Doctor Who 9x01 The Magician's Apprentice
Finally saw this. Hmmmmm. This is prompting a bunch of thinky thoughts. That must mean it was good.
So... the Doctor is obviously the Magician - refer the Christmas Special, where Santa disparaged him for being dressed like a Magician.
So who is the Apprentice? Clara? Or Davros? I think it could be either one.
I like how Clara was very take-charge here; how she was thinking, analysing, wanting to have more data about what was going on before she tried to contact the Doctor, unlike everyone else. And some good points -- which sometimes villains in Who don't seem to get, though -- that if you're planning an invasion, you don't let everyone know beforehand.
"Yes, not dead, what a surprise." (loved how Missy was so blase about that)
"And eight snipers."
"What for?"
"That's what you'll need before you feel secure enough to meet me."
Bit of a shock for Clara -- literal as well as figurative -- that she wasn't the designated "best friend" that the Confessional was sent to. But, really, it was kind of a big assumption for her to make. The Doctor has had many friends, and more than one person whom he has called "best friend". Donna, Charley, Sarah-Jane, the Brigadier...
I loved Missy's rant about humans being sex-obsessed and not understanding friendship.
"But he tried to kill you!"
"And I tried to kill him. It's our way of texting."
"Since he was a little girl."
Clara knows that the Doctor wasn't a little girl - she met him when he was a boy, remember? Though I doubt that Missy knows that, considering that Clara is the only one who knows that.
Good clue about the gravity, though I don't see the point in making the planet invisible. Unless it was to make it more of a trap? Seems a bit pointless to me. I mean...
"It's a trap!"
"Of course it's a trap."
No, of course Davros can't control the Daleks. What he says is still creepy, though: "You know what children are like."
We seem to be having a bunch of moral dilemmas that really mean something, that challenge the Doctor very much.
Death in Heaven: I want you to admit that we are the same.
The Magician's Apprentice: I want you to admit that I was right. I want you to say that compassion is wrong.
I think... Davros is better at pushing the Doctor's buttons, at least in his recent appearances. I mean... maybe not "pushing his buttons" per se, but the Doctor lets Davros get to him in a way that the Master doesn't. Davros tells lies with the truth, and the Doctor believes him, fills himself with self-doubt; whenever the Doctor listens to Davros's judgements, I want to shake him for listening to this rubbish. The Master, by contrast, seems to bring out compassion and clarity in the Doctor, makes him believe in himself; at least, recently. Not that the Master is intending to do that, though!
Missy is a very good villain. I thought I liked Simm!Master for his hyperactive insanity, but I like Missy more. It was amusing, Missy being annoyed at the Doctor saying that Davros is his arch-enemy. Mind you, both Davros and The Master are the leading, if not only, contenders for the Doctor's arch-enemy. The Doctor has had many enemies, but none of them has been as enduring and persistent as those two.
The Doctor has a strong moral compass.
Missy has a moral compass too, but it points South. She revels in being evil, as she demonstrated to Clara. (I suspect that Missy thinks that being good would be boring. It's a wonder she's not ever asked the Doctor why he isn't bored - though I suppose she wouldn't, since she's one of the things that makes him not-bored.)
Davros, on the other hand... his moral compass is very small, and points south-east. For him, survival is the only virtue.
But, it's fascinating, when you consider it, both Davros and Missy want to prove the Doctor wrong. Which means that he matters to them, matters enough that they can't dismiss him. You don't try to change the mind of someone who doesn't matter. You just ignore them.
You utter fool, Doctor! Killing Davros as a child is NOT the only way to save your friend. If you're going to go the whole hog and change the vast expanse of history, why do you have to kill in order to do so? There are other ways of changing history. Like having compassion on a frightened boy. I love the line which says, something like: imagine how afraid you would have to be to condemn your people to living inside a tank. It's like Batman and The Joker: they made each other. Did the Doctor make Davros what he was by trying to kill him as a child? If so, another predestination paradox thing. The idea appealed to me at first, but as I said above, killing someone isn't the only way of changing history. Though of course, the predestination paradox could be that the Doctor does rescue Davros in the end, since it's not likely the poor kid would get out of the minefield without help.
Oh those handmines were creepy. (shudder)
One thing I'm certain of: Davros is going to live, and the Daleks are going to be created. There is no way there wouldn't be a big ol' reset button in that regard. But the ride, I think that will be thrilling.
Edited to add: I thought this went without saying, but apparently it doesn't: I have not seen "The Witch's Familiar" yet, and I want NO SPOILERS for it!!!!
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So... the Doctor is obviously the Magician - refer the Christmas Special, where Santa disparaged him for being dressed like a Magician.
So who is the Apprentice? Clara? Or Davros? I think it could be either one.
I like how Clara was very take-charge here; how she was thinking, analysing, wanting to have more data about what was going on before she tried to contact the Doctor, unlike everyone else. And some good points -- which sometimes villains in Who don't seem to get, though -- that if you're planning an invasion, you don't let everyone know beforehand.
"Yes, not dead, what a surprise." (loved how Missy was so blase about that)
"And eight snipers."
"What for?"
"That's what you'll need before you feel secure enough to meet me."
Bit of a shock for Clara -- literal as well as figurative -- that she wasn't the designated "best friend" that the Confessional was sent to. But, really, it was kind of a big assumption for her to make. The Doctor has had many friends, and more than one person whom he has called "best friend". Donna, Charley, Sarah-Jane, the Brigadier...
I loved Missy's rant about humans being sex-obsessed and not understanding friendship.
"But he tried to kill you!"
"And I tried to kill him. It's our way of texting."
"Since he was a little girl."
Clara knows that the Doctor wasn't a little girl - she met him when he was a boy, remember? Though I doubt that Missy knows that, considering that Clara is the only one who knows that.
Good clue about the gravity, though I don't see the point in making the planet invisible. Unless it was to make it more of a trap? Seems a bit pointless to me. I mean...
"It's a trap!"
"Of course it's a trap."
No, of course Davros can't control the Daleks. What he says is still creepy, though: "You know what children are like."
We seem to be having a bunch of moral dilemmas that really mean something, that challenge the Doctor very much.
Death in Heaven: I want you to admit that we are the same.
The Magician's Apprentice: I want you to admit that I was right. I want you to say that compassion is wrong.
I think... Davros is better at pushing the Doctor's buttons, at least in his recent appearances. I mean... maybe not "pushing his buttons" per se, but the Doctor lets Davros get to him in a way that the Master doesn't. Davros tells lies with the truth, and the Doctor believes him, fills himself with self-doubt; whenever the Doctor listens to Davros's judgements, I want to shake him for listening to this rubbish. The Master, by contrast, seems to bring out compassion and clarity in the Doctor, makes him believe in himself; at least, recently. Not that the Master is intending to do that, though!
Missy is a very good villain. I thought I liked Simm!Master for his hyperactive insanity, but I like Missy more. It was amusing, Missy being annoyed at the Doctor saying that Davros is his arch-enemy. Mind you, both Davros and The Master are the leading, if not only, contenders for the Doctor's arch-enemy. The Doctor has had many enemies, but none of them has been as enduring and persistent as those two.
The Doctor has a strong moral compass.
Missy has a moral compass too, but it points South. She revels in being evil, as she demonstrated to Clara. (I suspect that Missy thinks that being good would be boring. It's a wonder she's not ever asked the Doctor why he isn't bored - though I suppose she wouldn't, since she's one of the things that makes him not-bored.)
Davros, on the other hand... his moral compass is very small, and points south-east. For him, survival is the only virtue.
But, it's fascinating, when you consider it, both Davros and Missy want to prove the Doctor wrong. Which means that he matters to them, matters enough that they can't dismiss him. You don't try to change the mind of someone who doesn't matter. You just ignore them.
You utter fool, Doctor! Killing Davros as a child is NOT the only way to save your friend. If you're going to go the whole hog and change the vast expanse of history, why do you have to kill in order to do so? There are other ways of changing history. Like having compassion on a frightened boy. I love the line which says, something like: imagine how afraid you would have to be to condemn your people to living inside a tank. It's like Batman and The Joker: they made each other. Did the Doctor make Davros what he was by trying to kill him as a child? If so, another predestination paradox thing. The idea appealed to me at first, but as I said above, killing someone isn't the only way of changing history. Though of course, the predestination paradox could be that the Doctor does rescue Davros in the end, since it's not likely the poor kid would get out of the minefield without help.
Oh those handmines were creepy. (shudder)
One thing I'm certain of: Davros is going to live, and the Daleks are going to be created. There is no way there wouldn't be a big ol' reset button in that regard. But the ride, I think that will be thrilling.
Edited to add: I thought this went without saying, but apparently it doesn't: I have not seen "The Witch's Familiar" yet, and I want NO SPOILERS for it!!!!
This entry was originally posted at http://kerravonsen.dreamwidth.org/1047908.html. (Comments
) Respond here, or respond on the Dreamwidth post, as you prefer. You can use your DW login or OpenId there.