morganminstrel (![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png)
morganminstrel) wrote2017-05-29 06:44 pm
morganminstrel) wrote2017-05-29 06:44 pm
Doctor Who 36.7--"The Pyramid at the End of the World" by Peter Harness and Steven Moffat
Ok, this episode is going to be extremely difficult to write about without spoilers, since it's a direct follow-on to last week. (And next week is a direct follow on to this week--yes, we have a good ol' six parter going on, with three different writers involved.) But I can answer the big question.
Peter Harness was previously responsible for writing...well, I'd call it the "most divisive," but it wasn't. Let's call it the "most controversial" episode of Doctor Who in recent years. I'm talking about "Kill the Moon," which didn't hold up to more than a moment's thought. For a lot of people, it's the nadir of the series as a whole (I still say "Love & Monsters" was that). So, the big question: Was this episode crap?
The answer is, no, it is not crap. Of course, I can't believe much of it was actually written by Harness and not Moffat. Moffat clearly had the central idea, laid the groundwork...and certainly did a final rewrite. The only idea I could find in it that definitely felt Harnessy was the idea that humans are responsible for deciding the fate of Earth. (Which was done in a much less silly way than in "KtM.") Other than that, it's pretty much Moffat all the way--for reasons I can't discuss without getting into spoilers. This is a clear example of a writer getting a detailed brief, then having had his script rewritten to fit better into that brief.
So, I suppose what I'm saying is yes, give this one a try. If only so you can get to next week.....
NEXT WEEK: The fallout from this week's episode, as we get "The Lie of the Land," from Mr. Toby Whithouse!! (Note no Moffat co-writing credit!)
And definitely feel free to begin a spoiler-filled discussion in comments!
Peter Harness was previously responsible for writing...well, I'd call it the "most divisive," but it wasn't. Let's call it the "most controversial" episode of Doctor Who in recent years. I'm talking about "Kill the Moon," which didn't hold up to more than a moment's thought. For a lot of people, it's the nadir of the series as a whole (I still say "Love & Monsters" was that). So, the big question: Was this episode crap?
The answer is, no, it is not crap. Of course, I can't believe much of it was actually written by Harness and not Moffat. Moffat clearly had the central idea, laid the groundwork...and certainly did a final rewrite. The only idea I could find in it that definitely felt Harnessy was the idea that humans are responsible for deciding the fate of Earth. (Which was done in a much less silly way than in "KtM.") Other than that, it's pretty much Moffat all the way--for reasons I can't discuss without getting into spoilers. This is a clear example of a writer getting a detailed brief, then having had his script rewritten to fit better into that brief.
So, I suppose what I'm saying is yes, give this one a try. If only so you can get to next week.....
NEXT WEEK: The fallout from this week's episode, as we get "The Lie of the Land," from Mr. Toby Whithouse!! (Note no Moffat co-writing credit!)
And definitely feel free to begin a spoiler-filled discussion in comments!