Doctor Who: now without DT additives!

[pathoftheturtle]

Regarding the Magician's Apprentice:

Wow! I really enjoyed it! A great, epic scale episode to begin with, and I really loved how many shocks there were throughout, both in terms of twists and in terms of scares. (The 'mines' at the start really stuck out.) Anybody else watched it yet?

Yes! Fantastic -- worth the wait!
Watched with some of my family... my little niece was sure terrified by those handmines.
I loved, loved the series of callbacks bolstering the continuous Whoniverse sense and solidifying that epic scale.
There were also strands of corniness throughout which I know some people like to lighten things up... I could have done without so much myself, but on the other hand we were treated finally to a verisimilar use of the New Dalek Paradigm.
I felt Clara's answer to identifying the Doctor's "present" whereabouts among appearances across history was a bit too simple for all seriousness, but raising the problem at all is a gem of storytelling respecting time travel.
Altogether a very great landmark episode in my book.

[DoctorDodge]

Regarding the Magician's Apprentice:

Wow! I really enjoyed it! A great, epic scale episode to begin with, and I really loved how many shocks there were throughout, both in terms of twists and in terms of scares. (The 'mines' at the start really stuck out.) Anybody else watched it yet?

Yes! Fantastic -- worth the wait!
Watched with some of my family... my little niece was sure terrified by those handmines.
I loved, loved the series of callbacks bolstering the continuous Whoniverse sense and solidifying that epic scale.
There were also strands of corniness throughout which I know some people like to lighten things up... I could have done without so much myself, but on the other hand we were treated finally to a verisimilar use of the New Dalek Paradigm.
I felt Clara's answer to identifying the Doctor's "present" whereabouts among appearances across history was a bit too simple for all seriousness, but raising the problem at all is a gem of storytelling respecting time travel.
Altogether a very great landmark episode in my book.

Glad you enjoyed it, Mike! Also glad to hear that your niece was terrified by the hand-mines. If there's one thing Who should be doing, it's traumatising kids.
There were definitely moments of corniness, but I have to admit: seeing the Doctor playing guitar was a real highlight for me. So silly but so awesome! The more I watch of Capaldi's Doctor, the more I love him. Especially the look on his face at the start when the boy told him his name. Such a wonderfully done moment.

[pathoftheturtle]

...the look on his face at the start when the boy told him his name. Such a wonderfully done moment.

My sister went, "Who is he?!" Despite knowing next to nothing about the show, she could tell it was a major twist. Hee hee!

But you see what I mean as to this Daleks version? Ironic how you were just blogging the other day about wishing the basic idea of different roles could be salvaged, even though we agree the full deco models deserved the phase out that's occurred. You think maybe Moffat spies on you?

[DoctorDodge]

I really did adore the huge variety of Daleks, both old school and new, mixed in those final moments. They had tried having a ton of old Daleks on screen before in Asylum of the Daleks, but the problem was that they were all covered in so much dust and in such low lighting that no one could tell the difference to the current ones. I love that they're showing them all in all their glory, this time! (Especially the 60s ones! )

[pathoftheturtle]

Now my new question is

end of episode

If Missy never comes back, will anyone ever explain how she came back the last couple of times? Or are we supposed to just think about whether there's a reasonable way for her and Clara to be saved again and forget having prior resurrections recounted? That is, can fans keep track of any number of reappearances, or is there a limit past which we just accept never knowing? I've lately heard theories that the Doctor doesn't really mean to alter history by killing Davros but just with that plans to blackmail him to restore his companion. I guess that's conceivable because I don't even know how Davros is himself restored this time.

:headspins:

[pathoftheturtle]

I really did adore the huge variety of Daleks, both old school and new, mixed in those final moments. They had tried having a ton of old Daleks on screen before in Asylum of the Daleks, but the problem was that they were all covered in so much dust and in such low lighting that no one could tell the difference to the current ones. I love that they're showing them all in all their glory, this time! (Especially the 60s ones! )

The stagecraft was in numerous ways, actually, better than "Asylum," but also, I've just realized, background themes have come to fruition: I think I harbored unconscious resistance every NuWho appearance on the idea that sacrificing Gallifrey appeared less tragic than just wasteful the more clear it became that final Dalek defeat is hopeless. So now the foe's implacability no longer hurts respect for the hero so inherently. I haven't enjoyed seeing them this much in years!

[stkmw02]

All of this is technically spoilers?

While I was of course happy to have a new episode to sink my teeth into, I was unfortunately left hungry for more. I felt the "to be continued" ending was rough for a first episode that audiences have been anticipating for months... especially when the episode itself rushed through major plot points in a way that made them less major. The "deaths" of Clara and Missy were so anticlimactic! It didn't make me "believe" they're really gone, so I'm not waiting on the edge of my seat to see what happens. I LOVED the beginning of the episode and I was glad Missy finally had a chance to put Clara in her place a bit... and I especially liked that The Doctor was quoting previous versions of himself and bringing out a bit more of that idea of all reincarnations still being part of him. That concept is something I hope they continue to work in to the story more, I loved Capaldi discovering his Doctor last season by sort of 'trying on' pieces of the previous actors to portray (early on) how The Doctor is always The Doctor no matter what face he is wearing, but at the same time The Doctor is never the same even if he has the same face.

And now I'm rambling and I'm at work, so I should stop. lol

Mostly - PSYCHED that I'll get to talk to you guys here again now that the season is started!!

[ICry4Oy]

Okay episode but Clara still annoys me and just not a fan of Capaldi.

[Bev Vincent]

Those hands sticking out of the ground were creepy. The Mistress was in fine form in this episode, too.

[pathoftheturtle]

All of this is technically spoilers?

Spoiler:

... The "deaths" of Clara and Missy ... didn't make me "believe" they're really gone, so I'm not waiting on the edge of my seat to see what happens. ...

Yar, I was referring to the same impression; we can of course tell that it's apt to some sort of reversal. And I know what you mean by "believe," quote/end quote: funny how dying in popular fiction doesn't feel real unless it involves completely unrealistic dramatic fanfare.
But nonetheless, I disagree that --

... the "to be continued" ending was rough for a first episode that audiences have been anticipating for months...

Just another part, IMO, of the more expansive tone that makes me think this might be a period of great evolution for DW. The last series was all self-contained episodic adventures except for the Danny relationship and that one big background arc leading up to the finale, which may be why I was content all through its run to just wait until the next week and turn to other shows. This time, however, I observe other fans are like myself still re-viewing the opener and reviewing back-canon here days later to puzzle out the loose ends and guess at what will come next. You do make some decent critical points, though.

[stkmw02]

I'm not opposed to cliff hangers, but for the very first episode I expected the ending to either amp me up for the rest of the season or leave me hungry for the continuation. For me, this one just fell flat.

I'm still looking forward to the next episode, of course. Just not on the edge of my seat.

[DoctorDodge]

All of this is technically spoilers?

Spoiler:

... The "deaths" of Clara and Missy ... didn't make me "believe" they're really gone, so I'm not waiting on the edge of my seat to see what happens. ...

Yar, I was referring to the same impression; we can of course tell that it's apt to some sort of reversal. And I know what you mean by "believe," quote/end quote: funny how dying in popular fiction doesn't feel real unless it involves completely unrealistic dramatic fanfare.
But nonetheless, I disagree that --

... the "to be continued" ending was rough for a first episode that audiences have been anticipating for months...

Just another part, IMO, of the more expansive tone that makes me think this might be a period of great evolution for DW. The last series was all self-contained episodic adventures except for the Danny relationship and that one big background arc leading up to the finale, which may be why I was content all through its run to just wait until the next week and turn to other shows. This time, however, I observe other fans are like myself still re-viewing the opener and reviewing back-canon here days later to puzzle out the loose ends and guess at what will come next. You do make some decent critical points, though.

Agreed a great deal. I am so glad the multi-part stories are back, after having a distinct lack of them for series 7 and 8 (with Dark Water/Death in Heaven an exception). I grew up on the serials, and not only do I love a good cliffhanger (while it was a little bit overkill in some places, I adored the final shot of 'The Magician's Apprentice'), but frankly, I think that where many of the last couple of seasons fell flat was through having stories that were a little too rushed, at times. I'm really glad that it's slowed down and allowed us to enjoy the characters and the plot more.

Also, one more thing I enjoyed about 'The Magician's Apprentice', and how like Michael said series 9 looks to be a different beast to series 8, is that its opening scene arguably had a "cliffhanger" as big as the ending of 'Dark Water'. They were even similar in some ways, as they revealed the return of a major villain. But whereas Dark Water had built up the revelation of who Missy was over 11 weeks, 'The Magician's Apprentice' got that revelation out of the way in the first 5 minutes! I'm really glad that Moffat kicked off not just the episode but the entire season with a twist as brilliant as that.

[pathoftheturtle]

Depends on how you look at the issue. To ask,

Spoiler:

How will the Doctor deal with the dilemma of of entering this situation with young Davros?

is deep and compelling.

On the other hand, the implied narrower tension of the literal last scene --

Spoiler:

i.e. just asking ourselves, 'Will the Doctor deal with it by killing him outright and altering his own entire history?'

-- is indeed obvious (the answer of course being 'no, that is still highly doubtful,') and rather trite on the face of it.

[Jon]

BUT CLARA IS TOO CUTE TO DIE!!!

[DoctorDodge]

After watching part 2 not just last night but tonight in an omnibus edition with part 1, I've got to say: I absolutely adore The Magician's Apprentice/The Witch's Familiar, and it has made me so glad to see that two-parters are back with a vengeance. One thing I was surprised about was that overall, despite the story having the combination of the Master, Davros and the Daleks in one story, it wasn't about the Doctor saving the universe like in The Stolen Earth/Journey's End, the last story to feature Davros - instead, we had something that felt a lot more personal, particularly in the 2nd episode. I loved all the scenes with Capaldi and Davros, and Capaldi has really cemented himself in the role. I hesitate to call him my favourite Doctor of the New Series - I was such a fan of Smith, after all - but I really do adore his performance. I hope that the rest of series 9 proves to be as strong as this opening story was.

[pathoftheturtle]

"... The future's so bright, I gotta wear shades."

[Jon]

I wonder if he wears them at night like Mr. Hart?

[DoctorDodge]

I've been hoping for a lot of things ever since Big Finish announced they were able to tell stories featuring characters from the New Series, but I never dared hope for this:

Doctor Who: The War Doctor (Audio Series)

I'm really excited about this. I never really dared imagine that John Hurt would return to the role, especially for a Big Finish audio series! 12 episodes, and the first 3 are gonna be released in December! How the hell Big Finish kept this so quiet, I've no idea! I was a big fan of Hurt's War Doctor, something I was really surprised about, considering that, theoretically, The Day of the Doctor could have easily been done with McGann instead of Hurt, but it was such a great twist and he played the role so brilliantly that Hurt was one of the key reasons why I love Day so much. To get an entire series of him really is amazing news!

[Shannon]

For a few minutes, the show felt like the Doctor Who I fell in love with. Fan-fucking-tastic.

The first 90% of the episode was a 2/2.5 out of 5. Decent, nothing groundbreaking. And the final few minutes, flashback, reasoning, mythology, an actual main storyline driven plot (rather than a per episode plot) ... and David Tennant. I admit to getting goosebumps when I saw him. I miss him.

Here's hoping the second part is even better.

[pathoftheturtle]

Definitely that last five minutes raised countless lines for speculation with the regeneration revelations and everything about the girl who died. (Roll credits! XD !) I've often thought how different it would have been if Clara had retained her "Snowmen" history. How much exploration of the possibilities in this case is to happen? Exciting! -- though dampened some by the lameness of the setting. Another implication occurring to me was the way that Romans in Pompeii had identified the Doctor's accent as Celtic; noteworthy, you'd think, with Vikings. But I liked the aspect of a viral video solution. Hardly new that the Doctor seek alternatives to fighting, but it is a cool part of the show, and the power of basically journalism does not always come up. This whole storytelling motif is in fact quite fascinating, IMO.

[DoctorDodge]

What I really liked about Saturday's episode was

Spoiler:

the revelation that the Doctor really did "choose" his current face, at least subconsciously. There wasn't some grand revelation, it wasn't something like the "Impossible Girl", it did it just right and added a bit more mythology and speculation about how regeneration works. It also makes you wonder about Colin Baker's Doctor: did he "choose" his face because of Maxil from Arc of Infinity? If so, what possible reason could he have for choosing the face of someone who tried to execute him?

Actually, I think that says a lot about how much the Fifth Doctor really hated himself to choose that face for his next body! XD

[pathoftheturtle]

Door's open to bring back any previous actor as a different character. Should we start wondering whether the curator in Day of the Doctor was really someone else?

[DoctorDodge]

If the Curator really is a future incarnation of the Doctor, I can imagine what the initial reaction to seeing his face would be:

"Why did I choose this face?...Oh, that's right:

Spoiler:

because it's AWESOME!"

[Shannon]

Very well done almost-monologue from Capaldi in the last episode. Nowhere near the brilliance of Matt Smith's greatest moments, but easily one of my favorite Capaldi moments.

[Shannon]

And for shits and giggles:

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=GoVLhUxhdSw