I co-wrote a book about AyBS. Two, thinking about it.With the Doctor saying "And didn't we have trouble with the prototype", implying clunkily that he was developing it with both of them. Season 25 uses sledgehammer tactics to try to force 'mystery' back into the show and it was pretty cringeworthy on first viewing in the 80s as well. Other elements helped rescue it, but some moments were bad.
I generally find fiction set in other worlds where I'm drawn to their universe, which allows a lot more dramatic ideas to be utilized, which does include real life issues - that's inescapable. Compared to everything that has to be set on Earth - any show can do that. Sci-fi can take the human condition and experiences and ideas and use them in so many more ways and I prefer its creativity and potential for it.
I've probably seen a lot more documentaries on HIV and AIDS than most, not just because I'm bisexual (which adds a layer of complexity that goes too far outside the scope of this discussion thread), but because of interviews with actual people suffering from it. It's not always a pleasant experience, unlike the invariably sanitized television and movie dramas and "bio-pics", which tend to do that often enough. It's honestly far more heart-shattering to watch those in real life discuss their real life interactions than any fictional drama "based on a real story" pretending to discuss what real people 40 years ago endured and nothing can begin to compare to a fictional drama. The main difference to me is that, certainly regarding HIV documentaries and interviews for example, those were recorded by people at the time directly and exist for everyone to directly learn from, at least from their experiences without the veneer of slick visual effects or polished scripts that might send a different message due to actor inflection or any other possible nuance. And I'll agree, there's a place for both real, fiction, fiction based on real story, and so on, but there's a line and for something as recent and as home-hitting as HIV, the phrase "keep it real" comes to mind. Nothing is more real than interviews with people who really have it and share their experiences directly. A drama can simulate or tell the messages indirectly, but it's still not the same thing as listening to the people in a true and fully nonfiction environment. I'd maintain there's potentially a big difference between fiction and nonfiction in general. Even fictional drama based on nonfiction is still put into "fiction" for legitimate reasons.
If nothing else, it'd be lovely if "Are You Being Served?" was a nonfiction documentary regarding human interaction and not a comedy with the occasional dramatic tinge that uses real life elements as a springboard to twist for induce jovial effect from its audience and nobody listens to people who sell clothes for a living, assuming any still do... but it's entertainment, not real life. For something serious, that real life aspect cannot be duplicated and I'm a sucker for shows that welcome me into their universe more than finding shows that try to be within ours, which is far easier to do. Which is a fine line in of itself, "Superman" (1978) is almost indistinguishable in some ways...
Thanks. : ) But I can readily concede in that I do tend to be baffling at times. Usually not deliberately.
I'll not disagree with that.
Spoilers The Power of the Doctor grade and discussion thread
- Thread starter The Nth Doctor
- Start date
I wouldn't count the Confession Dial. Even assuming he did end up remember every cycle when he realized what was going on (and assuming that the Confession Dial was a meaningfully real place and not some kind of simulated reality), he still only "lived" through a week or so between coming in and going out again, and we know what he was doing, then. Twelve does have some gaps (though not as much entirely unstructured time as Eleven's two hundred years or so between "God Complex" and "Wedding"), since Clara was always a part-time Companion who maintained her own life, they had that "break" after the first encounter with Missy, then he had a little time on either side of his second honeymoon after Clara died and before he was given custody of Missy's body, and then the seventy-odd years he was a professor (with, judging from "Mysterio," occasional breaks away from the Vault to defeat the odd alien invasion).
I was about to say that the Fourteenth Doctor strikes me as being more of an "event" Doctor, like the War Doctor, though on second thought, that's the Doctor with the most room for extra adventures (give or take the Fugitive Doctor).
I was going to say, "Only as many as he could have avoiding a mirror," but I just remembered that a) Moffatt hand-waved that in his "Day of the Doctor" novelization by mentioning that Nine smashed all the mirrors in the TARDIS in disgust right after he regenerated, thinking he'd just destroyed Gallifrey and b), his reaction is much, much funnier if he's seen his own face several times and just can't get over how much his ears stick out.
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I'm far from being a flag waver for the era but I thought on a first watch that The Power of the Doctor was magnificent.
My first season of Doctor Who was way back in 1987 (Season 24). McCoy and Ace are 'my' TARDIS team and I never expected to see the 7th Doctor and Ace share screen time together again. Likewise seeing Bonnie Langford again at the end.
A link to 1963 in Ian. Beautiful.
I liked it from start to finish. I think it's been years since I was able to say that about a Doctor Who episode. Fantastic stuff. had me choked up at times.
My first season of Doctor Who was way back in 1987 (Season 24). McCoy and Ace are 'my' TARDIS team and I never expected to see the 7th Doctor and Ace share screen time together again. Likewise seeing Bonnie Langford again at the end.
A link to 1963 in Ian. Beautiful.
I liked it from start to finish. I think it's been years since I was able to say that about a Doctor Who episode. Fantastic stuff. had me choked up at times.
Sorry if this was already posted, but I kinda thought I finally understood what Jodie said at the end and also found a transcript to verify. Not sure what it actually means though, in context.
( Birds call, waves lap ) Oh, the blossomiest blossom. That's the only sad thing. I want to know what happens next. Right, then. Doctor Whoever-I'm-about-to-be... tag, you're it.
( He gasps ) I know these teeth. What? What? What?!
( Birds call, waves lap ) Oh, the blossomiest blossom. That's the only sad thing. I want to know what happens next. Right, then. Doctor Whoever-I'm-about-to-be... tag, you're it.
( He gasps ) I know these teeth. What? What? What?!
Watched it yesterday. Read through this thread. Observations:
- Was completely unspoiled and so every reveal of classic stuff was as intended. While I’m clearly not as well-versed in Who lore as many of you, I have watched something from every Doctor, so the various moments were very appreciated.
- I’m also clearly a more casual fan (despite having watched every episode since 2005) than I thought I was, based on this thread. Not a criticism of anyone’s views, just an observation.
- In a way, I’m happy for the casual nature of my fandom, as I have pretty much enjoyed every episode I’ve watched (not all equally, of course, but I can’t think of one I actively disliked—classic or modern).
- Sad to see Jodie go. Then again, I’ve always wanted each of the modern ones to stay a while longer, so no surprise there (my viewings of the classic ones were more haphazard so I didn’t have the same feeling about them).
- Enjoyed the episode as I watched it, even if the story didn’t make a lot of sense—I never expect much sense from any Who story, and, in any case, I watch Who for the characters primarily.
Callback to the "daisiest daisy" line from Pertwee, where he explains why life is never meaningless in order to help Jo overcome despair, telling her how when he was a kid on Gallifrey he had a really black day and went to see an old hermit who lived on the mountain overlooking the Doctor's home.
Brilliant. I completely missed that Third Doctor reference. Thank you for that, matthunter!
I'm going to cut and paste for sake of ease from https://www.denofgeek.com/tv/doctor-who-the-power-of-the-doctor-easter-egg-guide/
Uttered during the Doctor’s final speech before she regenerates, the phrase “blossomiest blossom” at first sounds like a call back to something Thirteen might have said during her time. Instead, it’s quite likely to be taken from an interview with Dennis Potter as he reflected on his advancing cancer and approaching death.
As Potter put it when discussing the blooming tree outside his window, “I see it is the whitest, frothiest, blossomest blossom that there ever could be, and I can see it. Things are both more trivial than they ever were, and more important than they ever were, and the difference between the trivial and the important doesn’t seem to matter.”
Uttered during the Doctor’s final speech before she regenerates, the phrase “blossomiest blossom” at first sounds like a call back to something Thirteen might have said during her time. Instead, it’s quite likely to be taken from an interview with Dennis Potter as he reflected on his advancing cancer and approaching death.
As Potter put it when discussing the blooming tree outside his window, “I see it is the whitest, frothiest, blossomest blossom that there ever could be, and I can see it. Things are both more trivial than they ever were, and more important than they ever were, and the difference between the trivial and the important doesn’t seem to matter.”
I did see that, and I wouldn't be surprised if Chibbers knew about both and decided to combine the two. Potter's line was years after Pertwee's, so it would be beautiful if such an accomplished writer were inspired by Dr. Who. Though the beauty of a single flower is a common metaphor for why life is worth living. Even Star Trek Online has a Romulan character finding a single flower in the devastated remains of their home colony and seeing it as a symbol of hope that life persists.
I took it to be a Pertwee reference, but that’s interesting about Potter above.
I thought I minded the Doctor’s clothes regenerating, but looked at again, the 14th Doctor is equally surprised about this.
Plus of course, remembering The Tenth Planet/The Power of the Daleks and Logopolis/Castrovalva, it wouldn’t be the first time.
I thought I minded the Doctor’s clothes regenerating, but looked at again, the 14th Doctor is equally surprised about this.
Plus of course, remembering The Tenth Planet/The Power of the Daleks and Logopolis/Castrovalva, it wouldn’t be the first time.
Yup, that's how I read his personal timeline.
Well at least they managed to reuse the timelord cybermen so there is that. I wonder if they will be a rival faction to the regular ones
Watching it again that's really clear isn't it. There's definitely something else at work here Presumably
Neil Patrick Harris' Celestial Toymaker
It wasn't clear to me the first time, but on the second he absolutely clutches his clothing and makes it part of the "what?!"
@Starkers BTW, is that actually who NPH is rumoured to be playing?
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Rumored to be playing, yes. Emphasis on rumor, though I have no reason to disbelieve it at this time.
Yup, there have been a lot of subtle and not-so-subtle clues from the limited official releases and the spy reports to indicate that is who he's playing. At this point, I'll be surprised if that's not who he's playing. Much like the speculation around who Richard E. Grant was playing in "The Snowmen."
Well.
This was crap, wasn't it?
Overall, I think I hated it. A vapid, empty celebratory episode that, while entertaining on the surface (McGann, give show, rinse and repeat), had nothing substantial to say about anything and was about nothing. A terrible send-off to Jodie, who felt like a guest in her own finale, a plot that is so overcomplicated it actually makes less sense the more you think about it, and the single worst performance of a Master I've ever seen. I just about disliked everything about it...
...but damn if I didn't enjoy seeing the BF Doctors come back on-screen for a seemingly last time. So just for that, 2/5
But yeah, worst regeneration episode of NuWho, and its not even close. Really, really sad that Jodie exited this way, she simply deserved much better.
This was crap, wasn't it?
Overall, I think I hated it. A vapid, empty celebratory episode that, while entertaining on the surface (McGann, give show, rinse and repeat), had nothing substantial to say about anything and was about nothing. A terrible send-off to Jodie, who felt like a guest in her own finale, a plot that is so overcomplicated it actually makes less sense the more you think about it, and the single worst performance of a Master I've ever seen. I just about disliked everything about it...
...but damn if I didn't enjoy seeing the BF Doctors come back on-screen for a seemingly last time. So just for that, 2/5
But yeah, worst regeneration episode of NuWho, and its not even close. Really, really sad that Jodie exited this way, she simply deserved much better.