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FishyFish

By FishyFish,
in Film, TV & Radio

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Nifta

Nifta

Posted
Posted
I missed this last episode, yesterday because I went to see Madness live. And today's repeat because I had to keep my nephew entertained :)

It's not repeated again, during the week is it?

Most weeks it's been on the following Friday night on BBC3. This week it looks to be Glastonbury instead. Bad timing. Bloody weekend hippies 'roughing it' for a few days.

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Eighthours

Eighthours

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Posted

The episode was really, really good. Very moving ending, some very good writing. But....

1. The Bad Wolf explanation didn't ring true, in my opinion.

2. The action bits (with the machine gun fire) weren't at all exciting.

3. The Dalek fleet looked like an FMV cutscene from a PS1 game.

So some of the production values are still hurting the show, but there's a lot of potential there. Did I mention that the ending was great? David Tennant, just in his one line, thoroughly convinced me that he's going to be an awesome Doctor.

Roll on next season.

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Boyatsea

Boyatsea

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Posted
:angry:

Boyatsea in trying to provoke Biglime shocker.

Not at all - the pacing of it. Very similar. Anyway, I think you have to be just a little bit gay to love Doctor Who. Just 0.5%.

I bet I could find you biglime's 0.5%. No crude jokes please.

Moving on, having re-watched it, I have to say my favourite bit is where Lynda-with-a-Y gets killed - purely because just before it happens, you see (but don't hear) the Dalek saying 'Exterminate' through the glass.

Excellent touch. Just excellent.

Now, I think we should all stop sniping about who said what before the series was even on. It was fucking, fucking excellent. Really, it was. It was a shining example of when British writing, direction, acting, and production come together to create something amazing.

Best thing I've seen on TV in years.

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hub2

hub2

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That was excellent, really excellent. There were loads really moving moments throughout the entire epsiode - enough for a whole series. I think it may have been biglime who put his finger on why it's been so good. It's got heart.

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giant_frying_pan

giant_frying_pan

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Posted

All of my comments echo those who loved it and I can't add any more.

I think it's pretty disgraceful that the tabloids have been spoiling episodes any chance they get throughout this series. If this run of Doctor Who hadn't been so popular, they would have had no interest in the series at all. I don't care if they spoil the various soaps, but they had no business doing the same with Doctor Who. They don't deserve to make money off Who.

giant_frying_pan

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ahyums2

ahyums2

Posted
Posted
Best thing I've seen on TV in years.

You know this thread has been nothing but a source of endless amazement, I truly think it's great that you're all this enthusiastic about something and have been all series, personally I'd say I've only mildly enjoyed it, but then I have watched most episodes and not considered doing that a waste of time or anything of the sort. My lack of enthusiasm partly stems from a general one for televisiual SF as a whole and partly because so much of it was so obviously aimed at children ( which has somehow never been an issue with games for me I've always enjoyed and continue to enjoy just about everything Miyamoto puts out etc.) As for the best TV in years give me the Sopranos or the West Wing any day of the week month or year.

Having said that I think its success is only a good thing from many points of view, for one I think the message which comes through loud and clear at certain points, that there is a future out there worth fighting for is one of immense value for those younger generations that are watching. It's also great that all those who spent many years lobbying for its return were and seemingly will be satisfied for years to come.

On that point I hadn't really seen any Who until this series, I was probably old enough for the McCoy era but never watched any live action TV back then, but I have got another story to relate: We used to play a game of Daleks in school in which we would run after each other shouting exterminate (the other details are somewhat hazy), anyway I joined in without the slightest clue for years afterwards what the significance of it all was. The interesting thing was that the friend of mine who to my knowledge started the game -- and therefore must have been something of a who fan was the son of a BBC governor--- you would have thought she would have brought some pressure to bare to bring it back or something.

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doctornovocalcords

doctornovocalcords

Posted
Posted

Brilliant episode. Brilliant series. Cant wait for David Tennant and Christmas. Also confirmed to me that RTD can write great episodes. I thought that up til now EOTW was his best but this one was quite possibly the best of the entire series.

Stupidly read the Guardian TV listings in the afternoon which revealed that the episode starred David Tennant so that completely ruined the surprise. Wish I could have watched it without knowing. alas

I couldnt be bothered trawling through OG for this so just wondering if anyone knows when the Tennant bit was filmed?

Was he given the role ages before it was actually announced in the press and this was filmed way back then, or was it filmed more recently and separately from the rest of the shooting once he had signed up? I wonder if as they knew CE was leaving, they filmed the regeneration in such a way that they could have added in whichever actor took the role at a later point.

What Ive loved about this series is that loads of my friends who had never seen the series before absolutely loved it: my housemate was crying by the end and she said it was the best TV she had ever seen. Now theyre always borrowing my classic series DVD's and loving those too (much to my surprise: due to the slow pace, long format, padding and the largely crap effects). I hope this is happening with lots of new series fans because the old series deserves it, despite being a very different programme.

Noticed the BBC have fucking Only Fools and Horses scheduled for the Who slot next week. Back to the same old bollocks then...

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linkster

linkster

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Posted
Er.... no. My eyes are working fine, and can see past the blinkers.

I agree it wasn't great.

I wonder how much they'll change for series 2 in an effort to get the US networks interested? What are everyone's views on what could be done to make it a hit without destroying the essence of the show? Is it's Englishness a fundamental barrier?

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Eighthours

Eighthours

Posted
Posted
I agree it wasn't great.

I wonder how much they'll change for series 2 in an effort to get the US networks interested? What are everyone's views on what could be done to make it a hit without destroying the essence of the show? Is it's Englishness a fundamental barrier?

I think they just need to improve the production values. The good writing helps us see past the mediocre camerawork, slovenly editing, often insipid direction, and godawful music, but maybe the US networks couldn't see past those things!!

As the series progressed, the production crew were gradually learning how to do this kind of show in 2005, so perhaps when Season 2 emerges, the US networks may turn around and change their minds. I don't think it's the "Englishness" holding it back.

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linkster

linkster

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Posted
I think they just need to improve the production values. The good writing helps us see past the mediocre camerawork, slovenly editing, often insipid direction, and godawful music, but maybe the US networks couldn't see past those things!!

As the series progressed, the production crew were gradually learning how to do this kind of show in 2005, so perhaps when Season 2 emerges, the US networks may turn around and change their minds. I don't think it's the "Englishness" holding it back.

Interesting... I know you hold these issues dearly, they don't matter to me. I'd have thought the cultural references were what put the networks off. Patronising in the extreme to a US audience as I honestly believe it would do very well.

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Eighthours

Eighthours

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Interesting... I know you hold these issues dearly, they don't matter to me. I'd have thought the cultural references were what put the networks off. Patronising in the extreme to a US audience as I honestly believe it would do very well.

I think it would do well too. Bizarre if the decision was based on the cultural references, as I don't believe there were that many. Well maybe in the first episode there were a few, but since then hardly any.

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linkster

linkster

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I think it would do well too. Bizarre if the decision was based on the cultural references, as I don't believe there were that many. Well maybe in the first episode there were a few, but since then hardly any.

Well there's the police box, even though that probably means nothing to a British audience of a certain age. And constant references to chips :angry: But then I don't personally believe these are problems, I always just assumed.

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Ste Pickford

Ste Pickford

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Posted

Bloody brilliant. I can understand the drop in viewing figures. My kids didn't watch it - they were at a barbeque at a neighbours house, but I was at home watching Dr Who - more important than socialising!

For those few people still moaning about the quality of the effects or the fact that the daleks don't look like generic cookie cutter modern CGI robots, or the fact that the series appealed to children as well as adolecents - I pity you, I really do. I pity your inablity to allow yourself to enjoy something as wonderful as this, and hope you grow out of it someday. In the meantime, there's no shortage of humourless, cliched US sci fi soap operas for you, I suppose.

For those people crying Deus Ex Machina... Well, I'm not clever enough to say whether it is or it isn't - I'm prepared to believe Biglime, but I could probably be convinced otherwise. But, it doesn't matter. What matters is whether it worked. And it did. It worked brilliantly. Rules are made to be broken, and good writers can break the rules. And RTD has proved that he's good enough to break the rules if he wants to becuase he seems to understand what makes TV drama work far more than someone who's just done a media or English Lit course. I'm delighted he's working on something geeky for us!

Two more series of Rose? Brilliant!

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K

K

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Posted

It was wonderful, basically. Billie Piper was far and away the best thing about it. She, dare I say it, is a much better actor than Christopher Ecclestone- she can do everything. There's not a single area of her performance in the entire series that was lacking- she's got the comic timing of a professional comedian, combined with the dramatic heft to sell a difficult scene like the one when she emerged from the Tardis, all Bad Wolfed-up. Just the way that you could hear all sorts of emotional conflicts running through her voice during that bit had my skin tingling. And – even more impressively – she can do scenes like the one where she runs out of the café without coming across like a petulant teen. As whohe said, she will go far- if I were a cigar-chomping film mogul, I would be growling "Get me Billie Piper" into my phone right this minute. She was fantastic.

As for Captain Jack, I was disappointed that he didn't go with the Doctor and Rose at the end, but thinking about it, this was the only way to go. The best thing about Jack's character is not what he does when he's with us, but what he does when he isn't. We need to have a little bit of time off from him, so that he can go off and get up to all sorts of sexually ambiguous adventures off-screen which he can hint at upon his return- the Jack mythos is the strength of the character.

Leaving aside some slight niggles though, I'd have to say this is getting close to my favourite television series ever. Off the top of my head, only Band of Brothers and Spaced come close.

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Luke

Luke

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Posted
I don't want that to happen.  :angry:

I want them to be in a spot of trouble, and captain jack arrives to save the day.

YES!

With a "I knew you wouldn't cope without me" line - oooh, or "So, you guys been missing me?".

Either that, or he just rigs up some kind of teleportation device from the transmat stuff on Satellite 5, and beams himself right back into the Tardis, with some appropriately cheesy line. Oh, and then a bit of comedy "Who are you?"/"The Doctor" stuff when he sees the 10th doctor.

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K

K

Posted
Posted
For those few people still moaning about the quality of the effects or the fact that the daleks don't look like generic cookie cutter modern CGI robots, or the fact that the series appealed to children as well as adolecents - I pity you, I really do.  I pity your inablity to allow yourself to enjoy something as wonderful as this, and hope you grow out of it someday.  In the meantime, there's no shortage of humourless, cliched US sci fi soap operas for you, I suppose.

I strongly suspect that most people who complain about the effects and the fact that the show is for kids are kids themselves- that is, around 15-19 years old. You know- people who think that po-faced is equivalent to serious, and that something has to be dark to be good.

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Popo

Popo

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Posted
Not at all - the pacing of it. Very similar. Anyway, I think you have to be just a little bit gay to love Doctor Who. Just 0.5%.

I bet I could find you biglime's 0.5%. No crude jokes please.

Moving on, having re-watched it, I have to say my favourite bit is where Lynda-with-a-Y gets killed - purely because just before it happens, you see (but don't hear) the Dalek saying 'Exterminate' through the glass.

Excellent touch. Just excellent.

Now, I think we should all stop sniping about who said what before the series was even on. It was fucking, fucking excellent. Really, it was. It was a shining example of when British writing, direction, acting, and production come together to create something amazing.

Best thing I've seen on TV in years.

RTD totally gayed up the show - himself, Mark Gatiss and Captain Jack are all filthy homos.

THEY'RE GETTING IN THE BACK DOOR SO TO SPEAK.

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