Showrunner
I know that not all Doctor Who fans actually like Steven Moffat as the showrunner. As a result of this I really don’t know how they will feel about this post. I will be honest here as well, but I am not a big fan either. What I can say though is that he did do some good things for Doctor Who, and he also had some good moments as well.
In this article by Paul Jones of Radio Times, he goes through Moffat’s time as the showrunner of Doctor Who. As I read this article I see some of the amazing things Moffat did for Doctor Who. But then I also think about the reasons why some fans dislike him. Jones says, “he is often criticised for making his plots too complex and too contrived, occasionally the cleverness of his dialogue can seem almost self-satisfied and sometimes he can stray into mawkishness.”(1)
The article does not make me fan, but it did show me some of the thing he did for Doctor Who. There are many things Jones mentions and he is correct in giving him credit for them. I don’t want to be critical of his work, but there are times when I feel that the gets away from the Doctor being at the center. If there is anything I think I do not like it is that. The quote above may be how others view it, but for me it is not making the Doctor the center of the story.
I can say that Moffat had some blockbuster moments as Jones calls them. Moffat also did some things which I really never thought would take place. His bringing Michelle Gomez in to play a female version of the Master. Missy is a great idea and love what this did for the show. This is not the only thing I find encouraging about Moffat’s time as showrunner.
During his tenure he brought us a very scary monster in the form of Weeping Angels. They were a great addition and were very scary. My son did not want to watch them again. I think they are great monster for Doctor Who and I love them. There are other shows to mention. I love the Day of the Doctor. To bring together 10 and 11 together was brilliant, but then to have number 4 show up as the cureater is engenius. As when Baker was the Doctor he did a great job.
I am still not a big fan of Moffat, but I am now a little more appreciative of his work. The article has more times of Moffats works on Doctor Who. I think that Moffat has his good times and he also has his bad times. Every showrunner has bad shows as that none of us are perfect. I am not going to say that all of his work is bad. Neither can I say that all of it is good. There is a mixture of those I like. love, and hate. Moffat did some good things for Doctor Who and the show is better for it, but there are those other times as well.
He is leaving this Christmas and I want for at least one night remember the good he did for the show and I hope for a great show. Please take the time to read both my post and the article and tell me what you think. I admit I only touched on a few of the things which I like and one of the ones I dislike. This is my opinion and may not be yours.
