Dare Sensei is a comic written by Mary Bell and illustrated by the Palcomix Team that presents a version of Doctor Who as it may have been conceived by Japan. In this dimension, Rassilon visited Earth in 247 BC and returned to Gallifrey with knowledge of the era's most advanced culture: the Japanese. note
Said traditions were quickly instituted, with subsequent (re)generations becoming more and more "Japanese". Gallifrey even saw a substantial increase in the female population, which resulted in women holding various positions among the ruling class. While the Japanese appearances continued, the trends and architecture eventually fell out of favor.
One day, for reasons unclear, a Time Lord once nicknamed "Theta Sigma" stole a Type 40 TARDIS and became an exile, soon leading to a particular gravitation toward humans (particularly those of Earth and, more specifically, Japan) and lifetimes spent exploring the universe, righting wrongs and picking up companions along the way to show the wonders of Time and Space. The Time Lord, whose real name has yet to be even so much as hinted at, would henceforth be known only as... the Sensei.
The idea of a female Doctor is far from new: Tom Baker had suggested it in the 1970s, and prior to 2017 there had been two BBC-licensed Who works with a female Doctor - The Curse of Fatal Death (a parody for Comic Relief), and Exile (an entry in Big Finish's Doctor Who Unbound audio series). Fan films, such as they are, have toyed with this concept since the 1980s to varying degrees of success.
And now, of course, the Doctor actually is a woman. Years before the show proper did it, Dare Sensei set out to prove that, given the right conditions, it's Crazy Enough to Work.
(NOTE: The project appears to have gone dormant around 2011, with only Chapters 1
and 2 being posted {Warning: NSFW ads}. The latest available capture of the website can be found here, via Internet Archive.)
Dare Sensei contains examples of:
- Alternate Universe
- Ascended Extra: Chameleon is far more mobile than her male counterpart.
- The Artifact: At least two characters.
- Jamie McCrimmon, the only human(oid) who wasn't changed into an anime character. He's still "played" by Frazier Hines here (his appearance being based on Who material), and is written much like his Who counterpart.
- Davros died at some point prior to the canon creation of the Daleks, but his passing directly led to someone else creating them.
- Bigger on the Inside: The TARDIS, which internally looks pretty much the same as in canon.
- Bond Creature: The TARDIS has a mental link with the Sensei. Chameleon seems to have a bond as well, since she has apparently been heard singing in the Ship's back corridors.
- Catchphrase: The website tagline was "Doctor Who as you've never seen it before."
- Captain Ersatz: Characters are deliberately borrowed from anime, with some attempt being made to match personalities. Notably, the website's characters page listed the borrowed characters as "playing" their assigned "roles", more or less presenting Dare Sensei as a TV show. For example, the Sensei:
- Ichi Sensei (First Doctor): Genkai
- Ni Sensei (Second Doctor): Takemoto Chie
- San Sensei (Third Doctor): Candice Audrey
- Yon Sensei (Fourth Doctor): Marilyn Carry
- Go Sensei (Fifth Doctor): Ilse Burnley
- Roku Sensei (Sixth Doctor): Princess Altessa
- Nana Sensei (Seventh Doctor): Saotome Nodoka
- Hachi Sensei (Eighth Doctor): Sakaki (credited as "Sakaki Hiragana")
- Kyu Sensei (Ninth Doctor): Saotome Ranma (son/daughter of Nodoka)
- Ju Sensei (Tenth Doctor): Osaragi Hazumu
- Ju Ichi Sensei (Eleventh Doctor): Shiho Sannomiya
- Deliberately Monochrome: Flashbacks involving Ichi Sensei, based on "An Unearthly Child", "The Dalek Invasion of Earth", and "The Three Doctors".
- Doppelgänger: Chameleon seems to enjoy mimicking Tina's appearance, which she doesn't like.
- Fiery Redhead: Ichi Sensei and Kyu Sensei, the only two (known) redheaded incarnations.
- Flashback: The comic has shown brief clips (as it were) of "An Unearthly Child", "The Dalek Invasion of Earth", "The Three Sensei", "Logopolis", a point presumably between "Dalek Invasion" and "The Rescue" where Ichi Sensei enters the story proper, and an uncertain story with Yon Sensei, Meena, and an erupting volcano. The website also had the last moments from "The Parting of the Ways".
- Gender Flip: Relatively few, but still some major players.
- Male-To-Female: The Doctor, the Master, the Brigadier, and Kamelion.
- Female-To-Male: Susan, Romana, and the Rani.
- Hentai: Averted! Despite being illustrated by Palcomix's (admittedly rather talented) artists, there's no pornographic material or nudity, putting it among the very few work-safe parts of that site (though there's still NSFW ads).
- Heroic Sacrifice: Davros, for his sister Yarvell. The scientific work he left behind was the spark which led her to become Davrine, Queen of the Daleks.
- In Spite of a Nail: Davros dying before he created the Daleks didn't stop the Daleks from being created - it just resulted in his sister doing so instead.
- Mad Scientist: Davrine.
- Mythology Gag: At one point, Chameleon senses a dimension where the Sensei is a man called "the Doctor" and Chameleon herself is a handsome male robot. Tina (Tegan) doesn't see that as being likely, and thinks she's fantasizing again.
- One Head Taller: Jamie, compared to Ni Sensei (who herself is shorter than the Second Doctor).
- Really 700 Years Old: The Sensei, the Mistress, and the Toni (Rani), as with Who.
- Sarcasm-Blind: Chameleon, to Ichigo (Turlough).
- Shapeshifter Mode Lock: The TARDIS' exterior is still stuck as a police box, though in this case it's a Japanese one rather than a British one. (It also has the Seal of Rassilon on the front, which makes it a bit less likely to be confused for an actual police box.)
- Shout-Out: Of a sort, considering that 99% of the known cast are anime characters (the exceptions being Jamie and Davros).
