So. Series 6 begins in Doctor Who. And it begins very quickly.
SPOILERS START NOW
Amy and Rory have been what – dropped off home for a while where they… are busy. Doing things. Which result in Amy being pregnant (sigh of annoyance). Anyway, then they’re recruited by a 1103 year old Doctor who’s also been busy with no clothes on, but for a different reason. Before that, when he was 908 or 909 or whatever, the Doctor had dropped Amy and Rory off and and so he met up with them again for the first time in the diner (which by the way was filmed in Cardiff Bay).
So the Doctor aged 909 has been reunited with Amy and Rory. Then whatever happens at the end of Day of the Moon, or maybe not for a while, and he drops them back. Then he’s reunited the day he is shot. Because he’s shot during regeneration at 1103 years old. And he’s shot by the Astronaut. Clearly, the Astronaut has the little girl inside. Or does it? Who is he really shot by?
And then lots of other stuff happens and a young Canton, who’s excellent by the way, a truly brilliant character, meets the Doctor and Amy, Rory and River even though it’s not a meeting for them. And then Amy sees some Silence and to be quite honest. MY GOD LOOK AT THEIR HANDS! THEY’RE HUGE! I mean. Their faces are menacing and that first appearance on the beach is truly Doctor Who Gold.
Doctor Who Gold count for this episode so far: Canton and The Silence’s first appearance.
Yes the women who gets zapped is pointless but I don’t mind it. And then of course there’s more TARDIS stuff and that’s a bit boring. Then it wanders through some stuff in a warehouse – and that isn’t half as scary as it needs to be. And then the underground tunnels. Scary – but not scary enough! Rory, River, that’s a lovely conversation, and the Brave Heart Canton is wonderful. That’s two more things to add to Gold: the conversation River/Rory and the Brave Heart Canton.
And then the Lodger TARDIS, not half as dramatic as it should be. And then the tunnels under the Earth – yeah… not fantastic revelation. And then oh no RORY! And then the girl. Oh there’s the Astronaut. Sorry – what’s Impossible about him? Sorry, how much have we seen him? Sorry WHY CAN’T WE NAME TWO-PARTERS ANYMORE?! And then the big revelation that’s going to mess up the rest of the series. AMY’S PREGNANT! And the Astronaut turns up – the girl is inside! And she’s been shot.
So what do I think? The Doctor is brilliant in this episode and Matt Smith’s performance has moved on and developed well. He’s brilliant. And then there’s Amy. *sigh* Amy is very upset when The Doctor dies. Right. It feels she doesn’t know him, it still feels wrong that she’s so upset, the hug when the Doctor is back feels out of place. Rory feels slightly more relaxed and is better. A bit. Well… kind of. No he’s all right but he’s just dull still and some of his performances are lacking. But it’s so clever that River discusses her relationship with the Doctor with Rory and tells Rory. Rory just seems to fit the talking to role. And Rory reacts perfectly when the Doctor dies, it really adds to his character. If anything – Rory is the only one who’s good in that scene.
River? River, for once, feels younger and you can finally, or at least I can, finally see her as a member of the Doctor’s past. River is finally as good as she was in Silence of the Library. She’s much better.
Utah. Ok, is probably as vital as the Astronaut. Utah is a trailer gimmick and it wasn’t used enough at all. Utah’s just useless, but setting the rest in America seems to work well. The Silence are a good monster. Maybe not focussed on enough – but they are good and they’re scary in appearance. Just not scary enough. Just not focussed on enough.
The regeneration is too short and TOO sudden and in fact the whole beginning bit and the whole meet up and then death and Astronaut – that’s all TOO quick. It’s too much of a gimmick and it happens too quickly. Everything is too immediate and rushed. This helps the rest feel too rushed even though it’s actually too slow.
A really differently paced episode and it feels quite odd and middle-of-the-series like. But the episode itself is good, and some properly properly good Doctor Who moments in it. The rest feels a little too odd and rushed and weird and unsettled. It’s a good Doctor Who episode, with some brilliant moments and it fits in with the 11th Doctor really well. It just felt odd for me. Too rushed. Too immediate. If it lost that sense of rush and immediate-ness, then it would be good. And it would feel properly good.
A good episode, needs to be feel both more and less exciting and needs to lose gimmicks. But a good episode at heart.
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