Article:Who is The Doctor?
Article
You're sitting in the park, and suddenly you hear a loud wheezing sound. The air picks up and thrashes at you from every direction. Then, as if it were magic, a blue police box appears. The doors swing open, and in the silhouette of the light from inside this police box stands: The Doctor.
But exactly WHO is The Doctor? Some would say he is a “mad man with a box,” or some would say she is a healer or wise person. But the truth is, they are simply: The Doctor. A Time Lord from the planet Gallifrey in the Constellation of Kasterborous. A Time Traveler showing up exactly where they are needed.
What is a Time Lord?
Before we continue, I think it’s wise to explain just exactly what a "Time Lord" is. Time Lords are a race of people on the planet Gallifrey who have been granted the ability to "regenerate" and travel in time and space in their TARDIS. This process starts at the age of 8. Their first test is to stare into the Untempered Schism, basically a hole in the membrane of time, where they get to see the raw power of the time vortex. Some get inspired, some flee, and a few go mad. Not all people of Gallifrey get selected for the Time Lord Academy.
What does a Time Lord do?
A Time Lord travels the Time Vortex to experience significant events on planets far and wide and to intervene when nefarious forces arise. Think of them as Observers and Police of the natural timeline, also called ‘Fixed Points”. (Moments in time that cannot be changed.) But of all of these Time Lords, there is ONE that stands out above the rest. That person is The Doctor.
The Doctor!
The Doctor, as mentioned, stands out above almost all other Time Lords due to what they stand for. All Time Lords pick their names. Some chose The Rani, The Master, Omega, and so on. Their name is their promise. As The Doctor, they value life above all things. The 'First Doctor’, tired of the politics and laziness that had become of the Time Lords, stole a TARDIS, TIME AND RELATIVE DIMENSION IN SPACE, and ran away to enjoy the Universe and help the Universe when they could.
The Doctors!
Yes, you have been reading correctly! I have been referring to the Doctor as he, she, and they, as that is an important part of their special abilities. Every Time Lord is given 13 Regenerations. Regeneration for a Time Lord is when they are mortally wounded or need to hide in plain sight. This ability allows them to change their appearance. But where one Doctor stood, a new face took over. New face, new personality, same memories, and still The Doctor. This new face could be young, old, male, female, bald, short, tall, or, as The Doctor says, I could have no head at all.”
Each Doctor has their own personality traits. Think of a Time Lord like a person with multiple personalities, but when a personality takes over, the body changes to look like them. Some are grumpy, some are funny, some are warriors, and some of them just are. But at the end of the day, they are The Doctor.
The Doctor and Earth
While the Doctor can travel anywhere in time and space, they tend to favor Earth over all other planets. But why is that? The simple answer is when the First Doctor ran away with his granddaughter to Earth, where they hid away from the Time Lords. During their time here, The Doctor finds himself being drawn in to fix the new episodes' issues until he starts to always want to help. The Earth became a safe home for him, so he made sure to protect it. Earth will become a refuge and a place of mourning for other incarnations to come, such as the Third Doctor when his time travel ability was taken, or when The Ninth Doctor runs away at the Devastation the War Doctor causes, or a place of mourning for The Eleventh Doctor. A “Home away from home.”
What makes The Doctor so great?
Doctor Who isn’t just a show about ‘wibbly wobbly timey whimey stuff’, it’s a show that faces many everyday issues we all face, just made grander and dramatised. The Doctor doesn’t carry a gun or a weapon of any kind. Just their kindness, mind, sonic screwdriver, TARDIS, and psychic paper. The Doctor shows us how to process emotion and to seek peace when violence is easier. They make it clear it isn’t easy, but it’s better to be kind than cruel. The Doctor can make armies turn away at the mention of their name. Proof that kindness and compassion can be powerful. That being angry or sad is alright, as long as those around you or yourself aren’t harmed. No one is unimportant to The Doctor.
To sum it up!
This was just a brief explanation of who and what The Doctor is. There are so many more details, abilities, and stories to cover that it would need more than just one article to be told in full. The Doctor has always been a source of hope and inspiration to me, which is the reason for the character breakdown. If this piques your interest, I encourage you to take the plunge and jump into the TARDIS and see why I love The Doctor so much by watching ‘DOCTOR WHO’.
Additional Info
Written by: KSI CASTIEL
Publish Date: April 30th, 3036 @ 10:39pm
