The Doctor Who thread

Kittyfrisk

Private Eye has it sorted... 

darthed1981

Offset said:

I'll probably never find out.  I dislike RTD's proselytising and TBH I've more or less given up on it - which saddens me.

I want to be entertained, not 'made to think'  

RocknRollDave said:

FWIW, I am finding the current series nice and entertaining.
You can pick holes in the plots/ Science but…it’s fiction, let it go.

I find the saddest thing about the age of "internet criticism" is that people don't sit back and enjoy things.  I can go either way, a show can be a fun ride, it can be silly, it can be hearbreaking, the best go from one to another.

Who would have predicted one of the most tear-jerking speeches in an episode of TNG, a series that started silly and (in one episode) out and out racist would come from a random speech from a one-off guest star...



Two massive starships, power to destroy planets, and the characters helpless - god TNG was good.

Or to bring it back to Doctor Who... Fathers Day... the episode that got me loyal to the new show.  All the power of the Doctor and the Tardis and all Rose can do is change time so her father still dies, but she is with him as he does.  

I'd never give up those kind of emotional highs, the episodes that make me think, or smile or cry.

That said, I'm also fine with the Adipose, or Space Babies.  In this series we have already had the following genres...

Camp Romp
Camp Romp with a Musical Number
High Concept Anti-War Story
Welsh Folk Horror
High Concept Sci-Fi

Looks like next week we get a Sci-Fi costume drama (though I'm expecting a big Ruby reveal to queue-up the final two parter).

Surely all the best sci-fi shows do this?  Be it Star Trek, or Doctor Who, or Stargate SG1, or the Twilight Zone, or Buffy and Angel.  The latter for example, the episode where Cordelia dies and the one where Angel turns into a puppet were in subsequent weeks!

Headphones

Presumably there'll be a connection to who "built" the alphabetised slugs in the last episode too.

stickyfiddle

Without reading all of the comments above yet, I just watched the latest one and thought it was excellent. Heavily borrowing from Black Mirror's vibes, but it's not like Black Mirror wasn't influenced by vintage sci-fi like Twilight Zone and Dr Who itself. 

Absolutely brilliant. 

I'm not 100% sure the final rejection was along racial lines, or just a simple "you're not from our clique". But the fact it was directed at the one black guy to appear in the episode was almost certainly intentional. 

Overall very good and I have high hopes for the rest of the run now. 

stickyfiddle

WezV said:

There is plenty of TV out there that doesn't require any thought at all. Modern Who could often be seen as one of them, but thankfully this episode wasn't like that

There is a big difference between the Doctor Who episodes that try to tell you what you should think, and this episode that actually makes you think.

darthed1981 said:

bloodandtears said:

Does that make me colour-blind or racist or ignorant or naive or stupid??  It has made me think, that's for sure..

None of the above - it was a good bit of sci-fi and it has made us all think.

This in spades.  It's what good fiction should do

Am now reading the last 4 pages. 

This bold bit is the difference between great sci-fi storytelling and the bang-average Who we mostly got through the Chibnall years. 

WezV

Headphones said:

Presumably there'll be a connection to who "built" the alphabetised slugs in the last episode too.

It states it in the episode.  The AI gained sentience and got fed up with the residents, so created the mantraps to get rid of them.   

Headphones

'twas but a hypothosis.  Are we to take it that it's actually the answer?  No subtext?  What's going on here?

WezV

It was, but I don't think that's going to be bigger story... just a maguffin for this one.

EricTheWeary

The bigger plots are, presumably, around Ruby’s origins and Susan Twist. Apologies if this has already been discussed but the recent episode has been the only one giving some acknowledgement of the Susan Twist twist (see what I did there) so it’s a bizarre red herring if it’s not building to something. 

darthed1981

EricTheWeary said:

The bigger plots are, presumably, around Ruby’s origins and Susan Twist. Apologies if this has already been discussed but the recent episode has been the only one giving some acknowledgement of the Susan Twist twist (see what I did there) so it’s a bizarre red herring if it’s not building to something. 

It's definitely the season arc, a clever little flashback to the days of Bad Wolf, and Mr Saxon...

RocknRollDave

darthed1981 said:

Offset said:

I'll probably never find out.  I dislike RTD's proselytising and TBH I've more or less given up on it - which saddens me.

I want to be entertained, not 'made to think'  

RocknRollDave said:

FWIW, I am finding the current series nice and entertaining.
You can pick holes in the plots/ Science but…it’s fiction, let it go.

I find the saddest thing about the age of "internet criticism" is that people don't sit back and enjoy things.  I can go either way, a show can be a fun ride, it can be silly, it can be hearbreaking, the best go from one to another.

Who would have predicted one of the most tear-jerking speeches in an episode of TNG, a series that started silly and (in one episode) out and out racist would come from a random speech from a one-off guest star...



Two massive starships, power to destroy planets, and the characters helpless - god TNG was good.

Or to bring it back to Doctor Who... Fathers Day... the episode that got me loyal to the new show.  All the power of the Doctor and the Tardis and all Rose can do is change time so her father still dies, but she is with him as he does.  

I'd never give up those kind of emotional highs, the episodes that make me think, or smile or cry.

That said, I'm also fine with the Adipose, or Space Babies.  In this series we have already had the following genres...

Camp Romp
Camp Romp with a Musical Number
High Concept Anti-War Story
Welsh Folk Horror
High Concept Sci-Fi

Looks like next week we get a Sci-Fi costume drama (though I'm expecting a big Ruby reveal to queue-up the final two parter).

Surely all the best sci-fi shows do this?  Be it Star Trek, or Doctor Who, or Stargate SG1, or the Twilight Zone, or Buffy and Angel.  The latter for example, the episode where Cordelia dies and the one where Angel turns into a puppet were in subsequent weeks!

This.

My other half has been watching Buffy the Vampire slayer from season 1 onwards.
It’s been mostly fluff and drivel - no harm in that, if you’re in the mood for it - but the episode where Buffy’s mum died was a sudden jolt of extremely well-written, acted and shot drama that proved quite emotionally powerful.

A series doesn’t have to be ponderously deep in every minute of every episode.

WezV

darthed1981 said:

EricTheWeary said:

The bigger plots are, presumably, around Ruby’s origins and Susan Twist. Apologies if this has already been discussed but the recent episode has been the only one giving some acknowledgement of the Susan Twist twist (see what I did there) so it’s a bizarre red herring if it’s not building to something. 

It's definitely the season arc, a clever little flashback to the days of Bad Wolf, and Mr Saxon...

Definitely building to something.  She is also known as Susan Triad in a  fake magazine cover that's been seen behind RTD.  S Triad is an obvious anagram.  He seems to be dropping clues.

Don't forget the Beatles episode mentioned his granddaughter Susan being not far away so the leading theory is that she is returning in some way. Possibly even that Ruby is a regeneration of her.

bloodandtears

WezV said:

darthed1981 said:

EricTheWeary said:

The bigger plots are, presumably, around Ruby’s origins and Susan Twist. Apologies if this has already been discussed but the recent episode has been the only one giving some acknowledgement of the Susan Twist twist (see what I did there) so it’s a bizarre red herring if it’s not building to something. 

It's definitely the season arc, a clever little flashback to the days of Bad Wolf, and Mr Saxon...

Definitely building to something.  She is also known as Susan Triad in a  fake magazine cover that's been seen behind RTD.  S Triad is an obvious anagram.  He seems to be dropping clues.

Don't forget the Beatles episode mentioned his granddaughter Susan being not far away so the leading theory is that she is returning in some way. Possibly even that Ruby is a regeneration of her.

"Astrid"??  That was Kylie.. and she was presumed dead?

My take is that Anita Dobson's character could be Susan?

Headphones

Nah, it's refernce to the replacement for the sonic screwdriver:  "Dr Stair".

The Daleks aren't not getting any younger...

WezV

TARDIS

https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sci-fi/doctor-who-susan-twist-finale-role-newsupdate/

darthed1981

“The Doctor and UNIT investigate Ruby's past. But as the Time Window reveals horrifying secrets from Christmas Eve, the mysterious Triad Technology unleash the greatest evil of all.”

Synopsis for the finale.

RocknRollDave

I enjoyed this week’s episode. Sure, it’ll have plenty of people screaming, “WOKE!” at it, but I thought it was well done. 

skullfunkerry

RocknRollDave said:

I enjoyed this week’s episode. Sure, it’ll have plenty of people screaming, “WOKE!” at it, but I thought it was well done. 

I liked it too.

One thing I've noticed about this season: the Doctor cries a lot. I think there have been tears in every episode.

EricTheWeary

I thought it was a good episode. Usual couple of moments where all the sciency wienncy stuff just gets bypassed in order to move the story on but lots of The Doctor, good companion role, funny, tense. 

I thought at first that the sexual tension stuff might be quite subtle, you wouldn’t see it unless you were looking for it, but no. Presumably Rogue might return at some point although there might be disappointment if The Doctor has regenerated into a woman again by then.   

darthed1981

I really enjoyed this week's episode, and I thought the Doctors romantic subplot was rather sweet.  Definitely not the last we have seen of Rogue!

Must be a lot of years for the Doctor through a a lot of tragedy since his most recent romance (he spent 22 years on Derilium with River before she went to the library) he deserves a new partner.