New Who 6.11, The God Complex

[strange_complex]

I should have posted this review nearly two weeks ago now, but was feeling very sluggish at the time, thanks to what ms_siobhan calls 'the ladygrims', and just didn't have the surplus brain-power while also greeting new students and finishing articles. I seem to be back to normal now, but still had to prioritise my article until I knew I had managed to meet

Comments

[parrot_knight]

Absence of emotional weight is really felt in this half-series. We are skating dangerously close to Time-Flight territory, where Adric's death is dealt with in a perfunctory manner.

[strange_complex]

Yes, indeed. In fact, in some ways the writers of the Fifth Doctor era did a better job of dealing with emotional weight than Moffat's team are at the moment. At least Tegan's eventual departure in Resurrection of the Daleks was linked with the traumatic experiences she had had while travelling with the Doctor. Russell T. Davies has changed the game, making us expect a far greater degree of emotional impact and plausibility than we ever got in the Classic series - and now that that change has been made, going backwards feels like a loss. The only way this season's long arc can now be redeemed in my eyes is if the finale includes the Doctor saying something along the lines of "Didn't you think it was strange that you never experienced any real grief when you lost your baby? Aha, well, that was because X, Y and Z mysterious alien forces were at work!", and then sorting it all out. I don't see much indication that that's going to happen, though.

[kernowgirl]

I enjoyed it very much, but agree about Rita, who was definitely a character that you didn't want to die. I did wish the doctor was serious when he fired Amy upon meeting Rita!

One of the things that struck me was that the doctor insisted early on that nobody else was dying--all part of the god complex, of course, but there's been at least a few instances where he's said that in the series (or promised a specific person that they wouldn't die), and he's been right, to the point that I was beginning to roll my eyes at it. Nice to see that trope lampshaded and killed off!

[strange_complex]

Yes, that's true about the 'nobody dies' trope, although he isn't always right when he says it. I'm pretty sure he makes a similar promise early on in Voyage of the Damned, but then most of the people he's making it to do die, including Astrid. But yes - at this point in the series, where the story obviously required him to lose faith in his own ability to save people, that was certainly an effective way of doing it.

[steepholm]

Do we know that it isn't the end when he parks Amy and Rory? I'm not up on the goss.

Perhaps the apple is this Doctor's emblematic fruit? Nine had potassium-rich bananas, of course - but I'll leave it to you to fill in the blanks...

[strange_complex]

Yes - cast lists and promo pics show that they're in tonight's finale. Besides, it hardly felt like the 'real' goodbyes which we have seen with Rose, Martha and Donna (some of which themselves later turned out not to be so final after all).

An apple a day keeps the Doctor away, of course - so maybe it is also another foreshadowing of his coming 'end' (which won't be, of course).

[steepholm]

Malus aforethought...

[strange_complex]

Oh, you get a very big gold STAR for that: ★

Latin pun-making on a Saturday morning! There should definitely be a medal.

[maviscruet]

I have to say this was one of my favourite episodes for a while - I really enjoyed it. It was creepy, strange, and rather messed up.

The thing is I'm rather enjoying the "lack of emotional weight" compared to the later tennet era which made me role my eyes and go "Oh COME ON!" a lot.

My only problem with the series is that somehow I arranged to do something right over dr who this evening.... god bless iplayer what I say. Oh and I'd say Moffet has almost Lucas levels to disapoint with this climax. He's built up to it for 11 episodes if it's not a) a twist and b) something that has been referenced before I'll be upset..... So he's got a hard job ahead of him.

[ms_siobhan]

Do you know I dislike Amy almost as much as I dislike the ladygrims ;-)

I did watch bits of the cyberman one last week (I was in and out of the kitchen) and I was heartily cheered that neither Amy or Rory were in any of the bits I saw. I quite liked the scarey cyber mouse thing too.