Real Life Fictional Characters

In the announcement show Peter Capaldi said when he looked in the mirror the Doctor was already looking back at him, but he was not quite yet the Doctor.


Funny he should say that.

Since my Star Trek love has returned I’ve been looking sideways and weirdly at Brent Spiner who played Data the android. As Data he has his hair slicked back, his face covered in gold powder and he wears yellow lenses. It gave him a completely different look and with that he changed into a different person; Data. It was not only the actor making the character, it was the character partly taking over. Something changed in that man when gold with yellow eyes. In Data I can’t see Brent and in Brent I can’t see Data. Even his voice is different and the way he speaks is different. I can’t hear Data in Brent, nor can I hear Brent in Data.The contrast is especially clear when he’s playing opposite himself as respectively Data and his creator Dr. Soong. There’s a moment in the episode Birthright where Soong and Data are practically standing nose to nose and the camera is taking a close profile of both. That’s the same man staring (at nothing in reality) at himself. Blue into yellow, skin against gold dust (don’t know the material Data’s face is made of). Every time I’m baffled how different he is. Data even seems to be a bit taller than Soong.

Back to Doctor Who.

Yesterday I already remarked how every actor who played the Doctor has put something of himself into the Doctor. What can I say? I don’t know Peter Capaldi well enough to say something about how he’s going to play the Doctor. Steven Moffat did remark they’ll go a completely different direction with Peter compared to Matt. If we base our speculations on roles Peter has played in the past, this 12th Doctor could become a much darker personality. That’s an avenue I’m very interested in. Who knows what dark secrets the Doctor has to hide.

It seems a little ironic to me. Yes, Matt’s Doctor was a bouncy Doctor. I believe under all that bouncing and running the Doctor is hiding very dark secrets. To the eleventh that was the way to hide, and maybe even forget, about all the dark secrets he’s hiding. That gives Matt’s Doctor a certain dark edge. Who knows what we’ll find out in the 50th anniversary special.

Let’s see what happens. I’m sure the Doctor will inhabit Peter Capaldi soon enough. He is reaching out already. I’m already greeting Peter Capaldi as the Doctor, so that’s a good sign.