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RTD Retrospective #7: Middle Episode

Favorite Middle Episode?

  • Total voters
    39
Stevil2001

Stevil2001

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Results from last round: Favorite Dalek Story?

79%: Dalek
13%: The Stolen Earth/Journey's End
9%: The Parting of the Ways
0%: Doomsday
0%: Daleks in Manhattan/Evolution of the Daleks

That those two stories should be tied for last is probably the most unjust thing I have ever seen.

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Having exhausted new series monsters, we're back to doing some within-season position polls as we continue our journey through the wonderful world of RTD's Doctor Who.

Middle episodes are usually kind of low-key, a sort of breather in the middle of the season. Or at least, that's the excuse we'll use for this lot...
 
Went with "42". Of them all, that was the most exciting and "scary". Second choice would be The Agatha Christie one, which was a lot of fun.
 
"The Unicorn and the Wasp" is one of the few Davies-era episodes that I absolutely will not watch again, so that's out.

I'd have to give the nod to "The Long Game," as Eccleston is excellent, as always, Simon Pegg is delightful, and it's just a lot more fun than the other two episodes.
 
Unicorn and the Wasp. 42 just seemed like a rehash of Satan Pit etc, Long Game was just dreadfully annoying and contained Adam whom i hated with a passion more than Adric, and The Idiots Lantern had some cute moments (loved the Bike coming out of the TARDIS) but ultimately was embarrassing.
 
I'm gonna have to go with "The Unicorn and the Wasp". It was a fun, light-hearted romp. And I love Agatha Christie. No, Gareth Roberts didn't write a true Christie-style mystery, but "The Unquiet Dead" was no Dickens either. The questioning scene was fantastic, though the whole episode might have worked better without the giant wasp.

The other episodes were all just kinda "meh". "The Long Game" is good only in retrospect, as it set up the finale. "The Idiot's Lantern" and "42" weren't awful episodes, but they weren't exactly memorable either.
 
If there was an option for none of these, then that is what I would choose.

I begrudgingly went with 42.
 
The Idiot's Lantern was probably the best, as I'm interested in that era, although was very disappointed with the oh-so-obvious sci fi link from that year NOT being mentioned...
The Long Game didn't grab me, despite the arc importance. Adam was a git.
42 had amazing potential but ended up being a simple runaround; it could've been a great real time episode.
Haven't watched series 4.
 
I have to go with "The Unicorn and the Wasp" for the same reasons Turbo mentioned. However, I also agree about the giant wasp because once again I think a pure historical would have worked better. An outright murder mystery with Agatha Christie in the middle. None of this forcing sci-fi elements to explain a historical person's motivations (particularly for a writer and his or her inspiration).

Those complaints aside I still enjoyed it more than the others. I wish Simon Pegg had a better episode to work with. Alas.
 
The Long Game.

I don't get the love for TUATW? Roberts just took his script for The Shakespeare Code and lobbed it in a belnder with Cluedo!
 
I voted for "42". I admit that it was a bit like "Satan Pit", but it worked fine nevertheless. It was a thrilling episode with a good story and well written characters.

I liked "The Long Game" and "The Unicorn and the Wasp" too, so the decision wasn't an easy one this time.
 
Starkers said:
The Long Game.

I don't get the love for TUATW? Roberts just took his script for The Shakespeare Code and lobbed it in a belnder with Cluedo!
Click to expand...

i love it because i love the interplay between the Doctor and Donna and particularly the arsenic poisoning scene.

right, big shock coming up!
 
Starkers said:
I don't get the love for TUATW? Roberts just took his script for The Shakespeare Code and lobbed it in a belnder with Cluedo!
Click to expand...
Then Cluedo was exactly what that story needed! I don't like "Shaksepeare" but "tU&tW" is pretty fun. I think Agatha is relevant to the story in a way that Shakespeare never was.
 
Maybe it's because I'm not a huge Christie fan, but the other issue I had with TUATW was that it was trying flat out to be comedy, which is odd for a series that's naturally funny most of the time anyway. It just felt really forced rather than the natural humour we usually get. I also really wanted something more impressive to explain Christie's little dissapearance.
 
I probably would have liked it better if it hadn't been so obviously "This year's The Shakespeare Code." I'll have to watch it again some day, I might like it better.
 
42 is one of my favourite series 3 episodes and gets my vote. The Long Game is forgettable. Unicorn is enjoyable fluff but I liked it better when it was in Shakespearean England. And I also guessed the identity of the killer from the trailer.

The Idiot's Lantern I refuse to watch again. Can't stand it. Second only to Fear Her in my distaste.
 
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