View Full Version : Ten Years Later, Clara Oswald Is Still the Best Doctor Who Companion


TMC
03-25-2022, 11:48 PM
https://www.escapistmagazine.com/ten-years-later-clara-oswald-is-still-the-best-doctor-who-companion/

This week marked 10 years since Doctor Who showrunner Steven Moffat announced the casting of Jenna Coleman as the companion Clara Oswald at a London press conference (https://www.digitalspy.com/tv/cult/a372323/doctor-who-jenna-louise-coleman-the-press-conference-in-full/).

Clara is an important character in the history of Doctor Who for a number of reasons. She was the serving companion for the show’s 50th anniversary event, “The Day of the Doctor,” and bridged the tenures of Matt Smith and Peter Capaldi. Coleman was one of the longest-serving actors (https://blog.lovarzi.co.uk/the-longest-serving-doctor-who-companions/) on the show, particularly of the revival era. This has been a source of some controversy, with some fans protesting that she essentially hijacked the show and turned it into “Clara Who (https://www.doctorwhotv.co.uk/doctor-who-or-clara-who-67831.htm).”

Nonetheless, coming out of the show’s celebratory anniversary, Steven Moffat and Jenna Coleman used Clara Oswald to redefine the most central relationship in Doctor Who: the dynamic between Doctor and companion. In doing so, Clara pushed Doctor Who beyond its comfort zone and into new territory.

RetroGuy2000
03-25-2022, 11:59 PM
Good god, no. She was horrible. I don't think I even understood what they were trying to do.

For classic companions, I think my favorite companion pairings were:

The Doctor/Ian/Barbara/Vicki
The Doctor/Jamie/Zoe (it's a shame so many of these episodes were destroyed)
The Doctor/Romana 2
The Doctor/Peri (though that started so weirdly)
The Doctor/Ace

For the reboot, my favorites might be:
The Doctor/Rose
The Doctor/Donna