Doctor Who

[Flub]

Does anyone know which Big Finish stories detail Romana's return from e-space and how she became president? I know there was some stuff after that in the 8th Doctor range anti-time, Zagreaus and that punishment they used to do where they erased you from history but did they cover her coming back?

[davidcotton]

Does anyone know which Big Finish stories detail Romana's return from e-space and how she became president? I know there was some stuff after that in the 8th Doctor range anti-time, Zagreaus and that punishment they used to do where they erased you from history but did they cover her coming back?

Not that I remember, it was covered in one of the missing novels from the virgin range. The closest you'll get I think is way back in the main range with The Apocalypse Element.

[Sprite Machine]

Dalek

(Blog has pictures)

You can tell tell the quality of an actor by putting them into a room with a puppet and watching them act out an impassioned scene. Without a doubt, the most memorable performance of Christopher Eccleston's short stint as the Doctor comes from this episode, as he faces down the last of his old foes, a single Dalek soldier. Compassion turns to fear, fear turns to delight and then rage and disgust. I used to find Eccleston a little unpredictable and scatty as the Doctor, but it's understandable, as he shows every side of the character within the space of a minute.

[Picture: Another sign of a good actor is how much they spit when they shout.]

It was important to bring in new fans, who may not have known the history of the Daleks, but also appeal to the long-term viewers. The "time war" idea was a great way to wipe the slate clean and reset expectations, but I can't help think that the reveal of the Dalek would have been more of a shock had they not spoiled it in the previous episode's preview, or indeed in the name of the bloody episode!

[Picture: Imprisoned and helpless, the Dalek is tortured.]

Nevertheless, the intention was to make the Daleks threatening again for the 21st century, and this succeeds where more overblown efforts have failed. An army of Daleks invading Earth doesn't have the same impact as knowing that just one rogue Dalek could single-plungedly wipe out millions of people itself, even if you don't see it happen. Oh, this revised Dalek soldier is formidable on-screen, sure, but it's the warning of what it might do, the terror in the Doctor's eyes, that sells the threat.

[Picture: The museum of alien artefacts, deep underground in Utah. Well, at least it's not Wales again.]

That the Dalek ultimately destroys itself, having been "contaminated" with Rose's emotions, is perhaps the best end for the Dalek saga one could hope for. In the space of 45 minutes, we go from fear to pity, as this pulsating blob of a thing finally sets himself free, and the Doctor is brought back from the brink of becoming a monster himself. If this were the last ever appearance of the Daleks, it would have been a spectacular ending for them. Unfortunately, they were dragged back kicking and screaming before the first series was even over. A missed opportunity, but not one for which I can blame this episode.

[Picture: Henry van Statten owns the entire Internet, apparently.]

While this is one of the best ever portrayals of the Daleks, the rest of the episode is merely okay. The idea of the alien museum is interesting (old-school Cyberman head!) but the characters fall flat or come across as silly, especially van Statten firing people for ridiculous things and having their memories wiped (this might have seemed plausibly futuristic at the time, but the episode's setting of 2012 is now the past!). New tag-along Adam is so bland a character, I actually forgot he was even in this series. He claims to be a genius, but demonstrates no such quality just yet. He and Rose flirting seems inappropriate, given she only left Mickey waiting in the previous episode. Still, anything to shake up the status quo is fine by me.

[SqueakyG]

spoilered for potential costume reveal

No need to spoil it -- it's just the regen figure from the Christmas episode -- Matt Smith's costume without the bowtie.

I'm more concerned about how they've made Clara look like a fat middle-aged council estate mum.

[SeanR]

Adam? Adam? Who the fuck is Adam!?!

[Mogster]

Dalek was the episode that hooked me. Like Sprite said the human characters are mostly daft, but all scenes between the Doctor and the Dalek are ridiculously good. That first encounter is still one of the best scenes from the show's entire history.

I didn't have any issue with van Statten's technology though. His whole operation relied on scooping up advanced alien tech and drip feeding research to the public for profit. "Broadband? Roswell" and all that. It wasn't implying that mind wipes were commonplace in 2012, just that he had the technology.

[davidcotton]

Dalek

(Blog has pictures)

You can tell tell the quality of an actor by putting them into a room with a puppet and watching them act out an impassioned scene. Without a doubt, the most memorable performance of Christopher Eccleston's short stint as the Doctor comes from this episode, as he faces down the last of his old foes, a single Dalek soldier. Compassion turns to fear, fear turns to delight and then rage and disgust. I used to find Eccleston a little unpredictable and scatty as the Doctor, but it's understandable, as he shows every side of the character within the space of a minute.

[Picture: Another sign of a good actor is how much they spit when they shout.]

It was important to bring in new fans, who may not have known the history of the Daleks, but also appeal to the long-term viewers. The "time war" idea was a great way to wipe the slate clean and reset expectations, but I can't help think that the reveal of the Dalek would have been more of a shock had they not spoiled it in the previous episode's preview, or indeed in the name of the bloody episode!

[Picture: Imprisoned and helpless, the Dalek is tortured.]

Nevertheless, the intention was to make the Daleks threatening again for the 21st century, and this succeeds where more overblown efforts have failed. An army of Daleks invading Earth doesn't have the same impact as knowing that just one rogue Dalek could single-plungedly wipe out millions of people itself, even if you don't see it happen. Oh, this revised Dalek soldier is formidable on-screen, sure, but it's the warning of what it might do, the terror in the Doctor's eyes, that sells the threat.

[Picture: The museum of alien artefacts, deep underground in Utah. Well, at least it's not Wales again.]

That the Dalek ultimately destroys itself, having been "contaminated" with Rose's emotions, is perhaps the best end for the Dalek saga one could hope for. In the space of 45 minutes, we go from fear to pity, as this pulsating blob of a thing finally sets himself free, and the Doctor is brought back from the brink of becoming a monster himself. If this were the last ever appearance of the Daleks, it would have been a spectacular ending for them. Unfortunately, they were dragged back kicking and screaming before the first series was even over. A missed opportunity, but not one for which I can blame this episode.

[Picture: Henry van Statten owns the entire Internet, apparently.]

While this is one of the best ever portrayals of the Daleks, the rest of the episode is merely okay. The idea of the alien museum is interesting (old-school Cyberman head!) but the characters fall flat or come across as silly, especially van Statten firing people for ridiculous things and having their memories wiped (this might have seemed plausibly futuristic at the time, but the episode's setting of 2012 is now the past!). New tag-along Adam is so bland a character, I actually forgot he was even in this series. He claims to be a genius, but demonstrates no such quality just yet. He and Rose flirting seems inappropriate, given she only left Mickey waiting in the previous episode. Still, anything to shake up the status quo is fine by me.

I know you said you were not going to go out of your way to include the audios or whatnot, but it's worth hearing the audiobook version of this. Jubilee which inspired this story only with Colin Baker and Maggie Stables.

[Sprite Machine]

The Long Game

(Blog has pictures)

Whether it's on Earth or in orbit, this series has yet to leave the vicinity of our little blue sphere. There's even a shot of the planet's surface through an observation window that is very reminiscent of the one from four episodes prior. And we're aboard another orbiting satellite, only this time the human race is very much alive and well, but something isn't quite right.

[Picture: It's very flashy (and a bit gross) but that cannot be a particularly efficient method of data transfer.]

This is the first episode to fail to leave any sort of impression on me. I vaguely recall seeing it before but only because I remember Simon Pegg being in it and the weirdness with the head hatches opening up. It is a fairly forgettable story and it didn't win me over this time around either.

[Picture: Skip to the end.]

I think the problem is that the drama of the situation relies too much on fairly abstract concepts. We're told that the human race is being controlled, that information is being manipulated, but we don't see the evidence of it. We only get the story from the point of view of a couple of workers aboard the satellite and have to take the Doctor's word for it that this weird new world is the wrong sort of weird. It's very difficult to care.

[Picture: The 500th floor wasn't so good a promotion for Suki after all.]

Technology and concepts are introduced so quickly that the importance of them doesn't have time to take hold. I get that the implants are a way to absorb everybody's thoughts, but the way Cathica reverses it at the end seems to happen all too easily. The sub-plot with Adam trying to transmit future secrets could have been interesting, but he's such a bland character that I didn't care that he messed up, and I'm glad to see the back of him.

[Picture: The Jagrafess, controlling human destiny for nearly a century. Defeated by turning the heating on for a few seconds.]

Pegg is pretty good on screen as the villain, the Jagrafess creature is disturbing, and some of the episode's themes do sort of work okay in a broad sense, but, on the whole, this is the weakest episode of the revived series so far.

[Sprite Machine]

Father's Day

(Blog has pictures)

If any further evidence were needed that this new series of Doctor Who is more about Rose than it is the Doctor, then Father's Day is the ultimate proof. Why did Rose rush into the Tardis upon learning it's also a time machine at the end of the first episode? No, it wasn't just a joke, she had a serious motive and a plan, somewhere in her head, to see her dad before he was killed in a tragic car accident. Foreshadowing, again, done right!

[Picture: Rose ensures her father doesn't die alone this time.]

Father's Day is filled with drama and sentiment. It tells a heartwarming story of family reunion and concludes it with a brave sacrifice. Characters grow and learn and it's all very emotional. It makes us care for these characters and learn a little more about them. In that respect, it's a successful episode. The flip-side to this is that it doesn't really make much sense.

[Picture: Giant CGI bats appear in the sky because... erm...]

Apparently, the Time Lords used to step in and stop wounds in time from happening, but now that they're all gone, this sort of accident can happen. And yet, it's never happened since, and it doesn't really explain how it happened or why. We must simply consider it a freak accident and let it slide. This story portrays time as a kind of magical realm with guardians and destiny, rather than a scientific dimensional concept. Why does the Tardis turn into a normal phone box? Magic. Why do all the phones start picking up the first ever telephone message? Magic. Why does the car keep appearing and disappearing? Magic. Why does the nature of Pete's death change but nobody remembers Rose being there or the world ending? Magic. Wibbly wobbly, timey wimey. Brush it under the carpet and move on.

[Picture: A classic example of the problem. Future Rose saves her dad, so why do 'Two Minutes Earlier' Doctor and Rose disappear? They must still exist to be able to become the future versions who save Rose's dad!]

[Picture: The empty Tardis was, admittedly, very cool.]

I like to think you can mix an emotional character-driven story with a solid grasp of time travel logic. Doctor Who manages it occasionally, but this particular story is weighted too heavily towards the former with not enough consideration for the latter. Still, purely as a piece of drama, it's rather effective. Pete is an endearing character, and although Rose initially learns that the reality doesn't live up to the stories, she finds a man she is proud to call her father anyway.

[Nick R]

a short doctor who episode by steven moffat

[Alexlotl]

So then: we've got our costume reveal.

I like it, particularly the lining. Not sure about the Spider Man pose, though.

[Hideous Kojima]

The three things I said he needed was white shirt, waistcoat and maybe a thigh-length smart coat. The red lining just makes it. \o/

[cassidy]

Love it.

[Hideous Kojima]

Also, as said earlier in this thread, I can't see this bloke talking abot timey-wimey.

[Garwoofoo]

I wonder where they got the idea from?

[HarMGM]

Like it a whole lot better then Smith's Willy Wonka coat. Reminds me of circus ringleader as well.

[The Bag]

God bless the Internet.

[Glasgowchivas]

Cardigans are cool.

[Hexx]

Remeber the first short of him that leaked?

[womblingfree]

This the best dressed Dr for years.

I mean, the clothes are actually sartorially appealing. Last time I considered buying anything similar to Dr Who's wardrobe was Tom Baker's scarf.

[Raane]

Totally gives off a Dishonored vibe for me.

[deerokus]

Prosecutor in Phoenix Wright.

[dismembo]

I like how there is a complete lack of the sonic driver in the picture. Maybe he's going to stop using it so much.

[Davros sock drawer]

I really, really hope so. It would improve the show a huge amount.

Another thing that would improve the show a huge amount is to actually feel like the Doctor might be in danger occasionally, and that sometimes, just sometimes, he might arrive somewhere he hasn't heard of, and where he doesn't immediately know what he's dealing with.

[Not Thread Owner]

Needs a Harry Hill "do you like the lining".

[Mr Cochese]

Do all these Jon Pertwee visual references mean that he's going to do old man kung fu?

[El Pibe]

Judo chop!

[Sprite Machine]

The Empty Child / The Doctor Dances

(Blog has pictures)

Before he took over the reins as head writer and executive producer, there was a time when Steven Moffat wrote fantastic episodes that didn't hinge on bizarre coincidences or plot revelations spewed out at the last moment, when his female characters weren't just pretty plot devices, and when he could really stir up some evocative imagery and create iconic foes. His first story is the perfect example and still remains one of the best.

[Picture: "Are you my mummy?"]

What Moffat does brilliantly is make monsters out of ordinary things and wrap them up in mystery. Creatures dressed as clowns, disguised as statues, hidden in space suits or, in this case, wearing gas masks. These aren't snarling monsters, they aren't scary in a conventional sense. If anything, they kill with love. A small boy who just wants his mummy, but his touch will turn you into an empty shell just like him. It's terrifying, and being set against a backdrop of the blitz adds so much to the atmosphere.

[Picture: Richard Wilson makes a brief appearane as Dr. Constantine, before turning into another masked creature.]

Like any good mystery, the clues are there to pick up on, and the conclusion actually makes sense. The medical ship, the nanogenes, the crash, the girl and her "brother". The mystery unravels with excellent pace and suspense, too, and still has time for some genuinely funny lines between the characters. This is of course the first appearance of Captain Jack, the fast and easy ex-Time Agent turned con artist. Say what you will about him, but he absolutely lights up this story, adding a new dynamic to both Rose and the Doctor. Normally, a complicated plot like this would sideline the characters, but not here. Being a two-part story gives it the space it needs, and for once, next week's preview comes AFTER the credits, preserving the suspense for those who choose to switch off before. Of course, I watched them back to back, because it was so bloomin' gripping.

[Picture: The sonic screwdriver scene is very amusing.]

This is probably the first Doctor Who story since its revival that is properly scary ('The Unquiet Dead' was relatively tame and the Slitheen are just too silly). Doctor Who should be scary now and again, and this has some spine-tingling moments throughout - the hospital full of masked bodies that all sit up at the same time, the ringing phones, and of course several instances of "you didn't notice that he wasn't at the typewriter anymore" / "we didn't notice the tape deck had finished" and you're still hearing the thing happening and everybody stops talking to look at it. Yeah, it's a little clichéd, but it’s brilliant and still got to me.

[Picture: "Everybody lives, Rose! Just this once - everybody lives!"]

It's not just the scares, but this is everything a Doctor Who story should be. It's got creepy monsters that aren't really monsters, a science-fiction element within a historical setting, dripping with atmosphere and mystery, really good writing, humour, and developed characters, and an ending it thoroughly earns. It won't be the last time Steven Moffat knocks it out of the park either - his upcoming stories have remained my favourites - but it shows that he was at his best when he didn't have to run the whole show too.

[Mogster]

Everybody Lives!

The Empty Child gets better with every watch, and Captain Jack is fantastic in it. I was really looking forward to Torchwood when it was announced because I expected a series of Jack the loveable rogue, not the mopey git he turned into.

And yeah, I'm loving Capaldi's outfit. I wouldn't read too much into the lack of screwdriver though, although I certainly hope they at least use it less.

[Rudi von Starnberg]

It's funny to think back to a time when 'Everybody lives!' was genuinely an out-of-place occurrence to be happy about, rather than the trite resolution of every single reset-button plot.

Just this once, Rose! And then for a good 80% of all following stories!