Rate Dr Who Episode 13 the Parting of the Ways - spoilers -

[Plane Sailing]

I've just added a spoiler warning to the thread title, since there are some unmasked spoilers in the thread.

I agree with S'mon on the deus ex machina problem, and I agree with Cthuludrew that it didn't live up to the premise at the end of the previous show which was incredibly dramatic.

I'm also amazed that 14,000 years down the line the human race are still using slug-throwers as weapons. I can understand that an orbiting television station doesn't need much in the way of security defences, but they were using museum pieces!

Cheers

 

[Cthulhudrew]

I'm also amazed that 14,000 years down the line the human race are still using slug-throwers as weapons. I can understand that an orbiting television station doesn't need much in the way of security defences, but they were using museum pieces!

Bear in mind that this is after a couple hundred years of being controlled by the Jagrafez (and the Daleks), who had every reason to keep mankind docile. I imagine there are more powerful weapons that were created in the meanwhile, but at the time(s) that the Doctor encountered the Bountiful Human Empire, they were all a bunch of mindless info/reality-tv drones, and probably didn't know where/how to get their hands on such weapons.

 

[sniffles]

Why didn't it turn Rose into a baby?

Because her desire wasn't to go back and do her life over again, which was what Margaret wanted. Rose wanted to save the Doctor.

I thought it was fabulous. I was dabbing my eyes as the Doctor said goodbye to Rose (and lest you think it was just feminine weepiness, so was my fiancee). It had me on the edge of my seat for the whole episode. I was exhausted by the time it was done.

My only quibble is, why is it dangerous for the Doctor to absorb the time-space vortex energy into himself, but all it did was give Rose a bit of amnesia? Hopefully they'll explain that later. I also hope they'll explain why Rose chose Bad Wolf as the code phrase to trigger her actions. I rather liked it connecting back to herself rather than some giant conspiracy - I've never been fond of giant conspiracy plots, and I don't think that type of storyline fits well in Doctor Who.

 

[MonsterMash]

I have to admit I was a bit disappointed by the ending - too much of a deux ex machina. I liked some of the stuff with the dalek emperor, but would have liked to see if the 'humanised' daleks were somehow different from the original ones.

So what happens to the timeline now, after all if 100 years have gone wrong what are the wider consequences.

I thought that the regeneration was a bit tacked on looking, so no more Chris Eccleston.

 

[merztrumpet]

I figured the Doctor absorbed and grounded the energy while Rose was simply a vessel for it. I also thought it was the heart of the tardis that pulled together the Bad Wolf spiel. It seems to be some anthropomorphization of space/time and it appeared to be speaking through Rose ("I am the Bad Wolf"). I don't know though.

The Daleks weren't really 'humanised' though or at least according to the emperor dalek, he had removed all the human elements. I suppose Earth will be different now if we're to believe those pictures of the mutilated continents.

I enjoyed it.

 

[Cthulhudrew]

The Daleks weren't really 'humanised' though or at least according to the emperor dalek, he had removed all the human elements. I suppose Earth will be different now if we're to believe those pictures of the mutilated continents.

I think MonsterMash was referring to the fact that the Daleks had become religious zealots. I, too, would have liked to have seen some more development and consequences of that plot. I did like the comparison the Dalek Emperor made between himself and the Doctor- Emperor as Creator and Doctor as Destroyer. Of course, the Doctor threw that religious iconography out the window.

The more I think about it, the more I think Viking was right about the ending. IIRC, Tennant wasn't originally going to appear until the Christmas Special, which is presumably when the regeneration would have taken place. For whatever reason, it almost seems as if they bumped up the regeneration. Now I'm really wondering what Eccleston's role will be in the Christmas Special.

 

[glass]

I gave it a six. I thought it was good overall, but as a couple of other have said, the deus ex machina let it down a little.

Another little niggle that noone has mentioned yet is: how did the chain get stronger, just because it was attached to a bigger truck?


glass.

 

[glass]

While we are on the subject, am I right in thinking we have never actually seen the time war between the Time Lords and the Darleks?

Maybe they are saving that one up for a movie?


glass.

 

[glass]

The more I think about it, the more I think Viking was right about the ending. IIRC, Tennant wasn't originally going to appear until the Christmas Special, which is presumably when the regeneration would have taken place. For whatever reason, it almost seems as if they bumped up the regeneration. Now I'm really wondering what Eccleston's role will be in the Christmas Special.

Is CE definitely going to be in the Christmas Special? Maybe it an The N Doctors style thing like they used to do for specials? Although, they'll be struggling to bring them all back!


glass.

 

[merztrumpet]

Maybe they are saving that one up for a movie?

The idea of a movie disturbs me. Too easily get out of hand. Probably better as fandom fantasy.