Talk:Spiral Scratch (novel)

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Requested move[edit]

Spiral Scratch → Spiral Scratch (Doctor Who) … My account is too new to fix this simple problem. At the time I started the page, based on an already existing red link, I was unaware of a Punk Rock band of the same name. Their page had not yet been started, but Spiral Scratch (the band) had already accrued red links of its own. Now people might click on one of those links and be amusingly directed to the wrong part of the Eighties . . . … Copied from the entry on the WP:RM page — CzechOut 21:24, 29 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Survey[edit]

Add *Support or *Oppose followed by an optional one-sentence explanation, then sign your opinion with ~~~~

Support Looks like an uncontested and sensible move to me. MartinRe 12:53, 31 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Discussion[edit]

Why not simply track down those links and replace them with Spiral Scratch (band)? HTH HAND —Phil | Talk 12:52, 30 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

A Google search for "Spiral Scratch" reveals slightly more links for the band than for the Doctor Who novel. I support the move, and will take care of it in the next day or so unless anyone objects. —Josiah Rowe (talk • contribs) 15:40, 30 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Turns out it's an album by Buzzcocks, not a band. Anyway, I moved the page, and Khaosworks beat me to turning Spiral Scratch into a disambiguation page. Now I'll change the album links to Spiral Scratch (album), on general principle ('cause links to disambiguation pages are A Bad Thing). —Josiah Rowe (talk • contribs) 05:28, 3 April 2006 (UTC)[reply]

Relevance to 2005 series[edit]

I see that my note as to the relevance to the current series of Doctor Who has been removed on this and other similar book articles. If you could please discuss the reasons for doing this below, I'd appreciate it. For my part, I'd say that I think it's absolutely important to be as clear as possible what, precisely, this and other books are spun-off from. While it may be obvious to long-term DW fans, it probably needs to be made explicit for new and non fans that this has little to do with the 2005 series. I tend to think that an "above the fold' mention of how each work fits into the larger DW canvas is probably more helpful than the old "unclear canonicity" chestnut. This novel has a particularly complicated pedigree, which is probably its most important aspect. It is not an inconsiderable thing to be thrown into notes at the bottom of the page that it has relevance to the Big Finish audios, because they're still in production, using Colin Baker, and the story was written by the "showrunner" for Big Finish. Thus, to Big Finish, the only production house still employing Colin Baker as the Doctor, this work is effectively canonical.CzechOut 01:18, 30 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]

I think that it needlessly widens the divide between the old and new series. It's making a statement that the old stuff doesn't matter to the new, which is patently untrue. To say that its canonicity is unclear is one thing, to come down and make a statement that it has little to do with the new series is definitely POV. To let the reader decide whether or not it fits in whatever version of the canon they want (rather than provide any definitive statement) is what that line is supposed to do.

Also, despite Gary's association with Big Finish, there is no indication (and if I recall some of his remarks on the forums correctly, there really is none) that it is intended to tie in with the Big Finish continuity in any way, despite the appearance of Evelyn in the end. If anything, the end of Spiral Scratch lends credence to his stand that the different media stand in different universes altogether. Thicker Than Water cannot be easily reconciled with Instruments of Darkness, as an example, and the latter was written by Gary. --khaosworks (talk • contribs) 01:54, 30 March 2006 (UTC)[reply]