Spoilers Russell T. Davies Returns to Doctor Who as New Showrunner

[Sketcher]

This argument is what's really weird.

 

[Nerys Myk]

Fourteen not knowing why they Regenerated with Ten's face makes the result unexpected/unexplained; it doesn't make it out of the ordinary (which is what "weird", in this context, implies).

And Bigeneration was clearly something that had been considered but dismissed as mythological by the Time Lords solely and simply because it hadn't happened, but, again, that doesn't make it out of the ordinary.

It's out of the ordinary for the viewer, who has seen regenerations multiple times. How this is not obvious to you is mind boggling.

Weird "of strange or extraordinary character" Merriam-Webster
Weird "very strange and unusual, unexpected, or not natural" Cambridge
Weird "strikingly odd or unusual" Vocabulary.com

 

[DigificWriter]

It's out of the ordinary for the viewer, who has seen regenerations multiple times.

I don't agree with this assessment.

We're going around in circles here, though, so let's agree to disagree and move on.

 

[Captaindemotion]

“When I use a word,” Humpty Dumpty said in rather a scornful tone, “it means just what I choose it to mean—neither more nor less.”

 

[Nerys Myk]

I don't agree with this assessment.

How can you disagree with a different viewer's experience?

 

[matthunter]

Something isn't out of the ordinary simply because it hasn't happened or because someone wasn't aware of it having happened.

The latter, yes. The former? We would define extinction-level asteroid impacts as out of the ordinary. Hell, we define lightning striking twice as extraordinary.

Unless you are literally operating on a galactic lifespan (admittedly, this might explain the general joylessness) , you're being contrary for the sake of it.

Which is even MORE fucking ancient than a galactic lifespan.

 

[VDCNI]

After all this time with this posters very specific way of looking at things I don't know why people bother having these circular arguments.

 

[BillJ]

Only thing I see on the horizon for Billie Piper from IMDB is as an audio narrator for Doctor Who: Ninth Doctor Adventures.

Billie Piper | Actress, Producer, Writer

Known for: Secret Diary of a Call Girl, Doctor Who, I Hate Suzie

www.imdb.com

 

[Richard S. Ta]

No.

I'm disputing the point that the past two Regenerations were "weird".

Until/unless we're explicitly told otherwise through the in-universe narrative, the simplest and most obvious conclusion to draw from what happened at the end of The Reality War - credits and coy comments from RTD and Billie Piper herself notwithstanding - is that she (Billie) is playing the Sixteenth Doctor.

This is what many news entities - and the Fandom TARDIS Wiki - have done, and it is what I am personally doing.

Yes.

See, we can both play that.

Both recent regenerations were commented on as not being business as usual, within the narrative itself by the Doctor.

Next canard?

 

[The Nth Doctor]

Leave it to the internet to find someone who wants to argue the finer points of "weird."

Just let weird be weird, man! Ain't that hard!

 

[Steve Roby]

Rose: The Hunt For The Doctor! A journey through time and space.

Or, since Rose has to cross dimensions...

Not really.

Bigeneration isn't "weird"; it's " new".

And the concept of a new incarnation of The Doctor having an old face from their past was set up by Moffat in The Day of the Doctor; RTD just took the idea and expanded on it.

The concept of a new incarnation of a Time Lord having an old face from their past was set up by Terry Nation, Douglas Adams, and/or Graham Williams in Destiny of the Daleks, when Romana regenerates for reasons unknown and decides to take the appearance of Princess Astra from The Armageddon Factor.

 

[Samurai8472]

After all this time with this posters very specific way of looking at things I don't know why people bother having these circular arguments.

It just goes round and round doesn't it? We were here with "Tennant's not coming back. Source?" and now we're here with "Billie's the doctor"

 

[Sketcher]

I suppose when you have things like the Shalka Doctor being thrown into the mix now, Billie being A Doctor, but not necessarily the 16th Doctor is plausible. Maybe.

 

[matthunter]

Also the "maybe the new Doctor is a ploy by The Master, Toymaker, insert villain of the week here" schtick that rather sadly came into full force once the new Doctor stopped being 1) white or 2) female... I would love it if RTD chose to keep the "..as the Doctor" bit out of the credits just to fuel those sorts, especially in a story literally built on one man's delusions about reality and who "should" exist or be seen...

 

[Nerys Myk]

Yes.

See, we can both play that.

Both recent regenerations were commented on as not being business as usual, within the narrative itself by the Doctor.

Next canard?

 

[DigificWriter]

It just goes round and round doesn't it? We were here with "Tennant's not coming back. Source?" and now we're here with "Billie's the doctor"

There's a very significant and distinct difference between being in adamant denial mode - driven by an immense personal love for and attachment to Jodie Whittaker's Thirteenth Doctor - and applying Occam's Razor and accepting as fact what is clearly the most obvious conclusion that can be drawn based on what was shown.

 

[The Nth Doctor]

I suppose when you have things like the Shalka Doctor being thrown into the mix now, Billie being A Doctor, but not necessarily the 16th Doctor is plausible. Maybe.

Speaking of which...

I know it's probably not ever going to happen, but I keep hoping we'll get a special or two with Richard E. Grant fully returning as The Shalka Doctor. Hopefully with Sophie Okonedo and Derek Jacobi. A guy can dream.

 

[Steve Roby]

I wouldn't even mind if we just got a Big Finish audio series. Pretty much all we have is Scream of the Shalka, that BBC website short story The Feast of the Stone, and the Nine Lives fanthology.

 

[Ar-Pharazon]

My question is, didn't Ncuti sign on for 3 series'? Isn't that the standard deal these days?

Could Billie be the Doctor for the special(s) and then Ncuti comes back?

 

[matthunter]

My question is, didn't Ncuti sign on for 3 series'? Isn't that the standard deal these days?

It WAS, but who knows with the Disney deal? If they only signed up for X episodes, some of which were the Tennant specials, plus the Xmas ones, plus the UNIT spinoff, Ncuti may have only been contracted for some of that.

Anyone ruling out a Doctor appearance in TWBTLATS (possibly just a few seconds of Billie!Doc appearing - to Kate's massive confusion - via the space-time telegraph to tell Kate she'd love to help but the Daleks are up to stuff again)? As with Torchwood, the odd Doctor reference/sighting (TARDIS noise in the final ep of S1) to keep the interest alive?