I’m not generally a fan of gendering descriptive terms, but villainess can just be hissed so superbly. (Adventuress is another good one.)
There’s a special layer of gendered vituperation in the broader culture for women who choose to be villains: it’s not just that they are doing evil per se, it is that they have also rejected the role of nurturer. Doubleplusungood! To its credit, the Whoniverse doesn’t tend to buy into that particularly – indeed, one of the most homicidal villainesses was the Queen of the Racnoss, who was doing it all for her children.
Anyway, now that the first episode of Doctor Who’s Season 4 has aired here in Oz, it’s time again for: Marry, Shag or chuck off a Cliff? As usual, you may match one and only one of the characters below to each fate.
Margaret Blaine (aka Blon Fel-Fotch Pasameer-Day Slitheen), Florence Finnegan (aka the Plasmavore) or Miss Foster (aka Matron Cofelia)?
What do you do? And who has been your favourite villain ever?
I didn’t include Lady Cassandra above because she appeared to have too much of a corporeal disadvantage, but she was a great villainess. I hadn’t previously been aware of the inspiration for Lady Cassandra:
Russell T. Davies, who created Cassandra, has said on multiple occasions that he was inspired to create Cassandra upon viewing skinny Hollywood actresses at the Academy Awards. On 2 April 2006, the Sunday Mirror quoted Davies: “It was horrific seeing those beautiful women reduced to sticks. Nicole Kidman struck me in particular. Nicole is one of the most beautiful women in the world. But she looks horrifying because she’s so thin. It’s like we’re killing these women in public. We watch while you die.”
Bonus the first: here’s a Lady Cassandra who’s an SCA knight in armour.
Bonus the second: a candid shot of David Tennant, Catherine Tate and John Barrowman mucking about during a radio interview.
Ohhh tough one. I’d marry Matron Cofelia because she was good with the kids, shag the Slithereen and cliff the Plasmavore very quickly before she ate me. At least I’d try.
I didn’t realise that David Tennant had such a lovely soft Scots accent! I could have listened for ages. Probably why he puts on a voice for Dr Who, otherwise half the audience would be sitting spellbound and missing all the action just listening to him talk.
I think my MSC would be the same as Mindy’s.
As for villainesses– don’t forget the Rani. One thing I loved about her in The Mark of the Rani was that she wasn’t on some evil villain power trip like the Master. She was above having seething enmity for the Doctor, she just wouldn’t let anyone stand in her way.
The ultimate villainess wasn’t in Dr Who, it was Servalan in Blake’s 7. Buzzcut in a ballgown played by the gorgeous Jaqueline Pearce.
As a child my sister wanted to be Lady Di when she grew up. I wanted to be Servalan! =8-)