Doctor Who Club of Australia

Beatly · Joined: 24 Jul 2005 Posts: 375 Location: London

What did you think of it?

I found it pretty traditional - I thought several times of Sylvester McCoy's era - and a nice enjoyable romp. Inoffensive; hardly a classic but not a stinker, either.

Maureen Lipman's cries of "hungreeeeee!" were a bit grating, and the Connelly family seemed to have been handled poorly - they felt inconsistent. There wasn't much exposition of the nature of the alien threat, The Wire, but that's not a bad thing per se: we didn't learn much about the Krillitanes or the werewolf creature or the Chula nanogenes, either.

Nice segue there into the other thing, besides the 7th Doctor, that I was reminded of: The Empty Child and The Doctor Dances. I suppose it was the "emptiness" of the people whose faces had been sucked off that did it (surprisingly I didn't really think of The Faceless Ones! Wink

), but the resolution, and the victims milling around suddenly okay, was more than a little reminiscent of the end of that two-parter.

Fine performances all round, and no particularly clunky dialogue, but overall it felt fairly hollow and lightweight. Enjoyable but rather forgettable fluff.

Next week we see an alien planet! Hurrah! And the baddies, the Ood - hot damn they look good.

Tegan · Posted: Sun May 28, 2006 1:39 pm Post subject:

I'm not so sure about this episode. It seemed to be marking time to me.

The use of tilted camera angles was way over done. Just about every scene where something was "not quite right" looked like something from the 60s Batman TV show. I almost expected a KAPOW when the Doctor got knocked out.

I can't remember. Is that the first time The Doctor has been decked with a right hook?

Lots of recycled ideas, from the Doctor riding a scooter out of the TARDIS (Dr Who: The Movie), to The Wire screaming "Feed Me" (Audrey in Little Shop Of Horrors).

I did like the humour though. The bike in the TARDIS, even though derivative was still done really well, and was funny. The Doctor calling the Wire a Nobrainian was good. The suggestion of Tommy on a Scooter made me think of the Who right away. The reference to Kylie.

Overall a fair effort, but it was always going to be difficult to top the 2 part Cybermen episodes, and they had to do a lighter episode for just that reason.

dave · Posted: Sun May 28, 2006 2:42 pm Post subject:

I thought this was good, but, as is so often the case with the single episode stories, it felt rushed. I'd had high expectations because Mark Gatiss was the writer, but it wasn't what I'd hoped for.

Surely the cries of 'Hun-greee' were homage to Paradise Towers? IIRC, the 'dialogue' was exactly the same as that used by Kroagnon in that basement, before he possessed the Chief Caretaker...and afterwards too, I guess.

I didn't find the faceless people entirely convincing, and would have liked more explanation for what exactly happened to them. They looked cool when partially obscured by shadow, but when fully lit, they looked fake. The initial scene of Mr Magpie losing his face was well done, I thought, but later shots of the same process began to lose their impact. Seeing someone other than the one family losing their faces during the coronation would have brought home more clearly that this was a widespread event, too.

Next week looks awesome! Can't wait!

SharazJek · Joined: 12 Aug 2005 Posts: 902 Location: Hobart, Tasmania

Yeah I was a little disappointed due to Mark Gatiss' having written my favourite episode from S1.

And as already observed by others, I was reminded by both Paradise Towers with the 'Hungry' chant, and of 60's Batman with the camera angles, and I agree, those angles were slightly overdone IMO.

Like Dave said, it was trying to cram a character piece (the over-bearing and dominating 50's dad stuff) with action (scooting around on a bike and scrambling up radio towers) in a very constricted 45 minutes.

I've not heard anyone mention yet that Rose had absolutely nothing to do with this plot. She disappeared halfway through the episode, fueling the Doctor's determination to defeat The Wire, but apart from that, she did nothing else. Is this the first time Rose has played the almost traditional companion while the Doctor soley saved the day?

But how about the look of those aliens in the next episode hey???

Looking forward to next week!!

meglos · Joined: 29 Jun 2005 Posts: 670 Location: Perth

Probably the weakest of the stories of the new season so far for me. 6/10

Hiruma · Joined: 30 Jun 2005 Posts: 173 Location: Australia

Kinda reminded me of a Vervoid.

Amano07 · Joined: 26 Jun 2005 Posts: 84

i thought it was good. i liked The Doctor getting really pissed off about Rose. It is probably the most average episode of the season so far. 7/10

Guest · Posted: Mon May 29, 2006 1:54 pm Post subject:

You know something inside me knew Rose was gonna be 'taken' by the Wire. She was waaay too cocky.

Amano07 · Joined: 26 Jun 2005 Posts: 84

after watching the episode again i was reminded of logopolis and the radio tower, i almost wished the doctor made some reference to it. Then i watched Confidential and there was a line in the original script about it..but it got cut..damn RTD

Dazza · Joined: 05 Jul 2005 Posts: 106

I agree with everyone else. The episode started off well but suffered from the 45 minute format. The Connelly family just seemed weird. I'm sure the ending would've come across much better if we had more time to know the characters.

Not the weakest of the season - New Earth still takes that title. However, so far, I'm finding this series much better than the last so even the weakest story is enjoyable.

FredDag · Joined: 01 Jun 2006 Posts: 70

I found this story to be refreshing after the hardness and heavyness of the last two part story. It was so nice to see Rose actually enjoying herself and not having en emotinal complications(even though she got her face sucked off). This story was, fun enjoyable and entertaining. I really like it. Yeah it's not a classic, but they all can't be. It didn't feel rushed either. No, nothing to complain about here. Love it.

charlie · Posted: Mon Jun 12, 2006 12:45 pm Post subject:

This was a bit weak for my tastes. I didnt quite get the explanation of the Wire and all that stuff. The WIre was lame anyway but when it started yelling hungry! yuck.
The humour wasnt bad. "Good Lord, colour television!" So obvious, saw it coming a mile away but I still cracked up.
Mrs C dumped him over nothing. We're doing this period in History at the moment and I'm taught that divorce was a great shame on a woman and domestic violence was alright as long as it wasnt too bad.
If Greg is right about the Queen, I wonder what shell think of the episode.

Kerr Avon · Joined: 15 Jul 2005 Posts: 478

did anyone else spend the entire episode scanning for a Mark Gatiss cameo? I expected him to show up as an "extra" in The Unquiet Dead and again in this story.

not my favourite from the season to date but not terrible either Smile

Terry · Joined: 13 Aug 2006 Posts: 14

Usual high standard of writing but the conclusion was a bit lacking. There wasn`t the excitement of a high wire act when the Doctor was supposed to be hundreds of feet in the air; yes I`m sure the Doctor could create a video recorder out of parts available at the time but not the cassette itself (where did the tape or plastic housing for it come from?) and the lad who helped him seemed uncannily savvy about what to do when the vacuum tube blew. I thought he might`ve been conscripted to Tardis duty.

By the way, did anyone else feel sorry for the lads Father?
Remember he was a decorated war hero who lived through harsh times finding the world known to him was changing. And then to suddenly face something as bizarre as was happening,.....

Terry · Joined: 13 Aug 2006 Posts: 14

Sorry, I forgot; Stephen Fry for the Doctor !!!

Kerr Avon · Joined: 15 Jul 2005 Posts: 478

Theta Sigma · Joined: 26 Jun 2005 Posts: 4432

Greg Hassall in the SMH Guide gave the episode a thumbs up saying it is a wonderful script and it is fabulous stuff. Just guessing here, Hassall's use of the word "fabulous" could have something to do with who is in this episode.

Theta Sigma · Joined: 26 Jun 2005 Posts: 4432

Who Magazine has included the episode in its Must See section giving it four stars with the subheading "Glued to their sets".

phase5 · Joined: 07 May 2006 Posts: 246

An easy episode to dismiss.
Which would be a pity as it's one of the better self contained episodes in series 2.
Definitely worth a second or third viewing catch it all.
It's a delightfully layered story with great character developement.

On the silly side:
Doctor Who finally becomes "The Avengers In Time & Space".
Shiny helmets & sunglasses are why they invented quantel.
Billy gets to do her best "looking around" acting.
Where's Saphire & Steel when you need them?
Love those fake doors and windows.
How old is Roses mum?

Beatly · Joined: 24 Jul 2005 Posts: 375 Location: London