#forgetting rory williams

[kupo-theincendiary]

EVERYBODY needs to go read forgetting rory williams by @canisonicscrewyou

because i love it and also to distract you from me not knowing what the ponds' house looks like

[canisonicscrewyou]

Forgetting Rory Williams

is a Doctor Who s7A* AU following the series of events after a wristwatch resets, and reveals that the Master was Rory Williams the whole time. *and post-s12 Master

The first night Amelia Pond settles into a house with a crack in her bedroom wall, a different TARDIS crashes just behind Brian Williams’ back garden. Rory Williams spent the next 25-and-2000 years trying to live out a normal human life. Hey, he tried his best. But all good things must come to an end. (And doesn't the Master know it.)

Brought to you by canisonicscrewyou (that's me!)

Rating: Mature

Category: F/M & M/M

Warnings: Major Character Death, but I bet you can guess who.

Ships: Amy/Rory, Doctor/Master

106k words and 13 chapters out of about 20 posted. Updated semi-regularly, at the whims and frequency of visions that haunt the author. Estimating the fic being somewhere around 15-18ish chapters by the end, give or take.

Tags/Features: Fobwatched Time Lord, Rory Williams is the Master, Alternate Universe, Rory!Master, Trans Rory Williams, Crossing Timelines, Comedy of Errors, The Master Has A Post-Vault Crisis, Angst, Arguing, Grief/Mourning, Trust Issues, Brief Simm!Master, Brief River Song, Brief Missy, Mentioned Twelfth Doctor, Mentioned Missy, Rory Williams is a major and minor character death. He was dead from the start., The Master character study, Soft Master, Messily Divorced Doctor/Master Energy, Semi-Incompetent Master, The Doctor is an asshole. The Master is a bitter old fruit., cringefail4cringefail thoschei, Missy & Twelve & Simm!Master & Ten & Rory all camp out in the narrative, nobody can talk to each other normally

Each chapter comes with Suggested Listening for before/after. Here's the FRW Playlist, updated with every chapter:

Spotify | YouTube

Preview(s), chapter 1, end of The Life and Deaths of Rory Williams:

Chapter 1, The Life and Deaths of Rory Williams

”You’re…. Ro-ry…” the Doctor says, dumbly.

”It’s a surprise for me, too!” the other responds with a bit of a shrug. “Was Rory. Not Rory anymore. Definitely, definitely not Rory-Pond anymore, Doctor.”

”Who are you?” The Doctor asks, and the other’s smile practically answers the question for him.

Ah. Right.

Who else would it be.

”The thing is, I think you already know, don’t you, Doctor? It just seems soo like me to do, doesn’t it?” he says, hands clasped together. And despite his cheerfulness, the Doctor isn’t amused, not in the slightest.

What is he supposed to say to him? Like this?

”This- I cannot believe- This is a new low even for you, you know. I can’t believe you, you were taken, you- I— I mourned you. Twice!” the Doctor yells, and despite being the one to physically hold her back- Amy was the only thing keeping the Doctor from tearing up to the other Time Lord himself.

He wasn’t sure what he’d do when he got there.

The Master seemed so self-pleased. Smiling, to hide his confirmation that he had gotten himself wrapped into something messy. He was happy to keep that distance between the three of them.

“Well, you know… Fool you once, shame on me… Fool you twice… Did you miss me?”

“… I- I didn’t even think about you after I regenerated. After Rassilon took you. Not at all.” Is all the Doctor can think to say in response.

Amy had no context for any of this. She didn’t need the Doctor to grip her shoulders that tightly, anymore. She wasn’t moving.

And the Master stared, and stared, drumming his hands on that red doorframe again. “…… Oh, you so, so, incredibly missed me then. You poor thing. And- besides, Doctor. If it’s any consolation… There is a very, very long time, between that Master and myself. And here I’d been hoping that I’d finally be able to tell you that I…”

��- What?” The Doctor cuts in sharply. “That you what?”

”… That I was only planning on being right back.” the Master says- and after half a beat, he rips out the front door. He runs past the Doctor and Amy, sprinting out ahead of either of them. And it works, because the Doctor stares for a few moments, before either of them think to run after him.

[witchofthemidlands]

🔮 love the genre of doctor who that is healthcare professionals who have encountered (1) silly alien, seen some shit & have ✨notes✨ on their experiences with said alien.

[parallelity]

Hereditary “the love of my life is staring directly at me but doesn’t recognise me” experience

[smallerontheoutside]

I feel like there's a lot of parallels between rose and the doctor's relationship and Amy and Rory's relationship

[transgenderdoctorwhomst-old]

3 & 23? :3

3. NoTP?

Oh god that's a hard one, I very very rarely have actual NoTP's, usually it's just "I personally don't want to engage in the subject matter regarding that ship", which I personally consider a completely different category. Uhh. Can I say the Doctor/Donna?

Specifically, their platonic relationship is so so so important to me and I think it's really good and fun for them to have a bestie where there's no expectations that they might become romantically involved. I think they can still cuddle and kiss if they want, but everything is platonic. Does this make sense. Do you see my vision.

23. Has your favourite character/ship changed over time?

I can see the appeal in generally any ship or character, but today I've realized that I didn't really care for Rory all that much when I started Doctor who when I was 14, but now I actually really really like him. Complete wifeguy. Hanging out with Jack and the Master in the unkillable category. Amy made him dress up as the Doctor as a kid. he decides "trying to kill myself so the universe adjusts to keep me alive" is a viable solution to problems and he's RIGHT.

Also I've extremely jumped on the Rose/Doctor bandwagon way more than when I was younger. And I'm a ninerosejack truther now. Also the Doctor's companions should unionize and form a polycule.

[expectiations]

the doctor: you're mine

river: first of all i belong to the TARDIS, my mum

can't stand overly possessive people in relationships. "you're mine" first of all i belong to the sea

[spaceagebachelormann]

☆ — doctor who companions and their love languages

✧ masterlist — navigation

✧ characters — rose tyler, jack harkness, martha jones, donna noble, amy pond, rory williams, river song, clara oswald

✧ carmillas notes — doctor who hyperfixation RAHHH. no bill cause i haven’t gotten to that season yet and no sarah jane cause im saving her for a future part 2 of this !! ALSO these are my thoughts and i don’t CARE if you disagree

✧ warnings — might be ooc in some parts. also might be shitty cause i haven’t written in months. spoilers for the end of season seven.

˚✩ ⋆｡˚ ✩ rose tyler

-> rose likes to receive acts of service. she likes it when you do even the littlest things for her, like opening a door or pulling her chair out for her or calling her in the middle of the day simply because you missed her, that’s what really gets her heart going. she appreciates every little thing you do for her and never forgets any of it. in return, she likes to give physical touch and words of affirmation. she knows how much you love her and recognizes every little act of love. she’ll hold your hand while walking or randomly run her fingers through your hair, all while telling you how great she thinks you are and how she loves you.

˚✩ ⋆｡˚ ✩ jack harkness

-> jack is a whore, so he likes to give words of affirmation. while half of that is probably flirting, he can be really sweet when he feels like it and goes out of his way to make sure you know that. he likes to receive physical touch. he’s lived for much longer than he should’ve and has watched everyone he loved either die or leave him, so he likes to know your there by feeling your hands in his or somewhere on him. somewhere he can make sure you haven’t died or left him just yet.

˚✩ ⋆｡˚ ✩ martha jones

-> martha likes to give and receive quality time. because of her job, she often doesn’t have a lot of time for things outside of work and she feels bad about it. she can easily be reassured from her guilt by sitting down somewhere or going out, as long as she gets to spend time with you. while quality time is her number one, she also likes receiving words of affirmation. she spent a lot of time feeling second best with the doctor, and she likes to be told she’s wonderful and appreciated.

˚✩ ⋆｡˚ ✩ donna noble

-> donna doesn’t necessarily have a specific love language she likes to give or receive, shes kind of a mixed bag when it comes to that, she shows all of them equally. even though she doesn’t favour a specific love language to show, she likes to be on the receiving end of gift giving. even if its something small for nothing in particular, if you get her a gift she’ll get all giddy and becomes the most loveliest person afterwards.

˚✩ ⋆｡˚ ✩ amy pond

-> amy likes it when she’s given physical touch. from making out to just about anything, she loves it. she’s also partial to gift giving, and just like donna will get super excited if she’s given anything. she also doesn’t really have a specific love language, but she does go for physical touch a lot. she doesn’t just love to give it, she also loves to receive it.

˚✩ ⋆｡˚ ✩ rory williams

-> rory, like amy, also loves physical touch, but he shows it more gently than she does. while shes a bit more suggestive with her touches, rory’s are pretty innocent and are usually just holding your hand while walking or just a random hug in the middle of the day when he feels like he missed you. he also gives a lot of acts of service and is purely a gentleman. an awkward gentleman. he doesn’t really care or have a preference about what he gets in return, but he really does like quality time.

˚✩ ⋆｡˚ ✩ river song

-> river gets her biggest love language from her parents, physical touch. while her touches are just as gentle as rory’s, she often has her hands in a somewhat suggestive place, but never somewhere to make you uncomfortable. for example, she may have a hand on your thigh while sitting or on the small of your back while walking. she also doesn’t really mind what she gets in return like rory, but she does have her mothers love of gifts.

˚✩ ⋆｡˚ ✩ clara oswald

-> clara is very much a words of affirmation girl. she’ll grab onto your hand while walking somewhere and go on some mindless rant about how much she loves you and how amazing she thinks you are, and she could go on for hours. she also likes to receive words of affirmation, but a close second for her is physical touch and acts of service.

[kupo-theincendiary]

@canisonicscrewyou hii i had to draw something from this scene and i think this probably counts as a late bday present

this is propaganda for forgetting rory williams everybody go read it now

alternative versions under the cut

i feel like it looks better overall without the doodles but i did really like making these ones

[canisonicscrewyou]

Up tonight thinking about my trans masc Rory!Master and his eventual space phallo. He'd get a mirror copy of some Doctor regen's dick. Probably Ten's. And wait out how long it takes for Eleven to notice.

[witchofthemidlands]

me hears the word nurse in doctor who & immediately thinks of:

i know in my SOUL he & belinda would have vibed.

he will always haunt the way in which i experience the doctor who narrative, he has been in my head since i was 10 & will never leave.

[companion-showdown]

Who is your favourite companion?

Susan Who and Alan Turing tied, giving the best performing losers a chance to return

TOURNAMENT MASTERPOST

Propaganda

Alan Turing

He has all the traits of an excellent companion: gay and a nerd

Rory Williams

The ultimate Wife Guy. Pathologically reason-minded & common-sensible. Beyond done with everything including the increasingly absurd number of times he dies. Holder of the single brain cell except when he throws it out the window to save Amy. A NURSE! (@buggreawlthys )

Zoe Heriot

Zoe is fucking awesome!!!! Shes bright and smart and wears miniskirts and sparkles whats not to love?? Here is my favorite Zoe moment, her talking a computer into exploding while wearing a feather boa 😂😂😂😂😂 https://youtu.be/W6AHMFXtmls?si=VXMG8QEebiRqvv0t

Figured out how to break an ai the way we break them today and then it blew up!! She is the first 21st century companion and she’s from space!! She also once became suicidal in the Captian Scarlet crossover novel because she was enslaved then watched her boyfriend/boss/owner get blown up in front of her. It was weird. She had the most tragic departure in which the companion survived on screen she forget all the joy and pain she had her life ripped apart by the time lords and was left without many of the pieces.

Maxwell Edison

ok I just saw my boy Max is on this so im going to recycle my propaganda from the weirdest companion tournament, because frankly why he's weird is also why he's awesome in general. listen. max defeated a GOD through nothing but the power of being a weird fucking freak literally the doctor and nyssa were both immobilized by it but this GOD couldn't control MAX THE WEIRD FUCKING FREAK *max: ""you never could control me. because i never fitted in. i was never really a part of the village."" the doctor: ""of course! maxwell edison; the loner, the nutcase, the village laughingstock! and the ONE PERSON with a MIND OF HIS OWN!""* and then he PUNCHES AN ANCIENT GOD IN THE FACE in his free time he rides around on a motorcycle with a dowsing rod looking for aliens AND ACTUALLY FINDS THEM -- he thinks the doctor is from venus and won't be persuaded otherwise -- he's probably like 0.001% rutan but that's explicitly NOT the reason for any of this also he's a comic book character and comic book reader how cute and meta is that?

Peri Brown

Look, I cannot understate how much I love that Peri's intro theme is effectively 'do it. what if I'm scared? then do it scared' and that ends up being a carry through thing for her the whole time she's in the TARDIS. She's in scary situations but she powers through - even in her first story where she's on an alien planet completely out of her depth, being chased and threatened by the Master, she's scared and still doing everything she can to either get away or do the right thing! He threatens to harm her, to kill her, and she's powering through a stammer to tell him to go pound sand! And she's the same with Six as well - he scared her badly early on and was more than a little bit of a jerk to her after that but she still stands up and does her best, not only to get through their adventures and help people, but to be a good friend to the Doctor, even when Six gets loud and confrontational. She's a vastly underrated companion. (@nvzwho )

Vislor Turlough

The worst assassin in the entire universe who honestly has some of the funniest lines in the Fifth Doctor's era. Just a Strange Guy™️. (@gothicacetheatrekid )

he's a self-professed selfish coward of COURSE he's the kindest and bravest person you'll ever meet (remember that time he went back alone to face off the creatures that literally had him CATATONIC with ancestral trauma based fear half an hour earlier, giving away his only good luck charm as he went?! And people still think he's a selfish coward! Please! it's a mask!!!) stunning character development snark absolutely off the charts. you like Donna Noble? try Vislor Turlough! also the real first unambiguous redhead companion total freak. he once paused while SCUTTLING (only word for it) away from monsters for his life in order to rebutton his jacket, the jacket that is the school uniform from a school he utterly and openly HATED, which for some incomprehensible reason is the only thing he wears. There's nobody else in the universe like Vislor Turlough

There are so many angles I could take with this. He's a bitchy gay alien and the least deadly assassin. He is a meme. Also he's the first Fifth Doctor companion to get a sort of happy ending. In the constant tragedy of Five's era, he finds his brother and makes it home safe. He is a rare moment of hope in a very grim, cynical era of the show, while also being the last person you'd expect to be a moment of hope. (@cringecompanionapologist )

[the1gayteen]

Doctor Who and the 188

Quick rant that may turn into a PowerPoint.... 

A stupid crossover between my two current hyperfixation shows. What new-who and classic-who era doctor who companions the 118 and friends would be (aka what I feel like they would act like as companions to the doctor): 

Bobby:

Ben Jackson; Companion of the 1st and 2nd Doctor 

We all know Bobby’s the one in dire situations to take charge and help wherever he can. Finding clever ways to fix situations or how to stop things. He would be the same as being a companion. Even if he has a hard time believing and conceptualizing the fact of aliens and other dimensions. He will make it his duty to help those on the planets he finds himself on, leading and guiding where he can. He also will definitely have a tendency to take people under his wing, while also being under the doctor's wing, trusting him (the doctor) but going against his orders at the times he knows he has to. Matching that same energy from one of my favorite early companions Ben. 

Hen:

Donna Noble; Companion to the 10th and 14th Doctor 

Listen, Hen and Donnie absolutely would match each other's energies. Snarky, takes no shits from strange aspects. Hunt down answers from hunches and let's not forget stylish as hell. I see Hen having a similar start to traveling with the doctor like Donna. Being placed in the TARDIS randomly and arguably freaking out, but also helping the doctor when he needs it the same day (I also head cannon that she would insist on finding out how he is a ‘doctor’). Her humor and antics would match perfectly with the doctor, as well as her quick wit and thinking that would help them get out of situations. If Hen was a companion she would also be like Donna, a potentially short lived one who became the viewers absolute favorite because of how well she can push and pull, as well as meld with the dynamic of the doctor.  

Chimney & Maddie:

Amy Pond & Rory Williams; Companions to the 11th Doctor

I fully believe the Chimney would go nowhere without Maddie, and vise versa, especially travelling the universe and time. I see Chim and Maddie as married Amy and Rory, less of the pining for the doctor and more just a great throuple situation. I fully believe that chim would wait centuries for Maddie, and that they both of them would be perfect matches for the doctor. Also seeing Maddie as emotional as Amy and how perfect that would work for the drama is *chefs kisses*.

Eddie:

Sarah Jane Smith; Companion of the 3rd , 4th, and 10th Doctor 

He is Sarah Jane to me on both ends of her time within the Doctor Who universe. From her standalone TV series with her son. Eddie would absolutely love and cherish his alien son. Protecting him and helping out other species like his son on earth, protecting the world from home. As an actual travelling companion, he would fit in so well. Able to follow orders, but also able to break away when he knows how to help or what needs to be done. Headstrong but sweet overall. Helping others without the worry of self-sacrifice. Managing to save the Doctor and his self-sacrificing friends time and time again. Just like Sarah Jane he would just mix so well and push the doctor to what he needs to do and who he needs to be. Also, would absolutely travel with Buck.  

Evan 'Buck':

Adric; Companion of the 4th and 5th Doctor 

Adric is my favorite companion and is arguably (for classic who) one of the most impactful companions. There is so much overlap between Adric and Buck (I like to imagine the doctor finding him after the lightning strike with his new math abilities, mimicking Adric's superior mathematical skills). Adric starts out like Buck 1.0. Both stubborn and thinking that they are better than what they actually are. But after being taken under the wing of someone, learn to care for others and become self-sacrificing in order to help and protect others, especially those closest to them. Both have a fear of being enough and abandonment. Buck absolutely as a companion would still be self-sacrificing, but kindhearted. I could possibly see him doing something like Adric as sacrificing himself, leaving a lasting impact on the doctor for life (but like buck always does manages to come back). Overall Buck would have a blast as a companion, most likely shooting off random facts with the doctor back and forth while being reprimanded for another stupid stunt.  

Athena:

A mix of Both Martha Jones (Companion to the 10th Doctor) and Ace (Companion to the 7th Doctor) 

Athena would be the most efficient and badass companion, but I also feel like that would absolutely lead her into a unique position with the doctor. She had Aces self determination. Wanting to fight and protect everyone around her, but also Maratha’s badass and rule following methods (as apposed to aces anarchy). Athena would be a great side hand to the doctor, if not just being able to handle herself in situations. But I can see similar issues to ace and Maratha. With the doctor (like ace) being upset about her straight to aggressive tactics. As well as Martha's headstrong determination to help everyone while staying in line with expectations. I think Athena would not be a volunteered companion either. Probably snuck on the TARDIS to investigate or find wherever someone disappeared to and quickly the doctor and her learn to respect each other. I could also see her being a secret part of UNIT.  

... Thank you for reading my thoughts, please tell me I'm not alone in this lol!

[oceanwithinsblog]

someone liked this post so it is my duty to give you all an update on my doctor who first watch speedrun.

i'm slowly reaching the end of s7, i'm watching episode 11 as i'm writing and might i add this season is nothing like what i had imagined :) :) :) both in a positive and negative way

still, i've got a couple more episodes to catch up on so my final verdict is currently pending.

only one certainty remains: i freaking love eleven and the ponds may be my favorite companions so far (<3)

yoOO guys i'm about to start s7 and I'M SOOOOO HYPED !!!!!!!!

[cas-is-queer]

INTRO POST! FINALLY!

I’m probably forgetting some stuff, so this might get updated.

My name is Casey, you can also call me Cas. I use he/they pronouns, idrc which ones you use. I’m asexual omniromantic, and I’m transmasc and nonbinary! I'm also AuDHD. If you’ve been w me long enough,  you’ll remember when my url was something different. Fun fact I actually never posted about that change so y’all just had to figure it out for yourselves. I used to be fandomtrash67, back when my blog was just reblogs and likes and nothing important, when I was only on here like once a month. 

I have personal tags! cas has thoughts is my original posts, but not all of them. The site I used to sort through the frankly copious amounts of reblogs I have still filtered out when I had full thoughts in the reblog, so it's missing some. cas does things is my polls and asks and shit. cas writes things is my writing tag.

THIS POST IS MY MAGNUM OPUS: X

This is mostly a Doctor Who blog, ngl, but I’ll randomly post about some other fandoms too (which are listed below). 12 is my favorite Doctor. My biggest ships, in order, are: Thoschei (literally insane about them. Mostly twissy, but all variations too), 12clara (I also fw 11clara), and Timepetals (all variations). 

I am a destiel sleeper agent, they will show up randomly. 

I am a fic writer, but I’m sorta inconsistent on my posting. Find me here: X

Unfortunately, I am American, so US politics will show up sometimes. Shit fucking sucks.

FANDOMS/SHIPS BELOW CUT

Buckle up, because this is my insanely long fandom/ships list! IN NO PARTICULAR ORDER! BOLD IS MY FAVS! THIS IS REALLY FUCKING LONG!! (The bold is only showing up for me on desktop and not mobile, so sorry if it's like that for yall too)

Supernatural, Doctor Who, Haven, Grimm, Grey’s Anatomy/Station 19, Scream, Heartstopper, First Kill, PJO and all associated fandoms, Lie to Me, Good Omens (I do not support Neil Gaiman), Marvel, Helluva Boss/Hazbin Hotel, My Hero Academia, X-Men, Lord of the Rings, Saw, Once Upon a Time, House MD, Daredevil & The Punisher, The Last of Us

Ships that got me fucked up! Bold are from bold fandoms or I just really love them. / is romantic, & is platonic.

Dean Winchester/Castiel (Supernatural), Dewey Riley/Gale Weathers (Scream), Tony Stark & Peter Parker (MCU), Nathan Wuornos/Audrey Parker (Haven), Cal Lightman/Gillian Foster (Lie to Me), Cal Lightman & Emily Lightman (Lie to Me), Loki/Mobius (Loki/MCU), Aziraphale/Crowley (Good Omens), Gabriel/Beezlebub (Good Omens), Maggie/Nina (Good Omens), Charlie Morningstar/Vaggie (Hazbin Hotel), Angel Dust/Husker (Hazbin Hotel), Charlie Morningstar & Lucifer Morningstar (Hazbin Hotel), Stolas Goetia/Blitz (Helluva Boss), Rose Tyler/Any Doctor (Doctor Who), Clara Oswald/11 or 12 or fuck it throw 13 in there (Doctor Who), 12th Doctor & Bill Potts (DW), 10th Doctor/Simm!Master (DW), 12th Doctor/Missy (DW), 13th Doctor/Dhawan!Master (DW), 13th Doctor/Yasmin Khan (DW), 13th Doctor/Yasmin Kahn/Dhawan!Master (DW), River Song/Any Doctor, but mostly 11 (DW), 10th Doctor & Donna Noble (DW), 12th Doctor/Missy/Clara Oswald (DW), Clara Oswald/Ashildr (Lady/Mayor Me) (DW), Amy Pond/Rory Williams (DW), Charles Xavier/Erik Lehnsherr (X-Men), Agatha Harkness/Rio Vidal (Agatha All Along/MCU), Aragorn/Legolas (Lotr), Lawrence Gordon/Adam Faulker-Stanheight (Saw), Amanda Young/Lynn Denlon (Saw), Peter Strahm/Mark Hoffman (Saw), Gregory House/James WIlson (House MD), Wade Wilson/Logan Howlett (Deadpool and Wolverine), Billy Loomis/Stu Macher (Scream), Sidney Prescott/Tatum Riley (Scream), Tara Carpenter/Amber Freeman (Scream), Randy Meeks/Mickey Altieri (Scream), Kirby Reed/Jill Roberts (Scream), Kirby Reed/Samantha Carpenter (Scream), Regina Mills/Emma Swan (Once Upon a Time), Matt Murdock/Foggy Nelson (Daredevil), James Wesley/Vanessa Fisk/Wilson Fisk (Daredevil [and also all the individual pairings within that]), Karen Page/Frank Castle (Daredevil), Joel & Ellie (The Last of Us [show]), Ellie/Dina (The Last of Us)

Statistically I forgot some, so forgive me. Congratulations if you made it this far!

[quizmasterfred]

13 in 'The God Complex'

I saw a Reddit post a while ago asking 'what episode would you like to see a different Doctor tackle', and now it's been ages but i had some thoughts, and can't stop thinking about it, and just desperately need to write them down somewhere so here if you're seeing this: sorry, you've got to deal with my ramblings now.

This could replace ‘Legend of the Sea Devils’ wholesale. It was most people's least favourite centenary special, so hopefully we’re not losing much. OR, if you want to wrangle 4 specials in that year, it comes between ‘Eve of the Daleks’ and LotSD, which I’ll elaborate on later.

Arrival:

13 genuinely intends to follow through with “that moment on the beach where you tell me everything”, directly says as much at the end of EotD. Instead of fobbing it off with “whatever happened to the lost treasure of the Flor de la Mar”, they ARE going to San Munrohvar, which Yaz is ecstatic about.

In the OG God Complex (quick reminder: 11/Amy/Rory originally), it’s Amy’s faith in the Doctor which brings them there, and it’s the same now. Except it’s not just the generic faith of a particularly attached companion, it’s the exact specific moment of Yaz knowing she’s about to get that conversation.

Her faith is both restored, and about to be rewarded. After years of asking, and wondering, and being fobbed off, finally the Doctor is opening up. And right after Yaz’s coming out to Dan? Wow - what if!

They aren’t there because Yaz “has faith in the Doctor”, they’re there now because in the exact moment the TARDIS launched, that faith was higher and more intense that it has ever been.

Dan:

Common complaint is that Dan’s a bit of a blank slate – Diane, Liverpool, nice bloke. Fun moments, but not enough time to really develop as a character. I’m not going to make a spectacular reveal here and give him an amazing arc, but at the very least we have a chance to make that blank-slatedness really work. He takes on Rory’s role in the story:

13’s Room:

We never see 11’s room, only hear the TARDIS’ cloister bell as he looks in. The implication, of course, is that he’s afraid of dying – permanently. Trenzalore, no more regenerations. Very nice and subtle for 11’s arc/personality – the old man disguising himself as a 20-something.

13 has a very different problem: she’s the Timeless Child, she’s been alive for potentially a billion years before her memories begin, and she’s still regenerating. 11 is afraid of regenerations running out; 13 is afraid they’ll never run out.

It’s harder to convey my idea here with just a noise, not showing the inside of the room itself, so I will describe what I imagine the room to look like, but if there’s a way to do this without showing the viewer, that’d obviously be great.

Her room is a field of graves: “Susan Foreman”, “Sarah-Jane Smith”, “Alastair Lethbridge-Stewart”, “Donna Noble”, “Amy + Rory Williams” (an exact copy of the grave from ‘The Angels take Manhattan’), “Clara Oswald”, River('s Screwdriver/Neural Relay sitting on a Library server?), “Bill Potts”, “Yasmin Khan”, even one written in Gallifreyan (could be inferred to be the Master, but not directly stated). Only a brief look, but enough for someone to pause it and read a bunch of companions’ names.

Many are faded, symbolising a fear that one day she’ll be so old with so many lost loved ones, there simply won’t be room for all of them, and she’ll starting to forget their names and faces. Thousands more we can’t read, the people she’s yet to meet across all her future lives, and they will age and die all the same. In the centre, she’s still there. Alive, young, never dying. Maybe it’s not even Jodie standing there – maybe it’s Ncuti Gatwa, or some completely other actor: ‘generic future self’.

This is the moment of tragedy for her. After her own chat with Dan, the fireworks, seeing Sarah + Nick happy, she had decided to give it a try with Yaz. But seeing this room is what changes that. This is the moment she says to herself:

In OG, this happens immediately after 11 effectively invites Rita to join the crew, but maybe we can swap these around. So 13 sees this, completely psyches herself out of pursuing a relationship with Yaz, knows in her heart that her biggest fear is losing more and more and more people, but seeing Rita being a little bit brilliant again makes 13 invite her along anyway. She can’t help it – a clever little human working their way in, no matter what. Bittersweet.

Speaking of:

Rita:

Another young Muslim woman who’s a little bit brilliant and a little bit too brave? In all of time and space, it’s a bit weird for a bottle episode to have someone who, on the face of it, is basically a carbon copy of our main companion, right? We’ll see.

13 gets along with Rita just as 11 did. Maybe Dan is the butt of the ‘with regret, you’re fired’ joke. Maybe in a moment alone, Dan can crack a line to Rita that ‘she’s got a thing for clever Muslim gals’. But of course, most importantly, Rita and Yaz have a bit of bonding over their shared faith. Rita mentions ‘Jahannam’ in the OG, and we can use that to get some insight to Yaz’s faith. We know she’s practicing-enough to visit a Mosque (mentioned in Rosa), but really we get very little exploration of what Islam truly means to her throughout Chibnall’s run. Give Yaz something personal that isn’t tied to the Doctor, y’know.

Then, the phone call when Rita is about to die. Like 11, 13 tries to talk her into coming back: maybe she can save her, she really wants to save her. She can’t convince Rita, but Yaz takes the phone off of her. Two young women of the same religion have a heart-to-heart about faith and rapture and Jahannam. They both start off thinking Yaz was brought here for the same reason Rita was (and the viewer does too) – stealing their religion from them.

BUT, Rita gradually realises that isn’t true for Yaz. She realises that Yaz’s faith in the Doctor is stronger: “if you come back, the Doctor can save [you/us]”. That brief, shining moment of beauty that Yaz felt when the Doctor confirmed she would follow through on ‘tell[ing] you everything’ was so powerful, it eclipsed her religious faith. Not forever, she hasn’t become an atheist, but the novelty, the cocktail of love, and rewarded patience, and anticipation, and trust – for a tiny moment, it out-shone her other faith, and that’s why the TARDIS was pulled in by the eponymous God Complex.

Maybe Rita says it explicitly, or maybe she doesn’t. Either way, Yaz also realises what Rita has seen, but the Doctor isn’t privy to Rita’s side of the conversation (because… phone). They hang up, turn off the cameras, and Rita dies. If Yaz hadn’t let the Doctor take over her life and heart, could she have saved Rita? Did someone die because she failed as a Muslim? (Obviously the answer is no – that’s not how faith/religion works, and Rita was dead anyway because that is how the minotaur works, but the point is Yaz has a total crisis here)

As with the OG, the very next scene is the Doctor’s ‘I figured it out’ moment.

Yaz is hit with a whole fresh wave of guilt. The whole reason they’re here, the thing that killed Rita – and the Doctor agrees with that assessment (the Doctor couldn’t hear Rita, so this obviously isn’t actually the Doctor saying ‘you’re right, you got her killed’ – the Doctor would never think or say something like that – but that’s what it feels like to Yaz).

Yaz’s Room:

Now this is what’s really beautiful about the change from 11 to 13. Amy and Yaz’s rooms are the same thing. Amy’s is a little girl waiting by a window for her Raggedy Man to come back; abandoned. Yaz’s is a young woman in a basic white TARDIS console room, surrounded by sticky notes and sheets of paper, after hundreds of failed attempts to make it fly, waiting for the Doctor to come back from Gallifrey; abandoned.

[Quick side-note: the moment between Amy and Gibbis where she says ‘I thought that room was for me’ about the Weeping Angels still works for Yaz. In her only meeting with the Angels, what was the result? They took the Doctor away from her for 3 years]

11’s speech to Amy, tearing down the image of him in her head – saving her life by pretending he can’t – absolutely stunning. But 13 has even more to work with here: Amy/Rory, Clara (died because she became too much like the Doctor – hello Yaz), River. The added tragedy of breaking not just a friend, but someone who is actively in love with her and who she shares those feelings for, and the only way to save Yaz’s life is to shatter those feelings.

AND: Bill. "Remember that man who tried to kill you, Graham, and Ryan in a plane crash the instant he met you? The man who tried to kill us all on Gallifrey, and is ultimately the reason I left you, vanishing for 10 months? The man you’re most afraid of, of every villain we’ve met together? I TRIED TO HELP HIM. I put his redemption above Bill and Nardole’s safety because ‘[he’s] the only one person that I’ve ever met who’s even remotely like me’ (direct quote, btw(!) – ‘World Enough and Time’), and it got her mercilessly killed and converted. That’s the sort of person I am, and now I’m about to get you killed too."

Falling Action:

Because Yaz is a little bit brilliant, and coming into her own as “becoming like the Doctor”, like Clara did, she later works out that the speech in her room was ‘the plan all along^TM’ to get rid of the minotaur, and starts to patch herself up by telling herself that the Doctor didn’t really mean not to trust her. So Yaz presses, once again, asking for the Doctor to tell her something about herself.

The Doctor, of course, actually was being genuine, because her own room – the field of graves – scared her that much. 11 rebuffs Amy’s question, continuing with his exposition about the prison. 13 does the same to Yaz. The episode started with Yaz being elated that the Doctor would finally open up, and ends with 13 reverting back to closed-off, and refusing to answer a personal question. Because 13 saw what was in her room, and decided, against everything they both wanted 45 minutes ago, that she can’t fix herself.  So back in the box it goes.

Then:

From 11’s perspective, this could be perceived as bittersweet. He’s still afraid of death, but at least there’s someone here and now commiserating with him. Maybe it would be a gift, and maybe he can accept it in time, and go to Trenzalore in peace. But for 13, it’s just bitter. 'Yes, it would be a gift – if only I could ever have it. But at least I can grant it to you.'

We can either do the beach scene now, ‘can’t fix myself’…

(and then in my ideal world, alter Power of the Doctor to give us a slightly happier end / opening up / explaining 13's hotel room / Thasmin kiss, because god knows us gays need someone to throw us a bone – but that’s not important right now, not relevant to 13!GodComplex)

Or this is where the Doctor goes ‘let’s fuck about looking for the Flor de la Mar’, cue LotSD. Again we see the contrast between her genuine intent to be honest with Yaz 45 minutes ago vs fobbing it off now. Yaz’s heart is broken for real, just after she managed to convince herself that the Doctor’s speech in the hotel room was all a trick.

I can't stop thinking about it, because Doctor Who has consumed my every waking moment for the last 2 months...