unfeathered | Year of Hell thought...

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Year of Hell thought...

I've just worked it out. The reason there (apparently) weren't any escape attempts from the gang on the Valiant for a whole year until the very day before the Master's launch day is that they weren't trying to escape. The Doctor had told Martha to 'use the countdown' - because she needed time to spread the word, and one specific moment for everyone to think of the Doctor - and until then, or nearly then, there was absolutely no point in trying to bring down the Master.

Probably this was blindingly obvious to everyone else and I'm just being really slow.

Mind you, they could have thrown in a few 'fake' attempted escapes, to keep the Master occupied.

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Now I'm wondering what I'm missing, because somebody else said something the other day about how there were no escape attempts until the one we saw. How do we know that? It had to be the first time the Doctor got his hands on the laser screwdriver, but that whole three o'clock spread the word bit looked pretty rehearsed. Although I don't know if they'd really tried to escape or just wanted to distract the Master until the countdown.

OK... Maybe you're not missing anything, and I am. It's all about interpreting the information we were given on the tv and we really weren't given much to go on!

It's just - what we saw in LotTL was obviously the first time they'd managed to get the screwdriver, otherwise the Doctor would have known only the Master could use it. And honestly, it can't have been that hard to get it off him, so I assume that was the first time they'd tried.

And if they hadn't tried before to get the screwdriver, what on earth did they try? How could they possibly have got anywhere without disarming the Master?

And if they hadn't tried before to get the screwdriver, what on earth did they try? How could they possibly have got anywhere without disarming the Master?

Now that's a very good point. I hadn't looked at it that way. Hmmm. So now I'm wondering what the *point* of that little exercise was. Why wait almost a year, almost to the countdown, but not *that* close, and then try to escape? Or look like you're trying to escape. I just assumed they'd been doing stuff like that off and on, as a distraction if nothing else.

The whole problem, really, is the the 'One year later' thing. All the things in the last episode - the apparently first escape attempt, Jack in chains, the Doctor still old, etc. - would have been far more convincing if it had just been 'one month later'.

Obviously, they wanted to show them in the episode, not just have them referred to as having happened, but the idea that nothing happened all year and then suddenly it all happened all at once just doesn't work, for me.

I just wish they'd actually sat down and thought about those episodes a bit more before writing/shooting/airing them.

I have this feeling that it was originally written to be a shorter time period, and then somebody pointed out that Martha needed more time to spread her message, and they said, "Oh, fine, make it a year then," and didn't think any more about it.

Yeah, that sounds about right. Bloomin' annoying, though.

Yes! Hee--love that icon.

And, frankly, Jack's "Not again" to me really doesn't (to me) actually imply that the Master was just merrily having a good time having him killed every five minutes - but that he was hard to control and kept GETTING SHOT. So, pretty sure I'm running counter popular fanon with that. The Doctor I can see probably waiting around to have the oldness reversed because he knew what the plan was. Jack? *shakes head* If he was standing around for a year biding his time, I'll eat my hat.

Yeah, I was just thinking about his "Not again".

Now I don't know what to think.

A lot of it, I suppose, depends on whether the Doctor was able to share any of his plan with the rest of the team. Well, I suppose it would have been pretty easy to talk to the Joneses in odd moments, but Jack? We have no on-screen evidence that Jack saw even the Master (in person) let alone the Doctor throughout that year, so...

You may well be right. And I know it makes it interesting to make so many different scenarios fit the facts we're given, but I always have this thing about wanting to know which is right!

*nods* I understand, entirely! I'm really pretty flexible, and easy going about takes on canon and things that make sense, but in truth? I still want to know where it is.

It's annoying, a little, because there's very little on screen evidence about any of it. It's nice to have the gap to fill but what happened in that gap, but still with the frustration.

I figure the fact that the Joneses were how the plan got communicated to Jack says something about how much contact he had with the Doctor, too.

I figure the fact that the Joneses were how the plan got communicated to Jack says something about how much contact he had with the Doctor, too.

Mmm. Good point. Though again, the fact that that was how it was at the end of the year says nothing about how it was at the start.

Gah. It's so frustrating!

Nope, we have no way of knowing anything about the whole year and everything that happened during it - and we probably won't, ever. Which, while frustrating, is kind of good. I mean, hey, at least the fic won't get 'jossed'.

I figure the fact that the Joneses were how the plan got communicated to Jack says something about how much contact he had with the Doctor, too.

Yep. And it would've been waaay too dangerous for the Joneses to know the actual plan. Jack's harder to mind-read than the average bear, so *maybe* he knew, but there's no way they could take a chance on the Joneses knowing. (And here's where somebody points out to me that there's canon proof that they did know, and I whine a lot.)

I think they actually sent Jack the plan and everyone moved together, but the big, ultimate, Martha doing plan? I don't think they knew. I also bet Jack being harder to mind-read (and he is) probably is why he got signaled through them. I doubt the Doctor could get into his head when the Master couldn't - and I doubt the master did.

Yeah, that's what I meant--the Martha plan.

I doubt the Doctor could get into his head when the Master couldn't

Good point--that aspect of it hadn't occurred to me. I guess I figured it'd make a difference if it was somebody he *wanted* to communicate with.

But if he let the Doctor in, would he be letting the Master in or giving the Master opportunity to get in?

Yeah, it seems likely, and I don't suppose they'd be willing to take the chance.

Hm. *sits and ponders*

Hmmm. Thank you for working that one out while I was gone, you guys. I've been trying to work out how the Doctor could communicate with Jack (especially without the Joneses, as they're still in their little cell in my story), and I'd thought of telepathy but hadn't thought about the Master intercepting such.

Back to the drawing board, then. Though maybe if the Doctor was touching Jack, and the Master wasn't...?

Though maybe if the Doctor was touching Jack, and the Master wasn't...?

That could work, I think. I'd buy it, depending maybe on where the Master was at the time.

Yeah. Though it's going to be difficult as hell, for my fic, with the Master telling it so therefore he's got to see it, without realising what's going on...

Oh! Perhaps spying on the Doctor and Jack through the CCTV or something. Putting them together and watching them, and listening to what they're saying aloud, but unaware that the Doctor's light hand on Jack's bare forearm is anything more than just a touch for comfort...

Oh, yeah, that'd work. Of course, then there's the question of how do you let the reader know there's more to it than that...First person = hard, in my book. :)

Oh, yeah, I'm discovering that! Though a lot of the time, I find it easier. It's just certain things like this. And it's certainly challenging my writing and plotting skills, which is great fun!

But it wouldn't have to be clear at the time. Just later. I just want to make sure I can make an opportunity for the two of them to communicate when I need them to!

Thanks for that. It's so useful having help working these things out! :-)

You're very welcome! This kind of thing is great fun. I mean, where else can you have earnest conversations about how telepathy works? *g*

Nowhere better than with you! :-)

Aw, thanks! I really love this little group that we have going.

Me too :-)

Yep, every word of that makes sense to me.

That works for me. I also think he had some mind control going on with the crew of the Valiant, so they would do his evil bidding, and it would be very hard to escape without some help on that end.

Oh, yes, I definitely got the impression that the only 'rebels' were Jack, the Doctor and the three Joneses.

Though the soldiers on the Valiant seem extremely quick to change loyalty as soon as the Doctor's re-empowered - Jack runs straight off to gun down the TARDIS and orders the men who were guarding him moments before to go with him and they do! If I was Jack, I'd be half-expecting them to try and stop me!

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Year of Hell thought...

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