Glen-i Posted December 24, 2023 Posted December 24, 2023 Right, caught up, just in time for the Christmas special. Spoiler Man, what a fun villain! Then again, Neil Patrick Harris is always fun. Did laugh really hard at the most epic game of catch in the world! But yeah, Bigeneration is stupid. I get why, they want to start this soft reboot without the emotional baggage the Doctor has accrued over ther years. Still dumb though. I know the Toymaker got sealed away and all, but well, it's Doctor Who, nothing stays away forever. So I hope he comes back sometime in the future. Good episode, not as good as Wild Blue Yonder though.
Glen-i Posted May 11 Posted May 11 First two episodes of this new season are on iPlayer now. First episode was pretty weak. Not gonna bother talking about that one. Did laugh at how much glee the Doctor has with scaring babies. Anyway, second episode was WAY better! Spoiler In the post just above this one, I said... On 24/12/2023 at 7:36 AM, Glen-i said: I know the Toymaker got sealed away and all, but well, it's Doctor Who, nothing stays away forever. So I hope he comes back sometime in the future. Kinda called it? Different villain, but it's the music version of the Toymaker, hell, they blantantly say that the Maestro is his kid. Anyway, absolutely insane episode, and loads of fun! Great villain, awesome concept for a villain, if this means we get alternate versions of the Toymaker throughout the series, I am all in on that! I can see why they started the series with two episodes. This one is so much better!
BowserBasher Posted May 12 Posted May 12 Just watched the first episode, was fun, nothing special but I’m sure it may have just been setting the stage. There was definitely a few moments that seemed to suggest more was to come. I did like the “step on a butterfly” gag.
darksnowman Posted May 13 Posted May 13 On 12/05/2024 at 7:33 PM, BowserBasher said: Just watched the first episode, was fun, nothing special but I’m sure it may have just been setting the stage. Indeed. Last of the Time Lords, TARDIS stands for... getting those boxes ticked for the newcomers. The Doctor is adopted is news for newbies and myself alike, apparently. Susan and the Rani namechecked to acknowledge people in online comment sections. On the balance of things, I thought the specials were all right. Now it's started, I feel it lacks substance...? It's watchable, at least. Following the Bad Wolf, Cracks of Time template. I am the one who waits for a decent twist-twist whenever this all comes to a head. "Why does everything about you connect to Christmas?" Answer: it's panto. On 11/05/2024 at 3:01 AM, Glen-i said: scaring babies. SPACE! babies.
BowserBasher Posted May 13 Posted May 13 11 minutes ago, darksnowman said: SPACE! babies. Yeah, get it right @Glen-i OK, so just watched The Devils Chord. Spoiler See this is why I love this show, you can go from something goofy and funny like Space Babies and straght into something like this. This was certainly the better of the two but usually the first episode is usually light hearted. great villain, fun use of music as a plot devise but worked very well. Also, after the goblin song, I thought it was gonna be a one off bit of fun, but now I never knew I wanted a musical Doctor Who. It just seems to fit in this crazy world. Maybe that's what the show needed, something new and different. There's still going to be the normal Doctor Who stuff, soem light hearted episode and some darker ones, but then a random song and dance pops in and it just feels right. Maybe that's more to do with Ncuti Gatwa and how he is portraying The Doctor, but it just works. Anyway already some stuff being left int there for a longer story arc. Something deffinitely going on with Ruby, or its just a red herring to throw us off guard. My first thought when The Doctor said he had a granddaughter was that it's going to somehow turnout to be Ruby, what with all the secrecy and strange goings on with her birth, but that's got to be too easy and predictable. But then why was he doing that scan at the end of the first episode? Anyway, enjoying it so far and will be waiting to see where this all leads.
Glen-i Posted May 18 Posted May 18 Spoiler Wow, this episode was nerve-wracking! I've always been a fan of single-area episodes. Especially when they're done well like this. OK, yes. They did cut away a few times at the start, but it's close enough. Never thought that I'd think "Ambulances" manned by sweet old ladies could be horrifying, but there you go. I'm not sure if I prefer it to The Devil's Chord, but it's damn close! 1
darksnowman Posted May 18 Posted May 18 Some texture to it this week. Life's a beach, eh. Seems they were watching Outlander before they stepped onto Kastarion 3.
BowserBasher Posted May 19 Posted May 19 Spoiler Little more snippets of stuff to do with Ruby. When the “ambulance” was saying about next of kin, it kept glitching like it did with the Doctor. loved the episode though, not everything needs to be sprawling lands and worlds, a tight space can be just as menacing as anything. Good tense episode.
darksnowman Posted May 20 Posted May 20 13 hours ago, BowserBasher said: Boom (Hide contents) Little more snippets of stuff to do with Ruby. When the “ambulance” was saying about next of kin, it kept glitching like it did with the Doctor. loved the episode though, not everything needs to be sprawling lands and worlds, a tight space can be just as menacing as anything. Good tense episode. Were you tensely waiting for him to calculate the weight shift required to take Ruby's phone so he could call Tennant to come and sonic screwdrive the mine, provided it'd been modified in the interim to work on Donna's hoover? I thought it was fun for Villengard to crop up purely because I was reading some of the short stories last week to try and get back in the Doctor Who frame of mind and Villengard was mentioned in one. Also trying to figure out where I was with the series for a potential catchup and it's not as clear cut as I thought. Last one I remember watching was the DIY Dalek Christmas New Year's Special, but going by the episode names/ descriptions of the following series, there's at least two I reckon I've seen (Tesla and Mary Shelley). Either I caught them through the sheer random chance of tuning in in the right month, day, and timeslot, or it's easy to believe I did from the adverts and being well-versed in the general formula the programme follows. One thing's for sure: despite skipping it for years, there doesn't appear to be a great deal of series and episodes I missed. They really lost their way with it. 1
darksnowman Posted May 27 Posted May 27 This week we got to see how the Orphan 55 fakecation spot could have been prevented from coming into existence. Maybe. In separate pretend timeline. Or something. Mind your step. Yes, I have been watching back from Spyfall to find out where I fell off because it seemed unwatchable. It's no worse than what we're currently being shovelled.
Glen-i Posted May 30 Posted May 30 (edited) Uhh, yeah. Caught up. Spoiler Now we're going back to creepy? Cool. Although I do have to wonder how? Like why is elderly Ruby now catapulted back to the beginning of this whole thing? And doesn't her stopping present Ruby stepping on the Fairy Circle now prevent that from ever happening? But present Ruby somehow remembers it all because she thinks she's been to Wales three times now? Is that Prime Minister now free to nuke stuff now that Ruby isn't gonna be there. And I still have to wonder how elderly Ruby managed to live another 40-ish years after that. Very weird episode, I imagine we'll get some answers in the future. But it's gonna kill me not knowing what everyone was being told (or possibly shown) to make them freak out and run away like that. Edited May 30 by Glen-i
BowserBasher Posted May 31 Posted May 31 (edited) 15 hours ago, Glen-i said: Uhh, yeah. Caught up. 73 Yards (Hide contents) Now we're going back to creepy? Cool. Although I do have to wonder how? Like why is elderly Ruby now catapulted back to the beginning of this whole thing? And doesn't her stopping present Ruby stepping on the Fairy Circle now prevent that from ever happening? But present Ruby somehow remembers it all because she thinks she's been to Wales three times now? Is that Prime Minister now free to nuke stuff now that Ruby isn't gonna be there. And I still have to wonder how elderly Ruby managed to live another 40-ish years after that. Very weird episode, I imagine we'll get some answers in the future. But it's gonna kill me not knowing what everyone was being told (or possibly shown) to make them freak out and run away like that. Ah the good ol’ time travel paradox. Edited May 31 by BowserBasher
Glen-i Posted June 1 Posted June 1 Spoiler Well, that took a turn very suddenly. Not gonna lie, was totally expecting Ricky September to betray Lindy at some point. Boy, my perception of her was totally off the mark. I thought she was entitled and bratty, sure, but ultimately harmless. Very quickly loathed her after that scene. Sorry, Ricky. You were the only decent person on that planet. That last scene was very good, and even though there's a very blatant implication that all those kids are gonna die because they're too racist to accept the Doctor's help, it's a lot more impactful to not show it and just end on The Doctor having to helplessly look on. Shout out to Ncuti's acting on that last scene. You could feel the rage and sheer frustration at the situation there. Props to Callie Cooke's performance as Lindy as well. She did a fantastic job throughout. Gonna be thinking about this episode for a while. Might be my second favourite of this series. 1
BowserBasher Posted June 2 Posted June 2 Spoiler Wow, that’s how you Doctor Who. I’m with @Glen-i on this being up there so far as top episode. Tapping into how, I feel we are with technology, eyes always on the screen, not looking where you’re walking, the simple yet creepy monster going about what it was doing, is there a reason for them, along with destroying the home world of those people, to be eating everyone?. Everyone refusing to accept the help of the Doctor just because of race must have hit home for a few people as we know this still happens in this day and age. Like Glen I totally had Ricky as being in cahoots with the monsters and was going to turn on Linda (maybe messing up the codes) but then they twist it and have this seemingly innocent girl show a more sinister side. If by some chance they didn’t all die by going off on their own, I’d love to see the character of Linda get some more screen time, just to see how the character evolves from there of if there was more to her. No obvious hints or moments relating to the over arching story or where the subtle enough not to be seen, it has been said that the episodes weren’t going to be as self contained as before. We’re four episodes (or is it 5? Space Babies, music one, boom, time travel, and this. Ok 5) in and it’s already shaping up to be a great series. 1
Glen-i Posted June 8 Posted June 8 (edited) Spoiler A decent episode, this one. Probably helps that I had my expectations tempered, because let's face it, it had an incredibly difficult act to follow. A pretty standard "Monster of the Week" episode, got no real complaints. The scene where the Doctor was taken to Rogue's ship was great, it's fun seeing him mess with technologically advanced people. I did like this short exchange about the TARDIS. "Shed? That's my ship!" "You travel in a shed?" "I love the shed..." "Why isn't it cloaked?" "It's behind a tree." I love when the Doctor gives an excuse in such a sincere way, while being completely oblivious to how rubbish that excuse is! Surprised every Doctor was shown in that scene including Eccleston (I thought that guy was generally frowning upon his role there), and that one actor who played the Doctor in that one-off special. EDIT: Richard E. Grant, that's his name! Still super obscure, though! Edited June 8 by Glen-i
darksnowman Posted June 15 Posted June 15 Have not enjoyed this series at all and I've little doubt the resolution next week will be tripe but at least—at least!—we got a decent showing this week. My only hope for the finale is it draws a line under everything that's been going on this year and we move on from all this rot. Thankfully, with Doctor Who you can have that hope.
Glen-i Posted June 22 Posted June 22 I held off on my thoughts of last week's episode, what with it being the standard two-part finale. Spoiler Great build-up, mixed pay-off. Sutekh was great! Very menacing, very cool redesign, neat idea with him hitching on the TARDIS to be able to kill off everything in a ridiculous amount of times, but it does get a bit silly if you start thinking about all the nonsense the TARDIS has gone through over the years. I remember the TARDIS getting shrunk at one point. Did Sutekh get shrunk as well? Or was he still full size, and having to cling on to that tiny thing? That's not important in the grand scheme of things, what with this series being a reboot, and all. But it is amusing. I smiled a lot at the Memory TARDIS. Didn't expect that "Tales of the TARDIS" would be important in the main series. Well played! Might go over the heads of the casual Who fan, mind. It's Ruby's mother that is where it starts to crack apart for me. I'm fine with her being completely normal, but it does raise questions. Why couldn't Sutekh see her if she had no special powers? Was it the 73 yards thing? That didn't look like she was that far. Also, how did she name Ruby by pointing at the Ruby Road sign? No-one was there to see it? (Other then the Doctor, but he didn't see the sign) Very confusing. The final scenes with Ruby and the Doctor was great. Very powerful. Great acting from both of them. Teared up a little. So, a decent finale. Stumbles a tad on the landing, but it was a very strong series for me! 1
darksnowman Posted June 22 Posted June 22 Absolutely fine finale. Relief. Coming back from these universe-ending events is always stupid, in pretty much everything it's done in. It was good to get all those bit-part characters out of the way. The part where he got the metal was nice. By the time it was wrapping up, I almost had the wool pulled over my eyes enough to think the Doctor and Ruby had actually been adventuring together. Hope the nosey neighbour didn't leave a soufflé burning in the oven. Spoiler - The robot coming back - The Ood Sphere coming back Might have been nice if the Doctor'd saved his tears so there was more meaning when he turned on the waterworks. Glad Ruby is no one special. That stuff with the Doctor saying she's the biggest mystery he's ever seen (or however he put it) was too much. Re: the spoilers in the above post. That's me unceremoniously dumped in the casual bin. I'd say Jodie Whittaker's first series was more of a reboot because this hasn't been shy about referencing anything since 1963. If you're going to nitpick because it isn't plotted decades in advance, Sutekh was riding Suranne Jones doggystyle.
Beast Posted June 23 Posted June 23 This definitely isn't the strongest Who BUT there were a few great episodes that reminded me of the Who I watched since I was 14. The mine one, 72 yards(?) and the final two were great. Less is more sometimes and the first two proved that. The space babies, Bridgerton, the music one and the social media one was terrible. The social media one had a decent story but the fact she kept walking in front of a table and stuff was annoying and the whole "racist" moment, for me, felt too...forced and unexplored and there for cheap points of virtue signalling or something. Loved the Doctor and loved Ruby. Thought they were great. I just wished for better stories and episodes for them.
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