6x04 The Doctor's Wife(Grading/Discussion) (SPOILERS!!)

[Samurai8472]

I'll take Moffat's approach over coming back to modern london every other episode during RTD's reign.


RTD wrote with a larger audience in mind with all his pop culture references and celebrity shoutouts(Sharon Osborn)

 

[Sci]

I'll take Moffat's approach over coming back to modern london every other episode during RTD's reign.

Present-Day London appeared in:

Series One:

1.01, "Rose. 1.02, "The End of the World" (briefly in coda). 1.04, "Aliens of London." 1.05, "World War Three." 1.13, "The Parting of the Ways" (briefly in sub-plot).

Major Appearances: 23% of episodes.

Series Two:

2.00, "The Christmas Invasion." 2.01, "New Earth" (briefly in teaser). 2.03, "School Reunion." 2.05, "Rise of the Cybermen" (Alternate Universe London). 2.06, "The Age of Steel" (Alternate Universe London, and then briefly in coda). 2.10, "Love & Monsters." 2.11, "Fear Her" (technically near-future London). 2.12, "Army of Ghosts." 2.13, "Doomsday."

Major Appearances: 42.85% of episodes if we exclude Pete's World. 57.14% of episodes if we include Pete's World.

Series Three:

3.00, "The Runaway Bride." 3.01, "Smith and Jones." 3.06, "The Lazarus Experiment." 3.07, "42" (briefly, in sub-plot). 3.10, "Blink." 3.12, "The Sound of Drums." 3.13, "Last of the Time Lords" (briefly, in coda).

Major Appearances: 35.71% of episodes.

4.00, "Voyage of the Damned" (briefly, in sub-plot). 4.01, "Partners in Crime." 4.04, "The Sontaran Stratagem." 4.05, "The Poison Sky." 4.06, "The Doctor's Daughter" (briefly, in coda). 4.11, "Turn Left" (technically alternate timeline). 4.12, "The Stolen Earth." 4.13, "Journey's End." 4.15, "Planet of the Dead." 4.17, "The End of Time, Part One." 4.18, "The End of Time, Part Two."

Major Appearances: 50% of episodes.

Total Number for All Seasons: 47.27% of all RTD-era episodes.

You're right, modern-day London does appear more often in the RTD era than I'd thought.

 

[Alidar Jarok]

While I think they toned it down, the references to pop culture that appeared in future Earth (and the spacestation) early on were quite prevalent.

 

[PorthosShadow]

While I think they toned it down, the references to pop culture that appeared in future Earth (and the spacestation) early on were quite prevalent.

I think "Toxic" by Brittney Spears was such a perfect song that described Roses relationship with The Doctor.

 

[Samurai8472]

While were on the subject. During Moffat's run modern London isn't on it's hands and knees begging for the Doctor to save them and the world.

Christmas wasn't in danger for once!

The season finale wasn't just London and the entire world

"The big bang" took place in the past with the majority set in an Alternate universe.

 

[PorthosShadow]

While were on the subject. During Moffat's run modern London isn't on it's hands and knees begging for the Doctor to save them and the world.

Christmas wasn't in danger for once!

The season finale wasn't just London and the entire world

"The big bang" took place in the past with the majority set in an Alternate universe.

Also, the world has UNIT which from the look of "Planet Of The Dead" and "Journey's End" are doing a pretty good job of dealing with alien threats.

 

[Sci]

Christmas wasn't in danger for once!

"Christmas is canceled!" - Ship's Captain, "A Christmas Carol"

The season finale wasn't just London and the entire world

I'm fairly certain the National Museum in "The Big Bang" was in London, actually.

"The big bang" took place in the past with the majority set in an Alternate universe.

So did "Last of the Time Lords."

 

[Alidar Jarok]

While I think they toned it down, the references to pop culture that appeared in future Earth (and the spacestation) early on were quite prevalent.

I think "Toxic" by Brittney Spears was such a perfect song that described Roses relationship with The Doctor.

I thought the Doctor and Martha's relationship was the real problematic one. But, either way, I was referring more to Weakest Link.

 

[PorthosShadow]

While I think they toned it down, the references to pop culture that appeared in future Earth (and the spacestation) early on were quite prevalent.

I think "Toxic" by Brittney Spears was such a perfect song that described Roses relationship with The Doctor.

I thought the Doctor and Martha's relationship was the real problematic one. But, either way, I was referring more to Weakest Link.

Ironically enough, "The Weakest Link" thing bothers me less than people in a thousand years still wearing neckties.

 

[Starkers]

I think what annoyed me about Bad Wolf was the fact that every game we saw on the Gamestation was comparable to the present day; Weakest Link, Big Brother, Trinny and Susanah...I don't have any issue with the people from the future mining the past for ideas, but I wish they'd slipped something a little less present day in there as well.

 

[Bob The Skutter]

I think what annoyed me about Bad Wolf was the fact that every game we saw on the Gamestation was comparable to the present day; Weakest Link, Big Brother, Trinny and Susanah...I don't have any issue with the people from the future mining the past for ideas, but I wish they'd slipped something a little less present day in there as well.

Well they did talk about some other things, the three people living with a bear and something else, I think.

 

[Starkers]

Yeah I know, I still think RTD over egged the pop culture refs in that episode though, but that's just me

 

[The Nth Doctor]

No, it's not just you. That two-parter would have been a lot better without that stuff.

 

[Stevil2001]

Fie on all of you! The Weakest Link jokes are one of the best bits. How much more dull would it have been if it was "Generic Futuristic Gameshow"? And how much less brutal would Rose's 'death' have been without that humorous contrast?

 

[23skidoo]

Exactly, and as for the Doctor's comment that 'he'd know.' well I think perception filters take care of that.

Actually, Gaiman and Moffat likely thought of this issue when the episode was composed, because it establishes that the Corsair (and the others) were outside the universe, so the whole "I'd feel any more Time Lords" doesn't need to apply.

Alex

 

[PorthosShadow]

Fie on all of you! The Weakest Link jokes are one of the best bits. How much more dull would it have been if it was "Generic Futuristic Gameshow"? And how much less brutal would Rose's 'death' have been without that humorous contrast?

But would it have been so difficult to create (not necessarily) an original futuristic game show? I think that's the issue some people have, it's the lack of creativity. Using the template of established contemporary game shows strikes me as a bit lazy. Kind of reminds of the phase pistols in "Enterprise" and thinking, 'way to stretch those imaginations guys'

 

[Starkers]

Don't get me started on phase pistols...

I wouldn't even have minded if they'd nicked one of the gameshows from the past at least, something like The Golden Shot, or er...Bullseye! Actually that would have been great, not to mention super, smashing and lovely!

 

[The Mirrorball Man]

But would it have been so difficult to create (not necessarily) an original futuristic game show?

It would have been very easy to create an original futuristic game show. Of course at the same time, you would have lost any emotional baggage that Big Brother and The Weakest Link brought to the episode, all that symbolic shorthand that RTD uses to bring the characters right into the action in media res without any need for exposition.

Had they used fictional futuristic game shows instead of those we were already familiar with, we would have needed additional exposition scenes, which would have taken some precious time to explain that, basically, those futuristic games were the equivalent of our Big Brother and Weakest Link.

When you see a guy wearing a suit and tie in a futuristic movie or television series, it's not because the producers think that fashion will never change. It's because we know instantly what suits and ties are supposed to mean, we associate them with all kinds of symbolic elements and social values, and that can't be replicated easily with clothes that are completely made up to look futuristic. It's not a matter of creativity, it's a matter of storytelling and emotional impact.

 

[wamdue]

Fictional game shows always look cheap, that said what we saw looked like cheap versions of the real game shows, so nothing gained there really.

More to the point to the Robot Anne Droid was cool, and the de-frabictor came in handy.

 

[RevdKathy]

Just think, we could have had a futuristic Dusty Bin! On second, thought no. Don't think it.