The (Regenerated) Doctor Who Thread: Reverse the Polarity!

[Cannot think of a name]

So where do you the series is going after this?

If you own a production house in the UK, you can pitch your own direction.

As of this week, the BBC has officially put the show out to tender and detailed exactly what they are looking for to herald in the show’s blank-slate future.

First, the BBC has confirmed it plans to release a new series in 2028/2029. Although this is a minimum of two years away, this is a far cry sooner than some were speculating, including some insiders who believed the sci-fi show could be off air for years.

As for what they are looking for, it seems as though they are vying for a 2005 reboot-style launch.

As the BBC puts it, companies should put forward ‘a multi-episodic series (including specials) for transmission in 2028/29, with an option to extend the contract at BBC’s discretion to produce a second series.’

Further, the broadcaster explained: ‘The series should feel contemporary, and creatively ambitious, whilst remaining true to the values and characteristics that have made Doctor Who a beloved series across generations…’

They are expecting the bare bones of the show to remain the same, with our titular Time Lord at the wheel of the TARDIS alongside a companion with a rich life of their own to join them on adventures.

With the universe as their oyster, stories should ‘balance high-concept science fiction with strong emotional narratives’ and stay a family show at the heart of it with ‘distinctly British storytelling’.

As for the nitty-gritty format of the revival, it adds: ‘We are flexible in the way the series is structured i.e. serialised or ‘story-of-the-week’ and the number of episodes which make up the series…’

What’s more, they are also not wedded to a ‘strict showrunner model’, a staple of the reboot with RTD, Steven Moffat and Chris Chibnall all taking up the mantle at one point or another.

The tender document concluded: ‘Doctor Who is a show that has sparked conversation, taken risks and inspired audiences for decades, and we are looking for this series to continue that tradition.

So, essentially, if the vision is strong enough, the playing field seems pretty wide open as long as pitchers remain true to the show’s DNA.

A final decision is set to be made in spring 2027.
...
Of course, while the future remains up in the air, there’s also a big question mark over whether the cliffhanger of Ncuti’s Doctor regenerating into Billie Piper will ever be resolved, with no one any the wiser.

[Vassenor]

So where do you the series is going after this?

If you own a production house in the UK, you can pitch your own direction.

As of this week, the BBC has officially put the show out to tender and detailed exactly what they are looking for to herald in the show’s blank-slate future.

First, the BBC has confirmed it plans to release a new series in 2028/2029. Although this is a minimum of two years away, this is a far cry sooner than some were speculating, including some insiders who believed the sci-fi show could be off air for years.

As for what they are looking for, it seems as though they are vying for a 2005 reboot-style launch.

As the BBC puts it, companies should put forward ‘a multi-episodic series (including specials) for transmission in 2028/29, with an option to extend the contract at BBC’s discretion to produce a second series.’

Further, the broadcaster explained: ‘The series should feel contemporary, and creatively ambitious, whilst remaining true to the values and characteristics that have made Doctor Who a beloved series across generations…’

They are expecting the bare bones of the show to remain the same, with our titular Time Lord at the wheel of the TARDIS alongside a companion with a rich life of their own to join them on adventures.

With the universe as their oyster, stories should ‘balance high-concept science fiction with strong emotional narratives’ and stay a family show at the heart of it with ‘distinctly British storytelling’.

As for the nitty-gritty format of the revival, it adds: ‘We are flexible in the way the series is structured i.e. serialised or ‘story-of-the-week’ and the number of episodes which make up the series…’

What’s more, they are also not wedded to a ‘strict showrunner model’, a staple of the reboot with RTD, Steven Moffat and Chris Chibnall all taking up the mantle at one point or another.

The tender document concluded: ‘Doctor Who is a show that has sparked conversation, taken risks and inspired audiences for decades, and we are looking for this series to continue that tradition.

So, essentially, if the vision is strong enough, the playing field seems pretty wide open as long as pitchers remain true to the show’s DNA.

A final decision is set to be made in spring 2027.
...
Of course, while the future remains up in the air, there’s also a big question mark over whether the cliffhanger of Ncuti’s Doctor regenerating into Billie Piper will ever be resolved, with no one any the wiser.

Oh that lack of a requirement to rigidly adhere to the existing canon is going to go down like a house on fire with the angry nerds who critique every time the show doesn't rigidly match a throwaway line in some random serial as though the show has never contradicted itself before.

[Platypus Bureaucracy]

If you own a production house in the UK, you can pitch your own direction.

Oh that lack of a requirement to rigidly adhere to the existing canon is going to go down like a house on fire with the angry nerds who critique every time the show doesn't rigidly match a throwaway line in some random serial as though the show has never contradicted itself before.

I think many, many such nerds will actually be quite happy to have anything that allows the whole Timeless Child thing and the redestruction of Gallifrey to be quietly forgotten.

[The Boggest Place on Earth]

Oh that lack of a requirement to rigidly adhere to the existing canon is going to go down like a house on fire with the angry nerds who critique every time the show doesn't rigidly match a throwaway line in some random serial as though the show has never contradicted itself before.

I think many, many such nerds will actually be quite happy to have anything that allows the whole Timeless Child thing and the redestruction of Gallifrey to be quietly forgotten.

they could realistically bullshit their way into saying that the doctor 'changing the universe' would have retconned allat

[Ameriganastan]

Yeah, I too would not be mad if whoever takes over just does away with the Timeless Child thing.

[The Boggest Place on Earth]

Yeah, I too would not be mad if whoever takes over just does away with the Timeless Child thing.

i knew it was a thing, but i didn't really know what the timeless child was
skimming it over

what the hell is this

[The Two Jerseys]

Yeah, I too would not be mad if whoever takes over just does away with the Timeless Child thing.

"None if it is true, the Master just made it up to fuck with the Doctor's head"

Literally took me longer to read the episode synopsis than to come up with a plausible way to retcon it.

[Ameriganastan]

Yeah, I too would not be mad if whoever takes over just does away with the Timeless Child thing.

i knew it was a thing, but i didn't really know what the timeless child was
skimming it over

what the hell is this

The result of no one in the writing room telling that fucknut Chibnall 'No'.

[Cannot think of a name]

Yeah, I too would not be mad if whoever takes over just does away with the Timeless Child thing.

i knew it was a thing, but i didn't really know what the timeless child was
skimming it over

what the hell is this

Power creep. The whole thing starts off as a conceit that there are these aliens that have built ships that can travel in time and space called Time Lords.

But we just primarily see just this guy, so this guy is a rogue Time Lord who intervenes and interacts with people...mostly from the mid 20th to early 21st century Britain. Oh, and the lead actor doesn't want to do it any more so they can, like...'regenerate' into a new person with a new personality but the same history. And, like, all Time Lords can do that, but only 12 times so it still feels like there's stakes...I mean, we're not gonna go through 12 Doctors, no show lasts that long.

The show lasted that long.

So we'll come up with this contrivance where the Doctor gets extra lives.

But wait, where did the Time Lords get the ability to regenerate in the first place? I know! It's the Doctor! The Doctor is the first one, not specifically a Galifrain but who the Galifrains took regenerations from! A ha! Now we don't have to come up with contrivances to give the Doctor infinite regenerations, because the Doctor is the source of regenerations. Now the Doctor isn't just someone who was curious and thought that the other Time Lords were too rigid and dispassionate given their unlimited access to time and space, but the origin of their near immortality. The Doctor just, like...forgot, you know?

Honestly though, it's no more or less silly than any other thing they layered on top of a conceit to embed history lessons into a kids show that just got way, way out of hand. Once the murderous salt and pepper shakers showed up, everything was of to the races.

[Vassenor]

i knew it was a thing, but i didn't really know what the timeless child was
skimming it over

what the hell is this

Power creep. The whole thing starts off as a conceit that there are these aliens that have built ships that can travel in time and space called Time Lords.

But we just primarily see just this guy, so this guy is a rogue Time Lord who intervenes and interacts with people...mostly from the mid 20th to early 21st century Britain. Oh, and the lead actor doesn't want to do it any more so they can, like...'regenerate' into a new person with a new personality but the same history. And, like, all Time Lords can do that, but only 12 times so it still feels like there's stakes...I mean, we're not gonna go through 12 Doctors, no show lasts that long.

The show lasted that long.

So we'll come up with this contrivance where the Doctor gets extra lives.

But wait, where did the Time Lords get the ability to regenerate in the first place? I know! It's the Doctor! The Doctor is the first one, not specifically a Galifrain but who the Galifrains took regenerations from! A ha! Now we don't have to come up with contrivances to give the Doctor infinite regenerations, because the Doctor is the source of regenerations. Now the Doctor isn't just someone who was curious and thought that the other Time Lords were too rigid and dispassionate given their unlimited access to time and space, but the origin of their near immortality. The Doctor just, like...forgot, you know?

Honestly though, it's no more or less silly than any other thing they layered on top of a conceit to embed history lessons into a kids show that just got way, way out of hand. Once the murderous salt and pepper shakers showed up, everything was of to the races.

But the problem is it's a change to the lore of a show that's notorious for playing fast and loose with its own continuity.

[Cannot think of a name]

Power creep. The whole thing starts off as a conceit that there are these aliens that have built ships that can travel in time and space called Time Lords.

But we just primarily see just this guy, so this guy is a rogue Time Lord who intervenes and interacts with people...mostly from the mid 20th to early 21st century Britain. Oh, and the lead actor doesn't want to do it any more so they can, like...'regenerate' into a new person with a new personality but the same history. And, like, all Time Lords can do that, but only 12 times so it still feels like there's stakes...I mean, we're not gonna go through 12 Doctors, no show lasts that long.

The show lasted that long.

So we'll come up with this contrivance where the Doctor gets extra lives.

But wait, where did the Time Lords get the ability to regenerate in the first place? I know! It's the Doctor! The Doctor is the first one, not specifically a Galifrain but who the Galifrains took regenerations from! A ha! Now we don't have to come up with contrivances to give the Doctor infinite regenerations, because the Doctor is the source of regenerations. Now the Doctor isn't just someone who was curious and thought that the other Time Lords were too rigid and dispassionate given their unlimited access to time and space, but the origin of their near immortality. The Doctor just, like...forgot, you know?

Honestly though, it's no more or less silly than any other thing they layered on top of a conceit to embed history lessons into a kids show that just got way, way out of hand. Once the murderous salt and pepper shakers showed up, everything was of to the races.

But the problem is it's a change to the lore of a show that's notorious for playing fast and loose with its own continuity.

You keep repeating what I said but like you're arguing with me and it's weird and confusing.

[Vassenor]

But the problem is it's a change to the lore of a show that's notorious for playing fast and loose with its own continuity.

You keep repeating what I said but like you're arguing with me and it's weird and confusing.

Not trying to argue. I'm trying to get my head around why it has everyone so angry.

[Cannot think of a name]

You keep repeating what I said but like you're arguing with me and it's weird and confusing.

Not trying to argue. I'm trying to get my head around why it has everyone so angry.

Surely we can separate an understanding that a narrative with decades of different authors has at best a tenuous connection to a cohesive continuity and just not liking a particular decision.

I don't think anyone's objection to the Timeless Child at least here has been that it ruins the continuity but rather it's just kinda silly. I've thought a lot of decisions made over the decades have been silly, I just kinda roll with it. But I think we can let people call a decision they don't like silly without having to ride them about the fact that this really is just one long Exquisite Corpse experiment.

At the very least you could save your comments for people who are actually complaining about the continuity so I'm not looking at you rephrasing what I just said and wondering "What am I supposed to do with that? Why is this a response to me?"

[Forsher]

Canon is just like the laws of physics. It tells you what tools you have at your disposal to do what you want.

This is the essential problem with the Timeless Child as a concept: it fucks with the premise of the show, which is a man with a time machine who knows all about the extraordinary world. The Doctor neither knew about the whole Timeless Child concept nor remains "just a man" and the world becomes much less extraordinary from the knowing.

CTOAN probably does have a point about writing it off as power creep but I feel that does miss the essential issue that the Timeless Child forces a re-evaluation of what the show even is in the first place. If you want people to change their mind about what they're watching you have to do it as soon as possible. The Good Place waits, as I recall, until the S1 finale. Agents of SHIELD took about 13 episodes. The Wire doesn't clarify what it is until S2 which has resulted in an unusual character where people aren't fans of S2 until they've finished the whole show. The Walking Dead's an interesting case because ostensibly you know what the "is" by S2 if not earlier but in practice it's all very "why are we on a farm now?" and then the Governor arc doesn't feel like "the next group of survivors" but a reassertion of the plot that S2 hid from the viewer. Which means it's arguably Terminus where it becomes obvious. Supernatural has a "S1-5 is the real Supernatural" crowd that's got louder and louder with each year since the finale but if it actually had just been S1-5, I feel like there'd be way more people complaining about the angels. Those people already exist, in fact.

Or to use a movie example the "surprise! aliens!" quality of Indiana Jones and the Kingdom of the Crystal Skull. If Temple of Doom had been aliens, no one would care. But it was just a change of religions.

People don't like it when you redefine their hobbies for them. This should not be a controversial point of view.

[The Xenopolis Confederation]

Am I the only one who is slightly disappointed that the show has been picked up by a new producer so soon?

I honestly think Doctor Who is in such a rut now, and has been for about a decade, that I think what the show needs is some time off. I'm thinking 5-10 years at least. Give people time to miss the show, give the culture time to arrive at a point where a new Doctor Who feels warranted rather than obsolete. Until then I'm very happy rewatching Classic Who and delving into expanded media.