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I like how Russell Davies, in his time as headwriter, has developed the character of the Doctor. The Doctor is still the Doctor. I never feel like I'm watching a 'new take' on the old show, or a complete re-imagining. It feels like the same Doctor Who I watched as a teen (with Tom Baker), and the Doctor feels like the same Doctor I've seen from Number 1 on. Davies didn't change the show; he grew the seeds that were already planted by previous writers.
And boy are they growing now. The Doctor under Davies pen has been somewhat tortured due to his action to end the Time War ( we're never clear on exactly what he did, but it clearly haunts him). He's still had his humor, his sense of adventure, his love of humans (which was not something he had from the start, but we grew on him). But in both CE's doctor and in DT's doctor, there was an undercurrent of guilt and darkness.
The Doctor has always had a dark side. When younger (as Doctor 1) he was quite selfish and manipulative. Those qualities never left him, though they were more exaggerated in some incarnations than others. He's also always had his own way of doing things, which is sometimes a good quality and sometimes not. Self Will Run Riot has gotten him into trouble more than once. But the same will, at other times, has saved him and others. He needs that strength of will.
In the past, his companions kept him in check, other time lords kept him in check. This is something RTD has built on. The doctor needs someone, not just because he's lonely, but because without someone he's dangerous. That wonderful will needs someone to check it. He needs someone to be his wisdom, because he's very smart, but not always very wise.
I did not care for The Next Doctor or Planet of the Dead all that much. They were okay. I liked the actors and characters, but the stories were a bit 'bleh' to me. A bit of a yawn. However, they are not really 'skippable' stories, because they continue to develop the doctor -- getting him to the point he is in Waters of Mars. Those stories show a doctor alone, who is choosing to remain alone. In Journey's End we saw him systematically cut off everyone who cared for him, and in the first two specials we saw him continue down that path. He's going to go it alone.
And we know, from Rose's line in Dalek (and what are you becoming, Doctor?), through Donna's warnings to him in both series three and four (you need someone to stop you), that the Doctor alone is not a good thing.
I even flashed back to the first new series episode, Rose, as I watched the doctor snap in Waters of Mars:
"What you're saying is everything revolves around you?"
"Yes."
So, has the Doctor gone dark? I'm not sure. He was scary in those final Waters of Mars scenes (both on Mars and on Earth). But he was still very much himself. His initial motives were good, and typical of him. Screw the rules, I'm going to save people.
And somewhere between his going back in to the base, and letting folks off on Earth... those motives changed. It was not about saving them, it was about him winning. Finally winning the time war... not against the Daleks, but against Time itself.
If the story had ended right there, with him going on about being Timelord Victorious, I'd have expected a very dark doctor in the finales. But Adelaide's disturbing death really shocked him. He snapped in one way on Mars, and I think in another way on Earth.
On to the Children In Need special. The fellah who strolled out of the TARDIS with the straw cowboy hat and lei was not the dark fellow going on about being a winner in WoM. I was not sure what to make of him (other than DT seemed to be channelling Tom Baker in those scenes). I laughed, but uneasily. The guy is still unraveling. He's not 'off' in the way I expected, but he's still 'off'. It's like watching a friend who is in a bad place. They are still themselves, but something is wrong.
The doctor is just 'wrong' now. Still the doctor. Still in character. But 'off'.
I'm very curious as to where RTD will take the character before his exit. I expect the Doctor will win, but the most serious battle will be in his own soul.
A few more thoughts: Part of me wonders if they are taking the Doctor into Master territory. Certainly there were lines to support this. On WoM his whole TimeLord Victorious bit, and distinguishing between important and little people, was very Master Like. His "...and they will OBEY ME" was a line ripped right from the Master's script. Then his lines in the CIN clip-- at least one was straight from the "zany'' Master who was prime minister ('not funny? not even a little bit?' ). Intentional parallel? Do we now have a Doctor that alternates between zany and outright mad and scary?
I can't quite believe they will take him that far. But RTD has drawn strong parallels between the Doctor and the Master, building on parallels that existed in the original series. It was strong in the series three finales, and it's stronger now. So will the doctor have to face his Inner Master and defeat that? Can he defeat that part of him without his companions there to help?
Last thought: Anyone find the Ood sniffing that smoke reminiscent of the soothsayers in Fires of Pompeii? Are we going to flashback to that episode? And where will Donna fit into all this?
