QuickTidal, on 16 July 2017 - 06:32 PM, said:
Silencer, on 16 July 2017 - 06:03 PM, said:
Side note: know at least five women who dropped the show previously due to bad writing now excited/thinking about watching again due to this news. So there's that.
Then you should tell those five women that the casting of a female Doctor should NOT be the deciding factor in returning to a show they stopped watching due to bad writing...
the writers should be that factor. The fact that they are thinking about watching again becuase of the gender of the main cast member...feels disingeniuous. It would be better if they trusted Chibnall more than Moffat, and like Whittakker's existing body of work...not that she's female.
Again, I'm not saying I'm against this personally. I like the actress. I didn't want it to be a woman, but I'll get used to it I'm sure.
I'm MUCH more interested in what Chibnall is ready to bring to the table to be honest. He needs to pull it out of the fire that Moffat has let it languish in for like 4 seasons now.
Except that's not really how this works. I can see what you mean by disingenuous, but it's different. In a world where most lead TV actors are male, being excited for one of your favourite franchises casting a woman as the lead is not sexism, or disingenuous. Being *against* a woman being cast, is. (IF, of course, your objection is simply because it's a woman. If the woman is a poor actress, not right for the role, or straight-up just doesn't make sense (this is where James Bond and the Doctor are two characters who have a lot more plausible leeway on the who of the actor than, say, Jack Bauer, due to their constant reincarnation and use of different actors in the past).)
I'd also contend that most of them left because the writing was shit. I doubt they're going to stick around if the writing remains shit, just because there is now a female Doctor. But I suspect that they will give it some leeway to start while they find their stride, as with previous showrunners/writers. They can be excited because one of the longest running male-led-with-no-real-reason-for-it series in science fiction is getting a female lead, by itself, and call that a good decision, by itself, while still reserving the right to drop the show if the writing doesn't pick up. I mean, seriously, dude. XD
I should also clarify that none of my previous post was directed at your post. It was entirely about the whiny snowflake manchildren who can't take a perfectly justified in-universe reason for casting a woman as the actor. Hell, I actually *like* your reason for being a bit disappointed, I agree a non-violent male role model is in short supply. But hey, the Doctor regenerates all the time, I'm sure that will come back, and it's not like the other three seasons of New Who will go away just because a woman is now the Doctor. In the meantime, bathe in the tears of sexists and MRA's everywhere.
QuickTidal, on 16 July 2017 - 10:02 PM, said:
Illuyankas, on 16 July 2017 - 09:20 PM, said:
Also you go ahead and tell those women they're wrong, see how that goes.
About as well as the people telling my wife today that she's wrong and a poor feminist for feeling the Doctor should remain a male?
Apprently having an opinon on this casting throws you one one side or the other with zero middle ground, and no subtlety to said opinions. It's either be completely on board, or you're awful apprently.
Even my more moderate opinion of "I'm fine with this, and I'm sure I'll get used to it...even if it's not what I wanted" puts me in the "you're awful" camp I guess.
Well, those people are dicks. If they are in-person people you should probably cuss them out. But logically and eloquently. If they're on the internet, bear in mind that it's the internet, and a lot of feminists are used to being on the defensive about this stuff because MRA trolls and genuine racist/sexist/general bigots are still the "norm" in internet discussions. Said trolls have made a really solid campaign out of being obnoxious enough that they've got people "on the other side" defaulting to the shaming reaction, which sucks because it's giving said trolls everything they want. But hey, generally you don't get that here, at least?
On the other hand, there is ZERO in-universe justification for the Doctor remaining a male. None. Like I said earlier, I'm pretty sure he's referenced being a woman at some point in the past, implying it's happened before. But more than that, because the regeneration process is described so broadly, there is no reason this can't be the first time, either. So continuing to make him a man becomes increasingly hard to justify without it being "just because". Which is a terrible reason when he's the perfect character to do something like that with. So, again, while I like your take on him as a great non-violent male role model (and I agree there is definitely a gap in the market for more of those), he's a body-changing alien with the message that all life matters...pretty perfect for a progressive icon, no?