All posts by LauraBatham
Plot - 6/10
Characters - 7/10. The Ruby thing is what brings this episode down. I wouldn't have minded if her mother was just a human who had to make a tough choice, but the series put so much emphasis on there being something supernatural/alien/sci-fi about Ruby, that it really feels like a cheat. I can't believe I'm saying this, but the "special companion" trope was done so much better with Clara. Everybody else is fine enough. And bonus points for Gabriel Woolf.
Entertainment - 6/10. I did quite like episode one's cliffhanger.
Legacy - 6/10
Fan consensus - 3/10. I never really understood why this one got so much hate. Yes, Ruby's mystery ends up being disappointing (pointing to a street sign? Really?), but the story as a whole wasn't awful.
I've watched this one multiple times and still have no idea what the Master's evil plan was.
Adric is at his most annoying here, I think. And it's not a great one for Tegan either.
Plot - 5/10. I liked this when it was just silly fun, but then it tried getting serious with Ruby "dying", and it kind of ruined it.
Characters - 6/10. I like Rogue (aka Captain Jack 2.0), but once again, the shift from flirty fun to serious feelings wasn't done very well. I think they probably needed a two-parter to pull off Rogue's sacrifice.
Entertainment - 6/10
Legacy - 3/10
Fan consensus - 6/10
Plot - 9/10. This is a really great political episode. It manages to do social commentary on racism, privilege (both white and rich), reliance on technology, and social bubbles, and it all just works! Also, a great version of the "robots have seen their human masters and decided the world is better off without them" trope.
Characters - 9/10. I love how this one plays with audience expectations. We are immediately introduced to Lindy, pointing her out as out non TARDIS team protagonist, and it quickly becomes apparent this is a Doctor/companion-lite episode, so she is our main protagonist. And we've done this before. This ain't our first rodeo. We know what to expect! Lindy is our new Sally Sparrow or Elton Pope. Sure, she's flawed, but we'll get to watch her grow throughout the episode. And she does, in some ways. We see just enough to keep the faith alive that she will end the episode with at least the beginnings of a journey to self improvement - that there is a likeable person in there, buried deep. The way she calls herself stupid for not being able to operate without the bubble; the way she genuinely tries to help her friends, and fangirls over Ricky September. And then she essentially murders Ricky to give herself more time, and the expectation that our protagonist must be a good person - because they're always good people by the end! The Doctor makes them better! - shatters. All that hope of "she'll have her big growth moment any minute now" vanishes. And then we get the reveal of just why she didn't trust the Doctor (something which I knew about going in, but I'm sad to say, I probably wouldn't have picked up on if I hadn't been spoiled). There's no fear or survival instincts to explain it this time. In fact she happily walks away from safety. She was never going to be a good person like we are used to seeing from our protagonists. Even with knowing the ending, I still felt the impact of that betrayal. So is she a good character? No. Is she a well written character? Absolutely. I did take a point off for Ricky, though, who sort of drops out of the sky with all the answers. I've seen people say he represents how Lindy would react to a white Doctor, and I can see that, but it doesn't really fit because she already knows who he is and is a fan.
Entertainment - 9/10. My favourite of the season. Also, I really like the pastel colouring, making it seem very fifties/sixties. It's a nice touch considering the theme of the episode.
Legacy - 2/10
Fan consensus - 8/10. I remember seeing mostly praise for this episode when it came out.
Yay! Some justice for Paradise Towers!
@Kevin 'Chalky' Kaiba Was the church even a villain in this? I thought the villain was Villengard.
Plot - 7/10. I think I need to watch this one again. I was really tired the first time, so I had a bit of trouble making sense of it. Still enjoyed it, though.
Characters - 7/10
Entertainment - 7/10
Legacy - 3/10
Fan consensus - 8/10
Plot - 8/10. I admire the idea of writing a whole episode just because the Fourth Doctor got off too easy when he stepped on a mine in Genesis of the Daleks, but 40 - 50 minutes is a bit long for such a plot. It really does feel drawn out. The stuff about a fake war complete with real casualties because of capitalism is fantastic, though. Who knew ambulances could be scary?
Characters - 5/10. The Doctor and Ruby don't feel like themselves, and most of the guest characters are so-so. Some good, some bad.
Entertainment - 8/10
Legacy - 2/10
Fan consensus - 8/10
@FH2104 The Gunfighters would be fun with Ben and Polly.
Writing Doctor Who novelisations would be a dream job for me. Maybe one day I'll do some Ninth and Tenth Doctor stories. Just for fun.
@WaltK Ah, yes. Sorry.
Plot - 7/10. I love the idea of "lets go to a timeline where The Beatles were shit". It's a great balance of comedy and serious, and underlines how lacking life would be without music. The song at the end was a bit weird, though. I think there is a deleted scene that explains it - a really short one, too - but for some reason, the powers that be abandoned all sanity and cut it.
Characters - 8/10. From the moment I saw that picture of Jinks in Maestro's piano outfit, I knew they were going to be a fun villain. And I was not disappointed.
Entertainment - 7/10
Legacy - 3/10. Carries on the whole Gods thing, drops a few hints that never amount to anything (at least not yet, so maybe this score will go up), and draws attention to the whole Susan Twist thing, albeit in a meta sort of way.
Fan consensus - 7/10.
Plot - 3/10. Yeah... it wasn't great. I did love the not-so-subtle shade at "pro-life" governments, though.
Characters - 5/10. Fifteen and Ruby are besties straight away and I love it! Golda Rosheuvel is great, too. The space babies, not so much. Apart from when that one baby called the bogeyman "doggo". My millennial brain got a kick out of that.
Entertainment - 3/10
Legacy - 2/10
Fan consensus - 3/10. I think I may be being a bit generous here, but I'm sure I have seen people who at the very least, don't hate the episode.
The Return of Doctor Mysterio has at least one scene set in Tokyo, though I don't think they go outside the building they're in.
Plot - 6/10
Characters - 8/10. Companions and their families/home life were one of RTDs biggest strong points in his first run, so I was really glad to see it carried on with Ruby. She may not be my favourite companion, but I instantly liked her and her family (especially Cherry). Fifteen also continues to be great. I've never been overly keen on Mrs Flood, though, even less so now we know who she is (she is very very un-Rani-like), and the Fourth Wall breaking was not done very well imo (to be fair, they are hard to pull off). Goblins are fine, I suppose, and I'm unsure on how I feel about Davina's inclusion.
Entertainment - 7/10. Enjoyable enough episode that successfully mixed a soft reboot with Christmas whimsy. And I really like the Carol of the Bells music. Murray Gold has gone a bit overboard these past two seasons, but this was an instance where it really worked.
Legacy - 7/10
Fan consensus - 6/10
Plot - 8/10
Characters - 8/10. Ncuti stole the show when he turned up. Instantly like him as the Doctor. And it was nice seeing Mel again, even if she was never my favourite companion. I can never decide if I like the Neil Patrick Harris casting or not. Sometimes I think he wasn't right for the role, but then I watch the Spice Up Your Life scene and think, no he was the perfect choice.
Entertainment - 8/10
Legacy - 9/10
Fan consensus - 8/10
Plot - 8/10. The first scene is pointless and really ruins the momentum of the last episode, so it took me a little bit to get into this episode. But once I did, it was pretty solid.
Characters - 9/10. I think I almost cried during Wilf's scene, so that probably is swaying my rating, but with only a couple of characters who are already well known and developed, it's hard to go wrong. And I do like that they carried on from Flux rather than just ignoring it. I took a point of for the opening scene, though.
Entertainment - 7/10. I dunno. Even putting aside my hatred of the word "mavity", there's something about this one that has me not liking it as much I should. Still a solid episode, though.
Legacy - 7/10. Wilf's return, Susan Twists' first appearance, and *sigh* the origination of the "mavity" thing. I believe it also is the explanation for the more fantasy blend of the next two series? Something about casting superstition into the end of the universe?
Fan consensus - 8/10. Most people seem to like it. And I think this was one where avoidance of looking up spoilers and promotion would come in handy. No expectations to be lived up to or let down by.
Oh well. An action figure is better than nothing, I suppose. And I'm not sure I would have been able to justify spending 100AUD on a plush. Tempting for sure, but probably not the wisest spending choice.