Doctor Who 33.9--"Hide" by Neil Cross
Apr. 20th, 2013 05:05 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
morganminstrelOk, first of all, "Hide" is a terrible name for this episode. Just not representative of the episode at all. I doubt we have Neil Cross to blame for it though, often the names are changed and/or set by the production team. Still, it sounds like a working title.
So, this is Cross' second script to air this year, though it was the first one written and filmed, and I'm not sure how well it works. As with last week, there were parts that worked wonderfully well, and parts that didn't. And, as with "The Rings of Akhaten" (his second script/first aired), there's an attempt at a unifying theme...but it doesn't work so well here, mainly because so much else is thrown out there that...well, anyway, I'll spoiler-cut now.
This is one of those times where I'm not actually sure about how I feel about this one. There were moments of classic feel, moments of "this is new/good" and moments of "hmm, I'm not sure this is working." (It's also worth noting that I took a bit of a break after watching before starting to write this, which might not be helping.)
Ok, leaving aside the mispronunciation of "Metebelis" (which was a bit baffling), including it--and correctly referencing the psychic abilities associated with it--was a nice touch by the fanboy who wrote the script. On the other hand, the whole "the TARDIS doesn't like me" bit (also seen in Cross' "Akhaten") was kind of tiresome. Perhaps it's all a set-up for next week (and one must remember the order the scripts were written in), but the idea of a bitchy TARDIS is, well, it's a bad consequence of Neil Gaiman's "The Doctor's Wife," honestly. I mean, the TARDIS ran from Captain Jack, so I guess there's precedent, but...I don't know.
Man, I'm not happy with this review. There were plenty of things I liked. I liked the Doctor's journey through the life of the Earth quite a lot...though I thought the conversation afterwards between the Doctor and Clara was kind of sad and showed the limitations of the "new" series. When the Fourth Doctor showed Sarah Jane the possible future devastation of the Earth (in "Pyramids of Mars") and she had a similar concern (sort of), his response was, "But I'm not human. I'm a Time Lord. I walk in eternity." Can you imagine Matt Smith's Doctor being able to say something like that? I mean, not that I would have wanted that in particular, but it just felt like the script copped out on the whole conversation. At least it let the Doctor admit that, yes, in the far future, Clara would be dead, probably (at this point, who knows?), but he should have had a stronger comeback to the honestly nonsensical "so we're all ghosts to you" thing...and, of course, it seemed to be mostly forgotten by the next scene. Wow, I guess it really bugged me. I'll let it go now, because...what was wrapped around that specific part of that conversation was pretty great.
I did love the "traipsing around a haunted house" idea, although I was expecting a bit more of the "well, of course there are no such things as ghosts" and a bit less of the "frightened Doctor." (Though, in retrospect, that was kind of nice to see--it's nice to see a return of the Doctor a bit out of his depth--it just might have been a bit too much.) I mean, we got an explanation of it eventually (although we got a lot of slightly annoying "ooh, the Doctor knows all kinds of things, and just happens to know exactly what he needs to" when it came to the time travelling Hila), which was nice, but it felt weird to see a Doctor who appeared to believe in the supernatural, at least a little. Did that bother anyone else, or just me? I loved it all, it was really fun, but I'm not sure it felt quite right?
Argh, I'm being so critical. But I did enjoy it--I think Dougray Scott did a great job asProfessor Quatermass Professor Palmer, and I've never seen "Call the Midwife," but I really liked Jessica Raine. (And hey, she'll be playing Verity Lambert in the early Who docudrama coming this fall!)
The theme of "love remaining after the end of everything" or whatever it was...didn't work. I'm sorry, but it didn't. It felt forced--not the suppressed romance between Palmer and Emma, that was ok if obvious. But the monsters? Eh. Basically, everything in the resolution undercut the tension that came against it--ghost? nope, time traveller. Monster trying to run after someone to eat or loving the fear it causes or something? (The Doctor suggests both notions.) Nope, it's a monster in love, trying to reunite with its somehow separated girlfriend...said separation never being explained, right? So, ultimately, was there ever any real danger? Yeah, of course, we've had the "it's all a misunderstood monster" before, but this time...I don't know. Do we get that a lot more often these days?
Ok, I am being WAY too critical about an episode I actually kind of liked. And I haven't even gotten to Clara yet! I think the problem is that the past few years have given me higher expectations, or higher standards? It doesn't help that I'm watching some fantastic 1967-68 Troughton stories with the TARDIS Project these days. (Speaking of which, does anyone else get a little bit of a Victoria Waterfield vibe from Clara?)
I love Matt Smith's Doctor. I really like Jenna Louise-Coleman and, once they get rid of her "mystery," I think Clara could work out really well. But...I don't love this half of this series of the show. I mostly like it (and some of it less than that), but I don't love it. So, in these reviews (certainly in this one), I seem to keep focusing on the negative, when I really did enjoy watching it. I'm hoping it's just this review and I'll work my way out of the hole I seem to be falling into...or maybe it's time for me to stop doing these things and just stick to watching and discussing with my friends...what do you guys think?
NEXT WEEK: Ok, this looks like fun. The TARDIS. Clara. Trapped. Salvage? Journey--Danger? It's "Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS" by Stephen Thompson!
Click here for my previous Doctor Who reviews.
So, this is Cross' second script to air this year, though it was the first one written and filmed, and I'm not sure how well it works. As with last week, there were parts that worked wonderfully well, and parts that didn't. And, as with "The Rings of Akhaten" (his second script/first aired), there's an attempt at a unifying theme...but it doesn't work so well here, mainly because so much else is thrown out there that...well, anyway, I'll spoiler-cut now.
This is one of those times where I'm not actually sure about how I feel about this one. There were moments of classic feel, moments of "this is new/good" and moments of "hmm, I'm not sure this is working." (It's also worth noting that I took a bit of a break after watching before starting to write this, which might not be helping.)
Ok, leaving aside the mispronunciation of "Metebelis" (which was a bit baffling), including it--and correctly referencing the psychic abilities associated with it--was a nice touch by the fanboy who wrote the script. On the other hand, the whole "the TARDIS doesn't like me" bit (also seen in Cross' "Akhaten") was kind of tiresome. Perhaps it's all a set-up for next week (and one must remember the order the scripts were written in), but the idea of a bitchy TARDIS is, well, it's a bad consequence of Neil Gaiman's "The Doctor's Wife," honestly. I mean, the TARDIS ran from Captain Jack, so I guess there's precedent, but...I don't know.
Man, I'm not happy with this review. There were plenty of things I liked. I liked the Doctor's journey through the life of the Earth quite a lot...though I thought the conversation afterwards between the Doctor and Clara was kind of sad and showed the limitations of the "new" series. When the Fourth Doctor showed Sarah Jane the possible future devastation of the Earth (in "Pyramids of Mars") and she had a similar concern (sort of), his response was, "But I'm not human. I'm a Time Lord. I walk in eternity." Can you imagine Matt Smith's Doctor being able to say something like that? I mean, not that I would have wanted that in particular, but it just felt like the script copped out on the whole conversation. At least it let the Doctor admit that, yes, in the far future, Clara would be dead, probably (at this point, who knows?), but he should have had a stronger comeback to the honestly nonsensical "so we're all ghosts to you" thing...and, of course, it seemed to be mostly forgotten by the next scene. Wow, I guess it really bugged me. I'll let it go now, because...what was wrapped around that specific part of that conversation was pretty great.
I did love the "traipsing around a haunted house" idea, although I was expecting a bit more of the "well, of course there are no such things as ghosts" and a bit less of the "frightened Doctor." (Though, in retrospect, that was kind of nice to see--it's nice to see a return of the Doctor a bit out of his depth--it just might have been a bit too much.) I mean, we got an explanation of it eventually (although we got a lot of slightly annoying "ooh, the Doctor knows all kinds of things, and just happens to know exactly what he needs to" when it came to the time travelling Hila), which was nice, but it felt weird to see a Doctor who appeared to believe in the supernatural, at least a little. Did that bother anyone else, or just me? I loved it all, it was really fun, but I'm not sure it felt quite right?
Argh, I'm being so critical. But I did enjoy it--I think Dougray Scott did a great job as
The theme of "love remaining after the end of everything" or whatever it was...didn't work. I'm sorry, but it didn't. It felt forced--not the suppressed romance between Palmer and Emma, that was ok if obvious. But the monsters? Eh. Basically, everything in the resolution undercut the tension that came against it--ghost? nope, time traveller. Monster trying to run after someone to eat or loving the fear it causes or something? (The Doctor suggests both notions.) Nope, it's a monster in love, trying to reunite with its somehow separated girlfriend...said separation never being explained, right? So, ultimately, was there ever any real danger? Yeah, of course, we've had the "it's all a misunderstood monster" before, but this time...I don't know. Do we get that a lot more often these days?
Ok, I am being WAY too critical about an episode I actually kind of liked. And I haven't even gotten to Clara yet! I think the problem is that the past few years have given me higher expectations, or higher standards? It doesn't help that I'm watching some fantastic 1967-68 Troughton stories with the TARDIS Project these days. (Speaking of which, does anyone else get a little bit of a Victoria Waterfield vibe from Clara?)
I love Matt Smith's Doctor. I really like Jenna Louise-Coleman and, once they get rid of her "mystery," I think Clara could work out really well. But...I don't love this half of this series of the show. I mostly like it (and some of it less than that), but I don't love it. So, in these reviews (certainly in this one), I seem to keep focusing on the negative, when I really did enjoy watching it. I'm hoping it's just this review and I'll work my way out of the hole I seem to be falling into...or maybe it's time for me to stop doing these things and just stick to watching and discussing with my friends...what do you guys think?
NEXT WEEK: Ok, this looks like fun. The TARDIS. Clara. Trapped. Salvage? Journey--Danger? It's "Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS" by Stephen Thompson!
Click here for my previous Doctor Who reviews.
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no subject
Date: 2013-04-22 05:18 pm (UTC)The wife and I found ourselves talking about the Doctor and Clara. I like Matt Smith (now), but he looks physically much older than he used to. He behaves older and more crotchety sometimes.
I liked the Clara we saw in the Sherlock Holmes-ish episode. I even liked her in Asylum of the Daleks (even if I didn't care for the episode). This Clara? I'm not as keen on. She doesn't seem to me like she wants to be there. She appears very aloof to me.
The relationship between the two is odd. That high-five they did struck us both as weird. To me, it felt forced, and un-earned. I don't think they have that relationship yet.
no subject
Date: 2013-04-22 05:19 pm (UTC)