After my
first regeneration (Nine to Ten,) the handover to Three was probably my most
reluctant transition. I was still
relatively new to classic Who, having
only seen what was available on DVD at the time for the First and Second
Doctors, and after being utterly charmed by Two in the lamentably-few complete
serials he had available, I was nowhere near ready to see him go. I wouldn’t say I was outright resistant to
Three or prepared to dislike him, but I didn’t relish the idea of a new Doctor
so soon. However, while he’s never quite
gained the level of affection I have for Two, I came around pretty quickly on
the Third Doctor and grew to like him an awful lot.
His
post-regeneration episode helped considerably – just the fact that the Doctor
himself wasn’t quite sure about the new regeneration at first mirrored my own
feelings, and I started warming to him around the same time that he did (I love
his appraisal of his new eyebrows.)
Before long, I was used to who the Third Doctor is. He’s highly intelligent, which of course the
Doctor always is, but Three seems to carry
himself with that intelligence more overtly, and not just because he spends so
much time in UNIT’s science lab or working advanced technology of his own
devising in the field. It’s also just
his manner and bearing; the Doctor’s intelligence can often be hidden behind
his eccentricities, but Three’s more dignified attitude sells “UNIT scientific
adviser” much more convincingly.
Along
with that dignity and intelligence comes an immensely self-assured air and a
forceful nature. As to the
self-assurance, I wouldn’t quite so far as to call the Doctor arrogant,
although he does have his undeniably vain moments. More than anything, he’s just supremely
confident and not at all shy about telling you exactly how he knows he’s right,
and since he frequently has the skills and knowledge to back it up, he
generally gets away with it. He doesn’t
really act superior for the sake of it, though (for example, I wouldn’t compare
him to Sherlock,) and for the most part, he lets his expertise be felt weithout
harping on it or implying that others are stupid. (Note:
the Brigadier might disagree with that last point.) And as far as the forcefulness goes, it’s an
interesting time for the show, with the Doctor stranded on Earth – exiled by
the Time Lords – and recruited not wholly voluntarily by UNIT. Even though the Doctor can never resist a
mystery and he’s always going to help people in need when there’s an alien
threat afoot, he still chafes at being stuck there, and that frustration often
expresses itself in strong words with the Brigadier or one of the other UNIT
soldiers.
These are
all relatively serious traits, and Three is
generally more serious than a number of Doctors, but it’s far from all work and
no play. He can also be quite warm with
his companions in a gentle way (despite Jo definitely getting on his nerves on
occasion,) and he takes genuine delight in showing them something new. The old Doctor mischievousness is still there
as well, just more subtle – Three can be awfully sly when he wants to be,
whether with a baddie he has no respect for or the Brigadier for trying to lay down
the law on him. Especially in his first
season, he spends a lot of time secretly tinkering with the TARDIS and trying
to rig it so he can leave Earth again, which involves some sneaking around and
good-natured trickery. And, because he is such a proud character, that means
good fun whenever he does get knocked down a peg; Three gives the best sheepish
look when he’s embarrassed himself, and it’s great for his companions and UNIT
friends to get that occasional confirmation that he isn’t perfect.
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