~ Personality ~

Following a prolonged and explosively violent regeneration that not only radically changed the Doctor, but severely damaged the TARDIS (a development that forced the vessel to essentially regenerate as well), the Doctor’s metamorphosis produced his most youthful body to date. However, the Doctor is getting on a bit in years, and his centuries of life and experience often show through the otherwise youthful facade. His clothes, in particular, are reminiscent of that of a mid 20th-century school professor, as the bow-tie, tweed jacket, bracers, and boots definitely hearken back to a slightly “old-school” sensibility, and are vaguely reminiscent of his Second incarnation, as is his mop of thick, dark hair.

On the more youthful side, the Eleventh Doctor is usually an energetic and active figure who seems to have shed the deep survivor’s guilt that haunted his previous two incarnations, and is eager, demonstrative, and rather showy. Animated in conversation, he gesticulates a great deal and his hands are rarely still for long. Its also common for him to spin in a circle while walking, often doing so within the TARDIS, twirling around one of his friends in his path as he continues to ramble on about whatever subject has grabbed his attention. Like his Tenth incarnation, he’s prone to excitability, but expresses that energy in a much more subtle fashion. Like his Fourth incarnation, he often displays a sense of amazement and childlike wonder when he encounters something really interesting (like Vampire-girls in Venice, or flying Sharks). However at times he can be very world-weary, his experiences leaving him a bit jaded about the things he encounters. The Doctor once confessed this problem to Amy Pond, and went on to say that was a big reason why he wanted her to join him – so he could see these things through her eyes, and thus feel that sense of wonder once again.

He’s also very focused on things he considers “cool” (regardless of whether anyone else thinks they are or not), and won’t hesitate to hang the term on virtually anything he happens to like, such as Bow Ties, Apollo-era Space-suits, a Fez, and a Stetson cowboy hat. In fact, the Eleventh Doctor seems to have a bit of an obsession with hats, and won’t hesitate to slap one on his head if he takes a shine to it.

A talented footballer. he both loves the sport, and truly excels at it, much like his Fifth incarnation’s formidable skills in Cricket. He also seems to be a talented cook, and is evidently able to make the finest omelette you’ve ever had. His senses are very finely honed. His visual acuity is remarkable, and he’s able to pick out tiny details that would be seemingly impossible for anyone else, and recall them with almost photographic clarity. Also, his sense of taste is so well developed that he was able to deduce the age of a shed, merely by tasting it. And while on the subject of taste, the Eleventh Doctor seems to dislike wine. Immediately post-regeneration he found he hated apples, yogurt, baked beans, bacon, and buttered bread, but found Fish Fingers dipped in Custard to be a very tasty snack. Evidently there not only no accounting for taste, but no accounting for taste-buds either.

Somewhat temperamental and touchy, the Eleventh Doctor won’t hesitate to make his feelings known to friend and foe alike. If he’s angry, people know it. If he’s feeling world-weary, he might bring you down too. If he’s feeling proud or smug, he can be slightly insufferable to the point where slapping him might seem to be a desirable course of action. But despite this emotional openness, he’s more awkward in social situations than his Tenth incarnation was, nor is he as romantically inclined. That said, he is capable of being an effective flirt should he feel inspired, and he’s also capable of being very gentle and comforting when a friend (particularly Amy Pond) is in distress.

Like his Second incarnation, Eleven may at times seem like a brash, childish buffoon, but below the surface of this self-depreciating act is a powerful, calculating mind. Should the need arise, he can instantly drop the silly mannerisms and the the ultra-pragmatic nature of his race becomes readily apparent. At times like this, he displays a frightening ruthless streak worthy of his manipulative Seventh incarnation, and it becomes clear that the Doctor is a very dangerous man underneath all the charming quirks and eccentricities. He sometimes used this facet of his reputation to cow his foes into submission or retreat, most effectively on the Atraxi, who quickly fled from Earth once he made his identity known. And while he’s not quite as willing as was his aforementioned Seventh incarnation, Eleven is not above manipulating his friends if he feels he has to. As River song explained (and warned), “The Doctor lies”.

Through it all, however, the Doctor is – as ever – the same man underneath the differences: A wise and ancient Alien, the last of his kind, who is at hearts kind and sacrificing. A man who has been running all his life, but who will not hesitate to stop long enough to help those too weak to help themselves, to free the enslaved, to topple cruel dictators, and even broker peace to end wars. A man who hears the cries of a child and regards them as a call to wright a wrong, to correct an injustice, and to give those children a chance to grow up in a better world. As ever, despite the changes, he remains The Doctor.

Doubtlessly, as he continues his adventures, we’ll find out ever more about the nature of the Eleventh Doctor, and its sure to be an interesting journey for everyone involved.

~ Quotations ~

• “Why does no one ever listen to me? Do I just have a face that nobody listens to… again?” – The Eleventh Hour

  
  

• “Amy Pond, there’s something you better understand about me ’cause it’s important. And one day your life may depend on it. I am definitely a mad-man with a box.” – The Eleventh Hour

  
  

• “We are observers only. That’s the one rule I’ve alwyas stuck to in all my travels. I never get involved in the affairs of other peoples or planets. Ooo, that’s interesting…” – The Beast Below

  
  

• “Sorry. Checking the water in this area. There’s an escaped fish.” – The Beast Below

  
  

• “All right, it’s a Jammie Dodger, but I was promised tea!” – Victory of the Daleks

  
  

• “I can run away from anything I like, time is not the boss of me.” – The Time of Angels

  
  

• “Didn’t anyone ever tell you? There’s one thing you never put in a trap, if you’re smart. If you value your continued existence. If you have any plans about seeing tomorrow, there’s one thing you never, ever put in a trap… Me.” – The Time of Angels

  
  

• “Well I’m guessing. We’re being attacked by statues on a crashed ship. There isn’t a manual for this!” – Flesh and Stone

  
  

• “How are you doing that? I am loving it! You’re like Houdini, only five slightly scary girls. And he was shorter… will be shorter. I’m rambling.” – The Vampires of Venice

  
  

• “That’s something that doesn’t make sense. Let’s go and poke it with a stick.” – Amy’s Choice

  
  

• “Excuse me, I’m making perfect sense. You’re just not keeping up.” – The Hungry Earth

  
  

• “No, I have a thing. It’s like a plan, but with more greatness.” – Vincent and the Doctor

  
  

• “Is this how time normally passes? Really slowly? In the right order?” – Vincent and the Doctor

  
  

• “I’m the Doctor. Well, they call me the Doctor; I don’t know why. I call me the Doctor, too. I still don’t know why.” – The Lodger

  
  

• “Annihilate? No. No violence, do you understand me? Not while I’m around. Not today, not ever. I’m the Doctor, the Oncoming Storm… And you basically meant beat them in a football match, didn’t you?” – The Lodger

  
  

• “The universe is big. It’s vast and complicated and ridiculous and sometimes, very rarely, impossible things just happen and we call them miracles… and that’s a theory. Nine hundred years and I’ve never seen one yet, but this would do me.” – The Pandorica Opens

  
  

• “It’s a fez. I wear a fez now. Fezzes are cool.” – The Big Bang
  

~ Stories ~

• Ongoing, starting with The Eleventh Hour..

~ Milestones ~

• The Eleventh Hour: Despite the traumatic regeneration, the untested Eleventh Doctor still managed to land his burning TARDIS despite the fact that he was “still cooking”, befriend a young Amelia Pond, sort through a variety of foods to finally settle on Fish-Fingers and Custard, turn a 5-minute TARDIS jaunt into a 12-year one, enlist the aid of the now-grown Amy Pond in defeating Prisoner Zero, while scolding the overzealous Alien intergalactic police-force known as the Atraxi. Oh, and he also decided that bowties were cool.

  
  

• Victory of the Daleks: The Doctor faces down the last of the Daleks in London, 1943, but is unable to stop them from achieving their goal: the birth of the new Dalek paradigm. More deadly than ever, the new Daleks are able to escape Earth, free to plot anew.

  
  

• A Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone: With the help of the enigmatic Dr. River Song, the Doctor finally realizes that the crack in the skin of the Universe that he first encountered in young Amelia Pond’s bedroom is appearing in other places, and is a temporal rift capable of erasing one from existence. He’s able to use the crack to eliminate the Weeping Angels, but knows a larger problem is looming. Dr. Song warns that she will soon see him again, when the Pandorica opens.

  
  

• Amy’s Choice: The Doctor encounters a being calling himself the Dream-Lord, but soon realizes that this being is a twisted version of himself, formed from his own inner-darkness and self-loathing. He manages to thwart the Dream-Lord and free himself, Amy, and Rory from his clutches, but knows the darkness still lurks within his mind.

  
  

• The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood: The Doctor encounters a sub-species of the Silurians, and tries to broker a peace between them and the Human race, but a faction within the Silurian group thwarts the peace process. Worse still, Rory is caught in another manifestation of the crack, and is erased, and despite the Doctor’s attempts to keep him alive in her memories, Amy forgets him. Or so it would seem.

  
  

• The Lodger: When investigating the source of energies keeping the TARDIS from materializing fully, the Doctor comes across a vessel that seems to be a crude version of a TARDIS, but the vessel self-destructs, leaving no clues about whom constructed it or why.

  
  

• The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang: The Doctor finds the mythical Pandorica beneath Stonehenge in 102 AD, and soon discovers to his horror that this inescapable prison has been designed by a consortium of his most deadly foes to hold the most dangerous being in existence: him. But their machinations threaten to destroy every star in the cosmos, and the imprisoned Doctor must find a way to escape and to reboot the entire universe itself.

  
  

~ My Thoughts ~

When series 5 began, I was best described as ‘cautiously optimistic’, although I initially disliked Matt’s costume when the first photos leaked. I did admit that the costume would probably grow on me like Eccleston’s did, and I was right. The look is perfect for Matt’s bonkers and slightly ‘Troughtonesque’ Doctor, and I can’t picture anything else being quite right. By the time the end credits had rolled on The Eleventh Hour any doubts I’d had were chucked in the bin, and Matt had stepped right in and effortlessly become the Doctor. He quirky, he’s funny, he’d odd-looking, he’s brilliant, and he’s even a little scary sometimes. Most of all, he’s fun to watch, and with him in the role, waiting for each new episode has become just a little harder because I’m always eager to see what the Eleventh Doctor is going to do next. Good on you Matt, good on you. Onward!