I haven’t written a blog post in awhile.
There’s a bit of insecurity I have about expressing my opinion on things and everything feels like a race to see whose first. I’m giving it a try anyway because I’m, in this instance, very irritated by the Doctor Who fanbase who insists that David Tennant can save Doctor Who.
When Ncuti Gatwa was announced as the replacement for Jodie Whittaker’s Doctor, my reaction to it was simple – finally. For a program whose main character can be drastically different physically and emotionally every few years, the lack of diversity towards different genders and races for The Doctor always struck me as the BBC playing it safe. In making the character a woman with Whittaker’s Doctor and then making The Doctor black with Ncuti Gatwa, I saw the BBC finally willing to break new ground with its longest running franchise.
Recent talks of a behind-the-scenes crisis – Gatwa leaving the role and the BBC putting the show to rest for a few years have sent the fanbase into a fury. One solution to save the show from being canceled that I’ve heard is bringing back David Tennant. A superfan of the show who played The Tenth and Fourteenth Doctors, bringing back one of the most popular actors to have portrayed the character would be a safe-bet to bring back viewers. That word, safe, is a problem for a program that literally breaks its’ own rules to keep itself going.
In short, David Tennant returning to Doctor Who would kill the show rather than keep it going.
The 60th anniversary specials were a great nostalgia trip meant to ease viewers into the future of the show while celebrating the past. Premiering a new TARDIS and bigger and bolder effects all had the feel of “Look ma, I’m rich” when I think back on it. Viewers who saw clips of the classic era of the show and perhaps even “classic” NuWho felt the show finally upgraded to resemble the look and feel of modern sci-fi movies.
Placing David Tennant in all of that just wouldn’t fit after awhile since the show’s main focus has always been about change. Viewers who have been used to the idea of a change every few years would eventually wish for someone new rather than hope Tennant does a Tom Baker run. If running to the past is the show’s saving grace these days, why not give Paul McGann’s Eighth Doctor some live-action stories?
At present, Paul McGann would be the longest running Doctor in the history of the series given that he has done stories for Big Finish for decades after his initial appearance in the 1996 TV movie. He seems to have a grasp on his more swash-buckling take on the character and I think he would do well.
To simply just think the show has lost it’s footing is to forget the greatness of the show itself – that it can change. If there’s anything Doctor Who perhaps struggles with – it’s the writing. That was true back in “classic” series era and the NuWho “classic” era pre-Disney.
Get better writing – magic happens. But sure – blame it on the show being woke while forgetting The Daleks were an allegory to the
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