this post was submitted on 29 Dec 2023
14 points (88.9% liked)

asksciencefiction

303 readers
1 users here now

Have a question about a fictional universe? Ask it here!

Rules

1-Please tag your post with the fictional universe you are asking about. e.g. [Star Wars] or [Marvel Cinematic Universe].

2-Only questions about fiction are allowed. Real-world questions are better suited for a question and answer community

3-Any fiction is allowed, not just science fiction. General questions not related to one specific universe are allowed.

4-Roleplaying is not mandatory, but all answers should ideally be framed from the perspective of the fictional universe being asked about.

5-Above all else, be kind and considerate to others. Remember, if you are not building this community up, you are tearing it down.

founded 1 year ago
MODERATORS
 

While we hear of the TARDIS having engines that are implicitly essential to it working, we've also see a TARDIS work without the rest of the machine.

"The Doctor's Wife" and "Inferno" show that a TARDIS is capable of operating as just the console, which would seem to imply that they're just a power source to allow the console to do its thing and move the whole ship around, or to allow for the pilot to do silly things like tow an entire planet one second out of phase.

top 4 comments
sorted by: hot top controversial new old
[–] [email protected] 16 points 10 months ago (2 children)

Given that dimensionally transcendental engineering is integral to TARDIS design, the engines - and pretty much all of the rest of the interior - could be inside the console - even if they are also accessible via other rooms and corridors.

[–] ME5SENGER_24 9 points 10 months ago

And the console, like the TARDIS itself, could be bigger on the inside. So while we see a console, who knows what’s happening inside of it

[–] pdavis 1 points 2 weeks ago

Wow, this just blew my mind. I never thought about the TARDIS in quite this way kind of like a Russian nesting doll. I do recall in one episode with Tom Baker, Logopolis, the Doctor Jettisoned a significant part of the the TARDIS to escape a trap by the Master. This didn't seem to compromise the TARDIS in any significant way. I always imagined the lost room could be easily replaced given a little time and effort.

[–] Sertou 6 points 10 months ago

My take, informed mainly by The Doctor’s Wife, is that while a TARDIS console alone can move through time and space, it’s a bit like driving a card without a windshield, exhaust system, shocks and brakes. It may get you where you’re going, but the odds of you experiencing harm increase greatly.