Doctor Who on Tor.com   
      When Your Doctor is No Longer the Doctor: How to Survive Regeneration   
      Emily Asher-Perrin   
      December 27, 2013 12:00PM   
      
      Doctor Who, Eleven, Amy   
      
      Theres a thing that happens in the Doctor Who fandom that plenty of   
      people talk about, and no one can prepare you for. See, fans love each   
      and every Doctor but one of them is yours. That Doctor belongs to you   
      very specificallythey helped define parts of you, they saw you through   
      rough times, they encompassed a portion of your life. And for many   
      Whovians, that Doctor will soon be gone.   
      
      Its okay, Eleven fans. Im here to help.   
      
      Having already dealt with 2010s I Dont Want to Go Farewell Tour, I   
      have some tips. Or maybe theyre just stages of grief. Or things to   
      expect as you brave the next year without bow ties.   
      
      To start this off, lets talk regeneration: You might have noticed that   
      Elevens passing felt a little more real to you than the average   
      fictional character death. (Or nota lot of them seem unfortunately   
      real on my end.) So youre basically in mourning. Youre allowed.   
      Dont let anyone make you feel weird about it. Dont let anyone tell   
      you that youre not allowed to wear tweed and a fez every day for the   
      next ten years. Or a black armbandhey, Gary Oldman did it for Sirius   
      Black, so its totally a cool thing to do.   
      
      Doctor Who, Eleven   
      
      Speaking of thatsupport group time! Hugs all around! Unless you dont   
      like hugs, in which case, weve got a crate of Jammie Dodgers and   
      probably TARDIS blankets. Actually, is that a real office somewhere? It   
      sounds like a service that should be available to the general public   
      regardless.   
      
      Of course, thats what the internet and fandom friends are for. There   
      will be a sudden pressing need to rewatch every Eleventh Doctor episode   
      in marathon form, and long after that, youll have moments where   
      nothing will comfort you so well as a viewing of The Lodger with a   
      cup of tea. Its especially useful for whats comingan era shift that   
      will leave the show markedly different in ways that are often difficult   
      to explain.   
      
      Whats odd about Who fandom is how its rhetoric consistently changes   
      over time. Its not like Star Trek where there are distinct, separate   
      series, each with their own entity that are easy to define and keep   
      apart in your mind. Doctor Who may shift in tone and execution, but   
      its still ultimately the same show. The Doctor is still the same   
      character. Except now, your Doctor is no longer the Doctor.   
      
      Its a weird feeling.   
      
      Doctor Who, Eleven   
      
      And it will likely never pass. Its entirely unique to the Whovian   
      experience. Sure, it sort of happens with James Bond, but thats a   
      different can of dirt due to how long it takes for an actors Bond   
      tenure to come due, and how staggeringly different each incarnation is.   
      (Call me when Robert Downey, Jr. is no longer playing Tony Stark and   
      well talk again, I think.) The point is, its always going to be   
      awkward knowing that your Doctor is now former. That someone else is   
      ably holding up the mantle and carrying it off into the dark corners of   
      the universe. Its like a microcosm of aging, revved up to light speed:   
      This was mine. Its still mine. But now it belongs to someone else.   
      
      That doesnt mean that the new Doctor wont mean anything to you!   
      Learning to love a new Doctor is part of the charm of the fandom. What   
      you will have to be prepared for are the fans who find that their   
      Doctor is Peter Capaldi. Those new kids who are just like you, only a   
      few years removed. Respect their experience. Dont get into better   
      Doctor battles with them. This is not a fight that anyone can win, nor   
      should they. Its down to the individual, down to what you needed and   
      when. In fact, it can be its own reward, watching those new fans revel   
      in their experience with a Doctor who moves them the same way. To see   
      the difference in the fanbase, to watch it shift and morphto watch it   
      regenerate. Whovian history is singular that way.   
      
      Its exactly as the Eleventh Doctor put it: you will carry all these   
      lives with you always, but you will always be especially glad for the   
      time that the Doctor was the Eleventh Doctor. The same way I will   
      always be especially glad that the Doctor was Ten. Give yourself time.   
      Heal up from the loss and launch yourself back in. Never let go of the   
      time that Doctor Who was specifically, unequivocally yours.   
      
      Doctor Who, Eleven, Amy   
      
      Thats what makes it special. Thats what makes it your show. Youre   
      not supposed to let that go, youre supposed to celebrate it. So do   
      just that and never be sorry.   
      
      Its hard to say goodbye to a friend... but you never really have to.   
      Keep that Raggedy Man close and keep going. You never know when you   
      might need him.   
        __________________________________________________________________   
      
      Emily Asher-Perrin wants all the Eleven fans out there to know that   
      shes so, so sorry, and shes here for a shoulder to cry on. You can   
      bug her on Twitter and read more of her work here and elsewhere.   
      
      
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