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Fobwatch Fic
| Tropes and genres | |
|---|---|
| Synonym(s) | Fobbed, Fobwatched, Chameleon Arch fic, Fobwatch AU, fobwatch!Verse |
| See also | Doctor Who |
 Doctor Who moodboard: Twelfth Doctor - Fobwatched - Musician by drwhoboards (2017) | |
| Related articles on Fanlore. | |
Fobwatch fics employ a canon AU scenario that originated in the Doctor Who episode, "Family of the Blood". In this episode, the Doctor uses a piece of technology called the Chameleon Arch to change their biology, essentially turning the Time Lord temporarily human, while their original memories are stored in a fobwatch. The Doctor's memories and Time Lord biology are only restored when the fobwatch is opened.
Works employing this trope are rarely episode tags. Instead authors create scenarios where the Doctor, or another Time Lord (a popular choice being The Master), must use the chameleon arch to become human.
Sometimes same actor characters are used for the Fobbed!Time Lords human identity. For example Fobbed!Tenth Doctor works could disguise Ten as Alex Hardy, David Tennant's character from TV series Broadchurch. In this way, a fobwatch fic can resemble a Human AU and crossover fic. In other cases, the Fobbed!Time Lords human alias may be based on a name they've used in canon or in para-canonical stories (John Smith being a popular choice).
Since this is a trope that began in the Tenth Doctor's era it is often used in fanworks with Ten and the subsequent iterations there after (Eleven, Twelve, Thirteen, etc). Although, since we don't know when and how The Doctor obtained this technology it was not unusual to see the trope be used for pre-Ten Doctors, Nine and Eight being popular choices. During the Thirteen Doctor's series it was revealed that the Rebel Doctor—a secret unknown past version of the Doctor—had used the Chameleon Arch, sealing their memories in a lighthouse instead of a fobwatch, which opened up new possibilities for fans.
Although primarily a fanfiction trope, it's also not uncommon for fans to create graphics, particularly moodboards. These can be connected to fics, or simply used for inspiration.
Doctor/Companion Fobwatch Fanworks
Fanworks that include The Doctor and one of their companions often involve The Doctor being fobwatched and the companion having to look after The Doctor while they are in human form. This may include difficulties like trying to keep The Doctor safe, preventing them from interacting with things that could possibly trigger the return of their memories too soon, and living in a different place or time period. Plus the angst of The Doctor not remembering how they truly met and the adventures they had together. If it's a shippy fic this will often involve the human Doctor and their companion getting together romantically and living domestically as a couple, although how this comes about varies.
It is not unusual in these fanworks to have the human Doctor take on a profession that is connected to their interests or abilities, for example Twelve being a professor or musician, Thirteen being a mechanic, etc.
There are also examples of works where existing human companions are revealed to be Fobbed!Time Lords, allowing these character to gain a Time Lord's regenerative ability once the watch is opened.
Doctor/Master Fobwatch Fanworks
Fanworks that include both The Doctor and The Master usually fall into roughly two types: The Doctor is fobwatched and The Master takes advantage of that situation, or The Doctor and The Master are both fobwatched at the same time and in their human forms they are some how drawn to each other, whether as rivals, friends, or lovers. If it is a fic where The Doctor and The Master were friends or lovers, there can be quite a bit of angst when their memories return, and sometimes these stories can have sad or bittersweet endings.
Rory is The Master Fan Theory
Rory is The Master was a popular fan theory during Eleven's run, which relied heavily on Rory being The Master fobwatched, see Rory is The Master for further details.
Example Fanworks
Fanfiction
Doctor/Companion
- so you aren't as human as you thought you were, aka the Tupperware AU, or Tups AU, by timeisweird , Ten & Donna
- How Martha Jones Saved the World and Lucy Saxon Initiated Divorce Proceedings With Extreme Prejudice by LizBee, Entirely AU conclusion to "The Sound of Drums", in which companions come to the rescue, UNIT blows stuff up and Lucy Saxon's pocket-watch is opened. Ten & Various Companions
- 76, Totter's Lane by wildwinterwitch, Nine/Rose, fobwatched Nine
- A Shop Girl With A Broken Fob Watch by LicieOIC, Ten/Rose, fobwatched Ten
- Corrosion by mag_lex, Thirteen/Yaz, fobwatched Thirteen
Doctor/Master
- The Game by Verayne, Simm!Master/Ten, The Master seeks out Ten when he was John Smith
- Childhood Sweethearts by lurking_latinist, Twelve/Missy, both fobwatched
- the devil's in the details (but you got a friend in me) by MrsNoraPalmer, Twelve/Missy, both fobwatched
- Master of the House by spoilersweetie, Dhawan!Master/Thirteen, The Master takes advantage of Thirteen while their fobbed and pretends to be their spouse
- Two Can Play At That Game by HiNerdsItsCat (HiLarpItsCat), Dhawan!Master/Thirteen, both fobwatched
Graphics
Moodboards
- AU Graphics: Fobwatched AU with Jack Horatio Smith, Archived version by thiefofgallifrey (2017) (Eleven)
- Doctor Who moodboard: Eleventh Doctor - College Student/multiple jobs - Fobwatch AU, Archived version by drwhoboards (2018) (Eleven)
- Fobwatched!Eleventh Doctor - Toymaker, Archived version by journeythroughimpossiblethings (2018) (Eleven)
- Dear Diary, I think I may have done something bad., Archived version moodboard and ficlet by gingerteaonthetardis (2019) (Eight/Rose)
- AU where Sam Tyler is the Master, fobwatched, and Thirteen is the Test Card Girl trying to communicate with him, Archived version by rubysundaymondaytuesday (2022) (Simm!Master/Thirteen)
- 𝐋𝐢𝐟𝐞 𝐨𝐧 𝐌𝐚𝐫𝐬 - Fobwatched Simm!Master Verse, Archived version by iamthemaster (2023) (Simm!Master)
- TENDONNA!AU, Archived version by teuchisrinnegan (2024) (Ten/Donna)
Archives & Fannish Links
- Fobbed Reclist at DoctorRose Fic Rec Lists on Tumblr
- Fobwatch (Doctor Who) and Chameleon Arch (Doctor Who) works on Ao3