frozen_out Posted December 25, 2014 Share Posted December 25, 2014 Well after being disappointed in 9/10ths of the last series I really enjoyed today's episode. At least it was vaguely coherent, with some nice one liners from Nick Frost (who seemed to be doing a Ricky Gervais impression). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StainlessSteelCat Posted December 25, 2014 Share Posted December 25, 2014 Enjoyed it immensely. An unholy mash up of several well known films. Doctor Who goes meta. Brilliant. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeepLurker Posted December 25, 2014 Share Posted December 25, 2014 Really liked the Xmas special - which surprised me, as usually they're dire. Won't post any spoilers, but there was a darker tone to it than is normal for a Xmas day program, and it worked well. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
MarkG Posted December 28, 2014 Share Posted December 28, 2014 We've just finished watching this season, as a friend recorded most of them. On the whole, I thought they ran the gamut from OK to awful, but I did like the Christmas special, even though many of the twists were quite obvious. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DTMark Posted December 30, 2014 Author Share Posted December 30, 2014 The die-hard "fans" that have every episode ever (e.g. me) are sometimes the hardest to please. I thought it was OK. 6.5 out of 10. Which to be fair is better than you might expect from a Christmas special. Again the writing suited Capaldi's Doctor. Given that I've spent years yearning for a darker, more adult character more a la Chris Ecclestone, I have to commend the writers and Capaldi himself. Now just see that though into the next season.. There is, I must admit, a sense of some incredible pride every time the titles roll. "This is *still* going". Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Big Orange Posted January 2, 2015 Share Posted January 2, 2015 It was OK and Nick Frost was very funny, but I felt the continual fake outs got tiresome quite quickly. I'd say it's the middle of the pack of Christmas Specials (perhaps alongside the stomping skyscraper sized robot in Victorian London). The Calpadi season was a very mixed bag (solid production values, genuinely sad moments, and ideas sandwiched between a lot of growing repetition, a couple or so terrible, terrible episodes more suited for the SJA, and a lot of creative inbreeding). Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Masked Tulip Posted September 19, 2015 Share Posted September 19, 2015 It's b*ll*x again isn't it. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Turned Out Nice Again Posted September 20, 2015 Share Posted September 20, 2015 obliged by my kids to watch it yesterday. still crap. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DTMark Posted September 20, 2015 Author Share Posted September 20, 2015 It was cleverly playing on a line that Tom Baker's Doctor spoke, I paraphrase: "If you knew a child was going to grow up to be evil, and to kill lots of people: could you kill that child?" Davros was played really nicely, and came across quite chillingly. Tom Baker's Doctor's encounter with him, then played by Michael Wisher in "Genesis of the Daleks" circa 1975 is brilliant. Since then he hasn't been quite the same, played by different actors. The script for Davros was very nicely done. Now contrast this with the sheer silliness and nonsense of the Doctor's "party". I wouldn't be surprised if Capaldi was grimacing at having to act that out. It started so well with the "hand mines" and then missed a stack of tricks to keep the edginess going and to come anywhere near the suspenseful and realistic atmosphere that "Genesis.." created. Though the Dalek city looked good. But then that's all in the CGI. What's puzzling me is why, if they were going for continuity, they didn't have Baker's Doctor in the opening scene failing to rescue Davros, even if he was only filmed "from behind" with the coat and scarf and Baker's voice (assuming he would have been up for that) so as to give the impression that it was one of the earlier Doctors. It was nice to see the various generations of Daleks in one shot, including the "Special Weapons Dalek" seen in the circa 1988 story "Remembrance of.." but then the Daleks are all about racial purity, indeed touched on in the Tennant story where the newly spawned and supposedly perfect, true generation exterminate the other ones as being "impure". So unless there is some other factor yet to be explained, you wouldn't see them all together, indeed "Remembrance.." saw two separate Dalek factions destroying each other. I'd like to think that a number of things will be resolved and that the writing was very clever, but then I've been disappointed before. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Northerner Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Doctor Who sees millions desert opening episode An average 4.6m watched Peter Capaldi back for his second series playing the Time Lord, compared with 6.8m for his full debut last year. http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/entertainment-arts-34307519 What a nice photo of Jenna though ... Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
bendy Posted September 21, 2015 Share Posted September 21, 2015 Strange how that link has collapsed to read 'tarts' before you posted a picture of Jenna! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Masked Tulip Posted September 26, 2015 Share Posted September 26, 2015 Deafening background music this week - worse than last week - could barely hear any of the dialogue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
tinker Posted September 26, 2015 Share Posted September 26, 2015 Deafening background music this week - worse than last week - could barely hear any of the dialogue. So it wasn't just me! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Masked Tulip Posted September 26, 2015 Share Posted September 26, 2015 So it wasn't just me! No, it made it impossible IMPO to hear the dialogue. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DTMark Posted September 27, 2015 Author Share Posted September 27, 2015 I found that, too. This week's episode was certainly one of the better ones in recent years. The Darth Vader "Return of the Jedi" moment with Davros was superb, and Davros is played so very well. They finally managed to find someone who can capture the character's menace and duplicity superbly. The dialogue was brilliant. And even "Missy" came good; in so far as - since the show came back, the portrayal of "The Master", one of the Doctor's long-term arch enemies, has been appalling. Not John Sims' acting, but the scripting; this episode saw the villainous nature of the character return and I'm growing to like him (now, her). You just knew she was going to push Clara off that ledge as soon as the scene started. The plot regarding Davros's death was obviously a trap, as the Doctor had realised. This story borrowed quite heavily from some previous stories and the long scenes with the Doctor and Davros together were the intention. It made for superb viewing. The TARDIS self-protection mechanism is consistent with the show's history. What isn't consistent, however, is the idea that the Daleks have a weakness - their love for their Creator or father, given that the moment they were given complete self-autonomy originally the first thing that they did was to try to exterminate him because he was not 'pure' Dalek. That being the reason why his chair is immune to Dalek firepower, exploited by the Doctor in this very episode. But, overall, very good Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
StainlessSteelCat Posted September 28, 2015 Share Posted September 28, 2015 Deafening background music this week - worse than last week - could barely hear any of the dialogue. Yep, same here. Not a bad episode all in all - just blooming difficult to listen to. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest eight Posted September 28, 2015 Share Posted September 28, 2015 Don't watch Doctor Who but this morning's "Marrying Mum and Dad" on CBBC featured a couple of women getting married in a Doctor Who themed ceremony arranged by their children. It was horrific. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Masked Tulip Posted September 28, 2015 Share Posted September 28, 2015 They have a huge film crew in Swansea today filming in the Guildhall - they have filmed loads of episodes in there with several doctors since they relaunched the programme - but today they have such a big crew that they have taken over a local recreational field for various crew vehicles, accomodation vehicles. I suspect it is going to be one of those.... Should I have a spoiler here DTMark? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DTMark Posted September 28, 2015 Author Share Posted September 28, 2015 They have a huge film crew in Swansea today filming in the Guildhall - they have filmed loads of episodes in there with several doctors since they relaunched the programme - but today they have such a big crew that they have taken over a local recreational field for various crew vehicles, accomodation vehicles. I suspect it is going to be one of those.... Should I have a spoiler here DTMark? Might be for the Christmas episode? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DeepLurker Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 Yep, same here. Not a bad episode all in all - just blooming difficult to listen to. Glad to hear(*) it wasn't just me then! * see what I did there? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Masked Tulip Posted September 29, 2015 Share Posted September 29, 2015 Might be for the Christmas episode? I will keep an eye out for masses of tinsel clad cybermen walking through Swansea. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DTMark Posted September 29, 2015 Author Share Posted September 29, 2015 A quick search reveals that stories from both Doctor Who and Torchwood have been filmed at Brangwyn Hall, Swansea - if that's the place. Specifically Torchwood "Children of Earth": http://tardis.wikia.com/wiki/Children_of_Earth:_Day_One_(TV_story) http://www.doctorwholocations.net/locations/brangwynhall and Doctor Who "Silence in the Library", "Forest of the Dead", and "The Big Bang". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brangwyn_Hall http://www.combom.co.uk/2010/01/photographs-of-doctor-who-filming-at.html Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
The Masked Tulip Posted September 30, 2015 Share Posted September 30, 2015 A quick search reveals that stories from both Doctor Who and Torchwood have been filmed at Brangwyn Hall, Swansea - if that's the place. Specifically Torchwood "Children of Earth": http://tardis.wikia.com/wiki/Children_of_Earth:_Day_One_(TV_story) http://www.doctorwholocations.net/locations/brangwynhall and Doctor Who "Silence in the Library", "Forest of the Dead", and "The Big Bang". https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Brangwyn_Hall http://www.combom.co.uk/2010/01/photographs-of-doctor-who-filming-at.html Brangwyn Hall is within the Guildhall - lots of running up and down the corridors, steps, etc. They also use the local hospitals and schools a fair bit also. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
DTMark Posted November 2, 2015 Author Share Posted November 2, 2015 Saturday's episode ranks among the very worst Doctor Who episodes ever made. I don't even know where to start so I won't even bother. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Frank Hovis Posted November 2, 2015 Share Posted November 2, 2015 Saturday's episode ranks among the very worst Doctor Who episodes ever made. I don't even know where to start so I won't even bother. Clumsy metaphor for mass immigration; at the moment it looks like a very bad idea but this being the BBC next week's resolution will show us why it's great really. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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