Doctor Who: War of the Sontarans (The Flux 2)
In we learn what the Crimean War shares with Liverpool.
Thanks, BBC, for teaching me about another fasccinating woman I had not known about. (Note to self: must read Mary Seacole's memoirs one day.) Sara Powell playing her exudes warmth and charisma, too, so I hope I'll see her in other things now. Incidentally, my knowledge of the Crmean War is extremely limited anyway, along the lines of "isn't "Charge of the Light Brigade" set there?", and since this is one of the very few things I do remember, I wasn't surprised when the commanding officer promptly engaged a superior force stupidly. Mind you, it did occur to me that by replacing the Russians with the Sontarans, Chibnall spared himself having to let the Doctor (or anyone else) have to explain what the Crimean War was actually about, why Britain teamed up with the French and the Ottoman Empire against Russia, and avoids having to design one side as good, given that Sontarans invading Earth are clearly in the wrong.
Now Sontarans, en masse, aren't among the interesting DW aliens, though individual members (especially when hanging out in either the spin-offs or with Madam Vastra and Jenny, hello there, Strax) can be, but "also, I wanted to ride a horse" did work on me the way it was intended, and as foils to 19th century imperialists go, well, if the boot fits. In the 20th century, hey offered Dan a good chance to learn the art of invasion fighting, and it did crack me up that conquering Earth starts in Liverpool. (About time that London and the US stop being the eternal hotspots.) Though Karvanista is still my favourite element of the Dan storyline. They better not kill him at the end of this six parter, is what I'm saying. May he growl and snarkily rescue humans forever more.
Yaz and Vinder's subplot at the Temple of Atropos where they run into new Big Bads Swarm and Azure was by far the most creepy and tense part of the episode. (Mythological footnote: Atropos was the one of the three Fates who cut the string symbolizing a human's life.) Here's my current speculation: given that Azure spent some time fobwatched transformed into a human (with the human personality not knowing anything about this), I wonder whether this is true of Swarm as well, and that's why, in a timey-wimey way, he knows about Yaz and her handpalm inscription. I.e. at some point in his personal past, but Yaz' future, he was transformed into a human and the human he was /will be befriended Yaz. (After all, Azure's human self was entirely different from her current personality as well.) Which would mean either Vinder or Dan, or the bearded historical Brit briefly around in last and this episode whose function in the story has yet to be explained. But maybe I'm overthinking this and he just knows the way the Master usually knows a lot about the Doctor's Companions.
Inconsistency, thy name is Chibnall: look, if you want your episode to contain another example of the Doctor pissed off because a human kills a retreating enemy (as both the Brig and Harriet Smith did in different DW eras), you can't have her approve of another human (and space dog) blowing up yet more enemies. (Who, granted, weren't retreating, but still.) Either, or, is what I'm saying.
All in all another entertaining hour, and I remain curious about the overall connection. (Beyond: "The Sontarans saw an opportunity with the Flux but didn't cause it.") This entry was originally posted at https://selenak.dreamwidth.org/1465486.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.
Thanks, BBC, for teaching me about another fasccinating woman I had not known about. (Note to self: must read Mary Seacole's memoirs one day.) Sara Powell playing her exudes warmth and charisma, too, so I hope I'll see her in other things now. Incidentally, my knowledge of the Crmean War is extremely limited anyway, along the lines of "isn't "Charge of the Light Brigade" set there?", and since this is one of the very few things I do remember, I wasn't surprised when the commanding officer promptly engaged a superior force stupidly. Mind you, it did occur to me that by replacing the Russians with the Sontarans, Chibnall spared himself having to let the Doctor (or anyone else) have to explain what the Crimean War was actually about, why Britain teamed up with the French and the Ottoman Empire against Russia, and avoids having to design one side as good, given that Sontarans invading Earth are clearly in the wrong.
Now Sontarans, en masse, aren't among the interesting DW aliens, though individual members (especially when hanging out in either the spin-offs or with Madam Vastra and Jenny, hello there, Strax) can be, but "also, I wanted to ride a horse" did work on me the way it was intended, and as foils to 19th century imperialists go, well, if the boot fits. In the 20th century, hey offered Dan a good chance to learn the art of invasion fighting, and it did crack me up that conquering Earth starts in Liverpool. (About time that London and the US stop being the eternal hotspots.) Though Karvanista is still my favourite element of the Dan storyline. They better not kill him at the end of this six parter, is what I'm saying. May he growl and snarkily rescue humans forever more.
Yaz and Vinder's subplot at the Temple of Atropos where they run into new Big Bads Swarm and Azure was by far the most creepy and tense part of the episode. (Mythological footnote: Atropos was the one of the three Fates who cut the string symbolizing a human's life.) Here's my current speculation: given that Azure spent some time fobwatched transformed into a human (with the human personality not knowing anything about this), I wonder whether this is true of Swarm as well, and that's why, in a timey-wimey way, he knows about Yaz and her handpalm inscription. I.e. at some point in his personal past, but Yaz' future, he was transformed into a human and the human he was /will be befriended Yaz. (After all, Azure's human self was entirely different from her current personality as well.) Which would mean either Vinder or Dan, or the bearded historical Brit briefly around in last and this episode whose function in the story has yet to be explained. But maybe I'm overthinking this and he just knows the way the Master usually knows a lot about the Doctor's Companions.
Inconsistency, thy name is Chibnall: look, if you want your episode to contain another example of the Doctor pissed off because a human kills a retreating enemy (as both the Brig and Harriet Smith did in different DW eras), you can't have her approve of another human (and space dog) blowing up yet more enemies. (Who, granted, weren't retreating, but still.) Either, or, is what I'm saying.
All in all another entertaining hour, and I remain curious about the overall connection. (Beyond: "The Sontarans saw an opportunity with the Flux but didn't cause it.") This entry was originally posted at https://selenak.dreamwidth.org/1465486.html. Comment there or here, as you wish.