For decades now, off and on, it’s been suggested that someday the Doctor might – or should – regenerate into a woman. In at least one instance, though it was in the context of a definitely non-canonical comedy sketch, he did (and yes, Joanna Lumley would’ve kicked ass as the Doctor). The Doctor himself even confirmed in The Doctor’s Wife that Time Lords can regenerate with a different gender when telling Amy & Rory about the Corsair.
So where do I come out on the question? As usual, I’m conflicted. On the one hand, as a woman myself, I’d love to see more female role models in starring roles in the shows I love, and the Doctor is kind of the ultimate hero figure. More than kind of, if we restrict the whole discussion to Doctor Who itself. However, there are plenty of reasons I wouldn’t want Twelve to be female.
To begin, I’m not sure I trust Moffat to write a female Doctor. Although I’ve enjoyed many of the women he’s introduced into the show, they’ve all also got some fatal flaws predicated on the fact that they are, in fact, female. River Song seems strong until she gets around the Doctor; then she’s as much a moony, lovesick underling as anything. Everything she does is for the Doctor, or because she loves the Doctor, or because the Doctor told her to/would do it that way. For her part, Amy never got beyond that little girl crush on/awe of the Doctor, even after years in his company as an adult (and a married one, at that).
Clara/Oswin has yet to develop fully, but I’m feeling wary of her characterization, too. I have the uncomfortable suspicion there’s going to be a lot of “sexual chemistry” between her and the Doctor, which doesn’t bode well for her independence and worth as an individual outside of her association with the Doctor. (This is probably why Donna is still my favorite post-Hiatus Companion. Without a romantic interest in the Doctor, she could just become a better her as their travels together broadened her horizons and stretched her worldview.)
I have to wonder, though, how much of that would be assuaged by making the Doctor himself into a female character. As it stands, Companions must always be “lesser than” the Doctor (in the modern era, anyway), because he is the hero, and they are just there to assist, counterpoint, or accentuate his brilliance. Change it so the female character is the one who’s supposed to be the be-all-end-all of heroism and cleverness, and there’s always the possibility, however slim, that the subtly misogynistic characterizations of women in Moffat’s scripts would slip away. If a woman is meant to be the primary instead of a supporting character, is she going to be free of those submissive qualities? It might be worth a try.
The other reason I hesitate to go “all in” on a call for a female Twelve is something I’ll call the Rowling Factor. Reportedly, Harry Potter creator J. K. Rowling didn’t stop to think that she should make her main protagonist a girl instead of a boy until she’d already got much of the saga plotted out. By that point, Harry was so solidly a boy in her mind, she just couldn’t bring herself to change him. In that same way, I – and many other fans, I’m sure – have the Doctor’s current gender presentation so firmly ingrained in my mind as part and parcel of his identity, it would be difficult for me to switch mental gears.
It’s not insurmountable, by any means. I’m sure trans* folk and their friends & loved ones have dealt with far worse on a daily basis, and certainly have every right to scoff at my reluctance to consider a change in gender perception for a fictional character. In fact, that’s another point in favor of making the Doctor female; it would force a whole new, important discussion about gender perception and personal identity.
At this point, I’m forced to take a closer look at my own reluctance to accept a gender change for the Doctor. I don’t know many trans* people personally, though I did have one coworker transition during the time we worked together, so I guess I can’t make an honest assessment of my own possible prejudices. Is the reason I don’t care for the idea of a female Doctor because I am generally uncomfortable with gender ambiguity, or a change in gender presentation? If the Doctor had started as a woman, would I be any more comfortable with the idea of a change in the character’s gender?
Given all the questions about gender identity and the acceptance thereof that we would all be forced to face if the next Doctor was a woman (or similarly, about race, if Twelve were cast as a person of color), I think it’s high time that kind of change came to our show. We could stand to have a bit more self-reflection forced on us by the Doctor.
But if you really wanted to get the fanbase up in arms? Cast an American, with their natural accent. That’d do it.
I agree, well, kind of…
I agree with you about not trusting the writers to do a good job of writing a woman Doctor. But for very different reasons, because I’m very gender-fluid myself.
I’m just worried that there would be too much expectation on the writers to make the new Doctor’s characterisation all about being a woman, and little else. Too much awkward, heavy-handed exploration of gender and trans issues for their own sake, getting in the way of good storytelling.
Valid concern
I think it’s very easy for the writers (especially in recent years) to get heavy handed, agreed. If the Doctor were to regenerate into a female form, what would you most like to see in the way of storytelling v exploration of that change?
Shaving and Reactions (relevant, I promise)
In theory, I’d love to see a non-white, non-male-presenting Doctor. But it pretty much burns out in theory.
In practice, though, I don’t want to see it – for the same reason I shave my legs. (No, really. Relevance.) I have lots and lots of super-dark, visible-from-a-distance body hair. And I’m kind of randomly gender-fluid (meaning it depends on the day), so sometimes it doesn’t bother me. But when I’m in a skirt, and out and about, I almost always shave. Not because I particularly care what other people think about my body hair or lack thereof, but because it becomes the focal point. Instead of being me, I become “the chick with the hairy legs”. Hairy legs aren’t the main point of my existence – they’re a sub-sub-sub plot, if anything – so I shave, because I don’t want my world to center around that.
And that’s why I don’t want to see a non-male Doctor, at least not right now or for the foreseeable future. Because with a non-male Doctor, the conversation becomes all about gender, and gender presentation, and what’s done right, and what’s done wrong, instead of it being about the awesomeness that is DW and its rich history.
I remember this happening, to a lesser extent, on Buffy – when Tara was killed, the focus was almost entirely on “killing the gay character” instead of the story arc itself, how powerfully it impacted all the Scoobies, etc. It was icky.
Do I wish that wasn’t the case? Yup. *shrug*
Wonderful points
I think both of you have brought up great points about how the focus would be unduly shifted to the Doctor’s gender presentation instead of storyline. I’m still struggling myself with what I’d like to see v how I think it would really play out.
On the one hand, I don’t want to invite that kind of story-killing controversy. On the other, if we don’t make a change and work through some of the issues, are we doomed always to have an apparently straight, cisgender, white, male, British Doctor? When we try to avoid unpleasantness, are we defaulting to the status quo – “as it was in the beginning, is now and ever shall be, world without end”?
Obviously, I don’t have all the answers, and as someone whose own identity (straight, white, cisgender female) affords me a great deal of privilege, I’m not necessarily the right person to make any sort of Call For Change. But it seems like an important question to explore.
There is so much that’s so good about our show – it would just be nice to see more diversity in general. Some strides have been made in terms of adding characters with a broader range of sexual preferences lately, but gender identity has yet to be addressed, and there is a sad dearth of racial diversity. I just want to see Who broaden its cast of characters to be more inclusive.
Good Thread
Hmmm. I guess my biggest two questions would be:
Q1. What are the current (and possibly past) demographics of Doctor Who fans? If they’re mostly female fans who look upon each incarnation of the Doctor as a dream date (and that’s fine), then the studio should steer away from a female doctor. (Reasons were already stated above in everybody else’s posts.)
Q2. Why not all-of-the-above? I’m not the head writer of the Who franchise, but IF I was given free reign over a whole season, I’d have a different regeneration every 3-4 episodes for one season as part of a larger story arc. Yeah, it’s the experimental buffet version of writing, but the Doctor Who show is supposed to be fun. ex. Twentysomething woman, overweight man with glasses, East Indian, Muslim, elderly Ms. Marple, etc. (I think an elderly actress as the Doctor would be pretty cool, myself, but I don’t think I’d want to permanently put her in for a whole season unless fan reaction was positive.)
Fatal Death territory
Now you’re getting into The Curse of Fatal Death territory. He’s only got 12 regenerations (13 incarnations) unless/until something gets changed. That means he’s only got two more to go, and if you’re forcing a regeneration every couple of episodes, that’s the end of the Doctor pretty fast.
On principle, I like the idea of mixing it up a bunch, but I don’t think it’s practical at all. Plus, it’s depressing to kill off your main character so often. 😉
Regarding Q1, i think Tennant pulled in a lot of fans of the variety you describe, but “historically,” the demographic has (as I understand it) been skewed much more heavily in the hetero male direction (thus the sometimes scantily-clad Companions).
And many of those who watch are still much more interested in storytelling than in ogling a pretty boy. Not that an attractive male Doctor is bad, but that’s not a valid reason to shy away from casting a female Doctor, in my opinion.
I wasn’t sure if the limit of
I wasn’t sure if the limit of 13 was still in place or not. 🙂
Depends
Well, it depends on who you ask. 🙂 But the general consensus seems to be thirteen, yeah.
13 Lives
Moffat said in the last issue of DW Magazine that the writers will simply “make something up” when the Doctor runs out of his current lives.
As for the Doctor being a woman or even non-English, I am more on the side of it not happening. Maybe the non-English being more offensive than the non-male. Remember the outrage when an AMERICAN tv-movie was made? The Doctor is English. It’s his identity, and I guess it’s only fair – the English wrote the story, took the chance airing it on television, etc…
As for the Doctor being male, I’m a realist. In the first show, they had to make Susan the Doctor’s granddaugher, as they didn’t want an older male travelling with a younger female; it would be too racy without the family relationship to explain it. I think that at the heart of the show, the Doctor is still somewhat conservative and old-fashioned. He is more embarrassed by a female kissing him (Clara doing so only makes him awkward) than the type of guy who “hits” on women. A gender change for the Doctor would be quite radical for a “family show.”
I should clarify…
I like it old-fashioned, if that’s what it would be called because the Doctor has’t regenerated as a female. Too often, television shows feel like they have to be about “issues,” when I just like it too be good entertainment. That being said, I don’t think it’s a show that offends or upsets people. I think Paul’s points were good: just because the Doctor could be a female, doesn’t mean he SHOULD be one. 🙂
Clear enough 🙂
Yes, as I said in the post, I’m pretty fond of the Doctor as a male character myself. I could see it being good either way, but I agree it’s unlikely to change any time soon. 🙂
For what it’s worth…
This discussion always makes me a little uncomfortable because, depending on the company you happen to be in at the time, not wanting the Doctor to be a woman can be an inflammatory opinion to hold, especially if you’re a man. I have no problem with the casting of people from ethnic origins or gays, lesbians, bi-sexual, trans-gender, whatever. I’m happy to say that a persons gender, race, creed, colour and sexual orientation have never bothered me. You could be a pink-spotted, three-legged gay biker mouse from Mars for all I care – but unless you are the right ACTOR for the part, casting the lead in any of those directions is simply ticking a facile equal opportunities box.
I agree that the production team, particularly the current one, shouldn’t attempt it. I’ve never liked Moffat’s one-note idea of women and I despair at the people who hold Amy Pond up as a well-rounded, independent woman who is a great role model for children (Really?!). I find it interesting that while female fandom has increased, the so-called ‘strong’ female roles still generally require them to flirt with/be doe-eyed towards the Doctor – unless, of course, you’re a villain, a parent, a pensioner or a battle-axe. Your point about Donna actually says it all, which I agree with completely: “Donna is still my favorite post-Hiatus Companion. Without a romantic interest in the Doctor, she could just become a better her as their travels together broadened her horizons and stretched her worldview”.
She is the only one who shows true personality and character simply because she isn’t saddled with the lumbering, ham-fisted neccessity to fancy the Doctor and thereby (apparently) increase the female demographic. But then Doctor Who was always about a mysterious alien making friends (key word) with humans and showing them the universe. Yes, it’s a simplistic idea but what the Hell is wrong with that? I would have thought having female companions choosing to travel with the Doctor without having to moon about after him was better than what we currently seem to have.
Ultimately, what’s wrong with him as a male hero? Just because the Doctor COULD be woman doesn’t mean that he SHOULD be. It’s all a bit pointless though, as it will never happen. I mean, they’re more likely to cast a black actor in the part first and I guarantee you that’s a hurdle they’re not crossing anytime soon…
*sigh* and we missed out on Paterson Joseph 🙁
Oh and it’s still thirteen lives. But does anybody really imagine they won’t come up with something cunning to get around it when the time comes? Even the Master was offered a new life-cycle in The Five Doctors. So it can be done without too much fuss 🙂
Always love your input!
Thanks for adding your 2¢, Paul! Taking the last bit first, I agree they’ll easily come up with some way to extend his life cycle. But until that happens, he’s only got 2 incarnations left. 😉
As for the rest, I fully agree that the ACTOR is the key. Part of me wants to see a great actress tackle the role, but another part doesn’t want to change what I already love. ~shrug~ Maybe we can just start with racial diversity being better represented in the show overall. I’ll not hold my breath, though.
Gender familiarity
I take your point from before, in that he has been a ‘he’ for 50 years and I think the general viewing public would react negatively to a sex-change! They are used to the idea of the Doctor being male and, no matter how good the female actor, they would be up against that comforting familiarity and expectation. You could put Judi Dench or Kate Winslet in the role and people would still react negatively.
The argument for change says “well, isn’t it about time we had a woman in the role?” the counter-argument says “why should we?” It’s a male part, in the same way that Miss Marple will always be a Miss and we don’t have Shirley Holmes. The idea that simply because he ‘could’ change gender that he should, is a lazy argument used far too frequently. It’s nice to see it debated sensibly on here 🙂