Doctor Who on Tor.com
From Bow Ties to Sneakers: Fashion Tips from the Doctor
Ryan Britt
December 16, 2013 12:00PM

Other than maybe Han Solo, in the universe of sci-fi fashion, most
leading men have let us down. Captain Kirk is cool, sure. But you cant
go out dressed like him without getting some serious pit-stains. I
always loved the outfits from Logans Run, but it gets cold in big
cities sometimes. Battlestar Galactica? Come on. T-shirts and ugly
wifebeaters? What is that?

All in all theres only one hero of time and space out there who knows
how to dress. And his name is the Doctor.

Footwear:

Before the Tenth Doctors alternating red or cream sneakers, the Fifth
Doctor was rocking some pretty sweet white trainers. Because Peter
Davisons Doctor sort of had a cricket-player thing going on, this
totally made sense. But hes not the only Doctor with cool shoes.
Though one cant wear the dandy boots of Jon Pertwees Third Doctor
with just anything, a good formal boot is an easy way to communicate
sexiness. And speaking of boots, Eleventh Doctor Matt Smith has brought
back the ugly functional boot in a big way.


Jackets, Blazers and Suits:

Starting with William Hartnell, the Doctors dress has generally exuded
a vague sense of formality. With the exception of Christopher
Eccelstons Ninth Doctor, every incarnation of our favorite Time Lord
has worn a collared shirt, and often a blazer or suit-jacket of some
kind. Though Patrick Troughtons ill-fitting jacket is pretty much a
fashion fail, he did start the trend of the Doctor dressing casually
formal while simultaneously goofy.

Youd think Jon Pertwees Third Doctor would have a monopoly on the
velvet blazer, but both the Fourth and Eighth Doctors sported velvet
too. The Eleventh Doctors tweed blazer is maybe a little more classic
than a velvet one, but it communicates the same retro message. The
Doctor likes vintage clothes, because from his perspective theres no
such thing as vintage since nothing ever goes out of fashion.

The Tenth Doctor probably wins in the blazer/suit department owing to
the fact that his ensembles work because he isnt trying too hard. He
looks cool, but never out of place. In The Waters of Mars when hes
standing there in his blue suit, cradling his spacesuit, it might have
looked stupid. But it doesnt, because the Tenth Doctors suits are
like James Bonds tuxedos, strangely appropriate for all occasions
because the wearer is super-confident.


Outer-Wear:

When the Doctor is doing outer-wear, he does it in the style of a
detective or a superhero. Most of the Doctors big coats are
cloak-like, reminding us of the characters connections to Sherlock
Holmes. Some of this like the Third Doctors capes just call a lot of
attention to the Doctor. Other coats, like the Ninth Doctors plain
leather jacket, are unassuming, but still works on a classic level.

Even though the Ninth Doctor got a lot of grief for this jacket, it
actually was a brilliant fashion move. The Doctor had been gone from
the public consciousness for a while, meaning any notion of how he
dressed was up for grabs. Playing it safe would have probably meant
doing some amalgamation of familiar Doctor pieces; a scarf, a hat, a big
coat, a tie of some kind. Instead, the Ninth Doctors outfit is a risk.
Because its simple, or boring, it actually is one of the cooler
outfits of all the Doctors. The Ninth Doctors coat and general fashion
works because its relatable. Most of us dont wear bowties and crazy
scarves. But many of us do own a warm-weather coat and a few sweaters
(jumpers) which we will always wear. Fashion-wise, the Ninth Doctor was
the peoples Doctor.

While hes not the Doctor, Captain Jack Harkness should get a special
mention here for bringing back the WWII style trench. Honestly, I
bought one cheap from an Army surplus place last winter and feel like
Im on the Torchwood team whenever I put it on.


Scarves and Ties:

Obviously we cant talk about the Doctors fashion sense without
talking about neckwear. The Fourth Doctors ridiculous scarf is
probably the most noticeable scarf of all time and space. Whats so
great about the Fourth Doctors scarf is that it is somehow its own
fashion reference point. Dont tell me the long scarf Rose wears in the
final scenes of The End of Time isnt a shout-out to Tom Baker. Not
only that, but I bet those Harry Potter scarves wouldnt be near as
cool if it werent for Doctor number 4.

Ties and bowties are obviously a big deal with the Doctor. And even
though the Eleventh Doctor has been constantly reminding us that
bow-ties are cool, he isnt the first Doctor to rock this iconoclast
fashion statement. The Second Doctor, the Third Doctor, and even David
Tennant under the guise of John Smith, have all worn bow ties. There
are a lot of sociological theories as to what the wearer of a bow tie
is trying to say by wearing a bow tie. In one of the deleted scenes
from Season 5, Amy asks the Doctor is it a cry for help? But not
matter the answer, the main reason the bow tie works for the Doctor is
because he is the Doctor. The Doctor has also worn regular ties
throughout his various incarnations. This is good, because ties are
cool too.


Hats:

Lets get one thing straight fezzes are NOT cool. River Song did us all
a favor by blasting that thing with her ray-gun. But, some of the
Doctors hats have been awesome. I know we all love Tom Bakers big
floppy hat, and the hat is pretty much the only thing that saved the
Seventh Doctors look; the sweater and trousers werent really doing
Slyvester McCoy any favors, but the hat sort of brought it all together
and gave him a more distinguished/mysterious quality. All in all
though, I have to say that I love Fifth Doctor Peter Davisons hat the
best. It seems like he really uses it to protect himself from the
elements, and it somehow makes the stick of celery on his lapel make
sense.


There have of course, been many fashion failures. And no, I didnt
forget about the Sixth Doctor. I just couldnt bring myself to write
about his get-up. Sure, trying to kill Peri in The Twin Dilemma was
messed up, but not near as whack as that freaking coat!

All in all, considering how long the guy has been around, I think hes
succeeded more times than hes failed. As aliens go, I think we can all
agree that the Doctor is hands-down the best dressed.


This post originally appeared December 31, 2010
__________________________________________________________________

Ryan Brit is a long-time contributor to Tor.com. In the late 90s and
early 00s, his fashion repertoire relied heavily on navy blue Chuck
Taylors. But in the era of Tenth Doctor David Tennant, he switched to
red. Hes also been rocking an elbow-patched tweed jacket way before
Matt Smith showed up.

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