Fandom, TV

Doctor Who and the POA

8,942 Comments

I’m now starting to feel that the new Doctor Who series has disturbing parallels to the Alfonso Cuarón era of the Harry Potter movies.

When Cuarón helmed the third movie, Harry Potter and the Prisoner of Azkaban, fans rejoiced. Most fans rejoiced. I did not. The tone of the entire series darkened, most strikingly, visually. Figurative darkening was a necessity, as the source material was becoming more dangerous and entangled, but visually, the movie felt as if it had been shot through fog and the world seemed dim as a result. The sets showed the darkness, too. Everything began to look dilapidated and uninviting, even Hogwarts, which had seemed magical and bright in the previous films. This hazy, dark look continued throughout the films and was the primary reason I stopped watching them.

Steven Moffat, similarly genius in his storytelling, appears to be doing the same to Doctor Who. His Series 3 episode “Blink” is universally considered one of the best episodes of the modern era. As a standalone ep, I agree, it’s striking in its difference. As the tone of a series, it’s depressing and dull. I allowed the thought that Series 5 was a bit less colorful because of the transition to our Eleventh Doctor. I, like all of fandom, was feeling him out along with the new sassy companion. I was pleased. As this season began, we were hit with too many cliches and teases in the first two episodes. Following the convoluted story of the opener, we were treated with two dark, dank episodes that did little to harken back to the glory days of FUN Doctor Who, and I fear we will not return.

My fear is that I am alone in my distaste for the new style. I was completely isolated in the HP fandom as someone who preferred that a children’s story (and regardless of what is said, Harry Potter is a children’s story) remain a bit fantastic and bright. The response to last night’s cheerless episode “The Doctor’s Wife” written by Neil Gaiman has been exceedingly positive. Having several scenes of suffering and misery seems to appease fandom, and on that count we differ. I accept and appreciate darkness in the right fandom (BSG, GoT) but this is still, at heart, a show for younger fans with a fifty year tradition that should be respected.

8,942 thoughts on “Doctor Who and the POA”

  9. This is a great tip especially to those new to the blogosphere. Simple but very accurate info… Many thanks for sharing this one. A must read article.

    Reply

  13. It’s difficult to find educated people for this subject, however, you sound like you know what you’re talking about! Thanks

    Reply

  14. Hi, I do believe this is an excellent web site. I stumbledupon it 😉 I may come back once again since I book-marked it. Money and freedom is the greatest way to change, may you be rich and continue to help others.

    Reply

  19. I don’t even know how I ended up here, but I thought this post was good.I don’t know who you are but certainly you’re going to a famous blogger if you aren’t already ?Cheers!

    Reply

  45. I’m really loving the theme/design of your web site. Do you ever
    run into any internet browser compatibility issues? A handful of my blog visitors
    have complained about my site not operating correctly
    in Explorer but looks great in Opera. Do you
    have any solutions to help fix this problem?

    Reply

Leave a Reply to Aubrey Schofield Cancel reply

Your email address will not be published. Required fields are marked *