The Eighth Doctor (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
whatifigetbored) wrote2014-01-03 03:14 pm
whatifigetbored) wrote2014-01-03 03:14 pm
Entry tags:
Personality
While the Doctor had gone through as many personalities as he has faces, there are some things that are always the same: his love of travelling and adventure, his wit and intelligence, and his role as a heroic figure. The same is true of his Eighth incarnation, although he certainly has his own quirks as well. The Doctor left his home planet to see the universe back in his first incarnation, and he hasn't stopped dashing around it since. As far as the Doctor is concerned, falling feet-first into trouble, running for his life, and nearly dying on a regular basis is a lot of the fun of travelling around the universe, and he wouldn't have it any other way. He can even find monstrous creatures that are in the process of trying to kill him wonderful and amazing - let alone the rest of the universe. And the Eighth Doctor in particular is particularly characterised by an ability to find wonder in the universe, including even in small, ordinary, every-day things.
But when the Doctor does, inevitably, run into trouble, he always aims to use his wits and intelligence to solve problems, rather than any kind of violence. This doesn't mean he'll never resort to it, but it takes a pretty extreme situation for him to do so, and it's always a very last resort. Violence is something the Doctor detests, and while previous incarnations haven't been quite so against it, the Eighth Doctor is, very much so. His dislike of violence also extends to him having an extreme dislike of guns - although sometimes the necessity of them can lead to him doing some rather odd things, like refusing to call a device that effectively acts like a gun "a gun", or, after stealing one from a policeman, using it to threaten to shoot himself rather than anybody else.
The Doctor also happens to be not at all modest about his intelligence, having no qualms at all about stating himself to be the most intelligent person in the room and assuming that everyone else will recognise this as unequivocal fact. Of course, he often is, but that doesn't negate the fact that the Doctor can be highly arrogant. However, at the same time, the Doctor can also be very humble, as he as absolutely no desire for power whatsoever, and he doesn't see himself as being really all that important in the grand scheme of things. For the most part, the Doctor's arrogance tends to be about his intelligence and capabilities, but he also doesn't think that this makes him any more important or better than anyone else. This is perhaps best shown by his reaction to highly intelligent villains - he certainly doesn't see them as any better than anyone else, and never approves of their methods, but at the same time he can be amazed at and respect their intelligence and cunning.
In his eighth incarnation, the Doctor's personality makes for a much more romantic figure, who tends to feel much more in the way of "human" emotions than his previous incarnations. He's very chatty, and rather carefree and bouncy at times, with a large tendency to being incredibly spontaneous and even easily distracted. Conversations with the Eighth Doctor can sometimes go on random, unexpected tangents, that don't bear any kind of resemblance to what was going on before. And he's also absolutely horrible about name-dropping, quite possible the worst of all the Doctor's incarnations, much to the annoyance of his companions who have to keep hearing him ramble about all the famous historical figures he's met. The Doctor is an inherently quirky character, and it's not just because he's an alien - even amongst the Time Lords, the Doctor is regarded as rather odd.
Still, despite all of his quirks, when the chips are down and he and his companions are in a dangerous situation, the Doctor is capable of being completely and utterly serious. He has an authoritative manner and bearing, often getting people to do what he tells him to do just by sheer virtue of the fact that he acts like someone that people should be obeying.
The Eighth Doctor is also a soft-spoken, and much more reserved incarnation. He doesn't tend to get into people's faces quite so much - although he still lacks much of a sense of personal space - and he is inherently polite. He might forget at times, as there's a lot of cultural rules in the universe and he can't be expected to remember all of them, and he's not really one for complicated social rules anyway, but he is still very much a gentleman. This is also reflected in his interests, which are largely very "cultured" like poetry and literature and tea. Although the effect is also rather lessened by his uncultured interests, like bad puns and soccer and state-of-the-art spaceships, and his great liking of sweets. Tea isn't particularly gentlemanly when it comes with six teaspoons of sugar.
He possesses a strong moral code, and an intense need to help whoever he comes across (even when they have nothing at all to do with him). Part of why he left Gallifrey was a difference in ideals, as while the Time Lords believe in complete non-interference, the Doctor doesn't believe in sitting back and choosing not to help where he can. He sees Time Lord's their refusal to help others in the universe as a sign of their stagnations and corruption, and he lives his life in direct opposition to that. He might not always be able to act, as even as a renegade Time Lord he knows the importance of not damaging the "web of time", but where he can act, he sees it as his duty to do so. He is also solidly against the killing of an innocent person (or, in many cases, even a non-innocent), even when that would be necessary to save countless others. This is largely a reaction to his previous incarnation, "the man with the plan", who had started "doing the numbers" and calculating the lives of some against others. In this incarnation, the Doctor sees that as the start of the dark path, and refuses to step down it again - although having gone from one extreme to another, this approach doesn't always have the best results. And there are exceptions as well, such as the Daleks and Cybermen, who he regards as being without any hope of redemption.
The Doctor cares vary deeply about his companions, and wouldn't hesitate to die to save them (and in fact, at times he's possibly too quick to try and sacrifice himself). But at the same time, he's used to seeing them die, or leave him. As a Time Lord, he's exceptionally long-lived, and the lives of most of his companions are incredibly short in comparison. This means that sometimes, his companions won't understand how quickly the Doctor moves on from the deaths of others. For the Doctor, his companions lives are fleeting, and he reacts to their inevitable disappearance from his life by avoiding goodbyes and moving straight on to the next adventure. He'll frantically do everything he can to save them around while they are alive, but once they are gone they are gone. And while human lives are fleeting, the Doctor doesn't like travelling alone. In part, he just likes to have company. But the Doctor also doesn't want to forget how precious life is, and his companions are an inherent reminder of that, as they look at the universe with much younger, less-experienced eyes.
In many ways, the Doctor copes by never staying still, by always finding something or someone else to keep him occupied. For all that he's a heroic figure, the Doctor does also possess plenty of fears, and his darker moments. Live as long as the Doctor has, and you'll pick up plenty of regrets along the way, and one of the Doctor's biggest regrets is that he didn't stop the Daleks from being created when he had the first place. He regrets all those times he failed to help in the past, and fears when he might be unable to do in the future. But even more than that, the Doctor fears what depths he might fall to one day. Having been "the man with the plan" in just his last incarnation, the Doctor is well aware that he might end up having to make some very difficult choices. And while the Doctor is someone who seems to almost never, ever, give up, if he's driven far enough to the edge, even he can.
But when the Doctor does, inevitably, run into trouble, he always aims to use his wits and intelligence to solve problems, rather than any kind of violence. This doesn't mean he'll never resort to it, but it takes a pretty extreme situation for him to do so, and it's always a very last resort. Violence is something the Doctor detests, and while previous incarnations haven't been quite so against it, the Eighth Doctor is, very much so. His dislike of violence also extends to him having an extreme dislike of guns - although sometimes the necessity of them can lead to him doing some rather odd things, like refusing to call a device that effectively acts like a gun "a gun", or, after stealing one from a policeman, using it to threaten to shoot himself rather than anybody else.
The Doctor also happens to be not at all modest about his intelligence, having no qualms at all about stating himself to be the most intelligent person in the room and assuming that everyone else will recognise this as unequivocal fact. Of course, he often is, but that doesn't negate the fact that the Doctor can be highly arrogant. However, at the same time, the Doctor can also be very humble, as he as absolutely no desire for power whatsoever, and he doesn't see himself as being really all that important in the grand scheme of things. For the most part, the Doctor's arrogance tends to be about his intelligence and capabilities, but he also doesn't think that this makes him any more important or better than anyone else. This is perhaps best shown by his reaction to highly intelligent villains - he certainly doesn't see them as any better than anyone else, and never approves of their methods, but at the same time he can be amazed at and respect their intelligence and cunning.
In his eighth incarnation, the Doctor's personality makes for a much more romantic figure, who tends to feel much more in the way of "human" emotions than his previous incarnations. He's very chatty, and rather carefree and bouncy at times, with a large tendency to being incredibly spontaneous and even easily distracted. Conversations with the Eighth Doctor can sometimes go on random, unexpected tangents, that don't bear any kind of resemblance to what was going on before. And he's also absolutely horrible about name-dropping, quite possible the worst of all the Doctor's incarnations, much to the annoyance of his companions who have to keep hearing him ramble about all the famous historical figures he's met. The Doctor is an inherently quirky character, and it's not just because he's an alien - even amongst the Time Lords, the Doctor is regarded as rather odd.
Still, despite all of his quirks, when the chips are down and he and his companions are in a dangerous situation, the Doctor is capable of being completely and utterly serious. He has an authoritative manner and bearing, often getting people to do what he tells him to do just by sheer virtue of the fact that he acts like someone that people should be obeying.
The Eighth Doctor is also a soft-spoken, and much more reserved incarnation. He doesn't tend to get into people's faces quite so much - although he still lacks much of a sense of personal space - and he is inherently polite. He might forget at times, as there's a lot of cultural rules in the universe and he can't be expected to remember all of them, and he's not really one for complicated social rules anyway, but he is still very much a gentleman. This is also reflected in his interests, which are largely very "cultured" like poetry and literature and tea. Although the effect is also rather lessened by his uncultured interests, like bad puns and soccer and state-of-the-art spaceships, and his great liking of sweets. Tea isn't particularly gentlemanly when it comes with six teaspoons of sugar.
He possesses a strong moral code, and an intense need to help whoever he comes across (even when they have nothing at all to do with him). Part of why he left Gallifrey was a difference in ideals, as while the Time Lords believe in complete non-interference, the Doctor doesn't believe in sitting back and choosing not to help where he can. He sees Time Lord's their refusal to help others in the universe as a sign of their stagnations and corruption, and he lives his life in direct opposition to that. He might not always be able to act, as even as a renegade Time Lord he knows the importance of not damaging the "web of time", but where he can act, he sees it as his duty to do so. He is also solidly against the killing of an innocent person (or, in many cases, even a non-innocent), even when that would be necessary to save countless others. This is largely a reaction to his previous incarnation, "the man with the plan", who had started "doing the numbers" and calculating the lives of some against others. In this incarnation, the Doctor sees that as the start of the dark path, and refuses to step down it again - although having gone from one extreme to another, this approach doesn't always have the best results. And there are exceptions as well, such as the Daleks and Cybermen, who he regards as being without any hope of redemption.
The Doctor cares vary deeply about his companions, and wouldn't hesitate to die to save them (and in fact, at times he's possibly too quick to try and sacrifice himself). But at the same time, he's used to seeing them die, or leave him. As a Time Lord, he's exceptionally long-lived, and the lives of most of his companions are incredibly short in comparison. This means that sometimes, his companions won't understand how quickly the Doctor moves on from the deaths of others. For the Doctor, his companions lives are fleeting, and he reacts to their inevitable disappearance from his life by avoiding goodbyes and moving straight on to the next adventure. He'll frantically do everything he can to save them around while they are alive, but once they are gone they are gone. And while human lives are fleeting, the Doctor doesn't like travelling alone. In part, he just likes to have company. But the Doctor also doesn't want to forget how precious life is, and his companions are an inherent reminder of that, as they look at the universe with much younger, less-experienced eyes.
In many ways, the Doctor copes by never staying still, by always finding something or someone else to keep him occupied. For all that he's a heroic figure, the Doctor does also possess plenty of fears, and his darker moments. Live as long as the Doctor has, and you'll pick up plenty of regrets along the way, and one of the Doctor's biggest regrets is that he didn't stop the Daleks from being created when he had the first place. He regrets all those times he failed to help in the past, and fears when he might be unable to do in the future. But even more than that, the Doctor fears what depths he might fall to one day. Having been "the man with the plan" in just his last incarnation, the Doctor is well aware that he might end up having to make some very difficult choices. And while the Doctor is someone who seems to almost never, ever, give up, if he's driven far enough to the edge, even he can.