akeyoftime: (doctor)
[personal profile] akeyoftime
Christmas was really low-key and really excellent this year. I'm hoping for a similar repeat in 2008!

I sometimes get so caught up in the fandom and the meta that I get away from the show itself and while this wasn't amazing, it was a pretty decent turn-out and it's nice to touch base with fresh source material again. I'm not sure the "disaster movie" theme wasn't a little over-reaching, the bits in the middle when Davies was killing off passengers bit by bit felt strained and more than a little awkward, but it didn't kill my enjoyment of the script either.

I kind of wanted the Doctor to ask Alonzo along as a companion. Okay, so maybe he was more on the side of archetype rather than full-fledged character, but I liked him well enough and I think I would have enjoyed his stuttering and stammering as he tried to deal with the Doctor's recklessness and disregard for the rules. Maybe it was the fact that he wasn't particularly developed that gives him tremendous potential to grow into something really interesting.

Amusing bits and bobs: mis-representations of the Earth, the first scene in London, "Allons-y, Alonzo!", the giddy grin accompanying "Take me to your leader." and Astrid's use of the med kit to reach the Doctor to kiss him, which was adorable.

"But if you could decide, if you could choose, Doctor, who lives and who dies, that would make you a monster."
Which strikes an interesting note with Donna's comments about right and wrong from the trailer at the end of the episode. And even more eerily, with his reply! The Doctor is generally supposed to be "good", but the Tenth in particular is a getting a bit wrangy sometimes, isn't he? Then again, there's no one but human companions who've been in love with him to keep him in check for some years now. And people do keep calling him 'The Lonely God'. The Doctor really needs someone to be properly accountable to, just like Donna told us in "The Runaway Bride". I wonder if the fourth series will play with that idea beyond that line, which seems fairly easily dismissed by the Doctor.

I've also finished The Sarah Jane Adventures, which was expectedly excellent (especially "Whatever Happened to Sarah Jane" - I think Alan is officially my favourite) and a bunch of First Doctor stories. "The War Machines" wasn't bad (lame character write-out, but Polly and Ben did pretty well for a first go-around and I loved the classic sci-fi theme of 'intelligent computer goes bad', which sounds like a spoiler, but seriously, all you have to do is pay attention and you understand what's coming), "The Daleks" is unexpectedly good, each episode actually being rather satisfying on its own. Susan has delighted and surprised me, all of the companions have. I am pretty much still in love with Barabara and am falling pretty hard for Ian too. "The Keys to Marinus" was a story I'd started some months ago and enjoyed and it didn't let me down all that much on conclusion either. It surprised me in a few pleasant ways.

Date: 2007-12-26 11:21 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] raincloudboy.livejournal.com
really the best thing about this episode was kylie minogue in a maid's outfit for an hour.


also is it just me or are all Dr Who villains hilarious? the daleks, the Host in this episode... I mean. all the buildup and suspense and explosions and mystery in the show are scary, and then when you actually get to whatever's trying to kill them, I just laugh.

Date: 2007-12-26 08:07 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] akeyoftime.livejournal.com
I thought Minogue was pretty adorable throughout and I loved the boots.

Doctor Who villains to tend to be hilarious. Oh noez! A giant pepper pot is after me! With a plunger! (They're even funnier in Old Who because they wobble around when they move.) Cassandra the Skin was a pretty lulz villain too.

Date: 2007-12-26 11:01 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] raincloudboy.livejournal.com
well it saves me from having to hide under the couch when Dr Who is on, because I tend to find the show terrifying aside from the actual villains. :P

Date: 2007-12-26 06:40 pm (UTC)
yubsie: (Adorkable)
From: [personal profile] yubsie
Yeah, going all Poseidon Adventure in the middle was kinda depressing, but it was still quite a fun little special.

Ten has Issues. :p

Date: 2007-12-26 08:09 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] akeyoftime.livejournal.com
Have I ever mentioned how much I hate The Poseidon Adventure? I really do.

I felt kind of badly for Astrid, but you knew she was in trouble within the first ten minutes, when she's presented as a kindred traveler soul to the Doctor.

Date: 2007-12-27 12:10 am (UTC)
yubsie: (Default)
From: [personal profile] yubsie
It's a bit gloomy. :p

No one who connects strongly to the Doctor and is played by a big popstar is going to get to live. :p

Date: 2007-12-27 08:17 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] rufas.livejournal.com
I think it would be nice to have a male companion to balance things out, I get rather fed up with the "romance" story lines that RTD tends to throw in (I was rather glad to see Rose go for example). I think that the christmas special was true to classic doctor who form (in terms of silly) though I did like the silly lines the doctor does. As for the darkness if you look at some of the classic doctor who you see some dark behaviour from the doctor (espicially from the 7th one). Enough rambling from me, in short entertaining episode but not a great one.

Date: 2007-12-27 09:08 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] akeyoftime.livejournal.com
I agree with pretty much everything you've said. And if the next companion falls in love with the Doctor, I will be very annoyed, but still a fan. It's like Davies feels the need to balance out 26 years of (more or less) asexuality in one go. (Though I hear the dynamic between Two and Jamie and Four and Romana are debatable!)

The Seventh Doctor is, in some ways, the Tenth Doctor done right. I know they're not the same character, but Seven does dark so much better. At any rate, he's the original manipulative orally-fixated Scottish Doctor :P (He's seen licking to analyse in at least one serial.)

Date: 2007-12-27 09:58 pm (UTC)
From: [identity profile] rufas.livejournal.com
hehe so if they do the whole romantic thing then a huge transadlatic groan will be set off. Thinking of oral testing reminds me of the 4th doctor testing gravity using a yo-yo!

Date: 2007-12-28 12:58 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] rufas.livejournal.com
btw you may like this

http://www.stage6.com/user/SIMMLING/video/1860620/DOCTOR-WHO--TIME-CRASH--CHILDREN-IN-NEED-SPECIAL

:)

Date: 2007-12-28 01:37 am (UTC)
From: [identity profile] akeyoftime.livejournal.com
Time Crash was excellent. It's still tucked away on some corner of my harddrive. I've only seen one of the Davison era serials (well, most of Planet of Fire), as well as The Five Doctors, but it was still fun to see a multi-doctor story. I'd still love to see Eccleston come back for one, though that's extremely unlikely!

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