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This Is the Home That George Built

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Review of Night Terrors
Warning:  This review contains episode-specific spoilers and wild speculation about future episodes.


Source – bbc.co.uk – © 2011 BBC

I’m not a fan of the horror genre, and last week’s trailer did not inspire me. Further, given that Mark Gatiss’s scripts have been very hit-or-miss for me (loved The Unquiet Dead, was so-so about The Idiot’s Lantern, and abhorred Victory of the Daleks), I was rather apprehensive about what all that boded for the quality of Night Terrors. Although it wasn’t my all-time favorite, it was much better than I’d allowed myself to expect.

I think perhaps I am the target market for the level of horror the Doctor Who team aims to maintain. In other words, I can handle about as much as the average eight-year-old. A little tension is good, but more than the predictable “boo!” moment upon opening a door, drawer, or what-have-you makes me too uncomfortable to watch. Thus, the horror factor in Night Terrors was just about perfect for me. Nothing truly unpredictable ever came of one of those instances, and the scene in which the landlord succumbs was just oogy enough to give me the creeps. (I had a moment of cognitive dissonance there, too – I first thought the shot of his hand morphing was Rory’s going all Auton on us again. That didn’t make sense, but the visual similarity was striking.)

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Same Song, Different ‘Verse

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Review of Let’s Kill Hitler
Warning:  This review contains episode-specific spoilers and wild speculation about future episodes.


Source – bbc.co.uk – © 2011 BBC

There was a lot going on in this episode. People (aka “fans,” aka “bloggers”) complain a lot about the sense of pacing in Moffat’s writing – how he seems to cram too much into the second half of a two-parter, for example – and I don’t see that changing in regards to Hitler. But for the front end of River Song’s story – from her perspective, anyway – we can hardly expect anything else.

I’ll admit it: by the time the opening credits rolled, I was thinking, “oh, god… this one’s going to be rubbish.” I certainly didn’t buy into the best-friend-we’ve-never-come-across-before thing, either. Before I could get too cranky about that, though, Moffat threw a bone to fandom with the temporal grace comment. “Hmmm…” I thought. “Maybe there’s hope for the episode yet.”

Once Rory got not only to punch Hitler but also to tell him to shut up, I was ready to roll with it. Anything that allows me to see Rory the Badass Roman lurking under that modern exterior is going to earn a few squee!‘s from me (e.g., tricking an officer into saluting long enough to deck him and steal his bike, or even just taking the mickey out of his wife a bit by mimicking her accent back at her (“‘Clues‘? What kind of ‘clues‘?”)). I like that the character development we’ve seen has been kept and expanded, so that he’s really a full-on, capable Companion now.

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A Viewer’s Purgatory

Review of Paradise Towers (#149)

DVD Release Date:  09 Aug 11
Original Air Date:  05 – 26 Oct 1987
Doctor/Companion:  Seven, Mel
Stars:  Sylvester McCoy, Bonnie Langford
Preceding Story:  Time and the Rani (Seven, Mel)
Succeeding Story:  Delta and the Bannermen (Seven, Mel)

While I wouldn’t call Paradise Towers “awful,” it certainly wasn’t a scintillating piece of work, either. It suffers from a strong story concept poorly realized. Not all of that is due to the special effects (though they certainly contribute), but one wonders what could have been if there had been a bigger budget.

In the manner of a disclaimer, I suppose I should start by saying that Mel is among my least favorite Companions. Therefore, anything that starts with the Doctor pandering to Mel’s desire to go for a swim (because he’d jettisoned the pool from the TARDIS – something she’s obviously regrown since) and includes dialog with even a passing reference to one of her typically tragic outfits (as if we hadn’t been trying really hard to ignore it) is unlikely to yield an unequivocal thumbs-up from me.

The pool serves as a plot device to bring our heroes to Paradise Towers (a supposedly utopian high-rise presumably located on Earth, somewhen post-21st Century), though it’s a pretty thin one. I mean, when the pool appears inaccessible, Mel is ready to abandon the plan as well as the whole damn planet (“You don’t happen to know another planet with a swimming pool, do you?”). What – there’s only one pool left on the entire Earth? Get real…

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Misleading Title Goes Here

Review of The Sun Makers (#95)

DVD Release Date:  09 Aug 11
Original Air Date:  26 Nov – 17 Dec 1977
Doctor/Companion:  Four, Leela, K-9
Stars:  Tom Baker, Louise Jameson, John Leeson
Preceding Story:  Image of the Fendahl (Four, Leela)
Succeeding Story:  Underworld (Four, Leela, K-9)

Robert Holmes is widely regarded as one of the best writers in Who history, and he certainly contributed vastly to the franchise. In The Sun Makers, he takes a time of personal irritation and molds it into a weirdly engaging dystopian tale of excessive taxes and stagnating humanity. Having fled Old Earth, the human race now lives on distant Pluto, in constant daylight from its six artificial suns (the only mention of any “sun makers” we are ever to get).

It starts out wonderfully creepy with a Citizen apparently pleased to hear of his father’s death, and continues with lots of stereotypical tromping (not much running, really) through corridors from there. However, to my eye, it soon took a rather darker turn – something I feel was unintended, or at least reflects the change in times since its original broadcast. Things are quite violent on this future Pluto, as people threaten each other with all sorts of tortures (not just Leela, either, who seems actually to be on par with the locals for a change). Public torture and execution – viewable in person, for a small fee – also appear commonplace. Near the end of the story, there’s even a cheerful – not angry, mind you; cheerful – mob of revolutionaries who throw an official to his doom.

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Malus Aforethought

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Review of The Awakening (#132)

DVD Release Date:  12 Jul 11
Original Air Date:  19 – 20 Jan 1984
Doctor/Companion:  Five, Tegan Jovanka, Vislor Turlough
Stars:  Peter Davison, Janet Fielding, Mark Strickson
Preceding Story:  Warriors of the Deep (Five, Tegan, Turlough)
Succeeding Story:  Frontios (Five, Tegan, Turlough)

For various reasons explained in the extras, it was deemed that the story that eventually became The Awakening needed to be reduced to two episodes. I suppose that’s one reason that it didn’t grab me as a particularly inspiring installment. It starts out feeling very Doctor-y, with something going wrong with the TARDIS yet landing in the right time and place. Some villagers are “in on” the odd happenings and others aren’t, and we’re left wondering why.

However, after that, it gets a tad jumbled. It’s not that it’s a bad story, by any means. I never really understood the motivation of the Malus, though. It was all just a bit… foggy. What finally defeated it in the end was unclear, too, but aside from the Malus itself looking a bit rubbish once it began to animate (sorry – I know the production team did a fabulous job given the times and the budget, but…), I actually did enjoy several bits, even if they were oh-so-stereotypical.

For example, Tegan ends up as the target for some sort of nastiness (possessed, kidnapped, slated for ritual death… she seems to “get it” in nearly every story). Then there’s the part where the Doctor and his two Companions are all split up – big surprise. I also had to wonder, as the word extended seemingly forever, how many cliffhangers have ended on someone screaming, “Doctooooooooooooooor!” Even so, those just really give it the Who flavor, so I couldn’t complain.

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The Should’ve Been Better Corral

Review of The Gunfighters (#25)

DVD Release Date:  12 Jul 11
Original Air Date:  30 Apr – 21 May 1966
Doctor/Companion:  One, Steven Taylor, Dodo Chaplet
Stars:  William Hartnell, Peter Purves, Jackie Lane
Preceding Story:  The Celestial Toymaker (One, Steven, Dodo)
Succeeding Story:  The Savages (One, Steven, Dodo)

During Doctor Who‘s third series – the last for William Hartnell (One) – there came one of the last pseudo-historicals for a long while. Why was it among the last? Because audiences stayed away in droves. Although The Gunfighters is perhaps better than the viewing numbers at the time indicated, I can’t altogether blame the public for shying away, either. An otherwise decent storyline is utterly ruined by the ubiquitous presence of a horrific saloon-style song created just for this episode: “The Ballad of the Last Chance Saloon.”

A line or two (or eight) of this horrific tinkly little tune is sung over every single scene change in the entire story. The first one or two, OK, I can tolerate that – setting the tone, giving some “local color” by having the bar floozy sing her song. But every time? By the end of the first episode, I had such an ear worm I was longing for the strains of “Copacabana,” “Hotel California,” or even “The Brady Bunch” to get the damn thing out of my head! I was somewhat gratified to learn, when watching the extras, that I was not alone. The production staff and cast were also put off by the song, and still embarrassed by it years later (as well they should be).

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A Brief Time Out for Torchwood

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OK, I never planned to write reviews for Torchwood – especially not an American version – but I just have to pause briefly in my normal Who stream to comment on the second episode of Miracle Day, titled "Rendition."

This is the episode in which the "team" is forcibly flown back to the US, hijinks ensue, etc. Now I don't know how the British public will react, but I can't be the only American viewer who had a hard time taking Rex's boss (played by Wayne Knight) seriously as an antagonist! For any Brits who may not be familiar with this actor, he's well known for his comedic roles (if you've ever watched an episode of Seinfeld, you've seen the guy).

It's not that he did a poor job – he certainly played the role to perfection – it's just that my own prior experiences with the actor combined with my unfortunate mental conditioning from post-Hiatus Who and The Sarah Jane Adventures kept me half-expecting the poor sap to start unzipping his forehead! That's not the vibe Torchwood is trying to put out…

So seriously. Comment for me so I know I'm not alone. Anyone else have the niggling feeling the guy was just wearing a flesh suit?

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Nothing New Under the Earth

Review of Frontios (#133)

DVD Release Date: 14 Jun 11
Original Air Date: 26 Jan – 03 Feb 1984
Doctor/Companion:   Five, Tegan Jovanka, Vislor Turlough
Stars:  Peter Davison, Janet Fielding, Mark Strickson
Preceding Story:  The Awakening (Five, Tegan, Turlough)
Succeeding Story:  Resurrection of the Daleks (Five, Tegan, Turlough)

Coming, as I always do, from the perspective of the post-Hiatus series, I often find elements I’ve seen in those more recent episodes when I watch ones from earlier eras. Such is the case with Frontios. I was so strongly reminded of The Hungry Earth I kept having to remind myself that that story was some 26 years away. (Coincidentally, two stories before Frontios, the Silurians made their last appearance before cropping up again in Hungry Earth.) On the surface, there’s very little connection between the two, but the common element of danger from below – that “the earth was hungry” (in so many words, even) – kept cropping up.

It’s also not the only story to involve the “last” colony of humanity trying to survive (see, for example, The Ark or Utopia for two examples from opposite ends of the new/old spectrum). Here they are, having been at war for decades (The Armageddon Factor), the TARDIS is apparently destroyed (Journey’s End), and the Doctor is mistaken as the culprit responsible for all their woes (take your pick). To top it all off, despite knowing better (The Waters of Mars), the Doctor knowingly and willingly breaks the Time Lord policy of non-interference, and entreats the people of Frontios not to tell the Time Lords (as it’s gotten him in hot water before; The War Games).

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Pearls Before Time

Review of Time and the Rani (#145)

DVD Release Date:  14 Jun 11
Original Air Date:  07 – 28 Sep 1987
Doctor/Companion:  Seven, Melanie Bush
Stars:  Sylvester McCoy, Bonnie Langford
Preceding Story:  The Ultimate Foe (Trial of a Timelord) (Six, Mel)
Succeeding Story:  Paradise Towers (Seven, Mel)

It was with mixed trepidation and excitement that I awaited the release of this particular title. As a regeneration story, it ranked high in my want-to-see list, but knowing the history behind this particular change of Doctors (Colin Baker, who played Six, was canned – the scapegoat for falling ratings; unsurprisingly, he was none too keen to return to do a regeneration scene), I was wary of the event itself. Sadly, this is the one instance in which a YouTube viewing does not detract from the in-context regeneration. We get no more explanation than the TARDIS hurtling through space, with Companion Mel and the Doctor both unconscious on the floor of the control room. Upon landing, the Doctor is rolled over by a Tetrap minion, triggering the regeneration process. Even the magic of television can’t hide the fact that Six is just Seven in a bad wig and old costume. In that sense, this story starts out extremely disappointingly.

The rest of it, though, is surprisingly entertaining. I say “surprisingly” because, knowing ahead of time that the Rani (one of my all-time favorite foils for the Doctor) would be impersonating Mel, I was ready to cringe. However, even those sections came across relatively well. They were saved, of course, by the brilliance of Kate O’Mara (the Rani) and the perfect tone she kept while being simultaneously ingratiating and condescending (the unintentionally one-sided snarking between the Rani and the Doctor is great fun). Once she got out of Mel’s atrocious outfit (and the equally atrocious ginger wig), I was able to enjoy her performance fully.

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The Cat’s (Partly) Out of the Bag

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Review of A Good Man Goes to War
Warning:  This review contains episode-specific spoilers and wild speculation about future episodes.


Source – bbc.co.uk – © 2011 BBC

This one was a real mixed bag for me. Sure, it was a huge-scale production, with epic tie-ins where the Doctor called in favors from across time and space. But it all felt a bit too much. Also – the Spitfires? I ~edit~ hate the Spitfires-in-Space (…which you’d already know if I’d been blogging last year and had published the scathing review I wrote of Victory of the Daleks)! So take out a few of those called-in favors to make it feel less cobbled together (seriously, it has the kitchen sink feel of some of RTD’s most egregious I’m-trying-too-hard ventures), and the story will drive it just fine.

There is, after all, plenty of drama. Will our heroes recover the baby? What is the real motivation behind her abduction? How far will the Doctor go down the path to the Dark Side? (How far can Moffat take a religious order created via an off-the-cuff text message?) Oh, yeah – and who’s River Song?

The episode started out on a wonderful high. I thought it was a lovely twist how Amy talked up the man who was coming for Melody, making the viewers think she was referring to the Doctor (“he’s the last of his kind”; “he looks young, but he’s lived for hundreds and hundreds of years”). That misdirection made for a wonderful skip-a-beat moment when she said that man was Melody’s father, and in turn gave a slightly different meaning to the episode’s title, if one cares to interpret it that way. Not only that, but it bolsters our view of the Amy/Rory relationship and gives the ring of truth to his assertion that “she always knows that I am coming for her!” in Day of the Moon. God, how I love Rory the Badass Roman!

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