lightcastle (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
lightcastle) wrote2010-04-16 08:01 pm
lightcastle) wrote2010-04-16 08:01 pm
Entry tags:
Doctor Who 5x02 - The Beast Below
Well, Eleven might be growing on me some.
In some ways, this felt very basic and not quite as smooth as Moffat's better works. The Smilers, for instance, really seemed to be one of his attempts to create a new creepy iconic monster, but it never works. (Unlike the Weeping Angels or even to the level of the Clockwork Robots from Girl in the Fireplace.)
I'm glad to see the crack in spacetime following them around (well, most likely following Amy around, since it was in her wall and showed up on the TARDIS scanner during the "Why me?" conversation in the pilot), while still being more or less in the background.
Despite immediately getting a The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas flash the moment the voting booth film intro-ed, I was pleasantly surprised by the ending. Not just from the storyline side of things, but from Amy's return to agency. I'm starting to like her as a Companion, with her flashes of insight about the Doctor, her ability to solve her own problems and even her willingness to go against his wishes. All of that makes me immensely happy.
While I liked the end, I thought they hammered the moral/insight a bit too much. It was clear from the first analogy she gave, we didn't need it repeated.
I hope they don't drag out the "I ran from my wedding" thing TOO long, and that when she does go back it's not just another "I was settling but now I have found freedom!" story. Or rather, don't do that if the guy is actually a decent guy, I'm a little sick of that story.
I did, however like the Doctor's comment about running, which reminded me of this moment from the original series. (About 2:40 in - I tried to find just the relevant clip, but failed.)
As you all know, I always like continuity nods that aren't hammered home, and so the fact that these are almost certainly the same solar flares that devastated Earth referenced in Ark in Space makes me very happy.
I'm liking the fact the Doctor is still sad about the Time War but no longer obsessed with it. If 'more fairy tale' is going to mean 'even more bits where you shouldn't think too hard about the plot holding together' that might be irritating. Still, at least with Moffat these things are almost always about details in how the monster/problem works (Just how many people were disappearing? How many people voted "Protest" and why on earth would you just try and kill every kid who failed an exam?) and not complete Deus Ex Machnia endings and your head hurting from them towing a planet.
In some ways, this felt very basic and not quite as smooth as Moffat's better works. The Smilers, for instance, really seemed to be one of his attempts to create a new creepy iconic monster, but it never works. (Unlike the Weeping Angels or even to the level of the Clockwork Robots from Girl in the Fireplace.)
I'm glad to see the crack in spacetime following them around (well, most likely following Amy around, since it was in her wall and showed up on the TARDIS scanner during the "Why me?" conversation in the pilot), while still being more or less in the background.
Despite immediately getting a The Ones Who Walk Away from Omelas flash the moment the voting booth film intro-ed, I was pleasantly surprised by the ending. Not just from the storyline side of things, but from Amy's return to agency. I'm starting to like her as a Companion, with her flashes of insight about the Doctor, her ability to solve her own problems and even her willingness to go against his wishes. All of that makes me immensely happy.
While I liked the end, I thought they hammered the moral/insight a bit too much. It was clear from the first analogy she gave, we didn't need it repeated.
I hope they don't drag out the "I ran from my wedding" thing TOO long, and that when she does go back it's not just another "I was settling but now I have found freedom!" story. Or rather, don't do that if the guy is actually a decent guy, I'm a little sick of that story.
I did, however like the Doctor's comment about running, which reminded me of this moment from the original series. (About 2:40 in - I tried to find just the relevant clip, but failed.)
As you all know, I always like continuity nods that aren't hammered home, and so the fact that these are almost certainly the same solar flares that devastated Earth referenced in Ark in Space makes me very happy.
I'm liking the fact the Doctor is still sad about the Time War but no longer obsessed with it. If 'more fairy tale' is going to mean 'even more bits where you shouldn't think too hard about the plot holding together' that might be irritating. Still, at least with Moffat these things are almost always about details in how the monster/problem works (Just how many people were disappearing? How many people voted "Protest" and why on earth would you just try and kill every kid who failed an exam?) and not complete Deus Ex Machnia endings and your head hurting from them towing a planet.