There are four Who-people on my flist, but I am posting this anyway.

[cherry]

All things said, I really do think that it was time for Rose to go.

I've always been honest about the fact that I am not overly fond of Rose (except I don't post much meta or fannish content, so perhaps this is only known to those close to me), but my reaction is separate from that fact. Traditionally, I love and write the characters/pairing no one cares about or cares for, so I've been on the other end of this equation. Rose in S1 was all right by me -- she was never going to go onto my list of most favouritest characters ever, but I didn't mind her. S2, I feel as if we're rehashing old ground with her, and the magical weekly characterization reset button hasn't helped.

We've covered her family, her family issues, and most faucets of her life. If we were seeing growth from week to week from her experiences, it might be possible to get another year out of her. I feel that at this point, a third season would stretch some credibility a bit thin, especially with regards to the Doctor/Rose bits, of which I've never been especially fond.

It's possible that the last four episode will do for this series what the last five (TEC/TDD/BT/BW/PotW) did for series one, at least for me. I certainly hope that to be the case, because I just haven't been feeling most of this series.

Except for Mickey. How do I love Mickey? Let me count the ways...

This is not h8, but I don't believe that any large amount of emo can be wrangled from the Doctor over her leaving. We have Jack, Mickey, Reinette, and Sarah Jane's losses as templates for his behaviour, and I believe a long-term emofest would be out of character.

Now, I'm not saying there should be a Jack-esque departure, because as much as I love him the situations were different. Jack is a professional time traveller, for one, better suited to taking care of himself in a war zone in a far-off time, and Rose has been with the Doctor for longer.

I'm hoping that we don't get one new companion, but two. I've always preferred shows with a larger cast, just because full ensemble performances have always resonated more with me. I'm also hoping for two, because I really do think that we'll be getting Jack back, and as much as I love him, I don't think that he'd work as sole companion. He's a bit too knowledgeable about time travel and the universe, and either he or the Doctor would have to start acting a bit slow to exposition things to the audience. Also, I think we'll get a girl, for that 18-34 male viewing audience. Jack is like kryptonite for UST, so we could get a bit of a lighter vibe going, if there was a push towards older-style, more adventure-based stories.

I understand that it's sad to lose a character you love (Mickey! Will Tippen! Romana! Aiden Ford!), but I'm rather looking forward to seeing where the show goes from here.

Comments

[cherryice.livejournal.com]

I'm guessing you just watched Tooth and Claw. *G*

For me, S1 Rose is not S2 Rose. I don't know how much of it is simply the fact that she is interacting with a different person, but during this season, my opinion of her has definitely gone down. The Rose'n'Doc bit has been played as much as it can be, I think. I know when Jack was with them in Boomtown, there was a bit of the same, but they did draw Mickey in a bit there -- as opposed to the beginning sequence of RotC, and the times Rose was jealous because the Doctor knew a girl's name.

It's interesting to not that Rose is much more proactive when the Doctor is not around in this season. Her last really proactive decision with regards to him was the one that ended up killing him, so I'm just not sure what to think there. It's also possible that it just all seems like a lark to her.

Or it's just possible we have a bit of inconsistent writing going on. I'm hoping that's wrong, and the last few episodes will tie everything together neatly.