Really enjoyed catching up with Doctor Who last night. A nicely paced episode that gave Jodie Whittaker something to bounce off of. The manic energy of her character has occasionally been at odds with some of the slower paced episodes from this series but this showed the way. I do like Bradley Walsh but I think he’s superfluous in a show with at least one too many companions. I’m wondering if the show would benefit from four quality specials per year rather than a series. The extra ten minutes gives the story more room to breath.
SPOILER ALERT BELOW IF YOU’VE YET TO SEE IT
One question from me. Given that the Daleks have dropped onto earth several times since the 1960’s, how is it that no one other than the Doctor knows who they are? If there was a Dalek invasion at any time, I think people would remember wouldn’t they?
Dr Who has lampshaded this several times by saying that people just tend to forget the bad stuff, and/or they assume it is just advertising for something or other. Though Bernard Cribbins character did point out people now leave London at Christmas because of all the killer robots, falling spaceships etc.
Besides, most of these invasions happened in London (or Cardiff). Folk in Sheffield don’t pay much attention to goings on in the South. I mean, if you told me the Prime Minister had been replaced by a Slytherin I wouldnt be at all surprised. And I come from Hull. An alien invasion would only arrive there 20 years after everywhere else.
“Err nerr, it’s the Caarbermen!” 😉
Well I for one honestly can’t remember whether there’s been a Dalek invasion in my town or not. I do remember there was a big problem with litter a few years ago and that got sorted, but I don’t think it was Dalek related as far as I can recall.
Maybe the Mafia took care of it. No goddamn Dalek is going to muscle in on their turf.
More to the point, for me: do the Daleks not remember where Earth is? Surely they can land at any time without waiting to be summoned? (Apologies if this was covered in the episode, I had to keep breaking off to explain bits to my 7y-o)
The wayward father should have sacrificed himself for the good of the planet, proving he was not such a bad egg after all. UNIT being disestablished due to a lack of international support was a Brexit reference, I’m sure. How come the Doctor can hack into the Daleks’ system and confront them as a hologram – yet can only contact a UK Government agency via a call centre?
I don’t like the immediate bond the team have “we always travel together” – “this is what she usually does”. At this stage, they’d still be soling themselves every time the TARDIS does its scrapy, screechy noise.
She’s added a new dimension to the Doctor in that she wants her assistants to be with her and appears to listen to them. The change I would make is that we need to see that the Doctor has things under control the entire time, even if it all looks chaotic. I think her character wings it and gets lucky – but I think the assistants should pull her up on some things afterwards and then conclude that she was always in control, engineering the whole thing. The charm of Tom Baker and Matt Smith is that they were both barking mad and clumsy – they took insane risks but in the end it is revealed they had it all worked out from the start.
“I don’t like the immediate bond the team have “we always travel together” – “this is what she usually does”. At this stage, they’d still be soling themselves every time the TARDIS does its scrapy, screechy noise.”
They’re travelling in time. At this stage they’ve been together for aeons.
Quite. Who knows how many uneventful journeys they’ve been on that didn’t merit a TV episode?
As for “can only contact a UK Government agency via a call centre?” That’d be “The Cuts”.
No matter how good your technology, if those on the other end don’t have any due to lack of budget….
I agree Tom Baker’s Doctor always appeared to have things under control. Don’t think Matt Smith’s Doctor did though. Plenty of “I’m going to sort this one out but I don’t know how, yet” moments.
Constantly busking it is certainly not a trait the pre-Eccleston Doctors had.
If you had drinking game for every time a nu-Who said “I’m sorry,” you’d be blotto pretty quickly – which would indicate a major lack of being in control, I’d a-thunk.