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Veneficus ex TARDIS
Aug. 8th, 2007 12:35 pmI'm currently cat sitting for an ex-neighbour of mine, while their on holiday. This has given me the opportunity to shamelessley pillage her daughter's book shelves, and I'm reading the entire Diana Wynne Jones back catalogue.
It suddenly struck me that Chrestomanci, and the current run of Dr Who, are really very similar. They're both Dues ex machina characters who turn up in strange worlds, or this world in a strange situation, get in trouble, then save the day for every one.
Most Dr Who episodes tend to start with the Dr turning up, and we follow the assitant as the problem is revealed ("Love and Monsters", and "Blink" being the exceptions). Where as in most Chrestomanci stories, we tend to see the problem developing, and Chrestomanci sweeps in much later. I think this perfectly reflects their mediums. Television tends to be very quick moving, whereas in a novel, there's a lot more time to lay the ground work.
It suddenly struck me that Chrestomanci, and the current run of Dr Who, are really very similar. They're both Dues ex machina characters who turn up in strange worlds, or this world in a strange situation, get in trouble, then save the day for every one.
Most Dr Who episodes tend to start with the Dr turning up, and we follow the assitant as the problem is revealed ("Love and Monsters", and "Blink" being the exceptions). Where as in most Chrestomanci stories, we tend to see the problem developing, and Chrestomanci sweeps in much later. I think this perfectly reflects their mediums. Television tends to be very quick moving, whereas in a novel, there's a lot more time to lay the ground work.
