Who Time!
Just watched this week's Who.
And, wow, I liked that one! That felt like some proper Who, that did! Of course, it's only the first part of... of whatever the heck is going on. Which means that it's always possible the payoff won't do justice to the setup. But taken in itself? Hell, yeah! That had pretty much everything! It was creepy and intriguing and surprising. It took us to an interesting moment in history. It was laced throughout with little moments of character-based humor. And, best of all, this is 100% the 13th Doctor I want to see! I love, love, love that they're letting her be a little darker and more complex and conflicted and intense this season, and Whittaker is definitely up to it. This may be her at her most Doctorish, and it's beautiful.
Other than that general expression of enthusiasm, I mostly have a lot of disconnected thoughts. Which I now present in no particular order:
This really is the most telepathic Doctor ever, isn't she? I worry a little about the possibility of that becoming a lazy plot device, but it's used to wonderful effect here. The description of how she got the cyberthingy out of Shelly is incredibly effective. It's disturbing, very timey-wimey and alien, and it feels like it actually makes sense in a bizarre kind of way.
The Doctor getting upset and a little irrational at the thought of putting her friends at risk of being taken by Cybermen was an absolute perfect character touch. You know she's thinking of Bill, and it's clear that still hurts. Great character note, great continuity.
That scene between Mary and the Cyberman was some top-notch acting on the part of both actors. Well done.
Coincidentally enough, I was just listening to a podcast about Byron earlier today. It was mostly about that time he got his half-sister pregnant. "Well," I said to myself, "I bet they don't mention that." I guess they kind of did allude to it, though, with that line about rumors so scandalous he couldn't return to England.
Who has always been ambiguous and/or inconsistent about the question of whether it's possible to change history and if so how much, but it does seem to be treating time as especially malleable of late. Which does leave me wondering... If they were genuinely worried about interfering with this bit of history, why did they show up on its doorstep? It's not clear, but I did get the impression they came there deliberately. I would really have liked a little more clarity on what the heck they were doing there and how they thought they were ever going to not affect things. "Don't mention Frankenstein, don't interfere, and nobody snog Byron" was entertaining enough that I mostly forgive that, though.
Having Mary Shelley be inspired by the Cybermen for Frankenstein is weirdly beautiful. I find an oddly pleasing sort of circularity in it, given that Frankenstein undoubtedly had an influence on the Cybermen as a concept.
I love the way that Graham always highlights the mundane practicalities of traveling with the Doctor. When have we ever had a companion worrying about where he's going to use the bathroom before?
I imagine there's might be some controversy/debate over the Doctor basically letting the Cyberman win, despite having been forewarned against it. I find it fascinating on a character level, and I think it makes sense that the Doctor, faced with the choice between enabling some future catastrophe and cold-bloodedly sacrificing one person and everything he means to history, decides to save the one person now and trust in her ability to somehow fix the looming-catastrophe problem later. Whittaker really does play her conflictedness over that well, and there is, for once, a real sense of uncertainty about her ability to pull a plan out of her butt and save the day.
And I think that's about all I've got to say! Other than happysigh. Seriously, that episode hit satisfying buttons for me that even the ones I've liked lately mostly haven't managed. I just really, really hope that whatever comes next doesn't let me down! I'm feeling a little bit nervous about it now.
This entry was originally posted at https://astrogirl.dreamwidth.org/974282.html. Comment here or there, whichever you like.
And, wow, I liked that one! That felt like some proper Who, that did! Of course, it's only the first part of... of whatever the heck is going on. Which means that it's always possible the payoff won't do justice to the setup. But taken in itself? Hell, yeah! That had pretty much everything! It was creepy and intriguing and surprising. It took us to an interesting moment in history. It was laced throughout with little moments of character-based humor. And, best of all, this is 100% the 13th Doctor I want to see! I love, love, love that they're letting her be a little darker and more complex and conflicted and intense this season, and Whittaker is definitely up to it. This may be her at her most Doctorish, and it's beautiful.
Other than that general expression of enthusiasm, I mostly have a lot of disconnected thoughts. Which I now present in no particular order:
This really is the most telepathic Doctor ever, isn't she? I worry a little about the possibility of that becoming a lazy plot device, but it's used to wonderful effect here. The description of how she got the cyberthingy out of Shelly is incredibly effective. It's disturbing, very timey-wimey and alien, and it feels like it actually makes sense in a bizarre kind of way.
The Doctor getting upset and a little irrational at the thought of putting her friends at risk of being taken by Cybermen was an absolute perfect character touch. You know she's thinking of Bill, and it's clear that still hurts. Great character note, great continuity.
That scene between Mary and the Cyberman was some top-notch acting on the part of both actors. Well done.
Coincidentally enough, I was just listening to a podcast about Byron earlier today. It was mostly about that time he got his half-sister pregnant. "Well," I said to myself, "I bet they don't mention that." I guess they kind of did allude to it, though, with that line about rumors so scandalous he couldn't return to England.
Who has always been ambiguous and/or inconsistent about the question of whether it's possible to change history and if so how much, but it does seem to be treating time as especially malleable of late. Which does leave me wondering... If they were genuinely worried about interfering with this bit of history, why did they show up on its doorstep? It's not clear, but I did get the impression they came there deliberately. I would really have liked a little more clarity on what the heck they were doing there and how they thought they were ever going to not affect things. "Don't mention Frankenstein, don't interfere, and nobody snog Byron" was entertaining enough that I mostly forgive that, though.
Having Mary Shelley be inspired by the Cybermen for Frankenstein is weirdly beautiful. I find an oddly pleasing sort of circularity in it, given that Frankenstein undoubtedly had an influence on the Cybermen as a concept.
I love the way that Graham always highlights the mundane practicalities of traveling with the Doctor. When have we ever had a companion worrying about where he's going to use the bathroom before?
I imagine there's might be some controversy/debate over the Doctor basically letting the Cyberman win, despite having been forewarned against it. I find it fascinating on a character level, and I think it makes sense that the Doctor, faced with the choice between enabling some future catastrophe and cold-bloodedly sacrificing one person and everything he means to history, decides to save the one person now and trust in her ability to somehow fix the looming-catastrophe problem later. Whittaker really does play her conflictedness over that well, and there is, for once, a real sense of uncertainty about her ability to pull a plan out of her butt and save the day.
And I think that's about all I've got to say! Other than happysigh. Seriously, that episode hit satisfying buttons for me that even the ones I've liked lately mostly haven't managed. I just really, really hope that whatever comes next doesn't let me down! I'm feeling a little bit nervous about it now.
This entry was originally posted at https://astrogirl.dreamwidth.org/974282.html. Comment here or there, whichever you like.