So, I just saw the Doctor Who Season Eight premiere, "Deep Breath".
This was a pretty special episode, really, considering that before it aired, we had a bit of a pre-showing with Chris Hardwicke (who I can't say I was very familiar with; it wasn't until later I realized, "Wait, I saw this guy in Rob Zombie's Halloween II!" Yes, I watched that movie; don't judge me. XD), who gave us some background on the previous doctors, which was really neat (I think my only real gripe was that they skipped Five and Six when discussing the Doctors, as well as the War Doctor, which was kind of weird) and it was pretty cool seeing him in general, just how excited he was about the season premiere. Wil Wheaton was actually on there too to sort of speculate about what kind of Doctor Twelve would be, and he kind of expected/hoped that Twelve would be a bit more alien in nature, etc. Which, I don't mind my more human-ish Doctors -- Ten is one of my personal favorites, after all, and I would argue he's the Doctor with the most human qualities -- but I can see his point. And we got a glimpse at some interviews with Jenna Louise Coleman and Peter Capaldi, which was also cool, discussing their dynamic, working together, etc. (Also, Peter Capaldi's really kind of soft-spoken and polite and really laid-back. It's pretty unusual considering how vibrant his Doctor is) And the viewing experience itself was enjoyable; I mean, there were the damn commercials, but I guess it's something you have to live with when you're watching something live on television. (They're showing more interview stuff at eleven, but I'm thinking I need to go to bed later. I already fucked up my sleep schedule by staying up until two in the morning; I don't need to fuck it up further)
As for the episode itself? Well, it was weird, I will freely admit, but overall, it was pretty enjoyable!
The really interesting thing about this episode is the way it starts out -- a T-Rex rampaging around London. That's definitely a way to get your audience's attention, if nothing else. And the revelation that it swallowed the TARDIS. And the fact that the Doctor's not handling regeneration well -- the fact that it's the first in a new cycle may definitely have something to do with it, especially considering that they basically completely rebooted it. And while Twelve's confusion over it is really funny, in a way (such as his confusion about bedrooms, confusing people for other people, etc.), it did also get me worried, just sort of like, "Holy shit, what's happening to the Doctor?" Luckily, the man recovered over the course of the episode, managing to snap into action. And I have to say, Peter Capaldi...I was right. He just completely nails the role. He gets the comedy down (like his post-regeneration confusion), the manic energy down (him scrawling math equations all over the bedroom comes to mind, as well as certain mannerisms), the hints of his previous incarnation seeping through even though he is fundamentally a different man, he gets the intensity down (his fury after the dinosaur is killed comes to mind, as well as him tossing the half-cyborg half-human out of the ship. *), the presence (I think the mark of a good Doctor, among many, is that he commands attention whenever he's onscreen. Eccleston, Hurt, Tennant, Smith...it's safe that Capaldi's stepping into their shoes comfortably), the slight quirky (for lack of a better word. The scene when he's talking with that one man on the street about faces comes to mind, which gets a bit of an echo later when he says to the Half Face Man (according to the TARDIS wiki, that's his name. Thank you, TARDIS Wiki. Also, on another note, he kind of reminds me a bit of the Great Intelligence's human form, which was pretty creepy), "You don't know what your old face looked like."), the vulnerability, the hints of darkness (I admit, him pushing the Half Face Man out of the ship was pretty chilling, especially the shot of him impaled. And earlier, his rant about how far he would go to protect the human race, which is an odd mix of sweet and terrifying. It's definitely Capaldi's delivery), the way with words (I know, for instance, offering the Half-Face Man a drink before he killed him was a pretty effective scene and kind of chilling, but I feel it was an intentional chilling. Thing about the Doctor is that if he ever acts chilling, I think the writers are very much in on it. They know what they're doing. Which definitely makes it refreshing from the writers-who-don't-know-their-heroes-really-aren't-good-people. **)...he's just absolutely brilliant. I already knew he would do wonderfully from seeing him in "Fires of Pompeii" and Torchwood: Children of Earth, but he definitely killed the role here.
Clara was pretty good in this episode as well. I did get a little irked at her reaction to Twelve's regeneration (it didn't help with her comment about how old he looked, although I guess for someone who had witnessed her first regeneration -- as in actual regeneration and not just meeting the Doctor's previous selves -- it must have been a shock) but thinking about it, it's understandable. And I liked her turning the tables on the Half Face Man by saying that he can't threaten her life, she won't answer his questions, and he needs to answer her questions. She does express terror at times, but she tries to not let it control her, and me? I think that's awesome. Not to mention her back and forth with the Doctor worked very well, both in the "restaurant" and the bit of conflict near the end. Jenna Louise-Coleman and Peter Capaldi worked really well together.
I also liked Vastra, Jenny and Strax. I liked Vastra giving Clara some much-needed advice (and her talk about the "veil" was one of my favorite parts in the episode, if only because of how wonderfully Neve McIntosh handled the speech), and I liked the interaction between Vastra and Jenny in the episode, such as when Jenny is having trouble holding her breath to blend in with the Clockwork Robots (because they don't breathe, and holding your breath is one of the only ways to get past them. More on that later. And yes, they are the same guys from "The Girl In The Fireplace" -- pretty cool seeing them again), and Vastra urges her to hold on, and kisses her. There's something about the way the scene was executed that was a really lovely, touching moment. And Strax was wonderful as always, such as his medical examination of Clara -- that was another great scene.
And the concept of the episode...yeah, I am aware that to some, it would sound ridiculous, but it actually lends itself to some pretty suspenseful scenes, such as when Clara has to try holding her breath to sneak past the robots, like one wrong move and they'll realize that she's human and attack her. And of course, it ends up failing because Clara can't hold her breath long enough and collapses -- and is brought to the Half-Face Man. And Strax trying to hold his breath to hold off being stabbed by those things, and the blades are just creeping closer and closer. Yeah, those were pretty chilling scenes, and quite suspenseful. Silly-sounding concept, execution is far better than it sounds. And the scene with Clara and Twelve in the restaurant-that's-not-a-restaurant, because it turns out to be a spaceship home to the robots -- there's something eerie about Clara and Twelve talking in the restaurant, and realizing the other guests aren't quite what they seem. And I liked the matter of the villains, while doing bad things, having a pitiable aspect to them as well, especially the Half-Face Man, who, as Twelve puts it, has put so many human parts in him that he's starting to take on certain human traits. And I liked the moment where the Half-Face Man points out to the Doctor that they're really not that different; that was a pretty powerful scene.
I also liked Eleven's last message to Clara (it was a very poignant scene, although not without its moments of humor, such as Eleven praying he won't be old -- which, too late, Eleven. XD -- and very human in its way. And necessary for Clara to hear) and Twelve's ending speech as he regains his memories of who he is. I especially loved his vow that he'll start making things right. I don't know, I found that very lovely.
Honestly, it was a great episode. It had its faults and its moments of not making sense, but it was still very enjoyable. Glad I saw it, commercials aside, and I can't wait for the next episode!
* Although in the end, apparently the Half-Face Man found the Promised Land. It's a bit unclear as to what happened exactly, but I guess he found heaven.
** I'm certain you can think up your own examples.
So overall? Great episode. Definitely recommended. Is it perfect? No. But it was still very fun to watch.
And I better get some sleep. Night, everyone.
As for the episode itself? Well, it was weird, I will freely admit, but overall, it was pretty enjoyable!
The really interesting thing about this episode is the way it starts out -- a T-Rex rampaging around London. That's definitely a way to get your audience's attention, if nothing else. And the revelation that it swallowed the TARDIS. And the fact that the Doctor's not handling regeneration well -- the fact that it's the first in a new cycle may definitely have something to do with it, especially considering that they basically completely rebooted it. And while Twelve's confusion over it is really funny, in a way (such as his confusion about bedrooms, confusing people for other people, etc.), it did also get me worried, just sort of like, "Holy shit, what's happening to the Doctor?" Luckily, the man recovered over the course of the episode, managing to snap into action. And I have to say, Peter Capaldi...I was right. He just completely nails the role. He gets the comedy down (like his post-regeneration confusion), the manic energy down (him scrawling math equations all over the bedroom comes to mind, as well as certain mannerisms), the hints of his previous incarnation seeping through even though he is fundamentally a different man, he gets the intensity down (his fury after the dinosaur is killed comes to mind, as well as him tossing the half-cyborg half-human out of the ship. *), the presence (I think the mark of a good Doctor, among many, is that he commands attention whenever he's onscreen. Eccleston, Hurt, Tennant, Smith...it's safe that Capaldi's stepping into their shoes comfortably), the slight quirky (for lack of a better word. The scene when he's talking with that one man on the street about faces comes to mind, which gets a bit of an echo later when he says to the Half Face Man (according to the TARDIS wiki, that's his name. Thank you, TARDIS Wiki. Also, on another note, he kind of reminds me a bit of the Great Intelligence's human form, which was pretty creepy), "You don't know what your old face looked like."), the vulnerability, the hints of darkness (I admit, him pushing the Half Face Man out of the ship was pretty chilling, especially the shot of him impaled. And earlier, his rant about how far he would go to protect the human race, which is an odd mix of sweet and terrifying. It's definitely Capaldi's delivery), the way with words (I know, for instance, offering the Half-Face Man a drink before he killed him was a pretty effective scene and kind of chilling, but I feel it was an intentional chilling. Thing about the Doctor is that if he ever acts chilling, I think the writers are very much in on it. They know what they're doing. Which definitely makes it refreshing from the writers-who-don't-know-their-heroes-really-aren't-good-people. **)...he's just absolutely brilliant. I already knew he would do wonderfully from seeing him in "Fires of Pompeii" and Torchwood: Children of Earth, but he definitely killed the role here.
Clara was pretty good in this episode as well. I did get a little irked at her reaction to Twelve's regeneration (it didn't help with her comment about how old he looked, although I guess for someone who had witnessed her first regeneration -- as in actual regeneration and not just meeting the Doctor's previous selves -- it must have been a shock) but thinking about it, it's understandable. And I liked her turning the tables on the Half Face Man by saying that he can't threaten her life, she won't answer his questions, and he needs to answer her questions. She does express terror at times, but she tries to not let it control her, and me? I think that's awesome. Not to mention her back and forth with the Doctor worked very well, both in the "restaurant" and the bit of conflict near the end. Jenna Louise-Coleman and Peter Capaldi worked really well together.
I also liked Vastra, Jenny and Strax. I liked Vastra giving Clara some much-needed advice (and her talk about the "veil" was one of my favorite parts in the episode, if only because of how wonderfully Neve McIntosh handled the speech), and I liked the interaction between Vastra and Jenny in the episode, such as when Jenny is having trouble holding her breath to blend in with the Clockwork Robots (because they don't breathe, and holding your breath is one of the only ways to get past them. More on that later. And yes, they are the same guys from "The Girl In The Fireplace" -- pretty cool seeing them again), and Vastra urges her to hold on, and kisses her. There's something about the way the scene was executed that was a really lovely, touching moment. And Strax was wonderful as always, such as his medical examination of Clara -- that was another great scene.
And the concept of the episode...yeah, I am aware that to some, it would sound ridiculous, but it actually lends itself to some pretty suspenseful scenes, such as when Clara has to try holding her breath to sneak past the robots, like one wrong move and they'll realize that she's human and attack her. And of course, it ends up failing because Clara can't hold her breath long enough and collapses -- and is brought to the Half-Face Man. And Strax trying to hold his breath to hold off being stabbed by those things, and the blades are just creeping closer and closer. Yeah, those were pretty chilling scenes, and quite suspenseful. Silly-sounding concept, execution is far better than it sounds. And the scene with Clara and Twelve in the restaurant-that's-not-a-restaurant, because it turns out to be a spaceship home to the robots -- there's something eerie about Clara and Twelve talking in the restaurant, and realizing the other guests aren't quite what they seem. And I liked the matter of the villains, while doing bad things, having a pitiable aspect to them as well, especially the Half-Face Man, who, as Twelve puts it, has put so many human parts in him that he's starting to take on certain human traits. And I liked the moment where the Half-Face Man points out to the Doctor that they're really not that different; that was a pretty powerful scene.
I also liked Eleven's last message to Clara (it was a very poignant scene, although not without its moments of humor, such as Eleven praying he won't be old -- which, too late, Eleven. XD -- and very human in its way. And necessary for Clara to hear) and Twelve's ending speech as he regains his memories of who he is. I especially loved his vow that he'll start making things right. I don't know, I found that very lovely.
Honestly, it was a great episode. It had its faults and its moments of not making sense, but it was still very enjoyable. Glad I saw it, commercials aside, and I can't wait for the next episode!
* Although in the end, apparently the Half-Face Man found the Promised Land. It's a bit unclear as to what happened exactly, but I guess he found heaven.
** I'm certain you can think up your own examples.
So overall? Great episode. Definitely recommended. Is it perfect? No. But it was still very fun to watch.
And I better get some sleep. Night, everyone.