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Spoilers The Woman Who Fell to Earth grade and discussion thread

How do you rate The Woman Who Fell to Earth?

  • Total voters
    130
Evil Headhunter said:
Clearly this isn't a normal situation considering the way the TARDIS ejected The Doctor after she regenerated.
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It "ejected" her because the time rotor was about to blow up and she would've been killed if it hadn't saved her life by tossing her out. Okay, presumably her post-regeneration healing powers (cf. "The Christmas Invasion") saved her from the fall, but they probably wouldn't have saved her from the explosion.


Ah, that's right. Thanks for the reminder. Still, I think this was longest period before introducing The Doctor, but "Rose" might be close.
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In terms of running time, I think it's the longest by a good margin, but in terms of the Doctor's actual participation in the story, I think "Spearhead from Space" still has it beat.


BritishSeaPower said:
Loved the production changes, if the BBC America presentation of it was more than a little annoying. (No beginning or end credits, sooooo many commercials, even by American standards.)
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There were no opening credits anyway, apparently.

What I hate about BBC America are those "Stay Tuned for More" bumpers they do where they show a bit of an upcoming scene and trick you into thinking the show's returned when it really hasn't. Those are obnoxious as hell, and sometimes they contain spoilers.
 
Overall I liked it a lot. Jodie was the Doctor from the start, loved the new theme, just wish we'd heard it earlier. Companions have potential, I think I like Yaz best at the moment, I did like that Ryan still hasn't mastered riding a bike. Not sure about Walsh. Still think it's over-filling the TARDIS but we'll see.

Cinematography and direction good but the plot was pretty generic and the pacing seemed off, seemed a trifle baggy and lacked the verve of Moffat or the snappy pace of RTD, but first episode and all that.

The "look who's starring" trailer was incredibly odd as well.

It's no Eleventh Hour but Jodie is brilliant and really that's all that matters.
 
Very good. The story was good in comparison to some of the other episodes I saw. I’ve nit been a regular watcher since Ecclestone left. I wanted to see a woman Dr, and she was great. Will watch the next episode.
 
It occurred to me that the Doctor's love of deep pockets is probably the reason she had so much trouble finding women's clothes she liked. I gather that a pet peeve of many women is that the pockets in women's clothing tend to be tiny and decorative. Which would never do, since bottomless pockets are basically one of the Doctor's main superpowers.
 
Since I was a child I have want The Doctor to be a woman, even if only for one incarnation. I am 60 years old now so it has been a very long wait.

The only problem I have with the episode is the generic baddie - just another Predator or Hirogen type. At least this time it was a cheat.

I liked Jodie Whittaker. I think she is going to be a lot of fun as a Doctor. She reminder me so much of several of the other Doctors but I think that In the end she will develop a distinct personality

I liked that she said she hasn’t had to dress as a woman for a long time and that she seems to have included the tastes of several previous Doctors in her choice of outfit. The Second and Eleventh Doctor wore suspenders, Ten had a long coat, and the stripes were similar to the stripes in Four’s scarf. There were probably other similarities as well.
 
I thought the difference between suspenders and braces is that braces fasten with buttons, while suspenders use clips?

Edited to add - it would seem that in Britain ‘braces’ refer to both types, whereas in America (and it looks like also in Australia) a distinction is made between the type of fastening.
 
My thoughts, in summation:-
  • Strong cinematography, with some genuinely gorgeous moments.
  • Refreshingly focused and steady pacing, though maybe a little too deliberate at times.
  • Solidly atmospheric music with flashes of richer themes; a lot of potential, there.
  • Companions also have definite potential, Graham and Yaz standing out the most, for me.
  • Plot was pretty ordinary and a touch derivative, but served its bring-the-gang-together purpose well enough.
  • The alien was equally well-worn, and I too think his novel take on a face full of teeth was a bit much, a litle too grotesque; had his creepy moments, though.
  • Not sure what to think of the theme, but hopefully it'll grow on me.
  • Lastly, and most importantly, Jodie Whittaker IS the Doctor; right from the off had the presence, the humour, the energy, the eccentricity and the intelligence, with a compassionate, playful flavour all her own. I think I'm going to love her, and can't wait to see what she can do with stronger material.
All in all, this promises good things. Being on the next episode!
 
Miss Chicken said:
The only problem I have with the episode is the generic baddie - just Predator or Hirogen type. At least this time it was a cheat.
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New Doctors' first foes aren't always that memorable, since the emphasis is on establishing the new Doctor and sometimes new companions. Let's see...

Hartnell: A caveman
Troughton: The Daleks
Pertwee: The Autons
T. Baker: An evil think tank
Davison: The Master
C. Baker: A big snail guy
McCoy: The Rani
McGann: The Master
Eccleston: The Autons
Tennant: The Sycorax
Smith: Prisoner Zero
Capaldi: Clockwork droids
Whittaker: Tim Shaw

So only three Doctors got a top-tier villain on their first outing, and in two cases it was the same villain. (They really threw Troughton right in the deep end, didn't they?) Three others got second-tier recurring baddies (again with one repeat performance), although the Autons were not yet recurring when Pertwee first met them. But the other six pre-Whittaker Doctors have started off against one-shot villains never seen again. I had to look up Colin Baker's, Smith's, and Capaldi's first villains; I didn't even remember who they were. (In Smith's case I only remembered the big eye thing at the end.)
 
The train stretched my suspension of disbelief from the start. Aside from the ridiculius length/doors etc, where were the police?

Walsh was probably the weakest part in my view. Whitaker the strongest, although the nurse and alien were good.

The "surprises" were far too obvious I'm afraid.

There's some potentia,l but I have less hope than I did this morning.
 
Miss Chicken said:
I thought the difference between suspenders and braces is that braces fasten with buttons, while suspenders use clips?

Edited to add - it would seem that in Britain ‘braces’ refer to both types, whereas in America (and it looks like also in Australia) a distinction is made between the type of fastening.
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IIRC suspenders hold up stockings.
 
Whittaker has potential, time will tell.
The episode itself, dialogue was clunky and repetitive, the plot was pretty meh the solution to which was just pulled out of the air, would have liked a bit more character buliding like have the Doctor get rid of Twelve's boots immediately because they're unsuitable for running (could have been a nice callback to Eight who frickin' loved his new shoes) or have Ryan's dyspraxia have some impact on the plot.
The visuals were nicely polished and I like the idea of having a range of people in the Tardis again.
I give it a straight C.

Sidenote, the montage of Tony Starking the new sonic, how long was that supposed to have taken, the equivalent time for Yaz and Ryan to watch the video on the computer?
 
Women’s suspenders hold up stockings, (men’s) suspenders hold up trousers whether they are worn by a man or woman - at least in my part of the world.

However looking at Jodie’s outfit again, I think they might be buttoned and therefore braces.
 
Christopher said:
Uhh, Yaz is the police. She was right there. And the Doctor advised her not to call for backup until they had an explanation of what was going on.
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I think he means the British Transport Police - since the terror attacks there's often a BTP copper on a train.
 
matthunter said:
I think he means the British Transport Police - since the terror attacks there's often a BTP copper on a train.
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If it's often, then that means it's not always. This was the last train of the evening, IIRC, so maybe it wasn't full enough to warrant an officer. Or maybe the BTP officer got off to help the departing passengers and got stuck inside when the Gathering Coils locked the doors.
 
Christopher said:
(They really threw Troughton right in the deep end, didn't they?)
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Yup, but he did amazingly well all things considered and an accredit to Troughton's performance. Power of the Daleks is one of my favorite Troughton serials and one of my favorite Dalek stories (and that's putting aside however one might feel about the recent animation).

Christopher said:
Three others got second-tier recurring baddies (again with one repeat performance)
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Four, actually. The clockwork droids The Twelfth Doctor faced were the same ones from "The Girl in the Fireplace." So that's The Rani, the clockwork droids, and the Autons twice.

Abi Smith said:
...have Ryan's dyspraxia have some impact on the plot.
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Actually, I prefer dyspraxia simply being part of who Ryan is and not some element of the plot itself. I would prefer it be utilized as just part of his character development throughout the season.
 
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