Definitely worked better as a pair. The resolution was a bit mixed, but the episode as a whole was good.

Spoiler

The Missy and Clara double act was great fun, and I hope we'll see Missy again soon - she's just fantastic. The scenes in the sewers were chilling. The business with 'Exterminate' and not even being able to say the names of emotions is probably the scariest thing that's been done with the Daleks in a long time. The scenes between Davros and the Doctor were outstanding, and still work even once you know it's all an act from both of them.
On the other hand...while we all knew Clara, Missy and the TARDIS weren't gone for good, the resolutions to that strand was just shameless. "Oh, the Doctor had this crazy adventure that we've never heard about so I adapted his scheme from that to escape!" And the reveal that Davros was still evil all along, and then the next reveal that the Doctor knew all along...All a bit "I know something you don't know!" "Well I know something you don't know!" It's trapped by the fact that it's dealing with Davros and Daleks. You can't significantly change the Daleks anymore, so we all know that the hybrid Daleks are going to be obliterated by the end of the episode. Davros was a bit more open to debate, but given that it all takes place prior to the resolution of the second scene with young!Davros last time, you were safe in assuming he'd survive for that to be played with.

On the whole, two good episodes, one good story, some fantastic individual scenes but shot through with some frustrating continuity contradictions. Still more coherent than the last time we had a two-parter at the beginning of a series (The Impossible Astronaut/Day of the Moon).

 

This was a pretty fucking good episode.

 

Like Shinysavage said, the episodes work better as a pair. The moment between Davros and The Doctor would have been amazing had I not know who Davros is. A scene with the hero and his villain laughing together, at the moment of one's death, because of the things they have live through has always appealed to me. However, a twist was evident since the begging. Loved Missy's final interaction with The Doctor in the episode. Had it been followed throug it would have been an amazingly dark twist.

 

And also stupid as hell.

Just saying.

 

Apparently there is a spin-off on the works centered around Coal Hill students and written by Patrick Ness. I have never read anything he's written so I cannot ague on that point but I don't know how this could work. Sure, aliens invade Earth all the time but there are no foreseeable ways for some teenagers to fight them. I mean, Torchwood had Jack and The Sarah Jane Adventures had Sarah Jane and K-9. Unless Clara or someone not 'ordinary' is in the show I'd rather have a UNIT spin-off.

 

It's not unprecedented for alien weaponry to be left lying around Coals Hill, or even for it to be the epicentre of an alien invasion (check out Remembrance of the Daleks, kicking off with the Doctor popping in to pick up some stuff he left behind, and winds up with the destruction of Skaro).

That said, I cannot muster the slightest bit of enthusiasm for this at the moment. Maybe once more detail has been released, but of all the spin offs you could have from the show this has to be the one that nobody else wanted.

 

Yesterday's episode was okay. As always, with two parters,the first episode is mostly spend on setting up the scene. That is not to say it was a bad episode, it set the tone and it felt refresing. I quite liked the setting and the cliffhanger was okay. Having two on going stories, one in the past and other in the present, may be difficult but it could be done right. Whitehouse's episodes are not of my liking but this could be the exception.

To tell the truth, I have no knowledge of the Fisher King legend beyond my exposure with it on Fables but it sounds really interesting. The costume for the King definitely looks good! Hope it lives up to my expectations.

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But with Clara's departure, how coul it be explained? I guess it would be nice idea to bring back some of the stuff from Classic Who that was left behind. It would be great to see a cameo from Wwilliam Russel though.

 

Just going to say this upfront; I'm not a big Who fan. I've caught some episodes from the earlier Doctors and much more with the Tennant and Smith era, and Smith was hands-down my favorite. But everything about Capaldi in every preview I have seen of him since he first came out as the next Doctor, and the one episode I finally tried of him, has felt off.

Is it really worth getting back into the show from where Smith transitioned into Capaldi?

 

They haven't said how or when she's going yet - maybe she'll be involved in the spin off. Or, and this has just occurred to me, in the Magician's Apprentice we see Clara as a UNIT...consultant, I guess? Maybe her presence in the school leads to a sort of UNIT cadet squad or an apprentice scheme or something. Identifying potential recruits early on. That could work.

Anyway. I really liked last night's episode. It was a pretty standard Base under siege, haunted house type episode, but damn they did it well. The whole thing just oozed quality, imo.

 

Mmmm. Not as of yet. Most of Capaldi's episodes are skippable. If you're not invested, maybe just binge when he makes his exit in preparation for a new Doctor.

 

Zenzao: Capaldi's first series was patchy, it must be said. I'd watch Deep Breath, Listen, Flat-Line and the last two episodes and see what you think. The rest can be ignored. This series so far has been decent enough, and they seem to have smoothed off some of the less successful elements of his Doctor (they were aiming to make him a less cuddly Doctor, but depending on the writer he wavered between being a bit of a dick and being completely callous).

 

Ah, I thought as much. Thanks guys. I'll give those episodes a chance and see if anything pans out from there.

 

So... it seems the sonic sunglasses are going to be sticking around.

Yay...

 

Yeah...as a one off or even occasionally recurring gag, they're ok, but I'm hoping we're back to a screwdriver soon.

 

I don't get the hate. They fullfill the same function but are more fashionable. Hell, they're mostly the same size, too.

The screwdriver is a retarded plot tool anyway.

 

Why cant it be both?

 

I guess in large part it's that the sonic screwdriver is one of the 'icons' of the show, certainly since the revival. It's on the same order of thing as turning the TARDIS purple, or something (ok, not quite as bad, but you see what I mean, I hope).

All that said, it could lead to a much needed rethink on how the sonic is used. Think of all the times we've seen it used like a weapon, and then think of how much dafter it's going to look if they're sunglasses