(no subject)

[grimorie]

2020 is such a wild year. Sometimes I look at the calendar and think of everything that's happened and it's tiring.

--

Since I've been away from Doctor Whow for quite a bit, the all-encompassing negativity and toxicity was just... too much I kind of want to write a little more about the reveal about the timeless child.

I am still honestly baffled at the fandom reaction that thinks Timeless Child reveal makes the Doctor a god, a chosen one, or an immortal.

The Doctor's already an immortal, and not just in the story but because of the function of the show works, the Doctor will never die.

As for being a god and a chosen one... that's the one that baffles me the most. It doesn't change anything about the Doctor, the Doctor is still a renegade, and the Doctor still chose to run away. But for me, as a new Classic Who viewer, I feel like it helps me give context to the Doctor more, and actually Hits Different now.

The post here. Some snippets:

The kids that Baby Dr regenerate into in that one montage look more and more wary and nervous as time goes on, there is literally nothing about their story that looks like Super Special Powerful Hero

from the perspective of coming from a not-great household where gaslighting was normal and from coming from a background of, like, my people were colonized and then spread out across other colonies as cheap or free labor–still are to this day in some respects–I honestly am starting to find it unnerving the number of people interpreting this as “chosen one” and “special” when it’s far more explicit that this was child abuse (with the strong subtext of racism, imperialism, etc in the way Tecteun views the child and literally exploits them to build an empire).

There's also, IMO, a subtle thread of Empire and Imperialism in series 12 and engaging more of it with Gallifrey. Actually, it's very interesting how much the series engaged Gallifrey (save for the fantastic s9 episodes) than it did when it was around.

(opinion: i feel the cartmel plan made the Doctor more of a god than the reveal did. -- the doctor is not a god, but a child who was strip-mined for what they have and then gaslighted six ways to sunday. also tecteun is the other, thank you for coming to my Ted Talk)

Comments

[jesuswasbatman]

This is how I feel about it too.

And no, Tecteun is Rassilon.

[grimorie]

I guess we'll see about Tecteun! Especially since Rassilon is still alive, roaming around.

[lilacsigil]

Yeah, this was not a good thing! This was a terrified child used as an experiment. The Master was jealous of the Doctor being "special" but the Master is not a rational or thoughtful source on things to do with the Doctor.

[grimorie]

Yeah! The Master is not rational when it comes to the Doctor. He seems to conflate it with his own issues but also feel angry for the Doctor, hence destroying Gallifrey. IMO he needs therapy!

[fannishnonsense]

Yes, all of this! I feel like people are responding to it as if it was the Cartmel Master Plan, but the Chibnall version really does feel like a complete subversion of that idea to me. The Doctor was a victim, not a Super Being!

Also, I've been frustrated by how many people think this reveal invalidates the rest of the show. All that stuff still happened! The Doctor still made those choices, even if it turns out they had made them before and forgotten about them! Heck, even the stuff about the Doctor's mother being human can still be canon; she's just their adoptive parent instead of their biological one. Still their mother, and I'll fight anyone who says otherwise. /cranky

[wheatear]

The Doctor was a victim, not a Super Being!

Just to pick up on this: is there a reason they can't be both?

The Doctor being a victim in no way negates them also being special. The Doctor is a victim and a Super Being. The fact that they're a Super Being is why they end up being exploited in the first place; that wouldn't have happened if they weren't special in a way that was useful to the Gallifreyans.

[grimorie]

Also, I've been frustrated by how many people think this reveal invalidates the rest of the show. All that stuff still happened! The Doctor still made those choices, even if it turns out they had made them before and forgotten about them!

Right?? How does it, in anyway invalidate the rest of the show? It actually adds to the lore without disrupting that came before.

And I agree, so what if the Doctor is adopted by their Human mother, that doesn't make her any less than their mother. Actually, I'm going to make this part of my headcanon!

[wheatear]

As someone who did not like the Timeless Child reveal, this is what I thought about it. The Doctor isn't a Chosen One but the narrative does fall into what I would call a "special protagonist" trope which includes Chosen Ones and similar i.e. there's some kind of external factor regarding the character's background that makes them different or special. In this case the Doctor turns out to be extraordinary and different even among the Time Lords.