Forum:Is in-character linking narration canonical?

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So yanno how BBC Video used to release incomplete serials with linking narration to cover the lost episodes? Sometimes, that used an actor who wasn't in character providing the narration, as with Tom Baker on Shada. But The Crusade release has William Russell fully in character as Ian Chesterton. They even give him a lower third which reads, "Ian Chesterton". So is that a valid image of Ian? And if so, doesn't it counter the Death of the Doctor notion that Ian never aged? And to the extent that there are other in-character linking narrations, do we take them seriously?
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍  <span style="">21:43:52 Thu 18 Aug 2011 

It's something outside of the original broadcast.

Should we include/count the linking narration done for the missing soundtracks?

I don't think it does count as it's deliberately framed as narration, I'd add a however this though, if a story comes along and (somehow) manages to frame it into a story then maybe it could be counted. But as it stands there doesn't seem to be enough information for this to be a valid image. --Tangerineduel / talk 16:29, August 21, 2011 (UTC)

Just sticking to The Crusade for a minute, the thing is, that's a very different reconstruction to either Baker on Shada or Ford on Reign of Terror or Anneke Wills giving linking narration for Power of the Daleks on CD. Unlike these other cases, it's done as a scene with the character of Ian, not with the actor. It is Ian looking back on his life and remembering the story of how he got knighted by King Richard. It's released by the BBC, the tape's producers took the time to create a properly dressed and realistic set, and there's proper multiple-shot editing. It's in every sense a licensed narrative, and it does connect to the broader canon by confirming things that happened in other media. For instance, he references PDA: The Witch Hunters, which was, at the time The Crusade VHS was released in 1999, the very latest story involving Ian. It just seems like there was a genuine effort to make the piece fit into continuity.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍  <span style="">04:11:34 Mon 22 Aug 2011 

Okay.

How do we classify this? Is it still DW? Prefix wise I mean, and is there anything else that fits into this category?

Are the in-universe DVD documentaries in a similar field?

As it does tie in with The Witch Hunters and obviously The Crusade, then I would be leaning toward it being canon.

But I am concerned about what other stuff is lurking out there that might also fall into this category. Or might fall just outside of this category but may be included within it because it's close. --Tangerineduel / talk 13:54, August 22, 2011 (UTC)

Well, I think it's a special case so it kinda deserves special rules. I only have two examples that spring readily to mind. One is this Crusade thing. The other is the Fourth Doctor version of Power of the Daleks. I think I'd be okay with references to them both being the company that produced the thing they were on. So for instance BBC Video: The Crusade. The problem here is, of course, that these little segments have no name. The only distinguishing characteristic is really the medium/company of release.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍  <span style="">22:43:14 Mon 22 Aug 2011 

If BBC Wales says it's valid, then it's canon. That's a lot clearer than vague references to CURSE OF THE FATAL DEATH as a dream. Boblipton 22:44, August 22, 2011 (UTC)

Well, BBC Wales makes virtually no pronouncements on what they think of as a "valid" story. And the issue here is that there's an official BBC-made in-character "snippet" which directly challenges the BBC Wales-made episode of SJA on the issue of the 21st century nature of Ian Chesterton. Sarah Jane tells us that Ian is unaged from his 1963/5 appearance, whereas this in-character linking narration shows us a man with white hair claiming to be Sir Ian Chesterton. And don't even get me started on the minefield that is the Fourth Doctor narration of The Power of the Daleks. Thing is though we do need to at least consider how to deal with these oddities.
czechout<staff /> ☎ ✍  <span style="">02:47:05 Tue 23 Aug 2011 

I was under the impression that Ian's lack of aging is a rumor and may refer to his zest for life. According to his entry in this wiki:

According to a rumour Sarah Jane Smith shared with Clyde and Rani, Barbara and Ian had become professors at Cambridge by at least the 2010s and had not aged since the 1960s. (SJA: Death of the Doctor)

That doesn't sound definitive to me, since we neither see it on SJA or have her say she saw it. Boblipton 02:53, August 23, 2011 (UTC)

Which, come to think of it, gives us a side-stepping out: this is the current Ian's take on what he remembers. Watcha think? Boblipton 02:56, August 23, 2011 (UTC)

The precise wording of the quote is:

"This couple in Cambridge, both professors; Ian and Barbara Chesterton. Rumour has it they've never aged. Not since the 60s."

That was sort of my concern, the other stuff like Power of the Daleks which has Tom Baker remembering something as the Fourth Doctor and that was only the cassette version.

Boblipton's idea of a sidestep is…nice, but involves some mental hoop-jumping to make work.

The quote can be interpreted in any number of ways, but at its purest the statement is, Ian and Babs are professors, that bit is presented as fact, everything after the word "Rumour" is just that and we take it as a rumour until we see anything countering it or hear a definitive statement made by someone.

So, as far as the SJA info goes, it's still rumour until proven otherwise. --Tangerineduel / talk 13:56, August 23, 2011 (UTC)