sanity check

[twincityhacker]

I have this Torchwood/Doctor Who series that's cooking in the background that came out of the wintercompanion because I have a feeling it's not going to get done before the 27th.

Anyway. Series. One of the stories, the one that takes place after the introduction of Martha, is tentiviely dealing with something called "a miscegenation virus." Which, yes, is a really loaded, bigoted term, but the explanation of the purpose of the virus is explained as such at the end after the targets are found and the biological threat contained:

"A miscegenation virus. Takes a pattern of a species, and checks the host has any deviation against that basic species pattern, if so virus kills the host. If the host is 'pure', the virus is completely harmless."

"Wouldn't it just kill other species as well?"

"No, it has to be a partial deviation. They're just interested in wiping out the "nasty crossbreeding," not full-fledged genocide."

But would this all be a incredibly bad idea just to get into this whole idea? Or should I just not call it a miscegenation virus, as the point is that in the past ( and in the future, because it's Jack that's providing the info dump at the end ) that bigots just let the virus - which is engineered - run rampant. So I'm trying to tie in the shoddy racial pseudoscience in.

Of course, in the series I'm also going to be playing with LOOMS and the Doctor's half humanness and Gwen's love life because it's not proper fic unless someone is pissed off. = )

Comments

[beccaelizabeth]

(random B5 reference)
Pure Ikarran!
(/random)


... it's 4 in the morning. I has no big thoughts.

[msp-hacker.livejournal.com]

If the knee-jerk reaction is that the idea isn't made of fail, it's better than no feedback at all.

And one day I may actually have to watch B5, because that sounds kinda cool.

[nacbrie.livejournal.com]

RE a daily_deviant-esque knee jerk reaction: I suppose if you're portraying the 'miscegenation virus' as an Evil and Generally Nasty Thing, then you'd be alright. From what I remember of the DD uproar, the issue was that the term was used as a prompt for 'sex between different species', with absolutely no acknowledgment that it has a much nastier (racist) meaning in a different context. You may even be congratulated for using the term (in an IBARW sense).

How you're going to work the genetics of it is an entirely different matter. :) Are you talking about cross-species breeding, or genetic variation between species? And if the latter, are you talking specifically about 'race' (as in skin colour in humans, or the alien equivalent), or a more eugenic concept of 'impurity'?

(Apologies for butting in, btw. I'm here via who_daily)

[nacbrie.livejournal.com]

genetic variation between species

Supposed to be "genetic variation between members of a species", sorry!

[msp-hacker.livejournal.com]

It's definitely portrayed as an Evil and Nasty thing that someone has created - though it takes a bit to get from first sick person to Torchwood realizing what's exactly going on and calling it as such.

The target for the virus is cross-species breeding, and species purity. Since it's all scifi, I can have the virus as selective as I want, I suppose, but I keep thinking that if the virus targeted a specific species' race a mutation of the virus could cause it to turn on the creator's race and destroy them instead.

I threw this out here specifically for people to comment in on it!