Doctor Who

[robwebster]

What was so clever about the first two? I mentioned blink out of memory, but when I compare episode 1 and 2 to Moffat's other ones, this series ones suck in comparison.

Well, with the Beast Below... everything! The out-of-nowhere Doctor analogue, the creepy Life-on-Mars forget video, the apparently-evil but secretly-good Smilers, and the aesthetic, oooohhh the aesthetic. On top of the Liz 10 revelation, Matt Smith's fantastic acting and so so much more. Wonderful, wonderful episode. Everything ties up beautifully, it's exciting, creepy, and it makes you think.

It's been a little while since The Eleventh Hour, and I'm kinda really fucking drunk, so I'm gonna have to expand on that one later, but what a classy way of bringing the Doctor back to our screens.

I do agree that not dissecting it helps. No matter what the subject is, fandom is supercritical. I'm not sure why. Doctor Who falls into that bracket too. There are loads of people who don't actually end up liking what they spend their lives examining, because they take it too seriously. I guess your brother might be in that bracket too?

[ariich]

Yeah I agree with Rob, looks like he and I are simply fans because we really enjoy something, rather than taking it to the extreme of overanalysing everything to the point of not liking it anymore.

Dan, just smack your brother in the face and forbid him to ruin Doctor Who for you again.

[faemir]

Haha, he's 23 on friday and taller than me.

[ariich]

Smack him hard enough and he won't be able to fight back. Use a cricket bat.

[faemir]

"Hey sorry Andrew, the guys on the internet told me to do it"

*Andrew unplugs my internet for life and sabotages my computer*

[ariich]

Ok, ok.

Use two cricket bats.

[ariich]

This week's episode was FAB! How creepy was the bit with the angel on the screen?!

[robwebster]

Very. Very very very.

And the trailer for next week's. Oh god this is a good series. That's the third out of four episodes I'd class as excellent. Looking to be fourth of five.

[Zeltar]

Dammit I hate living in America and getting all the new Who episodes after everyone else does. I watched the first episode with the new guy and I gotta say, I really like him. I was afraid that after David Tennant we'd get someone who wouldn't be able to live up to his exciting, upbeat delivery but it looks like this guy's just as good. And I gotta say, Amy's the Doctor's hottest companion ever by like 50000 miles. So goddamn fine.

[robwebster]

Really smart, too. She does some clever stuff. Savvy.

Have you guys had The Beast Below yet? I think I'm in love with The Beast Below. (The episode. Not the beast.)

[Zeltar]

I think we have but I've only watched The Eleventh Hour so far. I have it recorded if I missed The Beast Below so it's all good. I can't wait for the Weeping Angels episode, Blink was one of my favorite Doctor Who episodes of all time I'm so stoked to see them back

EDIT: Turns out The Beast Below did air. Watching it now...

[ariich]

Yeah The Beast Below was fantastic. The Time of Angels was also marvellous, though won't fully judge until we've had the second episode. Cannot wait!

[Zeltar]

Yeah I really liked The Beast Below. Holy crap, the Weeping Angels episode's a two parter? My life's complete. Victory of the Daleks airs next week I think so I'll look forward to that one.

[ariich]

Yeah I really liked The Beast Below. Holy crap, the Weeping Angels episode's a two parter? My life's complete.

Hell yeah! First part was excellent, a couple of reeeeeeeeeeeeally creepy moments, but lots of fun as well. It also sees the return of River Song, who I'm starting to really like as a character.

Just watched Silence in the Library / Forest of the Dead and they're even better second time round. Not as creepy as some stuff, but just amazing sci-fi and such a clever story!

Victory of the Daleks airs next week I think so I'll look forward to that one.

That was really enjoyable, pretty much as fun as Doctor Who gets. Enjoy!

[PuffyPat]

Just started watching last night, and I have to say that I love this show already. My brother and sister have been watching for awhile now, and I finally gave in and started watching. The fact that it's a new season as well as a new Doctor made it an easy decision to start.

[robwebster]

Aha! Welcome to the best show on telly. You're gonna love it.

Are you in the US or the UK? i.e. which episode was it?

[PuffyPat]

U.S., I'm up to the Beast Below, can't wait until the next episode.

[Genowyn]

This is another one of those things that I'm pretty sure I would enjoy and want to get into, but there is just too, too much. 

[robwebster]

Nah, it's fine!

Thing about Doctor Who is, the back story is largely irrelevant. Oh there are continuity nods and what have you, but they're just details - each week's a brand new thing and a brand new story. It's specifically designed so you can hop on at any point, having never seen the show before, and just go "Hey, this is a cool thing." There's plenty of meat, but it's not baggage or dead weight. It's not like Heroes and it's definitely not like Lost. There is no wrong place to start. 'Cept the second episode of a two-parter, but hey!

That said, the far and away best place to start would be the first episode of this most recent series. "The Eleventh Hour" it's called. The cast are all brand new, the logo's new, the entire show's regenerated - even the cast. The main character changes his appearance to cheat death, he goes through the entire first episode not knowing what he looks like. You find out along with him! It was written so that new audiences would be able to immediately get involved without having seen a single frame of the thing - even moreso than usual.

The Doctor travels through time and space, with a companion, saving worlds. Sometimes he changes his face - it's creepy, exciting, and oodles of fun. That's all you need to know. That's the only constant - the only backstory. Everything else is new each week. The beauty is that there definitely isn't too much. Just a mad man in a blue box.

I think you should watch a lovely bit of Doctor Who.

[ariich]

I definitely agree, the current series is a great place to join in! And if you enjoy it then go back to the new series 1 (2005) and catch up with the Ecclestone/Tennant years.

I'm currently checking out some the older stuff, a friend of mine recommended a few good serials for each of the doctors. Interesting stuff, seeing the origins of the show.

[AcidLameLTE]

Doctor Who fans angered by trailer for Over the Rainbow

Thousands of Doctor Who fans have contacted the BBC to complain that the ending of Saturday night's episode was ruined by a trailer for the next show.

The on-screen caption featured an animated cartoon of presenter Graham Norton, host of Over the Rainbow.

It appeared as The Doctor, played by Matt Smith, was making an emotional speech during the story's cliffhanger ending for The Time of Angels.

The trailer was seen by millions of viewers watching on BBC One in England.

Fans have also been complaining on social networking site Twitter. One wrote: "Why is the BBC treating its audience like idiots?"

Another said: "Don't blink or Graham Norton will catch you."

The BBC often promotes programmes in this way but the corporation has acknowledged that in this case the scheduling was inappropriate.

A BBC spokesman said: "We apologise for the timing of Saturday night's trail."

It is not the first time an unexpected appearance by Norton has angered Doctor Who fans.

When the series returned in 2005 after a 16-year break, a technical error caused Norton's voice to be briefly heard over the episode's opening scenes.

https://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/entertainment/8642854.stm

[robwebster]

Hahaha. I complained. I wasn't going to - I hate being the nobcheese who tells the BBC how to run their TV station. But then Charlie Brooker, Simon Pegg and the showrunner for Ashes to Ashes all complained, and I thought "hey, tell you what, this isn't just me being facetious - let's burn this fugger down."

I'm currently checking out some the older stuff, a friend of mine recommended a few good serials for each of the doctors. Interesting stuff, seeing the origins of the show.

This completely undermines my Doctor Who credentials, but I really struggle to get excited about the old stuff. I mean there are some cracking ideas, but it's all a bit half-formed. I had a look at The Caves of Androzani, which is meant to be the best Doctor Who story by fan opinion, and while I liked it, I couldn't say I was hugely engaged. I wasn't thinking "damn, I really can't wait to see what happens next" - which is a feeling I get each minute with the revived run. Even in the patchier stories in the current run, I feel like I care a lot more about the characters. Plus, the plot feels tighter, and littered with revelations. You don't really get them in the slower building older stories.

Caves, while I liked it, struck me as mainly being army blokes strategically running through a catacomb. Sharaz Jek was kinda cool, but again, not a particularly staggering villain.

That said, I recently started The Talons of Weng-Chiang and quite liked it.

I dunno. Maybe I'm just not "of its time." I'll keep trying. And it's still a fairly cool show. But the old stuff doesn't make me feel feelings.

[XJDenton]

Time of the angels was probably one of the best episodes I've seen. The weeping angels are such an excellent design for an antagonist. Though you would have thought someone would have twigged onto the ideo of taking a jack hammer along.

[Silver Tears]

The weeping angels freak me out. I was really jumpy for the rest of the night.

[ariich]

This completely undermines my Doctor Who credentials, but I really struggle to get excited about the old stuff. I mean there are some cracking ideas, but it's all a bit half-formed. I had a look at The Caves of Androzani, which is meant to be the best Doctor Who story by fan opinion, and while I liked it, I couldn't say I was hugely engaged. I wasn't thinking "damn, I really can't wait to see what happens next" - which is a feeling I get each minute with the revived run. Even in the patchier stories in the current run, I feel like I care a lot more about the characters. Plus, the plot feels tighter, and littered with revelations. You don't really get them in the slower building older stories.

Caves, while I liked it, struck me as mainly being army blokes strategically running through a catacomb. Sharaz Jek was kinda cool, but again, not a particularly staggering villain.

That said, I recently started The Talons of Weng-Chiang and quite liked it.

I dunno. Maybe I'm just not "of its time." I'll keep trying. And it's still a fairly cool show. But the old stuff doesn't make me feel feelings.

Yeah, obviously it's a little dated; the main thing is that it's a fair bit slower, because people had better attention spans back then. So far I've only seen the first two serials with William Hartnell, An Unearthly Child and The Daleks. Both were pretty good, the writing is actually really good and the acting was mostly decent, the main issues were with the directing and obviously the production/effects/budget.

Time of the angels was probably one of the best episodes I've seen. The weeping angels are such an excellent design for an antagonist. Though you would have thought someone would have twigged onto the ideo of taking a jack hammer along.

Yeah, I always wonder what happens if, while they are stone, you just pummel them to pieces. I guess if that was possible it'd ruin their creepiness somewhat.

[faemir]

gonna watch the latest episode now on iplayer whoop!

[robwebster]

Right.

Is it me, or has this series just taken a level in badass? It was already pretty supreme, and then all that happened. Whoa. As exciting as The End of Time and as clever as Silence in the Library. Really, really good.

[ariich]

Not sure it was as clever as Silence in the Library or The Beast Below, but it was definitely magnificent! Such an exciting end to the double episode, and I loved the way they brought in the story arc of the cracks in time quite heavily... I'm guessing the last two episodes are going to feature a lot of that, and possibly River Song again by the sounds of it! I'm really starting to like her as a character, very cryptic.

You're right though, badass levels definitely higher than they've ever been. Matt Smith really was such a great choice, he's really quirky and funny in the lighter bits (like the very end of the episode ) but really angry at times as well.

The next episode looks like immense fun as well. Rory seems like a pretty hilarious character!

[ariich]

HOLY CRAP.

In Flesh and Stone, did anyone else notice when the Doctor leaves Amy with the clerics, then just after leaving he comes back and kisses her on the forehead and asks her to remember what he told her when she was 7... he's much calmer, and he's wearing the jacket that he had left behind with the angels! I never spotted it even slightly until my girlfriend pointed out it. We're calling future version of the Doctor going back because of some moment of importance!

Goddamn Moffat is good!

[robwebster]

Shit!

I had not noticed that. I'm still not quite sure what the significance is yet my mind is, still, ever so slightly blown. I'm going to have to watch this again.

[robwebster]

I'm back. JESUS! His personality completely changed! You're right! I even noticed that his hands looked a bit odd! That scene ALWAYS stuck out a bit to me, but then I instantly forgot it. Like a Derren Brown moment.

It's what they always say, though. The Doctor you see in episode 13 isn't the same one you see in episode 1. I'm going to have to rewatch episode 1. What did he tell her when she was seven? Jesus. I'm bamboozled. Maybe he goes back to young Amy in the finale, and we can't possibly know?

Still. That's mad. Oh Moffat you are a STAR. And Matt. Beautiful, wonderful Matt. He must have had to plan his finale portrayal so far in advance.

[ariich]

That was my exact response when Rosie pointed it out to me. I immediately had to go back and re-watch that section. It's not even entirely obvious, as the shot is close up, but he definitely has his jacket on and speaks much more cryptically. I don't believe the current production team would make such a schoolboy error in costuming, so I'm assuming it was deliberate and significant.

[robwebster]

They wouldn't be able to make such a schoolboy error. He never wears a coat in the Oxygen Factory. Not for a moment. Quick bit of greenscreen, but nothing else.

I think I'd grown complacent with Russell. I mean, Russell had some fairly nifty hidden bits, but nothing that crafty. I've said this before, but I'll say it again. Russell is the kind of writer who inspires me to try my hand at screenwriting. Steven Moffat is the kind of writer who invites me to compare my skills to his, and then kill myself.

I occasionally think I'm quite a clever fella. Then something like that happens, and I realise that I'm basically a gormless little limpet, clinging pointlessly to my tiny rock as though the world depended on it.

Jesus. Rug from under my feet. I feel like a complete dick.

Now even the fact that the angels nicked his jacket has gained some significance! More than a throwaway gag. Of course there'd have to be a reason he went to all that trouble to get him without his jacket for the story.

[ariich]

I'm glad to have been the one to point it out to you!

And yeah, it's all incredibly exciting, on a level that I hadn't even realised until tonight!

[ariich]

Yesterday's episode was fab, lots of fun, really funny in places, and the vampire girls were really creepy when they had their veils over their faces!

I liked the way they carried on bringing the story arc in with full force. I thought maybe they'd ease up a little bit on it after closing that crack in the last episode, but clearly not.

And how awesome does the next episode look?!