5x02 The Beast Below (Grading/Discussion) (SPOILERS!)

[timelord1010]

I gave it a Meh, The acting was good but the story was weak and the sets weren't that impressive. Besides the space whale, what about the smiley face things? Will children who get bad grades and unwanted people still be dropped down to feed the whale? And why did the Doctor say he was alone when his whole race is just trapped in time? If the Daleks are going to keep acting up and messing with time the Doctor might have to permanently bring his people back for help.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

Sort of Moff's take on The Long Game.

Parts of this are definitely a little off. I probably need to watch this again but it does seem like everything doesn't exactly add up in the end.

And I think it's a little early for the Doctor/Amy moment, something like that might have more impact later on. I agree with someone above that Matt Smith's angry mode could use a little work.

Moff has a bit of a thing for masks doesn't he?

 

[Count Zero]

And why did the Doctor say he was alone when his whole race is just trapped in time? If the Daleks are going to keep acting up and messing with time the Doctor might have to permanently bring his people back for help.

He can't bring them back, though, because they're in the process of destroying time itself. Besides, opening the time lock would bring everything else back, the Daleks and all the horrible weapons used in the war. I think The End Of Time made it very clear that the Timelords wouldn't be any help.

They're permanently locked away, so he really is alone. And he did mumble some explanation to Amy. By the way, Matt Smith's delivery here didn't appeal to me. After what we've seen in The End of Time, which from the Doctor's point of view was only a few days ago, the line came off as oddly detached and sort of goofy.
I think Eccleston and Tennant conveyed the Doctor's tragic background much better when they told their companions about the Time War. But granted, those scenes and the lead-up to it were better scripted.

 

[diankra]

Nope; no continuity error at all. The Doctor changes things; for example; the "Arc in Space" is in a "past future" that will now never happen; Because the Doctor (and Master) changed the "past".

Yep sure.., but, nothing the Doctor or the Master has done should change the solar flares, and the evacuation of Earth here implies they're just as destructive as the ones in the original timeline, so Earth ought still to be uninhabitable for 10,000 years or so.

Edit: I'm not bothered about the apparent contradition, btw: Who continuity has always been contradictory, so a new bit of contradictory evidence is just an excuse to have a fun rethink!

 

[Australis]

I thought this was a cracking episode.

Started off slow and a bot so-so, but it ramped up hugely.

I thought Liz Ten was a great character. Wouldn't you like her as Queen now, investigating what her government is up to?

Smith was better this week, despite what you naysayers upthread say. He does do anger, what you might not have picked up on that it was layered with despair. "Nobody talk to me! Nobody human has ANYTHING to say to me today!"

Some damn funny lines. Scotland getting their own ship. "I'm the bloody Queen mate! Basically, I rule!" Quite a few others, as you'd expect from a Moffatt ep.

Magpie Electricals!

The whale sound, as a sound effect, was pretty amazing, alien and in such pain at the same time.

The ethical theme at the heart of the story was very strong.

I came up with the name Starwhale for a story decades ago. Never did anything with it. Can't do it now.

Amy making a moral decision, much like Donna in Pompeii. That's why the Doctor needs a companion. Look what happened to Ten.

"Have you ever run away from something, just because you could?" "Yes. Once." What's he referring to?

And here's a question: is he tracking the Crack... or is the Crack tracking him?

I like the way they start the next episode at the end, we already know where we're going.

And though I too wish they'd give the Daleks a break, this looks like it could be a keeper.

 

[David cgc]

on a minor note the sonic screwdriver seems very back & bulky, still if he changed his jacket so it has pockets that are bigger on the inside, its not an issue.

I always suspected his pockets are bigger on the indide

it is confirmed that his pockets are bigger on the inside in "The Runaway Bride" the problem is the Doctor stole this jacket, its of human design & build, it would not naturally be "bigger on the inside" which makes me wonder if the Doctor can make something bigger on the inside, would that not solve some of his problems?

Apparently, he stitches Time-Lord pockets into all his clothes. He stole his Tenth Doctor tux, too, but judging by the fact that he had a full-sized handwritten copy of the Declaration of Independence slipped into the inside pocket, he took it down to the TARDIS tailor shop at some point.

 

[Mr. Adventure]

I thought this was a cracking episode.

No pun intended?

 

[Cutter John]

Wow, you folks sure know how to harsh a guys buzz. I was all pumped from watching it, only to come here and run into a wall of 'Meh'.

On initial impression, maybe a little sappy, but I actually enjoyed it more than last weeks (hell, I went ahead and gave it a 'Good'). That was quite the leap of faith on Amy's part though, with dire consequences if she'd been wrong. But she definitely earned her companion wings today. No wonder the Doctor took a liking to her.

The Doctor is wrong? Stop the presses! I'm sorry, but I adore the idea that it was Amy who really saved the day this time.

How did the Brits get in that state? Well who knows? Someone sabotaged the project? The flares occurred earlier than expected (did they say that all of humanity made it off the Earth in time)? It all got caught up in bureaucracy ("We plan to set up a committee next week to study what would be the preferred color for the external signage.") There wasn't enough 'fuel' to go around? Or maybe the English ship was a 'B' Ark.

Loved the lead in into next weeks episode. Winston Churchill on the phone, with a Dalek silhouette in the background. How could you NOT want to watch?

Oh and its official. Matt turns into Peter Davison when he gets excited.

 

[Slugboy]

"Have you ever run away from something, just because you could?" "Yes. Once." What's he referring to?

I assumed this was a reference to the event that caused him to leave Gallifrey in the first place and become a wanderer (back when he was the First Doctor).

 

[David cgc]

It's also possible he was talking about his "whistling past the graveyard" period between "The Waters of Mars" and "The End of Time."

 

[Australis]

I thought this was a cracking episode.

No pun intended?

No actually. But if the pun fits...

Wow, you folks sure know how to harsh a guys buzz. I was all pumped from watching it, only to come here and run into a wall of 'Meh'.

Yeah, me too! Thought it a damn fine ep.

The Doctor is wrong? Stop the presses!

And that's why he needs a companion.

"Have you ever run away from something, just because you could?" "Yes. Once." What's he referring to?

I assumed this was a reference to the event that caused him to leave Gallifrey in the first place and become a wanderer (back when he was the First Doctor).

Ah, of course. Good point.

And just to add. Think of the compassion an alien creature has shown to humans, allowing itself to be used, even tortured. It didn't need to, it wanted to. That's deep.

 

[Count Zero]

"Have you ever run away from something, just because you could?" "Yes. Once." What's he referring to?

Well, he probably ran away more than once but my guess would be what he tells Martha in The Sound of Drums when she asked him what he did after he looked into the Time Vortex as a child, namely that he belongs to those that ran away and never stopped.

Wow, you folks sure know how to harsh a guys buzz. I was all pumped from watching it, only to come here and run into a wall of 'Meh'.

The poll suggests that this is not a wall of 'meh', although it's possible that those who were happy with the episode don't comment all that much, so it might appear that way. But don't let others' non-enjoyment sour you on the episode. And I say that as one of the 'non-enjoyers'.

 

[Bacl]

Excellent episode, but a lot of unanswered questions (and not in a good way):

1. How was every other single nation on the entire world, from Nigeria to Scotland, able to abandon the Earth in working spaceships but not Great Britain?

2. Isn't Scotland part of the United Kingdom? Did the blacks in the United States go off on a separate spaceship than the whites? Seemed like a rather nasty sentiment disguised as a joke.

3. What the bloody hell were the Smilers? Where did they come from and what was their function? Why were the hooded people able to turn their heads around? This all made no sense. What was the point?

4. Again with the Daleks?

5. How does Winston Churchill have a direct line to the Doctor?

6. Again with the Daleks?

7. Why do we need to see such a nasty, petty, unforgiving side of the Doctor? That's not even the 9th Doctor, and Amy Pond does not equal Adam as far as 'Qualifies for being kicked out of the TARDIS' actions are concerned.

8. Again with the Daleks?

 

[Mr. Adventure]

2. Isn't Scotland part of the United Kingdom? Did the blacks in the United States go off on a separate spaceship than the whites? Seemed like a rather nasty sentiment disguised as a joke.

I don't get the provincial humor entirely but I think it would be like saying Texas (or maybe Alaska now) went off on their own. I think the implication is that the Scots chose to seperate not that they were ejected.

3. What the bloody hell were the Smilers? Where did they come from and what was their function? Why were the hooded people able to turn their heads around? This all made no sense. What was the point?

I didn't quite get that myself. I guess when people choose to forget what they've learned bad things develop.

4. Again with the Daleks?

There will always be Daleks.

7. Why do we need to see such a nasty, petty, unforgiving side of the Doctor? That's not even the 9th Doctor, and Amy Pond does not equal Adam as far as 'Qualifies for being kicked out of the TARDIS' actions are concerned.

This episode felt like maybe it was too early in Amy's tenure. Doc's overraction, Amy's save and hug and all just felt like they might work better if they had a little more history together.

 

[Slugboy]

This episode felt like maybe it was too early in Amy's tenure. Doc's overraction, Amy's save and hug and all just felt like they might work better if they had a little more history together.

Although I mostly enjoyed the episode, I agree that the "hug" scene was a bit out of place and premature. In the previous episode, we see how Amelia, a 7-year-old orphan girl with a neglectful aunt in an unfamiliar place (England), puts her trust in a man who promises he will return shortly, then abandons her for 12 years (through no fault of his own, but still). Then he shows up, and proceeds to abandon her again for 2 more years (less excusable, since his TARDIS is in full working order) and when he returns, he dismisses his mistake with an "oops". I found Amy's suspicious demeanour at the end of 5x01 appropriate, i.e. she might be thinking "the Doctor has hurt me once before, despite promising not to, so who knows what he is up to this time?"

Fast-forward only one episode, and it seems Amy has warmed to the Doctor far too fast. I was hoping to see some more exploration of the unresolved issues between Amy and the Doctor. Maybe we'll see it in later episodes.

 

[Brent]

Amy adjusted quite well to being in the future, I'm not sure if i like or dislike this. On one hand, it is nice to see a competent companion who doesn't freak out at future stuff and can adjust well. On the other hand, a 21st century human would pretty much freak out at the future stuff and get into a lot of trouble and may have trouble adjusting. So I'm not sure right now where I stand on Amy Pond as a companion yet. I would think there needed to be an adjustment episode for her, to get use to time traveling and being in the future. I'm going to have to watch more eps.

I seriously think the Doctor overreacted with her though, he was really harsh on her, too harsh. Kinda mean honestly.

I think a lot of stuff in this episode was way assumed, and came to conclusions that were correct way to fast. The Doctor almost seemed like he knew TOO much at the onset of the episode. Then Amy, she seemed to know exactly what to do. I felt like it was too easy, yet there are many unanswered questions and no one seemed to bother to find out the answers.

And I voted "Average" so far a rocky start to the season.

 

[Brent]

Average.
Why did the doctor send Amy to wonder off five minutes into her first TARDIS ride?

Exactly, making on my point above, this seemed odd to me, a brand new companion, never been to the future, has no idea what is going on, and the Doctor sends her on her merry way like she is a seasoned pro. Very irresponsible of the Doctor. I feel like there needed to be a transition episode. Like someone said before, this episode would have made a lot more sense if they had some more history between them. To me, it feels like this episode should have come later in the season.

 

[Cutter John]

I'm enough of a fanboy that I like to think the 'running away' reference was to his running away from Gallifrey way back when.

Excellent episode, but a lot of unanswered questions (and not in a good way):

1. How was every other single nation on the entire world, from Nigeria to Scotland, able to abandon the Earth in working spaceships but not Great Britain?

I mentioned a few possibilities in my previous post.

2. Isn't Scotland part of the United Kingdom? Did the blacks in the United States go off on a separate spaceship than the whites? Seemed like a rather nasty sentiment disguised as a joke.

A lot can change in 900 years.

3. What the bloody hell were the Smilers? Where did they come from and what was their function? Why were the hooded people able to turn their heads around? This all made no sense. What was the point?

I'll have to give you that one. Another victim of the 45 minute story format.

5. How does Winston Churchill have a direct line to the Doctor?

I suspect we'll find out next week.

7. Why do we need to see such a nasty, petty, unforgiving side of the Doctor? That's not even the 9th Doctor, and Amy Pond does not equal Adam as far as 'Qualifies for being kicked out of the TARDIS' actions are concerned.

I guess thats how eleven rolls. I imagine the Doctor doesn't take no-win situations like that well. I suspect it was just frustration and anger talking. Plus he's still probably a little unsure about her.

8. Again with the Daleks?

Yep. Surprise! Hey cheer up. At least its only a one-parter and there aren't twenty gajillion of them this time.

 

[Checkmate]

This Doctor seems to be manic depressive, or something similar. His mood swings like it was Austin Powers. And I'm okay with that.

Despite some minor problems which were nothing compared to the crap that RTD regularly included during his run, this was a great episode. Really enjoying the show thus far.

And people who still think Amy is romantically ga-ga over the Doctor at this point are totally barmy.

 

[intrinsical]

What now? Do they have to keep feeding people to the whale? And if the whale didn't eat children why did they continue to send them down there?

I thought the ep was a bit uneven. Some of the time I felt a bit bored, but then something else came along that renewed my interest.

I can only guess that somehow the whale knows about the adults' vote to continue torturing it. The children have not had the chance to vote, hence the whale doesn't eat the children.