And the next Dr Who is?

Discussion in 'Visual Arts' started by Gibson67, Jul 16, 2017.

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  1. BeatleJWOL

    BeatleJWOL Senior Member

    So casting a woman is a pandering gimmick and casting a man is okay because it's business as usual.

    And there's nothing in that thought process that screams "hmm, maybe this is unbalanced"?
     
  2. Deesky

    Deesky Forum Resident

    I wouldn't call it a gimmick, but it is true that the ratings have been dropping for a while now. The way I see it, and perhaps the way the show sees it, is that given the turnover of showrunner and a female lead for the first time, the combined dynamic (showrunner + lead) has a good chance of injecting new life into the series.

    There will certainly be renewed buzz about these developments and if the showrunners are smart, they should hire more female writers who can better serve a female main character (I hope there aren't too many cheap laughs after the regen where the doctor looks in the mirror and says something like - hey look, I got boobs!).
     
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  3. Dusty Chalk

    Dusty Chalk Grounded Space Cadet

    I'm as excited about this as I am about a new showrunner, but there will be a lot of love lost due to the new showrunner -- there are a lot of Moffat fans. I just hope it doesn't kill the show. The writers really need to step up their game. I thought some of the writing in Capaldi's run was great, although I really hated the infighting with Jenna-Louise Coleman, who I thought was a great, sassy companion. (Don't get me wrong, I liked Bill, too, I just thought Clara was a really great foil for The Doctor and wasn't afraid to tell the Doctor her mind, even if it meant alienating him.)

    Oh, and for the record, I'm a fan of the reboot series, Capaldi, Coleman, Moffat, and I am still really looking forward to the new series.
     
  4. Ghostworld

    Ghostworld Senior Member

    Location:
    US
    And why hasn't he come back as a Yankee Doodle? :targettiphat:
     
  5. tkl7

    tkl7 Agent Provocateur

    Location:
    Lewis Center, OH
    Well, the original character was conceived of as a man, so no. I don't think that "balance" is an issue. Is it fair? I don't know. It's a subjective argument either way.
     
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  6. BeatleJWOL

    BeatleJWOL Senior Member

    "Because that's how it's always been" isn't good enough anymore. Even one of the show's creators was supportive of the idea of casting a woman as the Doctor, not as a gimmick, but as a way to reinvigorate and reenergize the show:
    How Doctor Who nearly became the Time Lady

    I see a lot of hemming and hawing and grumping and griping (and yes, also a lot of support for the idea!) about this and from what I've read, not one person who's objected to the change has been able to come up with any more substantial reason than "well the character's never been a male before". Not once.
     
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  7. fitzysbuna

    fitzysbuna Senior Member

    Location:
    Australia
    I did not see this coming! big change! hope she is good ! I will still be watching!
     
  8. will_b_free

    will_b_free Forum Resident

    Location:
    Boulder, CO
    She's 35, an actual woman, and of an age that is seldom seen on US television (except in cases where a show has been on for many seasons like Bones).

    I don't know how old Barbie is, but I'd guess maybe 20? She is shopping for a Dream House, so she's evidently not in high school anymore, and sometimes she's had a profession like astronaut...maybe early 20s. She has her drivers license. And has she ever had a champagne glass or similar? So 21 or so?
     
  9. Matthew

    Matthew Senior Member

    It IS a gimmick, the character has been male for over 50 years.

    That's not saying I have a problem with it, but let's not beat about the bush.

    It's kinda sad in a way, not because a long-standing pop culture male character is being changed to a female (after all, Doctor Who could, and no doubt will bounce back and forth now, depending on how long the series continues), but that this is easier than actually creating a new iconic female character - that would be the real win, wouldn't it?

    The best way they can move forward with this is for the hook NOT being a Doctor "getting used to being a woman", I think that would undermine the potential.
     
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  10. Willowman

    Willowman Senior Member

    Location:
    London, UK
    It's a kids' teatime TV series - it should be fun/a bit scary/entertaining.

    I don't really mind who plays the Doctor, I'll watch it with my daughter anyway until she grows out of it.

    I hope they tell a few more small-scale stories though, and less of the 'the universe is in peril and only one person can save it' sagas. Those big overarching storylines are the worst thing about the programme since the relaunch, for me.
     
  11. eddiel

    eddiel Senior Member

    Location:
    Toronto, Canada
    I was wondering about the writing moving forward. One the one hand you have a female character that inevitably has to be treated different writing wise, but on the other, she's still the Doctor and needs to retain certain characteristics that makes the Doctor the Doctor.

    I also fear there might be some cheap laughs type stuff you mentioned. I don't really trust them at the moment to be a bit more clever about it all.
     
  12. goodiesguy

    goodiesguy Confide In Me

    Location:
    New Zealand
    But that's the one joke I'd want to hear!
     
  13. goodiesguy

    goodiesguy Confide In Me

    Location:
    New Zealand
    Agreed. There must be so much talent out there for some great, fantastic and interesting female characters, but I guess it's cheaper to just fiddle with already established series.
     
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  14. tkl7

    tkl7 Agent Provocateur

    Location:
    Lewis Center, OH
    Why is it not good enough anymore? I am all for stronger roles (both more diverse and less cliched roles) for women in SciFi, but there is no need to appropriate established characters.
     
  15. tkl7

    tkl7 Agent Provocateur

    Location:
    Lewis Center, OH
    Yes, in this situation they are hoping that the small amount of fans who will leave will be offset by a larger group of new fans. Unfortunately, I think any large gains in audience will be too short lived to sustain the program over the long term.
     
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  16. Gary7704

    Gary7704 Chasing that sound….

    Location:
    New Jersey
    Loved her in Broadchurch.
    Its going to be interesting to see how she plays this roll.
     
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  17. You have taken the point literally...which means you missed the point.
     
  18. Ken_McAlinden

    Ken_McAlinden MichiGort Staff

    Location:
    Livonia, MI
    To be fair, if they were, they probably wouldn't like it. :laugh:
     
  19. Ken_McAlinden

    Ken_McAlinden MichiGort Staff

    Location:
    Livonia, MI
    They chose a good actress, so this should be interesting. Chibnall worked with Whittaker on Broadchurch, so hopefully they can hit the ground running.

    The riddle where the surgeon turns out to be the patient's mother has not fooled anybody since the 1970s, so we should all be comfortable with female Doctors, now. Right? ;)
     
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  20. Purple Jim

    Purple Jim Senior Member

    Location:
    Bretagne
    I'm surprised that it took them so long to cast a woman. I'll probably watch the first one (as I do with each new Doctor - since the 60s) just to see how it goes. However the series has been so poor since the David Tennant days that I doubt if I will stay with it every week.
     
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  21. jmobrien68

    jmobrien68 Forum Resident

    Location:
    Toms River, NJ
    I've never watched Dr. Who in my life, but I have a HUGE crush on Jodie Whittaker so I will now be watching.
     
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  22. daglesj

    daglesj Forum Resident

    Location:
    Norfolk, UK
    Haven't watched it since the middle of Matt Smiths run.

    Haven't missed it either. At the end of the day it's a kids show.
     
  23. Sordel

    Sordel Forum Resident

    Location:
    Switzerland
    There's nothing wrong in itself with a woman being cast as Doctor Who, but can the writers be trusted not to seize the opportunity to lecture the audience? The most recent assistant is lesbian & Afro-Carribbean: both her race and gender orientation have been the basis of very heavy-handed finger-wagging at the audience. I worry that we're going to get continual, grating references to the gender change in the worst tradition of virtue signalling ... but society has moved on without the BBC; speaking personally I'm way too enlightened to need a weekly lesson on gender politics in sci-fi, and I think that's true of most of the audience.
     
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  24. bubba-ho-tep

    bubba-ho-tep Resident Ne'er-Do-Well

    Location:
    San Tan Valley, AZ
    I largely checked out during the Matt Smith era, too. He is my least favorite Doctor by a considerable distance. I did decide to try working my way through seasons 7-10 in preparation for the new Doctor at the end of the year. Based on the first few Series 8 episodes I've seen so far, I have my work cut out for me.
     
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  25. daglesj

    daglesj Forum Resident

    Location:
    Norfolk, UK
    Just doesn't appeal anymore. Like 99% of the BBC's output.
     
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