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Doctor Who

Discussion in 'Movies, Music and TV shows' started by Heleor, Apr 12, 2009.

  1. Innomine

    Innomine Alchemist ~ Prestige ~ DLP Supporter

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    Man... what's with the hate in this thread?

    How about we actually talk about Doctor Who instead of just insulting people who are at least sticking to the subject, however wrong or invalid their theories/conjecture may be.

    Now, to follow my own advice and write something about the latest episode...

    I really did feel that the last episode felt far more like one of the filler episodes, such as the pirates one, or venice etc. With a few dabs of plot thrown in of course, and then just a big drama about the doctor dying, and a rather... sudden and not quite believable change of heart from River.

    Really failed to live up to the hype the cliffhanger promised in my opinion. Definitely disappointing.
     
  2. Reuben

    Reuben Squib

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    I think this is the worst of it: A Good Man Goes to War was nothing short of epic, while this episode was just average. It didn't really feel especially connected to the previous episode to me, especially since -- as has already been mentioned -- it was stated that the Doctor would 'rise higher than ever before, but fall so much further'. And really, I didn't see much falling in this episode.

    I also didn't like how Hitler and the entire setting was just kind of shunted aside. It seemed like there was potential for awesome with Time getting screwed up and such, and then the episode ran off in another direction.
     
  3. Shinysavage

    Shinysavage Madman With A Box ~ Prestige ~

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    I've seen this mentioned a few times, and I'm confused; I thought the idea was that he rose higher and then fell at Demon's Run - defeating the troops and the monks in under four minutes and without even firing a shot, but then realising it had all been a trap, and Melody was still kidnapped, not to mention the whole "Shit, I'm making people think I'm a deadly warrior" thing.
     
  4. Kai Shek

    Kai Shek Supreme Mugwump

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    I thought so too. :confused:

    Also, what hype? I saw the promo and it looked decent. I watched the episode, and it was decent. Personally, I think you all hyped it up among yourselves.
     
  5. Joe

    Joe The Reminiscent Exile ~ Prestige ~ DLP Supporter ⭐⭐⭐

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    Yeah, that's probably true. I was expecting something truly magnificent and it just wasn't.

    Again, not a bad episode of the good Doctor, but I wanted more from it. Perhaps it's too early to tell - the overarching plot of this series hasn't come to a conclusion, after all. Maybe with hindsight it will look as epic as it should.
     
  6. Celestin

    Celestin Dimensional Trunk

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  7. Innomine

    Innomine Alchemist ~ Prestige ~ DLP Supporter

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    Well, another rather... disappointing episode I thought. Wasn't horrible... but yeah. I dunno, seemed a bit flat. Preview for the next one seems similar as well.
     
  8. Mordecai

    Mordecai Drunken Scotsman –§ Prestigious §– DLP Supporter

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    Yeah it reverted right back the previous seasons wishy washy, filler style of episode. I imagine that a few things which were mentioned will come up later, but it was all set up and fluff.

    Things I believe will be come up later are

    The nursery rhyme. And the Doctor's off hand comment about them all being in the flesh
     
  9. Scrittore

    Scrittore Groundskeeper

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    To put Night Terrors into context, it was suppose to air as the fourth episode of the season. Before the ganger episodes, hence the flesh reference.

    Moving on, it was a pretty terrible episode I thought. It wasn't scary whatsoever, and the buildup was so slow that by the time we got to the point the episode was mostly over. It didn't work to put it in the second half of the series either, especially since it's a stand-alone episode.

    I would say this was the worst episode of Series six so far, surpassing the Black Spot episode.

    Mark Gatiss as a Who writer has been a mixed bag.
     
  10. Mordecai

    Mordecai Drunken Scotsman –§ Prestigious §– DLP Supporter

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    Any idea why they changed the showing order?
     
  11. Scrittore

    Scrittore Groundskeeper

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    http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Night_Terrors_(Doctor_Who)#Production

    The source for [5] is Doctor Who Magazine.
     
  12. Mordecai

    Mordecai Drunken Scotsman –§ Prestigious §– DLP Supporter

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    Hmmmm, oh well. There's still the other thing to think about though, might come up later. Or it might just be refering to the Lets Kill Hitler episode, which would make Night Terrors pretty much pointless.
     
  13. Covil

    Covil Fourth Year

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    Worst episode since Fear Her. Absolute shit.
     
  14. Necrule Paen

    Necrule Paen DLP Elite DLP Supporter

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    Similar stories too, they should make a policy out of it. If you start your episode pitch with "Like in Fear Her..." think of something else.
     
  15. Abraxas

    Abraxas First Year

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    Good for you. I have a deep phobia of dolls and was close to panic when the guy and Amy were turned into dolls themselves.

    All in all the episode was nice enough, though, and the preview for next week's episode intrigues me.
     
  16. Mordecai

    Mordecai Drunken Scotsman –§ Prestigious §– DLP Supporter

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    Well thats your own fault...
     
  17. Shinysavage

    Shinysavage Madman With A Box ~ Prestige ~

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    I wouldn't say it was awful, but the show can be much better - although that said, I suspect that for a child this would have been much more effective. The dolls were quite creepy, especially when they were singing, and there was some lovely dialogue. Too much build up though, and a rather predictable/twee ending. A solid 3/5.
     
  18. QuaziJoe

    QuaziJoe Dolphin Boy

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    I thought it would be scarier, the peg dolls were properly scary looking. Shame, It never quite delivered on the fear angle.

    Otherwise, it was still good; but I think if this was done as originally scheduled before the flesh episode, then we might all be singing a different tune.

    Next weeks episode might be good. Two Amy's; Rory will get slapped again, and he will be a hero for it.
     
    Last edited: Sep 5, 2011
  19. Inquisition

    Inquisition Canadian Ambassador to Japan DLP Supporter

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    DLP is devoted to stamping out obvious stupidity in the most insulting and hateful ways possible. If you haven't figured that out by now, get out.

    HURR DURR ON TOPIC NOW.


    If this season was a fanfic, we would have given it a maximum of two stars, and deposited it gently at the bottom of the Recycling Bin so we'd never have to put up with its shit again.

    We have our all-powerful Mary Sue in River Song, who happens to be the offspring of two best friends turned lovers. And the Doctor now serves no real purpose than to be the generic cliffhanger that we all must point at during the final few minutes of the episode, and scream, "HOLY SHIT! HOW ARE YOU GOING TO GET OUT OF THIS ONE, ASSHOLE." (This one being a television series where his character has degenerated from the most important character of the show to 'that guy who ignores basic questions in a poor attempt to generate mystery and holds the pedestal for other characters'.)

    So far this year, we've had episodes about:

    Amy and Rory trying to hail their taxi through space and time, only to see find the driver dead, with someone who seems to be the same driver still alive somehow, kneeling over the body and putting on a pair of sunglasses. David Caruso has ruined another show. [6x01]

    Amy and Rory, running from US government persecution (the US government being the UN-mandated standard government of all fictitious persecution), Amy being kidnapped and Rory worrying that he'll never see another sandwich again, and River shooting everybody in sight in front of someone who is supposed to abhor violence. Oh, and that taxi driver seems to be shining a light around like the Star Wars kid (however, the infinitely more powerful Star Wars kid had the capability of smacking someone upside the head with his broom handle). Note: this is where the whole cliffhanger thing starts. [6x02]

    Amy and Rory, caring for one another in the face of a mysterious illness. Amy first saved the day dressed up in pirate garb. She then saved the day later, by saving her husband's life. How romantic. Oh, and a bunch of pirates get a spaceship. You know, if the Doctor were around, he wouldn't leave such advanced technology in the hands of unscrupulous individuals like pirates. [6x03]

    Oh, hey, the Doctor's back. He's looking for Time Lords. And the TARDIS is now a woman. Boy it's good to see the Doctor again, and there's great dialogue by ALL PARTIES. Best episode in a long, long time. Although, there's Amy and Rory getting tortured, but still loving one another; that's great and all, but go back to the Doctor. He's a pretty cool character... [6x04]

    Where'd he go? These episodes are all about Amy learning to trust, and Rory showing compassion. Fuck this shit. [6x05-06]

    Rory's rescuing Amy. Oh, and it is revealed upon the world that River is actually their daughter; she couldn't possibly be a Mary Sue. What do you mean there's four months off? You showed like one episode! [6x07]

    Amy and Rory are back, with a friend, who happens to be River again! Amazing! Amy and Rory do stuff, and River conquers her demons! Incredible! [6x08]

    And then there's this latest episode, which appears to be a repeat from three years ago. Generic kid has fears, fears are actually real, parent steps in and does some actual parenting, eerie ending... the plot twist in this episode is that the black girl only has the alien inside her in some sort of pedophile-ish motif while the white boy actually is the alien, which kind of makes him a minority too. [2x11]

    Pro Tip: The above text was put in spoiler tags so that no more of you would whine like little bitches about how shit you've already watched was spoiled for you.

    So there you have it. Season six in a nutshell. But the Amy and Rory show returns next week with another Amy-centric episode, so at least most ALL of you can coat your TV or computer screens with cum while ignoring the lack of quality.
     
    Last edited: Sep 6, 2011
  20. Lutris

    Lutris Jarl Dovahkiin DLP Supporter

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    This. Oh, this so much.

    Don't get me wrong, I love Matt as the Doctor.

    It's Moffat & Co's long term plotting that's really irritating me. For one, I acknowledge that every time the Doctor changes or the show changes hands, the new show-runners tend to have a little leeway in where the show's gonna go and how they're going to do it. So, I have no problem with Moffat exploring the idea of 'what happens when you introduce the Doctor to a pair of kids who just go married'.

    What I have an issue is is the lack of attention to the Doctor. As much as I hated RTD's convoluted season finales, they were first and foremost about the Doctor, and the people trying to fuck him and his own over.

    Moffat's plots, as Inq pointed out, are largely about his Companions. It was okay back in Series 5; there was less pointless Amy-Rory angst and more of a situation where the Doctor was sticking his nose into another pair's relationship. Now though, it seems more and more like the Doctor's being sidelined while River and her mum and dad have misadventures.

    Everyone adores A Good Man Goes To War. Personally, while the effects and directing were pretty, I thought it quite bland. It had all this buildup, Rory blowing shit up (which honestly makes me palm my face, as he's fast becoming a Gary-Stu), Cybermen coming on screen for a full 3 minutes and then not doing anything, and so much setup, setup, setup. It introduced random, throwaway characters that have yet to be seen again (I assumed they were going to feature in the Fall season). Being that they were so Awesome, it's really disappointing to see that Moffat's seemingly forgotten about them. It had pointless angst with the characters we'd just met dying pointlessly, and then, to top it off, we had the flat revelation of River being Melody Pond. The pacing was horrible, the reveal wasn't so mad and brilliant as they'd promised, and there needed to be more exposition on Madame Kovarian and her soldiers.

    In short, I don't want to watch a show about a glorified taxi driver. I want to see the Doctor be The Doctor, for a change, and have some actual, relevant conflict instead of being tacked onto Amy, Rory, and River as the token cool guy.

    Actually, I'll keep going.

    Let's Kill Hitler was a vast disappointment to me. First and foremost, it ruined any sort of future plots where we could meet River's past regenerations, which was kind of a really cool idea. Moffat pointlessly got rid of ALL of River's regenerations, simply to solve a one-episode issue of the Doctor 'dying'. Then there was the pointless timing of the episode; it didn't HAVE to be the season opener. We could have had the ep later in the season as a random standalone, and it would still have worked.

    There was no reason to open the season with this, and it was largely irrelevant to the overall conflict, only serving to establish how River became River. Even that was rushed and sidetracked. "Oh, the Doctor still cares about his friends even when he's dying! My years and years of brainwashing are all melting away!" Fuck that shit, man.

    Moffat's long term drama is cheap. There's no stakes involved, there's no sense of a single, driving mystery (even though they are making an effort with the random shots of the Doctor's death day on the scanner). The Monster-of-the-Week episodes are pointless and are just there as fucking filler.

    The Spring-Fall season split allows for more compact, focused story telling. Instead of doing the same as before, and having a starter, an ender, and filler eps in between, what I think needs to be done is to have arcs of 3~7 episodes, fitting into a 13 episode, overarching plot. This would undoubtedly cut production costs as well, being allowed to use the same sets for multiple episodes.

    The amount of disappointment I currently feel towards Moffat is just about the same as the disappointment I feel towards Obama. When Moffat came along, it was a break from the horribly contrived RTD story plots, and it was Change I could believe in.

    Fucking disappointed. Give me some proper Doctor Who, dammit.
     
    Last edited: Sep 6, 2011
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