Thoughts on the Doctor - 2

This gets spoilery. Adding line breaks for hand-held readers (if such exist) then deprecated font tags to obscure text in browsers, 'cause I don't know how else to consistently hide text behind a layer.


















































You were warned:


So there's much speculation as to who this "not-Doctor" incarnation is. From what I can gather from various websites, the main theory is that this incarnation of the Time Lord known as "The Doctor" is actually the one who fought in the Time War and wound up obliterating Gallifrey and the Daleks.

If that's the case, the entire "mystery" of this incarnation gets weirdly hollow and feels like a cheat. We already know from the angst of the PTSD 9th Doctor (played by the brilliant Christopher Eccleston) that the Doctor wiped out both Gallifrey and the Daleks (or tried to in the latter case). The 9th Doctor and 10th Doctor both own up to this, so it seems to me that the Doctor is willing to accept that he (in whatever incarnation) is responsible for that act.

I suppose this comes down to the question of sequence. Is this "not-Doctor" the first incarnation (as I think fits best) or is he between the 8th Doctor (played by Paul McGann) and the 9th Doctor (played by Christopher Eccleston) - which could work, but is kind of a cop-out, or is he a future incarnation? If he's a post-11th incarnation, how would the 11th Doctor have recognized him and speak of him in past-tense?

No, for this to work, the "not-Doctor" has to be an incarnation that precedes Smith's 11th Doctor.

So where does the "not-Doctor" lie in the sequence?

Well, I expect that will be the plot of the 50th anniversary episode in November. I'm kind of hoping they go with having John Hurt's "not-Doctor" be the original. I kind of like the concept of the original Time Lord being a misguided soul who commits such a terrible crime that he becomes "the Doctor" (the one who "makes people better", as John Simm's version of the Master sneered) to try to atone for his crimes.

Actually, what I think would make things utterly-brilliant would be something like this: the original incarnation of the Time Lord later known as "the Doctor" sets out to accomplish some sort of great good. He follows that road of intentions that invariably leads to a hot place and becomes a monster. His family tries to stop him. His wife and children attempt to bring him back from the brink. They fail and all die, either at his hands or due to some inattention on his part. The only family left behind is his grand-daughter (and, if you want to believe "The Woman" from the "End of Time" was the Doctor's mother, then she survives too...). The Time Lord who will become the Doctor is overcome by this and stops whatever it is that he's doing. This causes him to regenerate. He returns to Gallifrey and is somehow able to get back into the fold as the First Doctor. He retrieves his grand-daughter and they steal a TARDIS from a maintenance area or museum (depending on how the story is told). They journey across time-and-space until arriving at Earth where she takes the name Susan and a legend is born.

Thematically, this works. It gives a great motivation for the Doctor's actions and it colors his origins with darkness, which has been a recurring theme since even the McCoy era.

I doubt this is what Moffatt has in mind, but I can dream the dream.

Now I wonder if there are plans to bring Susan back into the story. She's been gone for a long, long time. As far as any indications lie in the series, she was presumably a Time Lady when she ran off with a mere-mortal human in "The Dalek Invasion of the Earth", so she should still be alive. Even if she underwent a Chameleon Arch transformation, she could have always had a way to restore herself and regenerate when old age got to be too much. It's not unreasonable to bring her back into the story at some point.

Okay, at this point, I'm just spinning.

Because I haven't rambled enough

So I'm starting a new book: "Under Heaven" by Guy Gavriel Kay (whose parents must have been hard-core Arthurian legends fans or something).

Set in a not-quite-ancient-China, it's got me hooked thus far. A buddy of mine told me there's a second book set in this world I should get it on order before I finish this one.

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I really should go on the wagon this week. Last week was brutal. I wonder how long I'll maintain my resolve on this little idea? I give myself ten minutes. Max.

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Cops everywhere this morning. Wonder if they're looking for someone or if it's quota day?

Lessons over the last four days

• When your back is hurting you, don't wear a messenger bag when riding your bike. Wear a backpack. Makes all the difference.
• Mai tais are my friend.
• I take "Doctor Who" way the hell too seriously.

Thoughts on the Doctor

"The Name of the Doctor" wasn't perfect, but it did a solid job of exploring the mythos of the Doctor without completely hosing the established canon.

From my own personal perusal of the series since... well, a long, long time ago... it seems the following is pretty much canon:

• The Doctor is a Time Lord
• Time Lords of Gallifrey can only regenerate 12 times, meaning there can never be more than 13 incarnations of a Time Lord. (source: "The Deadly Assassin")
• The so-called "Rule of 12" has been broken before by Rassilon (the revered demi-god like founder of Time Lord society) and the Master. (source: "The Five Doctors" and the later return of The Master)
• It's not uncommon for some Time Lords to adopt a pseudonym in the form of some kind of title ("The Doctor", "The Master", "The Rani", "The Corsair")
• There have been 11 incarnations of a Time Lord calling himself "The Doctor" (source: various, mainly BBC statements)
• The Doctor once had a family including parents, siblings, a wife, children, and at least one grand-child. (source: mostly conjecture from statements made by Russel T. Davies regarding "The Woman" in "End of Time" pt. 1 and 2. The only confirmed family was his grand-daughter Susan from the 1st Doctor's era)
• All of the Doctor's family was dead (or believed by him to be dead) by the time of the Ninth Doctor. (source: multiple references made by the 9th and 10th Doctors)
• The Doctor talks a lot about laws of time but breaks them a fair amount. This includes crossing his own timeline more than once. (source: "The Three Doctors", "The Five Doctors", the "Trial of a Time Lord" arc, "The Two Doctors", etc.)
• At some point, a being will come about that is a distillation of the Doctor's "dark side". This being, known as "The Valeyard" will manifest between his 12th and final incarnations. (source: "Trial of a Time Lord" from the 7th Doctor's era)
• The Time Lords are all gone, as far as the Doctor knows. They are locked in the Time War.
• There are quasi-Time Lords out there. Namely Jenny ("The Doctor's Daughter"), Donna Noble (has some kind of Doctor-Donna meshing thing going on there), and River Song.
• The Valeyard somehow manages to travel back in time to Gallifrey from at least five incarnations in his future to cross his own timeline and try to steal the life of the 7th Doctor (probably due to his fashion crimes).
• Spoiler: There is another incarnation of the Time Lord who calls himself "the Doctor". This incarnation committed some kind of horrible crimes and is not considered "The Doctor" by his other incarnations.

That's a pretty rich background. It gives the otherwise-immortal Doctor a limit on his long, long life and it introduces a hint of tragedy to his story. The Doctor repeatedly stated he left Gallifrey to escape boredom, but he and his grand-daughter fled Gallifrey by stealing a TARDIS. That's not really an act of escaping boredom. That's more an act of a couple of fugitives. Add to that the claims of the Doctor that his family is "dead", it raises an interesting question.

So what if the Doctor was fleeing Gallifrey to escape some kind of persecution, perhaps for a crime of some sort? What if the Doctor's family was executed or killed as part of this crime? So you have the Doctor fleeing with the last remaining member of his family and getting the hell out while he can.

Oh, it's not canon, but it gives a more feasible explanation for an elderly being committing a crime punishable by death in his society and dragging his grand-child into it.

"The Name of the Doctor" takes that little speculation of mine a bit further, though. Spoiler:

So this "other incarnation" of the Doctor's is a complete mystery. The 11th Doctor knew who he was. The Great Intelligence implied that the Doctor's last incarnation was a brutal, evil, monster who led an army in violence and died in a final battle. The implication was that the "other incarnation" was that version of the Doctor, but the 11th knew him by face. Not really workable if the "other" was a future incarnation.

So what if this "other" incarnation is the original? What if the Time Lord known as the Doctor started out as... well, misguided. He got carried away and did terrible things. As a result, his family suffered and died. He regenerated and took a new name: "The Doctor". And thus the First Doctor was born. He goes and finds his only surviving family on Gallifrey, takes her, then steals the TARDIS. A legend is born.

That doesn't rule out the Doctor's story ending in a dark place, though. The 13th incarnation of this Time Lord (who would be the 12th Doctor) could still transform into the so-called monster who dies at Trenzalore.

I dunno. I have to say, I'm kind of digging the possibilities.

Book Review: "The Riyria Revelations"

Last night I finished "Heir of Novron", the third book of "The Riyria Revelations" by Michael J. Sullivan.

Set in a generic fantasy world of Elves, Humans, Dwarves, and Goblins, the story centers around Royce and Hadrian, a pair of mercenary thieves who accomplish high-end missions for a price. Royce is a stereotypical thief with excellent night vision and absolutely no morals whatsoever while Hadrian is the greatest swordsman in the world and has a strange sense of idealism and honor.

The two find themselves in the employ of a novice sorceress and princess to save her brother. From there, the two find themselves embroiled in fantastical adventures resulting in your usual saving of the world.

Sullivan's world is reminiscent of a D&D campaign version of Tolkien myths, but it plays out interestingly. Humans appear to be the dominant species in the world. Elves and Dwarves are subject races and second-class-citizens, at best while Goblins are slain on sight. The dominant religion is, by turns, kind and psychotically-evil. Themes of intolerance, nobility, and relationships are threaded throughout the story in the three novels. The novels themselves are really just collections of smaller books with self-contained, yet linked, stories. It's good stuff, especially with the fit hits the shan in the third book. It's choppy and cliche in many parts, but I found it to be a fun read. It's certainly better than a lot of other crap out there. I recommend it if you're in the mood for some fluffy fantasy.

Review: "The Name of the Doctor"

And so we come to the finale for "series seven" of "Doctor Who". Yes, today was "The Name of the Doctor".

So I've had more than a few harsh things to say about series seven, especially the second half that has included Clara "Oswin" Oswald. I made no secret that I expected this finale to suck ass.

Perhaps it was that I'd mentally set my bar very, very low (subterranean low) but I have to say I didn't completely loathe this episode. Oh, the story was choppy and poorly-paced. The villains were sadly under-utilized and the grand ideas didn't quite get smoothly delivered. That said... well... spoilers follow:














































Still there? You've been warned.

The episode opens on Gallifrey. An old man and a girl are stealing a TARDIS from a maintenance area when Clara warns the old man he is making a mistake. The old man is, of course, the First Doctor. Flash to Victorian England. Madam Vastra meeting up with some creepy guy in a Victorian prison. This guy, a convicted mass murderer, offers Vastra information on the Doctor and Trenzalore in exchange for his life.

Trenzalore, if you don't recall, is a location at which the Doctor will answer the question "Doctor Who?". That's the thing the Silence was all hot and bothered over.

Oh, and just to get it out of the way, the Silence doesn't appear in this episode. They aren't even mentioned. Yeah, I thought that was a ridiculous failed opportunity as well. For all that, color me unsurprised, but moving on...

Vastra, Jenny, and Strax do a "conference call" with Clara and River Song (yeah... what? Don't think too hard on this part) by going into some kind of dream state that allows cross-time face-time psychic conversations.

How did Vastra know how to get a letter to Clara to get her in this loop? It's Moffatt hand-waving. Don't ask logical questions. It'll just make you feel frustrated. Moving on...

They're all chatting about Trenzalore. River Song, as usual, smugly indicates she knows far more than anyone else (including the Doctor's name) despite the fact she's dead (or she isn't dead, I'm really unclear on this bit).

Meanwhile, "the Whisper Men", weird creepy guys in suits without eyes and terrible dental work snag Jenny, then Vastra, then Strax before intruding on the dreamspace to attack River and Clara. Clara awakes in the 21st century to find the Doctor there. She tells him about the convict and the mention of Trenzalore. The Doctor freaks out. So it turns out that Trenzalore is important to his timeline. It's where he dies and his tomb is set.

Following a taunting message from the Great Intelligence (the arc-villain this half-season), the Doctor and Clara head to Trenzalore. The TARDIS is uncooperative, but they still manage to get to the planet. There, the two are beset by Whisper Men while River Song's presence, seeming unnoticed by the Doctor, talks to Clara to advise her ways to avoid their pursuit.

Turns out there's a giant graveyard on Trenzalore, including a HUGE tomb in the form of a Police Box. Yes, the Doctor's tomb is the TARDIS and it's grown a bit.

The Doctor and Clara reunite with a revived Vastra, Jenny, and Strax. The Great Intelligence and his Whisper Men surround the group. The GI threatens to kill the Doctor's companions unless the Doctor opens the tomb. The only way to do so? The Doctor must speak his real name.

Okay, let's be clear here: we don't hear his real name spoken. The whole thing is a giant red herring. The ghost of River Song somehow opens the door, even though nobody can see or hear her and we never hear the Doctor's name spoken. Turns out the GI wants to find the maker of the Doctor's death: a time rift that connects to all of his past. The GI wants to go back in time and kill the Doctor simultaneously in every incarnation while disrupting his life. This act will obliterate the Great Intelligence, but it's a comic-book villain and it's okay with this. So it pops back and the Doctor starts convulsing in pain. While Jenny vanishes from time and Vastra fights with Strax (vaporizing him), Clara reasons with River that someone can go back in time and try to stop the GI. Clara, obviously, chooses to do this. This act will fracture her across time-and-space. She won't be her but she'll be echoes of her. Thanks to the TARDIS-tomb, she's already recalling the mind-numbing bad-writing from "Journey to the Center of the TARDIS" and realizes the mystery around her. As she jumps into the Doctor's timeline, this obviously solves that little mystery. Everyone is magically healed by timey-whimey bullshit and the Doctor, anxious to save Clara, says his final good-byes to River Song's ghost (he always knew she was there, but ignored her 'cause he's a giant asshole). He then jumps into his timeline and retrieves Clara, but not before meeting someone.

You see, Clara has crossed paths with every incarnation of the Doctor. All the ones we know about. Pretty much every incarnation gets a little cameo except the 8th and the 10th. At the very end, there's another there in the Doctor's timeline. Clara doesn't recognize him, but the Doctor does. This one is yet another incarnation of the being who holds the name of "the Doctor".

Here's where this actually gets kind of clever. Canon is that there's been eleven Doctors. Eleven incarnations of the Time Lord known as "the Doctor". That does not necessarily mean that this Time Lord has had eleven incarnations. Apparently there's been another incarnation that has held a different name. One that the 11th Doctor rejects as not having had the name, 'cause he's done terrible, horrible things. And this incarnation is played by John Hurt. He will presumably be the central character in the 50th anniversary episode airing on Nov 23, 'cause the episode ends on that note.

Review: Iron Man 3

Aaaaah... good times.

So I saw Iron Man 3 this afternoon. That was a fun movie.

Set in the aftermath of The Avengers, Tony Stark is being Tony Stark when the villainous terrorist known as The Mandarin strikes. Hilarity ensues in the form of untraceable explosives and super-human soldiers who put Stark on the ropes for a bit, but it's hard to keep an Iron Man down.

Yeah, I'm being dodgy with the plot details. I don't really want to spoil anything. Iron Man 3 was a solid popcorn film. Interesting comic-booky plot with good action sequences and some surprisingly-engaging asides. I was especially shocked by watching scenes with a tween-age kid that not only didn't annoy me, but I actually liked the kid and thoroughly enjoyed the dynamic between him and Downey Jr.'s Tony Stark. Those small details raised this film out of the mediocre category for me.

Solid film. I highly recommend it and look forward to comparing it against Star Trek: Into Darkness when I have a chance.