Doctor Who: Pond Life (Prequel to Series 7)

[Ahriman238]

I honestly don't see any insurmountable issue to having a female Doctor. I just don't want to see them do it as a gimmick. If you think there are good stories that can be told (beyond the obvious, and stupid, Doctor as struggling to understand new femininity and Doctor as baby-maker) great. Gold Star. Go to.

If you want to make such a fundamental change to a character just because you haven't already done it, I invite you to go fuck yourself. Go write bad fanfiction if you want it so badly.

This is not a misogynistic show, sometimes the Companion needs saving, sometimes the Doctor does. It doesn't need capable female characters because, even discounting everything before Moffat/Smith, they still have Amy (when written well) and River. Much as everyone hates on River Song, I've never heard anyone complain that she's a bit of fluff, useless or a damsel in distress.

[jollyreaper]

It's not so much that such an explanation requires a male perspective, but it is now so ingrained into the show over eleven incarnations that it's just how it is. Besides, we have seen a fair amount of Time Lord biology, and every single case we have seen on screen shows male Time Lords regenerating into males and females regenerating into females. All we have to base gender-swapping on is one throwaway line about the Corsair, who is most likely another renegade (if the Doctor is fond of him it's probably the case).

More to the point, the Doctor doesn't seem to like the idea of becoming female does he?

I thought it would be fun if they did an American version of Who and made it part of a botched timeline. The Doctor is a woman, New England accent and seemingly American, and only on her first life, even though she's in her 40's, a baby Time Lady. It would be fun.

If not that, I'd love to see a Time Lady show up in the regular show. Changing the Doctor's gender would seem like a stunt. Time Lords don't change genders in any canon to date.

[Scrib]

Well, they seem to be pandering to Americans recently so they might as well. The show has a big following and a reboot with a woman might help seperate it from it's more zany ancestor and possibly gain some new fans.

As for changing his gender seeming like a stunt, it always seems that way at first. I'm sure someone said the same of NuBSG, yet eventually, if done right, you don't even notice and you've set a precedent. It'd certainly be more fun than the female Watson in that new Sherlock show imo.

[jollyreaper]

I'd want a female doctor as an American spinoff. Firmly establish its an alternate universe, separate from Brit Who.

The real kicker would be having a make doctor who isn't a pasty Brit. Needs the accent of course but what if he was Indian? That would be a surprise. Or Chinese. Might still come across as stunt casting. Personally, I just want someone who can be the Doctor with less manic goofiness.

[Stark]

I thought it would be fun if they did an American version of Who and made it part of a botched timeline. The Doctor is a woman, New England accent and seemingly American, and only on her first life, even though she's in her 40's, a baby Time Lady. It would be fun.

Would it make it to the end of the first season before it got cancelled?

Signs point to no.

[jollyreaper]

Impossible to say. Don't stick it on fox for starters. There's nothing wrong with the premise, all comes down to the writing. Warehouse is falling to pieces due to writing. Still a great premise. Heroes only ever had one good season and did how many more under inertia? 3? 4?

[The Imperator]

I don't feel strongly one way or the other about the gender of the Doctor, though I lean toward keeping the Doctor male. Not out of sexism or anything, but just because he, the character, has always been an eccentric male fatherly figure. Should we just write all current male characters in all of fiction as females, just to be fair? But really, I agree with Ahriman238; if the writers of DW can write good stories with a female Doctor, I'm all for it. But please, I don't want romance (River was bad enough, I don't want more). The Doctor was married once, he had kids, then grandkids. Let's leave his marital status there and write other stories that deal with other issues.

[Scrib]

I'd want a female doctor as an American spinoff. Firmly establish its an alternate universe, separate from Brit Who.

The real kicker would be having a make doctor who isn't a pasty Brit. Needs the accent of course but what if he was Indian? That would be a surprise. Or Chinese. Might still come across as stunt casting. Personally, I just want someone who can be the Doctor with less manic goofiness.

Well, the Doctor does spend time in time periods that were racist, it might be difficult to write it without letting the racism play an important role, it might seem...inauthentic otherwise.

But then again they seem to handle female companions in sexist times pretty fine. I haven't watched Martha's season (I'm a few episodes away) so maybe they handle it well *shrugs*

[Ahriman238]

I only remember Martha's race mattering, or being brought up, once. During that two-parter in the just pre-WW I school, she had to pretend to be a maid, and when she mentioned that she was a) from the future and b) a doctor herself guess which claim was met with more skepticism?

[jollyreaper]

For budgetary reasons the Doctor tends to only visit recent British times historically but I could easily imagine a future where whites are looked down upon. We haven't ever seen him visit a time like that, at least not in any of the nuWho's.