caz963: (Donna UW)
[personal profile] caz963
I've tried to hide spoilers in this. I'm not saying anything that's not in the public domain, but just in case...

Okay. As a way of trying to stop myself from thinking too hard about what might or might not happen in next week's DW, and about what might be this (highlight to read) thing that will make us look at the series' mythology differently (according to the current issue of DWM) I've decided to post about something that's been bothering me increasingly over the past few weeks.



If you love Amy, you might want to stop reading this right now. Please bear in mind that I'm expressing AN OPINION - which doesn't happen to be favourable towards her; but I'm always happy to hear opinions that differ from mine when expressed politely :-)



I know it's a contentious issue, and I'm sure there's an explanation - but for some reason, I'm really unhappy about the pregnancy plotline.

I've been trying to work out just why it bothers me so much, and I really can't quite put my finger on it, so if any of you have any ideas/comments/similar concerns, I'd be really glad to hear them as it might help me to reach a conclusion that makes sense rather than just being a "because I don't like it" answer.

What I've come up so far is this.

1. I don't think pregnancy has ever been touched on in DW before in this way (i.e, one of the main characters being/not being preggers). Not that "it's never been done" is a reason NOT to do something, but I'm just not comfortable with pregnancy being made, well - A Plot Point. And then, I'm not comfortable with it being made into A Plot Point in a show of this nature. I hesitate to get into the "it's a kid's snow / it's a family show" argument, but it's undeniable that a large proportion of the audience is made up of younger viewers and IMO, it's just not the sort of storyline in which kids are likely to be all that interested.

2. Chatting to a friend earlier, she said "I don't think Amy even loves Rory, so why should I care if she's pregnant?"
For me, that's part of it, but it's also yet another instance of Amy being used as a means to further the plot rather than being made into a fully rounded character. I know we're only three episodes into s6, but I'd hoped I'd be able to warm to her more this series as she's now "back on track" - she's not the girl whose life doesn't make sense any more; she has a family, she has Rory (although God knows why - she treats him like shite) and I thought that now that mystery has been cleared up, she'd be easier to like.

Sadly, that hasn't happened yet. At best, she's not annoying me as much so far, but I suspect that's just becasue having a Team of Three instead of Two means she gets a bit less screen time

3. This show isn't called Amy Pond. Once again, we're being hammered over the head with how SPESHUL Amy is while still being given no real reason as to why we should think so. Or rather, why we should think she's MOAR speshul than any of the Doctor's other companions. Moffat has already said (highlight)that something will happen which will change Amy and the Doctor's relationship forever ... which would mean a lot more if I actually gave a damn about her. As with the last series, I think he's so preoccupied with making her fit with the demands of the plot that he's forgotten to give her a character. And he's doing the same thing again with the "is she or isn't she?" thing - placing her somehow at the centre of things for no (as yet) discernible reason. Donna Noble may have been referred to as the most important woman in the history of creation, but that came pretty late on in the series and even Donna herself thought it was bollocks. And while one could argue that with both Amy and Donna, their "special-ness" was becuase they happened to be in the right place at the right time, I think it's also true to say that Donna showed her awesome pretty early on, knowing when to push and when to let something go; "don't you hurt him"; "you can stop now" - and so on.

Whereas with Amy - EVERYTHING about her (supposed) "special-ness" is to do with her being in the right place at the right time. She was "odd" and knew so many things about the Doctor that she really shouldn't have - her life didn't make sense because the universe had been bleeding into her head through the cracks. And now... it seems there's another Plot revolving around where she is and the company she keeps.

I know there are people out there who love her and think she's awesome, but I still can't see it. I keep hoping...

4. I'm not mushy when it comes to babies or kids, but I do think that being pregnant is an incredible thing and as I've said above, I'm just not comfortable with it being made into A Plot Device. I know that some shows do it all the time - but this isn't Eastenders. I've seen all the theories about alternate time lines etc. and they're interesting and may turn out to be correct but at the end of the day, it all boils down to one thing.

If Amy is pregnant (and either knows on some level that she is, or suspects she is) then she's being a tad irresponsible running around the universe, fighting pirates and facing Certain Death on a regular basis.

And okay, so she might NOT be pregnant. But the point is that she MIGHT be - and as anyone who has been trying to conceive will tell you, even at the point where you don't know either way, you're beginning to exercise caution and do everything you can to minimise risks to that (possible) life.

And also - what the hell is the Doctor doing? This is a man who values life in all its forms to the extent that he would - and has, frequently - put himself in harm's way to protect even ONE life. Whatever Amy knows or suspects or doesn't know - HE KNOWS. He knows she might be expecting a child and yet makes no attempt to ... maybe not dissuade her or persuade her to go home - at the very least, suggest she takes a pregnancy test!

So there you have it. Anyone else out there got any similar concerns?

Date: 2011-05-10 09:17 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] caz963.livejournal.com
I liked pod!Rose much better than real!Rose *g*

But as we know, Rusty never touched Moff's scripts. I don't know if this was because he (RTD) was so much of a Moff fanboy that he thought that his writings should remain unsullied until put into production, or it if was because there was something in Moff's contract that precluded any polishing or rewriting,

Date: 2011-05-10 09:33 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com
Pod!Rose was intelligent and mature and forgiving and not prone to jealous rages. She even cried less! But sadly that wasn't what Rose was usually like, so it's OOC for her :( I kind of got the sense that Moffat didn't care that much about RTD's companions, such that he didn't always bother with stuff like Martha's love for the Doctor or Donna's supposedly not fancying Ten. I should have a think and work out who else was like that. I mean Chibnall I think it's just lack of skill rather than lack of interest, y'know?

Did he really never touch them? I thought that was just S1, when he was saying that Moff must be good because he couldn't find anything to change in his episodes? I don't think Rusty (or anyone) would keep getting a writer back who they weren't allowed to edit.

Date: 2011-05-10 09:45 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] caz963.livejournal.com
I'm pretty sure it was Moff scripts in general. I'm sure I've come across it in interviews or in The Writer's Tale - probably both.

that he didn't always bother with stuff like .... Donna's supposedly not fancying Ten.

Heh. She might not have fancied him, but she probably wouldn't have kicked him out of bed :-)

Unless it was to make breakfast.

Date: 2011-05-10 09:47 pm (UTC)
kilodalton: (Default)
From: [personal profile] kilodalton
I believe that RTD said that the (unspoken?) policy was to give free reign to writers who had been head writers of their own shows before.

Date: 2011-05-10 09:54 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com
Anyone know if Paul Cornell had done his own series by then? I feel like he had, but I'm not an expert on such things. Gatiss?

Date: 2011-05-10 10:12 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] caz963.livejournal.com
Mark Gariss had written and/or co-written things like the League of Gentlemen by then, hadn't he? Not sure about Cornell.

Date: 2011-05-10 10:15 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com
Gatiss' ones tend to stick out a bit somehow, so maybe he doesn't get edited as much as other people?

Date: 2011-05-10 10:49 pm (UTC)
kilodalton: (Default)
From: [personal profile] kilodalton
Anyone know if Paul Cornell had done his own series by then? I feel like he had, but I'm not an expert on such things. Gatiss?

I just IMDB'd Cornell and it doesn't look like it, other than a couple of kids' shows where it's hard to tell if he was head writer or not. Gatiss had League of Gentlemen which was 2004.

Date: 2011-05-10 09:54 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com
After I saw that cafe scene from EoT I have become convinced that Ten was in love with Donna. And during S4 I did wonder occasionally if they were shagging between episodes.

Date: 2011-05-10 10:00 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] caz963.livejournal.com
*points to icon*

Ten and Donna could shag without it getting angsty because they didnt' fancy each other and so they could still be friends afterwards :-)

Date: 2011-05-10 10:02 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com
I think he was maybe in a bit of unrequited love, what with how broken he was when she left and how he swore off the human womens for over a year. He loves the human womens!

Date: 2011-05-10 10:10 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] caz963.livejournal.com
*nods* And in all seriousness, I'm convinced DT was playing Ten as a bit smitten.

He liked playing with Earth Girls :-)

Date: 2011-05-10 10:12 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com

I'm surprised I've not seen fic about Amy reminding him of Donna and making him sad.

Date: 2011-05-10 10:16 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] caz963.livejournal.com
Well, write some!

Actually, I'm sure there must be some, but it's probably horrible and best avoided.

Date: 2011-05-10 10:16 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com
it's not really the sort of thing I'd write, I get kind of squicked by "the Doctor doesn't really see this woman and is thinkign of a different one."

Date: 2011-05-10 09:48 pm (UTC)
kilodalton: (Default)
From: [personal profile] kilodalton
I kind of got the sense that Moffat didn't care that much about RTD's companions, such that he didn't always bother with stuff like Martha's love for the Doctor

THIS!!!! Lol in Blink she is just plain rude to him - interrupting, making comments over his shouldler about having to support him, etc. Pod!Martha, lol.

Date: 2011-05-10 09:53 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com
I wonder if that was a not-very-successful attempt to make her reassert herself? But anyway it's like with "Look what the cat dragged in, the Oncoming Storm!" -- Moff seems to like companions being a bit rude to the Doctor. Dunno why that is, but I admit it makes me lols.

Date: 2011-05-10 09:58 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] caz963.livejournal.com
Thing is - when Donna was giving Ten a hard time, it worked, I suppose because it wasn't OOC.

Date: 2011-05-10 10:00 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com
Yeah, the bits of her Moff eps I thought were odd were the bits where she seemed to fancy him. Not that I object to such a thing, obvs.

PS: Amy is clearly proof of the Doctor's new-found lust for gingers, yes/no?

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