Doctor Who [10]

firstly Amy and Rory don't get a 'happy ending' they get marooned in the past. But not before her older version is discarded as not being important enough. Gomez plays a psycho, Norris plays an emotionless numpty. As for River, she plays a Cougar who chases a younger man around with cliché soundbites. Hardly positive role models. 'Old' Clara is seen as a nightmare which she is incredibly relieved that hasn't actually happened. Where is the mature and positive Donna? Moffat is incapable of writing someone like that.

Except when he was writing Donna in for example the Library two parter.

This is your worst 'any excuse to have a go at Moffat' topic yet- you are accusing a man with an excellent track record of creating older characters and of casting older actors in roles of ageism- its mind boggling.

boggle then, cos its true. wheres Wilf? wheres Donna? pleasant and positive older characters who have strong characters and are good role models. There aren't any in moffat world.

It's mad is what it is.

wheres Wilf? wheres Donna? pleasant and positive older characters who have strong characters and are good role models. - Figg

Clara's gran.

Several of the female roles Moffat has created the actors are older than Catherine Tate was when she did Who.

Alex Kingston is older, in fact all the ones Ive mentioned are older.

Tasha Lem- head of the Church, which is the most powerful military and peace keeping force in the time of the 11th Doctor stories- played by an actress who is mid forties.

Moffat writes a lot of roles for the mature female actor, more than most writers do. Especially in family scifi tv.

And thats before we get onto all the older male characters he writes, including the current Doctor.

Im afraid the idea Moffat is ageist doesn't even get off the ground.

Clara's gran. yeah that's a good one. she is there for two seconds and has no personality.

I think you are confusing the age of the actor with what I am actually saying. Half these actresses don't look older than 35 so it doesn't count. Its one thing employing a 40 year old actress to play a bit part and quite another to have an established older actor actually DO something important in the long run. Wilf played an important part, Rorys dad was there as a novelty and although I love the actor in question, he didn't do much. Moffat chose an older Doctor because of all the complaints about Smith being a kid that older viewers found irritating.

Clara's gran is in two episodes, so far- and she has loads of personality- we learn quite a lot about her in that short time- she has a mischievous streak, she likes to hear and tell jokes, she tells a heartwarming story about how she met her husband that shows her sympathy, empathy and the importance of family to her, she is a bit indifferent towards her snobby sons wife, being a more down to earth sort and doesn't seem to have much time for her airs and graces. And the second time we see her she is comforting and offering advice to the grieving Clara showing her concern for Clara and offering her some perils of wisdom born from experience- so which part of this displays a disgust of aging exactly and old people?

"Half these actresses don't look older than 35 so it doesn't count."- Figg

Thats the most ridiculous thing you have said yet. So Moffat is responsible for sitting in on the casting of every character in the show to make sure if they are older than 35 they don't look it?!!!
I cant believe you are even serious about that.

Its madness- he casts older actors, often, and often in roles where its not necessary for narrative purposes, he just chooses to anyway.
The older character in the xmas episode for example we find out at the end is a grandmother- but it has no bearing on the plot its just who she is, there is no reason he couldn't have cast a 20 odd year old or a thirty odd year old in that role all that would need changed is the few seconds ending where you see her at home- but as the writer he choose to write an older female character who was a grandmother for that part. How the buggery is that showing a hatred of the elderly? She is a strong, brave, intelligent woman.

'Its one thing employing a 40 year old actress to play a bit part and quite another to have an established older actor actually DO something important in the long run.'

So River Song does nothing important in her entire run in the show and Alex Kingston isn't an established actor?
Lets see- River has to fend for herself from a toddler- starting out escaping Kovarian, surviving on the streets of New York, tracking down her parents, moving country to be with them.
As an adult she studies at the hugely prestigious Lunar University of Earth where she qualifies as a Doctor in Archeology and eventually rises up through the academic ranks to become a Professor of Archeology- all off her own back. The first time we meet her she has been hired to be the archeological lead on the expedition to the library. She is brain washed to assassinate the Doctor, but manages to break her treatment and eventually she marries the Doctor, and saves the universe along the way.
Clearly Moffat hates anyone, and especially all woman over 40 by giving them such poor roles to play in which they get nothing at all to do!

'Wilf played an important part, Rorys dad was there as a novelty and although I love the actor in question, he didn't do much.'

Wilf played a much lesser role than River did and she played a larger role than even Roses mum, or Marthas parents, and Rory's dad even though he was not in much there was no hint of any sort of agism regards his character in how he was written or portrayed, and he was instrumental in his son and daughter and law deciding to stay with the Doctor.

'Moffat chose an older Doctor because of all the complaints about Smith being a kid that older viewers found irritating.'

I dont even know where to start with this!
You think Moffat choose to cast Capaldi because of people complaining that 11 was too irritating- despite 11 being a huge success, very popular with many and being the Doctor at the helm when the show went majorly big globally even getting showings in cinemas world wide? An actor Moffat tried to persuade to stay longer.
You honestly think Moffat feels he made a mistake casting Matt Smith?
A mistake that the only way he could rectify, even though he hates all old people obviously, was to be forced, presumably with his arm twisted up his back, to cast Capaldi?

You are off your rocker on this Figg!

ps i am offline for a day or two- on a mates laptop- but I had to respond to your post Figg as its so off the wall its actually staggered me!
Of all the things to accuse Moffat of ageism is just way, way, way off base.

if you say so sunshine. if you want me to bite, you will have to do better than calling me barking mad you know. its small potatos.

I am not calling you barking mad, we are both on Forumshire aren't we? barking mad is the natural state of mind- but I think your argument this time is barking mad.
It just seems like an accuse Moffat of anything argument, regardless of all the evidence.

ps hurrah for friends laptops that allow me to continue an argument with Figg even whilst offline! {{doesn't feel so bad being away if I can still argue with Figg}}

If its Nagual tell him I will get my cats to poo in his sombrero.

I was gonna ask if you two had taken the opportunity to meet up while Figgs was in Britannia, but then I realized that the resulting explosion would have made the news over here, so it must not have happened.

Those two can't even be left alone on a thread unchaperoned. Can you imagine what they'd be like on a school bus together?

he would pull my hair and I would pull his plonker.

Pulling the plonker. Haven't heard that one before.

You fixed on finding out exactly what it means, Bungo? I know a few pickup lines that may help...

I figured it was along the lines of "choke the chicken."

Truly an experience, you should give it a try.

A nice approach is to bring up the concept of "blue balls", and observe that you will be condemned to spend an uncomfortable and painful night if your amorous advances do not strike home. Older women are particularly impressed by this line of reasoning, and respond accordingly. Usually without warning, for maximum effect.

I fear for my plonker.

Why is the Who thread full of plonkers?!!! (and you can just keep Figg- it was rhetorical! )


Anyway to bring this back on track- a rather nice 4 minute fan short about the War Doctor- enjoy, I did-

Just a quick note that the Doctor Who community on here, which was already by far the largest aside from the main Hobbit topic, has just been auto-split into its tenth incarnation, which means that there have been OVER 9000! posts made in Doctor Who threads on the new forum.

Suddenly 31450 makes sense.

Well done, everyone.