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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Mallus" data-source="post: 6125912" data-attributes="member: 3887">Yeah, I can see that. I'm not sure where my impression came from -- it was a gut-criticism, not an objective one (hah!). It might be just an artifact of how compressed the storytelling was. The Doctor needs the Salvage Brothers help at first because of the fuel leak, but that's solved immediately (I think).  Then he lies to them to keep them on-board, even though their sketchy magno-grab users. That part felt off to me. As far as the Doctor knew, they were no longer in a race against the clock. Or it might be I'm unfairly comparing this episode to "Hide" (which I thought was excellent). "Hide" opens up without explaining why the Doctor and Clara arrive at the house. The answer, of course, is to have and adventure, and by not offering a reason it seems like a clever piece of writing, acknowledging the perfunctory artificiality of most episodes set-ups. But halfway through it's revealed the Doctor has a very good reason for going to the mansion -- he just didn't inform Clara. Great stuff, in my book. Playing the genre-savvy members of the audience like a violin. I kept expecting there to be another reason for the Doctor dragging the Salvage Brothers along... That was great. Reminded me the whimsical threatening bullying of Gene Wilder's Willy Wonka -- I mean that as the highest of praise.I'm enjoying the current half-season so far. To my mind, the only really weak --ie, uninteresting-- episode is "Cold War". "The Bells of St. Johns" and "Hide" have been particularly strong.</blockquote>

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