Sep. 3rd, 2014 05:50 pm
Into the Dalek
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clocketpatch"You will take me back to my command ship."
"No. Not like that."
Wow, way to be a jerk Twelve. I am impressed that he's managed to perfect his technique of TARDIS-materializing-around-a-person (I can't recall if Eleven did this? I feel he did, but I only really remember Nine doing it to Rose that time. Which was a another Dalek episode…)
And while it is also commendable that he's saved Journey Blue's life along the way to get coffee, it's a bit nasty of him to expect so much gratitude afterwards, considering the circumstances.
It does raise questions, however.
1. So, the Daleks are out and marauding again like the Time War never happened, and the Doctor is just casually inserting himself into these battles while on his coffee fetching trip?
2. Journey Blue is a very suspicious sounding name. All of her comrades have normal names. Why does she have a Moffat name? Especially with another character with the last name "Pink" being introduced? My plot arc senses are tingling.
"OK. Have you ever killed anyone who wasn't a soldier?"
Danny Pink looks to be an interesting variable to add into the mix. His past (which I'm certain will come up in more detail as the plot chugs ahead), the Doctor's new dis-like for soldiers (more on that later), and the fact that things are setting up for a relationship between two teachers at Coal Hill School.
I'm going to be waiting the whole series for Twelve to get confused and called Danny, Chatterton, or think Clara is Barbara… or Susan. Jenna Coleman and Carol-Anne Ford don't look very much alike, but there are some certain similarities there.
Also, the kids at Coal Hill school are still jerks fifty years later. Good on Ian for not giving up on the hopeless cases.
"That's right. Keep your spirits up."
Twelve accusing Clara of being old is a bit bizarre. I can't tell if he's lost his ability to judge ages, or if he's trying very hard to get over how old he himself looks. I've got a head canon that the Doctor doesn't like being old. He generally isn't, with the exceptions of One and Three. And
Three wasn't a face he choose for himself.
I also don't buy for a second that his abandoning of Clara in Glasgow wasn't at least a little bit intentional.
"How do you get into a Dalek's head?"
"That wasn't a metaphor."
From the moment I realized that this was going to be a rift on A Fantastic Voyage I was giggling uncontrollably. This continued throughout the episode. I might have been sliiightly tipsy, and a teensy bit tired, and, as I learned the next day, I was definitely coming down with something… but I think I would've been madly giggling anyway. Isaac Asimov's novelization of the movie was one of the first scifi books I ever owned/read, and I always loved that episode of The Magic School Bus. Oddly, I've never seen the actual film.
"Ross, swallow that."
"What is it?"
"Trust me."
And once it became apparent that it was going to be A Fantastic Voyage into a Dalek, I kept waiting for 1. everyone to be attacked by antibodies, and 2. Interesting detours throughout the Dalek's anatomy. Obviously, the episode delivered on both counts, which made me giggle.
But even giggling, I didn't like the above line of dialogue.
Twelve feels very One-like to me. The kind of Doctor who will pout, throw tantrums, and manipulate everyone into unsafe situations for the benefit of his curiosity. Okay, so all the Doctors do that occasionally. But there is a sort of obliviousness One had to what he was doing wrong that Twelve seems to share. I feel like there's been some kind of regeneration reset. One is the Doctor, but he doesn't act like the Doctor yet, because he hasn't entirely learned how… but he's got a very good excuse for that.
I like Twelve so far. I want him to start being the Doctor again.
"Dalek-levels returning to normal parameters."
I have no idea what a Dalek-level is. This made me laugh so hard I think I broke something, because… what is a Dalek-level!? A few days on, this still makes me laugh.
I am probably crazy.
"Is he mad or is he right?"
"Hand on my heart, most days he's both."
"I can save the future."
This is a very interesting exchange, because I think it defines this Doctor far better than the "Am I a good man?" framing device of the episode.
He is mostly (but not always) mad. He is mostly (but not always) right.
He is trying to save the future, which is very interesting indeed, because it implies that the future is in danger. I think that the Time War has started up again, and with the Time Lords safe in their alternative dimension… maybe this time, the Daleks are winning.
"The Doctor is not the Daleks."
And this exchange more or less sums up fifty years of television history.
"You are a good Dalek."
The parallels with the episode Dalek were a bit heavy-handed. I don't think I would've noticed so much, if last week hadn't been referencing The Girl in the Fireplace so often. I look forward to next week's Robin Hood and Robots episode as something hopefully more stand-alone.
Which isn't to say I didn't enjoy this episode or last weeks, because I did, but if there are episode references and returning enemies this thick and heavy three weeks in a row I'll start getting a bit annoyed.
Also, I am slightly annoyed that we're retreading this angsty, the-Doctor-doesn't-know-if-he's-good-or-not territory. It's one of those plot arcs that loses something that second (third? Fourth? Fifth?) time around.
"I just wish you hadn't been a soldier."
Journey has my plot sense tingling. I think we'll be seeing her again. I am, in the meanwhile, disappointed that Twelve didn't take her on as a full-time companion, because I think that would've been a very interesting counterpoint to Clara's popping in and out every other Wednesday.
I also wonder if the reason Twelve didn't take her along also has to do with the reason he saved her. He didn't just accidentally materialize his TARDIS around her at the moment her ship blew up. Twelve said that he's trying to save the future. Perhaps Journey Blue is instrumental to the future being saved.
He would've taken her. He just wishes she didn't have another battle to fight.
"Oh good for you. Still making an effort."
This ties back with the, "that's right, keep your spirits up," comment earlier. I really don't know if Twelve if talking to himself or Clara, but I do like the nod to the Doctor never changing (has he even washed? Or is he still covered in Dalek goo and Ross? Eewwwwww….)
I think I enjoy Twelve the most when his hair is rumpled. The combination of bed-head and immaculate suit makes him look utterly unhinged. It's oddly charming.
And he let Clara go out, in a new outfit, after only thirty seconds in the cupboard. Intentional. Just like the coffee detour was intentional. I think he wants Clara to find someone else, but is now surprised at how hurt he feels that maybe she has.
All together...
I liked it. It made me laugh a lot, and the CGI and driection was amazing. The show has been getting steadily prettier as time goes on and the budget/ CGI technology increases. It also made me think of The Giants and the fact that this isn't the first time Who has shrunk the crew (more One parallels, hmmm) and how, if this sort of episode is considered ambitious today how crazy and ground-breaking it is that they did the same thing in the sixties and managed to pull it off.
"No. Not like that."
Wow, way to be a jerk Twelve. I am impressed that he's managed to perfect his technique of TARDIS-materializing-around-a-person (I can't recall if Eleven did this? I feel he did, but I only really remember Nine doing it to Rose that time. Which was a another Dalek episode…)
And while it is also commendable that he's saved Journey Blue's life along the way to get coffee, it's a bit nasty of him to expect so much gratitude afterwards, considering the circumstances.
It does raise questions, however.
1. So, the Daleks are out and marauding again like the Time War never happened, and the Doctor is just casually inserting himself into these battles while on his coffee fetching trip?
2. Journey Blue is a very suspicious sounding name. All of her comrades have normal names. Why does she have a Moffat name? Especially with another character with the last name "Pink" being introduced? My plot arc senses are tingling.
"OK. Have you ever killed anyone who wasn't a soldier?"
Danny Pink looks to be an interesting variable to add into the mix. His past (which I'm certain will come up in more detail as the plot chugs ahead), the Doctor's new dis-like for soldiers (more on that later), and the fact that things are setting up for a relationship between two teachers at Coal Hill School.
I'm going to be waiting the whole series for Twelve to get confused and called Danny, Chatterton, or think Clara is Barbara… or Susan. Jenna Coleman and Carol-Anne Ford don't look very much alike, but there are some certain similarities there.
Also, the kids at Coal Hill school are still jerks fifty years later. Good on Ian for not giving up on the hopeless cases.
"That's right. Keep your spirits up."
Twelve accusing Clara of being old is a bit bizarre. I can't tell if he's lost his ability to judge ages, or if he's trying very hard to get over how old he himself looks. I've got a head canon that the Doctor doesn't like being old. He generally isn't, with the exceptions of One and Three. And
Three wasn't a face he choose for himself.
I also don't buy for a second that his abandoning of Clara in Glasgow wasn't at least a little bit intentional.
"How do you get into a Dalek's head?"
"That wasn't a metaphor."
From the moment I realized that this was going to be a rift on A Fantastic Voyage I was giggling uncontrollably. This continued throughout the episode. I might have been sliiightly tipsy, and a teensy bit tired, and, as I learned the next day, I was definitely coming down with something… but I think I would've been madly giggling anyway. Isaac Asimov's novelization of the movie was one of the first scifi books I ever owned/read, and I always loved that episode of The Magic School Bus. Oddly, I've never seen the actual film.
"Ross, swallow that."
"What is it?"
"Trust me."
And once it became apparent that it was going to be A Fantastic Voyage into a Dalek, I kept waiting for 1. everyone to be attacked by antibodies, and 2. Interesting detours throughout the Dalek's anatomy. Obviously, the episode delivered on both counts, which made me giggle.
But even giggling, I didn't like the above line of dialogue.
Twelve feels very One-like to me. The kind of Doctor who will pout, throw tantrums, and manipulate everyone into unsafe situations for the benefit of his curiosity. Okay, so all the Doctors do that occasionally. But there is a sort of obliviousness One had to what he was doing wrong that Twelve seems to share. I feel like there's been some kind of regeneration reset. One is the Doctor, but he doesn't act like the Doctor yet, because he hasn't entirely learned how… but he's got a very good excuse for that.
I like Twelve so far. I want him to start being the Doctor again.
"Dalek-levels returning to normal parameters."
I have no idea what a Dalek-level is. This made me laugh so hard I think I broke something, because… what is a Dalek-level!? A few days on, this still makes me laugh.
I am probably crazy.
"Is he mad or is he right?"
"Hand on my heart, most days he's both."
"I can save the future."
This is a very interesting exchange, because I think it defines this Doctor far better than the "Am I a good man?" framing device of the episode.
He is mostly (but not always) mad. He is mostly (but not always) right.
He is trying to save the future, which is very interesting indeed, because it implies that the future is in danger. I think that the Time War has started up again, and with the Time Lords safe in their alternative dimension… maybe this time, the Daleks are winning.
"The Doctor is not the Daleks."
And this exchange more or less sums up fifty years of television history.
"You are a good Dalek."
The parallels with the episode Dalek were a bit heavy-handed. I don't think I would've noticed so much, if last week hadn't been referencing The Girl in the Fireplace so often. I look forward to next week's Robin Hood and Robots episode as something hopefully more stand-alone.
Which isn't to say I didn't enjoy this episode or last weeks, because I did, but if there are episode references and returning enemies this thick and heavy three weeks in a row I'll start getting a bit annoyed.
Also, I am slightly annoyed that we're retreading this angsty, the-Doctor-doesn't-know-if-he's-good-or-not territory. It's one of those plot arcs that loses something that second (third? Fourth? Fifth?) time around.
"I just wish you hadn't been a soldier."
Journey has my plot sense tingling. I think we'll be seeing her again. I am, in the meanwhile, disappointed that Twelve didn't take her on as a full-time companion, because I think that would've been a very interesting counterpoint to Clara's popping in and out every other Wednesday.
I also wonder if the reason Twelve didn't take her along also has to do with the reason he saved her. He didn't just accidentally materialize his TARDIS around her at the moment her ship blew up. Twelve said that he's trying to save the future. Perhaps Journey Blue is instrumental to the future being saved.
He would've taken her. He just wishes she didn't have another battle to fight.
"Oh good for you. Still making an effort."
This ties back with the, "that's right, keep your spirits up," comment earlier. I really don't know if Twelve if talking to himself or Clara, but I do like the nod to the Doctor never changing (has he even washed? Or is he still covered in Dalek goo and Ross? Eewwwwww….)
I think I enjoy Twelve the most when his hair is rumpled. The combination of bed-head and immaculate suit makes him look utterly unhinged. It's oddly charming.
And he let Clara go out, in a new outfit, after only thirty seconds in the cupboard. Intentional. Just like the coffee detour was intentional. I think he wants Clara to find someone else, but is now surprised at how hurt he feels that maybe she has.
All together...
I liked it. It made me laugh a lot, and the CGI and driection was amazing. The show has been getting steadily prettier as time goes on and the budget/ CGI technology increases. It also made me think of The Giants and the fact that this isn't the first time Who has shrunk the crew (more One parallels, hmmm) and how, if this sort of episode is considered ambitious today how crazy and ground-breaking it is that they did the same thing in the sixties and managed to pull it off.
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no subject
Yeah, I really disliked that exchange. It was really childish, which maybe by itself would have been okay since the Doctor is often childish, but it actually made me really uncomfortable. Like, I'm sure the writers didn't mean it that way, but I feel like it has some really unfortunate overtones to have an old white man be that condescending to a young black woman.
He would've taken her. He just wishes she didn't have another battle to fight.
Ooh, that's an interesting take on it. I hope she does come back, I liked her a lot!
Also I didn't think about The Magic School Bus while I was watching but that's such a great comparison. Man, I loved that show when I was a kid.
no subject
Word.
Also I didn't think about The Magic School Bus while I was watching but that's such a great comparison.
Miss Frizzle is a Time Lord, don't you know?
no subject
Definitely! And Mary Poppins, too.
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(I'm just really hoping that Moffat doesn't do some kind of convoluted thing where River becomes the Master because... no)
I like your theory about her materializing a TARDIS around the Doctor's collateral damage at the last possible moment. I don't think it's crack at all. In fact, I think it's the most plausible theory I've heard so far.
no subject
To me this one felt like it was an episode that started as a concept at the end and then didn't really know how to execute it very well. But it was entertaining.
Also I love your icon. :D
Also Twelve, yes, so far I'm liking him, though the death of poor Ross was cold for sure :( "She's my carer, she cares so I don't have to" eh?
no subject
Forgot completely about Dinosaurs on a Spaceship (but I knew he had done it at some point fairly recent. It doesn't feel like an accident in either case, however. Well, Rory's Dad was probably a bit of an accident...)
To me this one felt like it was an episode that started as a concept at the end and then didn't really know how to execute it very well. But it was entertaining.
Was it a good episode? I don't know. But I think it tried to be. And as long as it's entertaining, right?
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Blue and Pink. Soldiers. One ex. One still in the thick of it. Hmmm.
*HUGS*
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The more reactions I read, the more I think on, "what was actually going on?" in this episode. I think this one is going to be a lot like Flesh & Stone/The Time of Angels, where an unexpected detail comes back and makes far more sense later on.
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This is what I wrote on my facebook page right after I watched the episode:
What I took from today's Doctor Who's episode: Soldiers have to fight a war. There's no time for prancing around the universe in a blue box. They have a job to do and that job is so profound that even the Doctor can't take them away from it.
Loved Into Dalek. Loved 12 despite his treatment of Ross. Didn't he try to get Ross not pull the trigger? I believe he did. I believe I heard a: "No, Don't do that!" from the Doctor. What else could he do but to keep the rest as safe until their work was done.
I believe Missy is either the Valeyard (collecting and keeping hold of the Doctor's sins for use against him later) or possibly the Rani deluding herself that he would ever be attracted to her and start a 'new' Time Lord race (hopefully along the lines of the Rassilon and Omega type of partnership). Or maybe it is Omega who found a new 'host'. Who ever she is...I hope she isn't another love interest. Please...just no.
And no...I don't want Blue as a companion. I wouldn't mind something along the lines of the Brigadier and UNIT (fun times) but no not as a companion.
no subject
But after stopping and thinking about it for a bit, I realized that didn't make any sense. I am convinced that the Doctor left Journey for the same reason he abandoned Clara under that restaurant.
Because he had to. But he's got a plan to make things right.
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He did try to stop him from pulling the trigger. And I think he was upset by the outcome. But this Doctor doesn't deal compassionately with loss, I think. His own or others.
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Interesting idea about her being Omega... I think, whoever she is, she's got something to do with the Time Lords.
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Well soldiers in Doctor Who are like red shirts in Star Trek or Storm Troopers in Star Wars.
They are expendable (characters). Even if they have a name.
Just remember how many soldiers died in Resurrection of the Daleks and Earth Shock. :(
And what's even weirder is that I had a physician named: Dr. Pink. Hahahaha!
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My head canon is the Dr doesn't know old he is, after a couple of hundred years he's lost track, so it would be a shock to be reminded he is when he looks in the mirror.
Yeah, I thought 'Planet of Giants' too:) & what with Coal Hill, two teachers and the Dr being more abrasive the season is looking back to the beginning?
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You-me both. I'm certain that Nine just picked an arbitrary age (but steered it sliiiighhhtly to the young side) and has been going off that guessimate ever since.
Apparently there is an episode coming up where Twelve goes undercover as a caretaker at Coal Hill School. I am hoping for Classic references aplenty! (and didn't Seven get offered that job back in the sixties? lol)
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Oh blimey, I'll have to get out my DVD's. I only pay attention to Ace battering the dalek not the dialogue;)