7X03 A Town Called Mercy (Grading/Discussion) (SPOILERS!)

[Holdfast]

Mr. Adventure wrote:

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I didn't care for this one very much, the Doctor/Matt felt forced when he wasn't just simply out-of-character. Hell, he basically got the one truly good man killed by throwing a tantrum.

Why'd he ever drop Amy and Rory off in the first place? Seems pointless if he's constantly going on adventures with them. I know the whole codependency or whatever thing is coming up but it just doesn't feel right.

The intersting aspects of the Ponds story effectively ended last series; they even got a nice wrap-up. At this point it feels indulgent to have us still putting up with them. Admittedly, I don't care for them so I'm biased, but I still think the show should have brought in the new companion full-time at the start of this series instead of waiting around filling time with all this silly "codependency or whatever thing" as you put it. It all feels a little adolescent, the Doctor not just cutting the apron strings, tbh. He's 1200 (or whatever), not 12.

[JRoss]

^+1. We need better than Amy.

I'm dreading Clara now, though. At first I didn't care either way, just glad that we'd get someone new. Then her character (or a reasonable facsimile thereof) is introduced and we see someone who is just so gosh-darn special that she gets to look directly at the camera and deliver her line to the audience.

[I am not Spock]

^Guess I'm the only person who likes Amy. I'll be sad to see her go. But then, I like Clara/Oswin as well so far.

Anyway, I enjoyed the episode. It was nice to see them do a Western. And I liked that there wasn't a clear cut villain, he was a morally ambiguous character. It was good to see them acknowledging the Doctor's tendencies to push the moral boundaries in recent episodes. I wonder where they're going with this storyline.

[Ar-Pharazon]

I speak "horse".

[Mister Fandango]

I am not Spock wrote:

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^Guess I'm the only person who likes Amy.

Hardly. Both she and Rory have been some of the most interesting and fun companions on the show, and they're at the top of my list since the restart. Now Rose, she was annoying. Followed closely by Donna. (I still have no idea why she's so popular. Everything about her grates on the nerves.) Martha is the only real contender, but she was a wasted opportunity because of RTD's hard-on for turning her into a lovestruck twit.

That said, the Ponds did have a nice ending last series and they could have easily moved on with new companions after that. But they didn't, and I'm not at all upset about it. In fact, I like the almost cocky attitude they're starting to develop about it; what, being the Doctor's in-laws, experienced time travelers, and so on and so forth.

Heck, the in-laws part is what really makes it work. As much as most men would love to ditch their in-laws on a rock somewhere, they know they'd have hell to pay from their wives the moment they tried. As it stands now, he already tries to keep a good distance from them, only showing up after months and months of down time.

[Guy Gardener]

he's not leaving them behind from his adventures. but hen I don't remember them visiting henry the 8th, so we're not seeing everything. The Doctor is "most probably" giving them a breather, but what's he doing? 10 months go buy for them, but maybe only a couple hours, a few minutes, seconds for the Timelord as he reads a book in the bathtub... He's still 12 hundred, so it's not like it seems that centuries are still passing between visits.

[Mr. Adventure]

I will say this, you don't see many episodes where the heroes take advantage of the antagonist's morality.

[Mister Fandango]

Guy Gardener wrote:

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he's not leaving them behind from his adventures. but hen I don't remember them visiting henry the 8th, so we're not seeing everything. The Doctor is "most probably" giving them a breather, but what's he doing? 10 months go buy for them, but maybe only a couple hours, a few minutes, seconds for the Timelord as he reads a book in the bathtub... He's still 12 hundred, so it's not like it seems that centuries are still passing between visits.

Well, he did have enough time to have at least two adventures between visits, one with Nerfertitti and one with the safari hunter fellow.

[Similitude]

Good, not great. Weakest of the three, but still I enjoyed it.

Only 2 episodes left of Amy

[Praetor_Shinzon]

enjoyable episode. thought it was better than Dinosaurs on a Spaceship to be honest. wish Rory had more to do in this ep.

[ThankQ]

First brilliant episode of the new season. Didactic? Yes. Cliche? Yup. But the score was absolutely top notch. First ep of S7 that had me wondering about the resolution. I don't usually go for westerns, but it was a perfect fit for this story. I'm not sure how it will stand up to repeat viewings, but I think that was 45 minutes well spent.

[Mr. Adventure]

Could this race be an offshoot of the Orkans? Nanu-nanu.

[I am not Spock]

Similitude wrote:

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Only 2 episodes left of Amy

Indeed

[I am not Spock]

I still want to know how they're going to write out the Doctor's in-laws. Guess we'll find out in a few weeks.

They gave Amy and Rory a nice closer in 'The God Complex' which probably would have worked. I hope they don't kill either of them, that would just be mean.

[Praetor_Shinzon]

Mr. Adventure wrote:

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Could this race be an offshoot of the Orkans? Nanu-nanu.

Shazbot!