meet the new boss same as the old boss

[chicafrom3]

Russell T Davies will be taking over as Doctor Who showrunner, effective the 60th anniversary

I'm not happy.

I try really hard to be positive about Doctor Who stuff -- it's my happy fandom, honestly! -- but this news has genuinely made me distressed. For multiple reasons.

For one thing I don't think we should be going backwards. I understand that this is a hard position to fill -- Moffat reportedly had to get Chibnall drunk in order to get him to accept the job, and even then he had to stay a year longer than he'd originally planned -- but we couldn't find anyone new? Doctor Who is a show that should be moving forwards. It's a show that should be celebrating progress and new ideas. (I mean, it's arguable how much three white middle-aged dudes in a row are doing that, but nevertheless.) Going back fifteen years to the guy who was in charge when the current crop of fans were kids is...not doing that.

I also don't really think I've made a secret that RTD is my least favorite of the New Who showrunners. Unpopular opinion, sure, but there it is. I revisit his era and there's stuff there I love and there's stuff there that makes me really tired and unhappy. That's probably the least significant item on this list but I'd be remiss if I didn't mention my biases.

And, above all else, there's some really worrying shit that was going on behind the scenes during his time as showrunner that's been having a spotlight shone on it recently. Three male actors have had sexual assault or harrassment charges brought against them, one of whom was so well known as bringing his junk out on set that everyone else (RTD included) made a running joke out of it. Chris Eccleston has made it clear that he refuses to return to Doctor Who on TV because RTD-era production was such a toxic set, and specifically named RTD and Julie Gardner for enabling and furthering that. Obviously it's been a long time since then and RTD has showrun other shows and presumably learned from the experience and (hopefully) will not repeat mistakes, but... It's still concerning to me that this is all happening at once without even a mention.

I don't know.

I'm trying to keep an open mind and hopefully it'll all work out for the best but I'm just really not excited about this news.

Comments

[elisi]

Here via who_daily. *waves*

I also don't really think I've made a secret that RTD is my least favorite of the New Who showrunners. Unpopular opinion, sure, but there it is.
This intrigues me. Not so much because of RTD (goodness knows, I could easily make a list as long as my arm about his flaws) but because of ranking Chibnall above him. I'd love to read further thoughts on this.

Three male actors have had sexual assault or harrassment charges brought against them
Who is the third? JB & Noel Clarke I know of, but the third eludes me.

Chris Eccleston has made it clear that he refuses to return to Doctor Who on TV because RTD-era production was such a toxic set, and specifically named RTD and Julie Gardner for enabling and furthering that. Obviously it's been a long time since then and RTD has showrun other shows and presumably learned from the experience and (hopefully) will not repeat mistakes, but...
I hear ya. I've also read The Writers Tale and am wondering WHY ON EARTH RTD would willingly return to that level of stress. Guess we'll have to wait and see what the future brings.

[chicafrom3.livejournal.com]

The third is Bruno Langley (Adam Mitchell) who pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault in 2017 - the full details are on his Wikipedia page (as well as elsewhere, but that's a good quick summation!)

Not so much because of RTD (goodness knows, I could easily make a list as long as my arm about his flaws) but because of ranking Chibnall above him. I'd love to read further thoughts on this.

Ha! I know it puts me on the far outreaches of fandom, but yes, my ranking goes Moffat >> Chibnall > RTD. The Chibnall era definitely has its flaws -- there's some moments that are just really, really not thought through, like the ending of Kerblam! or the moment the Doctor disables the Master's perception filter -- but there's a lot of things I think he's done very well. He's the first of the New Who showrunners who's really tackled historicals as something other than set dressing and the result has been very successful, his take on the Daleks and the Cybermen has been very effective, and the Fugitive Doctor was a very daring idea team 6B.

I also really like the characters he's given us, which is possibly an even more heretical opinion. I like Ryan, he's sweet.

On the other hand, everything I like about RTD I have to caveat. I adore the Ninth Doctor! ...but when I rewatch his episodes I cringe knowing what an awful time Chris had making it (and now there's the extra awfulness of knowing that Langley, Clarke, and Barrowman are...well). Martha is one of my favorite companions of all time! ...and every time I rewatch her episodes I cringe at how awful the Doctor and the narrative treat her. And so on.

It's all down to personal taste but that's where I stand.

I'm still trying to be optimistic! Given how burnt-out RTD openly was at the time that he left hopefully he wouldn't take the job again if he didn't think he could handle it better now. Culture in general has changed so much that ideally things both behind and in front of the camera will be improved naturally. I would love to be pleasantly surprised by the quality.

We'll see!

[elisi]

The third is Bruno Langley (Adam Mitchell) who pleaded guilty to two counts of sexual assault in 2017
Thank you! I did not know that. And surely there is some sort of irony attached to the fact that 'the bad companion' turned out to be IRL too...

Ha! I know it puts me on the far outreaches of fandom, but yes, my ranking goes Moffat >> Chibnall > RTD.
Thank you for explaining. I very almost rage-quit after Kerblam! (I try my best to forget that episode exists), but overall Chibnall's era has just been oddly dull - except when it's gone completely the opposite way, throwing in the Fugitive Doctor & the Timeless Child. I'm a meta fan so Moffat is my favourite by miles and Chibnall has just not engaged me in that way, despite the curveballs. (Which is not a bad thing tbh, the Moffat years were wonderful, but I needed the break.)

I also really like the characters he's given us, which is possibly an even more heretical opinion. I like Ryan, he's sweet.
I am very fond of them, I just wish they'd done more with them. Mind you, Dhawan was insanely good casting and his Master is riveting. I hope he stays on.

On the other hand, everything I like about RTD I have to caveat.
Ahhh, yes I see. That makes sense. Although pretty much every show I love comes with caveats. I started out as a Buffy fan - a show which was problematic at the time, and has only had more stuff added to it, but it's still my show. There are a few exceptions (like Good Omens), but overall I factor in the caveats as a matter of course, and wish it wasn't so...

I would love to be pleasantly surprised by the quality.
Yes, here's to hoping! I have a feeling he'll come in & shake everything up even more. And if it doesn't work, then hopefully we'll get someone NEW once he leaves again...

[chicafrom3.livejournal.com]

Dhawan is far and away the best part of the Chibnall years! He's ridiculously good. I hope we get years and years more of material from him.

Yes, here's to hoping! I have a feeling he'll come in & shake everything up even more. And if it doesn't work, then hopefully we'll get someone NEW once he leaves again...

Yes! Exactly. My absolute best case scenario is that we have a short but great RTD-2 run where he shakes things up, brings some new ideas and new blood into the show, and then hands the reins over to someone new that he's prepped during his run, like he did with Moffat. The dream.