#this man has got to be so dissociated or at the very least emotionally detached from reality after centuries alone

[self-spaghettification]

[twistedtummies2]

Two Weeks in the TARDIS - The Fifth Doctor

Welcome to Two Weeks in the TARDIS! I’m talking about the different versions of the titular protagonist from “Doctor Who.” Each day I’ll be covering a different Doctor, going in order from the First to the Thirteenth.

Today, we’ll be discussing the Lord of Salad Dressing himself! This is the Fifth Doctor, Peter Davison!

BACKGROUND

When the Fourth Doctor came onto the scene, he was probably the youngest yet, but he was soon trumped by his own successor: Peter Davison was only 29 when he took on the role of the character, and already had made quite a name for himself on television in other BBC productions. While his tenure of the standard three seasons meant he had much less time to work than Tom Baker’s portrayal, he was, nevertheless, one of the most impactful depictions of the character. This is especially evident in the New Who era, where - out of five Doctors there so far - two are largely inspired by Davison’s portrayal, in particular, and a third has certain little quirks directly tied to him. Three out of five Doctors in the modern times, all paying homage to ONE version in particular? That’s got to count for something. Once again, the intention was to go as far from the previous Doctor as possible. Davison’s Fifth Doctor emerges from his regeneration scarred; for almost a full quarter of his debut serial, he is in a state of dissociative identity, switching his personality and mannerisms frequently, adopting phrases and quirks from all four of his earlier incarnations, before - finally - managing to settle in. And once settled in, Davision turns out to be a far cry from Baker’s wild bohemian. He’s still a traveler first and foremost - the Doctor as an outright conqueror of evil, in fact, wouldn’t really become a thing till the next two incarnations - but he treats things with a more casual air. Many people refer to Davison’s turn as the Most Human Doctor: he feels the least alien, the least remote and detached, and with his dashing good looks and commanding, high-flying voice, it’s no wonder so many modern Doctors look to him for inspiration.

PERSONALITY

Of all the Classic era Doctors, and arguably all of the Doctors in general, Davison is the most mellow. I wouldn’t call him “serious” in the way Jon Pertwee was, but he’s not as nutty as Tom Baker, Patrick Troughton, or even, to a certain degree, William Hartnell. This is the first Doctor where it’s easy to forget he’s not a human being. He’s a lot less mad, even as a facade; he still has a quirkiness to his personality, but he isn’t a Madman in a Box. He is endlessly compassionate and merciful; more emotionally invested in the people around him than previous Doctors were. He was less childish, as well; in fact, he seemed to go in the complete opposite direction. Davison combats his youthful appearance with a personality that’s a bit more like an eccentric old uncle; despite his almost princely demeanor, you really do feel this is an older gentleman trapped inside a younger man’s body. While he always tries to be nice and is, in his own words, “the most agreeable one,” he still has an ego (all the Doctors do, to some degree or another), and he can be somewhat tetchy at times. Nevertheless, you always know he’ll do the right thing, no matter the cost: even if he doesn’t like you much - in fact, even if he HATES you - he’ll often try to find some way to help you when you need it, or, at the very least, hesitate a great deal when it comes to killing you. In fact, I would argue number five is the single most merciful of all Doctors; at points where other Doctors wouldn’t pause to destroy their foes, he either hesitates or shows intense regret afterwards. This was a Doctor who truly valued ALL life, and seemed to be starting to realize there was more to the universe than simply exploring it. He wanted to UNDERSTAND it, and that sense of understanding was what made him so likeable and fun.

COSTUME

Once again, as all the best Doctor outfits do, the costume Davison wears reflects his personality magnificently, and also helps to make him stand out greatly in comparison to whomever came before him. Instead of a loud, slapped-together bohemian adventurer, we have a young man dressed largely in beige and white, with accents of red and orange. The question marks on the collar of his shirt were an idea of the producer’s, first implemented in Tom Baker’s final season; a lot of fans seem to hate them, but I’ve personally never felt any need to complain at all. His panama hat and neat, fluttering coat help him cut a dapper but sporting figure, while the cricketer outfit underneath it - complete with trainer shoes - really does speak of a younger, more physical Doctor: not the sort to pummel his enemies, but the sort who loves a good game. It’s an inviting, mellow figure...but still eccentric in its own way. The most glaring part of the outfit, of course, is the stick of celery in his lapel; that one item - which, ironically, is revealed to have a practical function in Davison’s final serial - says it all: an otherwise normal man who just happens to have a small spark of something weird and seemingly inexplicable in him; that inner alien that can never be fully suppressed.

NOTABLE COMPANIONS

Davison’s TARDIS crew once again started off with a whole gaggle of companions “inherited” from the Fourth Doctor. This proved to be both an interesting addition and a bit of a problem, at the same time. On the one hand, it was hard to make sure every separate character got their due at the start...but on the other hand, the result was that you almost had a sort of family aboard the TARDIS for a time, traveling the stars together. Overall, the Fifth Doctor wound up having almost as many companions as the Fourth, and in less than half the amount of time. The crew started out with Tegan Jovanka; an opinionated airline attendant who sort of got roped into things; Nyssa, the last survivor of the world of Traken, who seemed to look up to the Doctor as something of a big brother figure after he saved her and took her with him on his adventures; and then there was Adric, a boy genius who I can only describe as the Jason Todd of the Doctor Who universe. One by one, these companions would disappear, and other companions - most notably Vislor Turlough, an assassin who joined the Doctor first as a double-agent, then due to a change of heart became a true friend - would come and go as well. Over time, the TARDIS crew would get smaller and smaller, which made the writing easier and easier...but also left out that wonderful family dynamic that the earlier parts of the series seemed to have. It’s sort of a give or take game here.

RECOMMENDED VIEWING

This is the first time where my choice of suggestion is NOT my favorite episode for this respective Doctor. My favorite Peter Davison episode is “The Five Doctors,” but since that one DOES feature...well...FIVE DOCTORS, and Davison, while the main focus, still has to share the screen with so many others, I don’t think it’s the best one to show what made HIM, and his era, so particularly special. Now, I know a lot of fans would probably recommend his final episode, “Caves of Androzani,” but a.) I don’t want to include the final episodes for ANY of the Doctors, if I can, and b.) I know this is heresy, but I’ve always felt “Caves of Androzani” to be somewhat overrated. No, my choice of recommendation is “Earthshock”: this story featured the return of the Cybermen (who had not been seen in about six years, and whose previous story had sucked, anyway), and if you’re wondering why I called Adric the Jason Todd of the Doctor Who universe, this episode will show you what I mean. In my opinion, it’s the very best Cybermen episode, and it’s my second favorite of Peter Davison’s era. It shows all the qualities that made him a great Doctor in spades, and also plays with that family dynamic I mentioned quite delightfully. It’s hard to find a better place to start with him than this.

Next time, we’ll discuss Colin Baker, the Sixth Doctor: the Most Underappreciated Time Lord of All.

[disgruntledspacedad]

in defense of Din’s subdued reaction to losing the kid...

gif by @quantam-widow

I know we were all thinking it. We got a 2 second reaction shot to the destruction of the Razor Crest (may she forever rest in peace), but then, Grogu gets taken, and... nothing?

What the fuck, Din? we all protest. That’s your baby on that ship! Don’t you care? Scream, curse, kick a rock, cry, make a fist, something!!

I will acknowledge that so far, the show has been excellent with giving us emotional payoff, am I right? I mean, just today we got Din laughing, twice. Twice in a row. I honestly never thought we’d see that. There have been so many excellent, precious soft!Din moments this season, and they all feel deliciously earned.

So, from a meta POV, I guess I’m saying that I have faith in the writers to get it right, and in Pedro to deliver. Duh.

In universe, though, I think it’s fair to point out the obvious - that Din is a pretty reserved guy. He’s much more of a thinker than a feeler. He’s used to keeping things bottled up, and I would even argue that his life often depends on his ability to dissociate from his emotions. Din’s entire journey so far has been about how one little baby yodito shakes his worldview to its very foundations. He’s getting there, but it’s a slow process. 

And also, consider this - we haven’t seen Din alone yet, not since Grogu was taken. For a guy who lives a guarded life literally encased in fucking armor, any display of emotion is going to be carefully protected until he’s in private.

But anyway, Din is detached, rational, a little emotionally constipated, and definitely comfortable in a stressful situation. A true ISTP if you ask me (yeah, I know you didn’t, but whatever). Often, it seems that these cool headed, logical types who have never ruffled a feather over anything in their lives are the least adept at handling genuine fear. In other words, when panic does strike, it strikes them hard. 

And guys, Din was definitely panicking during this episode. 

He’s clearly unsettled from the jump - that outburst of “dank farrik!” in the cockpit sells it, and his distress only becomes more obvious from there. Talking out loud, trying to convince himself that the best thing for Grogu is for him to be trained as a Jedi. Reminding himself of the creed. His overt caution as they approach the seeing stone. His impatience, “Are you seeing anything??”

Then there’s the effects of long term stress. Sure, a bounty hunter in the outer rim doesn’t exactly live an easy life, but Din is definitely used to the drama being on his terms. Compare Din’s body language in the opening scene of season one to when Boba confronts him in chapter fourteen. You can just feel the anxiety, the weariness, the frustration. Din has been on the run for months now, constantly looking over his shoulder, sleeping with one eye open. Notice how he even startles at Fennec’s voice? Season one Din would never have given that much away, regardless of the situation. Long term stress has clearly taken a toll on him.

So we have unsettled, stressed out Din in an emotionally charged situation. He’s exhausted, he’s scared, he’s desperate. This scenario is a recipe for even the most level-headed of adrenaline junkies to loose their cool, and that’s exactly what happens to Din. He panics, and he makes some pretty big fuckups because of it. Leaving Grogu unprotected, twice. Trying three different times to break through that “force field,” even when he knew he couldn’t. Dropping that jetpack and then just forgetting about it (I know we were all screaming about that one, or at least, I was).

So, fear is a positive feedback loop. Those neurotransmitters that do us good in a bad situation - raising heart rate, narrowing focus, shunting blood to the muscles - can also be detrimental if we get too high of a dose - tachypnea and tachycardia, inability to think critically and see the big picture, lack of blood and oxygen to the brain. Epinephrine, in particular, even inhibits the laying down of new memory pathways. In other words, stress leads to poor performance, and poor performance leads to more stress, which leads to... you get the idea.

Then, in the middle of all this chaos, they fucking blast the Razor Crest.

More epinephrine, more cortisol, more stress. 

By the end of it all, Din is a fucking shitstorm of stress hormones and pent up emotions. Notice how he seems to be on autopilot in the immediate aftermath, robotically scanning the ashes of the Crest for anything that might be left intact. Notice how empty his voice is when he says, “the child is gone.” This is a dead man walking. Din has nothing left. His whole life has just gone up in smoke, and he can do nothing about it. 

Guys, Din is holding onto his sanity by a fucking thread in this scene. “The child is gone,” he says, like he’s reminding himself, grounding himself in his shitty reality. He’s stunned. 

And helpless. There’s literally nothing he can do for Grogu. He has no ship, no credits, no resources, nothing to bargain with, nothing to offer. Din literally cannot allow himself the luxury of feelings right now. He’s just got to focus on surviving this very shitty day.

Then, Boba Fett upholds his end of the deal, and suddenly, Din has something to hold onto. An ally, a badass friend, some hope. I don’t think Boba shows Din that chain code in order to verify his claim on the armor - he’s already wearing it, for godssake. I think Boba shows him the code in order to catch Din’s attention - hey friend, I know you’re hurting, but I’m a man of my word. When I make a vow, I keep it. Let’s regroup and go find your kid.

And Din would totally latch onto that. A fighting chance? Din fucking leaps at it. There’s a job to do. A kid to save. All of those stress hormones are going to keep on stewing, because Din has never really come down from his adrenaline high. 

It’s like this in real life, too. There isn’t time to be afraid. There isn’t time to be sad, or second-guess, or say, oh how terrible, or wonder what if it doesn’t work? There’s just you and the job, and if you are the only thing standing between life and death, you will put everything else aside and do what you have to do, for as long as you have to do it.

And that’s where Din is at this moment. He’s running on the fumes of his adrenaline, all tempered focus, all strategy and no bullshit.

Emotional shock, my therapist buddy calls it. Apparently, it’s normal. Expected, even.

But guys, the fallout of this kind of crazy ass adrenaline high is insanely intense. I’m talking collapse to the floor, legs won't hold you, trembling, crying so hard you sling snot, shuddering breaths, stare dead-eyed and spent at the ceiling because you’re just too wiped out to even sleep kind of intense. 

And then, after the breakdown comes the angst. The detailed thinking. The oh god, what if this had happened, or, should I have done that instead? It seems like every emotion that gets put on the back burner in the moment comes back to bite you with twofold intensity when all is said and done. 

In other words, Din is definitely going to feels some things .A lot of very intense things. A reckoning is coming, my dudes. Trust me. It’s just not quite here yet.

That being said, here’s what I can expect from Din going forward:

Just like he’s is slow to acknowledge his growing parental feelings for Grogu, I think Din’s going to be slow at processing his grief at Grogu’s loss. In the next episode, he’s got plenty to distract him - getting together his hit team to take back the kid and coordinating an attack on the empire. 

However, I do think we’ll get a slow moment with Din, probably sometime at the beginning of next week’s episode if the pattern holds. I doubt it’s the full-blown breakdown that we’re all needing, but I’m willing to bet money that we’ll see Din grappling with the fact that his kid is gone. I also think that badass beskar murder machine Din from chapter three will resurface. Stress and desperation make us do irrational things, and anger is one of the stages of grief that Din will inevitably have to work through (I think he’s flickering between denial and bargaining for now).

But then, after Din gets Grogu back? I think that’s we’ll have our big, dearly earned emotional payoff. 

For one thing, Din won’t be able to deny his feelings anymore. He wants to keep this kid, it’s so very obvious. Losing him just forces it all to the forefront. 

And then the relief/joy/regret/guilt that Din is going to feel once he’s got Grogu back? Not to mention the physical exhaustion? All of the fear/terror/angst/grief that he ignored in favor of just going pedal to the metal, guns blazing, get the kid or die trying? That shit’s going to crash into him with all the subtly of a fucking tsunami. I guarantee you, we’re going to get some sort of confession, or adoption vow, or face revel, or other sort of profound softness from Dad!Din in the falling action of this season (At least, I hope we get it at the end this season but I wouldn’t put it past them to kick it into the premier of season three, just for pacing reasons, but then again, I obviously have trust issues).

Personally, I would love to see Din grappling with the long-term fallout of losing Grogu - night terrors, guilt, paranoia, etc. That’s probably the stuff of fanfiction - mandalorians don't have nightmares on screen, surely - but still, some lingering effects Grogu’s kidnapping would be realistic, and I would absolutely live for it.