Doctor Who- Face the Raven.

[Thebestoftherest]

I do think he needed someone else to take the reigns.

[RobbyB1982]

As far as Clara I think it was a dual problem of Moffat's sheer burnout (running DW and Sherlock and involved in stuff like the Tintin movie is going to wear on him after a while) and that it felt like over time he was gradually interest in writing for the Doctor vs. writing for her. That would be fine, except that Moffat's strengths were always more in writing the title character than the companions (very much the opposite of RTD in that regard). Clara would be the Impossible Girl, a critical figure, and one that the Doctor nearly broke the universe the save, yet never felt quite as realized as person in comparison to a Rose, Martha, or Donna.

To be fair to Moffatt, he was ready to be done when Matt was. He stayed through the 50th because of course he did... but really everyone involved thought Matt was going to do one more year. That would have been time to properly deal with the Silence, search for Gallifrey, do final rounds with River Song, and deal with being the last regeneration and it would have kept Clara on the doctor she had chemistry with... and then they all could have left in a year with the regen.

But Matt decided he was done, and they had no one ready to take over the show, so Moffatt just sort of crammed all Matt's arc down and fished the story he had to tell, but then he stayed because he had to even though he was clearly burned out and ready to be done. Even on a dream job you can run out of steam when its THAT hard.

Capaldi would have benefitted strongly from someone else taking the reigns and being a longer runner, like Baker who went through a couple of showrunners.... but it just didn't work out that way.

[RobbyB1982]

Imo, Twelve only misses out on the ''worst male Doctor award'' because of Six. In my opinion, the writers tried to make a character that was half Jon Pertwee and half Matt Smith. The problem is that these two personality types are completely incompatible. Pertwee A) Had a level of charm that made being a grumpy git endearing and B) Would not be caught dead strumming a ''space guitar'' or whatever that thing was.

Capaldi actually played it pretty close to a mix between Pertwee's 3 and Baker's 4. Very eccentric and bug eyed out with wild hair out there... the issue there is the writers kept writing him like angry man Malcolm Tucker, his previous role prior to Who. A short tempered, verbally abusive man that was always irritated and loaded with foul language.

And that's not the Doctor. And not how Capaldi played him. But those were the scripts he was given, especially in the first year... They also really, REALLY played up the "he's so OLD now!" angle, even though Capaldi was just over 50, which while older than most doctors, especially compared to Smith, wasn't THAT out there or crazy... but something they had to reiterate because he was now with a late 20's companion that had been romantic-leaning towards him 10 minutes earlier so the 30 year age gap made it all weird.

Did put him right on par with River Song though who was the same age.

(River is also a sure sign that they mean it when they say they never planned to cast 11 as young as they did until Matt showed up... she was much closer to Tennant in age... and Silence in the Library basically falls apart if she never met Tennant any other time since it takes her a WHILE to realize he was the youngest one... don't know why she didn't know his regen order if she knew all his faces)

[Thebestoftherest]

Does anyone think that Moffat was trying too hard for a shielda spin off.

[Artabax]

Does anyone think that Moffat was trying too hard for a shielda spin off.

SPOILER!!!

The finale of this trilogy sets up the Adventures of Ashildr and Clara and never delivers.

[Thebestoftherest]

Does anyone think that Moffat was trying too hard for a shielda spin off.

SPOILER!!!

The finale of this trilogy sets up the Adventures of Ashildr and Clara and never delivers.

Again no one else other than Moffat himself care enough of those characters.

[ProfessorDetective]

5) Coldedale focus. As a result of 4 we get episodes set in Coldedale high and its school kids over and over because that's where Clara's life is so mysterious alien events need to be set there rather than on an alien world, the far future or past. Again admitedly not specifically her fault but it gives us things like the intelligent tree's on earth saving us from solar flares which moves it further from scifi to fantasy and not in a way I like (Your opinions may vary).

Coal Hill School. It was the same school Ian and Barbra taught at and Susan attended during the First Docter's Era and was revisited a few times in the Classic Series. According to the failed spin-off, 'Class', (set after Clara left), time's just screwy there due to The Doctor being around so damn much. This, of course, was conceived of AFTER Clara was written out, so not a good excuse for the over-focus, but still...

[Mecha82]

Does anyone think that Moffat was trying too hard for a shielda spin off.

SPOILER!!!

The finale of this trilogy sets up the Adventures of Ashildr and Clara and never delivers.

Again no one else other than Moffat himself care enough of those characters.

Ashildr isn't bad character but she over stayed her welcome.

[Thebestoftherest]

Does anyone think that Moffat was trying too hard for a shielda spin off.

SPOILER!!!

The finale of this trilogy sets up the Adventures of Ashildr and Clara and never delivers.

Again no one else other than Moffat himself care enough of those characters.

Ashildr isn't bad character but she over stayed her welcome.

It didn't help that he seem to had ADD on what he wanted to do with her. She is going to around the Earth to make sure the doctor good deeds don't get undone fine, she incharge of the doctor who version of Diagon Alley works, no she going to fly around with Clara at that point it clear they had no interesting idea for her and no drama.

[CrypticMirror]

As far as Clara I think it was a dual problem of Moffat's sheer burnout (running DW and Sherlock and involved in stuff like the Tintin movie is going to wear on him after a while) and that it felt like over time he was gradually interest in writing for the Doctor vs. writing for her. That would be fine, except that Moffat's strengths were always more in writing the title character ...

I think it was more that over time it became apparent that Moffat only ever had one good idea, and that was the short story Continuity Errors, which he just kept repeating over and over and over again with minor alterations. He was good at writing that specific timey-wimey plot twist and nothing else.