Well, I certainly wasn't thinking I'd be able to watch The Day of the Doctor today, but then I didn't know I'd be able to livestream it from BBC1. So, I watched it, and here are some preliminary thoughts. Definitely some spoilers. You have been warned!
1. David Tennant. Even though I was glad to hear that the Tenth Doctor would be making an appearance, I was also a bit leery because I wasn't sure if he would overplay his part. However, with just a few exceptions, he slid into the role very naturally and did an excellent job (although his last line about not wanting to go made me cringe; it was just way too awkward and stiff. Did. Not. Like.).
2. Rose Tyler/Bad Wolf. First of all, what's up with those horrible clothes? Well, no one ever said Rose had good fashion sense. But anyways, I hated the idea of her coming back from the moment I heard about it. My thoughts now? Well, I'm glad it wasn't actually Rose from the parallel universe. On the other hand, her acting was NOT GOOD and she annoyed the stew out of me. But I'm really happy that neither the Tenth nor Eleventh Doctors could see her, therefore they could not kiss her. Also, I still don't get how Bad Wolf shows up in Rose-form. To me it just seemed like a way to satisfy Rose fans.
3. John Hurt. Hmmm, not sure. I guess he wasn't given nearly enough time to actually become the Doctor, and he didn't seem like the Doctor to me. He was just a bit too cliche-old-wise-man for me.
4. Elizabeth the First. Horrible. I couldn't stand her. She also had an annoying, nasally voice. She had to be the worst part about this episode, and I hope to never see her in Doctor Who again.
5. The plot. There were definitely some fun timey-wimey parts to this, but overall there ... didn't seem to be a plot to speak of. The Zygons were shoehorned in, and I thought that they were surely going to be part of the actual plot, but no. Not really. There was nothing in this to actually grab me. Too many slo-mo shots of cute little kids in the middle of destruction. The dilemma of the Doctors wasn't really very engaging.
6. The Doctors together. The banter was fun, but not as witty as I was hoping. I think that a little more time should have been given to them in this regard.
So to sum up, while there were several lines that made me smile or chuckle, and some entertaining wibbly-wobbly, mostly it felt rushed and a bit flat. I think the Time War should either have been left untouched, or else a several-episode story should have been devoted to it, with a lot more thought put into it.
However, having the Fourth Doctor at the end (although inexplicable) was very nice, and I want to know how they kept the wraps on that?
Overall, I'd give the episode three stars.
11/23/13
11/20/13
Good Villains!
I promised that this would be the next topic, and so here it is: good (and I mean well done, not nice) villains.
These are in no sort of order. They're numbered just so that the post isn't one long unbroken paragraph :D
1. The Daleks. The Daleks can be really good villains. I've got to say that the first time I watched 'Army of Ghosts/Doomsday', my heart just sort of dropped in despair when I saw all. those. Daleks coming out of the Genesis Ark. I do think they can be overdone so that they're neither scary nor threatening anymore. And I think that they need to stop shooting random people immediately but jawing on for ages with anyone who's a main character. Although, they did shoot the Doctor on sight three times: first was when he had the shield around the Tardis so that when he stepped out, it didn't harm him. Second was in The Stolen Earth. Third was in The Big Bang. Anyways, they're not my favorite villains but I think that they've been written well on several occasions, probably my favorites being 'Dalek' and 'Asylum of the Daleks'. Also, their voices are hilarious.
2. The Clockword Droids in 'Girl in the Fireplace'. I know I said that the Cybermen were horrible villains, and it might seem like the Droids are about the same thing. But ... no. Just, no. The Droids are really creepy, and why? Because they're so mindless, and because of the way they disguise themselves, and also because they use human body parts to repair the ship. That's just ... scary. Really really scary. They probably would have gotten less scary if they'd been used in any other episodes, but as it is they are awfully creepy. "She is incomplete. She is incomplete."
3. The Midnight Monster. Best villain/monster/thing in the entire series. It doesn't really need explaining, does it? It repeats, then it synchronizes, then it takes over. Yipes! And you never find out what in the world it is. *shudder*
4. The Weeping Angels. I have to say, everyone was saying how scary 'Blink' was and everything, but I guess that by the time I'd actually gotten to the episode I'd heard it so much that it wasn't very scary anymore. Regardless, they are still really good villains. Very scary and threatening. I even liked 'Flesh and Stone/The Time of Angels', even if Moffat completely contradicted everything he'd said about them in 'Blink'. Such as, they are lonely assassins because if they see each other they'll be stone forever; so how in the world could all those angels be together like that and still be able to move? Another thing is how they send you back into the past if they touch you. Unless they don't, in which case they simply grab you around the neck or hold onto your coat. BUT Flesh and Stone was still enjoyable and creepy, even if the Angels were basically entirely new villains by that point. I have to say I didn't really like The Angels Take Manhattan. And what in the world is the BBC's obsession with New York? There are other states in the U.S., you know.
5. Living Mannequins. I can't say that the Nestene is all that great as a villain, but shop-window dummies coming to life? Scary!
6. Plasmavore. A sweet looking little old lady who actually drains your blood. That's a good villain if I ever saw one.
7. Carrionites. I love the Carrionites. 'Nuff said.
8. The Family of Blood. These people are really creepy. The actors who played all of them were really good at making them normal people at first, and then giving them that cold, empty look and voice when they were taken over by the Family. Excellent villains.
9. Sontarans. The Sontarans are hilarious. I love their obsession with fighting just so they can win. I love their way of looking at things from a fanatical warrior mindset.
10. The Silence. I have mixed feelings about these fellows. On the one hand, it's incredibly scary to have a villain that you can't remember once you've stopped looking at it. But I don't know what to think about them having manipulated the course of Earth's history for thousands of years. I mean, it does seem like a good idea at first, and it's very creepy. But also, doesn't it seem like the Doctor would have found out about them long, long ago? Oh, well. I loved the way that the Doctor was able to get rid of them :)
11. Solomon from 'Dinosaurs on a Spaceship'. That is one nasty fellow. He's entirely villainous and yet at heart, he's a coward. That's how all human/humanoid villains should be in my opinion. That way, you can cheer wholeheartedly when they get their just deserts.
OH, and by the way, I have to say something about The Great Intelligence while I'm at it. What a horrible villain. Pathetic. Not scary, no real motivation, and now we're supposed to believe that he stepped into the Doctor's timestream and that ultimately he's behind all the villains and opposition the Doctor has faced? Give. me. a. break. We'll talk about him (and Clara) soon. But probably the next topic will be about the Doctor himself and some points where I think he did the right thing but everyone else thinks he did the wrong thing. Until next time!
These are in no sort of order. They're numbered just so that the post isn't one long unbroken paragraph :D
1. The Daleks. The Daleks can be really good villains. I've got to say that the first time I watched 'Army of Ghosts/Doomsday', my heart just sort of dropped in despair when I saw all. those. Daleks coming out of the Genesis Ark. I do think they can be overdone so that they're neither scary nor threatening anymore. And I think that they need to stop shooting random people immediately but jawing on for ages with anyone who's a main character. Although, they did shoot the Doctor on sight three times: first was when he had the shield around the Tardis so that when he stepped out, it didn't harm him. Second was in The Stolen Earth. Third was in The Big Bang. Anyways, they're not my favorite villains but I think that they've been written well on several occasions, probably my favorites being 'Dalek' and 'Asylum of the Daleks'. Also, their voices are hilarious.
2. The Clockword Droids in 'Girl in the Fireplace'. I know I said that the Cybermen were horrible villains, and it might seem like the Droids are about the same thing. But ... no. Just, no. The Droids are really creepy, and why? Because they're so mindless, and because of the way they disguise themselves, and also because they use human body parts to repair the ship. That's just ... scary. Really really scary. They probably would have gotten less scary if they'd been used in any other episodes, but as it is they are awfully creepy. "She is incomplete. She is incomplete."
3. The Midnight Monster. Best villain/monster/thing in the entire series. It doesn't really need explaining, does it? It repeats, then it synchronizes, then it takes over. Yipes! And you never find out what in the world it is. *shudder*
4. The Weeping Angels. I have to say, everyone was saying how scary 'Blink' was and everything, but I guess that by the time I'd actually gotten to the episode I'd heard it so much that it wasn't very scary anymore. Regardless, they are still really good villains. Very scary and threatening. I even liked 'Flesh and Stone/The Time of Angels', even if Moffat completely contradicted everything he'd said about them in 'Blink'. Such as, they are lonely assassins because if they see each other they'll be stone forever; so how in the world could all those angels be together like that and still be able to move? Another thing is how they send you back into the past if they touch you. Unless they don't, in which case they simply grab you around the neck or hold onto your coat. BUT Flesh and Stone was still enjoyable and creepy, even if the Angels were basically entirely new villains by that point. I have to say I didn't really like The Angels Take Manhattan. And what in the world is the BBC's obsession with New York? There are other states in the U.S., you know.
5. Living Mannequins. I can't say that the Nestene is all that great as a villain, but shop-window dummies coming to life? Scary!
6. Plasmavore. A sweet looking little old lady who actually drains your blood. That's a good villain if I ever saw one.
7. Carrionites. I love the Carrionites. 'Nuff said.
8. The Family of Blood. These people are really creepy. The actors who played all of them were really good at making them normal people at first, and then giving them that cold, empty look and voice when they were taken over by the Family. Excellent villains.
9. Sontarans. The Sontarans are hilarious. I love their obsession with fighting just so they can win. I love their way of looking at things from a fanatical warrior mindset.
10. The Silence. I have mixed feelings about these fellows. On the one hand, it's incredibly scary to have a villain that you can't remember once you've stopped looking at it. But I don't know what to think about them having manipulated the course of Earth's history for thousands of years. I mean, it does seem like a good idea at first, and it's very creepy. But also, doesn't it seem like the Doctor would have found out about them long, long ago? Oh, well. I loved the way that the Doctor was able to get rid of them :)
11. Solomon from 'Dinosaurs on a Spaceship'. That is one nasty fellow. He's entirely villainous and yet at heart, he's a coward. That's how all human/humanoid villains should be in my opinion. That way, you can cheer wholeheartedly when they get their just deserts.
OH, and by the way, I have to say something about The Great Intelligence while I'm at it. What a horrible villain. Pathetic. Not scary, no real motivation, and now we're supposed to believe that he stepped into the Doctor's timestream and that ultimately he's behind all the villains and opposition the Doctor has faced? Give. me. a. break. We'll talk about him (and Clara) soon. But probably the next topic will be about the Doctor himself and some points where I think he did the right thing but everyone else thinks he did the wrong thing. Until next time!
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