The Collective British, Humor, Meta Narratives, TV/Film

I F(cking Love Doctor Who, Ya C(nt!

companion envy
You are special, dear.

On an average day, you may find me trolling the BBC America website for information about the 50th anniversary show, reading and rereading Nerdist episode synopses of Doctor Who by Kyle Anderson, watching Doctor Who Confidential from 2008, posting  pictures on Pinterest and Tumblr of Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, David Tennant, Billie Piper, John Barrowman…well, you get the idea. I’ll be the first to admit, Doctor Who is a tough fandom to break into. Whovians expel a ridiculous amount of energy comparing and measuring their love of the fandom with others. Instead of welcoming nerds with open arm, Whovians are the first to correct a mispoken DW quote, fact or anecdote with equal amounts of sarcasm and disdain. Those #newtowho are left to wearily trudge through noob-ville, anxious to be inducted into the Society of True Whovians. Whatever that is. Like so many others, I love this damn show. I cried during Doomsday and immediately laugh when Donna suddenly turns up in the TARDIS in a spectacular wedding dress (without pockets). I’ve seen Troughten, Pertwee and  Baker in the role, gritting my teeth at ridiculous props yet enjoy the singularity and consistency of the brand. I love Ten and his trench coat, was admittedly wary of the Eleventh Hour and the switch to Smith, but quickly fell for the fish fingers and custard of Matt’s ridiculousness.

3-D glasses are cool.
3-D glasses are cool.

I have a favorite companion (River Song and I’ll argue with you about it,if you like) and a favorite Doctor (I’ll never tell) and a favorite episode. I’ve watched the new series multiple times on Netflix and I have t-shirts, buttons, screen savers, Pinterest boards and I even dabble in fanfiction. I am not a Whovian. I fought against it so long; turned off by the cheap props and the silly premise, I refuse to commit to the title. Whovians are annoying. All they want to do is talk about Doctor Who. Do I contradict myself? Perhaps I do. But I am a Timelord, I do what I want. A Wholigan, is defined by the Urban Dictionary as “one who is a fan and/or obsessed with the tv serial Doctor Who…specifically a new fan (Ninth Doctor and up)”. Language is a funny thing. The associations between the words Wholigan and Whovian are much different. A “hooligan” is a “violent young troublemaker, typically one of a gang.” I’d like to think I’d get violent for the Doctor. I’d be his River Song, hold a gun, kill an alien or two.

Hello, Sweetie.
Hello, Sweetie.

So then, I am a Wholigan. Me and my gang take the fandom very seriously, but I refuse to make you feel bad if you don’t have an authentic Sonic Screwdriver with your tenth doctor’s brown trench coat. I won’t laugh if you can’t remember the name of every single Doctor ever in the role. Who gives a fuck? This is me. A fan. A fangirl! But don’t call me a Whovian. Whovians can be dicks about the fandom and I’m more of a badass than that. Chris Hardwick, my nerdiest Wholigan crush said it best on My Drunk Kitchen, “I fucking love Doctor Who, ya cunt!” My sentiments exactly.

Chris Hardwick
Chris Hardwick, Nerdist after my own heart.
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