Contained within each of us is a little of Dr Who
Warning Contains Spoilers!
Last night I watched the last episode of the 2005 series of Dr Who named 'The Parting of the Ways' written by Russell T. Davies.
(EDIT: originally I had that Terry Nation co-wrote this episode, but Terry is responsible for creating the Daleks. I did not check who he was on IMDb. 'Pleb!' I hear certain fans mutter.)
This episode is a culmination of several stories where The Dr played by Christopher Eccleston, Rose played by Billie Piper, and Captain Jack played by John Barrowman are first kidnapped and appear aboard a gigantic satellite orbiting the earth and forced to play various game shows. One show resembled Big Brother, one resembled The Weakest Link and another resembled a makeover show with those obnoxious middle class women, you know the one with the woman called Trinny?
This kidnapping as it turns out is all part of a nefarious plot by the Daleks to capture The Dr while they invade earth. Well actually it is a lot more than that. Perhaps the Emperor of the Daleks wants to place The Dr in a position where he has to choose to end all human and Dalek life. But that would be premised upon the Daleks having emotions, which as it turns out, with them being forced to use tiny shreds of human DNA over time, do have. But this is somewhat speculation. The Dr then finds himself building a device to transmit a 'delta' wave via the satellite with the hope to eliminate the Daleks but in doing so also indiscriminately eliminate all human life and other life as well.
The Dr finds himself in a position of either acting heroically and exterminating both the Daleks and all of humanity or choosing the more ordinary human virtue of dying. The Daleks put to him if he is a coward or not? And he says 'I'm a coward any day...' This is one of the delightful moral propositions within this last episode of series one 2005. To act virtuously sometimes is also to act as a coward, and to act heroically is sometimes to place an ideal before ordinary human life (and in this case even the lives of the Daleks), thus act as exterminator and without virtue.
To save Rose from the delta wave, The Dr sends her back in time. Rose finds herself unable to live with this. Indeed, despite The Dr's actions, she finds that she is unable to see herself as moral while he dies for all of humanity. She then sets about cracking open the soul of the Tardis with a tow truck and exposing herself directly to this being so she can communicate with it and save The Dr and arguably all of humanity. This changes Rose into something, somewhat paradoxically, no longer human. She reappears in the future, where the earth is under siege by killer food processors, and she vaporizes the Daleks. Turns them into dust. She becomes the creator and destroyer of life as she can see across time. A Goddess. In doing so, however, she has swallowed something that will eventually tear her apart. Oh and she resurrects Captain Jack too. 'Fixing him' in several sense of the word.
The Dr, once again sacrifices himself, and in a kiss takes the energy of the Tardis from Rose. The Dr then gets a bout of severe stomach crams. Once and for all proving that he really empathizes with women! But more than this, the energy forces him to regenerate and viola! suddenly Christopher Eccleston becomes David Tennant.
My lovely partner turned to me and said 'How do they explain that?'
I almost, for a second, said 'Well you can't.'
But then thought about it and said that it was actually akin to what we are all like as human beings. Essentially we are exactly the same as when we are born and when we die, but simultaneously we are entirely different. We also constantly change as people, grow, and learn new things, and arguably become, in some instances, entirely new or different people that only bear a passing resemblance to who we once were. It is then up to others, as much as it is up to ourselves, to remember who we are. The Dr's identity in this way is constituted through memory and as a character within plot, a fixed, but ever changing point throughout time. And I'm sure this has all been said, argued and debated before.
But it makes you think dunnit?
Last night I watched the last episode of the 2005 series of Dr Who named 'The Parting of the Ways' written by Russell T. Davies.
(EDIT: originally I had that Terry Nation co-wrote this episode, but Terry is responsible for creating the Daleks. I did not check who he was on IMDb. 'Pleb!' I hear certain fans mutter.)
This episode is a culmination of several stories where The Dr played by Christopher Eccleston, Rose played by Billie Piper, and Captain Jack played by John Barrowman are first kidnapped and appear aboard a gigantic satellite orbiting the earth and forced to play various game shows. One show resembled Big Brother, one resembled The Weakest Link and another resembled a makeover show with those obnoxious middle class women, you know the one with the woman called Trinny?
This kidnapping as it turns out is all part of a nefarious plot by the Daleks to capture The Dr while they invade earth. Well actually it is a lot more than that. Perhaps the Emperor of the Daleks wants to place The Dr in a position where he has to choose to end all human and Dalek life. But that would be premised upon the Daleks having emotions, which as it turns out, with them being forced to use tiny shreds of human DNA over time, do have. But this is somewhat speculation. The Dr then finds himself building a device to transmit a 'delta' wave via the satellite with the hope to eliminate the Daleks but in doing so also indiscriminately eliminate all human life and other life as well.
The Dr finds himself in a position of either acting heroically and exterminating both the Daleks and all of humanity or choosing the more ordinary human virtue of dying. The Daleks put to him if he is a coward or not? And he says 'I'm a coward any day...' This is one of the delightful moral propositions within this last episode of series one 2005. To act virtuously sometimes is also to act as a coward, and to act heroically is sometimes to place an ideal before ordinary human life (and in this case even the lives of the Daleks), thus act as exterminator and without virtue.
To save Rose from the delta wave, The Dr sends her back in time. Rose finds herself unable to live with this. Indeed, despite The Dr's actions, she finds that she is unable to see herself as moral while he dies for all of humanity. She then sets about cracking open the soul of the Tardis with a tow truck and exposing herself directly to this being so she can communicate with it and save The Dr and arguably all of humanity. This changes Rose into something, somewhat paradoxically, no longer human. She reappears in the future, where the earth is under siege by killer food processors, and she vaporizes the Daleks. Turns them into dust. She becomes the creator and destroyer of life as she can see across time. A Goddess. In doing so, however, she has swallowed something that will eventually tear her apart. Oh and she resurrects Captain Jack too. 'Fixing him' in several sense of the word.
The Dr, once again sacrifices himself, and in a kiss takes the energy of the Tardis from Rose. The Dr then gets a bout of severe stomach crams. Once and for all proving that he really empathizes with women! But more than this, the energy forces him to regenerate and viola! suddenly Christopher Eccleston becomes David Tennant.
My lovely partner turned to me and said 'How do they explain that?'
I almost, for a second, said 'Well you can't.'
But then thought about it and said that it was actually akin to what we are all like as human beings. Essentially we are exactly the same as when we are born and when we die, but simultaneously we are entirely different. We also constantly change as people, grow, and learn new things, and arguably become, in some instances, entirely new or different people that only bear a passing resemblance to who we once were. It is then up to others, as much as it is up to ourselves, to remember who we are. The Dr's identity in this way is constituted through memory and as a character within plot, a fixed, but ever changing point throughout time. And I'm sure this has all been said, argued and debated before.
But it makes you think dunnit?
7 comments:
I was more your Lost In Space-type kid back in the 60s and never really got into the good doctor. I'm probably all the poorer for that in terms of sci-fi street cred but I always thought the Dr Who theme was a sensational piece of music.
Sorry Ed, but I forgot to ask would it be that Dr Who changes countenances in a similar way to the Dalai Lama?
Hey there Lad Litter,
The comparison between British sci-fi and American sci-fi is a little like comparing British Prime Ministers to American Presidents. Indulge me.
The Iron Lady Maggie Thatcher: first woman to head the British conservative party and first woman to become Prime Minister, an autodidact in many ways and first scientist then lawyer, she also arguably introduced an economic rationalist agenda to the UK.
VS.
The clown turned actor turned democrat turned republican - Ronald Reagan. Suffered with onset of Alzheimer's disease throughout presidency.
Then we have...
Tony Blair, the young face of new labour an aspirational troublemaker from working class background, who modelled himself on Mick Jagger and who arguably shifted the British Labour party to the right, represents 'third way' politics, and got them involved in a messy and shitty war, for which he'll probably be remembered for over other things.
VS.
George Dubya. I don't even have to do anything here.
So...
Dr Who, the thinking person's sci-fi.
VS.
Lost in Space: camp, inconsistent, Swiss Family Robinson for people who like catch phrases.
Too subtle?
Probably too harsh.
And yes, I suppose The Dr is in some respects similar to the countenances of the Dalai Lama, but my point was actually that this sameness and radical difference is an aspect of all human beings.
Hope you enjoyed response.
Ed
Yes, great response Edward and you obviously know both shows well. Most of the principal cast & crew of Lost In Space also regretted its campiness. Not as much as its audience did!
The Brits seem to have greater leeway to take risks in sci-fi TV. The US has to constantly underestimate their audience.
My favourite sci-fi show? Red Dwarf.
My brother really liked Red Dwarf. Great show that one. Thing is, I'd say, you really need to know your way around at least popular sci-fi to get it. Else I reckon many viewers sort of would not get what it is lampooning and not get how funny it is. Whereas things like The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy series really had more of a universal appeal in the humour, because arguably it was about the human condition that we all can relate to. Dunno what my favorite sci-fi show might be. I've liked different things at different times : from old Dr Who as a kid, to Star Trek and later Star Trek voyager, to Red Dwarf as a teenager and in my 20s, to Firefly late 20s, then back to Dr Who again in my 30s. There are others, but ones that it could be said that they are actually sci-fi, but aren't conventional sci-fi at all so most people don't see them as such.
Agree wholeheartedly with Firefly! What a great show. Know what I liked best about it? No aliens. There really is no-one out there, the show seemed to say. Pretty refreshing.
Yep Firefly is a bit of a fave, pity it only got one series, that didn't even finish screening thanks to the way Fox ran it. Dodged a good number of sci-fi cliches and worked around others, good post-mod pastiche really. Firefly did have monsters though! The Reavers, but who are actually just us... I did say this thread has spoilers though didn't I...
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