Doctor Who Club of Australia

Ohica · Joined: 24 May 2007 Posts: 30 Location: Karn

I really loved Donna in the Christmas special and wanted her to be the companion full-time. But after that didn't happen, I was a bit dubious about having her back again after all this time. But, after the last 3 eps, I'm not disappointed. She actually appreciates the enormity of what travel in the TARDIS means for an ordinary person. I felt the past two companions, as much as I liked them, [especially Martha], tended to trivialise the whole experience by dwelling on their shallow infatuation with the Doctor. It's so refreshing to finally get back to a companion that's not interested in him, per se but rather appreciates the fabulous privilege of being able to travel in space and time to all sorts of planets. Donna is lots of fun but she is donig what she said the Doctor needed, keeping him from turning bad. Keeping him "human" or humanityized. She's the one with compassion now and she does a good job of it. She's a REAL person. An ordinary woman. It's good to see someone with a bit of get up and go. Go Donna.

SharazJek · Joined: 12 Aug 2005 Posts: 889 Location: Hobart, Tasmania

Ohica I was dubious about Donna's return for a different reason...I couldn't stand her in The Runaway Bride!!

But I too am very pleased with the way she has so comfortably put on full-time companion shoes!

I'm very glad to be rid of the Doctor/companion sexual tension.....for the moment. With Rose lurking around I'm sure it will be back.

KnottyEmily · Joined: 12 Aug 2007 Posts: 113 Location: Melbourne

God help us if Martha and Rose meet. It will be like School Reunion all over again, but I can imagine it being much worse.

Panecea · Posted: Sun Apr 27, 2008 4:11 pm Post subject:

Speckled Jim · Joined: 14 Jul 2006 Posts: 120 Location: Auckland, Un Zud

Brilliant. Utterly brilliant, and just about flawless.
I've been in the dumps since the execrable Voyage of the Damned about this latest season, wondering if there's any point putting the man hours in ... and then Planet of the Ood came along with a script and execution so clever it left me gobsmacked.
As people have said, the first coupla minutes grated a tad - how much longer do we need companions dancing like hyperactive spaniels about the whole leaving-Chiswick-for-another-planet silliness? But a clumsy intro was swept aside by this awesome story that dispensed with safety and comfort and really rattled the nerves.
I have to agree with others about the "dark" element of this episode; the PR girl being, well, a PR girl and toeing the company line and then copping it big time; the somewhat upsetting concept of an alien species born so vulnerable being ruthlessly mutilated and exploited by "superior" invaders; the giant hive mind; and the calculated plan to transform the director into an Ood at the end ... all good Dr Who.
And Tim McInnerny, wow. Just awesome. Utterly repugnant. Not a trace of Percy left in him.

Theta Sigma · Joined: 26 Jun 2005 Posts: 3901

Tim McInnerny is very good as Mr Halpern. Also special mention for Ayesha Dharker as Solana.
I love the Ood song.
Funny when Solana mistaken the Doctor and Donna as husband and wife especially with Donna's reaction.
Very shocking to see Mr Halpern turn into an Ood.

Very good Doctor Who debut from writer Keith Temple.

Panecea · Posted: Sun Jun 08, 2008 9:10 pm Post subject:

Greg · Posted: Sun Jun 08, 2008 9:44 pm Post subject:

Panecea · Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 12:33 am Post subject:

I will concede to you on the first point Greg but I do not believe the second and third have merit.

The second point relies wholly on the assumption that the other Time Lords we've encountered have given their actual names. Could it not be possible that those Time Lords are giving their chosen names.

The third point relies on a concept that was never used and therefore cannot be considered as evidence. If I remember rightly the creators only considered naming Omega, OHM, he was never actually given that name.

Greg · Posted: Mon Jun 09, 2008 8:10 pm Post subject:

There are actually more points in favour of the Doctor's name being 'Doctor Who' rather than 'Theta Sigma'.

I've already mentioned the infamous statement of WOTAN, 'Doctor Who is required.'

In The Highlanders, he signs a not 'Doctor von Wer' (Doctor Who, more or less, in German).

In The Underwater Menace, the Doctor signs himself as 'Doctor W'.

In Doctor Who and the Silurians, he gains a car, Bessie, which has the vanity licenceplate 'WHO-1'. Did the Doctor choose the number as an in joke? (Coincidentally, the car is named with a variation of 'Elizabeth', the Doctor's the assistant - arguably named for Liz, with the Doctor's name in the licenceplate.)

In The Daemons, the Doctor refers top himself as 'the great wizard Qui Quae Quod' - each of which means 'Who' in Latin (masculine, feminine and neuter forms).

In The Leisure Hive, the Doctor starts wearing clothes with question marks on them. There seems to be no reason for this.

In The Trial of a Time Lord, the Doctor thinks about writing 'Ancient Life on Ravolox, by Doctor' - he is plainly going to say something more, when Peri interrupts him and the rest of the name is lost to us.

In Remembrance of the Daleks, the Doctor has a calling card with a question mark (or something very like one) on it. The other symbols also look like mathematical symbols or Greek characters (or something very like them!) 'Theta Sigma' is not a combination that occurs.

In Rose, there is a web-site called 'DOCTOR WHO?' (run by Clive, which is later taken over by Mickey).

In The Girl in the Fireplace, Reinette reads the Doctor's mind and says, 'Doctor who? It's more than just a secret, isn't it?'.

That's quite a bit of evidence, but also sufficiently vague that I wouldn't want to rely on it to be said to prove anything.

Then there's the production evidence -

The actor playing the Doctor is credited as playing 'Doctor Who' or 'Dr Who' for An Unearthly Child to Logopolis, then Paul McGann has that credit in the TV movie (Sylvester McCoy is credited as 'The Old Doctor'), and then each episodes featuring Christopher Eccleston has him playing 'Doctor Who'. David Tennant, on the other hand, is only said to play 'Doctor Who' in the credits of his first appearance, The Christmas Invasion.

Obviously, the words 'Doctor Who' appear as the show's title all the way through. There is an episode of The Chase named The Death of Dr Who, and I have already mentioned the story Doctor Who and the Silurians.

The 3rd Doctor's new car from his final series is known as 'The Whomobile', although it is never referred to as such on-screen. (It is also called 'The Alien', though again not on-screen)

Panecea · Posted: Tue Jun 10, 2008 5:25 pm Post subject:

KnottyEmily · Joined: 12 Aug 2007 Posts: 113 Location: Melbourne

But doesn't Reinette phrase it as a question? I'm pretty sure that whenever someone says it, they're questioning his identity. Maybe Reinette couldn't see his name because it was so well hidden, she could only see 'Doctor', and was questioning the rest.

The other point against his name being 'Doctor Who' is that in the Confidential for Forest of the Dead RTD said that he's never discussed possibilites for his name because they would never come up with anything good enough. Although that doesn't mean that the original writers didn't give him one.

Greg · Posted: Tue Jun 10, 2008 7:01 pm Post subject:

Does Reinette say 'Doctor who?' as a question? Yes, she does. That is what was intended in the script. The funny thing is that Sophia Myles thought she was revealing the Doctor's surname (according to David Tennant, who had to tell he she wasn't)! So, it is open to interpretation.

Sp[eaking of production intent, when Ian says, 'Who is he? Doctor who?' way back in An Unearthly Child, the intention was that 'Doctor Who' would become a nickname for the character. This was never followed up on by the production team.

Panecea · Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2008 10:17 am Post subject:

Greg · Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2008 6:12 pm Post subject:

Trust me, I don't think the Doctor's real name is 'Doctor Who'.

Or 'Theta Sigma', for that matter.

However, marshaling up the evidence for different theories is an interesting pastime.

Panecea · Posted: Wed Jun 11, 2008 7:44 pm Post subject:

Greg · Posted: Fri Jun 13, 2008 4:45 pm Post subject:

My thoughts?

I don't think we've heard the Doctor's name yet. The contending theories ('Doctor Who' and 'Theta Sigma') don't have the ring of truth to them. They are both far too Earth-centric to sensibly be the name of an alien.

Seriously, what kind of coincidence would have an alien language using words that sound exactly like the names of ancient Greek letters? How much coincidence would be required for a mysterious alien's name to sound just a question about identity?

Now that Steven Moffat is taking over, the current paradigm is told to us in The Forest of the Dead - there is only one reason that the Doctor would reveal his actual name, and only one time when he could.

This either means that we've never been told a real Time Lord name (they all are labels like Doctor, Master, Rani or Monk - even the ones that sound like names) or that something has arisen from the waging of the Time War that has given Time Lord names a new role in the universe after the destruction of Gallifrey.

We may hear it at some point. I'd rather that we didn't. The original point of the character is that his past was unknown and shrouded in mystery. I prefer it that way.

KnottyEmily · Joined: 12 Aug 2007 Posts: 113 Location: Melbourne

I don't think Moffat will reveal the Doctor's name, and hopefully whoever follows him will know that nothing anyone comes up with will ever live up to the mystery surrounding it.