7x06 The Bells of St John - review/ discussion

Discussion in 'Doctor Who' started by 3chordboy, Mar 30, 2013.

?

How do you rate 7x06 "The Bells of St John"?

Poll closed Apr 9, 2013.
  1. Poor

    2 vote(s)
    1.4%
  2. Okay

    17 vote(s)
    12.2%
  3. Good

    21 vote(s)
    15.1%
  4. Great

    39 vote(s)
    28.1%
  5. Outstanding

    42 vote(s)
    30.2%
  6. Geronimo!!

    18 vote(s)
    12.9%
  1. DalekJim

    DalekJim Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    Jun 22, 2009
    Location:
    Great Britain
    ...you will become like uzzzzzz.....
     
  2. Saga

    Saga Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Sep 6, 2008
    Location:
    VA
    you must be new to these episode discussion threads. Bones seems to have nothing but disgust for all things NuWho. which leaves many of us wondering why he continues to watch something he obviously hates.
     
  3. DalekJim

    DalekJim Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

    Joined:
    Jun 22, 2009
    Location:
    Great Britain
    I dunno, he doesn't seem to be being mean to anybody so let him post whatever? I get people treating me like shit all the time in the other section just for not liking JJ Abrams so I know how annoying it is being ganged up on just for having an opinion that doesn't fit in with the majority.
     
  4. Psion

    Psion Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 19, 2001
    Location:
    Lat: 40.1630936 Lon: -75.1183777
    Where the Hell is that damned upvote button?!

    I suspect Bones likes the new show more than he lets on, but revels in creative snark. I find his posts interesting because he doesn't hold back when he finds something wrong with the story or acting, and he's often right in his criticisms. On more than one occasion, he's pointed out things that I've missed.
     
  5. Awesome Possum

    Awesome Possum Moddin' Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 13, 2001
    Location:
    Earth
    I do, but it is at least consistent with the observed world.
     
  6. Konata Izumi

    Konata Izumi Commander Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Jan 11, 2013
    Location:
    Helsinki, Finland
    I doubt you observe from the exact same angle. Move like closer to some thing, and it becomes bigger, but some other thing becomes... smaller.
     
  7. Ghost Bones

    Ghost Bones Captain Captain

    Joined:
    Sep 11, 2011
    Location:
    Ghost Blighty
    It's clear you're trying to be personally derisory rather purely sticking to the topic at hand. I would insist you modify your responses to resolve the expression of this underlying attitude.
     
  8. The Mirrorball Man

    The Mirrorball Man Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Dec 18, 1999
    Location:
    Switzerland
    Hey, if you think he's such an awesome guy, don't tell us, tell him and talk together about whatever it is that you both like about Doctor Who.
     
  9. Kai "the spy"

    Kai "the spy" Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 7, 2011
    Location:
    Home
    So, just watched the episode for the second time, and I feel like I can give some comments now. Didn't want to read through 13 pages, so some of the things may have been said before.

    First off, the title, once more, has absolutely nothing to do with the actual episode, aside from a brief mention. Moffat's done this before ("Let's Kill Hitler", anyone?!), and it's kind of annoying. I like subtle titles that don't just give a description of the threat, but it should have something to do with the plot.

    When we last saw the Doctor, he was thrilled of the mystery that Clara represented, and decided to get out of retirement to go look for her. So, this character who's always been portrayed as someone never staying long in one place, just having spent several months in Victorian London, chooses to begin his search for Clara in a monestary, and stays there long enough to change his outfit to a monk's cowl and paint a picture of Clara. Because that helps in his search, apparently.

    Having found Clara, Moffat does the "Doctor who?" gag again. And again. And again. Seriously, how stupid does he think the audience is?! Yes, it's the ominous first question, which will be important in some upcoming adventure (presumably the 50th anniversary special), we got that already. Maybe Moffat actually loves the Peter Cushing movies, because in those "Doctor Who" was the actual name of the character.

    I don't think the Doctor actually invented the quadracycle, there. Those have been around for ages. Just not as common as the bicycle. I had thought the Doctor would know something like that.

    So, Clara needed some help with her WiFi connection, and later makes a Twitter joke. And for some reason, that's really suspicious.

    Later, the Doctor and having-no-clue-about-computers-until-yesterday Clara sit in a café, with a laptop, drinking coffee from the money they collected from tourists who saw the TARDIS appearing and thinking it to be a magic trick (which was actually a nice touch), and after that bit and the ride on the motorbike, I kept wondering: Where did the laptop come from?!

    And then there's the bit where the Doctor talks to the avatars of the evil lady, and at one point, the newsanchor on the TV turns into an avatar, which makes me wonder: Didn't anybody watching the program notice? And did the Doctor just reply to the TV, and evil lady heard?!

    But the episode had its good moments, too. I actually liked the overall plot. Compared to the past one and a half seasons, this episode was even kind of focused.

    I liked Clara. The part of her wanting to travel but kind of staying out of a feel of obligation was something I liked very much. It brought out a human side I've been kind of missing since RTD left.

    The "But,... it's bigger on the inside" bit got a nice variation here, I thought. Though, nothing beats Donna's "It's smaller on the outside".

    Liked the magic trick bit, and the avatars actually were kind of creepy (though not original), up until the Doctor started talking to the TV.

    Also liked the anti-grav motorbike, and the twist with the Doctor actually still being at the café.

    And Richard E. Grant returns as the Great Intelligence. Hooray for that.

    So, all in all, one of the better episodes of Moffat-Who, I'd say.
     
  10. Saga

    Saga Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Sep 6, 2008
    Location:
    VA
    Moffat actually does like the Cushing movies. i believe he's also stated the new Daleks are inspired by the ones in those movies.
     
  11. Allyn Gibson

    Allyn Gibson Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Oct 16, 2000
    Location:
    South Pennsyltucky
    I truly don't know what to make of the episode.

    On a superficial level, I enjoyed the heck out of it. In the moment, it was great.

    Beyond the superficial, it was a schizophrenic mess. I totally would have believed that RTD had written this, because the magic disappears with the least little bit of thought.

    There are some genuinely Moffat moments -- the Doctor in the monastery (which doesn't make any more sense than the Doctor's exile to the 19th-century in "The Snowmen"), the Doctor putting Clara to bed and being a daffy Tim Burton character outside her window.

    But then it's set-piece after set-piece. Occasionally it's creepy and chilling, but then the ending felt a bit flat.

    The Doctor in lust is an interesting angle, and one that I wonder how the other writers will develop.

    I'm glad Doctor Who is back. I wish this episode were a little deeper, and while I'm looking forward to Neil Cross' episode next week, it does look like it owes a bit to "The Beast Below."
     
  12. Samurai8472

    Samurai8472 Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Mar 27, 2007

    The beast below/The End of Earth because the doctor's taking the companion to the future.

    I also thought the little girl in the preview looked like one of the worshippers from "The fires of Pompeii"
     
  13. Mr. Adventure

    Mr. Adventure Fleet Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Jun 9, 2001
    Location:
    Mr. Adventure
    According to Wikipedia, "The earliest recorded pedal-powered quadracycle was exhibited in 1853 at the Exhibition of the Industry of All Nations World's Fair held in New York City."

    Maybe the Doctor took it for a spin? Sounds like a Doctor-y place to be.
     
  14. Nerys Myk

    Nerys Myk A Spock and a smile Premium Member

    Joined:
    Nov 4, 2001
    Location:
    AI Generated Madness
    As with Bones, it's the way you've expressed your opinions that gets the reaction you get.
     
  15. The Mirrorball Man

    The Mirrorball Man Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Dec 18, 1999
    Location:
    Switzerland
    He knows that.
     
  16. DS9Continuing

    DS9Continuing Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

    Joined:
    Jun 29, 2001
    Location:
    Manchester
    Drive-by posting to defend the "Let's Kill Hitler" title.

    There's some strong parallels inherent there. The Teselecta stopped their assassination of Hitler because they realized it was too soon - you can't kill Hitler before WWII because it would be changing time. That's one of the basic precepts of time travel. Likewise they knew that River couldn't kill the Doctor here because he dies in Utah in 2011. Likewise we knew they couldn't kill River here because we already know when she dies - in the Library.

    So the "Let's Kill Hitler" title was actually an encapsulation of that entire aspect of time travel.

    But I will grant you that "The Bells of St John" is a lot harder to explain. All I can come up with is that the Tardis phone is what called him back to action from his self-imposed exile which started the whole storyline off, but I'm not sure that's worth naming the whole episode after. Ah well. It's something else for us to spend pages and pages speculating over, if nothing else.

    .
     
  17. The Mirrorball Man

    The Mirrorball Man Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Dec 18, 1999
    Location:
    Switzerland
    Unless... it's a red herring or something that will make sense later and yada yada.
     
  18. Konata Izumi

    Konata Izumi Commander Red Shirt

    Joined:
    Jan 11, 2013
    Location:
    Helsinki, Finland
    In the words of Freddy Got Fingered: "He's stupid!" "Not stupid!" "He's stupid!" "Not stupid!" "He's stupid!" "Not stupid!"

    I'm sorry but you don't seem to realize you listed many quite sensible details too you didn't quite catch - it's the opposite and you'd think after the complexity of the partly incoherent Series 6 there was no doubt about that...

    There's nothing inherently stupid in repetition or else the tardis would be stupid it's just a matter of preference what you want repeated.

    Yes I mad about calling things one finds difficult in one way or another stupid as it's not what it's supposed to mean :angryrazz:
     
    Last edited: Apr 2, 2013
  19. Kai "the spy"

    Kai "the spy" Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Feb 7, 2011
    Location:
    Home
    You know, I can actually accept that.

    So, you liked the way they did the "Doctor who?" bit these past episodes?!

    Tell you something, dropped occasionally, I like it, too. I liked how it was done in "Boom Town", or "The Christmas Invasion". Because they did it once, the viewers catched it, smiled, and the show went on.

    What I don't like is rubbing it in. It's like "Hey, fans, look, I just said the name of the show on-screen, and now I'll do it again. That was fun, saying it on-screen, right?! Let's do it again."

    So, if you are entertained by this stupid bit, that's fine. I'm entertained by a lot of stupid bits. But let's call it what it is: Stupid.
     
  20. The Mirrorball Man

    The Mirrorball Man Vice Admiral Admiral

    Joined:
    Dec 18, 1999
    Location:
    Switzerland
    I'll call it what it is: a humorous year-long tease for the season finale, in the spirit of the series 50th anniversary.