A long time ago tomorrow morning

[infinitemonkeys]

There's something very disconcerting about seeing your younger self very clearly. This past four days I went up north to clear out the crap from my old bedroom at home, which included a large box and a tin of letters written to me by university friends, and boxes of books and magazines, all untouched for at least a decade

Comments

[lizbee]

though I did wonder why she spoke standard RP in the video of her earlier self, and Cockney in the present -- unless it was meant to show the passage of time.

I thought it indicated the passage of time. A few years ago, some linguistic types did a study of the Queen's Christmas speeches over the length of her reign, and found her accent had drifted closer to middle class. Give her three hundred years, and she'd probably sound like she wandered off the set of Neighbours.

(Note: a friend of mine works on the set of Neighbours, and she's American. But, you know.)

[infinitemonkeys]

I suppose everyone's accent has drifted closer to middle class, which has itself moved towards Estuary English, save that of certain middle class people, who've gone all Mockney.

Did you ever read that news story about how Neighbours has affected the English accent? They reckon that the rising intonation at the end of sentences, which turns them into slight questions, is learned from a whole generation of thirty- and twentysomethings having spent their teatimes watching Neighbours and Home and Away.

[katie_m]

So how perfect was it that Moffat conceptualises the Doctor as someone who has suffered terrible losses, but is very old and, above all, kind.

My problem with that bit was that he, er, isn't. He'd been unkind to Amy not three minutes before! Loving I could have gone for--I think it's possible to be unkind in a loving way--but kind? The Doctor? Really?

(Granted, I can totally believe that Amy sees him that way.)

[cofax7]

Given how he TWICE failed Amy fairly horribly, I have a hard time believing even that...

That she likes him and trusts his good intentions, yes. That he's actually kind? Erm.

[infinitemonkeys]

Ah, but we don't know that he failed Amy because he was careless (which is possible) or because Something Is Up*. And I think it's kindness and mercy in action to do something you loathe so that another being might be free from pain.

[* Oh please, please, let Something be going awry with Amy's timeline]

[infinitemonkeys]

I reckon Moffat would plead situational grumpiness. Does one minute's anger cancel out a kind and merciful disposition generally? Isn't it kind to do something you hate for the sake of another being?

Why I liked it was because it is a return to Terrance Dicks and Malcolm Hulke's mission statement of the seventies, which got lost in RTD's idea of the Lonely God and his hardcore pessimism, which he painted in a jolly face. In every episode so far, I think that Moffat is presenting an implicit critique of the things I did not like in the RTD era. There was much to love in the reboot but if you're an old school fan, much to cause unease too.

[parrot_knight]

I love old Doctor Who fanzines, particularly those where there was a tightknit core of contributors,like Queen Bat (pictured), where one can actually sense a school of thought about the programme emerging. Skaro was excellent too, and it's a pity that disappeared. I think that the knowledge that people like Paul Cornell started out writing for fanzines keeps the form alive in Doctor Who fandom, and I'm glad titles like This Way Up (edited by veteran John Connors), Shooty Dog Thing and The Terrible Zodin flourish as PDFs online.

The zine I edited in the late 90s only lasted one issue, but I took over my university zine in the middle of the decade currently passing, which was fun but time-consuming, and I felt it had to be passed on to someone who was actually still a student anyway. It was a wrench...

[infinitemonkeys]

I have a bunch of copies of Skaro, which I'd like to reread; Antonine Killer, which I remember being good, so I'd like to read that again; and a cache of copies of Gareth Roberts and Neil Corry's zine, Cottage Under Siege. The rest are probably more interesting as artefacts than in themselves.

Perhaps I should seek out some of the online zines after the election when there's more time to breathe again.

[parrot_knight]

Antonine Killer I've never seen - that was Martin Day and Keith Topping keeping the Space Rat and Queen Bat lineage going after Jackie Marshall retired from fanzine editing, wasn't it... I did see Cottage Under Siege, which was much as one would expect!

[infinitemonkeys]

I don't think it lasted more than a couple of issues. I mainly remember it for a Paul Cornell story which, I think, referenced All About Eve (the band, not the film), who I loved very much at the time.

There are also copies of Circus, edited by Colin Brockhurst, who now produces the tremendous Vworp Vworp. I think all those fanzines were my introduction to things like Quatermass.

[kirbyfest]

I like the Leadworth theory, very much. Obviously the Doctor takes Amy with him at least partly because he likes her, but he also knows something is off, and she's possibly his way to find out what.

Hm. This works well.

[infinitemonkeys]

It does, doesn't it! (God, I'm going to be so disappointed when the cracky theory turns out to be bollocks)

[vivwiley]

There's something very disconcerting about seeing your younger self very clearly.

so very true. My mom kept most of the letters that I sent them from college and then gave them back to me a few years ago. It was so strange to see my loopy and legible handwriting talking about all these things with such excitement and passion. Some of them were still sharp memories and others were very dim.

I have recently reconnected with some of the people from my more distant past and it's been a mixed bag of experiences, but mostly good. I wish you luck in reaching out, and you are undoubtedly wise to remember the Rule of Telephone Calls.

I miss letters....

[infinitemonkeys]

It's amazing, isn't it, the things you forget from then. I also miss letters but I am tremendously bad at writing back. Computers have made it tricky to write longhand -- I think we use different muscles -- and I never grasped the ability to write short, punchy letters at all.