[TV] Doctor Who

[Morrus]

Huh?

 

[Felon]

C'mon, you're telling me when you saw the scene with the Doctor sealing himself up in the meat locker, that didn't ring a bell of our discussion about the sonic screwdriver?

 

[Plane Sailing]

Personally I don't see that as a problem - any more than if he had just had a bolt on the inside of a room to throw. It wasn't central to the plot, it was just a minor bit of 'run away' excitement.

 

[nerfherder]

Personally I don't see that as a problem - any more than if he had just had a bolt on the inside of a room to throw. It wasn't central to the plot, it was just a minor bit of 'run away' excitement.

Yeah, the sonic screwdriver has long been a lockpick/universal key. It didn't register with me as being out of place at all.

 

[Morrus]

Yeah, it wasn't a dramatic note, it was just scenery - like a bolt on the door or a chair he pushed up against it or something. Just in Doctor Who the scenery is sci-fi.

 

[MarkB]

I wouldn't agree with that. It wasn't bad (certainly better than The Beast Below or Victory of the Daleks), but far from brilliant or epic.

I also disagree with the premise of characterisation that the Doctor hates himself more than anyone else in the universe does - that seemed off-character to me. Sure, during Tennant's tenure they delved into the loneliness and anger frim time to time, but self-loathing is a new one which I don't like at all. Doctor Who has always been a joyous, fun show to me.

It's hardly the first time we've seen the Doctor's dark side or self-loathing - he spent most of the first season of 'New Who' angsting over his actions in the Time War, and in 'Dalek' he was prepared to kill the eponymous creature despite it being chained up and helpless.

Going back to previous seasons, there's at least one example of the physical manifestation of the Doctor's darkest impulses, in the form of the Valeyard, from the (admittedly pretty awful) Trial of a Time Lord season. The Valeyard is supposedly an incarnation of the Doctor's darkest nature, from between his twelfth and final incarnations. In any meaningful way, the Dream Lord is that same person.

 

[Morrus]

It's hardly the first time we've seen the Doctor's dark side or self-loathing - he spent most of the first season of 'New Who' angsting over his actions in the Time War, and in 'Dalek' he was prepared to kill the eponymous creature despite it being chained up and helpless.

Going back to previous seasons, there's at least one example of the physical manifestation of the Doctor's darkest impulses, in the form of the Valeyard, from the (admittedly pretty awful) Trial of a Time Lord season. The Valeyard is supposedly an incarnation of the Doctor's darkest nature, from between his twelfth and final incarnations. In any meaningful way, the Dream Lord is that same person.

Yes, I agree - except that I don't see the degree of the Doctor's dark side extending so far that he hates himself more than anybody else in the universe does. He has regrets and anger and some pretty dark moments, but I don't think that much.

 

[horacethegrey]

Well, new show again today:

The Hungry Earth - It's 2020 in South Wales, and the Silurians return. To be honest, I never really cared for the lizard men from the old series, but the way they're reintroduced here was quite good. Nice build up of suspense up to the moment they appear, and some props must be given Neve Mcintosh for some fine acting under some great makeup and prosthetics (and a definite improvement over the silly rubber masks from their first appearance). Matt Smith is still in top form, as is Arthur Davill, while Karen is relegated to the sidelines playing the damsel in distress. Shame really. Anyway, good start to this two parter, hope the follow up doesn't disappoint.

 

[Morrus]

It was very old-school Who. Aside from the special effects and the 45-minute episode lenght, I felt I cuold have been watching an old Tom Baker episode.

 

[Herschel]

As the episode opened, I felt like I was watching an episode of Torchwood. Then I saw the writer was Chris Chibnall and all was explained. Pretty solid episode.

Oh, and Morrus, FAR better than Tom Baker.