"Blink" & "Midnight"...

[The Borgified Corpse]

Of course "Blink" is a genius episode. It's also one of those episodes that only works if you don't do it that often.

"Midnight" is, I think, a kind of episode that the show should do more often. I think it was a pretty good mixture of plot driven & character driven. The plot is intimate enough that it reveals details about the characters. Meanwhile, who the characters are dictates how they react to and forward the plot.

Too often Doctor Who errs on the side of being too plot driven. It's so preoccupied with running everywhere and fighting guys in rubber suits. The companions are often reduced to helpless screaming victims for the Doctor to save or clueless morons for the Doctor to explain vital exposition to.

I'd say this is the main weakness of Doctor Who vs. Star Trek. Even in the worst Star Trek episodes, it always revealed something about the character of Kirk, Spock, & McCoy. You rarely get that in Doctor Who. (Heck, even a notoriously plot driven show like Law & Order is often better at using plot to reveal character, particularly when Jack McCoy or Michael Cutter will have some moral argument with his ADA about the case at hand.)

 

[Worf2DS9]

I absolutely love "Blink" and I was pretty much blown away when I first saw it, believing it to be the best episode of Who I'd ever seen. I went on to on to watch it another 4 or 5 times in the span of a week. I loved Sally, and the emotional rollercoaster she goes through with regards to losing Kathy, and then Billy. The writing, music and acting was superb.

I also really liked "Midnight" -- definitely one of the best from Series 4. I loved how the light, fun nature of the trip progressively turned more and more claustrophobic and paranoid. Truly creepy stuff.

 

[Mitty]

Blink is my favourite Who episode ever, so much so that it's permanently on my iphone... I know every damn word now, I just love it.

Midnight was probably Davey's best episode of the series. Incredibly well done, scary as hell and possibly the furthest we've ever seen the Doctor taken out of his comfort zone. I've only watched it once because it disturbed me so much, I really, really should force myself to watch it again.

By the same token Turn Left was also just as impressive. Anyone who questions Catherine Tate as a serious actress need only be shown this and all doubts would be put aside.

 

[The Borgified Corpse]

Midnight was probably Davey's best episode of the series. Incredibly well done, scary as hell and possibly the furthest we've ever seen the Doctor taken out of his comfort zone.

Something else that needs to be done more often. Due to the nature of episodic TV, we know that a character as integral as the Doctor is never going to die. But that doesn't mean that you shouldn't try to put the character into some truly plausible jeopardy. Too often the Doctor just strides through an adventure completely confident that he's going to make it through A-OK. I think it's much more interesting when we see him genuinely fear for his life, like in "Midnight" or "Dalek."

By the same token Turn Left was also just as impressive. Anyone who questions Catherine Tate as a serious actress need only be shown this and all doubts would be put aside.

True enough. But then, lots of people can be serious actresses. IMO, it takes far greater talent to singlehandedly carry a sketch comedy series playing dozens of characters so diverse that you can barely tell that it's the same actress each time.

 

[Starkers]

Midnight was probably Davey's best episode of the series. Incredibly well done, scary as hell and possibly the furthest we've ever seen the Doctor taken out of his comfort zone.

Something else that needs to be done more often. Due to the nature of episodic TV, we know that a character as integral as the Doctor is never going to die. But that doesn't mean that you shouldn't try to put the character into some truly plausible jeopardy. Too often the Doctor just strides through an adventure completely confident that he's going to make it through A-OK. I think it's much more interesting when we see him genuinely fear for his life, like in "Midnight" or "Dalek."

Completely agree, the one downside to the notion of regeneration (brilliant though it is) is that it makes the Doctor even less vulnerable than the average hero. We know he isn't gonna die, but kudos to RTD for coming up with a situation worse than death where regeneration wouldn't help.

Actually the thought of the midnight creature inhabiting a basically imortal Timelord would be chilling...although it might just be the Master I guess.

 

[The Borgified Corpse]

^Even with Regeneration, I think it's an easy fix. Just put the Doctor in more situations where he really doesn't know of any effective means of fighting the villain. They also did a decent job with the shadows in "Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead." He flat out admitted that the only way he knew how to fight them was "Run."

Actually, I think Patrick Troughton was a good example of a Doctor that could plausibly be put in jeopardy. There's one cliffhanger in "The Seeds of Death" in particular that I think worked really well where the Doctor is trapped outside the building while several seeds erupt around him. He seems genuinely terrified.

 

[David cgc]

Personally, the only time I really felt scared for the Doctor was in "42," because he was scared enough to start to explain to Martha what was going to happen if he died. Usually he's confidant things won't get that far, but once he actually felt he needed to prepare her, I knew that there was some serious shit going down. It's kind of a pity that such a strong beat was in a fairly weak episode.

 

[Starkers]

^Even with Regeneration, I think it's an easy fix. Just put the Doctor in more situations where he really doesn't know of any effective means of fighting the villain. They also did a decent job with the shadows in "Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead." He flat out admitted that the only way he knew how to fight them was "Run."

Actually, I think Patrick Troughton was a good example of a Doctor that could plausibly be put in jeopardy. There's one cliffhanger in "The Seeds of Death" in particular that I think worked really well where the Doctor is trapped outside the building while several seeds erupt around him. He seems genuinely terrified.

Yeah, the Vashna Narada (or whatever they were called) were a good enemy really (apart from when they started nimating copses and looking up the doctor in a book!) and you have to wonder, could he regenerate after that? And presumably they'd just eat the next version and so on and so on!

 

[Sci]

Too often Doctor Who errs on the side of being too plot driven. It's so preoccupied with running everywhere and fighting guys in rubber suits. The companions are often reduced to helpless screaming victims for the Doctor to save or clueless morons for the Doctor to explain vital exposition to.

I'd say this is the main weakness of Doctor Who vs. Star Trek. Even in the worst Star Trek episodes, it always revealed something about the character of Kirk, Spock, & McCoy. You rarely get that in Doctor Who. (Heck, even a notoriously plot driven show like Law & Order is often better at using plot to reveal character, particularly when Jack McCoy or Michael Cutter will have some moral argument with his ADA about the case at hand.)

I agree that the original Trek was better than the original Who at character, but I firmly disagree with the idea that modern Who is less character-driven than TOS Trek. Modern Who is as good at characterization -- no, better at it -- than any Trek save DS9.

 

[Starkers]

It's impossible to really compare NuWho and TOS. TOS had great characters but was pretty much stand alone episodes, and v few eps refer to things that have gone before. Who on the other hand has an arc and it's easier to see characters develop over time. That said I don't think NuWho is that brilliant at characterisation. Better than Voyager or Ent, but probably on a par with TNG, nowhere near DS9 levels (but so few shows are).

 

[The Mirrorball Man]

I'm awfully sorry. Pet peeve of mine alert.

Starkers says:

It's impossible to really compare NuWho and TOS.

And then...

TOS had great characters but was pretty much stand alone episodes, and v few eps refer to things that have gone before. Who on the other hand has an arc and it's easier to see characters develop over time. That said I don't think NuWho is that brilliant at characterisation. Better than Voyager or Ent, but probably on a par with TNG, nowhere near DS9 levels (but so few shows are).

... he compares them.

Actually, you can compare anything with anything else. Apples are less acid and less expensive than oranges.

 

[Starkers]

I wasn't comparing them, I was pointing out the differences...that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

 

[The Mirrorball Man]

I wasn't comparing them, I was pointing out the differences...that's my excuse and I'm sticking to it!

Haha! Well, that's your prerogative of course, but here I am, definition in hand:

compare
1. to examine (two or more objects, ideas, people, etc.) in order to note similarities and differences: to compare two pieces of cloth; to compare the governments of two nations.

And that is, allegedly, my triumph.

 

[The Borgified Corpse]

Personally, the only time I really felt scared for the Doctor was in "42," because he was scared enough to start to explain to Martha what was going to happen if he died. Usually he's confidant things won't get that far, but once he actually felt he needed to prepare her, I knew that there was some serious shit going down. It's kind of a pity that such a strong beat was in a fairly weak episode.

Yeah. Actually, I think "42" would be a decent episode except that it's pacing is way off. It needed an extra half-hour to breathe.

"The Impossible Planet"/"The Satan Pit" was another decent story in terms of putting the Doctor into some greater jeopardy. First they find writing so old that not even the TARDIS can translate it. Then they lose the TARDIS, seemingly forever, when it falls down a fissure. It's a good job of making the Doctor more vulnerable.

Too often Doctor Who errs on the side of being too plot driven. It's so preoccupied with running everywhere and fighting guys in rubber suits. The companions are often reduced to helpless screaming victims for the Doctor to save or clueless morons for the Doctor to explain vital exposition to.

I'd say this is the main weakness of Doctor Who vs. Star Trek. Even in the worst Star Trek episodes, it always revealed something about the character of Kirk, Spock, & McCoy. You rarely get that in Doctor Who. (Heck, even a notoriously plot driven show like Law & Order is often better at using plot to reveal character, particularly when Jack McCoy or Michael Cutter will have some moral argument with his ADA about the case at hand.)

I agree that the original Trek was better than the original Who at character, but I firmly disagree with the idea that modern Who is less character-driven than TOS Trek. Modern Who is as good at characterization -- no, better at it -- than any Trek save DS9.

There are times when that is true. New Doctor Who is kind of uneven in that respect. Some episodes are great at adding character moments. But there are other episodes where even the Doctor is not much more than a McGuffin to tell the story.

 

[Kelso]

Something I've always wondered...

Why did Sally have to duck? Why was the weeping angel throwing things at her in the first place? Why not just zap her back in time?

Anyways... great ep.

 

[David cgc]

Sally wasn't looking at the angel at that moment, but she could've turned at any time, and it couldn't come inside without giving itself away, and might not have gotten close enough to touch her before she turned and realized it wasn't a statue because it had moved. The angel chucked the brick at her to knock her out so it could approach safely.

 

[Kelso]

I thought they were supposed to be super-duper fast.

 

[Starkers]

For all we know it was actually the Doctor from the future!

 

[David cgc]

I thought they were supposed to be super-duper fast.

Well, not super-duper fast enough, apparently. Sally and Larry were, after all, looking at each other in horror for quite a while once they realized that neither of them were watching the angels, and still managed to catch one in the nick of time.

 

[TedShatner10]

They're quick, but not split second quick, and likely they're invisible to the nake eye since you're bound notice angels zooming about if you're not looking at them. The Weeping Angels are lighting in the bottle imaginative, but inconsistant (like the Daleks).