Meanwhile...

A couple of months ago, although I really do know better, I blew the dust off my membership at Outpost Gallifrey doctorwhoforum.com - mostly because I wanted to see what takes up time on the costuming forum.

Since then, I've stuck entirely to the costuming and conventions areas, with the occasional peek at the Big Finish threads to read reviews of the stories I can't afford at the moment and indulge in a bit of wistful sighing.

This morning, I decided that maybe I'm just a big ol' scaredy-cat and ventured into the more active areas - such as the ongoing fanwank that is Who Will Be The Eleventh Doctor.

Ow.

Ow. Ow. Ow.

I'm sure most of the members are lovely folks in person, but I think jblum nailed it nicely on the head with it's just so much easier to be an asshole when you're online.

I think I'll stick to face-to-face contact with the fans. I definitely need more of that. Heck, two of the best conversations I had the entire weekend at Chicago TARDIS were in the shuttles going to and from the convention.

***

In other news, the previously-stalled DW Costuming Reference Archive of Dooooom project might be getting un-stalled. I've dropped a fresh line to the brains behind prydonacademy.com with some questions, concerns and suggestions re: building and maintaining such a site and I'm hoping that we can get the skeleton version bashed out and online in time for Gallifrey One.

The idea is a good one but it could be a hell of a lot of work to put together, so I'm hoping I can mine the members of dw_cosplay and various other communities to provide good, solid information for the benefit of others. The more contributors that are found, the quicker we'll populate the site.

Granted, I can't ever imagine there being much call for, say, Ian Chesterson cosplay, but a few screengrabs and some pointers about gent's clothing in the early 1960s might make someone's day!

***

Speaking of Gallifrey One, I really want to make a new costume for it but, er, I'm broke and none of my ideas match my current fabric stash.

I might break my no costumes I have to explain to people rule and resurrect the Lucy-Saxon-as-The-Master idea, as I think the stuff I currently have in my stash could cover most of it. It'd mean untangling the blond wig again, though, ugh. Ideally, I'd buy one in a warmer shade (the Von Pinn wig is a bit too platinum for my blotchy, reddish self) but if I had the dosh to drop on wigs, I'd be dropping it on fabric, instead.

...and so much for "If I make my target weight, I'll do Emma Peel in leather" resolution. I'm *close* to my target weight, but not the target *shape* (no exercise! Bad fangrrl!) and I certainly don't have the money for all that lambskin. Maybe in time for San Diego Comic Con, if I make it down there...

Time Lords and Gender - Trying To Make Sense From A Pile of Meta

*rolls up sleeves*

Alright, blame a convergence of circumstances for knocking this one loose. It might ramble a bit - alright, more than usual - so bear with me.

I don't think gender should matter to a Time Lord.

Granted, there are apparently two genders in Time Lord society but, given that they can't reproduce sexually (ref: the whole genetic loom / cursed into sterility thing explained elsewhere on many fine reference sites) the notion of physical gender could be considered a relic from the pre-sterile society. The notion of blending two genders into one by whatever means would have no doubt been psychologically quite upsetting to the newly-sterile Time Lords - and a lot of work, besides - and so the two genders remained in place. I've got to admit, if I were in a similar situation, I'd probably want to hang on to tradition, so to speak.

But I like to believe that a Time Lord could change gender at regeneration, if they wanted to. I don't think it's unreasonable to suggest that there'd be the same incidence of transgenderism in that fictional society as there is in the real world. It could even be higher, simply because of the relative ease of the changeover - no years of hormone replacement, expensive surgery and lots and lots of time convincing folks who've never had a transgender thought in their life that no, really, you've been born in a body into which your mind doesn't fit.

As I've mentioned elsewhere, I've spent far too much time thinking about sexual mores in Time Lord society and the possible irrelevancy of gender amongst ditto. It's all a bit utopian of me, I know - folks on certain filters on my regular LJ know that I've lately bemoaned what a pain in the ass all this socialization-by/of-gender can be, at times. But I'd hardly be the first fan guilty of projecting their own opinions onto a show.

Practical upshot: let the Doctor be played by a woman. Let The Rani's return be played by a guy. I don't have a problem with it. In fact, I'd be delighted.

Of course, with Steven Moffat taking over, we'd end up with a female Doctor, a female Master and Lesbian Spank Inferno on the TARDIS but, heck, it wouldn't be that much of a change - says the woman who perhaps dug that phone conversation between Saxon!Master and the Doctor a little too much...

PS - and for my next entry, I'll treat you to the tail-chasing stream of questions provoked by the whole Lucy Saxon as The Master costume idea thing. It's, um, well, it's probably incredibly boring to anyone who isn't me, really...