The Case for Ace.

[Mr Mystery]

No, not 8 Ace. That's a Viz character.

But Ace, the 7th Doctor's Companion, and in every way the template for all that (eventually) followed.

I mean, just look at her as a character. She was superb. Never mind she was a trail blazing female character, especially for Dr Who (don't believe me, check out Mel, her immediate predecessor. Or better still, don't). She took out a Dalek with a RPG. She then proceeded to knock seven bells out of a Dalek with a baseball bat.

She respected the Doctor, but was never in awe of him - more of an Uncle/Niece relationship than the 'oh Doctor, you're ever so dishy' tripe RTD subjected us to. She was a good foil. My favourite line from the Doctor to Ace?

Ace, give me some of that Nitro 9 you're not carrying

Just...wonderful stuff.

We first met her in Dragonfire, where to be honest, she was a fairly one dimensional character. But as things progressed, she got serious character development, and not just the traditional 'make up stuff to advance this weeks serial' way. Oh no. Proper, full on character development.

There's the fan-defined 'Ace Trilogy', consisting of Curse of Fenric, Survival and Ghostlight, in which we delve into Ace's really rather troubled past. The Doctor takes her on a sort of redemptive path. That he never did that with his previous companions to me speaks volumes of just how underrated the dying days of Classic Who were. We see Ace begin the transition from bullish yoof, to a mature adult - facing and overcoming her demons, with the Doctor there to provide support and guidance as and when needed. Even then, she often surprises the Doctor.

And then? Well. Nowt. You want to see her final scene, after a particularly harrowing (for her, budgets constraints prevented it translating that well) adventure? The final part of the Ace Trilogy?

https://youtu.be/-qbBIGtiSZ8

Well. Talk about a let down. Of course, at that point I don't think the production staff new they'd be axed, so fair enough.

But come on. It's been back for nearly a decade, and the only whiff of her canonically speaking is a brief mention the Sarah Jane Adventures (better than you'd think!), where she's running 'A Charitable Earth', and has apparently raised billions.

That's nowhere near enough. She wasn't just a prototype for the more modern characters, but one far more interesting and compelling for my money (mind you, I think the set dressings were more interesting and compelling than Clara, who I consider to be the modern Mel. Or possibly Adric. Maybe an unholy hybrid of the two).

And for a returning character, she's also a gloriously blank slate. We don't know why she ended her travels with the Doctor. Was on a good or a sour note? As much as she matured, she was still very much at the point where she could've slipped back into her more rebellious ways. For those familiar with one of the best scenes in Curse of Fenric - how did that affect her ongoing relationship with The Doctor? Did she really believe him? Or did her very rough upbringing mean a seed of doubt eventually blossomed? Could that be why the Doctor was travelling alone at the beginning of the TV Movie?

So much they could do with her. The writers are there, and I'm pretty sure Sophie Aldred would be up for it.

Right. I'm done waffling. Feel free to weigh on one way or the other And if you haven't seen Ace in action, seek out Ghostlight, Curse of Fenric and Survival in that specific order. You'll soon understand.

[Path Walker]

Stopped reading when it wasn't about 8 Ace, going to Patels with my £1.49.

[Mr Mystery]

In your Shed.

[Kirsten]

what's this about Ace? smoke him a kipper, he will be back for breakfast.

[Mr Mystery]

Wrote Ace.

This is the better Ace, because she's not related to Arnold Judas Rimmer at all.

[Kirsten]

did Ace punch National Socialists and ride a crocodile?

[Mr Mystery]

She ****ted a Dales with a Baseball bat, chinned Cyberpunk just using a catapult, and mucked about in the Tardis.

That's even better.

[grimmas]

It seems it isn't just Path who's been at the 8 Ace, Dales and Cyberpunk 🙄

It would be step in the right direction and they could go back to having a proper story told over a series rather than just a lose collection of tales.

Not a fan of new Doctor Who just doesn't feel right, they've messed up Cybermen and bollocks to Torchwood more Unit is what is required.

[YorkNecromancer]

McCoy is still one of my favourite Doctors, and his whole run once Ace showed up was largely awesome, mostly because Ace was awesome, but Sophie Aldred... *sucks through teeth* Yeah. Not the greatest actress in the world.

I don't know if I'd want to see her 'do her thing' again. Sometimes (read: 50-60% of the time), even as a kid, I found her delivery a little... cringe-inducing.

I am absolutely up for an Ace-style character, though. Some proper, Hive-gang thug girl. That would be beyond awesome.

[Asymmetrical Xeno]

She's amazing in the big finish audios, older and more mature a lot of the time - but still kicking ***.

Would never want to see her back on tv with that pool of writers though. Modern Who deserves to die like tom bakers doctor, hanging off a giant satelite dish and eventually turning into something worthwhile again.