Sunday 21 October 2018
Three episodes in, it's time to reflect on the new series and team.
Firstly, broadcasting on a Sunday is inspired. I went to see Troilus and Cressida (with Martha's Mum Adjoa Andoh playing Ulysses brilliantly) last night without having to catch up on Doctor Who on iPlayer.
The series has followed the Russell T Davies template of a trip to the future in episode 2 and a celebrity historical for episode 3 and is eschewing the more complicated timey-wimey plotting of the Moffat era.
The Ghost Monument had a refreshingly straightforward plot: essentially Doctor Who meets a Top Gear Special as the crew gatecrash the final stage of a rally. No prizes for guessing what the 'Ghost Monument' at the finishing line turns out to be. All they have to do to find the TARDIS is cross an inhospitable planet that is trying to kill them, whilst allowing time for some character development along the way.
Rosa had something of the feel of one of the Hartnell episodes, but was none the worse for that. The subject was handled sensitively. As last week, the plot was straightforward - all the team had to do was foil the attempts of the villain (a meddling monk equivalent) to change history. Not quite as easy as you might think, and the question of whether or not there would be enough people on the bus provided a surprising amount of tension. There was also a nice nod to more recent Who with a reference to the Storm Cage detention facility.
I like this new simplicity.
Sunday, 21 October 2018
Sunday, 14 October 2018
The Doctor Has Landed
14 October 2018
It's a week now since Jodie Whittaker made her proper debut as the Thirteenth-ish Doctor. I was ready, with my edible ball bearing cakes, for a teatime treat.
Overall, I enjoyed the episode, though I was sad about Ryan's Nan. I would have liked to see more of her. The new style seemed to fit into Sunday evening viewing so well, that at one point I did wonder whether I was still watching The Bodyguard.
I do have a few queries though:
1. The Doctor fell out of her TARDIS in flight, through the roof of a train and was all right afterwards? The Fourth Doctor regenerated after falling of a radar array which was nowhere near as high. The Tenth Doctor fell through a roof in The End of Time Part Two and sort of survived for a bit, (at least until Wilf accidentally irradiated him), but at least he looked damaged. OK - I know she was still in her regeneration cycle, when minor injuries such as losing a hand or being gunned down by the Gestapo aren't fatal, but even so.
2. If Ryan gave 'consent' for the hunting ritual when he touched the shape in the air, how come the quarry had already been lined up with enough time for 'Tim Shaw' to rig up his cheating device? He came through almost immediately afterwards.
3. Why was Ryan trying to learn to ride a bike on uneven, muddy ground? Wouldn't an empty car park have been easier - and have they never heard of stabilisers?
4. Is it just me, or did the new Doctor's sonic screwdriver look like it might have another function?
Looking forward to finding out how the new crew cope on a different planet.
It's a week now since Jodie Whittaker made her proper debut as the Thirteenth-ish Doctor. I was ready, with my edible ball bearing cakes, for a teatime treat.
I do have a few queries though:
1. The Doctor fell out of her TARDIS in flight, through the roof of a train and was all right afterwards? The Fourth Doctor regenerated after falling of a radar array which was nowhere near as high. The Tenth Doctor fell through a roof in The End of Time Part Two and sort of survived for a bit, (at least until Wilf accidentally irradiated him), but at least he looked damaged. OK - I know she was still in her regeneration cycle, when minor injuries such as losing a hand or being gunned down by the Gestapo aren't fatal, but even so.
2. If Ryan gave 'consent' for the hunting ritual when he touched the shape in the air, how come the quarry had already been lined up with enough time for 'Tim Shaw' to rig up his cheating device? He came through almost immediately afterwards.
3. Why was Ryan trying to learn to ride a bike on uneven, muddy ground? Wouldn't an empty car park have been easier - and have they never heard of stabilisers?
4. Is it just me, or did the new Doctor's sonic screwdriver look like it might have another function?
Looking forward to finding out how the new crew cope on a different planet.
Saturday, 6 October 2018
Deletion
Saturday 6 October 2018
Only one day to go until Jodie Whittaker is properly introduced as the new Doctor. I have been so busy lately that I haven't really had time to get excited yet, but I'm definitely working up to it now.
I recently blogged about the feminisation of the audience for Doctor Who. There was another good example of that at work this week. It was at the start of a meeting of a university committee that approves new degree programmes, and someone mentioned that an obsolete programme was going to be deleted. 'That sounds like something the Cybermen would do' said the chair (another lady of a certain age like myself, who looks absolutely nothing like the traditional image of a Who fan.) She then went on to mention that an old friend of hers had been in a Cybermen episode. From the description of the character I immediately identified Mrs Moore from Rise of the Cybermen/Age of Steel played by Helen Griffin. By this time one or two of our (male) colleagues on the other side of the table were looking bemused, but that did not stop the chair from adding that another friend used to run a shop where they did occasional Who-related signings and once arranged for Tom Baker to phone her at work.
I didn't have the heart to ask whether she was sure it wasn't Jon Culshaw.
 |
| Cyberman |
I recently blogged about the feminisation of the audience for Doctor Who. There was another good example of that at work this week. It was at the start of a meeting of a university committee that approves new degree programmes, and someone mentioned that an obsolete programme was going to be deleted. 'That sounds like something the Cybermen would do' said the chair (another lady of a certain age like myself, who looks absolutely nothing like the traditional image of a Who fan.) She then went on to mention that an old friend of hers had been in a Cybermen episode. From the description of the character I immediately identified Mrs Moore from Rise of the Cybermen/Age of Steel played by Helen Griffin. By this time one or two of our (male) colleagues on the other side of the table were looking bemused, but that did not stop the chair from adding that another friend used to run a shop where they did occasional Who-related signings and once arranged for Tom Baker to phone her at work.
I didn't have the heart to ask whether she was sure it wasn't Jon Culshaw.
Sunday, 2 September 2018
Neil, Plaything of Sutekh!
2 September 2018
My husband, the one who got me into all this, is called Neil. This means I can call him 'plaything of Sutekh' if he gets above himself.
Neil has a TARDIS materialisation sound as his ringtone, which can be disconcerting at times. Coincidentally this is also the ringtone a colleague of mine who works in IT support uses for her boss, Neal.
Meanwhile, my hairdresser's partner (the one who built a Dalek) is also called Neil.
Coincidence?
My husband, the one who got me into all this, is called Neil. This means I can call him 'plaything of Sutekh' if he gets above himself.
Neil has a TARDIS materialisation sound as his ringtone, which can be disconcerting at times. Coincidentally this is also the ringtone a colleague of mine who works in IT support uses for her boss, Neal.
Meanwhile, my hairdresser's partner (the one who built a Dalek) is also called Neil.
Coincidence?
Sunday, 19 August 2018
The feminisation of Doctor Who
19 August 2018
No, this isn't another post about a female Doctor. This is about the audience.
When I first accompanied my husband to conventions back in the early 1990s I was very much in the minority as one of the very few women present. Probably the biggest change in Doctor Who since it returned in 2005 has been the rise of the fangirl. The gender balance at conventions is now far more even.
I was reminded of this change whilst watching Kill the Moon just now. When I watched it originally I was so incensed by the ridiculous storyline and Clara's tantrum at the end, that I missed a throwaway line that really encapsulates this change in the audience. Clara says that the school secretary hates her 'because she thinks I gave her a packet of Tena Lady in Secret Santa.' If ever a line was designed for my demographic (middle-aged female) that is it. My other half still doesn't get it. I suspect the Twelfth Doctor didn't either.
Even now, it seems odd that they managed to get away with a line about incontinence pads in a family show, but it is not the first time that the post-2005 show has had lines aimed at a female audience which would not have been considered appropriate for a family audience in the show's earlier years. There was a joke about breast implants in Rose, and another in The Doctor's Daughter about turkey-basters.
I can't wait to see where this goes next.
When I first accompanied my husband to conventions back in the early 1990s I was very much in the minority as one of the very few women present. Probably the biggest change in Doctor Who since it returned in 2005 has been the rise of the fangirl. The gender balance at conventions is now far more even.
I was reminded of this change whilst watching Kill the Moon just now. When I watched it originally I was so incensed by the ridiculous storyline and Clara's tantrum at the end, that I missed a throwaway line that really encapsulates this change in the audience. Clara says that the school secretary hates her 'because she thinks I gave her a packet of Tena Lady in Secret Santa.' If ever a line was designed for my demographic (middle-aged female) that is it. My other half still doesn't get it. I suspect the Twelfth Doctor didn't either.
Even now, it seems odd that they managed to get away with a line about incontinence pads in a family show, but it is not the first time that the post-2005 show has had lines aimed at a female audience which would not have been considered appropriate for a family audience in the show's earlier years. There was a joke about breast implants in Rose, and another in The Doctor's Daughter about turkey-basters.
I can't wait to see where this goes next.
Thursday, 12 July 2018
Leavings....
12 July 2018
After juggling two and a bit jobs for the past six or seven months with secondments and 'acting' roles, they have worn me down and I am finally changing jobs permanently. This is very sad, as I liked my old job, but my colleagues put on a great leaving party, complete with TARDIS piñata.
I really hope someone got a picture of the distinguished professor of English Literature bashing it with a miniature cricket bat!
My leaving speech was short: the Tenth Doctor's final words.
Update: I returned later to the office to retrieve the TARDIS (yes, that was me carrying it home on the train). The following morning I wasn't in and I got a panicked email from a colleague:
By coincidence, one of my colleagues in my new role is the person who was briefly my boss elsewhere and who bought me a Cyberman book and Dalek poster as a leaving present.
I really hope someone got a picture of the distinguished professor of English Literature bashing it with a miniature cricket bat!
My leaving speech was short: the Tenth Doctor's final words.
Update: I returned later to the office to retrieve the TARDIS (yes, that was me carrying it home on the train). The following morning I wasn't in and I got a panicked email from a colleague:
"You didn’t by any chance come in
early this morning to take the TARDIS? It’s gone and Barbara and Ian are going
into detective mode. (You just missed a moment in the office that you might
have cherished when Ian could be overheard saying on the phone ‘we had a TARDIS
in the office and…’.)*"
*Names have been changed. Obviously.
By coincidence, one of my colleagues in my new role is the person who was briefly my boss elsewhere and who bought me a Cyberman book and Dalek poster as a leaving present.
Saturday, 9 June 2018
Musings
9 June 2018
Life has been very busy lately: doing two jobs, working on two books (medieval bastards and a guidebook to the Chilterns) and selling my mother's bungalow, so not much time for blogging, or for Doctor Who.
I did read the Target novelisation of The Day of the Doctor, which was excellent, in a very Steven Moffat way. Naturally he had to tell the story from multiple viewpoints and include a running gag about Chapter Nine. On the subject of Moffat, we also re-watched Silence in the Library and Forest of the Dead recently. They are still great stories, and what struck me particularly was how well River Song's first appearance stands up even when viewed with the benefit of hindsight. The Doctor's face when someone accuses him and River of bickering like 'an old married couple' is priceless. I still want to know why Audrey Niffenegger didn't sue, though.
There are rumours that Captain Jack will return to our screens to meet Doctor 13. These seem largely fuelled by the fact that Chris Chibnall was the showrunner for Torchwood. Whilst I would love to see the Captain back on our screens, the TARDIS is already going to be quite crowded. I hope Jodie Whittaker has enough space to be the Doctor, and doesn't get crowed out as Peter Davison did at times.
Oh well, all will be revealed in due course.
Life has been very busy lately: doing two jobs, working on two books (medieval bastards and a guidebook to the Chilterns) and selling my mother's bungalow, so not much time for blogging, or for Doctor Who.
I did read the Target novelisation of The Day of the Doctor, which was excellent, in a very Steven Moffat way. Naturally he had to tell the story from multiple viewpoints and include a running gag about Chapter Nine. On the subject of Moffat, we also re-watched Silence in the Library and Forest of the Dead recently. They are still great stories, and what struck me particularly was how well River Song's first appearance stands up even when viewed with the benefit of hindsight. The Doctor's face when someone accuses him and River of bickering like 'an old married couple' is priceless. I still want to know why Audrey Niffenegger didn't sue, though.
There are rumours that Captain Jack will return to our screens to meet Doctor 13. These seem largely fuelled by the fact that Chris Chibnall was the showrunner for Torchwood. Whilst I would love to see the Captain back on our screens, the TARDIS is already going to be quite crowded. I hope Jodie Whittaker has enough space to be the Doctor, and doesn't get crowed out as Peter Davison did at times.
Oh well, all will be revealed in due course.
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