Doctor Who Review
Jan. 1st, 2010 08:07 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
thessalianSo, that's the end of Davies' reign on Who.
Not that he would ever let us forget it in the last ... what, two-fifths of the programme? I couldn't believe the self-indulgent bitch-fit the Doctor threw when it was clear that he'd have to die to save Wilf. His predecessor had a lot more class. When it was Rose that he saved by absorbing the energy of the Time Vortex, he just did it, tried to hide the pain from her as long as he could, and then admitted it in a calm, non-grudging sort of way. Like it really was his honour and his pleasure, and he wouldn't even think of burdening her with grief and blame because of his respect and affection for her. To burden Wilf with that emotional baggage ... I know he was seeing Wilf as a father figure by then but seriously, I wouldn't want to let someone know how much the sacrifice I was making for them hurt and scared me because it would make them feel worse. That was not classy ... and that wasn't really the Doctor, either - or at least, I don't think it was. I think it was Davies.
Don't get me wrong. There were good moments. The pacing was really weird and I didn't know where the plot was going half the time, but that's okay (well, for varying definitions of 'okay') because this episode was never going to be about plot or a story or anything else. This was about Davies having his final tantrum and taking his final bows. And take them he did, in the cheesiest possible ways, for fully twenty minutes, and then whimpered about how he didn't want to go before he ... exploded the TARDIS? Ecclestone didn't explode the TARDIS in the same way. This apparently was an excuse for them to rebuild it in Moffat's image, but ... they couldn't have come up with a better way?
So essentially I spent the first half blinking at it and going "...WTF?" and no, I don't have anything to say about the plot because I don't think I got it. I thought they all died in the Time War, but ... before they did, they screwed with the timeline to try to get pulled out of the bubble in which the Time War was contained before they all died? Thus causing a paradox that would end time itself and not caring because they thought they were going to become beings of pure consciousness and didn't need a time or a universe to experience as these beings of consciousness ... but again, that didn't matter because it wasn't about the plot, this episode. It apparently didn't have to make sense, because again, a plot or a story wasn't what it was about. It was about glorifying the Doctor. Well, the Tennant!Doctor, and Davies through him.
I spent the last few minutes shrieking for him to die, I admit it. Not because I wanted him to die, exactly, but because there was only so much "Hasn't he been great?!?" I could take. I mean, come on. Ecclestone went gloriously. "I just want you to know that you were fantastic. Absolutely fantastic. ...And you know what? So was I." And then foom. That was classy. Not self-indulgent bollocks for twenty minutes as we see all the lovely people whose lives the Doctor has enriched (and enriches again by either saving their lives or making them rich). And the Ood singing him to his 'eternal reward' or whatever oh my fucking gods HE IS NOT THE FUCKING MESSIAH!
I am looking forward to Matt Smith. I am looking forward to Steven Moffat. And as David Tennant said that Time Lords live too long ... well, so did bloody Davies. He's got his kumbaya-yas out. Now I want a full Moffat-run season. I don't care if I don't much like the new Doctor Who font and dread the inorganic nature that the TARDIS is bound to take on - NO MORE OF THIS. I guess I'm looking at Moffat the same way I'm looking at 2010, and Davies as being 2009. There were a couple of good things tied up with a lot of crap, and now it's a fresh slate and hopefully it'll get better. *nod*
Now I will finish watching When Harry Met Sally and try to get over the need to shriek.
Not that he would ever let us forget it in the last ... what, two-fifths of the programme? I couldn't believe the self-indulgent bitch-fit the Doctor threw when it was clear that he'd have to die to save Wilf. His predecessor had a lot more class. When it was Rose that he saved by absorbing the energy of the Time Vortex, he just did it, tried to hide the pain from her as long as he could, and then admitted it in a calm, non-grudging sort of way. Like it really was his honour and his pleasure, and he wouldn't even think of burdening her with grief and blame because of his respect and affection for her. To burden Wilf with that emotional baggage ... I know he was seeing Wilf as a father figure by then but seriously, I wouldn't want to let someone know how much the sacrifice I was making for them hurt and scared me because it would make them feel worse. That was not classy ... and that wasn't really the Doctor, either - or at least, I don't think it was. I think it was Davies.
Don't get me wrong. There were good moments. The pacing was really weird and I didn't know where the plot was going half the time, but that's okay (well, for varying definitions of 'okay') because this episode was never going to be about plot or a story or anything else. This was about Davies having his final tantrum and taking his final bows. And take them he did, in the cheesiest possible ways, for fully twenty minutes, and then whimpered about how he didn't want to go before he ... exploded the TARDIS? Ecclestone didn't explode the TARDIS in the same way. This apparently was an excuse for them to rebuild it in Moffat's image, but ... they couldn't have come up with a better way?
So essentially I spent the first half blinking at it and going "...WTF?" and no, I don't have anything to say about the plot because I don't think I got it. I thought they all died in the Time War, but ... before they did, they screwed with the timeline to try to get pulled out of the bubble in which the Time War was contained before they all died? Thus causing a paradox that would end time itself and not caring because they thought they were going to become beings of pure consciousness and didn't need a time or a universe to experience as these beings of consciousness ... but again, that didn't matter because it wasn't about the plot, this episode. It apparently didn't have to make sense, because again, a plot or a story wasn't what it was about. It was about glorifying the Doctor. Well, the Tennant!Doctor, and Davies through him.
I spent the last few minutes shrieking for him to die, I admit it. Not because I wanted him to die, exactly, but because there was only so much "Hasn't he been great?!?" I could take. I mean, come on. Ecclestone went gloriously. "I just want you to know that you were fantastic. Absolutely fantastic. ...And you know what? So was I." And then foom. That was classy. Not self-indulgent bollocks for twenty minutes as we see all the lovely people whose lives the Doctor has enriched (and enriches again by either saving their lives or making them rich). And the Ood singing him to his 'eternal reward' or whatever oh my fucking gods HE IS NOT THE FUCKING MESSIAH!
I am looking forward to Matt Smith. I am looking forward to Steven Moffat. And as David Tennant said that Time Lords live too long ... well, so did bloody Davies. He's got his kumbaya-yas out. Now I want a full Moffat-run season. I don't care if I don't much like the new Doctor Who font and dread the inorganic nature that the TARDIS is bound to take on - NO MORE OF THIS. I guess I'm looking at Moffat the same way I'm looking at 2010, and Davies as being 2009. There were a couple of good things tied up with a lot of crap, and now it's a fresh slate and hopefully it'll get better. *nod*
Now I will finish watching When Harry Met Sally and try to get over the need to shriek.
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no subject
Date: 2010-01-01 09:43 pm (UTC)- Donna arrives
- Donna screams a bit
- Donna has a headache
- Donna falls over
So, um, yeah. I get the feeling that RussTwee was running out of ideas, so sat down with his scifi DVD collection and
stole big chunkslooked for inspiration.It was ok, I guess. Could have been about half an hour shorter, but meh. Still not sure about the new doctor, but will watch the next season to see how it goes (and probably the one after, to give Moffat a chance to settle in). So, I guess we'll see.
Happy new year, by the way :)
no subject
Date: 2010-01-01 09:49 pm (UTC)guarantee that he'll hit at least some tear-jerky buttonsfather figure/confidant to the Doctor, and avoiding Donna would have been difficult in that circumstance. I was hoping that the Master-thing would have fixed her so that she could remember, but I knew it was going to get hand-waved. *sigh*And happy new year to you too!
no subject
Date: 2010-01-01 10:40 pm (UTC)Now back to your regularly scheduled New Year's Evening. :)
SPOILERS! and bitching
Date: 2010-01-03 06:13 pm (UTC)My problems with it are pretty simple.
was a let down, it was at least slightly classy.
for the record that I am a straight up weepy bitch when I watch Dr. Who/Torchwood these days). But yeah, I read this yesterday before we
marathoned all the newest Who together to the end. And I think if he had that much time to go and do and see and wave and cry, then he
should have FINALLY been able to decide how he would look after the regeneration.
I agree with you and others that this was Davies' Dickwaving Asshattery NOT a proper sendoff for Tennant. I will miss the 10th but I'm not so angry
and up in arms as I was over the 9th. I didn't understand very much about the show then and as I recall screaming when Tennant had his first lines,
I thought David would be stupid, goofy, and singsong-y all over my newfound fandom. Well he was...weeeell not stupid...weeeeeellll not really. The
only stupid came from Davies. But that was before I realized how much Davies hated Women and Children.
I know that David Tennant will go on to achieve many and much awesome. (How this played out in my head: *Tennant reads Season 4.5 scripts*
Oy! This is shite! I'll not be the bloke that kills Who again, yeah. Got to be something else out there. Oh look, Shakespeare. Roight.)
Billie Piper has apparently done so already as well ([I might like her a little more than is needed, just sayin'] YAY Rose).
I know that Catherine Tate is a Mega-Star over there with you guys so while I hate (HATE WITH THE HEAT OF A THOUSAND BILLION BURNING SUNS)
the "erasing of Donna (I howled at around 2 am for very bad things to happen to Davies after watching the end of Season 2 Torchwood and
then the "erasing of Donna" all on the same night, very bad things)," I realize that she is far from done. (WOOOHOO Donna)
But yes, I agree with you that I was rather happy to stop suffering through giving Davies a blow job by the end of his reign. Now I hear
that he thinks "there's nothing left for me here," so he's coming to LA to be a Hollywood Douchebag. Fabulous. *eye rolls* I just hope that
he gives up Torchwood to someone else so I don't have any more post-midnight screaming fits while my neighbors are trying to sleep.
Re: SPOILERS! and bitching
Date: 2010-01-03 10:03 pm (UTC)Having someone agree with me on that bit at least makes me feel less alone.
There were so many things that could have been done with Donna that would have made a lot more sense than what actually happened. I mean, if there's a rewrite of the human side of Donna to fit in with the Master's genetic template but not the Time Lord part of her, that MacGuffin for giving her the Time Lordiness back would have made a lot more sense than "I set up a concussive wave in her head and now she'll just sleep for awhile and wake up when it's all over and still not remember a thing ... somehow". I just ... dunno.
Still ... no more of that. Let's raise a glass to Moffat and join in a silent prayer of: "Please, Mr Moffat ... DON'T FUCK IT UP".