#and then I remember when I watch the serial the daleks

[precious-pop-punk-nerd-girl]

Sometimes I forget that The Doctor met the Daleks by being like "me when I lie" to Barbara, Ian, and Susan

#and then I remember when I watch the serial the daleks #doctor who #tiff rambles lmao #the doctor was and still is so silly <3 #“yeah i need mercury so we can leave!” *has taken out the mercury themself*

[rubiscothegeek]

Day of the Daleks really is so much better with the replaced dalek voices

#i remember it not being very good when i watched it the first time #but i just rewatched the nick briggs version and i enjoyed it! #you don't realise how important - and difficult - good dalek voice acting is until you watch a serial without it #doctor who #day of the daleks

[marvelousmop]

Thoughts on "Daleks in Colour"

Before I start, I'd just like to say that I have no problem with this as a concept. The original serials still exist, they're still on iPlayer, and no previous omnibus edit has entirely replaced a serial so far. Now, the animated reconstructions have, but also those are of mostly lost episodes, and the original surviving clips are still available to watch. I won't treat this as though it's replacing history until it actually does so and until then, I don't think "This shouldn't exist" is a particularly engaging criticism.

To start off with some positives, I think the colourisation is mostly very impressive. Some of it doesn't work too well (I feel like the forest should've been a bit duller, though I understand why they may not want that as the opening image of their colourisation project), but it's undeniably impressive in my opinion. Similarly, the soundtrack is a bit mixed: I feel like some of the intense orchestral stuff shouldn't have been in there, but I did like the added synths, and some of the other colourful orchestrations grew on me a bit (shoutout to the sort of Oceans 11-esque music they scored the Doctor's escape from the Dalek city with). Separate from the visuals, they're really good orchestrations, they just don't match too well (nor do they match the more ambient score of the original serial that we hear at some points).

Now for just pure negatives GOOD GOD, THE EDITING! Taking a 3-hour serial and trimming it down to 75 minutes was bound to cause some problems (and honestly the fact that they ended up with something still mostly coherent is impressive) but there's a right way to do it - the Peter Cushing adaptation only runs for 10 minutes longer, and that one also had to include the prerequisite TARDIS setup - but this just isn't it.

In general, it feels like the people behind the editing read too many articles about declining attention spans, and the result is just endless overwhelming noise and montages. It feels like they were told to cut out anything where the characters weren't saying anything exciting or running around (sort of the opposite of the Garth Marenghi quote "Everything without dialogue was considered for slow-motion.").

And the flashbacks.

Interspersed through bits of dialogue are cuts to things we've already seen: Are the characters talking about the city? Let's cut to it three times. Are the characters talking about Ian getting shot? Let's cut back to that again, the audience probably forgot. Are they talking about picking up the drugs? Show that clip, and do it again five minutes later when they're talking about that with different characters - GOOD GOD JUST TRUST THE AUDIENCE TO REMEMBER ANYTHING!

That's my main issue really. It feels like it doesn't trust the audience to keep up with the story, and it annoys me. Sure whatever, studies say attention spans are falling, bla bla bla, but do you know what else? If someone wants to watch something, they will do it. They will pay attention as much as they need to, you just need to trust them. Believe in your audience.

#mop's inane ramblings #doctor who #daleks in colour #daleks

[whovianwatchingstartrek]

A Whovian Watches Star Trek for the First Time: Part 026 - Ravages of a War Across Time

Star Trek: Enterprise - Season 2 Episode 1 - Shockwave Part 2

It felt like an accomplishment changing that Season number. Anyways, I wanna know how that cliff-hanger gets resolved. Onwards!

This episode really had two moving plots. The Situation on the enterprise and Archer and Daniels in the future. There was also the Vulcan Human tensions reaching a boiling point on Earth due to the Enterprise not returning, but that was more background than a plot thread.

The episode opens with T'Pol convincing the Suliban to board enterprise to confirm Archer's absence, instead of just blowing enterprise out of the Sky. With Silik's takeover of the enterprise, the acting is great. You really feel that if any of the Enterprise's crew mess up here, they all could die. Then, we cut back to Silik trying to contact shadow future guy, who is just gone, obviously because the future is dead. The scene where the Suliban are torturing T'Pol was also excellent, the camera not staying still or focussing on anything is a simple cinematic trick, but an effective one. I liked seeing Trip flex his engineering skills by establishing a secret comms system across Enterprise.

Meanwhile in the future, Archer poses an important question: How is Daniels still here if his future and everything in it is gone. Daniels doesn't have an answer. Thankfully, a library with books survived, which means we can get a good read (pun not intended) on how the timeline has shifted. The Two of them trying to fashion together a cross-time communication device out of scraps was very Doctor Who, I loved that. It reminded me of the Junkyard TARDIS from The Doctor's Wife. It was also nice to see Daniel's prevent Archer reading about Earth's future. Not only because I don't want to be spoiled for the future, but also because it's good to see him still abide by whatever time laws there are, even at a time like this.

T'Pol being too broken post-torture to effectively answer Archer's time communications was painful. Like with Part 1, the whole cast's skills are being pushed to their limits with building their small resistance against the Suliban occupying the ship. I remember one of the really early episodes mentioned Hoshi gets claustrophobic, so I'm proud of her for managing to complete that vent crawl. The crew faking the engines exploding to get away was genuis, and then Archer exploiting Silik's inability to act without his orders from the future to get his way back to the present was also really good. I had the biggest smile when Archer came through instead of Shadowy-future guy.

Archer's speech to Starfleet command about how Humans need to make mistakes to learn from them, to convince them allow Enterprise's mission to continue was great.

Comparing my Enjoyment of this Episode with a Doctor Who Universe Story of the Same Title

The War Master: Anti-Genesis Part 3: Shockwave

From one Time War to another, The War Master is a Doctor Who radio play Spin-Off. It functions as a pseudo prequel to the 2007 episode "Utopia", and showcases the Derek Jacobi incarnation of the Master, during the Last Great Time and the events leading up the him running away to hide at the end of the Universe as Professor Yana.

Shockwave is the third part of Anti-Genesis the fourth release of the War Master series. I want to focus on shockwave, so I'll keep the key information from the first 2 parts brief. Basically the plot of Anti-Genesis is The Master stepping into the events of the 1975 serial Genesis of the Daleks in an attempt to alter both Dalek and Time Lord history in his own favour. Instead of the Fourth Doctor's failed attempt to prevent the Dalek's creation, we have The Master infiltrating the Kaled science elite and subverting their creation for his own purposes, while being chased down by Coordinator Narvin (My personal favourite Time Lord btw), and that's the set up going into Shockwave.

As it turns out, The Time War era Daleks don't particularly like having their creation subverted towards a Time Lord's interests. So, they decide to fight fire with fire, and bring a version of The Master from a parallel universe into play. Specifically the Mark Gatiss/Sam Kisgart version of the Master from the Unbound Universe. And happy to be escaping his own collapsing universe, he obliges. Despite it being his series, the Derek Jacobi master isn't the focus in Shockwave, this part was supposed to build up the Unbound Master for the two versions of the Character's conflict in the finale of Anti-Genesis.

The Shockwave the title is about is a result of the actions of the Derek Jacobi Master in the previous part's of Anti-Genesis. Specifically the shockwave of effect on the timeline caused by his interference.

It's interesting hearing things from the perspective of the Unbound Master, as the timelines shift around him. When he arrives on Gallifrey, shifts to the timeline have resulted in the Time Lord's civilisation reduced to medieval technology, then a time shockwave hits, and we're back to regular Gallifreyan technology, but with differences. And this is repeated a few times. A few might be a stretch, according to the Daleks, their time ship visited 713 different Gallifreys.

Picking which of the two Shockwaves I liked more is a difficult choice. I'm going to give the Edge to the War Master's version. It definitely had more fun with it's apocalyptic time shenanigans, and The Unbound Master makes a fun villain-protagonist. His attempts to convince the Time Lords that his interests align with them, and not his main universe's counterparts was fun. The War Master's brief appearances, scheming in preparation for the finale of Anti-Genesis were also fun.

Enterprise's Shockwave Part 2 was still really good though, and I'm looking forward to whatever else Season 2 brings

#whovian watching star trek #star trek #star trek enterprise #star trek ent #star trek: enterprise #enterprise #ent

[being-of-rain]

Some thoughts from my Classic Who watch, season 10.

The Three Doctors has some incredibly iconic moments, almost entirely scenes inside the TARDIS, and its kind of strange to finally watch the rest of it as well because so much of it is very much not iconic. And it’s not hard to see why. In fact I’d probably say that this is one of the Classic Who stories I’ve seen that feels the most like it could’ve been edited down to like an hour-long special. Or a 45 minute one. There’s just not much plot here! But it’s still a pretty fun watch. Obviously Patrick Troughton was a joy to have back. The joke with the silicon rod in episode one is hilarious. The mystery of the weather balloon and the missing warden feels like an X-Files episode, especially when his face turns up in the capture of cosmic rays. But not to worry, it quickly becomes very Doctor Who again. Diving into the Time Lords’ history for the first time is a great way to mark the show’s 10th anniversary and give the Doctor back his freedom. It’s interesting that when Omega announces his name and the Doctor responds “that’s impossible!” the moment is supposed to be a mysterious one, but for me who’s watched/read/listened to about a million Dr Who stories that laud Omega as a founder of Time Lord society, it’s much easier to put myself in the Doctor’s shoes. Finally, there’s a moment I liked near the start of the story where Jo understands some technobabble from a scientist, and it’s a small moment but it does feel like how much Jo has grown and learnt is a theme continued throughout the season, and it’s just a sweet thing to see.

Going to be honest! I zoned out while watching Carnival of Monsters. It’s the second story in a row that made me think “this really could’ve been a 45 minute episode.” It’s a shame that it feels so stretched out when it includes so many intriguing and fantastic elements: the time loop, the miniscope, the hand reaching down to grab the TARDIS, the juxtaposition of a 1920s cargo ship with an alien spaceport. And, most of all, Vorg and Shirna’s outfits. That’s it, not really much to say about this one.

Frontier In Space has pros and cons. It has space politics, which is interesting, and Ogrons, which are not. Unravelling a conspiracy is also interesting, but hitting a brick wall with everyone the Doctor and Jo try to talk to about it for a few episodes is not. But in the end the story has Roger Delgado, and as always that’s a definite pro. Jo never really got into travelling to other worlds in the TARDIS did she? Even so, she again acts like a very experienced spacetime traveller in this serial. She makes a lot of comparisons to other times she’s travelled to the future, but I love that kind of continuity references, where it’s to show that the characters remember and have learnt from their previous adventures. She helps to bamboozle the Master like a professional, and later manages to resist both his hypnotism and his fear machine, which really is quite a feat. And on top of all that, the Doctor tells her, of meeting her on Earth, “that alone made the exile worth while,” which is the cutest shit ever. I know the story leads into the next one, but it still ends very suddenly. We spent 6 episodes dealing with the politics of Earth and Draconia, and then we don’t get to see them even receive the news of the Doctor’s discoveries. And the Master just straight-up disappears in the final scene after shooting the Doctor.

I watched Planet of the Daleks with a good friend because it was her favourite story, and it was good fun! Felt like a return to form for Dalek stories after Day of the Daleks, and a sequel to the original Daleks as well as Frontier in Space. Lots of alien dangers on the hostile world of Spiridon! It’s a pretty tense start to the beginning of the story, because I guess the Time Lords couldn’t have done anything helpful, could they, instead of just dropping the wounded Doctor and Jo in the middle of a deadly jungle infested with Daleks. I liked the plot mechanic of the TARDIS log being used for Jo to monologue, but then it isn’t used much. I guess someone else thought that, which is why the wonderfully creepy audio Ghost in the Machine exists. The squad of Thals were nice. The Doctor’s talk with Codal about courage when they’re both locked up is just so lovely. My friend and I laughed when they broke out and started yelling whenever they saw a Dalek, even when the Dalek hadn’t seen them yet. These two need to learn to use their inside voices. And poor Jo getting asked by Latep to come with him back to Skaro, that was awkward. If she’d said yes then that would definitely have been the most random companion romance of the show, they really didn’t interact much. The Dalek Supreme surviving at the end surprised me, but I guess the Daleks really couldn’t be defeated forever by this point.

I really liked The Green Death! Especially the first episode. I loved how it showed how the Doctor, Jo, and also the Brigadier were drifting apart in separate directions- the first to outer space where he so wants to travel, the second to find other, better ways to save the world, and the third to follow his orders and do what good he can from his place inside the system. It really gives you the impression that the three splitting up is inevitable, but does so with a lot of humour (why do I never see anyone talk about how funny the Doctor’s subplot in this episode is? Every so often cutting away from the plot to him being attacked and chased around in a nightmare landscape is hilarious). Clifford Jones isn’t the most likeable character, and his condescension to Jo would’ve got him cancelled sooo quickly today, but I couldn’t help but like how his annoyance with Jo’s clumsiness in their first meetings acted as such an obvious parallel with the Doctor’s first meeting with Jo three seasons ago. And despite Clifford’s unlikable qualities, I really loved Jo’s exit from the series. It’s made clear that she loves his determination to save the world, and leaves the Doctor behind the help him do so. It feels like a reason that’s very applicable to the modern day, and it’s perhaps not surprising that the only other companion I can think of who left for it is Ryan Sinclair, the latest to leave the TARDIS. I haven’t talked about much apart from Jo, really. BOSS is a fun villain with a good voice, the Doctor’s rotation of outfits and Hitman-style disguises were great. But ultimately Jo is the star of the story for me, and I think the star of the season as well.

#my thoughts #Three #Jo #Brig #Benton #Yates #Master #Daleks #Omega #finally I'm up to date with my reviews! #Because I've taken a several-week break from watching jdskfj. I should really get back to it to avoid getting too far behind schedule.

[besidesitstoowarm]

"The Parting of the Ways" thoughts

[BASS BOOSTED] AND SO WAS I!!!

and thus we say goodbye to our friend and lover, christopher eccleston, never to return. i'll write a longer separate season retrospective but suffice to say i'll miss him dearly and wish we had more time with him. i'd trade all of seasons 2 and 9 for a few more stories with eccleston

so this is like, iconic doctor who material. not as flashy as i remembered, mostly tense, lying in wait for salvation that might never be coming (and never will). i totally forgot about the god-emperor and for some reason remembered this being davros (i forgot a lot about this story. i might be stupid.) watching this finale reminded me of watching s10 when it aired and thinking "fucking capaldi, strutting his stuff and flexing just when he's on his way out" like fucking eccleston. flexing hardcore JUST in his last ever story. he was amazing all season but "doesn't it just burn when you face me" god he's manic

the god-emperor gathering "the prisoners, the refugees, the dispossessed" for centuries to "pulp and sift" their bodies is like, profoundly disturbing and fascinating as a concept. one cell in a billion worth anything. i would love to know what that looked like. did they convert people, or steal them? murder them and use their meat, or torture them? it's serial killer logic, take the people who won't be missed. i would read a novel about that, idk if any have been written. they blow past that line pretty quick (and we get more dalek-human hybrid stuff later in the show) but wow what a concept. my favorite thing in any story is the "underdeveloped concept" i will pick at it like a loose sweater thread until everyone around me is exhausted by me. dalek jack the rippers out here

when they head back into the tardis all swagged up and nine just leans his head against the door as soon as it closes while "exterminate" echoes outside, you can feel him flashing back to the war. such a good little soldier

kissy kissy. i somehow forgot jack kisses both of them, we love a bisexual king

do we want to take bets on when this message to rose was recorded? i personally think after "world war 3" when the doctor was really FORCED to come to terms with knowing he might be the reason rose dies, and how jackie would never forgive him. i think "emergency program one" and the idea of saving the tardis from the wrong hands is a fairly recent thing, watsonian-wise. it sounds like a post-time war thing, bc there are no more laws, no safety net

"that's the decision i have to make for every living thing" god you can tell it just WEIGHS on him. this is such an atlas story, rose is the herakles trying to carry the weight for him except here he comes back and takes the world back himself without being tricked. god

"have you tried that new pizza place on minto st" "what are they selling" "pizza" mickey and jackie are so funny i want to throw up and die. this scene made my boyfriend say out loud "rose is a bad person when it comes to mickey huh" like yeah. yeah. i like rose a lot but wow poor mickey. "there's nothing left for me here" "nothing?" "no." cold as ice

i forgot that rose tells jackie about meeting pete. great reactions from both of them, great moment. jackie showing up in the big ass truck reminds me of barbara in "the daleks" idk if that was intentional but i choose to believe, jackie gets a lot of barbara energy to me

rose kind of does to the tardis what she did to the dalek, she's just... infectious. she insists on being in the world and being a part of it, to the point of corruption. it's very doctor-lite, it's a more understated version of the arc they try to give clara later. i like it a lot, she becomes part of the story in a very literal way, more so that (i think) any companion had been up until that point. new who companions are under different rules and expectations. that's why we'll probably never get a future/alien/historical companion again except as part-timers. kind of a bummer in that sense

"i want to see you become like me" babygirl he already is. you're both each other, hanging on past the point of extinction, damaged and destroyed and monstrous. the difference is that he has friends and you have subjects. you became a god and he became a coward

"coward, any day" is a great line but also like. he MEANS that shit. this isn't just the doctor risking his own life– sacrificing himself– it's him sacrificing EVERYTHING. EVERYONE. he can't pull the lever, he can't beat the trolley problem. the daleks WILL kill everything in existence, but HE CAN'T PULL THE TRIGGER. he's a soldier, he will die in battle. he should have died already so he's ready to die now, he sacrificed EVERYTHING if it meant destroying the daleks, and he failed, and he's ready to go. he's not dying to stop them, he's dying so that he doesn't have to see what they're going to do. it's profoundly sad, profoundly selfish, and i'm not saying i blame him but i don't think we ever really see him make this kind of choice again. there's always another way out, they stop the bomb from exploding at the last second time and time again, but i don't think we ever see him just... give up like this again. it's such a uniquely NINE thing to do, it fascinates me. incredible moment, i want to inject it into my veins

and then of course we get the famous bad wolf. welcome back to the world jack. kiss kiss i've been WAITING for them to do this ALL SEASON– brief primer on regeneration and we get his last words. "so was i." finally after 13 episodes of prickly secrecy, self-loathing to the point of rage, he can admit "i did something right, i did my best, i did good" and he's earned it. you were absolutely fantastic, nine

#Doctor Who #DW s1 #The Parting of the Ways #besides its too rewatch

[robocracker]

watching classic who: the daleks

i've seen some of this serial before. not sure how much, and i don't even remember seeing the daleks themselves. but then, i was nine years old and didn't realize doctor who was about to become one of my favourite shows in the whole world, so who can blame me for forgetting a few bits and pieces?

"don't you ever think he deserves to have something happen to him?" holy shit barbara... and now i yearn for a nuwho companion who also feels this way about the doctor...

no but i really can't get enough of the fact that ian and barbara are literal hostages, begging to go home every other scene. the sheer sadness on their faces when they find out they're on an alien planet?? this is hysterical

something very important to me about barbara telling susan "i believe you"

give me more bacon and eggs in the tardis!! now!!

60s daleks i love you!!!!

considering what nearly happened to clara when she hid inside a dalek shell, i'm glad ian is having more fun with it

"they won't be suspicious at all" doctor i adore your confidence

what in the fucked up dalek hand-

i get that there's greater threat now in daleks being able to fly, but i don't care. give me shots of the tardis team running for their lives, interspersed with cuts to a dalek slowly ascending in an elevator. i need it.

ian looking directly at the camera then rolling his eyes over the thals not wanting to fight the daleks...

god help me i'm in tears these fucking dalek screams

i do love this little set up they've got for the view of the dalek city though, it's a gorgeous piece of work

oh no, not antodus! ...anyway...

barbara better be getting an alien boytoy of the week from now on because i'm so here for it

hurray! more dramatic falling over in the tardis!

yeah, this was definitely a stronger serial, and i'm excited to see how the edited, colourised version compares when it airs next week!!

though, i was expecting a little more moral conflict over killing all the daleks. there's something weird but also surprisingly refreshing in the doctor simply saying "even if i wanted to help, i don't know how".

i'm curious to see at which point we switch from the doctor simply being part of the team, only really leader insomuch as he runs the tardis controls... to taking on a more significantly heroic role, since that's what i'm more familiar with, and i'm interested to see how the show develops to reach that point.

#doctor who #tbh i do also like the doctor feeling more like some guy. albeit a very peculiar one. #rather than this incredible godly legend whose name can't be spoken and whose death shapes reality #that's... really not as much fun #though i'm not gonna lie i feel like the ending here kinda fizzled out #it felt like we were building to something exciting! but then... yeah #still enjoying the tardis team and it was interesting to see skaro for the first time #(first time not counting when i was like. nine.) #woozy dalek screams here really are peak television though that was an incredible twenty seconds of drama

[bambiesque]

New thread for Eccleston!Doctor.

Warning: Rose is not one of my favourite characters so be aware I do get critcial.

Episode: Rose - Not a bad start to the new era. Some parts are way too serious and others are beyond ridiculous - so no change there then. Eccleston!Doctor is a good mix of fun and bastard.

Episode: The End of the World - I enjoyed the beginning and the end. There are times I think Rose is lovely and times I think she's insufferable. I think it works better if you treat the first two episodes as one long story.

Episode: The Unquiet Dead - A great, spooky ghost story with all round excellent performances from the whole cast. I like Rose in this one and not entirely because of the pretty dress.

Episode: Aliens of London / World War Three - I do love Jackie. She would have made a fantastic companion. Eccleston!Doctor is a complete bastard in this one. Penelope Wilton is way too good for this. Mickey and Jackie are the best things about this episode.

Episode: Dalek - I enjoyed the Dalek having to come to terms with emotion and choosing to stay true to its Dalekness. I don't really like the whole "last time lord" thing. The whole time war leaves me cold.

Episode: The Long Game - Anna Maxwelll Martin <3 I love her. The rest is a bit boring. Adam is as pointless as Kamelion.

Episode: Father's Day - I liked this one, mostly Shaun Dingwell and Camille Coduri. I don't for a second believe the Doctor would take anyone to watch their dad dying no matter how much they begged.

Episode: The Empty Child - The best episode of the season. A great balance of creepy and funny, excellent introduction for Jack. Nancy is incredible. No notes.

Episode: The Doctor Dances - I think what I like most about this is that there isn't a bad guy. It's a lovely story with a wonderful ending.

Episode: Boom Town - I can do without this love triangle (quuntangle?) stuff. I can also do without the Slitheen in general.

Episode: Bad Wolf - There is a quote in The West Wing that goes "When you use pop-culture references, your speech has a shelf life of twelve minutes." It's hard not to think of that when watching this. Outside of the games it's a lot better. Yay the Daleks are back!

Episode: The Parting of the Ways - "The Oncoming Storm" - please wait while I collect my eyeballs, they rolled right out of my head. I really did like Lynda; I wish we could have kept her. And so this is another story where the Doctor ends up doing not much in the end, except regenerating. Hello, Tennant!Doctor.

Eccleston!Doctor Era Round-up

I have a lot of issues with the Time War and wiping out the Time Lords - there's a lot more scope for stuff to do with them around after all. Eccleston!Doctor is a weird mix of deadly serious and very silly, swinging around wildly much like the CBaker!Doctor and McCoy!Doctor eras did, honestly. It's not one of the best or the worst.

Favourite Companion: Jack

Least favourite Companion: Adam

Favourite Serial: The Empty Child

Least Favourite Serial: The Long Game

Current Doctor standings

Davison

Pertwee

TBaker

CBaker

McCoy

Troughton

McGann

Eccleston

Hartnell

Current Top 10 Companions (no change Jack goes in at 25 and Rose at 27 out of 31)

Jo Grant

Tegan Jovanka

Barbara Wright

Vislor Turlough

Sarah Jane Smith

Nyssa of Traken

Brigadier Lethbridge Stewart

Leela

Romana II

Zoe

Unpopular fandom opinion time:

I don't like Rose Tyler.

I remember being pretty pleased with her when I watched the first new episode back in 2005 but that quickly disappeared. It's not Billie Piper's fault - she's a good actress and I loved her in the 50th. I've spent a long time wondering why I dislike her as much as I do, when I don't dislike any of the other New Who companions.

And, I think it comes down to the amount of importance the show itself places on her. In 60 years of Doctor Who, no companion was more or less important than any of the others, from the programme's own perspective. They come and they go - maybe the public loves them or hates them - but to the show and the Doctor, they are all the most important person. The Doctor doesn't love Jo more than Sarah Jane or Romana more than Adric. They all have different relationships - some are closer than others, but none are invaluable.

Which comes from the nature of the show itself. Doctor Who is based on a premise of change. Companions come and go. The Doctor and the Master regenerate. It can go on forever because that was written into it's lore from the first time someone wanted to leave.

For me personally, this makes it difficult to take romantic relationships between a being hundreds or thousands of years old and humanoids that live a hundred at most, seriously. Because as soon as you start saying "the Doctor is in love with this person" where do you go? They can't stay together forever, the companion will eventually have to leave and the Doctor will eventually have to regenerate.

That's not to say that I don't ship the Doctor with anyone - I do, with several different characters, I've commented on them in my posts - but it's something that for me works better in fanfiction than on screen.

Because I don't want love triangles where the Doctor gazes moonily at his companion when she goes to have dinner with her boyfriend. I don't want the Doctor treating his next companion like shit because he's still heartbroken over the last one.

So, try as I might, I can't like Rose Tyler, because to me she's not the most important character in the history of Doctor Who and the show's insistence that she is just makes my dislike everything about it.

#doctor who #new who #eccleston!doctor #ninth doctor

[reachingforthevoid]

Dr Who: The Dalek Invasion of Earth

This serial, which I rewatched on 9 and 10 December 2022, is a story of which I am very familiar. I watched the Peter Cushing version of it several times as a kid, and read the 1977 novelisation by Terrence Dicks numerous times. I first watched the original version of it in my 20s and I recall liking some parts of it, but being less generous with others.

That’s a neat summary of my views on this rewatch. A lot of it is great, and overall it holds up well. As many others have noted, some of the direction is terrible. Most obviously, that occurs in the mines when Ian “hides” in a place that looks like the people and Daleks passing by must be able to see him… and, yet… The other production point that jars is the stark differences between the pokey sets with the requirement for close acting and lots of styrofoam, and the expansive exterior filming where everything breathes.

But, um, the less said about the Slyther the better. It’s one of those things that probably seemed great on the page, but less so in the execution on screen. Full marks for everyone acting as though it was terrifying, though.

This story does two monumental things for the first time in the show’s nearly sixty year history: brings back a monster, and farewells a travelling companion.

The Daleks are pretty good in this. The Dalek rising out of the Thames remains an effective cliff-hanger. I can only imagine the excitement of seeing that for the first time, and thinking are they back? Really? In London? And it’s fantastic to see the Daleks rolling about several tourist locations, and in their space ships and bases built on Earth. The Daleks are in perpetual motion, which accentuates their otherworldliness and thus their appeal. The robomen are an interesting idea, and I’m far from the first to note that they’re almost a prototype of cybermen.

Susan’s farewell is way better than I remembered it. Her relationship with David actually builds throughout the serial, rather than suddenly appears out of nowhere. Her dissatisfaction about her nomadic life is mentioned before this serial begins, so again it makes sense. I was struck by how perceptive Barbara was, and how clueless Ian was. The Doctor notices more than he lets on, too, and I do wonder if the character’s continual returning to Earth is partly because of losing Susan there… despite his noble sentiments.

As for the tale itself, the fact that it was written and made barely twenty years on from World War Two, and during the Cold War, shines through. The resistance, the camp, the mixed reactions to the invasion, the mass deaths from the plague… all of it rings true. The people we meet are mostly worn down by the ten years of horrors they’ve endured… and yet, there are enough of them who struggle on. While it’s hardly a paragon of diversity, the serial includes women in more than mere support or caring roles in the resistance (and Barbara mucks in fantastically), and (I think) Dr Who’s first disabled character appears.

The music is pretty much perfect, and the rebel attack on the Daleks saucer station in London works because of it.

This serial truly is cinematic in intent and — occasionally — in execution. No wonder it’s a favourite.

#doctor who #daleks #planet earth #susan foreman

[brilliantfantasticgeronimo]

sorry mutuals this has to be the longest reaction post i have ever done in like 7 years of tumblr sldkjfklsd this episode was just A Lot

-weekly butthurt recall that chibnall beat me in using the faiths in a 13 doctor story and now when i do it in next year in my xena crossover is not gonna seen as clever. damn u chibnall. -”bel’s story” omg what is this.... high concept realness??? im in. -my meta-analysis of "flux is a metaphor for climate change/enviromeltal catastrophe" gets stronger every episode. -SEXU BRONZE DALEKS. love those fuckers. bless them for finally iguring out floating. rip any stairs or swamps that get in their path. -even more irl enviromental collapse parlallels: the fear over right neo nazi factions rising in europe rn. -"my love" is she gay? -these blue time-bees reminds me of the thingies from father's day. miss those cute guys. they never showed up again ): -there's so much color everywhere this season... who knew the end of the world would be so pretty... -the little echo effect of swarm fingers snapping in the recap... ooh yes -the day going to black effect ohhh yesss -im watching the audiodescribed version for the first time and i's really interesting to be honest! im picking up a lot of new vocabulary for the weird things that they describe on screen lol -ooooooohhhhhhh pov of the doctor man!!! im loving this. i have read a lot of fics of people trying to do this, specially this era, and it feels very satisfying how the show is confirming that “high speed” thinking. -”leap and the net will appear, that’s what john buroughs told me” we love 1 little bitch namedropping even in monologue / just to show off to the audience she doesn’t know is there.

-(yes in this case “little bitch” is gender-neutral)

-this effect of the other 3 “falling” into the time storm looked a bit silly tbh dskljfkl and i love jodie but her green-screen acting in this bit.... dsklfjklds well... let’s just say she’s had better moments. -the eu feelings intensify -WHAT IS HAPPENING -I LOVE THIS -INFERNO REALNESS??? -jodie is so beautiful -seriously what is happening -diana get away from him he has a dog husband to come back to >:( -he's so smooth tho i love him. -"you are not ugliest fella in this city" oh no they are cute ): -i hate liking dan this much. how dare this show make me root for someone male straight and white AGAIN. -ohh and his parallels to the doctor’s personality intensify... - -THASMIN REGULAR PEOPLE AU. -ok not quite but i got really excited for a sec sdljkf -all this casual banter is killing me what are ya'll  saying stop speaking so fast. there’s foreigners in the audience. -dan/diane x thasmin parallels -lol this constant "diverse casting for cops" is sure a thing huh. i see through u chibs/bbcs. #acab -the sfx artists are on fire this episode (i hope they got paid well and didn’t have crunch time....) -Right. if all time is bleeding through and things are like, all over the place..., it actually makes a lot of sense lore-wise that weeping angels are over-powered and feasting on everything. it’s not seeming like a pointless bringing of an old monster for fanservice, but actually serves the story a lot if u think about it.good stuff! -i want all these aus omg -mandip in napoleonic era sicfi outfits is doing things to me -wow "grant serpent" doesn't sounds ominous and evil at all vinder. def an organization u can trust. -jodie in black is doing thins to me -NITRO NINE TIME -Ace should have patented that formula smh -13 referring to vinder as "that other lad" cos she doesn't know him yet lollll -once you get the "trick" of how this episode / serial work’s structure works is a little less impressive, but i’m still having fun w/ it and the actual content of the flashbacks. -time storms ldskfjlk THIRTEEN QUICK THROW THIS ALARM CLOCK!!! THE PAST IS COMING OUT OF HER EAR...... -(do ppl still remember that meme? i should find it again man, it was so good slkdjf) -the art desiggggnnnHhhhnggggg -also: something about pyramids and platonic solids and greek mythology./alchemy.. maybe they should have put a dodecahetron instead? pyramds represent fire after all, not the ether/time... (not that they dont look cool but, they could have continued the greek theme!) -RUTH RUTH RUTHTHTRFJKHKJDSLHFLSKJDHFLSDJKHFLSKDJHFLKSJDHFLKJSDHFLKSJDHFLKJSDHF -¨this is my past" HOLY SHIT I JUST GOT THE TIME LOOP IM- THAT'S WHY WE DIDNT HAVE 13'S IN A FLASHBACK IT'S BECAUSE THIS IS HER FLASHBACK AHHH -chibnall have my babies -the absolute disgust when ruth looks at thirteen as realizes she is her reflection.... peak In-Character doctor mood. ("i’m not the woman i used to be, thank god") -(look all i want is 20009809 low-stake stories about thirteen/ruth having a fun two/three // seven/five mutual-repulsion dynamic... is that really asking too much, EU/fic writers. i never asked you for anything) -"pretty smart for a dog" -no but memes aside this is really impressive... like, it's very sophisticated plotting, and the weaving of lore is great... but it's still all about character building for our 4 (5 ) heroes. it’s nice that chibnall keeps that in mind. -that said... this episode is kicking my ESL ass... my brain is spinning trying to keep up ToT -OHHH man. so much backstory. -lol ruth is so done even when she is helping her future self. i love them so much -"you fucked up, me." -dallying. -OHH THE CAPITALIST PIGS IN THEIR FUNNY HATS ARE BACK - im digging the like, subtle horror-vibe of this. the cackling was pretty creepy dslkjf. -honestly this serial is also a great tourist ad for liverpool. just look at that waterfront! woah -this ghostly effect is pretty nice -BEL THE LUPARI ARE FINE DONT WORRY (the retroactive storytelling!!!... chef’s kiss) -the subtle commentary of these alien fuckers (meritocrat cybermen, nazi daleks, supremacist warmonger sontarans, etc) having to be fought even at the end of the world is really y cool. idk what to make of it yet political-messaging-wise but i dig it lol something like... how we have to fight until the end and shit and we have to struggle as long as we are alive and... that's fine... good stuff worth thinking about. -hey there not-brax. -"challenges are temporary, life is constant" -is she a past / future companion? like melanie bush in trial of a time lord? -vinder's story makes me want to replay SW: KOTOR 1+2 so bad. The aesthetic/vibe of this mission is so on-point w/ that game... -ok i think the specific primal horror this story is tapping into is like..., being at work and not knowing what's happening that day or missing an assignment and school lol -SONYA SONYA SONYA SONYA SONYA -bless this confirming a headcanon i didn't even knew i had that, not only is yaz not into any kind of "modern music", she also doesn't like "video-games." ( i love 1 boring-ass bi-mess with no social life). -also im losing my mind at fake-gamer-gurl sonya. -13 is such a sassy asshole to yaz even when she's helping her lol im sorry guys but this is every entertaining dslkjfsdklfj -noooo!!! this was my thing ... i was going to have thirteen take the place of the fates dammit again chibnall ): im gonna have to rewrite the climax of part 3 aghhslkdjf -future memories... eyes emoji -omg omg omg yaz picking up things!! i love you yaz u are so smart even if 13 doesnt see it. -this episode reminds me of how much dw deserves a proper videogame. -ooh they took the "image of an angel is angel" thing! i like. -CLEVER YAZ -"do you want me to be single forever?" i died -"PROTECT YAZ.... and that lad." -division dark-side thirteen/ruth are doing things to me. -"do not underestimate me" put me down as horny *and* confused :D -man division!era swarm was a lot less glittery... it’s like the meta of how each master is very much designed as a foil for "their" doctor lol -also swarm gives tim-shaw such a kicking. -hmm... ‘the passenger’ gives me watcher vibes... -the eu-vibes of this adventure intensifies. -there's so much lore and funky wilderness-era dialogue happening here and it's all nonsense scientifically ... and i love it. -”TIME SHALL NEVER SURRENDER TO SPACE” -which other show gives you dialogue like this honestly? i’ll wait -cartmell is weeping for not coming up with this. -thirteen/ruth using the “forbidden form” of multiverse tech... ohhh yes -not!dan with karvanista laser’s axe :)  dogtp -"YOU AND ME TOGETHER" that’s gay doc -bell is so cute --- she is so gonna die isn’t she ): -i have no idea what ruth!thirteen did but it sure seemed epic, clever and....... ruthless (eyy) -ohh another bit of retroactive storytelling here... now we know how swarm got captured! -”WE SHALL NOT BE CONTAINED” swarm is such a hamm. i love them. nimon serial energy tbh. -i appreciate the continuity of the time storm design being the same as the time vortex this era (as per the opening credits) -also the continuity of the faiths being gold! aka the screwdriver aka the current tardis crysals aka the logo aka thirteen's signature color. we love meaningful and consistent color usage *clap cla*. -”CONVERT THIS CU*Ts” i love her. -7 billion cybermen... are these the parallel earth OG cybermen? from hartnell era? hence the same population as earth? -i love the message of this story: all these civs striving for conquering things-... but there's no point to conquering because the earth/world/universe is all gonna end anyway. good stuff. -*blasts the cyber with a laser* "Love is the only mission.idiot.“ wtf i LOVE her. -(also i rewatched one of my favorite fiive/tegan scenes after the bit with and it was relevant to this moment!) -”stop te recording” ohh shit the guy is gonna betray vinder / do something shady. -i liked the continuity of "recording" motifs connecting the previous bell scene and this storyline. -ppl were right last week man i mean "fray samport"?? these names are such classic who bs lolll -honestly props to chibnall for making me so invested in all these side-characters. vinder u deserve the world son not these corrupt space napoleonic fuckers. -vinder you are an idiot though dslkjf if someone tells you "have you spoken to your family about any of this?" you cant trust them it’s obviously a threat. -idiot slkfjkl -segun has been pretty chill this episode tbh. i noticed a couple moments that could have done with more music... -maybe it's better tho it might have been too much sensory overload skldjf -YESSS DOGGIE -OHhh ho fuck i love this. the temptation of the doctor to see everything... even more torture bc it is yet another “selfish” choice they aren’t even allowed to make... ugh poor bb ): -”WHO ARE YOU??” i love flux. what is anything. who are we? who are you, tumblr user? we don’t really know. -"lost causes are my specialty" <3 <3 <3 -so “THE RAVEGERS” azure and swarm got  introduced by something? meaning there’s a bigger fish behind all this? valeyard? -is she the master? romana? the rani?????? SUSAN??????¡¡¡¡ -"EVERYTHING HAS ITS TIME" ahh my favourite rtd themeeee!!!!! - also again..., climate change fightin' vibes -ahh frog universe vibes. -"it was made. it was placed" more: "humands" didn't cause climate collapse some very powerful people that resist systemic change did. -who knows who this old lady is but she is calling out the doc hypocrisy so obviously, we tan :) -"You dont understand anything" maybe if you told her things... jackass....??? -man im so into this arc. so good. -ohhh--- the first few chords of thirteen's theme in this scene suddenly interrupted with the "this is bad happenings" music... i see u segun. i see u. -"WE'RE GONNA STOP YOU" (crickes) dan i love you you absolute madlad. -dude the constant parallels and all the “romantic  love beating the odds” framing and thirteen just not getting it and yaz subtle side glance... dare i say.... #thasminendgame. -swarm has a little pig nose. -aghh the reflection thing coming back again!! cinematographyyy -hehe another "vinder as yaz's companion" moment. so cute. -dan has known the doctor for like 2 day but it’s like he has speed-run through an entire companion arc lol -thirteen like HOW DARE YOU ASK ME THINGS dsslkfjlksd ass!!! -i feel like yaz might die / sacrifice herself by connecting some dots before the doctor and thirteen is gonna realize it only too late and she's gonna feel like a complete idiot for the rest of her fourteenth incarnation. -(sigh of relief) ohhhh god bless. vinder isnt yaz's endgame dslfjsdkl good for him vinder/belll otp let them reunite and have a million little tamagotchis :) i do not have an ulterior agenda for this :)))) -”and YOUR URBORN CHILD AS WELLLLL” slkdjfkld this is so cheesy i love it. -oh no ): i dont like where this is going.... -omg i love this cheesy grease summer loving effect... what is doctor who if not intellect and ROMANCE over brute force and cynicism? -if im gay and you are gay then who is that angel piloting this plane

#im just #ahhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhhh #dw #flux #dw spoilers #took me like 3 hours to get through this one sdlkfjklsdjfklsdjf

[pastpatientlywaitingforimagines]

Galaxy | Spencer Reid x Reader Platonic

WC: 1326 

Warnings: none, this is pure fluff.

GALAXY MASTERLIST

A/N: In this house we love Spencer Reid and we love platonic soulmates even more. Enjoy!

Derek Morgan didn’t believe in soulmates until you joined the BAU. It was impossible to deny that your connection with the unit’s resident genius was nothing short of galactic, a product of the universe so complex Spencer himself didn’t even fully understand it.

You had been pulled straight from the Academy, hand picked by Rossi and Hotch. Your military background and instinctual street smarts made up for your still-developing profiling skills, for which you had a lot of potential. Hotch had bounced you around on your first field case to see who you would work best with, it surprised everyone when you and Reid fit together like a perfect pair of mismatched socks.

His logic and gangly awkwardness was harshly juxtaposed by your intuition and awareness, which was part of why you worked so well together. Hotch didn’t pair you up for every case, but everyone on the team benefitted when he put the two of you together.

Now, years later, Morgan could easily observe the way each of you cherished the presence of the other. You had just worked a long case, ending in a high speed car chase with you behind the wheel of the SUV and Spencer as your copilot. You apprehended the unsub without hesitation, Spencer right behind you. The unsub was handcuffed before the rest of the team had even arrived and not a single gunshot was fired.  

Clearly it had taken a lot out of both of you, who now shared a small pillow as you curled up on the jet, the tops of your heads barely touching. You had often told the team you didn’t like sleeping on planes, and most of the time you didn’t, but every time you lost consciousness while flying it was always because Spencer was by your side.

Otherwise you were reading (swapping books on particularly long flights) or playing chess. Derek personally liked the latter because you had no idea how to play chess at all. The jet always filled with your laughter when Spencer squirmed in frustration at your entirely random moves “it’s like you’re not even trying, (y/n)”. It was always a much needed brightness to their mostly dismal profession.

“Did you know?” Morgan asked Hotch quietly when the older man sat down next to him.

“That they’d work so well together when I hired (y/n)? No. I wish I could take credit for it, but I had no idea.”

At first, Morgan thought your friendship with Reid rivaled his with Garcia, but he soon realized that your relationship with the doctor was on a completely different level. There was nothing inherently romantic or sexual about your relationship at all. “Why are you talking about marriage?” Emily had asked when she sat down at her desk. You and Spencer looked at her innocently and deadpanned in unison, “tax benefits” Still, your friendship was built on mutual love and respect for the other.

You were the first one by his side when he got out of a particularly tough situation, and he was the first one by yours when you had a PTSD episode. He was the only one who knew about everything that had happened while you were in the military, even Garcia only had access to what had been printed about the years you spent overseas. You knew every detail about the time he was held captive in a shed by Tobias Hankel, as well as his relationship with his parents.

You were always the first to call dibs on Spencer when hotel rooms needed to be shared, as well as the first to reprimand him for taking his bulletproof vest off when he was in dangerous situations. He always called you first when he figured something out and you weren’t already by his side, and had you proofread every conference lecture he wrote.

You moved in sync with each other in a way the others tried so hard to figure out, both in the field and office. Refilling each other’s coffee was second nature, as was working on adjoining dry erase boards and tracking down unsubs. Your lives were intertwined, two inseparable souls.

Derek had only seen you argue once, after your yearly October Horror Movie weekend. You fought for two weeks over who would be the better villain, “I’d hide in the place with the lowest probability of being found-” “Sure, but in the time it took you to calculate the probability I’d already be fleeing the country with no less than three hostages.” Ultimately, you decided that if you were both villains in a horror film you would meet up and become an unstoppable team there too.

It was also no secret that you would always accept Spencer’s outing invitations, even if it meant going to movies in languages you didn’t understand “I don’t need to understand Korean to know that there were some big moral decisions happening on that train. Did they explain more about the zombies in the dialogue?” Likewise, one of the only lists you had memorized was that of all the 24-hour restaurants in the immediate area. It was the kind of friendship that only the two of you could have, as kids who had gone through too much turmoil and just needed some consistency for once.

“Do you believe in soulmates?” Morgan asked his mentor, his voice still hushed.

“Do you?”

“I didn’t, and yet here they are,” Hotch chuckled at his response.

Morgan watched as you shifted, blinking vigorously a few times to clear the drowsiness from your eyes. Still barely conscious, your gaze locked with Derek’s. You flipped him off subtly with a sleepy smile, adjusting where your head was on the pillow you were sharing with Reid.

“You ok?” Spencer’s eyes were still closed, his raspy voice the only indication that he was remotely close to being awake. Morgan suspected that the doctor didn’t even realize he had spoken, and instead checked in with you out of habit. Your response, a ‘mhmm’ as your eyes fluttered closed, confirmed that the exchange was something you and Spencer probably wouldn’t even remember.

Derek didn’t need to be a profiler to know you shared moments like these frequently with Reid. It was tradition for you and Spencer to watch as many episodes of Doctor Who as possible once you finished working on a case and had caught up on sleep, leaving you well rested and buzzing with energy when you next went into the office “the daleks are way scarier than the cybermen, I’d rather fight 100 cybermen than one dalek.” It would be dumb for anyone to assume the two of you went to your separate apartments after traveling.

It would be dumb for anyone to assume that you spent much time apart at all, the whole team knew you and Spencer spent more time together than anyone else. What Derek wasn’t privy to was the private moments shared between you, such as your frequent trips out of the city to lay on the hood of your car and watch the stars. “This is how people get murdered, (y/n).” “Any unsub that even thinks about harming us is an idiot. Attacking two armed agents is a federal crime.” “You brought your gun?” “You didn’t? Now you’re just asking for a serial killer to pop out of those bushes, Spence.”

You, much like many others that worked in the BAU, were living proof that people could still be good and do good even with more than a lifetime of trauma. Morgan loved you the way he loved the rest of the team. You fit in with them as well, becoming family in a way not many outsiders could. Mostly, though, Derek loved that you brought out the best in Spencer. In their many years of working together Derek had not seen Spencer as content with his life until you were in it, and that was most important.

GALAXY MASTERLIST

#spencer reid x reader #spencer reid #spencer reid fanfiction #spencer reid fluff #platonic soulmates #platonic fanfic #platonic imagine #Criminal Minds #criminal minds fanfic

[sixties-doctor-who-stan]

The Space Museum Is Amazing

I love, love, LOVE the Space Museum! Seriously, it’s one of my favourite Hartnell stories! Here’s why:

The beginning is so bloody weird! Like their clothes are all different and the glass coming back into her hand looks so good, even by modern standards

Honestly, the entire concept of the story is really interesting! They jump a time track and see their futures and have to change the future, all the while wondering if the decisions they make will alter it

The part where they see the conversations of people but it’s completely silent works really well, the Xeron actors do a really good job of being mute during the whole bit and of ignoring the others (which as someone who has been an extra in school stage productions is actually really hard)

The cliffhanger to episode one is one of the best ever, it’s so haunting. I remember shuddering a bit when I first watched it

Mervyn Pinfield was an excellent technical director… perhaps not so much a great actor director but honestly I only really noticed that when I was listening to the commentary (which for some reason, Peter Purves was also in!)

I know that some will say that the next three parts are a bit lacklustre, but I actually disagree – I think they continue the theme of the story quite well (and they’re actually pretty funny, even if most of Glyn Jones’s jokes were removed)

This serial has the Doctor hide inside a Dalek! That automatically makes it amazing!

I find it funny that Ian loses a button and Barbara’s cardigan is unravelled which actually show that the future have been altered since in the cliffhanger Ian had all his buttons and Barbara is wearing her cardigan. But it’s never mentioned! Oh well.

Also this face:

I love the Doctor just trolling Lobos is fucking great, showing him a bunch of random photos and adorable seals!

Then he does show where the others are… but it’s where they were when he last saw them so they aren’t there anymore. Not going to lie, that’s pretty clever.

Vicki is amazing in the story, she’s just like ‘I’m going to start a revolution just because I can I guess’

She reprograms a computer so that she can get the armaments they need – yes, this is an armed revolution!

Ian and Barbara feel a little bit superfluous, Barbara gets gassed (by nerve gas but she’s fine?) and Ian’s part mostly feels like padding. But do you know what? The stuff with Ian and the guard is pretty funny and William Russel is great as usual so I don’t care

A minor thing but I like that the Xerons say get every ‘man and woman’ available, even though there aren’t any female Xerons the fact they aren’t portrayed as sexist is actually a lot better than a lot of other 1960s (and 1970s , 1980s and even New Who tbh) stories

The ending is really good, the travellers end up captured but Vicki saving helping the Xerons means that they help the travellers in the end

Being honest, this would have worked as a Vicki departure story. There is a hint of romance between her and Tor and her helping to rebuild the Xeron society would have been a way better exit than the one she got

I wouldn’t say at this point or anything (this could have easily have worked as a Doctor, Vicki and Steven story since Barbara’s part could easily be merged with Ian’s) but if they’d shuffled the stories around they could have found a good place for it. Ah well.

I love the Time Space Visualiser, pity the show seems to forget about it after the Chase

Oooh ominous cliffhanger… oooh

This is bit rambly and maybe doesn't make a lot of sense but basically the Space Museum is a ton of fun and quite a cosy story for me. I have watched it about three times recently (regular, with commentary and with production subtitles) and would happily watch it again!

#first doctor #doctor who #classic who #ian chesterton #barbara wright #vicki pallister #vicki #the space museum #amazing stuff

[the--highlanders]

28, 30, 34, 42 :3

O:

(sticking this under a cut bc it got long hdfk)

28. Who should have been a companion but wasn’t?

I think last time I did these asks I talked about Kirsty? and I still stand by that, I love her. she would have been so much fun as a companion. but this time I'm going to throw in Molly from Evil of the Daleks as well!! I just find her super endearing even though she doesn't have much screentime. she's shown as adventurous and clever and bold enough to challenge the lie that Victoria's in Paris.

and I think she would have had fun dynamics with Two and Jamie as well - we don't get much of her with Two, but she clearly sees him on the same level as Maxtible and Waterfield and is a bit flustered and nervous interacting with him, so it would have been fun to have a character who was kind of. similar to Katerina in a way, with a little bit of push-and-pull between a companion who's expecting the Doctor to act in a particular social role, and a Doctor who's adamant that they're something else entirely. and Molly has a little bit of that gentle tension with Jamie too, in the scene where he's insisting she use his name, and the way she's a bit intimidated by him but also wants to look after him. I love Victoria dearly of course but it would've been interesting to see them pick up Molly instead!

30. Who did you not used to like, but really like now?

oougfjhkd idk omg!! I think I came to most eras of the show with an expectation that there's something good about everyone. Clara definitely grew on me but that's more to do with the writing and the fact that she's a more interesting character in s9 than in s7 (which isn't necessarily a bad thing!! like Moffat made some Dodgy choices obvs but I also don't think it's the worst thing in the world to have her unfold to the audience, and in many ways she grows and changes quite naturally). in terms of classic who, maybe Peri? not that I didn't like her when I started watching her episodes, but I didn't expect to like her as much as I did.

34. Best two-parter?

the first one that jumped into my mind was World Enough and Time/the Doctor Falls and. yeah I do genuinely think they're brilliant episodes and probably my favourite new who series finale. the shift away from 'the series ends/the Doctor regenerates after a universe-ending disaster' was such a breath of fresh air.

The Stolen Earth and Journey's End are also super fun to me. like they're just so silly and fan service-y that I can't help but love them. + I have really fond memories of just having gotten into Torchwood, going on holiday and having no wifi to rewatch it, so watching that two-parter just for the Torchwood content.

there's a lot of others that I like though! the Empty Child/the Doctor Dances, the Magician's Apprentice/the Witch's Familiar, Hell Bent/Heaven Sent. even ones like the Rebel Flesh/the Almost People and Under the Lake/Before the Flood have some cool ideas in them, though they're not really top of my rewatch list.

42. Favourite series?

HHH okay favourite new who series is definitely s10. I'm lesbian.

tempted to say s4 for classic who? all of Two's serials are strong ones (I mean. there's not really a Two serial I dislike except the Space Pirates), I love Ben and Polly, and the War Machines and the Tenth Planet are really good as well. the only one letting the side down for me is the Smugglers honestly, and that's mostly because I hardly remember it rather than me thinking it's bad.

s5 and s6 are close contenders though!!

#replies #brivit #ghdjfk almost tagged ur old url there #hello btw!! how's it going!!! <3

[being-of-rain]

Thoughts from my Classic Who watch, season 7 edition. Is this overall my favourite season so far? I think so! This was a bit of a long one because I found a lot to gush about liking in these stories.

I have kinda mixed feelings about the third Doctor and his era, so I was interested to see how they’d develop during my Classic Who watch. But I knew I really liked a lot of his first season, and watching all of it over two days confirmed that for me! The four stories just feel like such a coherent unit and dedicated to their aesthetic of modern earthbound sci-fi adventures with an official agency dedicated to the paranormal. Each of the four is a classic telling of a different type of tale you could do with that setting. I’ve seen lots of people compare the show to the British sci-fi serial Quartermass, but never having seen that, I couldn’t help but draw parallels instead with The X-Files.

The seven-part format of the other stories don’t bother me too much, but I’m really glad that Spearhead From Space is only four-parts. Unlike the others, I don’t think it really has anything political to say, and is all aesthetic- but that’s not a downside when your aesthetic is this good. The asteroids, the silent and efficient attempt to kidnap the Doctor from hospital, the eldritch abomination growing out of plastic in a scientific coffin. Channing- the actor who played Channing deserves all the praise, he barely ever changes expression but he’s never not creepy and very obviously the bad guy. And the autons! Living mannequin dummies is such a classic and easy horror trope, and I don’t think I’ve ever seen them done as efficiently as they are in Spearhead (sorry Nikola Orsinov). Coming alive in the background of the shot at the end of episode 2, surprising the hunter’s wife inside her home in episode 3, and gunning people down on the street in episode 4 are as scary as the Autons have ever been. As for the regulars, the Brigadier is incredibly fun, and I love it when he’s obviously enjoying himself like he is in his first scene. The new Doctor is funny and it’s interesting to see how he reacts to being stuck on Earth, trying to run off mid-story and acting rude to a lot of people (Two was incredibly polite to the Brigadier compared to how Three treats him). But the standout for me was Liz Shaw, I love her so much. Her first scene with the Brigadier is fantastic at establishing her character and how much she won’t compromise on who she is and what she believes (Science!). It’s hilarious to watch her and the Doctor immediately become best friends by bonding over annoying the Brig. Like I said in my last watchthrough post, I love a strong female character in classic who, and Liz just feels so incredibly human too (yawning and daydreaming about sleep while working all night, what a mood). She even gets to be the once to ultimately save the day by fixing the Nestene-zapping machine she made with the Doctor! Oh, and having a hospital cleaner call the press who mob the Brigadier as soon as he arrives there is hilarious and was the perfect way to immediately ground the series in modern-day Earth, fantastic.

I do love that, despite it being a mistake and no matter how unnecessary it is, every Dr Who fan I know always calls this story by its full on-screen title, Doctor Who and the Silurians. It’s just... such an aesthetic. The Dr Who In An Exciting Adventure With The Daleks of TV Who. I also love that of the four season 7 stories, only the first has a completely malevolent alien force. For a show that preaches accepting people despite their differences, Doctor Who sometimes gets complacent in showing Humans Good Aliens Bad just because of its format, and it’s been nice seeing the Third Doctor era actively reject that complacency so often. Certainly I don’t think the Silurians (the creatures or the story) would be as remembered or loved by Dr Who lore if they had been portrayed as purely out-and-out villains, and the Doctor and Liz silently driving away from the exploding caves makes for a really sombre ending. There’s some good horror in this story too, like the build-up of the disturbed man drawing figures on the wall of his room, and Liz being attacked alone in the barn. And of course, oh god, this really is a too-real story after the worldwide pandemic. Seeing government officials ignore quarantine rules simply because they didn’t feel like obey them was so accurate to real life. And my brother and I groaned and yelled at the TV when Dr Lawrence said “Why should I waste my time having useless injections against an imaginary epidemic?” Jeezy Creezy.

The government conspiracy in The Ambassadors of Death gave me such X-Files vibes, and my brother pointed thought that UNIT had so many security lapses in it that they should find another job. I really liked that once again the aliens were reasonable, and this time a peaceful solution could be met with them, and meanwhile it was the xenophobic officials and army general who were the real villains. Of course, the horror in this story also endeared itself to me. I’ve been getting more into horror recently, and I’m clearly find a lot of examples of it that I like in Doctor Who. The ambassadors approaching people slowly and impassively in their spacesuits, the cliffhanger where one is reaching out right behind the Doctor, and the moment where Liz sees one without its helmet are all fantastic. There was some funny unintentional comedy in this story too, like when there was an extended sequence of global satellite dishes working together to co-ordinate where in the world a signal was coming from, and in the end the world map shows that it was coming from England, shocker. Or the end of the serial which wraps up so abruptly, with the Doctor shaking peoples hands and saying his goodbye the moment the general gets arrested and saying he has other places to be with no further explanation. He really does hate doing the busywork of tidying up afterward.

Literally what could be more iconic than making an evil version of a character with an eyepatch. Nothing. It’s kind of a surprise that Doctor Who hasn’t done more with parallel universes, but if it had to just do one then Inferno was a good outing for the concept. The way it used the drilling and seeing a world just slightly ahead of our own but already facing total destruction was very clever. And the visual of the lava approaching at the end of episode 6 is one that’ll always stick with me. I’m glad that it was that horror which got brought up the next season as something that really stuck with the Doctor, and utterly terrified him. I’m not sure what else to say about this one that I haven’t said is great about the other stories- the aesthetic of a down-to-earth agency (or forced-down-to-earth in the Doctor’s case) facing something huge, unknown, and deadly. The largest obstacle and initiation of most problems being humans’ greed, pride, and bureaucracy. And of course the regulars, who are always fun. Benton gets his largest role since The Invasion here, even ignoring his evil duplicate, and it’s easy to see why he’s brought in for some light comic relief in future seasons. Evil Brigadier is both enjoyable and hateable like only the best characters can be. And Liz! It’s such a shame that she only had one season, because she’s just so lovable and smart, she’s probably one of my favourite companions so far. Even when the story sidelines her, she’s always putting up a fight, for what she believes in and against those who’d keep her down (unfortunate that she didn’t win that fight against the producers. I wonder what an AU of season 8 where Liz stayed would look like?)

#my thoughts #this again gets rambly #I shouldn't wait so long after watching the episodes to write these because I start to forget jsdlkfj #Three #Liz #The Brig #unit #autons

[rwatchesclassicwho]

R Reviews - The Edge of Destruction

So, the first two parter! Honestly, I didn’t find this as engaging as the first two stories, but I did still enjoy it. It was nice to see more of the TARDIS.

Part 1

It was quite an interesting story, where something has gone with the TARDIS and it’s making them all act strange and suspicious of each other. It works really well with the fact that they still don’t know each other very well – the Doctor is incredibly suspicious of Ian and Barbara at times, despite them doing their best to help.

Susan becoming convinced that something has come aboard is an interesting concept, even though it ends up not being the correct explanation. Susan trying to stab people with scissors and her acting there was very good, very creepy. Honestly Susan is amazing, and Carole Ann Ford is a great actress.

The Doctor is so angry at Ian and Barbara, and honestly it’s a bit chilling because he starts threatening them and is just generally horrible. Barbara and Ian have already risked their lives to help the Doctor and Susan, but he is so untrusting. And honestly, if they had tried to use the controls, to get back to 1963, who could blame them? He literally kidnapped them! I know they all become friends, but he does literally kidnap them.

The Doctor kidnaps a lot of his friends, to be honest.

The weird melting clock thing is an interesting effect, where all their watches have melted because of the weird time situation.

At least the Doctor sort of tries to apologise...by offering everyone a drink, as a peace offering, rather than actually apologise. And he clearly isn’t that repentent, or doesn’t think he should have to be.

Part 2

Ian attacking the Doctor...that was interesting. He stopped when he recognised the Doctor, but of course this isn’t going to help the Doctor’s suspicions.

He actually threatens to throw them off the ship. Just throw them off. Kidnap and murder, Doctor?

Seriously, it’s interesting to see them when they don’t all trust each other, when the Doctor hasn’t yet learnt compassion. In one of the special features on a DVD someone said that Ian and Barbara sort of act as the Doctor’s conscience at first and honestly I believe that, I think he’s been sort of detached from everyone but Susan until now. Think of how willing he was to murder the caveman, only stopped by Ian. And yet later, he becomes truly compassionate and caring for others.

Barbara being the one who realises the TARDIS is sentient is really interesting, because before I watched this I kind of assumed the TARDIS had always been sentient. In the new show, it’s referenced a lot, and I guess I assumed it always had been. But here, the Doctor is dismissive of Barbara’s suggestion that the ship itself is trying to warn them, trying to help them.

See, the FirstDoctor is a bit sexist – but he’s not sexist in the way people write him, he’s sort of protective sexist rather than insulting. Him deciding that only Ian should know what’s really happening, so that ‘the women’ don’t know that they are going to die.

And hey, turns out Barbara was right! The ship was warning them.

The Doctor having to apologise to Barbara and try and make it up to her was good. Ian brushes it off and accepts the apology more, but Barbara is less forgiving, which honestly? Why should she? He literally threatened to kill them both. But she does forgive him, and the Doctor is learning to care about other people who aren’t his granddaughter….

I think I like this story more in retrospect, because whilst there were parts I enjoyed, I didn’t like it as much as The Daleks, but thinking about it several months later (because I am terrible at writing reviews) I actually like it more, because it’s a really important story in the development of the Doctor as a character and the beginning of his friendship with Ian and Barbara.

My girlfriend liked it more than I did when I first watched it, but to be honest it’s a good story. It’s a good serial. I’m not sure why it didn’t pull me in as much as the first two, but I do remember that it was less engaging somehow. I loved seeing the inside of the TARDIS, and seeing the beginning of the Doctor’s character development there.

7/10 maybe? I am terrible at consistent scores, just to warn you all. But I did really like this story.

The next story after this is Marco Polo, so unfortunately I won’t be reviewing that on account of how it’s missing. If it ever gets animated or found, though, I’ll definitely watch it. I might listen to the audio at some point but I often find it hard to focus on just audio, so haven’t watched it yet. I did watch a recreation in animal crossing that someone made recently for the first episode, though, which was pretty cool!

#r reviews #classic who #the edge of destruction

[verityshush]

The Doctor Who fandom is one of those fandoms where it is incredibly common to be asked what your "first" experience with it was. First memories, first Doctor, first exposure et cetera.

However, my various Whoniverse "firsts" are so all over the place that nothing really seems to have a solid claim as the definitive answer to practically any of those questions.

The first Doctor Who media I ever consumed was Doctor Who and the Cybermen, the novelisation of The Moonbase, when I was 8. However many years before I must've seen a snippet of Doomsday, as I have a highly corrupted and inaccurate memory of the brainwaves scene imprinted in my memory.

"But okay, "and the Cybermen" got you into the franchise, but what was the first piece of Doctor Who media you actually watched?" I hear you asking.

Daleks Invasion Earth: 2150 AD

It was on telly a few weeks after my binge of the Doctor Who novelisations in my school library (where I found "And the Cybermen") and so my mother let me watch it. My first exposure to Classic Who, to Who in general perhaps, was the second Cushing film.

But okay, let's say you're stringent: the books don't count and the film isn't canon. What was your first canonical viewing experience?

The Impossible Astronaut, as far as I remember. So that's got to be the solid answer, right? Matt Smith is the first canon Doctor I actively watched with the Series 6 opener as my first canon episode.

But even then I have the vaguest of memories of having watched some Classic Who in my youth, around the time I misremembered the Doomsday clip. I can't even tell you what serial it was. When I was young we still had a VHS player in my television, so I would commonly watch VHSes that belonged to my parents or brothers. I would swear that a Classic Who episode was amongst them, but I can't for the life of me remember anything.

Okay, so if I can't remember it at all, clearly that can't count either. What was my first exposure to Classic Who?

A Fact File on the Weed Creature in a 2006 Doctor Who manual called Aliens and Enemies, which my mother got second-hand as a gift once I started getting into Doctor Who post-novelisations.

I commend the BBC, or whomever was truly behind that book, for wanting to include Classic enemies alongside the revival's creatures and treat both incarnations of the show equally even back in 2006. But seriously, the Weed Creature?! Fury from the Deep was literally unwatchable in 2006!

So what was my first proper, active exposure to Classic Who that I actually remember?

The Happiness Patrol. I saw a picture of the Kandyman in an issue of Doctor Who Adventures and wanted to see the story it was from. So my mother got me it as a gift and I watched it on a portable DVD player in the car on our way to Blackpool for a holiday.

But hey, The Happiness Patrol is still one of my favourite Doctor Who stories ever, so something went right.

#doctor who #whovian #Kandyman #fury from the deep #first experience #fandom #Doctor Who Fandom #I'm still not entirely sure how tags work