Random DW excitement and thoughts
Oct. 16th, 2023 08:07 am![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
shivverLots of DW things going on in our house right now, much of it 60th-related but some not. Well, Disgaea 7 also came out recently and that's the latest installment of my husband's favorite video game series, so he's been nose-down in that, but otherwise, the DW excitement is certainly building. (Hm, I wonder, does he really like it more than NieR? He's certainly played that series more than he has the NieR games, but he's definitely more invested in the lore of NieR.)
The new theme
About every two hours, my husband just randomly calls it up on YouTube and plays it, he likes it so much. I just looked it up and it's Murray Gold - he's doing the music for both the 60th and Fifteen's run. So, I highly doubt that Fifteen's theme will return to the more electronic feel that Thirteen had, but now I'm also wondering if Fifteen will have his own theme, separate from the 60th's. I hope so.
Two things I love about the new theme. First, in the intro part, the violins come in with the same triplet arpeggios that they played in the background behind the main theme in the Series 1/2 and Series 4 versions, but then that part cuts out before the main theme properly begins. It's like the music calls back to the earlier versions and then says, "But now we move on!"
Second, I love the piano - the cycling triplets in the middle but especially the eighth-note (that's quaver for you Brits) chord progression layered against the rest of the orchestra's triplets at the end.
And then there's the vocal chorus at the middle eight and the soaring horns (I really have a soft spot for horns). Though I love all of the different versions of the DW theme, it's really tough for me to not prefer the orchestral renditions, just because that's my preference in music.
Magic: the Gathering
Astonishingly enough, Magic: the Gathering has a DW-themed set, which Wizards of the Coast (WotC) just released on Friday, and we should be receiving boxes today. We're rather surprised, as Magic is combat-oriented so we're not quite sure how they're working in the Doctor's pacifism. (This is the reason why there aren't any truly good DW computer or tabletop games: no one has come up with a way to gamify non-violent problem-solving. How do you make a game out of a hero who primarily talks the situation out? The most successful DW games have been tabletop RPGs where the gamemaster and players craft the story together and puzzle computer games where the game mechanics (the puzzles) are completely detached from the story and world.)
My husband and I used to play Magic way back when, but haven't in probably two decades now, though he still follows it a little - enough to understand the basic terminology, but not enough to know how new mechanics work. (They've changed terminology since we've played, so it actually is significant that he understands the core rules.) I actually really like the game, but it got too complicated: if you want to build a deck, you have hundreds of cards to choose from, even if you limit yourself to a single color or purpose. I didn't have enough time or interest to devote to getting good at it. And, of course, it's expensive to keep up with. I remember that we actually had Magic cards worked into our budget - we allowed for each of us to spend $5 on Magic each week, and we kept a tally on our fridge of what funds we had available, so that we didn't overspend.
So, this new DW set appeals to our DW fan excitement, our interest in Magic (especially since this is a one-shot and we don't have to actually get back into the game), and our collector's itch. I haven't wanted to be spoiled, but my husband glanced at the card list, not enough to really have an idea of what this set will entail, but enough to know that there are cards for Turlough and Barbara - meaning, yes, they're doing all of DW, all the way back to 1963, and not just the modern stuff or the popular stuff.
If you're interested in collecting these cards, here's the info that I've been able to find out.
The Legacy of Time audios
The Legacy of Time was the series of audios that Big Finish released in celebration of their 20th anniversary (in 2019). I've been listening to this and it's been really confusing for me, because
I have to admit that I've been getting very confused about what I'm actually listening to, and also been getting upset that "Omg BF is on such a binge of pairing the Doctor up with everyone and his dog and they need to stop!" Of course it's not their fault. They do that rarely. It's my fault for simultaneously listening to their two series that do this. :P
Anyway, I'm mentioning TLoT now because I'm approaching the end of the final audio, "Collision Course", and I think I've actually enjoyed this series for the most part, taking into account all of my confusion - enough that I am planning to listen to the entire thing again (hopefully not on the way to/from band and paying a lot more attention). I'm going to postpone writing reviews for this until I've done a relisten.
Anticipation
Random blather
My excitement for the 60th is building as November approaches, though not enough for me to seek out spoilers. I've watched the original teaser trailer a couple of times, but have avoided everything newer. We noticed a very long time ago that the official content tends to give out too much information and spoil the surprises, so we're really careful with what we watch.
(Don't believe me? Go take a look at the "next time" trailers after episodes before Dalek episodes - they try to build suspense for the next adventure, and then reveal that the villain will be Daleks. The series trailers do this as well. Also, just after the first part of Spyfall aired, the BBC released a "Welcome to the new Master, Sacha Dhawan" message - but O wasn't revealed to be the Master until part 2.)
What I'm hoping the story is going to be but obviously won't actually be (do not read this if you don't want to be horrified by my callousness toward Donna :D )
So what exactly is going on with the Fourteenth Doctor being the return of the tenth face? I've been thinking about this for a while, and this is what I would like to see for this story, though I am absolutely sure that this isn't what will actually happen, because I don't expect that RTD will upend "Journey's End" like this. (Remember, I'm only going on what's in the very first trailer.)
My version is that the villain here is Meta. In Pete's World, whether or not he and Rose managed to live a good life together, he gets killed, in an accident or something. However, remember that he's a partly-human offshoot of a creature who regenerates infinitely, so he doesn't actually die - he regenerates, but not well, maybe not completely, maybe his body is unstable, maybe he goes mad, whatever, because he's partly human and it doesn't work correctly. For any of these reasons, he decides he needs to get back to what he was before. He uses the TARDIS he's built out of the coral he was given to return to the main universe to seek the Doctor out.
This botched regeneration blew holes in his memories of his life as the Doctor, and thus, he calls himself the Valeyard and attempts to get his life back by taking the Doctor to trial. When that fails, perhaps he uses the degeneration idea that the Master used in "The Power of the Doctor", or perhaps he dies again due to his instability, or maybe something else, but however it happens, he attempts to re-merge with the Doctor just as she's regenerating, producing Fourteen - it doesn't work correctly and manages to re-surface Ten, with Meta trapped in his mind. Thus, the character that we see in the trailer played by Neil Patrick Harris are hallucinations caused by Meta trying to figure out how to take him over.
Somehow, whether or not the Doctor knows what's actually going on, he realizes that Donna is the key to this. I should go with the popular fandom idea that he could separate the Meta and Donna pieces in both characters and recombine them to remake them correctly, and then they each get to live their best lives. However, that leaves a second Doctor running around the universe, which isn't good for the franchise, so maybe the Doctor makes Meta return to Pete's World, which is just as repulsive to me - now Rose's consolation-prize boy toy is fully powered and she gets exactly what she always wanted. I hate Mary Sues.
The other problem with this is that this story ends happily, which is totally out-of-character for the Tenth Doctor (and by extension, the Fourteenth Doctor). So, strike that paragraph and this is how it ends.
Somehow, whether or not the Doctor knows what's actually going on, he realizes that Donna is the key to this. He retrieves her and sets everything up to fix the metacrisis, including a new handy (ha!) matching bioreceptacle, but then discovers that it's not going to work - maybe he can't extricate Meta without harming her, or, since I've already set it up above that Meta no longer has his original body, there's no longer a Donna half for her to get back, so if he does this, she'll die. Donna then willingly sacrifices herself to give Meta his life and save the Doctor.
Honestly, this is my preferred ending. Dilemmas, tragedy, and a noble (ha again!) sacrifice, and Fourteen gets a new kick in the kidneys. I should write this.
Writing
Okay, I lied. I'm not actually writing DW right now. I'm working on another Good Omens short story, and wow, I'm having a tough time of it. I don't know what's wrong, but I'm working on this scene and I keep having to rewrite it because it's not coming out right. As in, I go, "Okay, the characters are going to do (this)!" Then I write, and at the end, they've done (that), so I have to remove it and rewrite it to do (this). Or, I write it and they've done (something), and I realize that no, it would work better if they do (this other thing), so I have to remove and rewrite. I've been working on this off and on for the past couple of weeks and have probably produced less than two pages, because I keep removing and rewriting. It's frustrating.
However, I have laid it aside periodically and added paragraphs to some of my lighter DW WIPs: some little bit of Blue Rain here, some thoughts about a story in my David AU (though that particular one has to wait until we see what happens in the 60th), and some work on a canon adventure that I really do want to write. Plus, a discussion withromanajo123 reminded me that I've always wanted to write a story about Mercy Hartigan, so there's a thing.
The new theme
About every two hours, my husband just randomly calls it up on YouTube and plays it, he likes it so much. I just looked it up and it's Murray Gold - he's doing the music for both the 60th and Fifteen's run. So, I highly doubt that Fifteen's theme will return to the more electronic feel that Thirteen had, but now I'm also wondering if Fifteen will have his own theme, separate from the 60th's. I hope so.
Two things I love about the new theme. First, in the intro part, the violins come in with the same triplet arpeggios that they played in the background behind the main theme in the Series 1/2 and Series 4 versions, but then that part cuts out before the main theme properly begins. It's like the music calls back to the earlier versions and then says, "But now we move on!"
Second, I love the piano - the cycling triplets in the middle but especially the eighth-note (that's quaver for you Brits) chord progression layered against the rest of the orchestra's triplets at the end.
And then there's the vocal chorus at the middle eight and the soaring horns (I really have a soft spot for horns). Though I love all of the different versions of the DW theme, it's really tough for me to not prefer the orchestral renditions, just because that's my preference in music.
Magic: the Gathering
Astonishingly enough, Magic: the Gathering has a DW-themed set, which Wizards of the Coast (WotC) just released on Friday, and we should be receiving boxes today. We're rather surprised, as Magic is combat-oriented so we're not quite sure how they're working in the Doctor's pacifism. (This is the reason why there aren't any truly good DW computer or tabletop games: no one has come up with a way to gamify non-violent problem-solving. How do you make a game out of a hero who primarily talks the situation out? The most successful DW games have been tabletop RPGs where the gamemaster and players craft the story together and puzzle computer games where the game mechanics (the puzzles) are completely detached from the story and world.)
My husband and I used to play Magic way back when, but haven't in probably two decades now, though he still follows it a little - enough to understand the basic terminology, but not enough to know how new mechanics work. (They've changed terminology since we've played, so it actually is significant that he understands the core rules.) I actually really like the game, but it got too complicated: if you want to build a deck, you have hundreds of cards to choose from, even if you limit yourself to a single color or purpose. I didn't have enough time or interest to devote to getting good at it. And, of course, it's expensive to keep up with. I remember that we actually had Magic cards worked into our budget - we allowed for each of us to spend $5 on Magic each week, and we kept a tally on our fridge of what funds we had available, so that we didn't overspend.
So, this new DW set appeals to our DW fan excitement, our interest in Magic (especially since this is a one-shot and we don't have to actually get back into the game), and our collector's itch. I haven't wanted to be spoiled, but my husband glanced at the card list, not enough to really have an idea of what this set will entail, but enough to know that there are cards for Turlough and Barbara - meaning, yes, they're doing all of DW, all the way back to 1963, and not just the modern stuff or the popular stuff.
If you're interested in collecting these cards, here's the info that I've been able to find out.
- There are 189 cards in the base set, and then hundreds of variants - meaning, if you get those 189 cards, you'll have one of each card, but then there are other versions of those cards with alternate art, special borders, foiling, etc.
- There are two ways of purchasing the cards new - the Commander decks and the booster packs. The Commander decks are pre-built decks meant to be playable, and there are four versions. If you buy all four Commander decks, you will have at least one of all 189 basic cards. This will cost about $240.
- The booster packs are random packs of 15 cards. This is where the variant cards come from - they will be rare (though you may be able to sell them for a lot - I'm seeing "serial" Thirteenth Doctor cards being listed for $500). (The Commander decks come with two booster packs.)
- If you just want a set of one of each card, it will probably be easiest and cheapest to search the web for people selling sets. eBay's a good idea.
The Legacy of Time audios
The Legacy of Time was the series of audios that Big Finish released in celebration of their 20th anniversary (in 2019). I've been listening to this and it's been really confusing for me, because
- I listen to audios on the way to and from band practice, which is twice a week, so I don't really get a really good continuous listen to any particular story, and
- I'm listening to it in-between the releases of Once and Future, Big Finish's offering for the 60th, and both series pair the Doctor in question with companions or friends from other incarnations.
I have to admit that I've been getting very confused about what I'm actually listening to, and also been getting upset that "Omg BF is on such a binge of pairing the Doctor up with everyone and his dog and they need to stop!" Of course it's not their fault. They do that rarely. It's my fault for simultaneously listening to their two series that do this. :P
Anyway, I'm mentioning TLoT now because I'm approaching the end of the final audio, "Collision Course", and I think I've actually enjoyed this series for the most part, taking into account all of my confusion - enough that I am planning to listen to the entire thing again (hopefully not on the way to/from band and paying a lot more attention). I'm going to postpone writing reviews for this until I've done a relisten.
Anticipation
Random blather
My excitement for the 60th is building as November approaches, though not enough for me to seek out spoilers. I've watched the original teaser trailer a couple of times, but have avoided everything newer. We noticed a very long time ago that the official content tends to give out too much information and spoil the surprises, so we're really careful with what we watch.
(Don't believe me? Go take a look at the "next time" trailers after episodes before Dalek episodes - they try to build suspense for the next adventure, and then reveal that the villain will be Daleks. The series trailers do this as well. Also, just after the first part of Spyfall aired, the BBC released a "Welcome to the new Master, Sacha Dhawan" message - but O wasn't revealed to be the Master until part 2.)
What I'm hoping the story is going to be but obviously won't actually be (do not read this if you don't want to be horrified by my callousness toward Donna :D )
So what exactly is going on with the Fourteenth Doctor being the return of the tenth face? I've been thinking about this for a while, and this is what I would like to see for this story, though I am absolutely sure that this isn't what will actually happen, because I don't expect that RTD will upend "Journey's End" like this. (Remember, I'm only going on what's in the very first trailer.)
My version is that the villain here is Meta. In Pete's World, whether or not he and Rose managed to live a good life together, he gets killed, in an accident or something. However, remember that he's a partly-human offshoot of a creature who regenerates infinitely, so he doesn't actually die - he regenerates, but not well, maybe not completely, maybe his body is unstable, maybe he goes mad, whatever, because he's partly human and it doesn't work correctly. For any of these reasons, he decides he needs to get back to what he was before. He uses the TARDIS he's built out of the coral he was given to return to the main universe to seek the Doctor out.
This botched regeneration blew holes in his memories of his life as the Doctor, and thus, he calls himself the Valeyard and attempts to get his life back by taking the Doctor to trial. When that fails, perhaps he uses the degeneration idea that the Master used in "The Power of the Doctor", or perhaps he dies again due to his instability, or maybe something else, but however it happens, he attempts to re-merge with the Doctor just as she's regenerating, producing Fourteen - it doesn't work correctly and manages to re-surface Ten, with Meta trapped in his mind. Thus, the character that we see in the trailer played by Neil Patrick Harris are hallucinations caused by Meta trying to figure out how to take him over.
Somehow, whether or not the Doctor knows what's actually going on, he realizes that Donna is the key to this. I should go with the popular fandom idea that he could separate the Meta and Donna pieces in both characters and recombine them to remake them correctly, and then they each get to live their best lives. However, that leaves a second Doctor running around the universe, which isn't good for the franchise, so maybe the Doctor makes Meta return to Pete's World, which is just as repulsive to me - now Rose's consolation-prize boy toy is fully powered and she gets exactly what she always wanted. I hate Mary Sues.
The other problem with this is that this story ends happily, which is totally out-of-character for the Tenth Doctor (and by extension, the Fourteenth Doctor). So, strike that paragraph and this is how it ends.
Somehow, whether or not the Doctor knows what's actually going on, he realizes that Donna is the key to this. He retrieves her and sets everything up to fix the metacrisis, including a new handy (ha!) matching bioreceptacle, but then discovers that it's not going to work - maybe he can't extricate Meta without harming her, or, since I've already set it up above that Meta no longer has his original body, there's no longer a Donna half for her to get back, so if he does this, she'll die. Donna then willingly sacrifices herself to give Meta his life and save the Doctor.
Honestly, this is my preferred ending. Dilemmas, tragedy, and a noble (ha again!) sacrifice, and Fourteen gets a new kick in the kidneys. I should write this.
Writing
Okay, I lied. I'm not actually writing DW right now. I'm working on another Good Omens short story, and wow, I'm having a tough time of it. I don't know what's wrong, but I'm working on this scene and I keep having to rewrite it because it's not coming out right. As in, I go, "Okay, the characters are going to do (this)!" Then I write, and at the end, they've done (that), so I have to remove it and rewrite it to do (this). Or, I write it and they've done (something), and I realize that no, it would work better if they do (this other thing), so I have to remove and rewrite. I've been working on this off and on for the past couple of weeks and have probably produced less than two pages, because I keep removing and rewriting. It's frustrating.
However, I have laid it aside periodically and added paragraphs to some of my lighter DW WIPs: some little bit of Blue Rain here, some thoughts about a story in my David AU (though that particular one has to wait until we see what happens in the 60th), and some work on a canon adventure that I really do want to write. Plus, a discussion with
romanajo123 reminded me that I've always wanted to write a story about Mercy Hartigan, so there's a thing.
no subject
Date: 2023-10-17 02:49 am (UTC)*headscratch*? This is basically the whole idea of adventure games.
You can see a gameplay video of the Doctor Who deck here: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hz0NNG6tvGo
no subject
Date: 2023-10-17 03:25 am (UTC)But there've been a number of attempts to create DW games of other types and they've either failed to reflect the nature of the show well by including combat or dissociated the mechanics of the game from the story to avoid the issue (such as with Doctor Who Legacy, which basically told a segment of the story then had you play a match-3 game as the method that the Doctor dealt with the problem; mind you, it was a good game, but it didn't make much sense if you thought too hard about it).