The Caretaker

[clocketpatch]

Not a full meta, because I already know I don't particularly want to re-watch that. Did anyone else find that episode hellishly awkward? It was like getting stuck behind an arguing couple at a movie theatre. The movie's good, but so overshadowed by the awkward that you can't actually enjoy it.

I liked the cold open and would enjoy fic of how they ended up chained to pillars in the desert and how they escaped the sand piranhas afterwards

There were some very funny lines, especially in the first half. "I read the book. There's a bio in the back," made me lol, while the bit where the Doctor tells Clara that, "I used to have a teacher..." was a very touching bit of nostalgia. Ditto, the nose tweaking (Seven!), and the build-up of altron energy.

I also enjoyed Danny calling the Doctor on his shit and recognizing him for what he is. Though, there was a moment there when he first said, "Time Lord," that I wondered if the rumours about Danny being the Master pre-series might be true. The actual shit calling was far more satisfying than that, I think.

The constant soldier/PE teacher thing was not actually funny. Adrian looking like Eleven was... disturbing, and it made me want to throttle Moffat, because that gag wasn't funny in Sherlock and it is doubly not funny here, with an addition of, "why are you reusing the worst ever gag from Sherlock that was never funny?"

I didn't enjoy the fact that the Doctor must approve Clara's choices, or that the onus is being put on her. Granted, she could've been a bit less secretive, but, "I've got a platonic relationship with an alien time traveller" isn't the easiest thing to explain. Pink being her boyfriend doesn't really require explanation, and I disliked the Doctor requiring it. Dear Moffat, please stop writing Twelve as an emotionally abusive asshole. If I want that, I'll watch Sherlock. Thanks, bye.

I enjoyed The Disruptive Influence and "there is a spillage". Funny stuff. Though I think it's unfortunate casting that certain students were disruptive and being caught playing truant by police, while certain other students are grade A all the way and asking questions about Austin.

The mechanics of the conclusion, with the Doctor giving orders, Clara dodging explosions, and Danny doing oddly athletic somersaults was good.

I liked the ending with Danny and Clara on the couch. I think that's the most palatable bit of their on-screen romance so far. It was definite set-up, though. The Doctor is going to take things too far. Clara's trust will be betrayed. Bad things will happen. And they will almost certainly involve the gate-keeper of the Nethersphere.

Next week: Terrifying spiders on the moon! Hopefully that will go better.

Comments

[eve11]

I agree with all of your points, though for me the adventur-y bits and good things were enough to outweigh the clunkers of Moffat's relationship writing. I think the worst bit was the whole "Of course I recognized your boyfriend" thing; also made me roll my eyes. Especially because Clara saw how he was talking to Danny and saw him being an idiot when she and Adrian were talking, and still didn't put two and two together. That is thickness-for-the-sake-of-plot.

I think that the Doctor this time around is perhaps realizing he was a bit in love with Clara, or as evidenced here, loving the idea that she could be taken with him. (ETA: And the lines in "Deep Breath": "I'm not your boyfriend." "I didn't think you were." "I didn't say it was your mistake.") So his feelings of betrayal are relevant even if his actions upon such are frustrating. Childish behavior, when coming from adults in positions of power, is often abusive. I am baffled the sudden (this season anyhow) antipathy for soldiers.

I also think they will waste no time and that next week's episode will bring the "Doctor pushes Clara past the limit" plot point.

[garpu.livejournal.com]

IMO, it feels like the Doctor's pushing Clara away. She's moving on from him, I think he gets that, but doesn't want her to wind up like some of his other companions. Not that she can't travel with a boyfriend (Amy and Rory managed it, and Barbara and Ian will always be canon in my head.) But I think Clara's a different person and doesn't *need* the Doctor, like the Doctor needs her.

I'm glad Danny called the Doctor out on his privilege/rank. Glad it isn't me who thinks the Doctor is very Time Lordy this season.

We need more Courtney. I hope we get her in Big Finish audios, at the least.

[liadt]

Last nights episode left a bad taste in the mouth. I think Clara should bin both the Dr & Danny. She doesn't need the Dr's approval, as you say, and I didn't like Danny demanding she tell him the truth all the time from now on.

Yeah, disliked the Dr thinking the guy looking like Eleven must be Clara's bf for all sorts of reasons, meh. And in 'Sherlock' I thought it was a very nasty gag against the character(s).

The soldier = PE teacher gag was utter garbage too.

[ladymercury-10.livejournal.com]

Did anyone else find that episode hellishly awkward? It was like getting stuck behind an arguing couple at a movie theatre.
That is a very good way of putting it. There were a lot of things I liked about the episode, but it was hard to focus on them with the Doctor constantly harping on how much he disliked soldiers and being aggressively rude to Danny.

Though I think it's unfortunate casting that certain students were disruptive and being caught playing truant by police
Definitely. I'm not sure if the captions on my TV were right, but I thought when he first sent Courtney away he said something about didn't she have shoplifting to go do, which, ouch. I wondered if it was a mis-caption for shop class, but I kinda doubt it.

[a-phoenixdragon.livejournal.com]

I think I'm the only one tweaked about Danny calling him on his shit. Not that he got called on it, but the tone, the snap judgement kinda tweaked me. Though the Doctor being a dickhead...yeah, that didn't help. Danny tolerated that a little too long, but I would have liked him to call the Doctor out a little sooner. But the 'Time Lord' thing really got me. I think that's what tweaked me, really.

I don't feel Clara needs to have the Doctor's approval, but I do know he's been asking if she had a boyfriend, how did the date go, yadda-yadda and she has done nothing but dodge and lie, so I can see where he thought she assumed he wouldn't approve and so automatically, he wouldn't and really that whole mess was Clara's fault. Just the sneaky way she got Danny on the TARDIS spoke volumes for me. The soldier and knee-jerk assholish response to them should have been addressed LONG ago, but she never bothered to. And she lied all throughout Listen which I knew would come back and bite her in the ass.

I like Danny, I think he's awesome. And I think he and the Doctor would get along if they didn't have preset friction going. I did love the nostalgic references, but not the emotional abuse going around. From the Doctor, from Clara...and even from Danny. I did not like that conversation at the end. An ultimatum without (really) a broader perspective on the Doctor himself. I really wish those two would have a date forfucksake...

Meh. Other than the awkward and angry, this was a decent enough episode. But I already know the things I disliked no one else did and the things I LIKED very few others did...I'm just really pissed at Clara right now.

*Crawls back under Rock*

[lycoris.livejournal.com]

I watched this episode while really tipsy which I think was optimal viewing conditions - it mattered very little to me because it was just sort of happening. I agree absolutely though, it was so awkward. I like there to be friction between the Doctor and people (I'm loving Twelve and his rudeness most of the time!) but there's a difference between friction and really angry nasty fights and I think that's the mistake Doctor Who has made before (I love Six but sometimes the exchanges between him and Peri were horrid)