thinking about the absolute tragedy that is adricâs changing relationship to the doctor before his death
when adric first meets him he meets four, four who is with romana no less. four is a self-assured, commanding figure who adric is more easily able to respect. they develop this mentor/mentee relationship, but because heâs travelling around with romana and the doctor (who are intellectual equals a lot older than he is) it starts to feel a lot more like theyâre becoming parental figures. of course, romana leaves, and then the doctor soon regenerates.
by the time the doctor regenerates, they are closer than they have ever been. but now the doctor (five) is much closer in age to him. so, even though on a personal level they are really more like father and son than theyâve ever been, the visual age difference and insecurities harboured by five cause a rift between the two. five canât help himself for treating adric as his child, even though in adricâs mind his new, less confident form should be on more equal footing to him.
adric respects four much more than he respects five, and that makes him easier to get along with, but five is the doctor that he really *loves*, the doctor that truly is his dad rather than just a fatherly figure. so, his het up attitude and yearning for attention isnât just because he thinks theyâre more equal this way, but also because he really does love the doctor now and doesnât know how to fathom that properly. the same goes for five, who sees adric as his son but finds this really hard to process amidst all the sudden change and catastrophe.
five, with his worrying streak and kind nature, was born out of his love for adric and blossoming care for nyssa, two alien-kids he felt responsibility for on a more personal, nurturing level, hence not being as out there and commanding. yet, this also manifested in the body he woke up in â gentler, younger, harder to respect. in part a response to his, yes, growing fatherly responsibilities, but also somewhat of a punishment from the universe, a galactic humbling, a reminder that he is not god. he is just a man.
and that man, despite his attempts to be patient, loses the emotional regulation required to keep adric under his thumb. after all, they know each other better, heâs less of a mentor and more of a father. and what do teenagers love to do? defy their parents, of course, teenage rebellion! that being said, they also want to impress them, to make them proud.
unfortunately, this all culminates in impudence when adric wants not just reassurance and love, from a doctor who has forgotten how to parent despite now being made for it, but also approval and recognition. then⊠goodbye adric
wow that was long sorry needed an info dump
