My thought about Time Lord DNA come in part from what little I know (probably errorneously) about human genetics, that there's a great deal of "junk DNA" incorporated that never seems to get used.
Yep, exactly. So the notion of the Time Lords using this extra DNA to rewrite their own genetic makeup from time to time doesn't strike me as terribly farfetched. (I guess it's also possible that their DNA stays the same when they regenerate and the change in appearance and personality is purely skin-deep, but that seems both implausible and, what's worse, boring.)
One possible extrapolation of the hoover theory is that the Time Lords, once they had ceased gallivanting about the universe, would become limited only to the genetic material on Gallifrey. Perhaps that contributed to their eventual isolation and stagnation.
Exactly! This gives the roving Doctor a unique role in their society even aside from all the ominous hints they used to offer about him being Special and Ancient and Spooooky. By this theory, the centuries he's spent wandering around the universe opening himself up to new experience on every level, from the intellectual on down to the genetic, would give the Doctor a hybrid vigor far surpassing that of his fellow Time Lords.
And, more importantly, it gives us a means of hand-waving away the TV movie's ridiculous assertion that the Doctor is half-human. He's simply picked it up by osmosis. :-)
But I also meant to ask what you thought of the telemovie.
Oooh, I try not to. Paul McGann would make a wonderful Doctor, and I hope he gets the chance to appear in a Doctor Who production some day. :-)
Aside from all the continuity and quality issues, I was particularly offended that they pulled a Superman at the end and used the Tardis to revive the Doctor's love interest. Somehow it seemed like a real cheat given the restrained way the original show had always used the time travel gimmick.
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Date: 2006-09-06 09:41 pm (UTC)Yep, exactly. So the notion of the Time Lords using this extra DNA to rewrite their own genetic makeup from time to time doesn't strike me as terribly farfetched. (I guess it's also possible that their DNA stays the same when they regenerate and the change in appearance and personality is purely skin-deep, but that seems both implausible and, what's worse, boring.)
One possible extrapolation of the hoover theory is that the Time Lords, once they had ceased gallivanting about the universe, would become limited only to the genetic material on Gallifrey. Perhaps that contributed to their eventual isolation and stagnation.
Exactly! This gives the roving Doctor a unique role in their society even aside from all the ominous hints they used to offer about him being Special and Ancient and Spooooky. By this theory, the centuries he's spent wandering around the universe opening himself up to new experience on every level, from the intellectual on down to the genetic, would give the Doctor a hybrid vigor far surpassing that of his fellow Time Lords.
And, more importantly, it gives us a means of hand-waving away the TV movie's ridiculous assertion that the Doctor is half-human. He's simply picked it up by osmosis. :-)
But I also meant to ask what you thought of the telemovie.
Oooh, I try not to. Paul McGann would make a wonderful Doctor, and I hope he gets the chance to appear in a Doctor Who production some day. :-)
Aside from all the continuity and quality issues, I was particularly offended that they pulled a Superman at the end and used the Tardis to revive the Doctor's love interest. Somehow it seemed like a real cheat given the restrained way the original show had always used the time travel gimmick.
But that's me. What did you make of it?