Doctor Who: The Time of the Companions: Book 3 (Doctor Who: The Companions' Adventure)

by Cour M.

  Also I knew that I wanted companions from the RTD Era to be with the Moffat Doctors and the Moffat companions to be with the RTD Doctors, for an interesting mixture.

  Question: Why the choices of villains and back drop?

  Answer: Croesus and Xaros were villains I created, though they did spring from events that did happen in Classic Who. I mention them having a long history with the Doctor, yes, but that’s because I realized that it’s always better to supply a villain who has a history with the hero. When you introduce a series of new villains to the hero and then expect the audience to care for them all would be asking a great deal. That’s why in books like ‘Lord of the Rings’ and ‘Harry Potter’, when the books begin, the villains already are in the main character’s life, they have fallen and then they will rise. It adds weight to the villains.

  That’s why (I had this theory, mind you it’s a theory that is just assumptions and not fact) that despite the writers’ attempts to write worthy new villains for the Eleventh Doctor, (the crack in the skin of the universe where all his enemies blame the Doctor, then the Academy of the Question—personally I greatly enjoyed them all) people weren’t as keen to enjoy them as the finales of the RTD Era, where RTD was able to use all the classic villains, something Moffat could not do because they had been used. People sometimes naturally gravitate toward the villains with history than new ones who don’t have as much. Mind you, again, that’s just my theory, and I could be in error about that.

  And the great thing about ‘Doctor Who’ is that the episodes allow there to be heavy implications that other things happen in the background, between episodes. Since I was desirous to create some villains for the story, I thought it best to have them always have been present in the Doctor’s life, but we just never saw any of their prior conflicts before. In regards to bringing back the Dream Lord, well, we all have our favorites, and he was always one of my all-time favorite monsters of the week, to the point where I wished to see him again. Also, I knew that with Ten, my choices for his adventure would be more psychologically driven, and so I thought the Dream Lord would be perfect for him. And to be honest, I had so MUCH fun writing him. And with the Angels versus the Daleks, I didn’t really want the villains with Twelve to be the main focus, but rather I wanted the focus to be Donna and Twelve together and them to be caught in the crossfire of something large. Also the Daleks are so well developed in the show, that I knew there was no need to focus on their backstory at all. It would just be redundant to the reader, I felt. With the Angels, I very much did want the reader to walk away feeling like the angels in this could be benign and good, but underlying it, they could still be a great threat. Could the Angels of Crellia be villains themselves over time? Anything is possible.

  Question: Are the Sea Devils in this tale connected to the ones that the Fifth Doctor comes in contact with in ‘Warriors of the Deep’?

  Answer: No, these are a different sect.

  Question: With Eleven and Martha, when they meet on Marinus for the first time, is this the same Marinus that is featured in the First Doctor’s run, in ‘The Keys to Marinus’?

  Answer: To be honest, no it is not. You know how New New New etc. York was named after the original New York? Well, the name Marinus was used twice, gaining inspiration from the first one. I did this for two reasons:

  1) For those who saw that episode, they would notice the reference, and see that it would serve as foreshadowing, hinting that the Doctor’s adventure this time would center around something from his first regeneration.

  2) Honestly, Reader, I just really liked the name Marinus, and I wished to use it again.

  Question: Why did I begin to speed up the writing near the climax of the story, where the conflict happens, when I would draw out the earlier parts of exposition/inciting incident?

  Answer: As a writer, I learned the hard way, that it never was a good idea to draw out everything in a climax, because the story loses momentum. Also I wanted that part of the book to have the same feeling/speed of the climax of the show itself. When the full on confrontation did occur, things always gather speed.

  Question: Why have RTD companions with Moffat Doctors and vice versa?

  Answer: The truth is, while I know quite a great many Doctor Who viewers hate what Moffat has done with the show, I love his run as much as RTD. I like what both did to the show. One classic Whovian I met from London when she was visiting America (it was brilliant for me, because she was the first British Who fan I met. It’s one thing to watch them on YouTube, but I had never met one before at all who watched ‘Doctor Who’ since the very first episode aired in the 60s), and what she said was brilliant:

  “These complaints about the Moffat Era are nothing new, at all. Do you know the first time people said ‘Doctor Who’ lost its spark and was going down the drain? When Troughton took over for Hartnell, then when the four Doctors came together, then when Davison took over for Baker, then The entire Sixth Doctor Era, then when the show actually got cancelled because people said it was getting too violent, despite that things did get a little better during the seventh Doctor’s run. Then they said things were going down the drain again when the Doctor fell in love with a teenager when the show got revived, then when series 3 occurred, despite that the episodes were pretty awesome, then when it became clear that every RTD finale would suffer from a Deus ex Machina, then when Tennant left, etc. etc. etc.’ She had been hearing these arguments for so long and she reassured me of the fact that it was Time that always helped Doctor Who, for as much as she hated the Sixth Doctor, there even were a couple of episodes from his era that she grew to love. People are always thinking the prior era was better, due to nostalgia. It just takes time to accept things that are different, because they are not what you expected.

  Another quote I liked was from Kevin Nestiel, a reviewer from Vine Voice, on Amazon:

  “Russell T. Davies suggested the Doctor was somehow responsible for the chaos surrounding him. Margaret's monologue in the episode "Boomtown" stresses that, to his vanquished enemies, the Doctor is the real criminal. Steven Moffat takes a more nuanced tack: while the Doctor holds some culpability for bad choices, he's the product of a violent and conflicted universe. In such a setting, the show suggests, a good man has little choice but to lash out in the name of justice.”

  This quote is the reason why I liked both the RTD and the Moffat Era. I think both takes on the Doctor and the angles taken to augment them do work, but are just different. That’s why I liked to mix the Doctor and companions, and in this trilogy both eras are joined to augment each other, rather than be considered two different entities where one does not live up to the other. Of course I respect those who just like one over the other. Very much so. And I admit that I am easy to please, always have been. Episodes that are universally hailed as awful by the Whovian universe: 42, The Lazarus Experiment, Smith and Jones, The Unicorn and the Wasp, The Beast Below, Vampires of Venice, Hungry Earth/Cold Blood, Rebel Flesh/Almost People, Night Terrors, The God Complex, Closing Time, Dinosaurs on a Spaceship, The Power of Three, Bells of Saint John, Rings of Akhaten, Cold War, Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS, Crimson Horror, the Time of the Doctor, personally I think they are great.

  Still however, this trilogy is just a celebration of both eras as well as Classic Who as a whole.

  Question: Why bring in Five, Six, Seven, and Eight for only a little while?

  Answer: They were there to be a surprising climactic moment, and I also learned the hard way to not ever have a surprising climatic moment remain for too long. The second you draw it out, the second you make a mistake somewhere.

  Question: How dare I have Nine doubt Rose after ‘Father’s Day’, when we all know that she was the perfect companion who Nine adored, therefore he would never doubt her actions?

  Answer: To be honest, I felt that his doubting of Rose would not only be realistic, but also natural. It was important throughout writing this that the Doctor’s thoughts were revealed for me, and being
dubious or sometimes feeling hurt/let down are organic emotions. Also while Rose is loved by many, she still was not perfect at all, had many flaws, some light and innocent, others dark, but they are present. Even the writers of the show admit this, confronted it and declare how much that was the point. She had flaws like all the companions did. Therefore, I thought it was natural for Nine to comment on it, and sometimes he could be direct and to the point about things. Especially when something happened and it was harmful to the situation. Therefore, it just seemed natural to do.

  Martha’s Connection to Clara

  This is just another theory of mine. But I came upon it by accident when I was watching Runaway Bride/Smith and Jones/Shakespeare Code/Gridlock, then I put in Snowmen/Bells of Saint John/Rings of Akhaten. Because I had just watched one CD, then the other, I accidentally noticed how not only do Martha and Clara have similar traits when they first jump aboard the TARDIS, they also have some similar lines here and there. They are both beautiful, very smart, had aims and ambitions before the Doctor came along, were able to deduce things really quickly, had many people depending on them, were the stable ones, and also were loyal to the people in their lives, both hated by a great portion of the fanbase—and they both found the Doctor attractive.

  But then their relationship with the Doctor is different, and I realize that was not a difference between them, but it was the difference between the Doctors. For example, when Clara kisses the Doctor in Snowmen/flirts with him in Bells of Saint John, the tone is very different than how Ten does it with Martha. When Martha says ‘well you’re the one who kissed me’, he replies ‘stop it’, then tells her before that he’ll give her one trip and then she goes back home, while when Clara flirts, Eleven literally also says ‘stop it’ but before that he took an umbrella for her to pull down the ladder to the cloud and then he offered her the key to his TARDIS and made her his companion fully. One flirted with the first companion, then closed the door when she flirted back, and did not accept her as an equal, then the other was pursued by the companion at first, but then when he opened the door to her, he let it stay open. Then Ten kept bringing Rose up as his true companion in front of Martha, making her feel as if she was competing with a ghost, and Eleven never did that at all. Both Doctors go to great lengths to hide things from both women, but eventually the companions wiggle things out of them, but with Martha, Ten could be a little more vehement about it and provoking. It was always apparent with Eleven that he did it to protect things, though it was not fair to Clara. Both women also see the Doctor in their darker state where they need someone to depend on rather than being the person who others depended on.

  Also both Doctors gain miraculous actions from Martha/Clara’s part, but Ten seems to expect it of her, and Eleven doesn’t, but is happy when it happens anyway. When he first meets her, Ten expects Martha to work an MRI machine, then he turns to her in Shakespeare Code and expects her to think of the right word, he believes outright that she will be able to look after herself in Gridlock, he expects her to figure out things in Evolution of the Daleks when he gives her his psychic paper, and then to survive fighting the pig slaves, etc. etc. all throughout series 3. In series 7, Clara does miraculous things as well, using her new hacking skills to figure out where the Great Intelligence is located, giving her leaf at Akhaten, offering to interrogate the Ice Warrior in Cold War, getting him from the pocket universe in Hide, etc. etc. Each time, he never asks her to do these things or expect it; she just does. Therefore, with Martha, it sometimes felt like the Doctor viewed her as this impervious superhero who he could expect to always save the day, and failed to notice that she was human too and needed more friendly affection and deserved it. With Eleven, he had an impervious hero on his hands who he always treated like a human. Which he definitely does. Is this difference there because the Doctors are different, or is it because of Martha that Eleven does treat Clara that way? Is it Martha and Clara who fully mark the arc of the Doctor himself? That’s why, I felt, that in Rings of Akhaten, when Clara said, ‘Whoever she was, I’m not her. If you want me to travel with you, then that’s fine, but as me… I’m not going to compete with ghosts’, though it was referring to the fact that this ‘ghost’ was actually herself, I felt that the writers were telling the audience: ‘don’t worry, the Doctor has learned’. Of course, I could be in error about this all but it is still fun to consider. And there are more similarities between both women than I stated, more similar quotes between them, but if I listed them, this section would be endless. Thus I thought to put Martha with Eleven when he meets Clara because if there was one RTD companion who would be perfect for him at that time, who also needed a Doctor like him, it was Martha. That’s another reason why I did not get mad at Clara’s lack of an arc with Eleven. Well for one, she had just gotten onto the show, and arcs develop over time, but also, by her remaining the same with him, it showed the arc of the Doctor, I felt.

  The Connection Between Amy and Rose

  When I say the connection between Amy and Rose, what I mean is that they came to the Doctor at the exact time mostly and therefore, being the first face the Doctors connected with, they would be the means through which the Doctor would revive himself. They both had great qualities in regards to being the inspiration through which the Doctor would improve himself, overall. Also they both have similar stories in that they had a significant other who they hurt in their pursuits for the Doctor. Yet therein is a change. Rose’s relationship and overall treatment of Mickey is… well, you can choose what you feel about it. With Amy and Rory, it could have gone the same way, but it takes a different turn and Amy grows, develops and learns to respect Rory more. Whether it’s because her mistake had a lot of backstory to it, or because the Doctor has changed his mentality overall, and wishes not to destroy relationships, Amy and Rory have a great path to walk down and Amy really does redeem herself actually. Of course Rose doesn’t chronically be bad to Mickey. She had her bad moments, then good moments, then bad moments again, then good moment again, and it kept going that way. Thus I felt that the Ponds were good for Ten because of this, and the first face Eleven saw is meeting Ten, the Doctor who had lost the first face his face ever saw: Rose.

  What I hope for Donna and Bill

  When I first met Donna in Runaway Bride, I wasn’t crazy about her. Then after a few times of watching the episode, I grew to love her. She’s there to display how often it’s the loud girls who are viewed as ridiculous, obnoxious, stupid, and have more growth to undergo can actually be the best friends in the end and the best people. They just need more time to develop, feel secure in themselves and be accepted for who they are. Well, when Bill was first presented to the Whovian world, many were annoyed by her, and I’m hoping that it will be the same way as it was with Donna. Once she is introduced fully, and we get to know her, and if she’s great, we will see that her personality is lovable. So I put Donna with Twelve for that.

  Notes of More Adventures

  While this is the only story that I shall fully write about ‘Doctor Who’, I did have a whole set of adventures that I always thought about occurring in the world of the Doctors, especially after this trilogy, and for any who wish to continue reading, I’m about to give a list of them. I hope you enjoy the other ideas.

  The Mother of the Timelords

  Who gave an Eye of Harmony to Croesus?

  Well, recall the myth behind how the Matrix might have invented the Timelords just to have a reason to justify her own existence? Well, what if she is real, I thought. Perhaps she didn’t invent the Timelords, but she is the reason that the TARDISes exist. I had one thought of if she not only existed, but of course survived the destruction of Gallifrey, she was upset at the Doctor for his actions and it took her a long time to consider how to get revenge. Therefore, she managed to find a way to give an Eye to Croesus, so that he could go back in time and destroy the Doctor so that Gallifrey never gets destroyed. What if Clara and the Doctor have to rise against her to protect the universe? Or the
Matrix is not angry with the Doctor, but somehow an Eye of Harmony got taken from her and Croesus got ahold of it. Either way, it would be interesting to see the Matrix herself and have her figure into the stories.

  As they continue to travel together, Clara and Eleven eventually meet Croesus and have to fight him again, but this time, he is in league with the sontarans. But luckily, the Doctor and Clara have managed to befriend an old species of the universe: the Quarks. Determined to redeem themselves to the universe who think they are still villains, they wage war with the sontarans and mechanoids so that they will not overtake their planet. The Doctor comes to their aid, tricking the Daleks to pursue him across the universe, where he brings them to the sontaran forces and they battle it out. With them fighting each other, their ranks get decimated. Croesus and the sontarans are defeated, the Daleks have to also retreat because of their losses, but Croesus is able to escape. Only to be captured by cybermen, who wish for him to remodel their species in repayment for the loses they endured on Mondas.