que some time later you perk back up, Bakugo is in a chair his head on the hospital bed alseep. You get his attention

"Katsuki, where's the baby?"

"With Kiri, remember?"

"yea, but he's been gone a long time. I think. ...." You can't be certain. After the day you've had time means very little to you at the moment. So Bakugou (reluctantly) leaves you to go find shitty hair. (Now this next bit is straight from a reddit thread but it was so damn cute and sounded just like Kiri!) So turns out, the Bakusquad and families left a bit ago, saying they'd be back when you were feeling better. But Kiri is a Proud Dad™️ so he just had to show off his baby. So he has just been walking around the hospital, being like 'look at my kid! My wife made her! They're both amazing! My wife made a person! Ignoring that you didn't quite make it on your own but you did the lions share of the work so let's not nit pick. Bakugou wants to be made at him but between the lack of sleep, and feeling the same fucking way and just being too emotionally constipated to say it to anyone besides his partners he just sighs.

"Shitty hair, you're worrying Y/N. Bring the baby back."

And they wander back and you're a nice happy little family. And sitting there holding your baby, a guy on either side of the hospital bed is bliss.

"can we have another one?"

Both you and Bakugou turn to the red head, and a brief silence falls over you three. Bakugou is getting ready to tell him off, like the baby is less than 6hrs old, don't get ahead of yourself dumbass.

But you speak first "yea. I'd like that a lot."

And that is how your first two kids (and probably the majority) were born a little less than a year apart. I just love the headcanon that Kiri wants a school of baby sharks. Like, however many you'll give him he'll have (Bakugou may have an Upper limit). At least those prohero dollars mean money isn't an issue. I also just love love love Kiri as a girl dad! He does tea parties, lets them paint his nails, learns to braid their hair and dances with them where they stand on his feet! Bakugou will also do all of these things but some of them may take a set of puppy dog eyes to get him to do. Also I know it seems misplaced but I don't wanna forget to put it in here. Itd be hilarious if when you struggle to find maternity clothes you like, one way or another Red Riot and Ground Zero both suddenly launch maternity merch lines!!!!!! And not just stuff with their logos/names like cute shit. Maybe you get to help design it.

B) this should be quicker. So imagine, youre at home. The guys have started paternity leave because youre 38wks. The ask why your face is scrunching up every once in awhile. You say and think it's braxton hicks contractions. You take a nap. Turns out. It's the real deal. You wake you guys up, they go into panic mode. You head towards the door (or even make it to the elevator for full comedic effect) before saying you gotta go back to the apartment, the baby is coming to fast. The guys freak out at first once they're in the apartment again. But they get ahold of a concierge doctor or something (pro hero money man) and between the doctor coaching them and you telling them they better hold it together, it all goes off smoothly and you go to the hospital to get check out and basically ends the same as above.

The baby chaos just made me cackle like a dang evil witch

[lassieposting]

Every time I see someone fancast Benedict Cumerbatch or David Tennant as Skulduggery something deep inside me beats the bars of its cage and roars to be let out so it may devour

BA you get me

Like. I 100% get what the David Tennant people are seeing. There is zero chance Skug wasn't at least partially based on DT's 10. They are way too similar, personality-wise. But god, end typecasting fancasts please

DT is still that guy that has everyone like, "Oh look, the Doctor is in this" like 15 years later. If he played Skug, Skug would become a 10 clone, and the entire Lord Vile storyline would suck because DT doesn't make a good villain - largely because he's still so closely associated with the Doctor, the ultimate bouncy, enthusiastic hero.

Like. Skug would need an actor who hasn't already had his "iconic" role, the one that people still associate him with ten+ years later. DT is the Doctor. Bendydick Cumbersnatch is Sherlock. All the guys from the Avengers? They're the Avengers. Johnny Depp is Jack Sparrow. Those are always gonna be the first characters you think of when you look at those actors, no matter what film they're in, which can really take away from a new role, especially if it's meant to carry an entire series. Skug would need an actor who would just be "Skulduggery".

Also like. It's just so boring seeing the same faces over and over again for every fancast in every fandom, folks need to go out into the world and find some new people to use

[sclfmastery]

hi! i know this is a simm/dhawan!master blog but i’m curious to know what your interpretation of missy’s moral alignment and sexuality are. do you hc them being the same as the others?

I am no Missy expert but Missy has always struck me as a panromantic asexual, and her moral alignment Neutral Evil moving toward Chaotic Neutral.

I think, particularly when it comes to moral alignment, that she's more like the other Masters than the fandom wants to admit, and I think this derives from the fact that the fandom deals with a lot of internalized misogyny, and is uncomfortable acknowledging that a woman can and should be a well-rounded character just as capable of atrocity as any male-presenting villain of the same exact identity--something M/offat took advantage of with unfortunate results in Series Ten. The truth is that any Master the Doctor afforded their undivided attention, the tools to work with, would be able to undergo a "Vault Arc." Would remember the names of their victims, and weep. Would achieve some form of contrition (even though I continue to argue that Missy's time in the Vault was a form of emotional abuse, and traumatic to her). The heavy-handed symbolism of Simm being the "evil" Master and Missy the "penitent" Master worked within the confine's of M/offat's series finale, but as a deconstruction and analysis of the Master as a character, it was artificial, trite, and reductive. I don't lend it much credence.

On the other hand, I love seeing Missy in the hands of writers OTHER than M/offat, because she comes to life as a unique character based on the shift of personality that occurs when any Time Lord regenerates; there are no weirdly TERFy jokes (which are especially peculiar given that no Time Lords are cis in the human sense) about a woman regeneration being an "upgrade," but at the same time she addresses misogyny and sexism in a uniquely grandstanding, egregious, dramatic and Mastery way, by for instance slaughtering a whole men's club that will no longer allow her admission because she's a woman. THAT'S the Missy I'm on-board with, the Missy on which I base my above headcanons.

She will not go out of her way to kill or hurt people who are not a part of her current complex scheme (which usually pivots on the Doctor, because she's the Master), but anyone who IS in her way is easily expendable. This is why I stick her in the same Neutral Evil category as Simm. Dhawan I think TRIES to be Chaotic Evil, but it's an act, a persona donned, an over-compensation, which I believe is also the reason why Missy has isolated Chaotic Evil events such as "burning down a city to watch the pretty shapes."

The Master is above all a PERFORMANCE, as much as the Doctor is, perhaps more, because the Doctor is trying to move TOWARD something they're NOT (a healer, a hero) and the Master is trying to move AWAY from something they ARE (simply put, vulnerable). Missy is NOT an exception to this. As a direct result of a Master (Simm) who tried to fight against the chains that bind him to the Doctor, and make him answerable to, vulnerable to, willing to concede to, another person, who tried in brutal ways to rescue his future self from their imprisoner, Missy has given up that fight and "wants her friend back"....but remains understandably ambivalent about how much she's willing to concede to that friend. So she still embraces evil behaviors, but, like all the other Masters, ends up acting a part: concealing her own real desire for reconciliation.

The only moral difference between Missy and the other Masters is that she becomes tired of pretending. They are all the same person, who all would have been capable of moving toward Chaotic Neutral, feeling remorse, wishing to please the Doctor, but the series writers almost want to make us forget that. Comparably the portrayal of the Doctor somehow makes it far clearer that this is the same person, just wearing a different face, with emphasis on different core traits that were always there.

[omegangrins]

A Treatise On the Doctor

I don't know how to start this. Because I think of Peter Capaldi's words when he said that the only thing required to be a Doctor Who fan, is kindness.

I like 13 and think Chibnall is doing his best job writing the show.

So I struggle to write this because I am engaging against that very unkindness in the Doctor Who fandom, and trying very hard not to be angry back. "Allways try to be nice but never fail to be kind." But I've begun to wonder more and more if those who speak so loudly against the show really know what the show itself is about.

Enough of talking about other people though, cause frankly they're only important as set-up for this conversation. And again, I'm working kind.

So here's what you're gonna learn from this lifelong fan (and the best Tl;dr you're gonna get):

1. The Doctor sucks. From the very beginning. People complain about character traits now that have been around as long as the show.

2. Due to the Doctor's suckage, they tend to do more harm than good. (And because of this, most of the Doctor's "friends" along the way have been, well, let's leave it at the air quotes for now cause it's a damn big list of "BOOOO!!!".)

3. All of the showrunners and writers and actors and editors and everyone else has allways knows this and has played it this way.

4. And last but not least, since this is a time travel show. If you wanna know what and why stuff is happening now, look it up. Everything that happened before is allways in play.

5. None of this is bad, and in fact, it makes the show morally grayer. It's about kindness at all costs. Even your own.

A. First things first, the hard thing. The Doctor is not grrrreat. I mean, sure they try, but they fail a lot more often. In Extremis, a majority of those fatality index counts come from people the Doctor failed to save. That's why it's worded so specifically as "cause of death". All the death's caused by the Doctor's very interaction with time and lack of saving those around them. And part of it's not their fault, but more often than not, the Doctor says I can save you, and can't, won't, or chooses not to.

And that would be alright, but it took them over 1000 years to realize they should start letting their companions lead lives outside of theirs so THEY DON'T DIE. A bit too long as someone who claims to be better.

Not to mention how many times the Doctor is dismissive of their companions and the people around them only to use them for their help and just bug off again. If they truly cared and wanted to help, they would stay and listen in between adventures. Their lifespan is near infinite anyway. What's a few extra Earth hours with some friends you made along the way. You know, maybe fix some of the psychological and emotional damage created by encountering things behind a human's original scope of reasoning. But nope, we gotta go adventure more, byyyyeee!!

So when people talk about these qualities in 13 in a negative aspect I have to laugh because I'm not sure if they understand the joke. Cause we're talking about an alien that grew up around a species calling themselves Time Lords. I try not to blame them too much for it. 1 had to learn how to be hospitable to humans and it's been a bit of a slow learning curve ever since.

B. After the Doctor survived the horrors of the Time War and happened upon a human companion they felt worth connecting to, what did they do? They took Rose to watch her planet burn in front of her eyes. Great, first date, amirite?

And that's a little bit of companion damage. Do you know that the Doctor is responsible for the almost complete genocide of the Silurian race across multiple occasions. I am legitimately surprised there are any left after all of the ones the Doctor has killed. Like before, they cause destruction either purposefully or accidentally or simply by force of being there.

Remember before how I said that the Doctor just flies away. Yeah, they leave a lot of problems behind when they do (something that I can see Chibnall is planting the seeds of). If you had a time and space machine and practically unlimited capabilities and you choose to just leave after a situation and not check up on them from time to or see if there are any other underlying crises to be solved. But oh no, "gotta follow that rule of time and keep going even though I stopped in the first place because of how interested I was.". This is why 9 has a great arc about this. He thought he killed all the Daleks. They came back. He thought he'd gotten rid of the Slitheen. They came back. He thought he saved Satellite 5 from aliens. But opsies, they came back. And look! They're Daleks. Which he "finally" got rid of.

The Doctor just bounces around all carefree and without an ounce of care for themselves, their companions or consequences unless there's consequences for themselves or their companions. Then they get indignant.

Is that really kind of the person you want flying around fixing things in time and space? Who knows. But at least they are trying. Most of the time the T.A.R.D.I.S. lands somewhere and the authority figures are the most pretentious bull-headed pigs you can find. To me, I laugh cause it seems like both sides end up getting a taste of their own medicine. Usually with the bull charging to death in a sad glory while the Doctor wiles on metaphorically about not being as good as them.

But again, as a "superior" alien with "advanced" technology and "culture" you'd think they'd just know better already. But that's all part of the character. The Doctor may be in flux, but true change is difficult. The real hero of every story is the other people BESIDES the Doctor.

Cause the title is Doctor *Who* . The Who being half of the title, despite having less letters. It's the constant question of "What and why and who is that crazy person that's trying to help?" Why do you think they keep flying back to Earth? (Besides set construction reasons.) They've grown as attached to us as we have to them. And at this point, a lot of their saving us is guilt and embarrassment at having a hand in our timeline.

This is also the same reason the Doctor dumps companions in a fluff. Baggage. Every time a companion gets too heavy to carry the memories of... off they fly.

Except for 13. She's stayed. To this end, we can see how the Doctor changes. Not on our smaller, human timelines, but on the timeline of a god with way too much power.

D. With that in mind, we go Classic. It's the Who you need to consult if you wish to make any critique on what's happening now. Because how can you know how a part operates inside of a whole without seeing the whole part?

Cause I don't know if you've watched it but it can be rough, and I don't mean in the sense of production value (which admittedly they do a fairly decent job of using what money they had. A problem the BBC plagues to Doctor Who to this day.). The 3rd Doctor shits on every one they call friends constantly and then turns around expecting help. 4 did the same. Then 5 masked that contempt with a plucky face and a cheeky word. But it was still there, bubbling out of 6 and 7 as the inability to suffer fools gladly and using their own righteousness to enact change in their companions. A trait that kept going til an entire war and regeneration was used solving the question of "Doctor Who?" Only for them to try and forget twice more by putting on their pretty grinning faces and running away from it.

And I'm only talking from a companion perspective. Each of the Doctors has enacted their own form of genocide on countless species. Sure, it's to "save humans" but at the end of the day you'd have to ask yourself if we're really worth that blood. And this is all in the Doctor's history. As much as they claim better, they're hands are still gushing red.

The Doctor left Jo because she fell in love. They drove Adric to put their life on the line in order to feel adequate. The entirety of the Silurian race has been wiped out fivefold under their watch, with one time by their hand itself. Same for several other singular and unique species you won't be able to find elsewhere in the universe. 7 used time travel to enact a personality change in Ace while simultaneously using her as a pawn in an interdimensional war. The Time War itself. Sure it got erased but the Doctor still did those things ("War" Doctor or whatever nonsense titles they feel necessary to delude themselves). The entirety of Amy's childhood was destroyed by their presence, and Rory got erased. Twice! Sarah Kingdom. We know the list. Hell, the Doctor whisked Barbara and Ian away because they wanted to teach the snobby humans some lessons.

They may have a time machine, but we have the bill of their actions. This is where 13 excels. Because they're trying to be better than themselves. They've learnt the lessons of all those years traveling and the failures they wish they could reverse but don't as a way of keeping a scoreboard of pain. It's not perfect by any means, but look at 12 needing cue cards to understand and react to human grief under duress. They've come a helluva long way. After 50 years, I'm inclined to believe better. After all, it's what the Doctor would want.

E. You know how people like the ASOIAF series because it offers up morally complex characters existing in a morally complex world where black and white are harder to define than grey? Have you ever thought of Doctor Who as the same? Strip past the fairytale and adventure and "wibbly wobbly timey wimeyness and it's just people reacting to situations. We're just harder on the Doctor because they're hard on us. You could go round and round on who's the bigger killer, but at the end of the day Time Lords and humans fight and feel about the same things. It's allways been a joke to pretend otherwise.

That's why I love the Timeless Child. Not for making the Doctor anymore special but for saying that even despite having all of their specialness ripped away and repurposed to create a lie of a society then having the memory wiped of said event, the Doctor broke out of their mold, stole a TARDIS and told the Time Lords to fuck off. That's not a Captain America/Superman hero. That's Batman in space with a society of Lex Luthor's. Gotham and Gallifrey. The Doctor saw what they were a part of and broke free, without even knowing the more horrifying truth. Cause it's the thing I see many fans missing because they're so preocuppied with the Doctor being special. The thing that made the Doctor different was their ability to know the difference and walk away to find better. Now, the Doctor has a reason to go back and find out why they never stopped running.

The Time Lords might be the greatest monsters in the universe. It is in the name. "Lords". Those who would lord over us and impose their will with a banthium fist.

And this is a children's show.

C the thing is, the people who made and make this show all collectively rail against one thing: Hate. Kindness is the way of Doctor's. Even if they're sawing off your leg, it's to do the kindness of saving your life. This is because the people who make this (United Kingdomers) have seen centuries of war and conflict and oppression enacted by their own country in the name of progress. And they want to see it no more. Look no further than any of the Doctor's adventures with UNIT. Allways advocating for peace and being ignored for the comfortable war-cry. It's why it's hard to blame the Doctor when we do very similar and often worse (though we don't have time travel.... yet). The creators of this show know better, see better, and wrote better, to know that the powers that be nipped would nip their creations and sanitize them. So they wrote their messages so strong that you can feel them from the future. They're powerfull enough that even across eras they have all collectively moved me to write this.

That's another point I have to laugh at people saying Doctor Who has never been in your face about progressive politics. The Green Death. Survival. Trial of a Timelord (Yes, all of it. Sit down and power through.) The Happiness Patrol is one of my all time favorite episodes for going there in this regard. People may poo poo but history has its' eyes on you. Doctor Who loves taking potshots at the issues of the day. As long as you don't make the aliens black of course. Make them all the colors of the rainbow but never make them black. That'd be too on the nose (That's something they used to say back in the day! Crazy how far we've come).

So bravoa to Chibnall for continuing the legacy of Doctor Who. From where I'm standing, he's not doing anything different than any other showrunner before him. Cause if you want to argue canon, you at least have to know what created it. This show owes what it is to those Classic eras. And if you think Chibnall is shitting on those years and your childhood.... well, then why did you read this whole thing?

[dukereviewsxtra]

Duke Reviews Extra: Duke's Top 15 Favorite TV Christmas Episodes

Hi, Everyone, I'm Andrew Leduc And Welcome To Another Duke Reviews Xtra Where Today We Continue Duke's Yultide Reviews...

And As You Know We're Reviewing Christmas Movies And Specials Every Sunday In November And December But There's One Thing That I'm Unable To Review Without Looking At A Series First On Duke Reviews Tv And That's Christmas Episodes And On Today's Top 15 I'm Counting Down My Top 15 Favorites..

With A Few Rules For Myself And My Audience With The First Being One Christmas Episode Per Show Otherwise I'd Be Talking About Every Home Improvement Christmas Episode And Every Glee Christmas Episode Because They're That Good Of Episodes And I Watch Them Every Year During The Holidays But I Might Merit A Mention Or 2 Throughout The Countdown...

Also No Bad Comments Please, This Is My List And It's What I Like, So If You Don't Have Anything Nice To Say, Just Don't Say It At All. Now, On With The Countdown...

15. Mighty Morphin Power Rangers "I'm Dreaming Of A White Ranger"

Go Ahead, I'm Ready...

This Episode Sees The Power Rangers Celebrating Christmas At Ernie's But Lord Zedd And Rita Repulsa Have Evil Plans For The Holidays As They Send Goldar And Rito Revolto To Kidnap Santa And Take Over His Workshop So They Can Have The Elves Mass Produce Lord Zedd's Evil Christmas Toy That Will Enslave The Minds Of All The Children Of The World...

This Episode Has Gotten Alot Of Flack As One Of The Series Worst Episodes But Unlike The Power Rangers Zeo Christmas Episode, I Kind Of Like This One...

It Captures The Right Amount Of Christmas Spirit For Kids While Also Keeping Some Of That Power Ranger Magic Even Without The Suits Which Leads Me To Say See It...

14 Smallville "Lexmas"

This Episode Sees Lex Considering Whether To Have Someone He Knows Get Fake Or Damaging Information On Jonathan Kent In An Attempt To Ruin His Campaign For Senator But When Lex Is Shot By The Navy Thunder Ranger (Seriously It's The Same Actor Who Played That) He Falls Into A Coma And Is Visited By The Ghost Of His Mother Who Shows Lex What His Life Would Be Like If He Frees Himself From His Father. Meanwhile, Clark Helps Chloe Deliver Presents For The Daily Planet..

This Episode Is An Interesting What If Episode...

It's Shows Us What Lex's Life Could Be Even If He Makes The Wrong Choice In The End Either Way I Say See It...

13 The Brady Bunch "The Voice Of Christmas"

In This Classic Episode Of The Brady Bunch, Carol Gets A Case Of Laryngitis, And May Not Be Able To Sing At The Holiday Service This Year But When Cindy Goes To Ask Santa To Give Her Mom Her Voice Back For Christmas...

(Start At 1:47, End At 2:37)

Carol Gets Her Voice Back Via Christmas Miracle And Manages To Sing For The Christmas Service...

(Start At 0:33, End At 2:12)

It Was Hard Placing This So Low But That's Mainly Because There Are So Much Better Christmas Episodes Than This Now...

But It Is A Very Memorable Episode Of The Series And I Can't Help But Remember It When I Look Back At The Brady Bunch And I Definitely Say Give It A Watch...

12. Family Guy "Road To The North Pole"

This Episode Sees The Griffins And All Of Quahog Getting Ready For Christmas, But When A Mall Santa Blows Off Stewie, He Makes It His Mission To Kill Santa Claus. Going To The North Pole With Brian The Dog, They Discover That All The Years Of Lists And Demands From Us Have Practically Killed Santa Claus And If Something Isn't Done, Christmas As We Know It Will Be Gone Forever...

This Episode Has A Great Storyline...

The Songs Are Great And I Can't Help But Sing Along With It Every Year But Despite Some Scenes Being Funny Others Aren't But Either Way It's Still A Fun Christmas Episode And I Say See It...

11. Glee "Extraordinary Merry Christmas"

This Was A Hard Decision To Make As This And The Season 2 Episode "A Very Glee Christmas" Are Both Good Episodes, But This Is Mainly On The List Because Of It's Storyline...

This Episode Sees Sue Recruiting New Directions To Perform For A Bunch Of Homeless People At Homeless Shelter Where She'll Be Volunteering, But When The Glee Club Gets An Opportunity To Create A Holiday Special For PBS With The Paraplegic Artie As Director, The Glee Club Jumps At The Opportunity To Do It To Sue's Dismay...

With Artie Making The Special As A Homage To The Judy Garland Christmas Special And (Sighs) The Star Wars Holiday Special, It Leads To A Special With An Interesting Storyline And Great Songs And I Can't Help But Say See It...

10. Full House "Our First Christmas Show"

I Realize That There Are Some People (Namely The Nostalgia Critic) Who Hate The Tanners But I Can't Help But Love This Episode...

This Episode Sees The Tanner Family Headed To Colorado For The Holidays But When Their Flight Is Forced To Land Until Tomorrow (Which Is Christmas Day) It Has Stephanie Upset That Santa Won't Find Her And It Has DJ Upset When Danny Tells Her That The Presents Are Missing...

But When Jessie Makes A Speech That Unites Everyone Together...

(Start At 1:27, End At 2:39)

They Just May Have The Merriest Christmas Ever...

This Is A Fantastic Christmas Episode With A Great Message That's Definitely Worth A Watch...

09.Friends "The One With The Holiday Armidillo"

While This Is More Of A Hanukkah Episode, It's One Of My Favorites To Watch During The Holidays...

This Episode Sees Ross Wanting To Introduce His Son Ben (Played By Riverdale's Jughead) To Hanukkah But Ben Loves Christmas So Much That It Botches All Of His Attempts But When He Tries One More Time It Leads To A Funny Scene...

This Episode May Be Friends Only Memorable Christmas Episode But It's One Of Their Best And I Can't Help But Say See It...

08. The Flash "Running To Stand Still"

While The Arrowverse Uses Their Christmas Episodes To Introduce The Big Bad Of The Seasons, This One Doesn't And Is Just Focuses Something That Happens Around The Holidays In Central City...

This Episode Sees Weather Wizard Busting Out Captain Cold And The Trickster (Played By Mark Hamill) Out Of Jail So They Can Finish Off The Flash After He Was Nearly Beaten To Death By The Big Bad Of That Season, Zoom. With Captain Cold Passing On The Offer (Only To Go To Legends Of Tomorrow Which Premiered The Following Year) Weather Wizard And The Trickster Team Up To Fight The Flash With The Trickster Going All Out For The Holidays...

This Episode Is Full Of Both Action And Comedy From Both Hamill's Trickster And Miller's Captain Cold, Who Gets Kind Of A Precursor To His Role On Legends In This Episode When He Talks With Barry About Weather Wizard And Trickster And Barry Tells Cold To Help Him Stop Them Only For Cold To Tell Barry That He's Not Interested In Being A Hero When That's What He Ends Up Becoming On Legends Because Barry Inspired Him. Also This Episode Introduces Wally West To The Series Who Would Eventually Become Kid Flash Either Way It's A Great Episode And I Say See It...

07. Doctor Who "The Snowman"

This Episode Sees The 11th Doctor Mourning The Loss Of His 2 Companions, Amy Pond And Rory Williams To Both The Marvel Cinematic Universe And The CW's Arrowverse

But He Is Soon Forced Into Action When A Governess Named Clara Oswin Oswald Investigates Living Snowmen Who Are Being Brought To Life By The Great Intelligence (Voiced By Sir Ian Mckellan) With The Help Of A Man Named Dr. Simeon...

What Can I Say About This Episode? It's The Doctor Vs. An Army Of Snowmen And It's Just Awesome, Plus The Acting In It Is Fantastic, You Can Honestly Feel The Doctor's Pain Over Losing Rory And Amy But When Clara Comes In, It's Like He's A New Man Plus In This Episode We Get A New Interior For The Tardis That Would Soon End Up Belonging To The 12th Doctor As Matt Smith Was Leaving Soon And They Would Find A Replacement In Peter Capaldi, Still It's A Fantastic Episode And I Say See It...

06. Everybody Loves Raymond "The Toaster"

This Was A Hard Decision To Make As Most Of The Everybody Loves Raymond Christmas Episodes Are Pretty Good But I Felt That What Happens In This Episode Happens More Often To Some People...

In This Episode, Ray And Debra Get Personalized Toasters For Their Family And Friends For Christmas, But Despite Ray's Brother, Robert And Debra's Parents Loving The Toasters, Ray's Parents, Frank And Marie, End Up Taking It Back To The Store And Switch It Out For A Coffee Machine...

Realizing That Their Son Is Upset With Them, They Return To The Store To Try To Get It Back...

This Episode Is Funny, What Happens When Ray Finds Out That Marie And Frank Traded In The Toaster For A Coffee Machine Is Freaking Hysterical And That Scene Where Marie Tells Frank That She's Not Just A Trophy Wife Is Also Funny And I Say See It...

05. Batman: The Animated Series "Christmas With The Joker"

This Episode Sees The Joker Escaping From Arkham Asylum To Pirate The TV Airwaves With His Own Christmas Special...

(Start At 1:27, End At 2:06)

Where He Causes Trouble Not Just For Batman And Robin But All Of Gotham As He Kidnaps Commissioner Gordon, Detective Bullock And News Reporter Summer Gleason...

While This Is The First Appearance Of The Best Joker Of All Time, This Episode Is Filled With Action, Christmas Cheer, And Comedy That's Mainly Done By Hamill's Joker And I Definitely Say See It...

04. Two And A Half Men "Walnuts And Demerol"

This Episode Has Charlie About To Have Sex With A Girl Named Gloria But When All Of His Family And Friends Come Over It Goes From A Date Which Is Leading To Coitus To A Funny Christmas Party Despite Charlie Telling Everyone That It's Not A Christmas Party...

Between This And The Episode "Santa's Village Of The Damned" This Was Another Hard Decision...

This Episode Is Funny, With The Stuff Berta Says In This Episode, Candy Playing The Piano And The Surprise Twist In The Episode (Yes, There's A Surprise Twist) It's A Good Episode And I Say See It...

03. Frasier "Frasier Grinch"

This Episode Sees Frasier Crane Preparing To Spend The Holidays With His Father And His Son Fredrick, But When He Wrong Box Of Toys Him And Niles Have To Get Fredrick The Presents He Ordered On Christmas Eve At A Toy Store...

This Episode Is Very Funny I Absolutely Love The Scenes Where Fraiser Is Trying To Tell His Annual Christmas Story To His Viewers Only To Be Interrupted By "Bulldog" Briscoe And Gil Chesterton Who Bring In A Stripper To Distract Frasier From Telling His Boring Story And When Frasier Comes Home To His Penthouse Apartment To See That His Father Has Turned His Apartment Into Santa's Winter Wonderland For Fredrick, Either Way, It's A Good Episode And I Say See It...

02. Home Improvement "Twas The Night Before Chaos"

Again With Alot Of Good Home Improvement Christmas Episodes This Was A Hard Decision To Make...

The Taylor Family Spend Christmas With Tim's Brother, Marty, His Wife And Their Newborn Babies But When Jill's Parents Also Come Over For The Holidays, Jill Notices That They're Defiantly Not Getting Along As Ever Since Her Father, The Colonel (Played By The Same Guy Who Was Tim's Older Neighbor In Christmas With The Kranks) Retired From The Army, He Hasn't Done Anything Except Watch Patton In His Den Over And Over Again

And Jill's Mom Thought That Once He Retired That They Would See The World...

If Roseanne Was Good At Halloween, Then Home Improvement Did Christmas Just As Good, From Tim's Lighting Contest Fights With Their Proctologist Neighbor, Doc Johnson To Tool Time Around The Holidays These Episodes Are Funny And This One Is No Exception And I Definitely Say See It...

Before We Get To Our Number One Let's Look At The Top 5 Runners Up That We Wanted To Add But Just Couldn't...

05. X-Men "Have Yourself A Morlock Little X-Mas

The X-Men Celebrate Christmas Together However When The Morlocks Ask The X-Men To Save Their Youngest Member, Wolverine Has To Make A Decision Whether To Use His Blood To Save Him Or Not...

04. Mystery Science Theatre 3000 "The Christmas That Almost Wasn't"

Between This And The Santa Claus Conquers The Martians Episode, This Was A Hard Decision To Make...

The Team Aboard The Satellite Of Love Is Forced By KInga Forrester And Her Partner Max, Tv's Son Of Tv's Frank To Watch A Movie Called The Christmas That Almost Wasn't Which Sees Santa Claus Asking A Lawyer To Help Him Deal With A Miserly Land Owner Named Prune, Who Will Own Santa's Home Unless He Pays Him Back His Entire Debt He Owes By Christmas Eve Or Gives Him All Of The Christmas Presents As Collateral Which Would Destroy Christmas As We Know It...

03. The Monkees "Our Christmas Show"

The Monkees Look After A Rich Kid (Played By Eddie Munster) Who Believes Christmas Is A Waste Of Time So, The Group Tries To Get The Kid Into The Christmas Spirit...

02. The Real Ghostbusters "X-Mas Marks The Spot"

The Ghostbusters Accidentally Go Into A Time Portal To Victorian England And Accidentally Capture The Ghosts Of Past, Present And Future Which In Turn Creates A Grim Future Where Christmas No Longer Exists And Everyone Acts Like Ebenezer Scrooge And The Only Way To Fix This Is To Get The Ghosts Out Of The Containment Grid And Place Them Back Where They Were With Scrooge...

01. Kim Possible "A Very Possible Christmas"

As Kim Spends Christmas With Her Family And Her Grandma, Ron And Rufus Take An Assignment To Deal With Dr. Drakken's Latest Attempt To Take Over The World As A Secret Santa Gift For Kim, But When The Mission Goes Wrong With Ron, Rufus And Drakken Stranded At The North Pole, It's Up To Kim And Her Family To Rescue Them Before Shego Gets There...

And Now Onto Our Number One Favorite Christmas TV Episode...

01. The Big Bang Theory "The Bath Item Gift Hypothesis"

This Episode Sees Penny Getting Sheldon A Christmas Present Which Forces Him To Get A Christmas Gift For Penny With The Help Of Raj And Howard, Stopping By Bed Bath And Beyond, Sheldon Decides To Get Penny A Gift Basket Of Bath Items But Not Knowing What Size, Sheldon Decides To Buy A Boatload Of Them And Give Penny The Correct Basket Depending On The Size Of The Gift, So, When Christmas Morning Comes Around This Happens...

#1 (Start At 0:41, End At 1:54) #2 (Start At 2:38, End At 3:19)

This Episode Is The Most Hilarious Christmas Episode I Have Ever Seen And That Is Because Of Jim Parsons' Sheldon Cooper And How He Handles Christmas Or Saturnalia....

(Start At 0:08, End At 0:40)

And Because Of That, I Say See It...

Till Next Time, This Is Duke, Signing Off...

[circular-time]

Thank you for excavating that. I've referenced it a few times without knowing how to find it.

When I talk about how many fans complained that The Deadly Assassin, the first story really set on and about Gallifrey, was an utter betrayal of Doctor Who because it ruined the Time Lords (and introduced the canon-breaking 12-regeneration limit which contradicted the pre-Hartnell Doctors introduced by the same scriptwriter a few stories earlier) this is what I'm remembering.

Fans also flipped their shit about Invasion of Time. Again, any time the Time Lords were shown, it Ruined The Magic of Gallifrey. But also, there was outrage about a chase scene inside the corridors of the TARDIS ruining the Magic of the TARDIS, because parts of it looked suspiciously like a hotel pool or BBC sub-basements.

And yet those were the stories that established Gallifrey canon: the double spiral seal still used today, Rassilon, iconic Time Lord collars, the Matrix, offices like the President and Castellan and High Council, the Capitol, the Houses, the Chancellery Guard and CIA, and so much more that's become as embedded in the show's bedrock as the TARDIS doors or artron energy.

And I just nattered on and then deleted an epic post about moments when fans complained that classic Who had "betrayed itself" and lost the magic, including one time when I felt like the show had gone off the rails, and other sea changes I didn't notice or let slide— except I'll save this bit, because it's relevant to Moffatt and Chibnall, even if it doesn't entirely go with this post:

....my impression of Seven was set during Delta and the Bannermen, so I didn't notice how much harsher he became with Ace. It had been so many years that I didn't notice what a change it was from Four saying "have I the right?" to Seven fucking FUCKING BLOWING UP SKARO AND THE DALEK FLEET as well as Davros and then talking the last surviving Dalek into suicide.

In the 80s that was okay, because they were Daleks, and he'd given them tons of chances, and they'd destroyed trillions of victims.

But also? Throughout the 20th century, there was this unspoken distinction between antagonists portrayed as "people," so that it was tragic if you had to kill your opponents in war ("there should have been another way") vs antagonists that were aliens/monsters/robots, and since they weren't "people" it was okay to kill them. You'd be surprised just how far that pendulum has swung. Two years before I was born, it was very controversial to have Spock on the bridge of the Enterprise as a good guy, because he was an alien.

"They're not people, so it's ok to kill them" is video game logic. And it's a genre trope, whether you identify it with mythology (hero saving village from monsters) or fantasy Forces of Evil to be defeated with the Dark Lord or whatever. One that Moffatt chose to grapple with sometimes during his tenure, whereas Chibnall handwaves it like psychic paper to move the story along.

And I think that's one of the points where fans get into arguments about the magic of Doctor Who and what's ruined it. Different showrunners and fans draw the Line the Doctor Won't Cross at a different place, which can be disconcerting, particularly when there's no acknowledgement of that line.

Pardon me for vagueblogging. I'm half tempted to delete this, because I really did stray far from the original point, but I feel like it's a point worth making. So anyway, Thirteen was awfully mean to those Arachnids in the UK, wot? 😉

Time is a Flat Circle:

WHAT HAS HAPPENED TO THE MAGIC OF DOCTOR WHO?

—Jan Vincent-Rudzki, 1976

Does anyone else feel as if season 11 and 12 have irreversibly destroyed the gist and magic of Doctor Who?

—poebelmulle, 2021