Spoilers The Power of the Doctor grade and discussion thread

Discussion in 'Doctor Who' started by The Nth Doctor, Oct 20, 2022.

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How do you rate The Power of the Doctor?

  1. Oh, brilliant!

    17.6%
  2. A

    11.8%
  3. A-

    25.0%
  4. B+

    11.8%
  5. B

    7.4%
  6. B-

    8.8%
  7. C+

    8.8%
  8. C

    1.5%
  9. C-

    5.9%
  10. D+

    1.5%
  11. D

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  12. D-

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  13. Rubbish

    0 vote(s)
    0.0%
  1. Timelord Victorious

    Timelord Victorious Vice Admiral Admiral

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    Oh and I didn‘t see anyone mention it, but the credits listed

    and introducing David Tennant as The Doctor.

    that was a nice touch!
     
  2. Chakoteya

    Chakoteya Fleet Captain Fleet Captain

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    You just beat me to it. :)

    I think the whole thing could have been cut down a bit. What was the point of the portraits? (Please let the Master Lisa one have 'This is a fake' written in felt tip under the paint.) The cast list called her a Curator. Wot, another one?

    Shame they couldn't have Tom somehow, apart from his scarf.
     
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  3. Qonundrum

    Qonundrum Vice Admiral Admiral

    Chibnall was hardly the first. I think more were expecting more from him; many ideas are there but were just unevenly handled.

    TNotD, Two Doctors, Three Doctors, often have more problems that drag them down a bit but 5 manages to escape it:

    T5D had gone through some changes before its final form and it's more like a lot of fun but with headcanon to connect the dots with. Not all can be, but the reason why there's a transmat in the tomb is because the makers finished the tomb, went out to set the traps, went back in, activated the traps, used it, then disabled it and hid the control room in a should-have-been-impossible-way-oops fashion, because for whatever reason they couldn't destroy it (oops x2)

    Anniversary stories should just be fun for the ride, I'll concede.

    Odd, but TPotD felt more like an anniversary story than Jodie's finale...

    I've preordered the blu-ray now due to its strengths. It has nitpicky moments, what doesn't, but the strengths are far stronger.

    Easily.

    11's final lines also have a sense of wonder consistent for her era and it's a damn sound more refreshing than "I don't wanna go, waaaaaaaaah!" For all the talk of "Jodie isn't being Doctorish", she had more dialogue that was compared to some other modern predecessors. Indeed, once someone pointed out to me she has shades of Davo, I started giving the era another go... more on that later.

    So tired of arcs where everything has to be so big bombastic epic. That's another reason why this finale felt proper. There's nothing TO one-up. Even as far back as series 2 the cookie cutter template started to feel prevalent and series 3 didn't even seem to try.

    Ditto. RTD 2 will be a different era if everything that's been said is true.

    I've seen some of his other shows, but sci-fi isn't drama and for some that touch on real life subjects, finding nonfiction documentaries of the same subjects are far more edifying, as well as genuinely realistic since nothing's more real than actual documentaries. If the people being interviewed aren't fibbing. And many weren't at the time but it's not 1980 anymore either. :(
     
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  4. Qonundrum

    Qonundrum Vice Admiral Admiral

    :)

    Why are people throwing tomato and potato soup at paintings while whining about food insecurity?

    Chibnall wanted to outdo RTD again? (Wasn't keen on it in 2006, doesn't seem to be effective now either.)

    Good questions.

    That's been a problem increasingly going on since the 70s and more definitively since the 80s. It's a comic book-like aspect that he escapes harrowing danger just to return.

    Considering Chib's previous historical elements, this one was a letdown and I'm certain there's more to it than to chuck in one of Boney M's best songs. Amazed he didn't squeeze in Ma Barker and use Boney's "Ma Baker" to make a reason as to why the name was changed (Boney M cited creative flair and it actually works, but Chibnall could have ditched a few characters to really have a better use of historical characters like he had before.)
    :(

    Like The Two Doctors, some elements were not needed (e.g. Sontarans in T2D). He had some cool ideas but many seemed to have lacked focus or impact.

    The idea of the Master taking over the Doctor's body was used once before but eschewed thanks to timing circumstances. Here we see the attempt again, and to go about the universe making the Doctor look evil. Given how sadistic the Master is when asking Tegan about her aunt and so on, it certainly fits.

    Sacha's Master was too Simm-like at times but he still kept it just low-key enough. I still prefer DW being dark and without modern camp, which makes 80s camp seem so austere bloodbaths by comparison that nobody could call it that convincingly anymore... but even the classic era mixed serious and silly, it's just the degree of each aspect that gets OTT.

    When 4 said it, when and was it a deliberate seeding? The show is risking a lot by not moving forward to embrace something new. The snake that ate its own tail, and all that... stagnancy. Every other cliche description. etc. Given the number of reboots and "reimaginings" in general, it's still a surprise for DW given its otherwise unique format. It's almost ironic, actually...

    Ditto. Jodie had some great moments and deserved more.
     
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  5. marillion

    marillion Vice Admiral Admiral

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    World-wide does not always include the US when it comes to pop music, or any genre for that matter. The song never made the charts in the US and only hit the Hot Dance/Electronic charts in 2021/22. Before the interwebs, if a song didn't get added by stations in the US, we rarely ever heard of it.

    Take a band like Marillion, for instance. Yes, they had a hit here in the US in 1985 with Kayleigh thanks to Mtv, but they never had a hit here or got widespread radio play again. Despite that, they have had great success since then in Europe and South America. Their latest album, released this year hit close to the top of the charts in the UK.
     
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  6. Marc

    Marc Fleet Admiral Premium Member

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    Assume it was the lady Tegan & Ace spoke to in the Museum who was curator, not an aged incarnation of the 4th doctor :)

    And took the master's defacing of the paintings as part of his attempt to get the Doctor's attention.
     
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  7. CuriousCaitian

    CuriousCaitian Commander Red Shirt

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    One random little thing I forgot to mention in my reaction post: when Ace and Teagan are conferring by phone, I swear the Ace side was filmed in the rear hall of Bristol Museum's two, the realisation of which did jar me out of the moment a little. Can anyone confirm or deny?
     
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  8. Steve Roby

    Steve Roby Rear Admiral Premium Member

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    Huh. I didn't realize the USA was such an outlier on "Rasputin." It wasn't just a hit in Europe at the time. It hit #7 in Canada, #1 in Australia, and #4 in New Zealand.
     
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  9. The Nth Doctor

    The Nth Doctor Infinite Possibilities... Premium Member

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    He was asked to join but he wasn't available for whatever reason.

    I also read from an unverified source that Anneke Wills (Polly) was suppose to be part of the Companion Support Group scene but had to pull out at the last minute.

    I don't know about the gallery but the cafe Ace was sitting in looked exactly like the one at the British Museum. At least based on my memory from visiting there, shit, nearly a decade ago.

    The song sounded vaguely familiar but only on relisten. The first time I watched the episode, I didn't suss onto the lyrics at all, just paying attention to The Master's antics...and the reaction from the Daleks and Cybermen. :lol:
     
  10. Noname Given

    Noname Given Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    It was a hit in the U.S. circa 1979 back in the Disco era (I was 16 back then, - I'm old - so yeah, I recalled it when I heard it in the episode I honestly did recognize it and was laughing hard because the Master was Rasputin there in 1916.)
     
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  11. Redfern

    Redfern Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    https://www.trekbbs.com/threads/the...discussion-thread.312522/page-7#post-14301387

    https://www.trekbbs.com/threads/the...iscussion-thread.312522/page-11#post-14302348

    In Mr. Tardis' live stream on Monday, a chatroom attendee claiming to be the director of this episode (and whom Mr. Tardis seemed to believe) stated that 'WTF?!" reaction from the Dalek and the Cyberman was not scripted, which would imply it was something considered as they recorded. If true, it proved a hilarious bit of improv!
     
  12. Noname Given

    Noname Given Fleet Admiral Admiral

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    If true, it worked well. I doubt they had the music playing on set, but if it was noted on the script and the actors heard it beforehand; they KNEW there was a humorous undertone to the whole thing and the guys in the suits were going - "What would all these alien creatures think...." and we got what we got.
     
  13. jaime

    jaime Vice Admiral Admiral

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    A podcast I watch said it was shot in Bristol, in a museum, some weeks ago, so yup.
     
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  14. CuriousCaitian

    CuriousCaitian Commander Red Shirt

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    Phew. I'm not seeing things! It's just, Bristol's my local city, I loved that museum when I was younger, I even heavily based a museum in a story on it with ample research into it, so I like to think I can recognise it, and if it was another museum in the ep, I'd need to get my eyes checked. :-p

    Re @Evil Headhunter, quite possibly it was dressed up a bit to resemble the British Museum one, given the as far as I recall unnamed one in the ep was in London.

    Ah, the fun of being a details nerd.
     
  15. The Nth Doctor

    The Nth Doctor Infinite Possibilities... Premium Member

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    Ah, good, so my memory isn't as bad as I thought. Thanks!
     
  16. Marc

    Marc Fleet Admiral Premium Member

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    Think they would have - much easier to time your actions with the music playing than do it without and hope everything can be sorted in post.
     
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  17. diankra

    diankra Rear Admiral Rear Admiral

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    Baseball bats souped by by Time Lord tech. See Remembrance.
     
  18. Photoman15

    Photoman15 Commodore Commodore

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    But why is the "new" Doctor not wearing Jodie's clothes. They dissolve into 10's (?) clothes.
     
  19. The Nth Doctor

    The Nth Doctor Infinite Possibilities... Premium Member

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    Worked for The Second Doctor.
     
  20. Australis

    Australis Writer - Australis Admiral

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    A suave, smooth supervillain can be far more menacing that a madman, because when the madman does come out, it's emphasised and underlined, and is scarier. Doesn't need to be camp. Can be all menace,

    Erm, I must be misunderstanding you. Years and Years was very drama and very SF.
     
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