I was torn about what to do with this post – whether it was worth giving exposure to or not. But at a time when scared little boys freak out every time a woman “dares” play in their corner of geek-pop culture sandbox, it never hurts to remind people just how sh*tty things used to be (and in a crapload of ways, still are) for anyone who isn’t a straight, white male. If there’s any show recently that’s seen its fair share of “privileged pushback” in that regard, it’s Doctor Who.
Now for the straight, white males who just read that and are rolling their eyes, feeling a little butthurt right now?
Awww. Good.
You’re precisely the problem I’m speaking to… and I’m not wasting time on “lectures” that go nowhere.
You’re the folks who think you have power by passing around bulls*it on social media that “Jodie Whittaker is getting fired because her ratings suck” and “Viewers don’t want a ‘girl Doctor'” – regardless of actual facts, because why let “facts” f**k with your wave of misogynistic hate… right?
You’re the folks who took to Rotten Tomatoes to drive down Watchmen‘s scores because “How dare a black woman be a superhero lead?!?” and “How dare they make Rorschach a racist?!?” Proving that you have no clue what Moore and Gibbons’ work was about in the first place.
You’re the folks that will probably find the video below “hysterical”… here’s background from The TV Museum:
But the good news? Ignorant thinking is dying off – literally, according to some stats on aging and crappy health (so keep free-basing Doritos and Mountain Dew, kids!). So it’s amusing to watch the close-minded stand on the shores of change with sponges in hand – cocksure in their narcissistic, self-righteous belief that they can hold back a growing wave of diversity… even as they get dragged out to sea.
To paraphrase a line back at them they should appreciate…
All the racists and raging misogynists will look up and shout: “Save us!”. And I’ll look down and whisper: “New phone. Who dis?”
Then we’ll declare a 50 year “moratorium” on straight, white dudes playing the Doctor – and as for Jon Pertwee?
We’re guessing he cashed the paycheck – if it helps, you can always assume it was “The Master” in disguise.