Honestly. New who has more often than not, blown through whole scenarios in the name of being episodic. Rather than letting them breathe and be serialized more like classic who. The old serials would regularly see scenarios spread across 4 episodes on average.
It’s been one of my bigger gripes about new who. Outside of a few isolated split episodes. Everything has to be wrapped up by the end of a single episode. Sometimes that’s possible. But its also led to a lot of poor writing. Mad dashes into an abrupt ending. With very little investment, explanation or payoff. Just… okay, whatever.
Then, there are the big gaping new holes in the lore left especially from the chibnail era. The doctor is the timeless child? Either we should ret con it or explore it. What does it mean. Then there are all these past lives erased from the doctor’s mind. Working as an operative. Seems like there could be a lot of intriguing story lines and character development there. But apart from bringing back Jo quickly in the barber shop episode. They haven’t so much as acknowledged it. Or the doctor expressed an interest in it.
There’s a lot of interesting stuff to work with. Plenty to build large well written arcs. With endings more satisfying than X just happens wrapping things up with no explanation. Not sure which group to lay the blame at proper for not doing that. Honestly I’m sure its no single thing.
I think New Who has definitely danced on the razor’s edge, getting by with narrative shortcuts as long as the emotional resonance lands. And when a story doesn’t land with you, those shortcuts are very visible.
I actually do like the small bits of exploration of the a Timeless Child that RTD has done using it to inform the Doctor’s personality in new ways. It would be great to see a Jo Martin story or something like that, though.
Trying another “Flux”-type season could be interesting too - sort of a hybrid between the old serials and more modern episodes. Hell, the eight-episode seasons are practically begging for it.
There’s lots to explore there. The station outside of space and time. Between universes. Having the doctor bump into unknown incarnations of himself knowing or unknowing. Hell, have himb end up being the catalyst for what sent his past self on the path out of time lord society. Heck, a modern reintroduction and exploration of the time Lords themselves. At least for narrative purposes. Bigger meatier things to really sink into story-wise.
The doctor’s not supposed to cross his own timeline. How can you really do that if you don’t know it. Have him land someplace and get tossed into a crisis as is Doctor Who tradition. Over the course of four episodes have an arc where he meets and is forced to Ally with someone equally is brilliant as himself. But much more morally Gray and willing to use violence. They Clash But ultimately cooperate to save the day. As they are both preparing to part ways. The doctor opens coms and says by the way I didn’t happen to get your name. To which the other replies the doctor. Followed by silent Tardis scraping noises. Dun dun dun, theme song swells. And there’s so many different ways to take it from there.
Honestly. New who has more often than not, blown through whole scenarios in the name of being episodic. Rather than letting them breathe and be serialized more like classic who. The old serials would regularly see scenarios spread across 4 episodes on average.
It’s been one of my bigger gripes about new who. Outside of a few isolated split episodes. Everything has to be wrapped up by the end of a single episode. Sometimes that’s possible. But its also led to a lot of poor writing. Mad dashes into an abrupt ending. With very little investment, explanation or payoff. Just… okay, whatever.
Then, there are the big gaping new holes in the lore left especially from the chibnail era. The doctor is the timeless child? Either we should ret con it or explore it. What does it mean. Then there are all these past lives erased from the doctor’s mind. Working as an operative. Seems like there could be a lot of intriguing story lines and character development there. But apart from bringing back Jo quickly in the barber shop episode. They haven’t so much as acknowledged it. Or the doctor expressed an interest in it.
There’s a lot of interesting stuff to work with. Plenty to build large well written arcs. With endings more satisfying than X just happens wrapping things up with no explanation. Not sure which group to lay the blame at proper for not doing that. Honestly I’m sure its no single thing.
I think New Who has definitely danced on the razor’s edge, getting by with narrative shortcuts as long as the emotional resonance lands. And when a story doesn’t land with you, those shortcuts are very visible.
I actually do like the small bits of exploration of the a Timeless Child that RTD has done using it to inform the Doctor’s personality in new ways. It would be great to see a Jo Martin story or something like that, though.
Trying another “Flux”-type season could be interesting too - sort of a hybrid between the old serials and more modern episodes. Hell, the eight-episode seasons are practically begging for it.
There’s lots to explore there. The station outside of space and time. Between universes. Having the doctor bump into unknown incarnations of himself knowing or unknowing. Hell, have himb end up being the catalyst for what sent his past self on the path out of time lord society. Heck, a modern reintroduction and exploration of the time Lords themselves. At least for narrative purposes. Bigger meatier things to really sink into story-wise.
The doctor’s not supposed to cross his own timeline. How can you really do that if you don’t know it. Have him land someplace and get tossed into a crisis as is Doctor Who tradition. Over the course of four episodes have an arc where he meets and is forced to Ally with someone equally is brilliant as himself. But much more morally Gray and willing to use violence. They Clash But ultimately cooperate to save the day. As they are both preparing to part ways. The doctor opens coms and says by the way I didn’t happen to get your name. To which the other replies the doctor. Followed by silent Tardis scraping noises. Dun dun dun, theme song swells. And there’s so many different ways to take it from there.