A
one-off (so far) monster designed by the winner of a competition, The
Abzorbaloff is a gag monster, reviled by many Doctor Who aficionados along with
the episode he appears in, Love and
Monsters. Regardless, as a character, the Abzorbaloff acts as a metaphor
for a toxic part of the Doctor Who fandom and asks viewers to do some self-reflection.
The
Abzorbaloff comes from the planet Clom, which was the twin planet of
Raxacoricofallapatorius. Despite a passing resemblance to the Slitheen of
Raxacoricofallapatorians, when confronted by the Doctor about the resemblance
he seemed to treat them with contempt. Possessing of an ability to absorb the
memories and experiences of anyone he touched, whose bodies were then absorbed
into the creature as part of its digestion, it posed as a wealthy human
businessman called Victor Kennedy.
The
Abzorbaloff infiltrated and quickly took over the group called LINDA, a small
group of people with an interest in the Doctor. ‘Victor’ then changed the
purpose of the group to being one obsessed about finding the Doctor, to better
allow him to absorb the Timelord’s memories and experiences.
Eventually
defeated by the absorbed members of the group, who stretched the monster’s
skin, allowing Elton Pope to break his cane, shattering his limitation field
and allowing The Doctor to defeat him.
Though
somewhat silly in appearance and manner, The Abzorbaloff asks the viewer to
consider how they approach their fandom of the Doctor. Is it something healthy?
A way to connect with others over a shared passion and enrich your life? Or is
it an unhealthy obsession, one that focuses on detailing the Doctor and his
experience, possessing them, just because you can?
The
episode comes down firmly on one side of the question, but shows through the
character of Elton, that it is possible to use such an obsession in a healthy
way, perhaps even reaching catharsis.
No comments:
Post a Comment