It’s been suggested that there’s no clear evidence that the cures are delivered intravenously… but my argument is that if you’re making a show to be transmitted in the 21st century, and you don’t want people to think the cures are intravenous, then don’t hang them up in bags that look just like that.
Plus, according to some guy on the internet (the most reliable source in the world), the Doctor actually calls them “intravenous solutions” at one point.
Andy 18 April 2006, 07:28 AM
2
Nice pic. I’m a guy on the internet and I remember the doctor saying intravenous solutions. I liked the whole not being touched thing for the clones but the end was ruined by the use of the intravenous solutions non-intravenously. That was the only plot hole that bothered me. Saving the zombies is what I expect from the Doctor. It’s the kind of thing he should have done more of last season. Being the hero, I mean - there was a saving zombies episode.
The disinfecting showers were made sense in a hospital and very amusing, just the intravenous thing’s odd; the year 5 billion should give the writers plenty of freedom to make up new technologies. I was little disappointed by the state of things generally in the year 5 billion. We don’t use live humans for research and we seem to manage. Cell cultures and rats are a good substitute. Is the claim about the stem cells from the same guy who complained about the refugees? Maybe Russell T. Davies is against cloning fully grown humans. That madman. Cat people are eeevil, for the record.
I liked the Doctor and Rose acting as Cassandra, they’re both excellent actors, and glad to be rid of the trampoline body. While fine for a one-off quirky bad guy, it cheapened her as a returning character. I found Rose’s display of cleavage very integral to portrayal of Cassandra. I was happy to accept the mind transference device, but thought the Doctor might have been resistant to it, but then that would have led to no jumping back and forth hilarity. I was more sympathetic to Cassandra’s desire to survive than certain other aliens from last season.
If you did American history Tom, you’d’ve heard the quote “You can make a tv series that’s all things to all people some of the time, you may even make a tv series that’s all things to some people all of the time, or some things to all people all of the time but you cannot make a tv series that’s all things to all people all of the time.” Doctor Who should include silliness. It’s not a straight drama and the range of potential situations is ideal for light silly fun, like Stargate. There’s plenty of room for drama and comedy. While a short season may yield great episodes, there’s a long time in between to build up expectations.
The doctor did seem happy to let Rose wander, but she’s not a first year american college student anymore. Plus he’s not expecting danger or a dark secret.
Will we get another Face of Bo episode this season? Don’t answer that. I don’t like spoilers, although I will conjecture that with their guaranteed third season they won’t.
I’ve nothing against fan fiction (as long as it is done in the privacy of own’s home) but many of those people would be more suited to writing pornogrophy plots than dramatic Sci-fi. Fan-fiction writers rarely venture outside of the main characters having sex plotline. They’re not too cluey about the use of sexual tension in tv.
The splash pic is good too.
Tom 18 April 2006, 08:11 AM
3
The Doctor was expecting a dark secret. Remember the psychic paper? Plus, just on average, there’s a dark secret. But I’m glad he’s willing to let her investigate on her own. It means we don’t have to awkwardly split them up every episode.
Clearly they’ve needed to succumb to this human testing thing due to the crazy new diseases. I love “petrifold regression” as a name for petrification, by the way. That’s quality technobabble.
I quite liked the recursive Cassandra plotline. Some people have complained that the Doctor helps her at the end, or that he’s making things worse — I think they’ve missed the point that he’s clearly fixing up time and making sure that she compliments herself at that party. That would explain why he’s so grumpy. Apparently a scene was lost that had the Doctor reiterate her villainous actions on Platform One.
I think the idea is that now he’s free from his Time War guilt, the Doctor’s much happier to stick his oar in and meddle openly. This doesn’t mean that they’re no longer treating him as a proper character though — from what I hear he has a character arc plotted out for this season too.
Jack 19 April 2006, 05:25 AM
4
It does seem to a case of compromising a character in the name of comedy.
Cassandra is a murderer after all. The Doctor was more than happy to let her die in The End of the World. This new, “no second chances” Doctor is quite happy to give her a second chance, rather than hold her accountable for her actions. I don’t think it’s fair to say people unhappy with this have missed the point - I think they just weren’t expecting the Doctor to be the sort of person who let something like that slide. Or maybe they just didn’t want him to be.
Anyway I’m expecting Lawrence Miles to come out with a thesis explaining exactly how this episode condones murder. I’m not sure he’d be satisfied with the “lost scene” defence. It doesn’t really hold up.
Ooooh. Subtext
Tom 19 April 2006, 12:02 PM
5
The Doctor doesn’t give her a second chance — she’s dying, and he takes her to die in front of herself. If anything it’s a learning experience for her at the end of her life. Second chances would only have come into it if she hadn’t accepted her fate.
Jack 21 April 2006, 05:04 AM
6
Well supposedly she grows up to be a nicer person because of that encounter. Possibly. I can’t remember.
Tom 21 April 2006, 01:21 PM
7
I don’t think she does. She already remembered that encounter at the start of the episode. Taking Chip back in time would seem to cement the timeline Rose and the Doctor have experienced, and make her the murderer that killed all those nice people.
Comment on this Review
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Tom
18 April 2006, 06:00 AM
It’s been suggested that there’s no clear evidence that the cures are delivered intravenously… but my argument is that if you’re making a show to be transmitted in the 21st century, and you don’t want people to think the cures are intravenous, then don’t hang them up in bags that look just like that.
Plus, according to some guy on the internet (the most reliable source in the world), the Doctor actually calls them “intravenous solutions” at one point.
Andy
18 April 2006, 07:28 AM
Nice pic. I’m a guy on the internet and I remember the doctor saying intravenous solutions. I liked the whole not being touched thing for the clones but the end was ruined by the use of the intravenous solutions non-intravenously. That was the only plot hole that bothered me. Saving the zombies is what I expect from the Doctor. It’s the kind of thing he should have done more of last season. Being the hero, I mean - there was a saving zombies episode.
The disinfecting showers were made sense in a hospital and very amusing, just the intravenous thing’s odd; the year 5 billion should give the writers plenty of freedom to make up new technologies. I was little disappointed by the state of things generally in the year 5 billion. We don’t use live humans for research and we seem to manage. Cell cultures and rats are a good substitute. Is the claim about the stem cells from the same guy who complained about the refugees? Maybe Russell T. Davies is against cloning fully grown humans. That madman. Cat people are eeevil, for the record.
I liked the Doctor and Rose acting as Cassandra, they’re both excellent actors, and glad to be rid of the trampoline body. While fine for a one-off quirky bad guy, it cheapened her as a returning character. I found Rose’s display of cleavage very integral to portrayal of Cassandra. I was happy to accept the mind transference device, but thought the Doctor might have been resistant to it, but then that would have led to no jumping back and forth hilarity. I was more sympathetic to Cassandra’s desire to survive than certain other aliens from last season.
If you did American history Tom, you’d’ve heard the quote “You can make a tv series that’s all things to all people some of the time, you may even make a tv series that’s all things to some people all of the time, or some things to all people all of the time but you cannot make a tv series that’s all things to all people all of the time.” Doctor Who should include silliness. It’s not a straight drama and the range of potential situations is ideal for light silly fun, like Stargate. There’s plenty of room for drama and comedy. While a short season may yield great episodes, there’s a long time in between to build up expectations.
The doctor did seem happy to let Rose wander, but she’s not a first year american college student anymore. Plus he’s not expecting danger or a dark secret.
Will we get another Face of Bo episode this season? Don’t answer that. I don’t like spoilers, although I will conjecture that with their guaranteed third season they won’t.
I’ve nothing against fan fiction (as long as it is done in the privacy of own’s home) but many of those people would be more suited to writing pornogrophy plots than dramatic Sci-fi. Fan-fiction writers rarely venture outside of the main characters having sex plotline. They’re not too cluey about the use of sexual tension in tv.
The splash pic is good too.
Tom
18 April 2006, 08:11 AM
The Doctor was expecting a dark secret. Remember the psychic paper? Plus, just on average, there’s a dark secret. But I’m glad he’s willing to let her investigate on her own. It means we don’t have to awkwardly split them up every episode.
Clearly they’ve needed to succumb to this human testing thing due to the crazy new diseases. I love “petrifold regression” as a name for petrification, by the way. That’s quality technobabble.
I quite liked the recursive Cassandra plotline. Some people have complained that the Doctor helps her at the end, or that he’s making things worse — I think they’ve missed the point that he’s clearly fixing up time and making sure that she compliments herself at that party. That would explain why he’s so grumpy. Apparently a scene was lost that had the Doctor reiterate her villainous actions on Platform One.
I think the idea is that now he’s free from his Time War guilt, the Doctor’s much happier to stick his oar in and meddle openly. This doesn’t mean that they’re no longer treating him as a proper character though — from what I hear he has a character arc plotted out for this season too.
Jack
19 April 2006, 05:25 AM
It does seem to a case of compromising a character in the name of comedy.
Cassandra is a murderer after all. The Doctor was more than happy to let her die in The End of the World. This new, “no second chances” Doctor is quite happy to give her a second chance, rather than hold her accountable for her actions. I don’t think it’s fair to say people unhappy with this have missed the point - I think they just weren’t expecting the Doctor to be the sort of person who let something like that slide. Or maybe they just didn’t want him to be.
Anyway I’m expecting Lawrence Miles to come out with a thesis explaining exactly how this episode condones murder. I’m not sure he’d be satisfied with the “lost scene” defence. It doesn’t really hold up.
Ooooh. Subtext
Tom
19 April 2006, 12:02 PM
The Doctor doesn’t give her a second chance — she’s dying, and he takes her to die in front of herself. If anything it’s a learning experience for her at the end of her life. Second chances would only have come into it if she hadn’t accepted her fate.
Jack
21 April 2006, 05:04 AM
Well supposedly she grows up to be a nicer person because of that encounter. Possibly. I can’t remember.
Tom
21 April 2006, 01:21 PM
I don’t think she does. She already remembered that encounter at the start of the episode. Taking Chip back in time would seem to cement the timeline Rose and the Doctor have experienced, and make her the murderer that killed all those nice people.
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