Doctor Who, S4 - Page 2

I'm with Greg David on this one. The crossovers are a little wonky because the Doctors look aged. And also, I don't care because Davison was my favorite back in they day.

Besides, it's just for a Children in Need special. Not exactly canon.

Whatever. I'm just looking forward to seeing the 5th Doctor again.

Funny you mention McCoy, he's doing Shakespere with Ian Mckellen.

The 12th Doctor popped up in the Colin Baker era as a bad ass calling himself The Valeyard. He was indeed a bastard...he was the big heavy in The Trial of A Timeloard multiple story arc. Seemed to be a desperate attempt to make a new Master-esque heavy. I don't remember that much about him other than I wasn't impressed at the time, but that's pretty much my feelings on all the Colin Baker stuff.

Happy that the crossover is simply part of the kids special and not canon...it's written by Moffat so I'm keen.

New trailery thing.
Rose! Wet Martha!
The Sontarans were always my favourite bad guys so good to see them back on duty.
Can't wait.

Even though that's a great trailer. I really enjoyed the pace of the other trailer.

"You're not going to mate with me, sunshine!"

The 12th Doctor was just ridiculously pathetic, probably the worst part of Trial of a Time Lord and that was a ridiculously bad serial.

Because I dug State of Play so much, I decided to finally check out this recent incarnation, mostly because I wanted some modern British TV. I started with the Eccleson, obviously, but goddamn, the first episode was so fucking fun.

You're in for a treat if you think so, because the first episode has mild pilotitis. The second episode is better still.

New series starts tonight and the goddamn adverts have already ruined something I didn't know about.

Just finished the Dickens episode. I think this is the most fun I've had with a genre series since my Buffy/Angel days. (I need to catch up on Battlestar, h-core.)

Great start to the new series, and looks like Rose is back sooner than we thought

I doubt we'll be seeing her again until Episode 11, though.
Not a bad start, though the Adipose themselves were a little too over-the-top at times, but I'm happy with Tate.

Also, I suspect the bees vanishing will turn out to be relevant to the finale.

Rath, you haven't even come close to the best this show has to offer. Hold on to your hat.

That was an absolutely wonderful bit of television. The interplay between Donna and the Doctor when they saw each other for the first time had me rolling.

Nice WTF moment at the end too.

The whole 'I just want a mate' felt too much like Davies saying 'Look, I promise, this time we're not having an unrequited love angle with the companion. Trust me.'

Adorable fat critters are the best monster ever.

Certainly sounds like a step up from last year's "Old Lady with a straw" as the villain.

He's confirmed this in interviews, too, so the whole point does feel a little belaboured.

Seconded. Loved them.

Rose's appearance felt...weird. They reached the end of her character's arc, unless they want to marry off The Doctor.

Still, as far as Davies-penned episodes go, this was great.

I need to get caught up with this, pronto. So glad that we only have to wait two weeks to see it legally here in the States...

Just finished watching the new episode, haven't seen any trailers so all I knew was that Tate was joining him. That annoyed me, I couldn't stand her character last time and the little I saw of her comedy show when it was on here is Australia shat me to tears.

But at the moment I am pleasantly surprised. She seems a bit less prickly this time around and I wasn't annoyed by her. The "you're not mating with me sunshine" line cracked me up.

Rose's appearance felt weird, I liked her character but I also liked the way her arc ended. Dunno if I will like her being back but am curious as to how it will pan out.

And cute little babies made of fat were cool. I reckon I could spare a few babies for them...

I watched it, it was ok. Then again, i've always been more of a fan of Terry Nation's episodes. In the last season, were there any not written by RTD?

His style of writing just doesn't agree with me anymore, it's like he's started recycling scripts.

I don't mean to sound so negative, i'd complain just as much if they took it off the air

EDIT: Also, i'm sorry but even though they admitted they watered Catherine Tate down, she still annoys the hell out of me.

The brilliant "Blink" by Steven Moffat, the nearly-as-brilliant Human Nature two-parter by Paul Cornell, and three or four others weren't penned by Davies. Though he generally comes up with the rough idea for each episode.

This season, RTD has written the opener and the last 4, I believe.
Episodes 2-9 are by other writers.

This show is so hopeful. I love that.

Which episode are you at?

I still think Season 1 is probably the overall weakest of the new seasons. It has some stand outs but it is also trying to find its feet a lot and you get a lot average episodes.

I have to disagree with you on that. I really didn't like season 3, apart from Blink and The Master's episodes. The Daleks in NY 2-parter might be the worst thing I've ever seen on television (at least, from a show that I respect), the episodes about the "family" were terrible as well. I'll grant you that season one goes up and down, but it never reaches the same lows, in my eyes.

I agree with LD, Season 3 was not that good with the exception of the episodes already mentioned. And those New York accents were horrendous.

Series 3 is mediocre at times for sure, and that Dalek two-parter makes me want to claw out not only my eyes but the eyes of everyone who has ever seen it. However, once you reach "Human Nature," it picks up real good. I'd say the highs it reaches are higher than Series 1, so it all evens out for me.

I'm curious to see how this Series turns out. I enjoyed the first episode in a vague, "Yeah, there's the Doctor" kind of way, but I did notice that all the good parts are the ones that have nothing to do with the immediate plot (The Doctor and Donna mouthing things through the window, Donna's conversation with her Gramps, or the Doctor/Donna/Rose sequence at the end). It's like Davies has lost interest in the adventure aspects of the show and is only really engaged with the soap opera/interpersonal relationship stuff. I love that stuff, too, but it feels like the balance is slipping, and I wouldn't mind seeing a little more attention paid to the standalone stories themselves. I mean, the Adipose were great little monsters with lots of potential -- they come out of the fat in your body, and they look really cute? Awesome! -- but they seemed a little unexplored. Aside from the one scene where that woman is entirely converted to Adiposes, there weren't that many interesting moments with them, or for that matter, the main plot itself.

You didn't like Human Nature? I thought that two parter was one of the standouts of the entire series (old and new).

Yeah, Human Nature was pretty good stuff, and I absolutely adore Gridlock. It feels like a lost chapter from Hitchhikers.

Well, the part of Human Nature I liked the most *SPOLIERS* is when Smith doesn't want to "kill" himself and become The Doctor. It was some damn good acting on Tennant's part with that one.

You're talking to LD, right? Cause I agree. That two-parter is possibly my favorite DW story ever.

Also seconding the love for Gridlock, an underrated, fun little ep.

True, Gridlock was a good ep.

I just finished the one with the Dalek and the rich American who owns the internet.

That one kicks ass.

That was a great episode. I felt chillls when the Dalek began to move up the stairs. I had never followed the series before then and thought they were unable to do so. Until now.

I liked the two-parter with the Slitheen and the mom from Shaun of the Dead (the one with Simon Pegg is next) better (even though that end with Rose's mom counting to ten was super-sentimental, but they made it work), but the Dalek episode was pretty cool. Like most nerds, I have a cursory knowledge of basic Dr. Who, and I thought they did a great job of making the Dalek seem ominous, even though it was basically a salt shaker. The Doctor's speech about it being the ultimate in racial warfare really summed up how just how bad the Daleks are.

"Harriet Jones, MP"

The Slitheen episodes were the first episodes I ever saw. They're a really nice blend of everything Doctor Who (including the lousy, juvenile humor that shows up too often).

What is kind of awesome is that stuff set up in season 1 actually has an effect in the later seasons and the crossover shows. In fact the Torchwood finale takes place in the Bad Wolf nuclear facility one of the Slitheen tries to build in Cardiff.

Like I've said before, I can only wonder how Eccleston would've been had he continued. It's kind of strange really why he would give it up? (I know it was fear of type casting but is he really doing anything at the moment? G.I. Joe maybe?) still that's how it is.

Yeah, I'm still not entirely clear on what happened there. I gather he thought it wasn't a serious enough role, and then when the BBC leaked his leaving, everything blew up?

Tennant seems to be on the same path (I get the feeling that, despite his talk, he doesn't love the show), but at least he stuck around for a decent run.

Tennant seems to adore being the Doctor, I think Eccleston kind of got the short shrift of the first season though. I remember hearing that RTD always envisioned having a regeneration early to try and get people into the mindset of what was happening. The show had to have an already established doctor so as to introduce the concepts of the show and the companion. It was only when they were comfortable with the universe they had created that they could introduce a new doctor.

Exactly, besides Davidson said it best that it was good to be there for three seasons and then move on (He got that advice from Troughton) and then a new guy can come in.

Oddly enough, Davidson's daughter (his actual last name is Moffat, no relation) and Troughton's son are expected to be in this new series. So that ought to be interesting.

Tennant spends a hell of a lot of time doing promotinal work for Dr Who, more than he actually needs to. I think he loves the show but is probabaly a bit burn't out by it all.

Hence why next year we only have one off specials to look forward to rather than a whole season.

I actually think Season 3 was the strongest so far, myself, bar the final episode.

Easily comparable to the Shakespeare Code and Tooth and Claw, brilliant episode.

It also established exactly what Donna brings to the table, she looks like she is going to be someone to stand up to and humanise the Doctor. Her begging the Doctor to save just someone was really, really, well done.

Rather liked tonight's episode myself. Fairly loud and frantic, but it was well done.
Nice to have the moral dilemma aspect of time travel back.

I have a strong suspicion disappearing planets are part of this year's theme.

Loved tonight's eppisode - Donna stood out as a charater and had some nice moments of her own. Also loved the (slightly vauge) explantion of why the Doctor can alter some things but not others.

Next week more ood!

Bravo to the Fawlty Towers shoutout.

And I love the conceit of the TARDIS translating everything they said into Latin and their Latin into Celtic.