Buddhist Catholic Contemplative Evangelical General Christian Hindu Jewish Latter-day Saint Muslim New Visions Progressive Christian

Beliefs

Topics

Columnists

Resource Library

Research Tools

Video

Podcasts

Thought Readers

Faith In Media Tracker

Newsletters

Ad-Free & Subscriber Log-In Subscription Support

Follow Patheos

Home
Progressive Christian
Technology and Religion
Doctor Who: RIP Ricky September

Doctor Who: RIP Ricky September

Last updated on: June 4, 2024 at 3:42 pm by James F. McGrath

0 Comments

Doctor Who: RIP Ricky September 2024-06-04T15:42:46-04:00 James F. McGrath

LOGO Patheos Explore the world's faith through different perspectives on religion and spirituality! Patheos has the views of the prevalent religions and spiritualities of the world.

There’s always a Twist at the end and this episode of Doctor Who, “Dot and Bubble,” is no exception. (And, as many fans and now the characters on the show have been noticing, there is also Susan Twist in each episode). But in the narrative sense, this is an episode that explores a fascinating premise that addresses one societal trend in our time and potential future, and then suddenly at the end turns its attention to another societal issue. Spoilers ahead!

This is one of those subset of stories in which the Doctor and traveling companion are only communicating through screens, and so the focus is mostly on other characters. I can’t recall whether it is the case in another episode in the same category, but can’t think of one in which the main non-regular protagonist goes from being victim to be rescued to potential hero to villain. That in itself is profound since we all have the same potential and all occupy those roles to varying extents.

The scenario is a world known as Finetime, a place where rich kids have been sent from Homeworld so that they can do a couple of hours of data processing work each day and spend the rest of their time partying. Their experience is enhanced and at the same time interfered with by the technology they use daily, the Dot and Bubble of the episode’s title. The dot is a sentient companion that provides for needs, gives guidance, and facilitates a human individual’s experience mainly mediated through the bubble, a 360 degree surround interface of screens through which people are connected with friends, watch music videos, and more. We get into bubbles through our networks, but here it is literal even as the technology does the same thing as today’s albeit more effectively and comprehensively.

Ricky September illustrates both the superficiality of this culture and how to potentially be heroically countercultural within it. On the one hand, Ricky is a star who does nothing other than appear on screen lip synching and doing subtle dance moves accompanied by music of a bygone era. He exemplifies and perpetuates the way of life of Finetime. Yet met in person, we find that he switches his bubble off most of the time and reads. Having studied history and literature he is the only person in this society of the young who is in a position to confront the crisis. Now, whether his self-improvement would ever have been shared with and influenced others had this crisis not arisen is a question worth asking. Nevertheless, the episode asks the question of what it is worth spending your time on.

Many pursue university degrees in fields of study that are supposed to lead to high-paying jobs. The long-term goal is to work only a couple of hours each day and have abundant free time. That’s the world of Finetime. Yet people often have no idea what they want that free time for. They just know work is “boring.” Free time spent in mindless frivolity is not as personally rewarding, nor as potentially useful, as learning to fall in love with history, knowledge, exploration, and the pursuit of understanding.

I have a draft blog post that I will return to soon about my particular field within the humanities and the liberal arts and its value. Studying religion or pursuing computer science, engineering, or medicine aren’t either/or options. By all means include a major that is likely to lead to a safe and stable source of income. But pursue being well rounded and broadly educated. Narrow education will never prepare you adequately for an unforeseeable crisis (by which I don’t just mean human-eating giant slugs brought into the city by a rogue AI that is so fed up with the inane chatter of human beings that it decides to kill these taskmasters).

The moment when he gets a connection to the Homeworld and sees the screen showing Homeworld population zero, a slug visible, is chilling. Clearly they had the same technology and presumably the AI that decided these insipid human overlords need to be eliminated was as much present there as on Finetime.

Lindy seems throughout most of the episode like an annoying but tragic character, condescendingly calling someone who doesn’t know about life on Finetime a child and an idiot, while she herself is incapable of walking without the guidance of her bubble. Doctor Who often shows such characters subverting expectations and being redeemed in the end.

Her betrayal of Ricky is the perfect segue to the final act of the episode. When the Doctor offers to take the survivors of the slugpocalypse to another world where they will be safe, they reject his offer. The reason: their “God-given duty to maintain the standards of Finetime.” One of the survivors says, “If you will turn away ladies, before you’re contaminated.” That’s when we realize what had only been implicit throughout the episode until now, namely that this racist society had created its own (pale blue) dot that was a bubble of racial sameness, something that doesn’t occur naturally but which is only achievable through deliberate elimination of those who do not conform to a particular notion of ethnic purity. Everyone on Finetime is white European of the same sort idealized by the Nazi eugenicists.

The Doctor begs them to let him save their lives. They prefer arrogant self-sufficiency even though they never would have made it there on their own. It is rather like the wealthy white Europeans who plundered and enslaved and then pretend that they are self-made people in a self-sufficient culture and economy.

And so an episode that was already a poignant commentary on our technological bubbles had as its twist at the end a message about our ideological bubbles, many of which are connected with bubbles of racism and hate.

What did you think of “Dot and Bubble”? Did it make its points effectively while still telling a compelling story? Were the dots, seeking to eliminate the racist people of this world and their Homeworld, the villains, the true heroes of the story, a bit of both, or neither? If Ricky September hadn’t been killed, would he have proven to be just as racist as the other characters? Please share your thoughts about this episode in the comments!

Doctor Who – “Dot and Bubble” Review – Who’s the Real Monster Here?

Technology and Religion

Religious Music and Entertainment

Doctor Who

history

racism

Previous Post

May 28, 2024

ChatGPreachT: Generative AI and Sermon Creation

Next Post

June 9, 2024 Doctor Who Goes Rogue

Recent Comments

0 | Leave a Comment

"V. good.For me, the gold standard for this sort of thing is still Wikihistory by ..."

Scurra

The Time-Traveler’s Apprentice (A Short Story)

"The one who says "no one comes to the Father but through me" is the ..."

James F. McGrath

Attack on Religious Freedom in Indiana

"Until I read, "As a Christian, it is possible but not at all necessary to ..."

Sam Vimes

Attack on Religious Freedom in Indiana

"Hey James, regarding your penultimate paragraph, I struggle with the same issue. I do think ..."

Jeff Cate

The Fourth Synoptic Gospel

Browse Our Archives

Select a Category 1 Corinthians 1 John 1 Peter 1 Samuel 1 Thessalonians 1 Timothy 2 Corinthians 2 Kings 2 Peter 2 Samuel 2 Thessalonians 2 Timothy academia Acts of the Apostles afterlife Akhaten Alcatraz American Academy of Religion Amos Anglican Arabic Aramaic archaeology art artificial intelligence astronomy atheism atonement Babylon 5 Baptists Battlestar Galactica Bible Biblical Studies Carnival biblioblogging Black Mirror Blade Runner Book of Job book review Buddhism Call for Papers China Christianity Christmas Christology Chronicles Coptic creation Daniel Deuteronomy Doctor Who Dune Easter Ecclesiastes economics education Eldad Keynan Enoch Seminar Ephesians eschatology Esther Evangelicals evolution Exodus Expanse Ezekiel Ezra fantasy Fringe fundamentalism Galatians games Ge'ez genealogy Genesis Gnosticism Gospel of Jesus' Wife Gospel of John Gospel of Judas Gospel of Luke Gospel of Mark Gospel of Matthew Gospel of Peter Gospel of Thomas Greek Harry Potter Hebrew Hebrews Hinduism historical Jesus history Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy Holidays horror Hosea humor incarnation India inerrancy information literacy inspirational Intelligent Design Ireland Isaiah Islam Israel Italy James Jeremiah John the Baptist Jonah Joshua Judaism Jude Judges Judith Lamentations languages Latin Leviticus libraries literature Lord of the Rings LOST Mandaeans Mandaic memes Methodism Micah monotheism morality Mormons movies music mythicism NASSCAL Nehemiah new perspective New Testament news Numbers Orthodox paganism panentheism pantheism Patheos Paul and his letters Pentecostals Philippians Philippians 2:6-11 philosophy physics Planet of the Apes podcast politics Progressive Christianity Protestantism Proverbs Psalms pseudoscience racism religion Revelation Roman Catholicism Romania Romans Ruth scams science science fiction Secret Gospel of Mark Society of Biblical Literature Song of Songs Star Trek Star Wars Stargate Swahili Syriac Taoism technology Terminator The Handmaid's Tale The Hobbit The Matrix theodicy theology theory Timeless Titus tomb Torchwood travel TRON Uncategorized United Kingdom Westworld X-Files young-earth creationism Zechariah

Select a Month October 2026 September 2026 August 2026 July 2026 June 2026 May 2026 April 2026 March 2026 February 2026 January 2026 December 2025 November 2025 October 2025 September 2025 July 2025 June 2025 May 2025 April 2025 March 2025 February 2025 January 2025 December 2024 November 2024 October 2024 September 2024 August 2024 July 2024 June 2024 May 2024 April 2024 March 2024 February 2024 January 2024 December 2023 November 2023 October 2023 September 2023 August 2023 July 2023 May 2023 April 2023 March 2023 February 2023 January 2023 December 2022 November 2022 October 2022 September 2022 August 2022 July 2022 June 2022 May 2022 April 2022 March 2022 February 2022 January 2022 December 2021 November 2021 October 2021 September 2021 August 2021 July 2021 June 2021 May 2021 April 2021 March 2021 February 2021 January 2021 December 2020 November 2020 October 2020 September 2020 August 2020 July 2020 June 2020 May 2020 April 2020 March 2020 February 2020 January 2020 December 2019 November 2019 October 2019 September 2019 August 2019 July 2019 June 2019 May 2019 April 2019 March 2019 February 2019 January 2019 December 2018 November 2018 October 2018 September 2018 August 2018 July 2018 June 2018 May 2018 April 2018 March 2018 February 2018 January 2018 December 2017 November 2017 October 2017 September 2017 August 2017 July 2017 June 2017 May 2017 April 2017 March 2017 February 2017 January 2017 December 2016 November 2016 October 2016 September 2016 August 2016 July 2016 June 2016 May 2016 April 2016 March 2016 February 2016 January 2016 December 2015 November 2015 October 2015 September 2015 August 2015 July 2015 June 2015 May 2015 April 2015 March 2015 February 2015 January 2015 December 2014 November 2014 October 2014 September 2014 August 2014 July 2014 June 2014 May 2014 April 2014 March 2014 February 2014 January 2014 December 2013 November 2013 October 2013 September 2013 August 2013 July 2013 June 2013 May 2013 April 2013 March 2013 February 2013 January 2013 December 2012 November 2012 October 2012 September 2012 August 2012 July 2012 June 2012 May 2012 April 2012 March 2012 February 2012 January 2012 December 2011 November 2011 October 2011 September 2011 August 2011 July 2011 June 2011 May 2011 April 2011 March 2011 February 2011 January 2011 December 2010 November 2010 October 2010 September 2010 August 2010 July 2010 June 2010 May 2010 April 2010 March 2010 February 2010 January 2010 December 2009 November 2009 October 2009 September 2009 August 2009 July 2009 June 2009 May 2009 April 2009 March 2009 February 2009 January 2009 December 2008 November 2008 October 2008 September 2008 August 2008 July 2008 June 2008 May 2008 April 2008 March 2008 February 2008 January 2008 December 2007 November 2007 October 2007 September 2007 August 2007 July 2007 June 2007 February 2007 January 2001

TAKE THE

Religious Wisdom Quiz