Doctor Who: What About Yaz?

What about Yaz?

Over the course of Doctor Who Series 11, there has been a consistent criticism in certain quarters over the development… or lack thereof…. of Yasmin Kahn.

Right off the bat, we’ve looked pretty deep at Ryan and Graham. Ryan, a young man with a dead end job, smarter than he and others might give him credit for, coping with abandonment issues, the death of his grandmother, of his mother before that, of the father who took off and has kept his distance.  We’ve gotten a lot of insight into Ryan.

Graham, a retired bus driver who just wants to take things easy and enjoy life, surviving cancer, losing his wife, Ryan’s grandmother, still struggling with making a connection with Ryan, still struggling with his survivor’s guilt, trying to make sense of a world turned upside down following a mad woman with a box that travels in space and time. We’re getting a pretty good handle on Graham.

So what about Yaz? 

So far, Yasmin Kahn has been defined by her lack of definition. She’s smart, level headed, dependable. But what are her flaws? What are her unique attributes? What makes her tick? 

What about Yaz?

We’ve met her parents. Her dad is prone to flights of fancy that leads him into conspiracy theories. Her mother is the more grounded person, much like her daughter. Yaz has a sister. In her brief contact with her, we know that she doesn’t have a job but we can infer she has a life. It’s a status that is the opposite of Yaz who’s a police officer at work but outside of work… what?

  

What about Yaz?

When the Doctor gets the gang back to Sheffield, Yaz is disappointed there were no messages on her phone while she was gone. The Doctor reminds her they’ve only been gone from Sheffield for 30 minutes. Still, who was Yaz expecting to get a message from? Someone? Anyone? No one?  

What about Yaz?

It’s a question her own mother seems to not know the answer to. She has no clue  to Yaz’s social life. Does she have a social life? Is she dating? If so, whom? 

At one point, she asks if Yaz and Ryan are a couple? The answer is no.

Before that, she asks if Yaz and the Doctor  are a couple? The answer there too was no although the Doctor did need some guidance. “Are we?” she asks. Yaz clarifies simply, “Just friends.” 

Apparently, even Yaz’s sexual orientation is a mystery to her mother. Or maybe Yaz is bi-sexual? 

What about Yaz?

To the viewers who are complaining about  a lack of development for Yasmin Kahn, I would posit they are not paying attention.

Yaz is a selfless person. She’s the responsible daughter, the responsible sister. She’s the one with a job and not just any job but a job as a police officer, a job of serving and protecting others. 

Yaz has “life” under control. But Yaz is less certain when it comes to “living” that life. She wants to be free, to be bold, to rush in and take charge.

Yaz wants to be the Doctor.

Not a lot has been made of the Doctor being a woman now. But to Yaz, it’s a big deal.  In the Doctor is a woman who is smart, brave and a little bit weird.

Like Yaz, the Doctor wants to help others.

Unlike Yaz, the Doctor’s having fun doing it. The Doctor is a woman who is unique to Yaz. Yaz is quietly in awe of this person.

I think Yaz is quietly harboring  a crush on the Doctor.

OK, you shippers should settle down.

I think Yaz romanticizes the Doctor as this ultimate expression of an unhindered woman, free to do what she wants, go where she wants, be who she wants. Yaz is in many ways the ultimate expression of a hindered woman, constrained by her obligations to her parents, her sister, her work. Possibly constrained by her culture and her faith.

Straight or not, Yaz could respond to the Doctor in a visceral manner. We haven't seen anything to suggest that overtly. Yasmin Kahn is a young woman who has spent her life being constrained by the expectations on her. She smiles politely and does what is expected of her. But there may come a point where that containment will break down, where Yaz's sheer joy at what the Doctor represents may express itself.  

Maybe this Sunday's episode will unravel Yaz a bit more. 

What’s the point of having a mate with a time machine, if you can’t nip back and see your gran when she was younger?”

India, 1947.

The Doctor and her friends arrive in the Punjab, as the country is being torn apart.

While Yaz attempts to discover her grandmother’s hidden history, the Doctor discovers demons haunting the land. Who are they and what do they want?

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Coming up next on the blog.

Later today, Trump's War On the Press!  

Tomorrow morning, it's another Doctor Who post. We're halfway through the current season. How's the Doctor doing so far? We'll take a look at that.