Doctor Who

[ariich]

Though I am starting to wonder... is there no overarching story arc in the seventh episode at all?

They deliberately went less-strong on the story arc thing for series 7, after series 6 was pretty full-on in that regard. There is some arc though - the first 5 episodes pre-Christmas special don't really have much of one (other than a build up towards something that I won't spoil for you) but from the mid-series Christmas special (The Snowmen) onwards there's an arc again.

And yeah, I loved A Town Called Mercy, really interesting to see how the Doctor's character gets darker again (following on from Dinosaurs where, as you say, he let Solomon die) for the first time since the Tenant specials.

[bout to crash]

I really enjoyed that about A Town Called Mercy as well...

I'd usually ask what your best episodes, Doctors and companions were, but I'm too distracted by the fact that t-shirt is amazing.

Why are there people on this planet who don't own that, and why am I one of them?

All good questions.

Tennant is my favorite 
Companion-wise, hmmm... I'd have to think more about favorites. If the question were "Who would you want to have an orgy with," I'd have to say Tennant, Rose, Amy, Clara... and of course Jack

[abydos]

[Jaq]

While she's still a total babe-there are guys saying she's UGLY now seriously wtf-I will freely admit that when I first saw those images on Sunday I said "KAREN NO!"  It was such a shock!

[robwebster]

She's gorgeous. Hair or no hair. We are not worthy.

I really enjoyed that about A Town Called Mercy as well...

I'd usually ask what your best episodes, Doctors and companions were, but I'm too distracted by the fact that t-shirt is amazing.

Why are there people on this planet who don't own that, and why am I one of them?

All good questions.

Tennant is my favorite 
Companion-wise, hmmm... I'd have to think more about favorites. If the question were "Who would you want to have an orgy with," I'd have to say Tennant, Rose, Amy, Clara... and of course Jack

Hey - sounds like a party!!

Tennant as best Doctor - good call! I've got this thing, where my favourite Doctor is whichever Doctor is currently producing episodes - so I loved Chris Eccleston to bits, couldn't imagine anyone beating him, then Tennant came along and knocked it out of the park, and Matt Smith is currently the most exciting actor ever to play the Doctor. But... I know part of that must be because he's the one who's currently making episodes. I suppose it's different for you, cos it's all equally new at the same time. Better overview! I do wonder which one I'll settle on. I think still Smith, but I think they're going to be a lot closer than I realise right now.

[abydos]

She almost reminds me of Natalie Portman when she shaved her hair. And that's never a bad thing. Also, if your significant other wants to rty it I would suggest you guys go for it. After the initial shock it's kinda awesome xD

[masterthes]

What I don't get is why didn't she just have the hair people put a bald wig on her? That's what the hair people are there for. Would have made any different impact on her performance?

[ariich]

Depends what her role is in the film, but a properly bald head looks much more authentic and real than a bald wig.

[Sigz]

She's the main villain, so yeah it's kind of a big role. Might as well go all out.

[robwebster]

What I don't get is why didn't she just have the hair people put a bald wig on her? That's what the hair people are there for. Would have made any different impact on her performance?

She did say she might've done something a little bit crazy! I'm sure she had the option to wear a bald wig. But chose to go the whole hog.

[bout to crash]

She looks awesome! I loved being bald- I would recommend every woman try it once

Rob, I sorta fell in love with Eccleston and FREAKED when he was gone, but I soon COMPLETELY fell in love with Tennant. I really like Smith, but he's never surpassed Tennant for me.

[ariich]

Smith is definitely my favourite, but Tenant is a close second, both are amazing. Then Tom Baker comes in at number 3!

[hefdaddy42]

I've only seen Smith and Baker.

[El JoNNo]

I've only seen Smith and Baker.

You have only witnessed greatness.

[Scorpion]

Monster post incoming!

The Angels Take Manhattan: I wouldn't have thought it possible, but I think Moffat even topped Blink with this one. Maybe it's just because it's so much fresher in my mind, but this was possibly the best way that the Angels were ever used. That scene with the Angel blowing out Rory's match was amazing in particular, and that ending... .

The Snowmen: Awesome! Everything about this was so, so good, easily my favourite Christmas special! Clara was all kinds of awesome - the scene where the Doctor first showed her the TARDIS was amazing, and the Snowmen were properly creepy as well. I also liked the set-up with the Great Intelligence as the next arc villain.

The Bells of Saint John: While I didn't quite understand the stuff in 1207 or what "The Bells of Saint John are ringing" was supposed to mean, I really liked this one. That scene with the anti-grav bike was hilarious and the way that the Doctor forced Miss Kizlet to release Clara was all kinds of awesome.

The Rings of Akhaten: While the story itself wasn't the most exciting and the resolution felt a little weak, especially with all the "Love and emotions defeats bad guys", the design of just about everything was amazingly beautiful, making the episode worth a view for that alone. I also really, really liked the design of the Vigil and how the Doctor fought them with his sonic.

Cold War: The Ice Warrior was great and the episode itself was pretty good as well, but I had a few minor gripes with this one as well - for instance, the Captain was far too trusting of the Doctor and Clara after far too short a time. Also, I think to have the Ice Warrior and that Officer Guy have an alliance where they lure the others into their deaths would have been far cooler than what happened. "DO ULTRAVOX SPLIT UP?" had me in stitches though, and the ending was great as well.

Hide: SO. GOOD. While I didn't like how the Doctor said that you can't fly the TARDIS into a pocket universe and then it just does, twice, and nothing happens, everything else was so good that I can easily forgive it. Stellar episode, all the way through, I liked the resolution with the monsters as well.

Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS: AMAZING. I loved everything about this episode, the scavengers were cool, those burning monsters were ace and the whole setup of the TARDIS was great, though the way that everything was solved at the end felt a little like a cop-out. I'm not against elements of time-travel, but I feel that Doctor Who can do better than "oh yeah let's just rewrite it so that nothing of that episode just happened".

The Crimson Horror: Great episode again. I loved the setting and that old woman was a great villain, and that moment where the Doctor was discovered had me reeling back in shock. I loved the way that Aida defeated her mother and Mr. Sweet at the end, too. Nothing amazing, but great fun.

Nightmare in Silver: Well, Neil Gaiman writing them was probably the best thing that could happen to the Cybermen. That chess-match was genius, as the was the way that the Doctor won in the end. I really, really liked Porridge - sorry, Emperor Porridge - and I did not see that twist coming.

The Name of the Doctor: I don't think that words can describe how much I loved this episode. It was so, so beautifully done, everything about it was just brilliant. The whole atmosphere of Trenzalore made it one of my favourite settings of the whole show and those final minutes were complete mindfuck. Well done Mr. Moffat.


Sooo.... I'm through. It was an amazing journey, one that I would love to take again.

My final rankings of EVERYTHING (well, Top 10):

1. Silence in the Library / Forest of the Dead
2. Human Nature / The Family of Blood
3. The Name of the Doctor
4. The Impossible Astronaut / Day of the Moon
5. The Time of Angels / Flesh and Stone
6. Blink
7. The Waters of Mars
8. The Angels Take Manhattan
9. The Doctor's Wife
10. The Impossible Planet / The Satan Pit

[robwebster]

The Bells of Saint John: While I didn't quite understand the stuff in 1207 or what "The Bells of Saint John are ringing" was supposed to mean, I really liked this one. That scene with the anti-grav bike was hilarious and the way that the Doctor forced Miss Kizlet to release Clara was all kinds of awesome.

The sticker on the front of the TARDIS reads "St. John's Ambulance."

The bells of St. John, then, are the TARDIS' phone chimes!

[Scorpion]

Ahhhh sneaky! I knew that I was missing something.

[robwebster]

More thoughts on thoughts!

Akhaten: Yes, flimsy plot, but brilliant worldbuilding. "Style over substance" isn't, entirely, a backhanded compliment in this case. It's lovely, isn't it? Really cool, alien vistas.

Hide: Nothing to add. Superb.

Nightmare: Seems to have polarised people in the wider world, but when you said you were a little nonplussed by most of the cyberman stories, I did have a hunch you were going to enjoy this one. Excellent.

[Scorpion]

Whelp, some people disliked Nightmare? I would have thought that that chess scene would be enough for anyone, it's one of my favourite acting jobs of Matt Smith.

[robwebster]

Don't worry, I'm baffled, too. It's a stupendous episode. It's my most rewatched of the Clara series.

[Heretic]

I'm interested, Scorpion-- since you praised so many of the series 7 episodes, would you say it is one of your favorite series?

Totally agree with most of your reviews, btw. I still regularly rewatch the ending of The Name of the Doctor because of what an amazing atmosphere was created (that music! Thank you Murray Gold), the impact of everything that had preceded, and the reveal at the end that blew me away. It's certainly one of my favorite episodes of television, not just DW.

[Scorpion]

Yeah, I think I would. I'd probably rank them like this:

Series 5
Series 7
Series 4
Series 3
Series 6
Series 1
Series 2

They are all really, really good though.

[ariich]

Yeah I just finished rewatching series 7, and it really is brilliant the way it builds up at the end. I still hope they bring back two-parters though, to let some of the complex stories breathe a bit more.

[Jaq]

Agree on the two parter thing: Nightmare In Silver, in particular, was screaming for two parts, and The Name of The Doctor just feels so abrupt at times, they both needed room to breathe. I think, in fact, that Gaiman originally wrote Nightmare as a two parter, which is why it feels occasionally rushed.

As for the reaction to Nightmare: it was Gaiman writing a fairly "trad" episode of Who, after the mindbending WOW of The Doctor's Wife, and a lot of people were let down. Their loss, I think it's the best evocation of the Second Doctor era you're likely to get ever. Of course, the real hilarity of the response to the episode was "Gaiman is ripping off the Borg!" Because, you know, the Borg totally invented the idea of a cybernetic superrace that existed solely to convert everyone else to cybernetics. 

[ariich]

I didn't find the Name of the Doctor rushed at all actually, which I'd been worried about after the series 6 finale which, great as it was in many ways, just tried to cram too much in. I thought Name was perfectly paced though, to lead into the 50th anniversary special.

By the way I'm still making my way through the classic series, finally finished Tom Baker's epic 7-season stretch, and onto the fifth Doctor now. I like him so far, but not as much as the fourth!

[Heretic]

Davison is really cool, I need to watch more of his stuff. He was so young for a classic Doctor.

And regarding The Name of the Doctor-- it's easily one of Moffat's best and I thought it was paced wonderfully. Easily my favorite finale in the new series. It's quite possibly my favorite 11th Doctor story, though the 50th and the Christmas special will probably trump it in the end, seeing as we're getting a multi-Doctor story and a regeneration!

[Scorpion]

I rewatched a few episodes yesterday and today. Some small thoughts:

- Blink is still as brilliant as ever. I had forgotten some details, like the fact that Billy Shipton had been the one to place the easter eggs, so that was nice. Plus, Carey Mulligan is SERIOUSLY hot.
- The exchanges between Daleks and Cybermen in Doomsday are amazing.
- The part where the Doctor deals with The Family in The Family of Blood is still one of my favourite moments of the show. So, so cruel and even more badass.
- I didn't catch the 666 reference in The Impossible Planet the first time around. Neat.
- The End of Time is amazing. I had my beef with it on the first viewing, but none of that mattered this time around. John Simm is amazing and Bernard Cribbins as Wilf is probably one of my favourite companions, definitely the best one-off companion there was. That scene after Rassilon had been defeated sent chills down my spine, even more than previously. The ending was a little drawn out, but the regeneration scene more than made up for it.
- I love The Name of the Doctor, but you know what kinda irked me? Matt Smith saying that John Hurt isn't a Doctor, and then having "Introducing John Hurt as The Doctor" in fat letters on the screen. They should have just left that.

[Heretic]

I think it was to either drive in a point-- i.e., even though he wasn't recognized AS the Doctor, he truly WAS the Doctor, or it was a giant red herring because he's secretly Omega

[Super Dude]

I rewatched a few episodes yesterday and today. Some small thoughts:

- Blink is still as brilliant as ever. I had forgotten some details, like the fact that Billy Shipton had been the one to place the easter eggs, so that was nice. Plus, Carey Mulligan is SERIOUSLY hot.
- The exchanges between Daleks and Cybermen in Doomsday are amazing.
- The part where the Doctor deals with The Family in The Family of Blood is still one of my favourite moments of the show. So, so cruel and even more badass.
- I didn't catch the 666 reference in The Impossible Planet the first time around. Neat.
- The End of Time is amazing. I had my beef with it on the first viewing, but none of that mattered this time around. John Simm is amazing and Bernard Cribbins as Wilf is probably one of my favourite companions, definitely the best one-off companion there was. That scene after Rassilon had been defeated sent chills down my spine, even more than previously. The ending was a little drawn out, but the regeneration scene more than made up for it.
- I love The Name of the Doctor, but you know what kinda irked me? Matt Smith saying that John Hurt isn't a Doctor, and then having "Introducing John Hurt as The Doctor" in fat letters on the screen. They should have just left that.

No question; that was one of the moments that pulled me into the show.

[ariich]

"Our species are similar, though your design is inelegant"
"Daleks have no concept of elegance"
"This is obvious"

[bout to crash]

"This is not war- this is pest control!"

[Scorpion]

"You are superior in only one aspect"
"And that is?"
"You are superior at dying!"

[robwebster]

"What colour are they?"



...

There weren't any good questions left!

[ariich]

Great line, although not from Doomsday.

[Scorpion]

Yeah, that's a classic as well.

"You're Scottish! Fry something!" is probably still my favourite, though.