Sat, 1 September 2012
Before Doctor Who series seven begins, Tom and Loius briefly resume their discussion of Doctor Who’s eighteenth season. Teenagers, large numbers, and cruelty to doves—you know it’s gotta be Full Circle!
Direct download: The_Cloister_Room_039_-_The_Most_Boring_of_Pseudoscience.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 1:51 AM
Comments[2]
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Good points. I'm not actually all that familiar with season 19. I've seen Castrovalva and Earthshock but nothing in between. My classic series viewing has been spotty, as has Louis's. Perhaps the Adric hate is does grows out of his portrayal in that season, but I genuinely do think there's a huge social dimension to the way in which it's grown. The more people make jokes at the character's expense, the more fun it is to do so, the more the disdain is amplified.
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If you don't know that much about Adric, fan hatred of him is indeed a bit of a headscratcher based on "Full Circle" alone. It helps that his intro story is itself one of the last coherent bits of Who of the 1980s. It also helps he's working with an actor on his way out, rather than one who's trying to make his mark on the programme. He's pretty good throughout the remainder of his time with Baker. But I think you'll definitely see the whiny bitch that is Adric once you hit season 19. It's a fundamental part of the Davison characterisation that the Fifth Doctor just didn't like Adric. I think I'm right in saying that there is no story where Davison doesn't take at least one potshot at Adric. Whatever the interpersonal relationships between the actors, there is no doubt whatsoever that the character of the Fifth Doctor disdained Adric -- and Adric suffers in Fifth Doctor scripts accordingly. There may be little else of value in "Time-Flight", but listen carefully to Davison's "grieving" for the dead Adric. It's one of the best lines in all of old-school DW: TEGAN: We used to fight a lot. I'll miss him. NYSSA: So will I. DOCOR: And me. But he wouldn't want us to mourn unnecessarily. AND THAT'S IT. Two words. "And me." And what does the Doctor propose right after he advises no unnecessary mourning? A trip to watch a classic cricket match at the London Exhibition in the 1850s. IT'S BRILLIANT. None of this, Tenth-Doctor-going-back-to-Pompeii-to-save-a-family nonsense. No Eighth Doctor shenanigans to break the Web of Time to save Charlotte Pollard. There's no "Blink"-y, timey-wimey salvation for Sally Sparrow, here. There's not even the affection that normally comes during a normal companion departure like when Sarah or Susan or even Mel left. It's quite literally just, "Adric's dead. Stiff upper lip, girls. Time for cricket!" And once you've watched all the stories of Adric with Davison, you're right there with Celery Man. And me, too, Doctor. And me bloody too.
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