Doctor Who Club of Australia

[dave]

I thought this episode started well with the earth disappearing, and then quickly degenerated once the full cast was introduced. I found that there seemed to be too many characters, all dripping with awful dialogue and with their eforts culminating in some ridiculous plan to contact the Doctor by all ringing him together on their phones...

I really enjoyed some of the effects shots, especially the dalek saucers flying over the city. The homages to The Dalek Invasion of Earth, with the daleks chanting 'Daleks are the masters of earth' and the Doctor's oblique reference to them having tried to move the earth before I found to be quite enjoyable.

I must say I liked Davros, but, then again, I'm a tad biased there. At least they explained where the sudden hoard of daleks has come from, even if they didn't explain the Bad Wolf stuff all over the TARDIS from last week, or what happened to it. I didn't much care for the crazy dalek, although hopefully that's leading somewhere, seeing as it was capable of doing something no one else had yet done, by going back and saving Davros.

Speaking of people doing things not yet done, I'm guessing that might be where Donna saves the day next episode. If the episode opens with anyone from Torchwood, or Sarah Jane, dying, then we'll know we're in for a 'turn back time' kind of restart, which I think will turn out to be Donna's doing. Somehow, by escaping that bug, she's been changed, and can change time somehow, is my guess, but she'll have to give her life to do it.

I'll be curious to see what they do with the Doctor regenerating. This is another reason why I expect time to be reversed sometime next episode, as we know (don't we?) that Tennant will be staying on for the specials next year. It makes rumours I'd heard earlier in the year about John Simm playing the Doctor in the season finale all the more interesting.

The scene with Rose and the Doctor running towards one another down the street was awful for me. I kept hoping a dalek blast would come from nowhere and hit Rose. ZAP! Dead. Probably a good thing I'm not writing the show...

[Tegan]

I have to disagree with Dave's opening comments, I think RTD is really outdoing himself with the finale so far. He's managed to pack a whole lot of characters and story threads into this episode without making it seem disjointed.

Full of drama right from the word go, and left the cliff hanger as one you just can't see a way out of.

Despite it being such a heavy story, (I mean... who else but Davros could pull off stealing 27 planets!?), despite it being heavy he's managed to put in some really nice one-liners.

"Harriet Jones, former Prime Minister" and even the Daleks respond, "Yes. We know who you are." Now that's fame.

[SharazJek]

Having avoided spoilers for most of this season the end of this episode shocked the hell out of me! I mean....WOW!!

There is no way that we're going to get a Dr 11 just yet IMO. I don't think RTD would let him go just like that. And besides, hasn't DT been seen filming this years christmas special?

However, on speculation that Simm would be the Doctor for the final ep, I love the idea! However, it would be nice if he somehow reverted to Eccleston, that would be a major emotional clincher for the Doctor/Rose relationship.

I am VERY excited! I think it was very well paced and fit everything in you could want in 45 mins, and the news that the finale will be 65mins makes it a very respectable feature length for future viewings.

I wonder how many times I'll be watching this episode before next week. OMG!!

And I haven't even mentioned Davros. Wonderful performance. A lovely mix of both Wisher and Molloy. I noted the little reference to Davros being in the time war which removes him completely from Big Finish canon. I was concerned about that since the last time was heard Davros in an Dr Who audio he was becoming a bit too much of a complex character. But handled well in the episode.

I'm sure RTD is going to write his way out of the series in a blaze of glory over the next few episodes. Good on him!!

Oh, and nice mention of Tosh and Owen by Gwen. They didn't have a hell of a lot of time to grieve. Nice way to get into the next series of Torchwood without spending 3 or 4 episode grieving over the loss of the former team members (and I hear TW is only going to be 5 eps...what the?? A quiet year next year on the Who franchise). But then again, they way this alternate reality plotline is going it's possible Owen and Tosh might be ressurected!! That would be great as I loved Tosh and was just getting to like Owen.

[FredDag]

Oh my goodness!! What a shock, I never knew what was going to happen at the end of this episode. What an amazing story. It's brilliant!!!! Had me on the edge of my seat the whole way through it!!!!!! Brilliant episode, I can't believe it that the Doctor's regenerating!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Not fair!!!!!!!!!!! Not fair!!!!!!!!!! I just kept saying, no no no no no no no, this can't be!!!!!!!!!!! Who else is just as excited as me??? All I can say is what a brilliant episode!!!!!!!!!!! Sorry everyone else who didn't like it, but I think it's BRILLIANT, I just wish David Tennnnt wasn't leaving, I'm so upset!!

[KnottyEmily]

These past few episodes have made me sad that Russel T is leaving the show. It's taken him almost 4 seasons, but he's finally got it. Or perhaps he was just saving everything for the end.

When the Doctor got zapped I went into a bit of an Agent Smith "It's not fair. Oh, no no no no... no, it's not fair!"


Brilliant.

[Davros]

[Greg]

Um, OK.

A bit too much and yet a bit too little. The sheer number of characters in the story and giving each sufficient airtime results in lots of scenes of people sitting in rooms talking while the action is actually taking place off-screen.

But - by the same token - given the immediate future of the show (one year off with only a scattering of specials) and the impending departure of RTD, it seems only fitting that time should be taken to celebrate the success of show quietly killed off many years but which was kept alive by the fans who knew it should never have been off the air.

Favourite bit: the redemption of Harriet Jones, former Prime Minister. I really didn't like her fall from grace in The Christmas Invasion (though I did understand the 'all power corrupts' message), so her unexpected return and key role in the story was a bit of a treat. I hope she isn't dead - Personally, I'd love to see her in a confrontation with Davros.

Least favourite bit: the Shadow Proclamation. A proclamation is an official public announcement, so being told it is a place and/or a group of people was a bit odd, but more importantly it looked rather unimpressive! Compare it to, say, the citadel of Gallifrey we saw last year, or the Library or even the surface of Midnight. Not really much of a match. And the general feeling of no real power permeated the scenes - rather like the lacklustre depiction of Gallifrey and the Time Lords, particularly in The Invasion of Time.

Like the first half of all two-parters, it is very difficult to fully assess this without seeing next week's story. Is the build-up worth the pay-off? Only time will tell.

And PS - Where's Mickey? I might have settled with Rose mentioning his name when she was talking to 'control'...

[Davros]

[meglos]

Loved it. Doesn't get any better than this

And don't worry about Mickey, he shows up

[Hiruma]

I have a question with the whole regeneration thing. When a Time Lord Regenerates do they always come up with a new body? I mean , as we know Tennant is in the Specials next year, so Im hypothesising that he regenerates but KEEPS his same physical form. Now if this happens I can see scenes of him again saying 'What? , What?', but I think it could be done. I know Timelords regenerate, but is there definite proof that their form has to change?

Or all the rumors about him being in next years specials are false. THat could also be true.

Now did anyone else expect either Rose or the Doctor to get shut down in that marathon running towards each other scene? You could see it happening as it started

Good Ep

[Hiruma]

I thought Id also point out that no other Doctor is listed for Journey's End. IMDB is a great resource

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt1205438/

[Sulp Niar]

Hmm, I didn't like that.

1 ) The Daleks were boring. Endless robotic catchphrases and exposition. The only time they didn't was "We know who you are" to Harriet Jones, which is an old gag anyway. Apart from that it was either "Exterminate!", a bit of plot, or, perplexingly, "Maximum Extermination!"

2 ) Torchwood felt really... cheap here. They often screw up, true, but at least they've got a level of competence in their own series (I'm going to get burned for saying that). Here they're just... there. Same goes for Sarah Jane, though I haven't seen SJA yet so I could be wrong.

3 ) "It's impossible!" "That's impossible!" "It can't be!" Endless bits of the regulars all reacting to the same thing, one after the other.

4 ) Rose. She's either jealous for a couple of scenes, happy and sad right at the end... or boring for the rest of it. She's so boring that she yells at vandals, and her gun is actually the personality here. She may as well be called Gun 'n' Rose.

5 ) Greg already said this; the Shadow Proclamation looked awful. I know that Doctor Who has always been low budget but, simply, it's better when it's not trying to show the highest powers in the galaxy (e.g. the Time Lords usually looking crap in the old series).

6 ) The bit where Ianto watches some TV programmes. We've seen this oh so many times.

7 ) "We are at war!" This is said twice in the episode, and doesn't go anywhere either time. If you're going to build it up to be a scary and powerful line, at least deliver.

8 ) Project Indigo, this mysterious project, is... a teleport. How lame is that? Not only is the audience already so used to the idea of teleportation that no sci-fi needs to explain it at all now, but Captain Jack uses one later. It's not worth the buildup. And somehow Martha materialises home. Bleargh.

9 ) "Ultimate Code Red". So, like "Maximum Extermination!" then. Just an example of upping the ante and trying to make it more epic when it doesn't need it.

10 ) Fanwank. Loads and loads of it.

11 ) After the promise of the nice idea of a mad Dalek, Dalek Caan is basically the Dalek Emperor from 'Parting of the Ways' with a lighter voice. Note he calls the Doctor "the creator", when the Emperor called him "the destroyer". Yep, we've seen this before.

12 ) The whole thing echoes 'Doomsday' so often, even when it's not deliberately doing so. We have a version of Torchwood, and Daleks, and Rose, etc etc.

13 ) ...the Doctor gives up?

14 ) Things I've Learnt From Series Four: Guns are wrong, but they make you so damn cool.

I'll stop there before I go on for far too long. Basically, I didn't like it. After two weeks of excellent RTD stories, we've now got "safe" and "smug" RTD back. Dammit.

[SharazJek]

The trouble with fans is some of them over-analyse the show so much they fail to see the magic in it. I've been prone to doing that myself. Big mistake IMO.

I'm finding that the more I just sit back, relax and let the show happen rather scrutinising it for every defect is giving me the same thrill as it did when I was a kid. Watching my wide-eyed kids watching it helps me see it through a childs eyes too. Through the eyes of a child is by far the best way to enjoy dr who!

That said, as wonderful as I thought the ep was, the shadow proclamation was a disappointment, and I forgot to mention that in my previous comments. But there was so much eles to enjoy in the ep my disappointment was over-"shadowed" [groan].

[Tegan]

[Sulp Niar]

I spent the last two weeks talking about how great 'Midnight' and 'Turn Left' were though

I should probably add a disclaimer to the end of every post, like: "By the way: it's still Doctor Who, which means it's still worth watching".

But yeah, I said that I didn't like it, not that it was crap or, like, "Worst episode EVER!" or something. It's better than just about anything else on TV.

Also, I've written numerous things about how brilliant and amazing the show is. It's the best concept for a show ever, and I love it to death.

...I probably come off sounding very defensive here.

(Come to think of it... I never watched Doctor Who as a kid, so I don't feel nostalgia for the show. That's probably why I can't just sit back and enjoy it. Unless it's, you know, good, like 'Midnight' )

EDIT: Things I Liked About the Story:

Some good lines.

Bernard Cribbins.

Davros.

They were all pretty darn good performances, considering.

Some of the music was good.

[Ickabod]

[FredDag]

I totally agree with SharazJek, we are all guilty of it too. I tore Silence in the Library and Forest of the Dead to bits. Though it was still good Doctor Who especially compared to all the crap that out there on TV. I we we are so lucky to have our quality show back on and it's been now 4 years. It still feels fresh and new to me.

I watched Stolen Earth again yesterday and it still blew me away!!! I just hope there's no magical ending this year, but the threat and story on just a big scale is going to be hard to resolve without something really big happening in the end. Maybe it'll just be a temporal paradox and it'll all switch back. We don't know yet.

[Ickabod]

^Yep.....It's a brillant and fantastic show and it's much better then most of the crapola on TV

[Greg]

So, fanboys of both genders...

Anyone care to speculate on 'the three-fold man'?

[Davros]