Regeneration (Doctor Who)
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Regeneration, in the fictional context of the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who, is a biological ability exhibited by the Time Lords, a race of humanoids originating on the planet Gallifrey. This process allows a Time Lord who has become too old or mortally wounded to undergo a transformation into a new physical form and a somewhat different personality. The main character of the programme, the Doctor, is a Time Lord and has undergone this process several times over the course of the series' run.
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[edit] Conceptual history
The role of the Doctor had been played by William Hartnell since the programme's inception in 1963. However, by 1966, it was increasingly apparent that Hartnell's health was deteriorating and he was becoming more difficult to work with. By the time the second story of Season 4, The Tenth Planet, was greenlighted, the decision had been made to replace Hartnell. Script editor Gerry Davis proposed that, since the Doctor had already been established as an alien, that the character could die and return in a new body. Producer Innes Lloyd further suggested that the Doctor could do this "renewal" regularly, transforming from an older man to a younger one. This would allow for the convenient recasting of the role when necessary.[1]
At the conclusion of The Tenth Planet, the First Doctor collapses from apparent old age and exhaustion, having commented earlier that his body was "wearing a bit thin". Then, before the eyes of his companions Ben and Polly, and the viewing audience, his features shift into that of the Second Doctor, played by Patrick Troughton.
However, on screen, the process was not called "regeneration", but a "renewal". In The Power of the Daleks, the Second Doctor's first story, the Doctor draws an analogy between the renewal and a caterpillar turning into a butterfly.[2] Despite Troughton's characterisation of the Doctor differing from that of Hartnell's, the term "renewal" gave rise to an impression that the Second Doctor was just a younger version of the First rather than a separate incarnation with a radically different personality, as later incarnations of the Doctor were expected to be.
This impression lasted at least into 1982, as Lawrence Miles and Tat Wood point out in their About Time reference series. The officially licensed magazine Doctor Who Monthly stated in a "Matrix Data-Bank" column that year that its readers should not confuse the "regenerations" of later incarnations with the "rejuvenation" of Hartnell into Troughton.[3]
It was also not clear initially whether the renewal was a natural ability of the Doctor's as opposed to a process initiated by technology. In Power, the Doctor describes his renewal as a function of his TARDIS time machine, stating that "without it, [he] couldn't survive."[2]
When Troughton left the series in 1969, the Doctor was renewed again, but this time it was forced on him by the Time Lords at the conclusion of The War Games, where it is referred to as a "change of appearance". Once again, this suggested that it was a superficial physical change, not one of personality, although Jon Pertwee's portrayal of the Third Doctor also differed quite substantially from Troughton's. In addition, this change is treated as a punishment rather than a natural process — the Second Doctor protests, "You can't just change what I look like without consulting me!"
It was only at the end of the Third Doctor's era, in Planet of the Spiders (1974), when Pertwee's Doctor turns into Tom Baker's Fourth Doctor, that the change is finally called "regeneration" and is explained as a biological process that occurred when a Time Lord's body was dying. It is also stated that following the regeneration the Doctor's brain cells would be shaken up and his behaviour would be "erratic" for a time, something that would be true for most subsequent regenerations.
As the series continued, more aspects of the regenerative process were introduced, but the basic concepts of regeneration as accepted by fans of the series today were only firmly established in the final scene of Planet of the Spiders. This notwithstanding, it is now generally accepted by fans (from an in-universe perspective) that the "renewal" of the First Doctor into the Second and the "change of appearance" of the Second Doctor into the Third were both part of the same process of regeneration.
[edit] Transitions
The regeneration "effect" was accomplished during the series' original run from 1963—1989 primarily through the use of video mixing. Originally, the plan was to have Hartnell collapse at the end of The Tenth Planet with his cloak over his face, which would then be pulled back to reveal Troughton in the next serial. However, vision mixer Shirley Coward discovered and took advantage of a malfunction in the mixing desk which allowed Hartnell's image to be overexposed to the point of almost whiting out the screen, then fading back in to reveal Troughton's face. This also meant that the regeneration scene could take place with both actors at the conclusion of The Tenth Planet, and Troughton was accordingly signed up to participate.[1]
Subsequent regenerations retained essentially the same method, with or without additional video or make-up effects. The transition from the Fourth to the Fifth Doctor used an additional make-up effect representing a transitional form known as the Watcher, but aside from this, other regenerations in the original series run simply mixed the image of the incoming actor on top of the outgoing one. The transition from the Seventh to the Eighth Doctor in the 1996 television movie took advantage of the higher budget and modern computer animation technology to "morph" the features of Sylvester McCoy into those of Paul McGann.
With the exception of the transitions from the Second to Third and the Eighth to Ninth Doctors, each regeneration was shown on-screen, with the previous incumbent in the role symbolically "handing off" the character to the next. The Second Doctor was never seen to actually change into the Third, simply fading off into darkness at the end of The War Games and then stumbling out of the TARDIS, already regenerated, at the start of Spearhead from Space (1970).
The regeneration of the Sixth Doctor into the Seventh is a special case. Colin Baker declined the invitation to film the regeneration sequence at the start of Time and the Rani (1987) due to the circumstances in which the BBC dismissed him from the role.[4] As a result, Sylvester McCoy had to don his predecessor's costume and a blond curly wig, lying face down, with the mixing effect to the Doctor's "new" features occurring as he was turned over.
The 2005 series, which revived the programme after a 16-year hiatus, began with the Ninth Doctor already regenerated, with no explanation given. In the documentary series Doctor Who Confidential, producer Russell T. Davies explained his reasoning that, after such a long hiatus, a regeneration in the first episode would not just be confusing for new viewers but also lack dramatic impact, as there would be no emotional investment in the character before he was replaced.[5] The regeneration of the Ninth Doctor into the Tenth at the end of The Parting of the Ways (2005) was seen, and also used computer effects to morph Christopher Eccleston into David Tennant.
[edit] Regeneration in the series
The exact mechanism that makes regeneration possible is not stated in the television series, but it is generally assumed in the spin-off media that the ability to regenerate may be linked to what is known as the "Rassilon Imprimatur" (named after the founder of Time Lord society), the symbiotic nuclei of a Time Lord that bonds him or her to a TARDIS, and allows his or her body to withstand the molecular stresses of time travel (The Two Doctors, 1985).[6] In The Christmas Invasion (2005) it was stated the regenerative cycle generates a large amount of energy that suffuses the Time Lord's body. As demonstrated by the Tenth Doctor, in the first fifteen hours of regeneration this energy is enough to even rapidly regrow a severed hand. The method of regeneration is infinitely variable due to many forms the "regenerative cellular energy" can take e.g. electrical energy as seen in the Doctor Who 1996 Movie and combustive exothermic energy as seen in Parting of the Ways.
It is first stated in The Deadly Assassin (1977) that a Time Lord can regenerate twelve times before dying (thirteen incarnations in all). There are exceptions to this rule, however: when the renegade Time Lord called the Master finds himself the end of his regenerative cycle, he takes possession of the body of another person to continue living (The Keeper of Traken, 1981). It may be that the Time Lords also have the ability to circumvent the limit — in The Five Doctors (1983) the Master is offered a new cycle of regenerations by the High Council in exchange for his help. The fact that the Master is inhabiting a non-Gallifreyan body at the time implies that it is possible to grant them to a non-Gallifreyan, albeit one inhabited by a Time Lord mind. Non-Gallifreyans are also seen to regenerate in Underworld (1978) and Mawdryn Undead (1983), but with adverse side effects.
With regeneration also comes a change of personality, which the viewing audience sees most often and most dramatically in the differing quirks and personality traits of the Doctor's various incarnations. However, it appears that the Doctor's core personality traits of heroism and intolerance of injustice are still retained. The Doctor also sometimes goes through a period of physical and psychological instability (which may include partial amnesia) following a regeneration, but it is not clear if this is true of all Time Lord regenerations, particularly since the Doctor's regenerations tend to happen due to stressful and violent situations. Regenerations have been known to fail, and may require assistance, technological or otherwise, or a period of recovery to successfully complete the process. The Brain of Morbius suggests that Time Lords other than the Doctor may experience difficult regenerations, since the Sisterhood of Karn had been supplying them with an "elixir of life" that could assist the process.
In some cases, future potential incarnations can achieve independent, though temporary, existence. In Planet of the Spiders, a Time Lord, K'anpo Rimpoche, creates a corporeal projection of a future incarnation which has such an existence until he regenerates into that incarnation. In Logopolis (1981), the Fourth Doctor encounters a similar projection, the "Watcher", which aids him during the course of the story and subsequently merges with him during his regeneration into his fifth incarnation. The Valeyard, a distillation of the Doctor's evil side that could potentially exist between his twelfth and final incarnations, appears in The Trial of a Time Lord (1986), and is offered the Doctor's future regenerations to make his potential existence concrete.
The Time Lords' ability to change species during regeneration is referred to by the Eighth Doctor in relation to the Master in the television movie. This is supported by the implication by the Daleks that the First Doctor's apparently human appearance was not his true form (The Daleks' Master Plan, 1965) and the Fourth Doctor's Time Lady companion Romana's regeneration scene in Destiny of the Daleks (1979). In that scene, Romana demonstrates an apparent ability to "try on" different bodies from a number of different species during her regeneration, before settling on a final, Gallifreyan form which physically resembles Princess Astra of Atrios (see "Romana's regeneration" below).
While explaining the process of regeneration to Rose at the end of The Parting of the Ways, the Ninth Doctor suggests that his new form could have "two heads", or even "no head", although it is unclear if he is merely joking to reassure her. In the 2005 Children in Need special, which takes place immediately after, the newly regenerated Tenth Doctor, while examining his new body, makes a point of checking that he has two arms, two legs and two hands, implying that regenerations can sometimes result in non-humanoid forms; whether this is also a joke is not clear. In The Runaway Bride the Tenth Doctor tells Donna Noble that being human is "optional" for him.
Whether or not Time Lords can recognise each other across regenerations is not made entirely clear in the television series. In The Deadly Assassin an old classmate of the Doctor's, Runcible, does not recognise him in his fourth incarnation. However, in The Armageddon Factor (1978), Drax, another old classmate, recognises the Fourth Doctor immediately although they had not seen each other since the Academy (the Doctor takes a while to remember Drax, though). In Destiny of the Daleks the Doctor mistakes Romana in her new form for the real Princess Astra and in The Five Doctors the Third Doctor is also unable to initially recognise the Master in his non-Gallifreyan body. Similarly, the Eighth Doctor does not recognise the Master while he possesses a human body in the 1996 television movie. In Dimensions in Time, Susan Foreman does not recognize the Sixth Doctor.
However, the Master is able to recognise the Seventh Doctor on sight in Survival (1989), although this may point to an earlier, unseen encounter. In School Reunion (2006), K-9 Mark III recognises the Tenth Doctor despite having had no apparent contact with him since his fourth incarnation. In Doomsday, although the Daleks do not recognize the Tenth Doctor until Rose Tyler identifies him, he "registers as enemy" to them.
[edit] The Doctor's regenerations
- Main article: The Doctor's regenerations
As noted, the Doctor frequently experiences a period of instability following regeneration. Some post-regeneration experiences have been more difficult than others. In particular, the Fifth Doctor begins reverting to his previous personalities (Castrovalva) and the Sixth Doctor experiences extreme paranoia, flying into a murderous rage and nearly killing his companion (The Twin Dilemma, 1984). The Eighth Doctor not only experiences amnesia, but some fans attribute his romantic actions towards his companion to post-regeneration trauma (the 1996 Doctor Who television movie). The regeneration from the Ninth Doctor to the Tenth Doctor sees the Doctor unconscious for most of the next fifteen hours (The Christmas Invasion). The experience is also traumatic enough to cause one of his hearts to temporarily stop beating.
The TARDIS also appears to aid in the regenerative process. Of the four occasions the Doctor regenerates outside the TARDIS, one is forced on him by the Time Lords (The War Games), one requires a Time Lord to give the Doctor's cells a "little push" to start the process (Planet of the Spiders), one needs the TARDIS's "Zero Room", a chamber sealed from all outside forces, to help him recover (Castrovalva) and the last occurs a few hours after he has actually "died" (The 1996 television movie). That last regeneration remains the only one that takes place significantly far away from the TARDIS, without any obvious interaction from any Time Lords.
[edit] Romana's regeneration
Romana's tongue-in-cheek regeneration scene in Destiny of the Daleks continues to be controversial with some fans. The argument goes that since the Doctor's own regenerations have usually been traumatic events, and it had been established previously that Time Lords were limited to twelve regenerations, it would therefore not make sense for Romana to "waste" a number of regenerations so casually before "settling" on a form.
Various theories have been advanced to resolve the apparent contradiction. The change of appearance forced on the Second Doctor at the end of The War Games suggests that some degree of control over the process can be asserted. Doctor Who television writer and script editor Eric Saward suggests in his 1985 novelisation of The Twin Dilemma (1984) that Time Lords can control the appearance of their next body if they trigger the regeneration voluntarily, but not if the regeneration is caused by death or injury. The Target novelization of Destiny suggests that, because Romana's grades were substantially higher than the Doctor's at the Time Lord Academy she had more control over the regenerative process than had been displayed by the Doctor.
The fan reference book The Discontinuity Guide by Paul Cornell, Martin Day and Keith Topping suggests that the various "try-ons" were projections of potential future incarnations like the Watcher.[7] Miles and Wood's About Time also mentions this along with theorising that the Time Lords had improved the technology of regeneration since the Doctor's time; Romana, being of a later generation than the Doctor, would therefore have finer control over the regenerative process in its early stages.[8] The regenerative energy present in the first hours of a regeneration, as seen in The Christmas Invasion, may provide another explanation for Romana's ability to choose her regenerated form. The Rani's comment in The Mark of the Rani about being able to choose her forms suggests the luxury of 'try-ons' may be exclusive to female Time Lords only.
Aside from the how of it, at least two attempts have been made in the spin-off media to explain the necessity for Romana's regeneration. In the short story The Lying Old Witch in the Wardrobe by Mark Michalowski, published in the Big Finish Productions anthology, Short Trips: Companions, unknown to the Doctor, Romana suffers damage due to exposure to the Key to Time. Just as she is about to regenerate, a humanoid manifestation of the TARDIS, jealous of Romana, traps her in a force field and proceeds to pretend to be Romana changing into different forms, finally becoming a double of Princess Astra. This manifestation is the one who appears in Destiny of the Daleks. Realising the error of its ways after that adventure, it releases Romana, but not before making the female Time Lord assume the image of Astra.
The second explanation, which may or may not be consistent with the first, is given in the Gallifrey audio series. Gallifrey: Lies by Gary Russell reveals that Romana forced her own regeneration to prevent an ancient Gallifreyan evil called Pandora from gaining power over her (see also History of the Time Lords - Audio plays).
[edit] See also
[edit] References
- ^ a b The Tenth Planet at Doctor Who: A Brief History Of Time (Travel)
- ^ a b BBC - Doctor Who Classic Episode Guide - The Power of the Daleks - Details. Retrieved on 2007-12-01.
- ^ Lawrence Miles; Tat Wood (October 2004). About Time 3: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who (Seasons 7 to 11). New Orleans: Mad Norwegian Press, 173. ISBN 0-9725959-2-9.
- ^ Time and the Rani at Doctor Who: A Brief History Of Time (Travel)
- ^ "Bringing Back the Doctor". Gillane Seaborne. Doctor Who Confidential. BBC. 2005-03-26.
- ^ The John Peel-authored book The Gallifrey Chronicles attributes regeneration to a "nanomolecular virus" that rebuilds the body. The audio play Zagreus attributes regeneration to "self-replicating biogenic molecules" designed by Rassilon, which do much the same thing, with a built-in limit of twelve regenerations to prevent the molecules' decay. According to the Virgin Missing Adventures book The Crystal Bucephalus by Craig Hinton, Time Lords have triple-helix DNA: the third strand was added by Rassilon to make regeneration possible. These varying explanations may or may not be compatible with each other, and like all spin-off media, their canonicity with respect to the television series is unclear.
- ^ Paul Cornell; Martin Day & Keith Topping (2004). The Discontinuity Guide, 2d edition, Austin, TX: MonkeyBrain Books, 234. ISBN 1-9322650-9-0.
- ^ Lawrence Miles; Tat Wood (December 2004). About Time 4: The Unauthorized Guide to Doctor Who (Seasons 12 to 17). New Orleans: Mad Norwegian Press, 270-271. ISBN 0-9759446-3-0.
[edit] External links
- Rassilon, Omega, and that Other guy: Gallifrey stuff — every fact about the Time Lords no matter how apocryphal
