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locker_monsterI wish this had been one of the pure historicals they used to have back in the day. It's a powerful enough story without aliens.
The thing that Doctor Who does that I love is how they make history personal by seeing it through the eyes of ordinary people. The Doctor doesn't go back to deal with the politicians of the time. She meets two families who live on neighbouring farms nowhere near a major city and whose lives are torn apart. The true monsters of the story aren't the scary looking aliens, but people. The Doctor has spoken a lot about hope this season and it's certainly a message that we need right now.
I was actually reminded of "Father's Day". The Companion goes back in time to meet a family member and ends up in an event that can't be changed. "Father's Day" actually did a lot to bring me around to liking Rose as a character since she was such a huge part of the plot. This episode doesn't quite do the same for Yaz, but I think it's because you have two other Companions hanging around. If Yaz had been the sole Companion for this story, this would have been an amazing story for her. As such, she's not present for every reveal and she doesn't get to spend time with every character. Like, I would have liked if she had talked more to Prem. I get that Yaz goes back to meet her grandmother, but wouldn't she want to figure out who this guy is? I don't get why it's Ryan who goes off with the Doctor and Prem into the forest. I also would have liked it more with Yaz was a bit more resistant with the Doctor about letting Prem die, but she doesn't put up a huge fight. But for what the story initially sets out to do - have Yaz meet her grandmother when she's younger - the episode does achieve that, so that's something. It's a story about remembering on Remembrance Day, which is very fitting.
Speaking of the aliens, whose name I can't remember and probably couldn't spell anyway, it's nice that they do a bait and switch with them. Not all aliens on Doctor Who are bad. Their design vaguely reminded me of the Tetraps, with the multiple eyes and the fangs, but there are some major differences, too. Actually, there is some commonality with the Shansheeth, who also look over the dead, but the Shansheeth do function more as undertakers. And also look like vultures, which isn't exactly demon like, so I can understand the need for a new monster. I do wonder if the Stenza were the ones who destroyed the aliens' planet. If the Stenza are the major threat of the season, Chibnall needs to start laying more hints and tying stuff together.
Random: First episode not written by Chibnall. Yay! But we only have four more to go, so there's probably a good chance he's the writer on half of the remaining stories. The sonic is conveniently disabled again. It was swallowed for a bit by the Pting last episode and here the sonic can't analyze the purple dust because it gets overwhelmed. What an underwhelming excuse. There isn't even much point in sonic not reading the dust. The Doctor builds that weird distillery thing, but there's no build-up. It would have been hilarious to see Graham trying to get the spit from the ox. And then the reveal of what the dust is is kind of anti-climatic, too. The Doctor officiates the wedding. I'm surprised they haven't done more of those in the past. None of the Companions comment on Prem's line when he says they all speak passable Punjab for foreigners. I'm surprised that Graham didn't say anything at that point. Where did they film this episode? Wherever it was, it looked amazing in the show's new filming format. I liked that there were poppies everywhere in the fields. Also a nice tie in to Remembrance Day. The Doctor is always talking about food, but she never gets to eat any. She needs to use that biscuit dispenser more often.
Oh, and you know how I couldn't figure out what the team was looking for at the beginning of last week's episode? Well, they never say what they're looking for so no wonder I was confused.
Looks like we get some creepy robots for next week.
The thing that Doctor Who does that I love is how they make history personal by seeing it through the eyes of ordinary people. The Doctor doesn't go back to deal with the politicians of the time. She meets two families who live on neighbouring farms nowhere near a major city and whose lives are torn apart. The true monsters of the story aren't the scary looking aliens, but people. The Doctor has spoken a lot about hope this season and it's certainly a message that we need right now.
I was actually reminded of "Father's Day". The Companion goes back in time to meet a family member and ends up in an event that can't be changed. "Father's Day" actually did a lot to bring me around to liking Rose as a character since she was such a huge part of the plot. This episode doesn't quite do the same for Yaz, but I think it's because you have two other Companions hanging around. If Yaz had been the sole Companion for this story, this would have been an amazing story for her. As such, she's not present for every reveal and she doesn't get to spend time with every character. Like, I would have liked if she had talked more to Prem. I get that Yaz goes back to meet her grandmother, but wouldn't she want to figure out who this guy is? I don't get why it's Ryan who goes off with the Doctor and Prem into the forest. I also would have liked it more with Yaz was a bit more resistant with the Doctor about letting Prem die, but she doesn't put up a huge fight. But for what the story initially sets out to do - have Yaz meet her grandmother when she's younger - the episode does achieve that, so that's something. It's a story about remembering on Remembrance Day, which is very fitting.
Speaking of the aliens, whose name I can't remember and probably couldn't spell anyway, it's nice that they do a bait and switch with them. Not all aliens on Doctor Who are bad. Their design vaguely reminded me of the Tetraps, with the multiple eyes and the fangs, but there are some major differences, too. Actually, there is some commonality with the Shansheeth, who also look over the dead, but the Shansheeth do function more as undertakers. And also look like vultures, which isn't exactly demon like, so I can understand the need for a new monster. I do wonder if the Stenza were the ones who destroyed the aliens' planet. If the Stenza are the major threat of the season, Chibnall needs to start laying more hints and tying stuff together.
Random: First episode not written by Chibnall. Yay! But we only have four more to go, so there's probably a good chance he's the writer on half of the remaining stories. The sonic is conveniently disabled again. It was swallowed for a bit by the Pting last episode and here the sonic can't analyze the purple dust because it gets overwhelmed. What an underwhelming excuse. There isn't even much point in sonic not reading the dust. The Doctor builds that weird distillery thing, but there's no build-up. It would have been hilarious to see Graham trying to get the spit from the ox. And then the reveal of what the dust is is kind of anti-climatic, too. The Doctor officiates the wedding. I'm surprised they haven't done more of those in the past. None of the Companions comment on Prem's line when he says they all speak passable Punjab for foreigners. I'm surprised that Graham didn't say anything at that point. Where did they film this episode? Wherever it was, it looked amazing in the show's new filming format. I liked that there were poppies everywhere in the fields. Also a nice tie in to Remembrance Day. The Doctor is always talking about food, but she never gets to eat any. She needs to use that biscuit dispenser more often.
Oh, and you know how I couldn't figure out what the team was looking for at the beginning of last week's episode? Well, they never say what they're looking for so no wonder I was confused.
Looks like we get some creepy robots for next week.
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Date: 2018-11-12 08:22 am (UTC)