I liked it, but any ep where Capaldi gets to interact with other Scots is bonus points. I liked his speech about growing up and stopping killing each other. But it was really (enjoyable) filler until we got to Missy.
It was okay. I don't think the threat presented by the 'light locusts' was properly underlined, maybe something along the lines of: "This is just the larvae, a maggot if you will. Once it has eaten enough light and life-force it'll cocoon itself and re-emerge as something like a living black hole - oh, it won't scrunch up the Earth or anything, it's why I said 'like', but what it will do it head towards the sun and start to eat. And eat. Eventually you'll be able to see it from here, like a growing sunspot, until it wraps its bloated, feeding body around the entire sun and then you'll only know darkness and cold and death." Some fun interactions, especially with Bill realising the Romans were a bit more sexually flexible than she expected and that soldiers were younger back then. This was the episode-on-the-cheap to make up for the budget-gobbling 2-part finale.
Moffat is apparently doing a new version of Dracula next, so I don't see why he couldn't just do a season long Master spinoff instead. Near immortal villian/occasional anti-hero, fashionable, sometimes eats people. Is there even a difference?
Well, a lot of the EU material for Doctor Who suggests Rassilon retro-engineered regeneration from the Great Vampires, so Time Lords ain't that much different anyway. Explains the Master's hypnotic powers too - although Missy hasn't used those yet, wonder why?
Capaldi Doctor subconsciously regenerated himself based on some other Capaldi character in the series, so why couldn't he turn into a Missy clone?
loved the Scotland jokes, otherwise, continue the same opinions I've had on the whole season. Perfect chemistry covers a multitude of flaws
The actress herself has decided to leave, so whether she could be convinced to return in the future remains to be seen.
Ok, so that was bloody amazing on so many levels. If they can get the second part to match up for once... *crosses fingers*
That was excellent - they managed to pile in a lot of references subtlety. Venusian aikido? Call backs to the Empty Child? Wonderfully creepy. I just wish they'd not been actively spoilering the plots. Plot: Suspense... It looks like Earth, but draw it out, keep the audience on the edge of the seats as we reveal it's actually - *gasp* - MONDAS!!!! Audience: Yeah, we know. You told us last week. Repeatedly. Plots: Suspense... The trampy guy knows more than we thought, who is he... OMG!ZOMG! it's the MASTER!!!! Audience: Yeah, we know. You told us last month he'd be back and trailed it all last week. They once used pseudonyms for the actor playing the Master so when the disguise came off it was a surprise to the viewer, have spoilers become so routine, have we, as viewers, become so cynical that we can't just enjoy surprises any more?
Neither do I. It was the BBC itself advertising the episode. I must have seen MONDAS flashing at me and John Simm saying "give me a kiss" umpteen times over the last week. I mean come on, spoiling your own program?
Thank goodness I never saw any of the adverts or previews. The ending smacked me hard in the face, like a brick. I knew something was off about Mr. Razor but I honestly had no idea who he really was. I've said it before: Steven Moffat is wildily inconsistent but when he gets it right... oh boy! I just hope the final episode lives up to this one. What a ride. Capaldi finally gets some decent scripts to work with this season and he's gone in one more episode.
To be fair to the show, it was the tabloids that spoilt the return of Simm, so there was little point leaving him out of the trailers
We don't quite know. Moffat and Capaldi have both said they are doing something unusual with the regeneration. That might simply mean telling another 12th Doctor story in the Christmas episode despite showing his regeneration in July, or it could mean something more complicated. Of course, it's Moffat, so the complicated is to be expected. I have rarely been as excited as this for a new TV episode in the last few years.
I know. Click the links if you want to be spoiled: http://tardisbuilders.com/index.php?topic=7825.0 http://tardisbuilders.com/index.php?topic=5555.120 (I can't link to the relevant post on the second one, but it's Matt's post from 7:06pm, at the bottom of the page.)
I've seen at least one fan theory that the whole Kris Marshall buzz is a diversion suggesting that Marshall will actually be the next Master when Missy shuffles off (giving her life to save the Doctor possibly?) and some as yet unknown person would be the next Doctor. Speaking of, this may be the worst suggestion (other than Marshall) that I've seen: I'm sorry, gender aside, this woman is flat out UUUUUUUUUGLY and I just can't buy it. The person cast doesn't have to be classically beautiful but there is a bridge too far for such an iconic character. I still say that if they go with the safe young good-looking but talented actor - I want Tom Mison. But I have no reason to expect that. If they decide to go off in an original direction, the possibilities are pretty much endless. But honestly I'm fascinated by how they play out the next two episodes with Capaldi. I'm on the edge of my seat even now.
"Because he’s right. Because it’s time to stand with him, it’s where we’ve always been going, and it’s happening now, today. It’s time to stand with the Doctor." So many things to process. I really hope the Christmas special doesn't undo a lot of the astounding storytelling and amazing work that was done in this episode.
teared up multiple times. Maybe the most emotionally affecting ep of DW that I've ever seen. Wrapped up 4 major supporting players and nailed each one perfectly, set up a regeneration in a manner that's absolutely perfect to the personality of Twelve, got really deep with the "I'm so tired of this shit" reaction to the impending change, and - unless you quibble with The Master getting a woody for himself - really did not miss one single step from start to finish. Plus, Bradley is INSANELY good at channeling First.
also, I'm not sure how this plays into the report about the loop to DotD but...I'm mostly convinced that the encounter with the First MIGHT be a hallucination/fever-dream/some-such though I think the payoff is much better if it's real.
Not reading the thread yet, but popping in to say we've watched the first six episodes and we both like this series pretty well. KJ thinks it's the best series in a while, whereas I'd say last series was better, but it's pretty good. I like the take on this Doctor settling down for the long haul as a college professor. I like that the season-long plot arc that seems to have become the standard is just quietly cooling its heels in a basement somewhere. I like the change of pace with the companion -- she's not anyone particularly special, she's just a nice girl that the Doctor likes showing the universe off to. I like that several episodes have given me an SCP wiki vibe in a good way. Nardole grows on me as the series progresses. The plots have been mostly simple, but as long as the patter keeps me from solving the plot too early, I don't mind at all. One unfortunate thing is that the episodes blur together by sharing ideas in common, like Robotics Gone Wrong. And I do wish, as usual, that the occupant of the vault had been less obvious and more interesting, but if the result of that creative choice is good enough then I'll happily take it. Oh yes -- and I mentioned that it amused me that I hadn't actually noticed anyone flat-out calling the Doctor "Professor", and KJ responded that Bill reminded her a little of Ace, but less violent.
okay here's a...thing... Reading reaction threads to DW episodes inevitable brings one to a tangent about number (Is Capaldi the 12th or 13th, and so forth) Likewise, there's the ongoing speculation regarding the Doctor's next iteration and whether we're in for a gender switch, what with all the hint-dropping and possibility-building of the last 3 seasons (i.e. Master/Missy, the General that regenerates on-screen, various bits of dialogue) so here's my question, in TDF there's no the second (at least) comment making reference to the possibility that The Doctor has already been female before ("He was a man then, I may have been too") - does this not then imply that (as I alluded to above) that despite the Tardis stealing scene in the 50th anniversary special, we don't absolutely know that Harnell's Doctor is the ACTUAL first Doctor? Yes, you get into the whole discussion about number of regenerations but one could simply retcon that by assuming he'd already gotten "bonus" regenerations at some point in the undocumented past. I know that, most likely, they are just bits of the Doctor trying to be clever and mysterious but...maybe not?
If the Doctor had disavowed his "real" ninth incarnation, there's no way of knowing whether there were other incarnations we've missed. It may simply be that it was during his 47th incarnation (William Hartnell) that he decided to be "The Doctor", and therefore that's the "First Doctor".
