Jump to content

Doctor Who


Benji

Recommended Posts

I don't think the missing bees is the "Badwolf" of this series, I think it's a red herrin. Along with random comments about the furry yellow and black buggers, there's been two instances in two episodes now where someone's mentioned that their planet has gone missing.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Remember one season we had two keywords, one was a half season one and the other was the end of season one, I remember because it confused the hell out of me at the time. One was "Burn With Me" (which was the Satan Pit/Impossible Planet double) and I can't remember the other for the finale.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Ah fair enough.

I've got to admit, so far this season I really feel like I'm watching some classic Who, Catherine Tate has absolutely blown me away with how entertaining she is and I'm more than willing to eat my words and admit I was wrong there, she and Tennant have undeniable chemistry.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I have mixed feelings on the episode. I enjoyed it just fine on the whole, but the odd thing bugged me, like the Ood being born with a brain in their hand was a bit naff, they could have achieved the same effect with whatever corporation it was drugging the Ood to pacify them. Hell if they wanted to go down the labotomy route, they didn't even need to have a brain in the hand thing. Tim McInnery turning into an Ood was bollocks, and I felt they missed the chance to do a 'moral outrage' commentary on slavery (or even on animal rights if slavery would have been too 'heavy' a subject), I felt it hinted at doing something deeper in this regard but never quite went ahead with it which bugged me a lot, it was a bit of a missed chance.

Still, barring those quibbles, the episode was fine. I really liked how they didn't do the predictable thing and have the Indian lass turn good, and the comment at the end about the song ending was great. It was generally decent beyond that. The Ood dying in the snow at the start was really well handled too.

I agree with Skummy that it's a shame the Ood are essentially 'saved' and thus out of the show, but they could always do an episode where some maneolent force or other mind-controls some Ood. It'd be a bit of a re-hash, but it's a way of them coming back. They do need to build new recurring villians, The Sycorax would make an awesome returning foe (from the first Christmas special), they could do a lot with them, and one episode wasn't nearly enough.

I'll say, three shows in, I'm enjoying this series. After the rep I got for 'hating' series three (which I didn't), this must be a shock >_>

Edited by timmayy Aaron XXIV
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Eh...I'm glad they didn't go down the route of banging on about slavery - they kept it fairly subtle, although blatant enough that it couldn't be missed, and the small period when it looked like it might be heavily politicised was pretty cringeworthy - any attempt at social commentary on a glaringly obvious and heavy-handed scale is usually pretty dire in Doctor Who - just look at Tegan's "sweatshop" comment in Logopolis, which the Donna/Doctor "where do you think your clothes come from" exchange came dangerously close to.

I do think the Ood brain-in-hand thing was a bit naff - what an evolutionary backwater that is, even for a telepathic species. But then of course, it's plausible that they've never had a natural predator before, or even that they haven't "evolved" in the traditional sense - the transforming of a human being into an Ood could suggest that they were originally all at some point spawned from another species.

I also have to admit that Tate has been great thus far - didn't much enjoy her in the first episode, as she was still "being" Catherine Tate with some rubbish comedy in parts, and I'm sure we can expect bits of that from her in the future still, but she's been lightyears better than I ever thought she would be, and there is a definite chemistry there and, as I said earlier, one we've not really seen before, with an assistant that can get a bit mouthy and isn't afraid to answer back or speak her mind, it's an interesting dynamic.

On top of the "one element from each episode" thing, according to Wiki the series finale has been planned for four years. It could be interesting to guess what the "elements" are - bees disappearing, song ending, Shadow Proclamation, "Medusa Cascade"...

Link to comment
Share on other sites

i liked the Ood episode because i love how they can take what can look like a scary creature and make it act so peaceful well that is unless its attacking i did love that quote from Tate about the communicator being like a persil ball

cant wait for the next episode i love when they bring back a classic i just hope they dont fuck them up like they did the cybermen

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Loved the Sontarans (and their little human friend is just dickish enough to be a baddie but not to be annoying), I'm wondering how they're allowed to just attack with the Shadow Proclamation in effect or if they're outright going againt it. Like most two parters of the new series the first one doesn't seem to have been fantastic but I'm sure it's set something up for the next one we're unaware of. Probably the worst episode of the series but it was still acceptable.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

I really liked this episode - yes, it was nothing spectacular, but it's nice to get something of a change of pace, which you only really get in the two-parters now. Watching older series of Doctor Who, you'll get two or three episodes where nothing really "happens", in the build up to something important in that story arc, whereas now every episode seems to have more of a set pattern, with predictable action sequences, and it was nice to just get some solid tension building instead.

As for whether or not they're going against the Shadow Proclamation, it would appear to me that rather than directly attacking Earth, it seems, especially with the phrase "the planet is going nuclear" in the teasers for next week, that perhaps they're converting Earth into an energy source, or even a weapon, for a greater purpose. What, we do not know. It's also distinctly possible that Sontar isn't party to the Shadow Proclamation; the Sontarans aren't a race likely to abide by galactic protocol niceties.

Also, a quick Google points out that a partial anagram of "Shadow Proclamation" is "The Doctor is a pawn" :P

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Worst episode so far? I thought it was possibly the best, to be honest. The pacing was perfect, building up throughout the episode to the frantic finale.

The sontarans were really good imo, and I'm glad they are back.

Seriously, I cannot fault the episode at all and am pumped for next week's follow on.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Not being much of a Doctor Who fan (I've never seen a non-Tennant episode, and only a few of his, but I know roughly what's going on), I liked this week's. The Sontarans are pretty badass, and have some great one-liners ("It was the best war of all time, and we weren't allowed to take part!"). And the human lackey reminds me a lot of Jonathan from Buffy.

I couldn't help wondering though, why they just don't break the car window. I mean, it's not exactly difficult.

I'll try and keep up from now on, although I've said that twice now. :P

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Incidentally, my mate reckons the Sontarans are altering the temperature and atmosphere on Earth to make it hospitable for use as a Sontaran planet.

That was my first thought, but I don't really like the idea because when the General came to earth he seemed to suffer no ill effects whatsoever and didn't hesitate to take off his helmet (though that may just be Sontaran pride).

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Having only seen the old Sontarons on Wikipedia somewhere, I was quite happy with how these guys looked and their thing of having to always face forward. I also like that in this series the sonic screwdriver is now seen as a child's plaything by most of the villains.

As someone else said, the genius guy also reminded me of Johnathon from Buffy, which is a good thing. I hope he lives through whatever is coming.

I was hoping for some naked Freema when her clone arose but no... :angry: I demand a clone fight though, and for Martha to have to hurry in to the TARDIS for some reason or another instead of strolling in after everything is nice and peaceful.

Link to comment
Share on other sites

Having only seen the old Sontarons on Wikipedia somewhere, I was quite happy with how these guys looked and their thing of having to always face forward. I also like that in this series the sonic screwdriver is now seen as a child's plaything by most of the villains.

As someone else said, the genius guy also reminded me of Johnathon from Buffy, which is a good thing. I hope he lives through whatever is coming.

I was hoping for some naked Freema when her clone arose but no... :angry: I demand a clone fight though, and for Martha to have to hurry in to the TARDIS for some reason or another instead of strolling in after everything is nice and peaceful.

Yeah, I hope the Jonathon Luke kid gets away, tbh, and doesn't do the sterotypical 'oh noes what wuz I thinkin' kind of deal. He'd make a pretty decent semi-recurring character imo.

Edited by Kerr-F'n-Avon
Link to comment
Share on other sites

Join the conversation

You can post now and register later. If you have an account, sign in now to post with your account.

Guest
Reply to this topic...

×   Pasted as rich text.   Paste as plain text instead

  Only 75 emoji are allowed.

×   Your link has been automatically embedded.   Display as a link instead

×   Your previous content has been restored.   Clear editor

×   You cannot paste images directly. Upload or insert images from URL.

Loading...
  • Recently Browsing   0 members

    • No registered users viewing this page.
×
×
  • Create New...

Important Information

We have placed cookies on your device to help make this website better. You can adjust your cookie settings, otherwise we'll assume you're okay to continue. To learn more, see our Privacy Policy