Fandom 250: Doctor Who ranks 2nd in TV fandoms
FanSided’s Fandom 250 hit the interwebs this week, and the second highest listed TV fandom in this ranking of fandoms of all kinds went to the long-running series, Doctor Who.
As Whovians ourselves, we here at ShowSnob were excited to see Doctor Who‘s placement on Fandom 250, especially in a year when things could have gone very differently. Season 11 of the revived series premiered this year, and with it came the debut of the 13th Doctor, played by Jodie Whittaker, who also happened to be the first female actor to take on the character.
When Doctor Who started in the 1960s with a white male actor as the lead, casting a female as the Doctor probably would never have crossed anyone’s mind. But over 50 years later the time was ripe for this particular regeneration.
When the choice of Whittaker was announced, some fans grumbled and accused the series of ruining their childhoods (a ridiculous, but popular argument these days), but the majority welcomed the idea of a female Doctor. After all, we’re talking about an alien with two hearts who travels through space and time in a police box (it’s bigger on the inside!) and regenerates on the regular.
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On top of that, the only other Time Lord fans had spent a substantial amount of time with, The Master, had already regenerated into the delightful Missy. Why wouldn’t a female Doctor be just as amazing?
Fan reaction was overwhelmingly positive when Whittaker made her debut in early October. She perfectly captured the Doctor’s quirks and foibles while also making the character her own.
And all those fans who claimed they’d no longer be watching? It turns out the fandom didn’t need them anyway. Ratings for Whittaker’s debut spiked substantially from those for 12th Doctor Peter Capaldi’s final season.
Doctor Who fandom has an incredibly long history, and part of the great thing about being a fan is watching the show and its main character grow and evolve. The Doctor is constantly moving forward and adapting to new circumstances — that’s part of what makes following the character’s timey-wimey adventures so much fun.
It seems a majority of fans have taken the underlying message of Doctor Who to heart and embraced what is perhaps its biggest change to date.
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As Whittaker’s 13th Doctor comments in the season 11 premiere, “…we’re all capable of the most incredible change. We can evolve while still staying true to who we are. We can honor who we’ve been and choose who we want to be next.”
While change can be hard, both in our own lives and on TV, the Doctor Who fandom’s embrace of the new female Doctor ultimately shows its character and why it’s such a great thing to be a part of. Whovians more than earned their place in this year’s Fandom 250!