Doctor Who

[fenris]

Found the conclusion of the Dalek two-parter to be disappointing. The moment Sec mentioned that he could now feel emotions, it immediately became extremely predictable. Sure enough, Sec not only starts getting all touchy-feely, but is overcome with lurve for his fellow beings. The other members of the Cult of Skaro take umbrage and rebel, resulting in (seriously, who didn't see this coming) Sec taking a Dalek-ray for the Doctor.

Speaking of which, how many more times are we going to have scenes in which the Doctor stands unarmed and helpless before a posse of Daleks, and instead of just exterminating him on the spot, they let him stand there flapping his gums for several minutes? Er... hello? This is the Doctor! The arch-enemy of your race!! He's defeated you dozens of times in the past precisely because you didn't kill him the first chance you got!! Get a clue!!

Mind you, even if the Doctor was ray-gunned, would it harm him anyway? One trend I've noticed in New Who is for the Doctor to have something unfortunate happen to him that would be fatal to a human, but he simply gets up without a mark on him, because he's an alien and his physiology is different to ours. Fair enough, but it's beginning to get used as an easy catch-all excuse, the equivalent of getting a hero out of an inescapable cliffhanger by simply declaring that 'with a single bound, he was free!'

For example, this week the Doctor received a direct hit from a lightning bolt, but it didn't seriously hurt him because... well, he's a Timelord. No further explanation needed. And in the first episode of this series, he not only absorbed a large amount of radiation, but also had most of his blood sucked out by an alien vampire. But in both cases, he was as right as rain. Sturdy chaps, these Timelords (incidentally, long-time Who fans are up in arms over the Doctor shrugging off the radiation, because it was exposure to a large dose of radiation that killed off the Third Doctor - Jon Pertwee - and caused him to regenerate).

Oh, and the story concludes with all the Daleks wiped out again. Except for Caan, of course. I wonder what excuse will be used next season to explain their increased numbers when the Doctor no doubt encounters another Dalek army?

Personally, I think it would be more interesting for Caan - the last of his kind, the same as the Doctor (or not, judging by what the Face of Boe said a couple of weeks ago) - to think long and hard about his situation, and instead of struggling with impossible schemes of recreating the Dalek race or conquering the universe, deciding to become a sort of 'Anti-Doctor'. Just as the Doctor travels through time and space battling evil and helping people, Caan would take out his frustration at the fate of the Daleks by helping other aggressive races and villains to spread tyranny, oppression and destruction wherever - and whenever - he could.

[fenris]

Episode #3.07: The Lazarus Experiment.

To quote the Bard, this week's episode was much ado about nothing. Stories in which 'a scientist carries out an experiment, uses himself as the guinea pig, turns into a monster and starts killing people' had become an overused cliche way back in the 1940s, and this week's Who added nothing new to the formula.

In fact the story was so tissue-thin that it effectively reached it's conclusion after only twenty five minutes. But because there was twenty minutes still to go, Lazarus revives and is chased to a church where he is killed again, in a wholly redundant sequence that takes place for no other reason than to pad out the remaining running time.

The real shame is that Mike Gatiss who played Lazarus (and how sledgehammer unsubtle is that name?) is a HUGE Doctor Who fan. He's written Who novels, contributed scripts to previous New Who seasons, and even played the Doctor (very well) in specially-filmed inserts for a BBC2 Who theme night several years ago. It's a real pity that his official Who debut was in a story so incredibly lame.

Final verdict on 'The Lazarus Experiment' - very poor. The only worthwhile aspect was the extended trailer that immediately followed the episode, showing clips from the rest of the third season: the return of Captain Jack, and our first glimpse of John Simm as Saxon.

[fenris]

Judging by the trailers for this Saturday's episode of New Who (19/05/07), it's about the crew of a spaceship that's heading for disaster, being stalked and killed by a hulking, masked figure.

How ironic then, that at 23:10 that same night Channel 4 are screening the movie Jason X, which is about the crew of a spaceship that's heading for disaster, being stalked and killed by a hulking, masked figure.

[fenris]

I'd not been particularly impressed with the third season of new Who, but the last three episodes have been nothing short of excellent. The 'Human Nature/Family of Blood' two-parter was the best New Who story so far, and deserves to stand proudly alongside the greatest of the Classic Who sagas.

Last night's episode 'Blink' was this season's token 'Doctorless' tale, and was much better than last year's effort, the truly dire 'Love and Monsters'. This is wholly due to writer Stephen Moffat, previously responsible for the first season's 'The Empty Child' and 'The Doctor Dances', and the second season's 'Girl in the Fireplace', the best Who stories of their respective years. And he's done it again - 'Blink' was simply the best 45 minutes of British genre television that I've seen in months.

It wasn't intended as such, but if 'Blink' were to serve as a pilot episode for a spin-off series featuring it's heroine Sally Sparrow, I happily confess I'd be almost wetting myself in anticipation.
Just think: six episodes (no need to be greedy), hopefully all written by Moffat. The series could be called Sparrow & Nightingale - actually, forget that, it sounds too much like a dodgy Sixties detective show. Let's just call it Blink, it works.

Wishlist;
Sally and her boyfriend - Whatisname Nightigale - to still own their DVD/comic/horror & sci-fi collectables shop.
No references to Who, let the series stand on it's own two feet.
To help distance it from Who, no aliens. Instead let's have supernatural opponents, similar to Strange and Sapphire & Steel.
A Bone Collector-like episode, in which a serial killer is committing murders linked to an obscure horror movie or comic book.
A rematch with the one of the Weeping Angels. Sally and boyfriend lure it onto a demolition site and smash it with a wrecking ball. You can't hurt a stone? Bah!

Come on, BBC. Although I liked Torchwood, I'd much rather see more of Sally.

[DreamDangerously]

I completely agree with you, on both counts actually.

It shows once again what an amazing writer Steven Moffat is. (on a side note, I can't wait to see Jekyll, his modern take on Jekyll and Hyde, it sounds brilliant!).

Carey Mulligan, who played Sally, is an absolute star in waiting. She was brilliant in both Northanger Abbey and Bleak House and she shone in this episode. I'd love to see more of her on TV and if Sally Sparrow was a vehicle for her, even better!

[matt]

It's the first time I've genuinely been scared and unnerved by a Who monster, and the whole random shots of statues at the very end unsettled me! And this was at 8:00am in the morning!

I'd hate to be a five year old watching that...

[orokiah]

The Weeping Angels were petrifying! They were such a great concept, and so perfectly executed. I loved the fact you never actually saw them move per se, just where they ended up. The scene where Lawrence/'Florence' was backing away from them trying not to blink, then does blink and opens his eyes to find one with its hands almost around his throat... Just brilliant. I think those people who pose as living statues in city centres are now going to have a whole new audience running screaming from them.

dreamdangerously said:

Carey Mulligan, who played Sally, is an absolute star in waiting. She was brilliant in both Northanger Abbey and Bleak House and she shone in this episode. I'd love to see more of her on TV and if Sally Sparrow was a vehicle for her, even better!

Agreed, she's a wonderful actress. She was the best part of the less-than-amazing The Amazing Mrs Pritchard too. I'd love to see her back in the Whoverse in one form or another.

[fenris]

Have learnt that 'Blink' is loosely based on a short story by Stephen Moffat that appeared in the 2006 Doctor Who Annual. Entitled 'What I Did in the Christmas Holidays by Sally Sparrow', it's now available on-line, on the BBC's official Who website. Here's the link;

www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/episodes/2007/blink_annual.shtml

[rwctlc1107]

I cant wait till the Scifi channels start airing them over here in the US! I d/l the first 3 episodes, but stopped so that I had somethng to look forward to!!

Tina

[Dial-A-Cliché]

can't wait until the next episode with captain jack [*squee*]

is it me or in the trailer for next episode did the doctor say 'captain' really coldly? almost as if something horrible had happened between them :S

xxx

[orokiah]

carelesscause said:

can't wait until the next episode with captain jack [*squee*]

Yep, I'm with you there! Really looking forward to John Simm's appearances too. He looked very creepy in the preview they showed at the end of 'The Lazarus Experiment'.

[DreamDangerously]

Yeah I'm a big John Simm fan. Can't wait to see what Mr Saxon is all about.

[fenris]

Episode #3.11: Utopia. Just some quick thoughts;

Captain Jack's back! Yay!!
Liked the insectoid woman. Was sad when she died.
Thought the build-up to the Master's reawakening was well handled, but the scene in which it actually occurred was clumsy and underwhelming.
I know that Timelords' personalities change whenever they regenerate, but John Simm's portrayal of the Master as a hyperactive, capering loon just seemed wrong. And judging by the trailer for next week's episode, it continues in the same vein.

[DreamDangerously]

If you watched Doctor Who Confidential afterwards though, they explained that hyperactivity as a residual effect of the regeneration and that the manic behaviour comes from being locked up inside a human body for so long...he's lost the plot slightly to say the least.

I thought as a stand alone episode it was pretty dull but the climax more than made up for it and I mostly liked the explaination for Jack's shenannigans if you don't think about it too hard (it gets very complicated with lots of jacks, doctors and roses all over the place). Good to see him on form.

I thought Derek Jacobi was fantastic especially when the master was realeased...it just shows why he's one of Britain's best actors.

[orokiah]

The Confidential was a great watch this week, especially with John Barrowman back. That man just ramps up the enjoyment factor of whatever he appears in. John Simm showing his son around the TARDIS was very sweet too.

dreamdangerously said:

I thought Derek Jacobi was fantastic especially when the master was realeased...it just shows why he's one of Britain's best actors.

Derek Jacobi was so good I was almost disappointed when John Simm turned up and started chewing the scenery in his place! He conveyed the pathos of The Professor and the menace of The Master without missing a beat. The calibre of the guest stars this season has been exceptional.