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Confession #76: I Like Grumpy

As I’ve discussed the latest series with more and more people, I’ve noticed a distinct dichotomy in fan reactions to the new Doctor. Capaldi’s Twelve appears to be a “love him or hate him” kind of character, with very few having a lukewarm reaction. It made me wonder why some can’t stand him, while others think he’s the best thing since sliced bread.

Then I got to wondering why any Doctor appeals to certain fans and not others.

Perhaps the most noticeable schism in fandom lately has been between fans of the Classic era who don’t really care for the more recent stuff and fans of “NuWho” who just can’t get into the Classic stuff. For ease of discussion, I’ll call the former “strict paleowhovians” here, and the latter “strict neowhovians” (to differentiate from my usual use of paleo/neowhovian as mere indicators of which era of the show a fan first saw).

I know, for example, a significant number of strict neowhovians (SNs) who are none too impressed with Twelve. Conversely, I’ve come across a fair number of strict paleowhovians (SPs) who just really don’t like Ten. The reasons seem to be similar, with opposing sense: the SNs don’t like Capaldi’s depiction because he’s “too mean,” while the SPs don’t like Tennant’s because he’s “too emo.”

But what about the rest of fandom—those who fall under neither SN nor SP umbrella? Those of us who like at least some of the stories across all fifty-plus years of the show’s history still have strong opinions about each Doctor, and no fan’s likes and dislikes align perfectly with any other’s. Some can’t stand Hartnell, and others think him an underrated gem. Some feel Tom Baker will always be the archetype against which all other incarnations are measured and others find him irritatingly self-congratulatory.

So what are the key qualities about any given Doctor that set him apart from the rest, and make him climb someone’s best of/worst of leaderboards? Or is it qualities of the fan that dictate a Doctor’s reception? (There’s undoubtedly a master’s thesis in there somewhere…) I suspect it’s a combination of both, but here are my completely unscientific speculations about what some of each of those might be.

Grumpiness: One thing I have heard a lot in complaints about Capaldi’s Doctor is that he’s too grumpy (or plain ol’ mean). That’s something I hear about the First Doctor (or the Sixth), too. And yet, for some folks that’s part of the appeal. Obviously, there are still gradations of “acceptable grumpy,” since (as an example) I love Twelve, have always been very fond of One, and took forever to warm to Six.

Silliness: Another of those qualities that can be a boon in one case and an irritation in another is how clownish a Doctor it. My main examples here are Four and Eleven. Each has a large dose of silly in his personality, but the way it manifests is different. For some, Four’s cheeky grin and alien weirdness are perfection; others find it off-putting. Similarly, Eleven’s brand of flappy-handed crazy really rubs some folks the wrong way, while a different brand of fan finds it eternally endearing.

Hotness: This one is oh-so-subjective. Not only do different people find different features/body types/personalities attractive, but whether or not it’s a good thing when a Doctor is nice to look at is a hotly (sorry) debated point. Whether or not you yourself fancy the Doctor, there will always be someone else out there who does—up to and including the Companion, these days. (And while that’s on-screen canon in post-Hiatus Who, there were plenty of fans who’ve shipped the Doctor with various Companions (or even the Master) for decades.) How that whole dynamic strikes you will undoubtedly color your opinion of a particular Doctor.

Approachability: Is the Doctor someone you’d want to cuddle up (or go have a pint) with when you were feeling blue, or is he a prickly sort who you’d trust with your life but couldn’t ever picture on the other end of a heart-to-hearts chat? Some folks don’t want a touchy-feely Doctor, while others find someone without that deep, emotional connection to his friends too distant and unlikable. What sort of Doctor feels most “right” to you?

Age: In this case, I’m talking about the fan, rather than any given Doctor. When you first got into watching the show, were you a kid or an adult? The point in your life at which you became a fan could have a profound effect on how you feel about various incarnations. As a kid, you may need different things from the Doctor than you do as an adult. (The same could be said for Companions. Fans who loved certain characters as a kid may feel quite differently about those characters decades later.) So what’s the perfect Doctor for a young new fan may be different than that for a young adult new fan, which may in turn be quite different than for a mature adult new fan.

Your first: When all is said and done, I suspect that the single most important factor for determining what kind of Doctor a given fan likes is who their first Doctor was. To a certain degree, I think we all imprint on that first characterization like little sf-watching ducks. Think back: who do you consider “your” Doctor? Who made that first big impression on you, and made you a fan? Look at the above qualities, and think about where your first Doctor fits on each of those scales. Do the other Doctors high on your favorites list align pretty closely with your first, or are they opposed?

I don’t know about the rest of you (though I’d love to hear your thoughts—please comment!), but I see at least the hint of a pattern in my own favorites: in my book, grumpy is good. The correlations aren’t perfect, of course, and I’m sure there are as many other factors to consider as there are fans. But just considering what makes a Doctor appeal (or not!) to different fans makes a fascinating thought experiment. I can hardly wait for others’ results.

6 Comments

  1. Kara S

    Character qualities
    I’m fine with Twelve. I like the character. I wish he’d had some better scripts to act in. And I’d like to see him paired with a companion other than Clara. I’m kind of tired of Clara.

    My first Doctor was four and I first encountered him the summer before I entered high school when my family vacationed in England. It was Destiny of the Daleks and my family laughed at the poor Daleks and how impractical and cheap looking they were. The Doctor himself was charming and his alien qualities were quite interesting.

    I don’t think “hotness” is a factor. The Doctor is an alien and sexual attraction has always seemed misplaced. That’s not what The Doctor has traditionally wanted from a companion which is probably why my favorite neocompanion is Donna who was agressively uninterested in The Doctor romantically.

    On factors like grumpiness, silliness and approchability I like variety. I’m open to differing character traits. That’s what makes The Doctor interesting. Matt Smith could be a bit too silly for me and I preferred him when he was in a more serious mood. I disliked him to start with, finding his attempts to seem alien artificial and overly stagey. But he grew on me.

    • mrfranklin

      Hotness
      I personally agree that “hotness” is not what brings me to the show or a particular Doctor. I included it because from what I’ve seen online, it is a factor for some fans.

      It’s interesting to read about your own background and how you react to a few different Doctors. It actually lines up relatively well with what I’ve have expected. 🙂

      p.s. re: Clara—I’m also ready for a change, but I like her much better with Capaldi than with Smith.

  2. Wholahoop

    Pertwee was my First, but Davison became my Doctor
    My first Doctor was Pertwee and I (fairly) religiously followed T Baker although I dropped off after Season 17 as (I think) teenage hormones and my reaction to what I perceived as the over the top nature of the programme kicked in. In the Autumn (ok Fall) of 1981, when the BBC showed the Five Faces season on BBC2 at tea time, after watching Unearthly Child I was hooked again. Davison therefore became (and still is) my Doctor. I may disagree with much of JNT”s stewardship but as a contrast to the latter Tom Baker I liked this more human, vulnerable Doctor. He could also have a tetchy side, but with the TARDIS crew he had for much of his tenure, I don’t blame him!

    As to paleo/neo, I am one of those who loves both classic and new, to the extent that 2005 was season 27 as far as I was concerned! I have loved all the incarnations, so maybe I am easily pleased. I have a little feeling that had C Baker’s Doctor been given a similar direction to Capalsi to take when trying to inject some alien-ness into the Doctor’s character, then he might have had a better chance in succeeding. Attempting to strangle your companion, saying “I am the Doctor, whether you like it or not” and then having a nine month break are probably not going to endear the Doctor to the general public. The few Big Finish I have listened to tell me he had the potential that did not come to the fore as much on screen. This may be 20/20 hindsight to some extent, but even as a 17 year old at the end of Season 21 in 1984 I was not too comfortable with the way the season had ended.

    Apologies for the rambling rant-like nature but you raised a lot of good points that I wanted to address. Keep up the good work 🙂

    • mrfranklin

      Ta!
      Rambles can be good. 😉

      I love hearing different fans’ backgrounds and how they think that shapes their reactions to each Doctor. Thanks for sharing your perspective. (And yes, I think poor Colin kind of got the short end of the stick…)

  3. Travis

    10 & 11
    I never watched Doctor Who prior to the new ones, and even those only watching sparingly until Matt Smith. I find 10 and 11 to really be a tie for my favorites, but when I go back and watch old ones I am a HUGE fan of 3. It could be that I love James Bond and thus adore the real life and on screen parallels between the two or, I don’t even know. I do know that I like the “fun” aspect of any Doctor – there are enough dark and dismal shows out there! That’s my problem with 12 – dark and dismal – and the few episodes he had last year were he attempted to be lighthearted, likely because of terrible writing, came across as completely stupid to me.

    • mrfranklin

      Three
      There’s a lot to be said for Pertwee’s Doctor, for sure.

      I can see why you feel as you do about Capaldi’s Doctor, especially given your stated fondness for Ten and (particularly) Eleven. I tend to prefer Twelve myself, but it’s only natural that fans have a wide range of opinions. 🙂

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