^ probably not, but its still fun to speculate.
50th Is "The Day Of The Doctor" (And Is 75 Minutes)
- Thread starter StCoop
- Start date
I'm not fixated on the actors -- except to the extent that I keep going, "John Hurt is the Doctor!" -- because what really matters to me is the story.
If it's a shitty story, McGann and McCoy aren't going to elevate it any more than Hurt will. "The Next Doctor" had a fantastic cast, but the story was terrible, and if a better cast were possible that wouldn't have made "The Next Doctor" any better.
I'm really starting to think that, even if "The Day of the Doctor" is the greatest Doctor Who story ever, it won't be appreciated by fandom for years to come. The gap between expectations (like Green Lantern's desire for what amounts to a filmed convention panel) and the reality are so far apart that it will take reappreciations of the story, removed in time from broadcast, for "The Day of the Doctor" to be truly understood and embraced. I'm not sure what that says about Moffat, Doctor Who, and fandom itself. Nothing good, probably.
Just based on what is known now, my opinion that revealing John Hurt as a mysterious forgotten Doctor made for a better cliffhanger setup for Day of the Doctor than having Paul McGann or Peter Davison or whoever would have. An unknown former Doctor, and he's John Hurt pretty much hooks the audience and makes them interested in the story which is going to be told to explain this. One of the actual former Doctors stirs up fan excitement, and I must confess I would likely experience a fangasm had the scene actually featured McGann, McCoy, or whoever. But once the nostalgia clears, what else is there to look forward to for the six months he have to wait?
Don't get me wrong, I am a bit disappointed Tennant's the only former Doctor returning, and no classic era Doctors. And I'm someone who considers Tennant to be "my Doctor." But John Hurt's Doctor might very well be a suitable substitute, and not the slap in the face some are already making it out to be.
Don't get me wrong, I am a bit disappointed Tennant's the only former Doctor returning, and no classic era Doctors. And I'm someone who considers Tennant to be "my Doctor." But John Hurt's Doctor might very well be a suitable substitute, and not the slap in the face some are already making it out to be.
^ It all depends on the quality of the story. Revealing Hurt could be great or not so great. Depends on the story. Same as with including a classic Doctor.
All things being equal, I'd prefer a story with a classic Doctor.
But, here's hoping that it's great with Hurt!
All things being equal, I'd prefer a story with a classic Doctor.
But, here's hoping that it's great with Hurt!
Even if Day of the Doctor turns out to be crap, I'll still think the cliffhanger we got in The Name of the Doctor is better than it would have been had it included a classic Doctor.
But even the Eighth Doctor has his share of loyal fans who might find cause to be offended if their Doctor were to be depicted as a dark incarnation who has been stripped of his knighthood (identification as the Doctor).
Some segment of fandom will always feel offended no matter what and will be very vocal about it, which is why ultimately the opinion of fandom is just noise and no showrunner should ever pay any attention to it.
I wouldn't expect that at all as Clara saw McGann's Doctor. Hurt's character isn't going to be the 8th, I wouldn't think.
Obviously not. I was talking in a hypothetical situation where they used McGann instead of Hurt.
I totally get what you're saying that it was a great cliffhanger. It was the perfect cliffhanger given where Moffat wanted to go. But, I still think that if he had a plan for a classic Doctor, he could've come up with a completely different, but equally as good cliff hanger.
But, what we got was excellent for sure. It definitely got most people wondering what was going to happen next which is the point of a cliffhanger!
Mr Awe
Believe me, fans will be pissed even in this situation, if the Hurt Doctor turns out to be the Doctor who ended the Daleks and the Time Lords (temptedly, even this one), becaause it would make the Doctor not REALLY responsible for that horrible act, since his "bad self" did it. Plus, it would take away from the Ninth Doctor.
Now, I'm not predisposed to the Hurt Doctor, or the fact that the anniversary special can be special. Far from it. I still hope its gonna be a rollicking good story with lots of fun interaction between Smith and Tennant and a performance worthy of John Hurt.
But even as a recent, relatively new fan, I can't help but feel dissapointed that at least one old Doctor wasn't brought back - and one that, realistically, wasn't technically an Old Who Doctor, but more like The One Between Old And Nu Who Doctor.
PS: I would have LOVED it if McGann had turned out to be a Dark Doctor, one that the future versions discarded. And I say that as a fan of his Big Finish audios.
Well even if the Hurt Doctor did it he was still the Doctor, he'll still remember it, just as he no doubt remembers anything suspect a past incarnation did, and Nine's sense of guilt suggests it isn't like he partitioned off the guilt over the Hurt Doctor's actions, even if he somehow partitioned off the Hurt Doctor.
No offense, but fan assumptions about the Time War -- and that's all that the belief that the eighth Doctor ended the Time War is, since even RTD didn't hold that belief -- shouldn't stand in the way of the story Moffat wants to tell.
No offense taken. I personally never thought the Eighth ended it, though I did think he participated in it. I did think, though, that the Ninth ended it, in a decision that haunted the rest of his life.
We remember, of course, that according to RTD, the Time War was partially shown on Old Who, too. Genesis and Remembrance of the Daleks are positioned as such tales, after all.
Who is to say the Hurt Doctor ended the Time War? Maybe he's the one who started it in order to finally end the ongoing conflict between the Daleks and the Time Lords. The Ninth ended what that one started, albeit in a way he never dreamt he would have to. Just an idea, however daft.
Sounds good. But in any case, I think we can all agree that the most important thing is for the story of the 50th to be good. Cause I think only if it ISN'T, will the bitching will come about from all fronts.
I'm pretty sure the bitching will come whether it's good or not.
Yea, I'm pretty sure there's at least a couple folks on this board that haven't had a good thing to say about nuWho, since RTD brought it back (Or at least since Moffat took over). Though, I do remember at least one episode that was pretty universally panned here, at least got a 3 out of 10 from one of those folks, compared to the usual 1 or less out of 10 they usually give.
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