Some actual thoughts
Jan. 1st, 2010 09:34 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
andrewduckerOn the Dr Who Finale
The actual plot was a good one. The Time Lords find an escape route, only it turns out that this is really bad news, because they're eeeevil. I'd happily watch that plot. Having it tie into The Master's brain-drums works for me too.
What didn't work for me was then managing to waste two hours of screen time to the point where this plot was somehow squashed into fifteen minutes of plot, we have to have the evilness of Gallifrey explained to us (SHOW! DON'T TELL!) so quickly that at least two people I was with managed to miss it, and instead spend an episode and a half on The Master prancing around, two green aliens that don't actually add anything to the plot, Star Wars rip-off scenes and The Doctor falling through glass ceilings for no reason.
The actual plot was a good one. The Time Lords find an escape route, only it turns out that this is really bad news, because they're eeeevil. I'd happily watch that plot. Having it tie into The Master's brain-drums works for me too.
What didn't work for me was then managing to waste two hours of screen time to the point where this plot was somehow squashed into fifteen minutes of plot, we have to have the evilness of Gallifrey explained to us (SHOW! DON'T TELL!) so quickly that at least two people I was with managed to miss it, and instead spend an episode and a half on The Master prancing around, two green aliens that don't actually add anything to the plot, Star Wars rip-off scenes and The Doctor falling through glass ceilings for no reason.
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no subject
Date: 2010-01-01 09:38 pm (UTC)What - you mean you didn't look at that gorgeous glass ceiling and think "Now who's going to come abseiling through that?"
Overall I enjoyed it, but I could have done without the LOTR style 20 endings!
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Date: 2010-01-02 09:07 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-03 11:45 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-01 09:43 pm (UTC)Donna's in danger, she looks like she might remember stuff and then POW! All of the Masters near her fall over when energy comes out of her. The explanation, given afterwards, is that The Doctor left some protection for her. Which is the shittest bit of plotting in the history of mankind.
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Date: 2010-01-06 10:44 pm (UTC)Obviously it's a fairly great idea to have "the man who never would use a gun" forced to choose between shooting the Master or Rassilon to save the world. However, to set up that scene he has to introduce the Woman in White character (whom he cuts his losses and doesn't even try to explain) escaping the Time Lock, persuading Wilf that a gun is somehow the only way, and probably advancing the civilisation of the Ood while she's about it.
Getting out of the scene was an even bigger insult to the intelligence. A convenient non-sentient component of the link that takes everyone 10 minutes to notice. The Doctor turns his back repeatedly on the Sonic Gauntlet of Rassilon that is powerful enough to obliterate 7 billion Masters in a second but seems to have trouble with an antique service revolver. And if all we needed to do was blow up the diamond, what possible reason could there have been to insist that it HAD TO BE a gun? Gah.
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Date: 2010-01-06 11:36 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-01 09:49 pm (UTC)Also the last 15 minutes were just frightful.
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Date: 2010-01-01 09:54 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-02 05:11 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-02 12:18 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-01 10:01 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-01 11:46 pm (UTC)And yeah, the tv series is never going to get to be as in-depth as a novel with its background, but I'd have liked to see _something_ about Gallifrey.
RTD seems to be better at inspiring fans to think of things they'd like to watch than actually providing good entertainment. Which is a massive shame, as when he's writing well he's excellent. We just haven't seen that recently.
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Date: 2010-01-02 09:50 am (UTC)If the Doctor had died and regenerated in the glass chamber thingy I would have cried my eyes out. Quarter of an hour later, when Tennant said his (nicely chosen) final line I couldn't have cared less.
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Date: 2010-01-02 01:47 pm (UTC)An entire YEAR building to that shit for fucks sake. Compare that to the Caves of Androzani.
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Date: 2010-01-01 10:11 pm (UTC)They separate the Doctor from the Master in such a way that he can't get back to the Tardis.
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Date: 2010-01-01 11:46 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-02 09:56 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-02 01:48 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-02 03:50 pm (UTC)But yes. The zombies are doing this because the aliens are doing that...
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Date: 2010-01-02 12:14 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-01 11:03 pm (UTC)And tbh, watching some of that episode today, all that kept me watching it was: It's British. Much of the episode wasn't as good as Power Rangers. If a few more characters had American accents, I'd have turned off.
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Date: 2010-01-01 11:43 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-01 11:59 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-02 12:12 am (UTC)KHAN!
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Date: 2010-01-02 12:13 am (UTC)Don't forget the 20 minutes of what was little more than fanfic at the end.
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Date: 2010-01-02 12:44 am (UTC)Galafry bit also fit. But your right. WAY too compressed. Need more development on that. Its a shame as it had such potential.....
I have heard that the new lead writer for the next season is the guy who did blink and the one with the boy in the gas mask. both of which were some of the better episodes.
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Date: 2010-01-02 04:04 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-02 11:53 pm (UTC)Crap.
Date: 2010-01-02 06:59 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-02 11:43 am (UTC)God that was awful.
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Date: 2010-01-02 11:51 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-02 01:42 pm (UTC)no subject
Date: 2010-01-02 11:58 am (UTC)I liked the green aliens. Spikey.