It Wasn’t Perfect But It Was Powerful: Doctor Who Series 9

Emily Rose

screen-capture-1

This series wasn’t perfect, this show isn’t perfect, just like – and most importantly – the Doctor isn’t the perfect person he often gets made out to be. I don’t know if this is the best season of the modern Who era or not. I don’t know if this show still has the same sensibilities it had before it hit bottom, or if it’s still building itself back up again. Here is what I know:

  1. Peter Capaldi is perfect. 
  2. I cried during almost every single episode this season. 
  3. I didn’t care about Clara, because I could never understand why the Doctor did. I don’t think the show ever told me. But tonight, during Clara’s (final) goodbye, I didn’t want her to leave.

I am very lucky to have Doctor Who in my life. Sometimes sticking around has been hard, but I still believe it’s worth it. The Doctor’s story is always going to be worth it, no matter how dismal, or tangled, or sad it gets. Tonight I saw Doctor Who brought to a place that was never possible before. It was rough getting here, but I’m so glad to be able to see it through.

Twelfth Doctor Costume Reveal

Emily Rose

DOCTOR WHO

Peter Capaldi’s ‘Twelfth Doctor’ costume was revealed earlier today, serving as an effective distraction from the fact there won’t be any actual episodes for seven or eight months. Possibly the only thing signature to this incarnation is the bright jacket lining – a look that Capaldi has sported before:

pcap in pink

It may be coincidental, but each new actor has had at least some degree of input on their new suit. Legend says David Tennant was inspired to put on the converse after seeing Jamie Oliver on Michael Parkinson’s talk show.

jaime in pink
It took some extreme Google ingenuity, but I tracked down a photo of the historical event.

The release of this one photo comes with a swarm of questions beyond how much input Peter Capaldi had, such as – How many manips and cosplays can a fandom make out of one promo shot? How can so much speculation get squeezed out of one announcement? Of course, with eight (unnecessary) months to go, this one photo is going to have to last.

The thing is, everyone loved Matt Smith, and David Tennant, and Christopher Eccleston, and Paul McGann before him, but with this new Doctor comes new hope that Doctor Who will be good again. It’s been easy to blame one certain showrunner for the mess that’s come out of recent series, but no one completely knows why everything’s gone wrong. Still, there’s a lot of excitement around a rumor that Capaldi’s already been arguing with Moffat over scripts. (He’s an Oscar winning writer!) Unlike last regeneration, this Doctor change doesn’t mean a regime change, but there were two quotes included in this press release:

“He’s woven the future from the cloth of the past. Simple, stark, and back to basics. No frills, no scarf, no messing, just 100 per cent Rebel Time Lord.” –Peter Capaldi

 

“New Doctor, new era, and of course new clothes. Monsters of the universe, the vacation is over – Capaldi is suited and booted and coming to get you!” –Steven Moffat

Out of the two, Capaldi’s version sounds like the Doctor Who I want to watch.