I agree, but the joke is still good as is.

It would've kinda sounded awkward though.

Everyone forgets the War Doctor. John must be so Hurt.

Considering the mistake he did, I believe that Sheldon just isn't really that big fan of the series (despite all his gadgets I never saw a sonic screwdriver, but I might just have missed the episode) and just forgot that... Or he never saw "The Time of the Doctor", so he didn't forget the War Doctor, he just believes Smith still plays the role.

Zacho789 Ha. Good one. :P

grasimpson Yeah, I was wondering bout that too, I guess he didn't mention the War Doctor because he only appeared in two episodes, so it may not have affected him as much as all the other Doctors.

@@Zacho789 He's at peace now.

Exactly. Plus the actors playing the Doctor were credited as 'Dr Who' or 'Doctor Who' during the first 18 seasons of Classic Who and Series 1 of New Who.

Counterpoint 4 years later: This is Sheldon. He is the sort of person who would be irritated about getting the name right, and so saying "Doctor Who" is completely out of character for him and evidence of a poor writing.

Also one instance of someone doing it in-universe doesn't really counteract the literal thousand times it wasn't

The problem is, if the characters referred to the character as just "the Doctor", a lot of people wouldn't understand the reference. Calling him "Doctor Who" would help people realize he was some sort of character in some sort of TV show.

Seriously!

All there doing is making is so that other people get it wrong!

The problem is, if the characters referred to the character as just "the Doctor", a lot of people wouldn't understand the reference. Calling him "Doctor Who" would help people realize he was some sort of character in some sort of TV show.

it's a joke meant for a certain fanbase, dumbing down the joke so everyone gets it makes the joke less funny for the fan base you are making it for, as opposed to less people getting it, but the people who do get it finding a lot funnier.

It would completely different: it would have been correct, and since this series puts a great effort (I don't like it, but fair it's fair) in making correct scientific and nerd references, it's really striking to see how they missed that one (Shakespeare said that in a wholefully different context, and context matters a lot, and it's not that if you love Discworld is ok saying it was written by Terry Pretzel just because of that).

It's still correct regardless of whether he said "Doctor" or "Doctor Who". The character was credited as "Doctor Who" from 1963-1980 and in 2005 anyway. Again, if he said "I've already said goodbye to 11 Doctors", it would be a different joke, implying that 11 of Sheldon's actual medical doctors have died. Some people may pick it up as a Doctor Who reference, but it would still come off differently. As for the Shakespeare quote, it still works in this context. It means that the name isn't important. Regardless of whether you're applying it to falling in love with a Montague, whom your family has sworn to destroy; or whether you call The Doctor "Doctor Who". It. Does. Not. Matter. As long as you love the show, why should people care?

It doesn't work, for a very simple reason: Sheldon is, supposedly, a SCIENTIST, and in science names matters, a lot. And that's exactly why I care, actually, because I'm a mathematical and a writer, and both of these makes a great deal of using correct names (Shakespeare is a poet, that's why name does not matter to him but, as said before, Sheldon is as far from a poet as you can go, so it doesn't apply to him). As for the unfortunate implications, it would be true, but then you pick a different fandom (I lost n enterprise captains, I lost two jedi masters), also the show has no problem in playing for laughs suicidal tendencies and parental issues, and with them being explicit and not a possible interpretation, so the point doesn't stand.

There's also a really simple reason why this also really doesn't matter. It's a sit-com. None of it is supposed to be taken seriously!

Except (besides the difference between rule of funny, when you choose to make something incorrectly to make it funnier, and either laziness or disrespecting the audience's intelligence) it's a sitcom that actually puts a lot of effort into making correct scientific and nerd references, so it's very nature makes you wrong on that one (plus, I repeat, thinking commedy is an excuse not to pay attention on details is plain poor writing).