Discussing the Third Doctor

“It seems that I’m some kind of a galactic Yo-Yo.”

The Third Doctor’s era marks one of the most significant changes to the status quo in the show’s long history. No longer a wanderer in the fourth dimension, this Doctor is stuck in one time and place for the majority of their tenure and have to deal with things no other incarnation has had to deal with, not on a consistent basis at least. They’re surrounded by an extended cast of characters beyond that of their chosen travelling companions and, possibly most frightening of all, they have to get a job! These are the days of UNIT and cementing the Doctor’s role as Earth’s defender.

Maybe it’s because of all these changes that this Doctor feels like a return to their original persona in a lot of ways. It’s only really struck me in the past month or so, but I never noticed how similar this Doctor is to the First before. I mean you could take the Third Doctor as the First 2.0. He’s back to being a more serious persona, a figure of authority, very proud verging on arrogant, but always willing to be jovial with his friends. Also, much like the First Doctor, there’s a strong streak of self-interest in this incarnation. Admittedly that streak comes from a very understandable place, the Doctor has displayed time and again that they do not do well when they’re forced to exist in linear time with no option to get away even for a little while. Honestly I’m getting flashback to Lockdown just thinking about it. I’m not a social person, I am, more often than not, most comfortable when I’m in my own house. Yet, when the option to go outside was taken away from me I almost immediately started climbing the walls. So imagine if the whole of the universe is your back garden and you’re suddenly told you can’t go out into it ever again. Yeah, I relate to this Doctor so much more than I used to.

Getting back to the point though, understandable or not, it doesn’t change the fact that this Doctor will leap at the opportunity to leave Earth the moment it presents itself. In his first story, ‘Spearhead from Space’ he tricks Liz into stealing the TARDIS key and then immediately jumps inside and tries to leave. This is despite the fact that by this point he knows something strange has landed on the Earth and there’s a potential for a very real danger. It’s only the fact that the Time Lords took away his knowledge of time travel that keeps him on Earth. This isn’t a one off either, in ‘The Claws of Axos’ with a threat looming against the Earth, the moment a scientist mentions they’ve been experimenting with time travel the Doctor is all “oh, do you mind if I bring my TARDIS down here and we have a look at it together?”

Again I completely understand the frustration behind this self-interest, especially when you see some of the people the Doctor has to deal with on a regular basis. Any other incarnation can just nip into the TARDIS and fly away when an adventure is over, but this Doctor is trapped dealing with bureaucrats and pencil pushers. I can only imagine the amount of reports and meetings he has to go through to explain why a bunch of freedom fighters from the future turned up and tried to murder a diplomat, before they blew up his whole house. On their best day any Doctor will internally simmer at the small-mindedness and petty antics of some humans, especially when they know we can be so much more, but this Doctor boils over on several occasions.

“If I could leave I would, if only to get away from people like you and your petty obsessions.”

All that being said this Doctor does feel like he’s most at home on Earth, after he’s spent a season or two under the employ of UNIT at any rate. I can’t think of any other incarnation that you’d see lounging on a sofa while commenting on a choice selection of wine as this one does in ‘Day of the Daleks’. The Third Doctor is a much more dignified, classy figure than his predecessor, I mean he has to be to pull off the velvet jackets and frilly shirts he wears. He also happens to be one of the few Doctors with an extended list of allies and associates, who aren’t all former companions or famous historical figures. Admittedly a large part of that is because he’s forced to be with these people, but over time it does start to feel like a big family for the Doctor. He likes and respects these people and makes many friends for life here.

Now, while the First and Third Doctors are similar, I don’t want to make it sound like all of their character development has come undone. Far from it. In their second incarnation the Doctor learned to be a hero, to fight the evil in the universe, but this incarnation is where I feel they settled on another role, that of Earth’s defender. Despite the odd moment of weakness, this Doctor is always there when it counts to save the day. And, when they finally do get back their ability to travel in time again, the Doctor stays on Earth for the most part. Sometimes knowing the option is there is all you really need, you don’t have to leave the house…I mean travel the universe all the time. Just knowing you can if you want to is enough peace of mind. I always think back to this moment in ‘The Time Warrior’ where it’s pointed out that the Doctor has the option to just leave, but he doesn’t because, as he puts it, he has a job to do. The Sontaran Linx is messing with the Earth and it’s people and the Doctor sees it as his duty to stop that. After all the years spent with him, I think the Brigadier has finally rubbed off on him.

I’ll end this with one of my absolute favourite quotes of the show, that not only sums up this incarnation, but the Doctor as a whole.

“You’re serious aren’t you?”

“About what I do yes, not necessarily the way I do it.”

I’m Chris Joynson, aka Neverarguewithafish, I’m a writer and blogger and if you want to chat with me you can find me on twitter @ChrisGJoynson. See you out there in the vortex.