Blubber.
5x02 The Beast Below (Grading/Discussion) (SPOILERS!)
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Blubber.
If I were to speculate, I'd say that the residents mostly eat food grown in hydroponic gardens on the ship (indeed, today's plans for Mars missions include hydroponic gardens, though on a much smaller scale, of course). Hydroponic gardens need two inputs: nutrient fluid and light.
Where do the nutrients in the nutrient fluid come from? In addition to the nutrient supplies the residents probably took with them when they left Earth, perhaps there exists a mechanism to capture some of the star-whale's excrement, in order to extract nutrients from it.
As for the light, they can use the same power source for that as they use to run all the other lights, "vators", machines, etc.
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Not to mention the "inside the beast" bit where they see the teeth (ala' Empire), and the obvious 'screen-wipe' cut to the Doctor staring out into space near the end of the episode...
I don't often comment in these threads for this show, but I'm giving this top marks.
No Doctor rushing around being "zany", no stupid music, no pointless celebrity guest appearance of the week, no moronic aliens looking for the MacGuffin of Mordor that will unlock the Gates of Korash or whatever, no ridiculous ghost stories.
Just a proper, old fashioned science fiction story. Well done.
No Doctor rushing around being "zany", no stupid music, no pointless celebrity guest appearance of the week, no moronic aliens looking for the MacGuffin of Mordor that will unlock the Gates of Korash or whatever, no ridiculous ghost stories.
Just a proper, old fashioned science fiction story. Well done.
I interpreted that as meaning that the whale didn't just provide the motive force, it also provided energy to Starship UK. With the whale released, Starship UK would be powerless, so gravity generators would fail, air recirculation units would stop, heating coils would cool, and the inhabitants would starve and ultimately freeze to death.
I think I'd have to agree with most here that it felt a bit rushed and disjointed on first viewing, but for me the performances and the underlying idea were both so strong that it almost didn't matter.
I'm absolutely loving Smith's kooky, oddball energy and mannerisms (the drunk giraffe comparison is dead-on), and his chemistry with Karen Gillan is just electric. Hell, they probably could have hung out on that park bench all episode, and I would have enjoyed it!
And yeah, there probably was a bit too much going on (and the limited production design definitely let the story down a bit), but I appreciated the ambition of the story. And I thought the pieces all came together fairly well at the end.
Overall, I'd call it a good, solid episode. That I can't wait to watch again.
I'm absolutely loving Smith's kooky, oddball energy and mannerisms (the drunk giraffe comparison is dead-on), and his chemistry with Karen Gillan is just electric. Hell, they probably could have hung out on that park bench all episode, and I would have enjoyed it!
And yeah, there probably was a bit too much going on (and the limited production design definitely let the story down a bit), but I appreciated the ambition of the story. And I thought the pieces all came together fairly well at the end.
Overall, I'd call it a good, solid episode. That I can't wait to watch again.
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Somewhere in between Average and Good, the pacing was different from other Who more slow and a nod towards classic. She needs some clothes next week 
I did love seeing The Demon Headmaster actor in the episode ooo my childhood flashed before my eyes when I saw him. The Doctor making the call to save us but at the same time seem to regret maybe saving us all the time when he saw what we could do was a nice touch.
Maybe not the best episode but if its one of the weaker ones then thats not a bad benchmark for Moffat-Who.
I did love seeing The Demon Headmaster actor in the episode ooo my childhood flashed before my eyes when I saw him. The Doctor making the call to save us but at the same time seem to regret maybe saving us all the time when he saw what we could do was a nice touch.Maybe not the best episode but if its one of the weaker ones then thats not a bad benchmark for Moffat-Who.
Argumentation tactic one: If somebody has produced a counter-argument, repeat your first thesis, then insult them for not adhering to it.
You haven't responded to the argument that Amy's use of the term "my imaginary friend" was ironic and not an accurate description of how she perceives the Doctor.
A valid interpretation, but I disagree. If all she was thinking about was Rory, I would argue that she would have made it a point to draw attention to the fact that the Doctor is not her boyfriend -- that she would have felt the need to actively say, "No, he's not my boyfriend." That she didn't, to me, strongly suggests that on some level she approves of the idea of a relationship with the Doctor.
Ah, yes, Argumentation Tactic Number One again. Terribly persuasive, that.
Of course they do. But, of course, if they're just intending to be platonic friends, they usually don't hug quite that affectionately when they've only spent such a short amount of time together. The people I know who get that affectionate after such a short amount of time together are usually the ones who've already developed romantic feelings for one-another.
But why would you use that crude example in the first place? Why frame it so dismissively, so crudely?
I never said she was madly in love with him. I said she has romantic feelings for him. I don't think that she's head-over-heels, I don't think she's "madly" in love, I don't think she's blinded to his faults, and I don't even think she's entirely convinced that a relationship would be a good thing. But, yes, I also think she's infatuated and likes the idea of a relationship with him on some level.
(And I'm still waiting for you to cite some evidence that she's run away with the Doctor to avoid a "mundane" life when she refers to fear of her wedding as her motivation right before Winston Churchill calls, not boredom.)
Thats true in the csae of Tony Head. He couldve been so much more, however when it was announced that Sarah Jane was coming back for one Ep, i was hoping for a two parter. That wouldve given the actors more to do and flesh each of their characters out a bit more, especially Head.
and in the case of the Demon Headmaster, yeah, i liked as a kid after school, but after i youtubed it, i found myself looking down at it, but, alas, its a product of mid 90s tv.
Aquilla, anyone?
Many thanks! I'm an American, and I usually do decently at deciphering British accents, but I have to admit that the Poetry Girl's accent gave me some problems. "A horse and a man" makes a lot more sense than "a hole sends a man!"
Funnily enough the first thing my girlfriend said to me after the episode ended was "That reminded me of the giant meat alien episode of Torchwood."
I dont know if the plot of School Reunion could have been stretched to two episodes.Thats true in the csae of Tony Head. He couldve been so much more, however when it was announced that Sarah Jane was coming back for one Ep, i was hoping for a two parter. That wouldve given the actors more to do and flesh each of their characters out a bit more, especially Head.
and in the case of the Demon Headmaster, yeah, i liked as a kid after school, but after i youtubed it, i found myself looking down at it, but, alas, its a product of mid 90s tv.
Aquilla, anyone?
as for Demon Headmaster & Aquila, considering my generation grow up without a Doctor or our own, we didnt do too badly.
I agree wholeheartedly with you.
One of my favourite aspects of the whole episode was that the problem wasn't resolved with some technobabble. If the problem had been resolved with the Doctor using his sonic screwdriver to reverse the polarity of something, it would have weakened the episode considerably. I've generally found this to be a weakness in "nuWho".
Instead, the episode's resolution came about from analyzing and putting together the clues scattered throughout the episode. I like this because it encourages the audience to think. There's no way a viewer could figure out, "reverse this polarity". But an astute viewer could have figured out, "if we free the whale, it'll stick around". In fact, I figured out the resolution of the episode as soon as Amy started having her flashback. I imagine many other viewers did as well.
I love science fiction stories in which the science fiction concepts are used as tools to advance the story, and explore moral and ethical choices (such as "mankind vs. the alien" in this episode). I felt "The Beast Below" did this, which is why I liked the episode so much. For example, just having the "Smilers" run around shooting people wouldn't be very interesting, but here we have them as part of a complex system which includes the "voting booths", the forget buttons, and the monarch's ten-year choice, to give Starship UK's rulers the moral authority (at least nominally) to justify what they're doing.
Although I'll probably love "nuWho" no matter what, if nuWho continues to produce science fiction stories of this type, I will be very pleased.
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You know, I agree with everything you say. Except that I was disappointed with the execution. I think they could have tightened up a lot of things and then given us an excellent episode. The exceution was just lacking.
Has anyone mentioned the "Mouthtrap" yet? (like mouse trap, but you bit your tongue before saying it) I ask because the Doctor and Amy fell into the mouth, teeth and all, but at the end when we get the full view of the whale, the head is completely exposed. It just seemed inconsistent and perhaps a bit of a graphical error.
Anyway, I thought the episode was rather bland, but I'd still take bland Who over much of TV anyway. The Queen could have been handled better, and I think the conspiracy could have been built up just a bit more, considering the impact it had on society. I wanted to give the episode a higher rating, too, as I tend to favor futuristic episodes more than period pieces.
Also, I'm glad that we've got an angry Doctor who will bark back, like the older Doctors. Ten rarely did that when, at times, he really should have, but I guess that's a side effect of the writers having nearly every Companion fall for him.
Lastly, some parts were just a wee bit too unbelievable to me, like how the Doctor noticed that one girl crying was the clue to a national problem. Dark, dirty, moist, and no one's paying attention to a crying child? Finally, 29th Century Britain turned into 21st Century New York City.
Anyway, I thought the episode was rather bland, but I'd still take bland Who over much of TV anyway. The Queen could have been handled better, and I think the conspiracy could have been built up just a bit more, considering the impact it had on society. I wanted to give the episode a higher rating, too, as I tend to favor futuristic episodes more than period pieces.
Also, I'm glad that we've got an angry Doctor who will bark back, like the older Doctors. Ten rarely did that when, at times, he really should have, but I guess that's a side effect of the writers having nearly every Companion fall for him.
Lastly, some parts were just a wee bit too unbelievable to me, like how the Doctor noticed that one girl crying was the clue to a national problem. Dark, dirty, moist, and no one's paying attention to a crying child? Finally, 29th Century Britain turned into 21st Century New York City.
Well I keep having to say it, but I don't make a point of blanketly disliking new Who for the sake of it. And where I do think an episode's poor, I do my very best to give my reasons. I am a DW fan, and I do want it to be good.
Yes. The story made sense with few plot holes, and was both enjoyable and moving. This is what Doctor Who should be every week.
Smith is also fantastic. My worries of him being a Tennant clone have completely subsided. Indeed, I already rate him over Tennant. Hearing Smith in interviews before the series started talking about how the Doctor was mad or whatever really filled me with dread, but I can see he really means unusual and eccentric in a Second Doctor sort of way.
I was wondering if they'd altered it, because it sounded better to me too. I'd probably prefer a different synth doing the melody to the X-Files sounding one, but other than that it's ok.
Not to mention that Amy hit the forget button on the Doctor's behalf, BEFORE learning he was a) an alien and b) the last of his kind. She said it was because he was like the whale that she did it, but she only learned this AFTER hitting the forget button.
Plot-holes-R-us, I’m afraid.
Why did the UK end up having to hijack a whale when apparently every other nation ordered their own spaceship?
If Scotland has been on a different spaceship for 300 years, how come Mandy recognises a Scottish accent?
If the queen is 300 years old, and mixes fairly freely with the populace, why hasn’t someone told her?
When the doctor and Amy are vomited out of the whale (nice Jonah reference there!) where did they end up? The whale as shown is under the nation, not inside – should they not be spewed out into space?
The whale we see doesn’t have extuberances. What are the tentacles that conveniently pop up through the floor?
Incredibly tolerant critters these whales, not to feel any malice after 300 years of torture.
If the whale doesn’t eat children, why are they still being fed to it?
What is the whale going to live on now – will ‘worthless humans’ still be a major component of its diet? How does Liz X feel about that?
At the beginning, when the Doctor has Amy by the ankle while she floats in space, he can see right up her nightie.
Smith made quite a good Doctor. Amy is much too ‘Mary Sue’ for my liking. She’s already more essential than Rose in keeping the Doctor from doing something he’ll regret for ever. Interesting recurring theme of the Doctor’s feelings about children. Is that notion running parallel with 'the crack'?I predict we will see more of the Doctor rescuing little girls - and a return to Young Amelia before the end of the series.
Why did the UK end up having to hijack a whale when apparently every other nation ordered their own spaceship?
If Scotland has been on a different spaceship for 300 years, how come Mandy recognises a Scottish accent?
If the queen is 300 years old, and mixes fairly freely with the populace, why hasn’t someone told her?
When the doctor and Amy are vomited out of the whale (nice Jonah reference there!) where did they end up? The whale as shown is under the nation, not inside – should they not be spewed out into space?
The whale we see doesn’t have extuberances. What are the tentacles that conveniently pop up through the floor?
Incredibly tolerant critters these whales, not to feel any malice after 300 years of torture.
If the whale doesn’t eat children, why are they still being fed to it?
What is the whale going to live on now – will ‘worthless humans’ still be a major component of its diet? How does Liz X feel about that?
At the beginning, when the Doctor has Amy by the ankle while she floats in space, he can see right up her nightie.
Smith made quite a good Doctor. Amy is much too ‘Mary Sue’ for my liking. She’s already more essential than Rose in keeping the Doctor from doing something he’ll regret for ever. Interesting recurring theme of the Doctor’s feelings about children. Is that notion running parallel with 'the crack'?I predict we will see more of the Doctor rescuing little girls - and a return to Young Amelia before the end of the series.
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