Ten Things for which I am grateful to Russell T Davies

[caz963]

Things like this tend to happen when I'm at home ill, because I get more time to think than normal. So I'm sure you'll be glad to know that I'm on the mend and will be returning to work shortly!

I read a blog post the other day (sorry, but I can’t remember where it was), the subject of which was Ten things we love about Russell T Davies’ Doctor Who.

And it reminded me that I’ve been meaning to do something similar for ages. Though he left Doctor Who more than a year ago, there’s no denying that RTD left his mark on British telly in more ways than one – although DW is, of course, the best known and biggest dent!

But there are a couple of non-DW things I wanted to mention because they made a real impression on me, so they're in here as well.

I struggled with putting these in order – and decided in the end that it’s impossible. So without further ado – and in no particular order –



Ten Things For Which I Will Always be Grateful to Russell T Davies.






1. Starting out with the bleedin’ obvious. He was the one who brought back Doctor Who to our Saturday night tellyboxes. He might not have got it right all the time, but without him, we wouldn’t have the show we have now. On his watch, the 'little show that could' became a veritable juggernaut, regenerated into the BBC’s flagship programme, won numerous awards along the way, and turned into a nice little earner for Auntie - and he left it in (as he says) rude health, at the height of popularity for his successor.

He also turned the Doctor from 'just' an intergalactic wanderer, sometime cosmic hobo and meddler, member of an ancient and grave race into the sole survivor of a terrible war in which he’d had to commit a truly abominable act – that of wiping out his own species in order to save the universe.

And that was a game-changer in terms of the characterization of the Doctor in that it gave more potential for the exploration of what made him tick, this nine-hundred-and-something-year-old alien who had such dark deeds in his past. (And I mean all of his past, not just the Time War, because viewers who were familiar with 'old' Who could fill in the gaps with their knowledge of the Master or Genesis of the Daleks or whatever else stretching back over the years if they wanted to - and new viewers had the explanation of a single, cataclysmic event.)

RTD also brought in what Phil Collinson once referred to as a more 'soap-y' element, in that for the first time, we got a bit of backstory about the Doctor’s companions and their families. I’m not a fan of soaps at all, but I do like character-driven drama, and this is what Rusty was brilliant at providing. He's also very good at drawing those characters – whether principal or minor – with very broad strokes in some cases, but this is what drama is today. It’s expected to be pacy and fast moving (for the most part) and if you’ve only got forty-five minutes in which to tell a story, then you have to use shorthands and other devices with which the audience is familiar in order to do that. RTD recognised that, and fortunately, it’s one of his strengths as a writer. Sure, he sometimes wrote plot-holes you could drive an oil tanker through, but he made me care about every character he wrote (even if it was in a negative way!).

I reckon he’s been responsible for more tears on my part than every single Lassie film ever made! And that’s saying something…

2. David Tennant and the Tenth Doctor.



Um. Yeah. Dunno what I can say about Ten or DT that I haven’t already said. At the beginning, Ten seemed completely different to his predecessor. Handsome and cheeky, he charmed us all with his smile and his wit… but it quickly became apparent that all was not as it seemed and that if anything, he was more damaged and dangerous that Nine had ever been. Underneath that gregariousness was a massive guilt complex, an arrogance that had the potential to do huge damage unless curtailed (and which proved to be his undoing) and the ability to be a complete arsehole at times. But to balance all that, Ten had a huge capacity for love, compassion and empathy. In WoM he did the wrong thing for the right – and very human – reasons. In FoB, he exacted a horrible, but very human-like revenge. Ten felt things strongly and he showed that, and for me, that’s what sets him apart from all the others.

And here I am going on about Ten when I should be going on about DT – but it’s pretty much impossible to talk about one without the other, isn’t it? Ten wouldn’t have been who he was without David Tennant, the fanboy who achieved his dream to play his childhood hero. I’ve often wondered – and I know there’s speculation in fandom – if he was actually RTD’s first choice to play the Doctor in the revamped show, but that he wasn’t a big enough name yet for them to take a chance on. I don’t know, and to be honest, it doesn’t matter. Rusty knew he had an actor on board who could do practically anything, and the two of them seemed to fit temperamentally in many ways; both passionate about their work and the show, both able to wring every last drop of emotion from the viewers.

Bastards. But I love 'em for it.


3. Catherine Tate and Donna Noble



I hate what happened to Donna – I can’t watch or think about the end of JE without crying, but I’m so grateful to Rusty for creating her in the first place. I have no idea whose idea it was to cast her – but if it wasn’t his idea, he'd have had to sign off on it so I’ll be forever grateful to him for that, at least. Donna was the companion Ten needed above all others. She was the one who made him better, as he made her better. Theirs was far more like a relationship of equals than any of the Doctor/Companion relationships because she didn’t let him get away with anything. She wasn’t in love with him or awed by him (well, not to his face!) so she could see him clearly for what he was – and yet she loved him anyway.

Catherine Tate was fabulous in the role. Every time I watch TRB, I marvel at how she and DT click so perfectly. The scene on the rooftop was the first one they filmed together (for TRB) – having had no rehearsal or even time together at read-throughs because she was so busy. But you’d never know from what you see on the screen becuase they're so comfortable together. And she just got better and better. I said in my Partners in Crime rewatch post that when it was announced that Donna was returning to be a full-time companion, the British press got the knives out. There were ridiculous and nasty comments about her age, and her acting ability – so RTD says he was mindful of the fact that he had to make sure that she had good material and storylines so as not to give the naysayers any rope to hang her with. Not only did he do her proud, but she absolutely nailed it. I can watch her in DW and then in her comedy sketches and not (or very rarely) do I ever find myself thinking “oh, she said that like Donna” or “Donna said that like Lauren” (I will admit to seeing a “Nan” moment in UatW, though!). She definitely brought a lot to the show, not least of which was giving David someone as talented and skilled as he is to play off.


4. Christopher Eccleston and the Ninth Doctor



I know I don’t talk about Nine very much, but that doesn’t mean I don’t appreciate him. He’s not my Doctor, and I wish we'd had a bit more time with him. He was dark and angry – an anti-hero in a way; a survivor – battle-scarred and bitter and brittle, but still retaining that enthusiasm for the human race that his predecessors had exhibited.
I remember being surprised and thrilled when I heard that Christopher Eccleston had taken on the role because I really admire him as an actor. He brought gravitas and dignity to the part, and regardless of the rumours which abound about his unhappiness with the working conditions etc. he did a wonderful job and is a huge part of the reason that the show made such an impression on its return. Eccleston is a highly respected actor with a large body of excellent film and TV work behind him, and I think that made people sit up and take notice. It probably brought some people in who were curious to see what this serious, heavyweight actor had signed up for. And hopefully, some of them stuck around for a bit.


5. Rose, Martha, Jackie, Mickey, Wilf, Jack (and Uncle Tom Cobbley and all!)



RTD clearly saw the Doctor's companion(s) as the way into DW for the new audience and he wrote and developed them accordingly. I really admire the way he’s able to tell the viewers something about each character so quickly, so that we feel we know them well within a few minutes of our meeting them. Being cynical about it, one could say that that’s very superficial, but given the time constraints and the fact that these days telly is expected to be fast-moving and pacy, superficial or not, it’s a bloody useful skill to have! Within the first few minutes of meeting Rose, Martha and Donna, we know something about them. To an extent, that relies on using very broad brush-strokes and even some stereo-typing – Rose, the girl in a dead-end job who lives on a council estate and who hasn’t achieved her potential; Martha, the go-getter with the dysfunctional family all of whom regard her as the 'fixer'; Donna, the woman who feels she's a disappointment feels like a failure – at relationships, at jobs, and who sees marriage as a way of escape from it … And then there’s Jackie – Rose’s stroppy Mum who hid a heart of gold under that brash exterior! And who turned into so much more. And Mickey, who started out as the dead-beat boyfriend and who decided to change his life by freeing Paris from the back of a van. Wilf, the old man who dreamt of the stars and probably the only relative who encouraged the companion in her desire to be with the Doctor… Jack, rogue Time Agent and intergalactic con-man who is prepared to sacrifice himself to help the Doctor… it’s a long list, and even the one-off characters that Rusty created have lives of their own and act consistently with what we're told and can infer about them. And that - for me - is key.

6. The return of Sarah-Jane Smith



I will love Rusty forever for School Reunion. There are bits of it that annoy the hell out of me (even though they make sense in terms of characterization) but he brought back Sarah-Jane-bloody-Smith! Rusty’s the same age as I am (well, 5 months older) and so he must’ve watched her in action at the same time I did. She was MY companion when I was a kid, and maybe she was his, too. But whatever the reason, I’m grateful to him for bringing her back – and for bringing her back in such a key role. I know that there are some who don’t like the way it was implied that she’d been in love with the Doctor and waiting for him all that time – but I’m not one of them. I always thought there was a frisson between Sarah-Jane and Three, especially, so it made perfect sense to me that she might have been carrying a torch for the Doctor. After all – we’re all in love with him on some level, aren’t we?

And after that, RTD went on to create The Sarah-Jane Adventures, the spin off for kids, but which is, I’m sure watched by many DW fans like me who are fans of hers. It’s unique among TV shows in having as its central character, a woman in her sixties who is allowed to be kick-arse and to look attractive. The fact that Lis Sladen must have an ageing portrait in her attic doesn’t hurt either...

7. Murray Gold



I’ve said before that I generally find that music for TV lacks the depth more usually found in film scores – but Doctor Who (more specifically, Series 3 onwards) has proved to be a notable exception. I’d seen Murray Gold’s name around in the credits of TV shows over the years; I think that Vanity Fair was the first time I remember thinking “oh, I must watch out for him” and then of course, he teamed up with RTD on Casanova. But his work on DW has been amazing, and I hope he’s incredibly proud of it - he should be. I wrote a post about my favourite DW music as part of my 30 Days of DW meme a couple of months or so and have to say that the DW soundtracks are now part of my regular listening patterns. I’m a bit of a film music geek anyway, but this is the first time I’ve found the music from a TV show has engaged me in this way. I’m glad he’s stayed with the show despite RTD’s departure – but surely, it won’t be long before he’s snapped up by Hollywood.

8. Midnight & The Waters of Mars



Two of my favourite nu-Who episodes. Okay. So WoM was co-written, but the original idea was Rusty’s and he'll have had more input overall than Phil Ford, simply because of his position as head writer and EP.

Midnight is, IMO, one of the scariest episodes of nu-Who ever – and while RTD presents rather a depressing side of human nature, he does it brilliantly. Other than the Doctor (and a brief glimpse of Donna), all the other characters are one-offs, and yet they’re very well drawn. I love stories where we don’t get to see ‘the monster’, (should that be ‘creature’?) because what we can come up with on our own is often far scarier than something we see – and in any case, it was pretty incidental to the story in some ways. It’s the catalyst, to be sure, but the real meat of the episode comes in watching the way these supposedly civilized people are reduced to little more than pack animals, blindly following the strongest voice (no pun intended) in the face of something they don’t understand and which scares the life out of them. David Tennant is simply magnificent as events spiral out of the Doctor’s control and his usual weapons – his confidence in his superior intellect and his voice - are used against him. I never get tired of watching it. Incidentally, I’m also fascinated by the work of the sound team on it - the DWC for this episode is one that's really worth watching as it goes into detail about their work behind the scenes.

And in WoM, we meet Adelaide Brooke, who would have made a fabulous companion in the mould of Donna – someone who wouldn’t put up with any crap and who would have stopped the Doctor when he needed it… and in fact, did. As a Donna fan, I loved the way she was ‘present’, from the minute we were told this was a fixed point and then the reference back to Pompeii brought home even more forcefully how rudderless the Doctor is without her.



That, right there is what it looks like when your heart(s) is (are) breaking.

The Doctor descends into madness and I find it both terrfying and heartbreaking. I don‘t think I cried the first time I saw the episode, but I do when I rewatch it, because I know where it’s going. (I mean, I knew where it was going the first time around, but now I know how we get there it’s different!)
I know half the credit for those moments belongs to David, but Rusty put Ten there; he brought him to this and whether he’d planned it all along or not, it makes perfect sense. Ten had a tendency towards hubris from day one, and even though here, it’s driven by his huge capacity for love and compassion – it’s completely in character for it to have been the cause of his demise. While committing such a human act – that of defying the odds to save lives – Ten was at his most alien, unknowable and terrifying.

Casting water as 'the baddie' was inspired.

And the Ice Warriors got a name check!

9. Cybermen and Daleks



I’ve said before that I’m a sucker for the return of the old enemies, and these are two of my most fondly remembered. I can’t say that I remember watching them from behind the sofa though :) I see a lot of moaning around the fandom about the overuse of the Daleks in particular, but I’m always delighted to see them. They’re iconic anyway, but I love re-vamped version from S1-4. They retained the look of the older versions but somehow they look more menacing – like heavily armoured tanks and made of METAL, goddammit, not brightly coloured plastic with a big arsed spoiler on the back! (I loathe the S5 redesign – I preferred the WWII Ironsides.)

The S5 crew haven’t (yet) ruined the look of the Cybermen – and I hope they decide to leave them alone. They’re another triumph of design and have come a long way since they started out as blokes in neoprene with silver foil masks on their heads!

I thought that Rusty and crew did a pretty good job on balancing out the use of old and new baddies. I know things were pretty touch and go as to whether they’d be able to secure the rights to use the Daleks – but thank goodness they did. Doctor Who without Daleks would be like bacon without eggs, or rhubarb without custard!

Rhubarb. Not fish.

And finally, a couple of non-DW related things – although I suppose it could be argued that the first thing IS DW related for obvious reasons.

10. Casanova and Bob & Rose



Casanova was my real introduction to the wonder that is David Tennant. I'd seen him in a couple of other things, but this was when I really sat up at took notice. Seriously, I was in love from the speech in the gondola – with Casanova because he was just so damn cheeky and cute with it, and with the writing, because it was very quickly evident that this was going to be fun and irreverent and wasn’t going to take itself too seriously. Again, what drew me in was the character Rusty had written. I’ve read a bit about the real Casanova, not a huge amount, but enough to know that what RTD came up with wasn’t a completely accurate portrait (for one thing, the real Giacomo was 5’9” , not especially handsome and swarthy, not 6’1”, gorgeous, pale and freckly!) - but there's got to be a bit of dramatic license somewhere, right? It was a wonderfully stylised production; great locations, costumes - it looked terrific - and it was funny and sexy and poignant and heart-rending (those last scenes as the dying Casanova waits for his long-lost (and long-dead) love to come to him - *sniff*) - and at its centre was a wonderfully flawed character, a romantic at heart - not the serial seducer of legend, but a man who genuinely liked women and who won people over with his intellect, his wit and his charm.

And who looked very fetching in tight black breeches and long boots! /shallow

Bob & Rose



I remember this being on and I think I watched the first episode when it was first broadcast, but for some reason I can't now remember, I didn’t see the rest. I watched it all the way through for the first time a couple of years back and again more recently and I just love it. This is getting to sound repetitive, but it’s funny and sad and poignant, wonderfully written, characterized and acted. If you've seen it - you'll know what I'm talking about, and if you haven't - why not?! It's an unusual love story (to say the least!) and the characters will pull you right in.


So there ya go. There's other things I could have included; I haven't mentioned CoE or QaF for example, or other DW episodes ... that's not because I didn't like them, rather because this is already bloody long as it is, and because the things I've mentioned are the things that are the least likely to change over time, if that makes sense. Anyway - feel free to disagree with me or tell me your own favourites... how could you possibly have left out X !! is fine, too, as long as we can play nice :-) You wouldn't want to upset me on my sick-bed, now, would you?

Comments

[sue-denimme.livejournal.com]

Glad to hear you're on the mend, and hope your recovery continues apace!

"Word" to every bit of this. Like I've said before, Rusty's plots in DW may have been uneven in quallty -- which I frankly can never see until it's pointed out, because I'm too busy being entertained and moved regardless of how many holes there are -- but the emotions were always spot on. He cared about making the Doctor and companions into real characters with real feelings. And as much as I enjoy Eleven in a way, I find I'm *really* missing that, more and more.

I object to the characterization of such things as "soapy", however. Though Phil Collinson or whoever probably didn't mean it in a derogatory way, still that's how it's usually used. Like, "oh, this is science fiction, we're all boys here, all that feelings and stuff is only for soap operas, so you women should go and watch those instead, and we'll be over here with our monsters and explosions". That's probably the basis for 90% of all the objections to RTD's era, IMO.

Anyway, slight tangent: I've been watching Nu Who lately on a one ep per day basis lately, riding my stationary bike as I do so. And I've finally started losing weight again. So, another benefit to add to the list: Nu Who is good for your health!

[caz963.livejournal.com]

I'm too busy being entertained and moved regardless of how many holes there are

*nods* Me, too. And while I didn't set out to make this a Rusty vs Moff post, I can't help but say that I tend to see the plotholes earlier now. Which makes me sad :(

I agree with you on the use of the word "soapy" (which was PC's not mine - I remember him saying it or using the comparison in a DWC). I admit, I hate soaps, so I'd probably be one of the first to use it as a derogatory term! Phil Collinson is now the Exec producer on Coronation Street, which just celebrated it's 50th birthday and which is one of the two most popular soaps in the UK. I remember that when he left DW in S4, RTD said it was his dream job - so I'm certain he was being complimentary.

Good for you on the exercise bike!

[sue-denimme.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I was addressing PC's use of "soapy", not yours. Guess it wasn't clear, sorry. (Kind of funny where he ended up, after saying that. :-))

I was a huge fan of Star Trek: DS9 a while back, and "soapy" used to be one of the accusations flung about by people who thought Trek (and by extension all sci-fi) had to be all spaceships and monsters and explosions, mixed in with the occasional moral message. No room for character or emotion or romance, no sir, all that belongs only in soaps, chick flicks, and trashy novels with Fabio on the cover -- you know, stuff they imagine women like. So I got to be a little sensitized to that word. :-P (Conversely, women can't possibly be in it for the spaceships, etc... *I'm* not, but I know there must be some who are.)

[caz963.livejournal.com]

No, I know - that's okay :)

I remember from years ago when I worked in advertising that when it came to sci-fi the male/female split in terms of audience was about 80/20 or less, so as a female who'd always enjoyed sci-fi in film and tv, I was in a minority! I imagine that's changed a bit these days, and I'm sure there are many who bemoan the fact that the girlies are spoiling their fandom ;-)

At the end of the day for me, it's about stories. I didn't get into BSG, but I know a lot of people who did, and it sounded like much of that show was about politics and relationships... but with spaceships and special effects. If it's a good story, the setting is sometimes incidental. Conversely, a bad story can't be made better by throwing SFX at it.

[ooxc.livejournal.com]

I hadn't a TV in 2001, so I missed Bob and Rose - but it's Alan Davies, so I must watch out for repeats!

[caz963.livejournal.com]

Bob and Rose is a great show. I doubt it'll be repeated, but it's available on DVD (https://www.amazon.co.uk/Bob-Rose-DVD-Alan-Davies/dp/B0000634BU/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1297110353&sr=8-1) for under a fiver!

It's got Lesley Sharp and Penelope Wilton (as Bob's mum) too - more good reasons to watch.

[ooxc.livejournal.com]

Thank you - I'll look out for it - and then for a DVD player! They don't play well on my ancoent computer

[goldy-dollar.livejournal.com]

Aw, this was a lovely list. For all these reasons and more, RTD will always be one of my favourite (if not THE favourite) showrunners. He really had a way of telling character stories that spoke to me. I often felt while watching his Doctor Who that the only person who loved the characters more than me was RTD... and that's not something I often feel when I watch TV.

I've never seen Bob & Rose. Clearly I must rectify this!

[caz963.livejournal.com]

Bob & Rose is well worth watching. If you have trouble finding it, PM me.

There's only one other writer/producer that I'm fannish about, and that's Aaron Sorkin, another writer of fantastic, character driven drama.

I often felt while watching his Doctor Who that the only person who loved the characters more than me was RTD

Awww... But that's the thing. He cared and we KNEW he did.

[topaz-eyes.livejournal.com]

I haven't seen Casanova or Bob and Rose, but a big YES X 1000 to the rest of your list!

And can I add to your list? A lot of my favorites actually deal with the themes RTD espoused, hope those count. :-)

11. "Human Nature/Family of Blood." Paul Cornell wrote it, but Rusty approved it, and it's a tour de force all around, for David, Freema, Jessica, everyone involved. It's a stunning character drama, period, one of the best I've seen on any show. For me, HN/FoB defines Ten, both in what it says and what it does not say about him.

12. John Simm as the Master. He was a perfect foil for Ten, and through him we could see how close to the edge Ten really was. They were two sides of the same coin.

13. RTD's Doctor was fallible. We saw how his actions had real consequences, for him and for others, both short-term *and* long-term. I love this to pieces! Rusty was not afraid to question and criticize the Doctor's actions in-text. Companions, villains, one-time characters, they all called him on his decisions at some point. For me that's remarkable, because I never got that sense in the Classic Who episodes I've seen. (Not that I've seen many; I find it hard to get into it.)

14. I adored the "Lonely God" arc for Ten. Nine dealt with the acute post-War loss and grief. Ten had to deal with the chronic loss and grief. He had to re-define who he was, what "last of the Time Lords" meant, and where he fit in with the universe. It was a painful journey, too; Ten sometimes stumbled badly, and RTD didn't shy away from that either.

15. That the companions saved the day as much, if not more, than the Doctor. And that "saving the day" sometimes meant rescuing him from himself. I love that kind of adult complexity, as uncomfortable as it is to watch sometimes.

I'm sure I have others, but I'll stop now. :-)

[caz963.livejournal.com]

Oh, I don't mind at all - especially as they're all things with which I completely agree. I usually cite FoB/HN as my favourite nu-Who story overall for the reasons you say, but I decided to limit my episode-love to ones Rusty wrote.

I'm impressed by the way that Rusty's DW works on so many different levels. The kids could enjoy the heroics and the adults could appreciate the underlying complexities and the moral dilemmas as well.

Someday, my eldest will understand why I think Midnight is scarier than Blink.

ETA: Do seek out the other two shows I mentioned. I can't remember why I watched Casanova in the first place - I didn't really know who David or Rusty were, but I was hooked right away. And I hadn't expected to be, because I'd always seen Casanova as a bit of a bastard who used women. I'm not saying that the real Casanova wasn't like that - but the thing that stayed with me about RTD's fictional lover was that he was a man who really liked women - which I think is a rarer thing than one might think. It's well worth watching and I'm sure it must be readily available on DVD. PM me if you have trouble getting hold of it. And Bob and Rose, too - it's a great show with an unusual love story at the centre.

[green-maia.livejournal.com]

RTD's Doctor was fallible. We saw how his actions had real consequences, for him and for others, both short-term *and* long-term. I love this to pieces! Rusty was not afraid to question and criticize the Doctor's actions in-text. Companions, villains, one-time characters, they all called him on his decisions at some point.

Yes.


For me that's remarkable, because I never got that sense in the Classic Who episodes I've seen. (Not that I've seen many; I find it hard to get into it.)

That's why I find it hard to get into Classic Who - because it seems like the Doctor is supposed to be right all the time, and everyone is supposed to just accept that without question. I can't get into a show that has a central character who's supposed to be right all the time.


That the companions saved the day as much, if not more, than the Doctor. And that "saving the day" sometimes meant rescuing him from himself. I love that kind of adult complexity, as uncomfortable as it is to watch sometimes.

Yes.

[caz963.livejournal.com]

I loved DW as a kid, and I probably watch Classic Who now through that filter of nostalgia. I said somewhere around here (it might have been in my post about the Xmas special)that kids are - generally - more interested in the action side of things, watching the Doctor be heroic and clever and save everyone than they are in what's going on underneath. And that's natural - they're kids. And that seems to me to be what Moffat wants to get back to, whereas with the RTD era, the show worked on different levels. I'm not saying that Moff-Who lacks that entirely, but there certainly seems to have been a move away from the Doctor "in focus".

[solitary-summer.livejournal.com]

I wish I could say something intelligent, but it's been a long day and my brain has apparently decided to switch itself off, so I'll leave it at 'word'.

I think what I love most about RTD's writing is the lack of cynicism and ironic detachment; the fact that he isn't afraid of the big emotions and the big questions.

not the serial seducer of legend, but a man who genuinely liked women

*nods a lot* I never found the right words for it, but I know what you mean.

(Here's the link to the original post, btw: http://enterpriseofgeeks.blogspot.com/2011/01/ten-things-we-love-about-russell-t.html)

[caz963.livejournal.com]

Ah yes - thanks for the link. That's the one I saw.

he isn't afraid of the big emotions and the big questions.

Yes, absolutely. And I know that some people felt the emotion was too much, but I never did. I like to feel these things, even if sometimes, it's not especially pleasant.

I always thought that one of the things DW could do at its best was to look at important issues, even if it was just a snapshot - and hold them up to examination. Planet of the Ood does that very well, I think, and that's just one example from the new era.

ETA: Re Casanova - that's about the best way I can put what was, for me, the defining characteristic of the man as RTD presented him. He liked women for who they were rather than just what he could get from them. Of course, it helped that the women were more than ready to give him something back (!), but that was sort of the point - it was given readily and by way of a "return", if that makes sense. I could write a lot more about the way I see Casanova the character, which in itself shows what a big impression the writing and characterisaion made on me.

[solitary-summer.livejournal.com]

I like to feel these things, even if sometimes, it's not especially pleasant.

Me too.

Re Casanova... I was so hesitant to watch it, because I'm pretty much on the asexual side of things, and, well, it's Casanova, but I was surprised how much I enjoyed it. Despite the tragic ending there is just so much warmth in the story. My only problem was that I watched it only after TEoT and for a while I had a hard time mentally disentangling Ten and Casanova.

[green-maia.livejournal.com]

WORD.


Underneath that gregariousness was a massive guilt complex, an arrogance that had the potential to do huge damage unless curtailed (and which proved to be his undoing) and the ability to be a complete arsehole at times. But to balance all that, Ten had a huge capacity for love, compassion and empathy.

Yes.


Donna was the companion Ten needed above all others. She was the one who made him better, as he made her better. Theirs was far more like a relationship of equals than any of the Doctor/Companion relationships because she didn’t let him get away with anything. She wasn’t in love with him or awed by him (well, not to his face!) so she could see him clearly for what he was – and yet she loved him anyway.

Yes.


Midnight & The Waters of Mars

Those are my two favorite episodes, too. I've re-watched them more than any other episodes - and every time I re-watch them, I love them even more.


I never get tired of watching it. Incidentally, I’m also fascinated by the work of the sound team on it - the DWC for this episode is one that's really worth watching as it goes into detail about their work behind the scenes.

Yes!


That, right there is what it looks like when your heart(s) is (are) breaking.

Yes.


The Doctor descends into madness and I find it both terrfying and heartbreaking.

Yes.



Thank you for posting this!!

[caz963.livejournal.com]

Thanks for reading it! I actually watched WoM yesterday because I wanted to check something. I haven't watched it for a while, but it's impact hasn't lessened. If anything it's increased. I mean, I know what happens, I've seen it a few times... but it's still like being punched in the gut. Ten's face as he's operating Gadget to get it to the TARDIS, that rictus grin which was a complete travesty of his incredible smile ... it's painful and yet I couldn't look away. I never cease to be amazed at how much this show has affected and moved me. And while I'm sure some are relieved not to be put through the emotional wringer like that, I miss it.

[green-maia.livejournal.com]

it's impact hasn't lessened. If anything it's increased. I mean, I know what happens, I've seen it a few times... but it's still like being punched in the gut.

Yes.


Ten's face as he's operating Gadget to get it to the TARDIS, that rictus grin which was a complete travesty of his incredible smile ... it's painful and yet I couldn't look away.

Yes.


I never cease to be amazed at how much this show has affected and moved me.

Yes.


On another note: I'm glad you're on the mend! *Hugs*

[chloris67.livejournal.com]

Excellent post! I love everything you've picked! While there are other things to love as well, if I were to confine myself to 10 things, my list would look very close to yours. Though I do know that the Master would make an appearance. I do so love Simm as the Master playing the other side to Tennant's Doctor.

Also, I now have a craving for rhubarb and custard. *g* I've never put the two together but some day, when it's spring *sigh*, I'm going to have to try it.

[caz963.livejournal.com]

It's the "confining" that's always the problem, isn't it? I could have included the Master in the "old enemies" bit, I suppose, because as you and others have said, as played by Simm, he was the perfect antithesis to Ten.

I was never a great fan of rhubarb as a kid, but I really like it now. I'd go for rhubarb crumble with the custard though!

[beachy-geek.livejournal.com]

One of the things I love most about RTD's writing, which has been pointed out by others who write far more eloquently than I, is his ability to blend the light and the dark, and turn on a dime. In one scene he can make us laugh uproariously, and then break our hearts. That is what life is, in the real world. It's not all tragedy or smiles or love or hate. The facility of the actors is paramount, of course, to make the scenes and the emotions believeable, but the writing leads the way.

I loved 'Single Father' for the most part, although the ending irritated the heck out of me. But if it had had more light with the dark I would have enjoyed it much more and I think it would have rung more true to life. There is nothing funny about losing your partner, of course, I've been through it myself long ago. But there is laughter in a hospice, there are smiles and humor at a funeral, and Rusty captures the light and dark and gray brilliantly. The light makes the dark even darker, by contrast, and more frightening as well.

[caz963.livejournal.com]

Sorry I'm late with this reply!

What you've said about the blend of light and dark is absolutely right, I think. It's one of the things I love about another of my favourite writers, Aaron Sorkin - you can be laughing your head off one minute, and crying your eyes out the next, and it feels right.

[wendymr.livejournal.com]

Here from who_daily, and thank you for making my evening with this fantastic post! You've selected just about everything I love about RTD's Who here, including some very favourite episodes among those written by RTD, such as Midnight and WoM. I'm far, far more a fan of character-driven shows and episodes than plot-driven, and clever plots - unless they also have clever, engaging, likeable and interesting characters - bore me.

And, yes, S5 bores me :( And, just as you commented to someone else, I see the plot holes sooner now, too. I'm far more forgiving of those 'but what about...' moments during just about all of the RTD era, because I loved the characters and there was hardly a single episode when I didn't get at least one character moment I loved. Some of my flist-friends complain, for example, about farting Slitheen; all I can think of are those wonderful moments in the Cabinet Room, or the Doctor's exchange with Mickey at the end.

Companions and extended family I cared about; one-off characters I liked and remembered; and character arcs that made sense - that's what the RTD era gave me. Oh, and two Doctors who leaped head and shoulders above my childhood favourites, Three and Four (sounds like we were watching it at around the same sort of time). I miss RTD - and I miss the Doctor Who I loved so much for five years :(

[caz963.livejournal.com]

The more I think about it - and I suppose the more the "distance" between now and the RTD era grows - I'm more and more impressed by how much he packed in to episodes. Of course he didn't write them all (although reading between the lines, it seems he rewrote a substantial number) but his was the overall direction. Yes, that was muddled sometimes, and yes there were times where characterisation was inconsistent, but for the most part, we got an action-adventure show that appealed to kids but which also managed to address some quite serious themes. And the more I think, and the more I read what other people are saying, the more layers are revealed. Hopefully, when the immediate Rusty backlash has died down - maybe when Moffat moves on, fandom at large will be able to appreciate just how good RTD was again.

[papilio-luna.livejournal.com]

how could you possibly have left out X !!


Just came across this whilst putting together tennant_report and I've got one! How could you possibly have left out The Second Coming!!

Wonderful to see Bob & Rose on here, though! You never hear anyone talk about it, but it's just brilliant.

[caz963.livejournal.com]

You know - ashamed as I am to admit it, huge Rusty fangirl that I am - I've not seen TSC. It's been on my "must watch this" list for AGES, and in fact, after I wrote this post, I got hold of it and intend to watch it VERY SOON!

I lurrrrve Bob and Rose though. Alan Davies and Lesley Sharp are so damn cute together and throw in Jessica Hynes and Penelope Wilton and it's one big package of awesome!