What Makes A Good Companion

So, as you may have figured out, I've hit a bit of writer's block in the fanfic I'm currently writing. (If you'd like to help me, just comment on this post, tag me in a google+ post to talk about it, or send me an ask on tumblr at vortexofdeduction.tumblr.com In the meantime, I bring you another blog post.

Today I'd like to talk about Doctor Who companions and what makes for a good companion (are you listening, Moffat?)

Not falling in love with the Doctor - one of the things that frustrates me (and many other viewers, I'm sure) is that it seems like almost every female character falls in love with the Doctor. Of the six female companions in New Who (well technically, River is more than a companion), Donna is the only one who does not love the Doctor. Rose and the Doctor both love eachother, which is sweet and all, but sometimes I feel like the romance gets in the way of Rose's character development. Martha is a great companion, but she's so busy being a lovesick puppy that she can't realize her full potential until she leaves the Doctor. Donna hates the Doctor at first, and then they become friends (and they are definitely not a couple, as the running gag goes). Amy flirts with the Doctor shamelessly in Season 5, and then the Doctor reminds her that she has a fiancé and brings him back, so that romance is short lived. Clara sort of kind of flirts with the Doctor, and they have a sort of ambiguous love-hate relationship, which I really hate. Even when Danny comes in, she still spends large amounts of time with the Doctor.

Having a life outside of the Doctor - as much as I dislike Clara, I do like that she has a life outside of the Doctor. She doesn't spend all of her time with him. She has a job teaching and, later, a boyfriend. Of course, she isn't the only one to have another life. Jack works at Torchwood, running it in the Doctor's honor. Martha's life sort of goes on hold when she travels with the Doctor, but after she leaves, she goes on to do many things, first working for Torchwood and UNIT, then later going freelance (click here to see her full profile on the TARDIS wiki). Similar to Martha, Donna has a life before and after the Doctor, but not so much during her travels with him. Rory has a life outside of the Doctor, but Amy doesn't.

Not being defined by a story arc - several companions have a main "story arc" to explain why they are with the Doctor or how they interact with him. Far too many times, a story arc becomes the defining point of a character, and the character is two-dimensional as a result. Rose was just a regular person, no story arc or anything. Martha, too, traveled with the Doctor only because she wanted to. Donna had a story arc (the most important woman in the universe, the Doctor-Donna), but it was written such that we didn't really notice it until the Season 4 finale, and then we were just like "Oh! So that's what was up with all those little coincidences!" Then Moffat took over, decided he liked the companion story-arc idea, and WRECKED it. Amy is a great character, but the whole "girl who waited, can bring people back from non-existence, crack-in-her-bedroom-wall" thing is a bit excessive. It makes her less real in my opinion. And Rory? There are so many great things to be said about Rory, but the first thing that comes to mind is "the guy who died way too many times". He's much more than that, obviously, but he will forever be remembered as the guy who kept dying and coming back. And don't even get me started on Clara as the Impossible Girl.

Skills and talents - apart from unrealistic powers (e.g., coming back from the dead), I really like it when companions are able to help the Doctor out. Rose doesn't start out with much (except for her strength of body and will, as we see in the first episode), but she quickly learns from the Doctor and is able to help him. Martha has extensive medical knowledge, and she too learns from the Doctor. Donna has super-temp skills as well as a good amount of intelligence and great reasoning skills. Amy starts out with the same skill-set as Rose, essentially. Rory has nurse skills. Clara has bossiness, if you want to call that a skill.

BAMF - pretty much all the companions have at least one BAMF moment, but some are BAMFs more than others. Rose is pretty tough; you don't want to mess with her. Martha is normally gentle and helpful, but she knows when to step it up and go into BAMF mode and save the world. Donna is pretty much always on BAMF mode. Amy doesn't really go into full BAMF mode much, but she's tough and bossy. Rory, like Martha, stays calm until the right moment, then he unleashes his fury: "Demons run when a good man goes to war." Clara knows when to be a bossy-pants and take over the situation.

Anything you think I missed? Let me know what you think.