So, got caught up on the DOCTOR WHO episode "Cold War"...
...and it was excellent! Really, really excellent. Loved it.
First off, I really loved the Ice Warrior himself, Skaldak -- I really liked how Gatiss himself took a character like Skaldak and, in the midst of him being absolutely terrifying (which, quite honestly, he was -- that scene where he strangles the guy that unfroze him was absolutely scary as shit, as well as just how much he wanted to get revenge for his people to the point of basically kickstarting the apocalypse), managed to make him sympathetic. True, some of what he does in the episode is fuel for the nightmares, to say the least (such as when they find the mangled bodies of people on the submarine), but when he talks about being (seemingly) the last of his kind, and about his daughter possibly being dead (or, as he puts it, "dust"), one almost feels really, honestly bad for him. I also like the scenes of him being oddly charming, such as when the Captain is pointing a gun at him, and he compliments the Captain if only from negotiating from a position of strength (though meanwhile I was just like, "For the love of God, Captain; don't shoot him, just let the Doctor try and talk him down." Yeah, I know). He may be incredibly ruthless (for example, the matter of tearing apart human bodies to learn about physiology, which for all intents and purposes, I'm glad we didn't actually see the bodies being torn apart. I think it's more powerful to kind of leave it to the imagination. What our imagination can dream up can sometimes be scarier than any monster), but at the same time, he can be gracious in a way, and I don't think that graciousness is dishonest either. And I loved that scene in the room with the missiles when the Doctor's trying to talk him down to keep him from firing the missiles that would ultimately...well, he would end up destroying the world. I think what's terrifying about what Skaldak is doing is that he justifies it as a sort of eye-for-an-eye thing; his people are (seemingly) dead, and so the people of Earth are forfeit. I think my only real problem with it is the fact that...well, from what I can gather, Earth didn't really have much to do with it, so...why Earth? But then again, I suppose that he was so blinded by revenge and grief that it didn't really realize it. I also really liked how it was ultimately Clara who talked him down -- I think this is the third time or so that Clara has just been completely awesome. Seriously. Just appealing to his sense of compassion, saying that, basically, that he was capable of compassion, because he couldn't kill the Professor. And mentioning the price to be paid if the missiles actually go off, how many people are going to lose their lives, how they are going to lose their fathers, mothers, sons, daughters -- and it's really the mentioning of his daughter that gets Skaldak to ultimately falter. The Doctor was all too willing to blow up everyone on the submarine if only to save the universe (a nice little nod to a prominent theme in the RTD era, such as with "Journey's End"), but it was really Clara who got to ultimately talk down Skaldak from setting off the missiles.
I also really liked, much earlier, the matter of Clara and Skaldak talking whilst Skaldak was chained up, how Clara was trying to talk to him, and Skaldak asking her that if they mean him no harm, why is he in chains? I confess, also, that him sending out a distress signal for his brothers to find him (that's what he says, "Find me, my brothers. If you are still out there. Find me.". Yeah...ouch), as well as his subsequent despair when he believes that they're all dead...yeah, that was pretty ouch, really. Not to mention his grief over his daughter, who fought by his side in battle, believing her to be dead as well. I really liked how Mark Gatiss, who wrote the episode, took this character and gave him reasons for his actions, emotions behind his actions. It's really something that I've always admired in DOCTOR WHO, how the writers take villainous characters and make them not only understandable, but even sympathetic. The Master is one example, really, as is Ms. Kizler (because true, what she was doing was wrong, but in the end, she was as much a victim as everyone else. Probably because she wasn't even the real villain behind all this -- it was the Great Intelligence, in the end. But even putting that aside...yeah), and Skaldak is another.
I know there were some who said that Skaldak reminded them a lot of an Ice Warrior Captain America, but if nothing else (though I can see the resemblance), he actually reminded me of a mix of Scorpius from FARSCAPE, Nero from the new STAR TREK movie, and Khan, both old and new, from both WRATH OF KHAN and INTO DARKNESS. I can't even say why; he just did. Mostly in the sense, in the case of the latter examples, being willing to destroy whatever he could if only to get revenge on humanity, except unlike Nero, he actually manages to get talked down, and even deactivate the missiles before leaving.
And I also liked when he ultimately found his people again -- he may have been ruthless, but in the end, all he really wanted, really, was to be reunited with his "brothers".
It also helped that Nicholas Briggs (yes, that is Nicholas Briggs) gave a really fantastic sort of voice for Skaldak -- a sort of rumbling Ian McKellen voice. And the design for Skaldak -- the armor, for example, and the teeth and all that...yeah, that was absolutely amazing.
And I also really loved the Doctor in this one -- I confess I actually saw a lot of his behavior in "The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood" seeping through, mostly in regards to trying to find a way to talk down Skaldak and avoid bloodshed (not to mention a bit of the Tenth Doctor in him as well, such as when he pulls that Don't Make Me Destroy You on Skaldak). That was really an awesome scene. Not to mention...actually, there were a lot of callbacks to the Tenth Doctor's era to be perfectly honest. The Doctor's speech, for example, to Skaldak begging for leniency towards the people of Earth, saying basically that they're like children compared to other beings. It really mirrors when the Ninth Doctor tried to negotiate with the Nestene consciousness in "Rose", as well as the man in charge of GUINEVERE ONE trying to negotiate with the Sycorax leader in "The Christmas Invasion". In fact, there was even a callback to "The Unquiet Dead" with Eleven explaining to Clara how much time is in flux. So yeah, awesome callbacks. I just love the callbacks in DOCTOR WHO; they're such a small detail, but they help sort of tie the show together and give it plenty of meaning when you dig deeper. Which...yeah, I love doing.
I also really, really loved the crew of the submarine -- the Captain, for example, as well as the Professor; he was incredibly awesome. Him asking Clara about if ultravox split up, for example. And him shooting at Skaldak before he manages to snatch Clara. And...honestly, I think the Professor might have been one of my favorites. Also really, really liked Clara in this episode. Trying to negotiate with Skaldak, for one thing (seriously, she was really brave, and I live how she ultimately helped in getting Skaldak to back down and not fire the missiles) as well as her shock over finding the mangled bodies and commenting on how "real" it really is (poor Clara. *Hugs her*) ...yeah, she was just all around great in this episode and I have a feeling that she's going to get even better!
I also really liked that sort of claustrophobic, creepy feeling of the submarine -- the fact that it's falling quickly, not to mention Skaldak's claws just sort of reaching down and snatching any unlucky bastard who happens to be at the wrong place at the wrong time, as well as him sort of crawling about -- sort of like the film ALIEN (complete with someone actually dragging the frozen Skaldak on board), the feeling of dread -- I think that it's something I really, honestly loved about this episode, amongst other things. Also, when the Doctor and Clara stumble onto the submarine dressed for Vegas (they were intending on going to Vegas that day) -- the way the Doctor says "Viva Las Vegas!" as they stumble out is just priceless. Also, the professor's ignorance of the term karaoke. Also, when they're searching the Doctor and find a Barbie in his pocket. And the ending, with the "can you give us a lift?" (let's say that the Doctor activated the Screw This I'm Out Of Here sort of protocol for the TARDIS when things started going a little wrong and the TARDIS is at the South Pole. Oops), everyone cracking up (except the Doctor, who sort of sarcastically joins in) while the spaceship carrying the Ice Warriors just flies off. Honestly, the entire episode was really good. Only real problem was when it ended.
So overall? Loved it. I suppose that making it a two-parter would have also worked if only to provide more time to sort of build up the threat of the Ice Warrior and the ultimate payoff, but really? Damn good episode. Definitely recommended.
First off, I really loved the Ice Warrior himself, Skaldak -- I really liked how Gatiss himself took a character like Skaldak and, in the midst of him being absolutely terrifying (which, quite honestly, he was -- that scene where he strangles the guy that unfroze him was absolutely scary as shit, as well as just how much he wanted to get revenge for his people to the point of basically kickstarting the apocalypse), managed to make him sympathetic. True, some of what he does in the episode is fuel for the nightmares, to say the least (such as when they find the mangled bodies of people on the submarine), but when he talks about being (seemingly) the last of his kind, and about his daughter possibly being dead (or, as he puts it, "dust"), one almost feels really, honestly bad for him. I also like the scenes of him being oddly charming, such as when the Captain is pointing a gun at him, and he compliments the Captain if only from negotiating from a position of strength (though meanwhile I was just like, "For the love of God, Captain; don't shoot him, just let the Doctor try and talk him down." Yeah, I know). He may be incredibly ruthless (for example, the matter of tearing apart human bodies to learn about physiology, which for all intents and purposes, I'm glad we didn't actually see the bodies being torn apart. I think it's more powerful to kind of leave it to the imagination. What our imagination can dream up can sometimes be scarier than any monster), but at the same time, he can be gracious in a way, and I don't think that graciousness is dishonest either. And I loved that scene in the room with the missiles when the Doctor's trying to talk him down to keep him from firing the missiles that would ultimately...well, he would end up destroying the world. I think what's terrifying about what Skaldak is doing is that he justifies it as a sort of eye-for-an-eye thing; his people are (seemingly) dead, and so the people of Earth are forfeit. I think my only real problem with it is the fact that...well, from what I can gather, Earth didn't really have much to do with it, so...why Earth? But then again, I suppose that he was so blinded by revenge and grief that it didn't really realize it. I also really liked how it was ultimately Clara who talked him down -- I think this is the third time or so that Clara has just been completely awesome. Seriously. Just appealing to his sense of compassion, saying that, basically, that he was capable of compassion, because he couldn't kill the Professor. And mentioning the price to be paid if the missiles actually go off, how many people are going to lose their lives, how they are going to lose their fathers, mothers, sons, daughters -- and it's really the mentioning of his daughter that gets Skaldak to ultimately falter. The Doctor was all too willing to blow up everyone on the submarine if only to save the universe (a nice little nod to a prominent theme in the RTD era, such as with "Journey's End"), but it was really Clara who got to ultimately talk down Skaldak from setting off the missiles.
I also really liked, much earlier, the matter of Clara and Skaldak talking whilst Skaldak was chained up, how Clara was trying to talk to him, and Skaldak asking her that if they mean him no harm, why is he in chains? I confess, also, that him sending out a distress signal for his brothers to find him (that's what he says, "Find me, my brothers. If you are still out there. Find me.". Yeah...ouch), as well as his subsequent despair when he believes that they're all dead...yeah, that was pretty ouch, really. Not to mention his grief over his daughter, who fought by his side in battle, believing her to be dead as well. I really liked how Mark Gatiss, who wrote the episode, took this character and gave him reasons for his actions, emotions behind his actions. It's really something that I've always admired in DOCTOR WHO, how the writers take villainous characters and make them not only understandable, but even sympathetic. The Master is one example, really, as is Ms. Kizler (because true, what she was doing was wrong, but in the end, she was as much a victim as everyone else. Probably because she wasn't even the real villain behind all this -- it was the Great Intelligence, in the end. But even putting that aside...yeah), and Skaldak is another.
I know there were some who said that Skaldak reminded them a lot of an Ice Warrior Captain America, but if nothing else (though I can see the resemblance), he actually reminded me of a mix of Scorpius from FARSCAPE, Nero from the new STAR TREK movie, and Khan, both old and new, from both WRATH OF KHAN and INTO DARKNESS. I can't even say why; he just did. Mostly in the sense, in the case of the latter examples, being willing to destroy whatever he could if only to get revenge on humanity, except unlike Nero, he actually manages to get talked down, and even deactivate the missiles before leaving.
And I also liked when he ultimately found his people again -- he may have been ruthless, but in the end, all he really wanted, really, was to be reunited with his "brothers".
It also helped that Nicholas Briggs (yes, that is Nicholas Briggs) gave a really fantastic sort of voice for Skaldak -- a sort of rumbling Ian McKellen voice. And the design for Skaldak -- the armor, for example, and the teeth and all that...yeah, that was absolutely amazing.
And I also really loved the Doctor in this one -- I confess I actually saw a lot of his behavior in "The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood" seeping through, mostly in regards to trying to find a way to talk down Skaldak and avoid bloodshed (not to mention a bit of the Tenth Doctor in him as well, such as when he pulls that Don't Make Me Destroy You on Skaldak). That was really an awesome scene. Not to mention...actually, there were a lot of callbacks to the Tenth Doctor's era to be perfectly honest. The Doctor's speech, for example, to Skaldak begging for leniency towards the people of Earth, saying basically that they're like children compared to other beings. It really mirrors when the Ninth Doctor tried to negotiate with the Nestene consciousness in "Rose", as well as the man in charge of GUINEVERE ONE trying to negotiate with the Sycorax leader in "The Christmas Invasion". In fact, there was even a callback to "The Unquiet Dead" with Eleven explaining to Clara how much time is in flux. So yeah, awesome callbacks. I just love the callbacks in DOCTOR WHO; they're such a small detail, but they help sort of tie the show together and give it plenty of meaning when you dig deeper. Which...yeah, I love doing.
I also really, really loved the crew of the submarine -- the Captain, for example, as well as the Professor; he was incredibly awesome. Him asking Clara about if ultravox split up, for example. And him shooting at Skaldak before he manages to snatch Clara. And...honestly, I think the Professor might have been one of my favorites. Also really, really liked Clara in this episode. Trying to negotiate with Skaldak, for one thing (seriously, she was really brave, and I live how she ultimately helped in getting Skaldak to back down and not fire the missiles) as well as her shock over finding the mangled bodies and commenting on how "real" it really is (poor Clara. *Hugs her*) ...yeah, she was just all around great in this episode and I have a feeling that she's going to get even better!
I also really liked that sort of claustrophobic, creepy feeling of the submarine -- the fact that it's falling quickly, not to mention Skaldak's claws just sort of reaching down and snatching any unlucky bastard who happens to be at the wrong place at the wrong time, as well as him sort of crawling about -- sort of like the film ALIEN (complete with someone actually dragging the frozen Skaldak on board), the feeling of dread -- I think that it's something I really, honestly loved about this episode, amongst other things. Also, when the Doctor and Clara stumble onto the submarine dressed for Vegas (they were intending on going to Vegas that day) -- the way the Doctor says "Viva Las Vegas!" as they stumble out is just priceless. Also, the professor's ignorance of the term karaoke. Also, when they're searching the Doctor and find a Barbie in his pocket. And the ending, with the "can you give us a lift?" (let's say that the Doctor activated the Screw This I'm Out Of Here sort of protocol for the TARDIS when things started going a little wrong and the TARDIS is at the South Pole. Oops), everyone cracking up (except the Doctor, who sort of sarcastically joins in) while the spaceship carrying the Ice Warriors just flies off. Honestly, the entire episode was really good. Only real problem was when it ended.
So overall? Loved it. I suppose that making it a two-parter would have also worked if only to provide more time to sort of build up the threat of the Ice Warrior and the ultimate payoff, but really? Damn good episode. Definitely recommended.