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llywelaThe Poison Sky – stream of consciousness
This is not the strongest two-parter Doctor Who has ever produced, but there are plenty of fun and touching moments. I have to say, I loved that the predictable plot resolution came with a twist – Donna's mum to the rescue with an axe. Perfect. Although, it has to be noted that the companions of new Who have all had very similar mothers – does RTD not know any other maternal character types?
Clone Martha is pretty insipid, really, for all that RTD raved about her in the confidential. There's nothing evil about her. She's just like normal Martha with an agenda.
Bernard Cribbins as Donna's granddad continues awesome.
"Maybe we'll get sentimental after the world's finished choking to death." Donna gets all the best lines. She keeps the Doctor in his place, and I like that in a companion. He doesn't need his ego stroked. He needs to be kept grounded.
"I'm stuck, on earth, like an ordinary person. Like a human. How rubbish is that? Sorry, no offence." Heh.
The Doctor is so clearly onto CloneMartha right from the start, noting her lack of concern for her family, lying to her about Donna's whereabouts. I like that. Show is attempting subtlety.
That glimpse we catch of Rose on screen as the Doctor contacts the Sontarans is intriguing. Curiouser and curiouser! It'll be interesting to see where they are leading with this.
"I'm really glad you didn't say belittle, 'cause then I'd have a field day." Hee. The Doctor always impudent with just about everyone he deals with, so that it is easy to miss the gravity beneath. I do enjoy his flipping to the moustache-twirling cartoon to interrupt the Sontaran's war chant. And his covert message to Donna, a la Mickey in season two, although unlike Mickey she is left bewildered over what to do. The course of action isn't clear until the Doctor contacts her.
You know, the crazy thing is that for all the Doctor's objections, if the nuclear strike had been allowed to go ahead as Unit planned, the gas would have been ignited and dispersed that much sooner. Not that the science makes sense in any way, but we aren't going to worry about that. It is never worth the brain-ache!
Alas, poor Ross. The moment everyone liked him so much he was doomed to die. :(
"Times like this I could do with the Brigadier." Yay! Nice, nice to have that reference to the good old Brig.
"Don't worry, I've got my secret weapon."
"What's that?"
"You."
"Somehow, that's not making me happy."
Aww, man, the Doctor can be ruthless at times. He deliberately sent Donna to the Sontaran ship, placing her in grave danger. He believes in her, trusts her, and that's a good thing. It's still ruthless, though, and I'm not sure he'd have done it to Rose. Rose was his responsibility, to be protected. Donna he regards as more capable, somehow, more of an equal, standing on her own two feet. "I'm sorry, I swear, I'm so sorry, but you've got to try."
But she's so scared; her fear is palpable. Nice shot with the mallet, mind – like mother like daughter! And her success is another demonstration of the positive influence the Doctor has on the people he engages with. He encourages them to become more, to push their limits and find out just how much they are capable of.
"Are you my mummy?" Best line of the episode. So funny.
I like that although the Doctor is so sceptical, Unit actually cope pretty well by themselves, finding a way around the cordelane [sp?] signal and using the Valiant to disperse the gas. The Doctor isn't always around; they have to be able to stand on their own – that's a message that comes through loud and clear on the re-booted show, over and over. His anti-war stance is commendable, but isn't always practical. The Unit troops are being slaughtered; they need to be able to fight back to stand any chance. And their engagement of the Sontaran troops allows the Doctor to find and save Martha.
It's a very bloodless battle, as usual. Who just doesn't do blood.
Captain Jack reference. Hee.
There's a nice little moment between Martha and the clone – where the Doctor too frantic to do other than treat it as an enemy and a resource, Martha's compassion wins a breakthrough and brings the desired result. And then she retrieves her engagement ring, which is a nice touch.
"Have I ever told you how much I hate you?" Heh. Nifty reunion.
It's a very technobabble plot resolution – best to just not think about it. It makes no sense. It isn't scientific. Just let it go. Who was never about science. They like nice, clean endings with no mess to clear up, as well, so perhaps we should add that they aren't about realism, either!
The Doctor has to give enemies a choice. It's his thing. And he has pulled the trigger before now – it's how the Time Lords were destroyed. But Rattigan is more ruthless, so having him step in for his moment of grace to save the day means, of course that the Doctor lives to fight another day. But shouldn't there be Sontaran troops left running around on earth, though, or were they all recalled?
"I've missed all this. But I'm good here, back at home. And I'm better for having been away." I love that – especially after the Doctor told Donna that he'd ruined Martha's life. She doesn't see it that way. It's good for him to see how well she's doing now, back at home.
Next week looks…intriguing. Judging by the trailer, it has enormous potential to be really awful, but let us hope for awesomeness, instead.
This is not the strongest two-parter Doctor Who has ever produced, but there are plenty of fun and touching moments. I have to say, I loved that the predictable plot resolution came with a twist – Donna's mum to the rescue with an axe. Perfect. Although, it has to be noted that the companions of new Who have all had very similar mothers – does RTD not know any other maternal character types?
Clone Martha is pretty insipid, really, for all that RTD raved about her in the confidential. There's nothing evil about her. She's just like normal Martha with an agenda.
Bernard Cribbins as Donna's granddad continues awesome.
"Maybe we'll get sentimental after the world's finished choking to death." Donna gets all the best lines. She keeps the Doctor in his place, and I like that in a companion. He doesn't need his ego stroked. He needs to be kept grounded.
"I'm stuck, on earth, like an ordinary person. Like a human. How rubbish is that? Sorry, no offence." Heh.
The Doctor is so clearly onto CloneMartha right from the start, noting her lack of concern for her family, lying to her about Donna's whereabouts. I like that. Show is attempting subtlety.
That glimpse we catch of Rose on screen as the Doctor contacts the Sontarans is intriguing. Curiouser and curiouser! It'll be interesting to see where they are leading with this.
"I'm really glad you didn't say belittle, 'cause then I'd have a field day." Hee. The Doctor always impudent with just about everyone he deals with, so that it is easy to miss the gravity beneath. I do enjoy his flipping to the moustache-twirling cartoon to interrupt the Sontaran's war chant. And his covert message to Donna, a la Mickey in season two, although unlike Mickey she is left bewildered over what to do. The course of action isn't clear until the Doctor contacts her.
You know, the crazy thing is that for all the Doctor's objections, if the nuclear strike had been allowed to go ahead as Unit planned, the gas would have been ignited and dispersed that much sooner. Not that the science makes sense in any way, but we aren't going to worry about that. It is never worth the brain-ache!
Alas, poor Ross. The moment everyone liked him so much he was doomed to die. :(
"Times like this I could do with the Brigadier." Yay! Nice, nice to have that reference to the good old Brig.
"Don't worry, I've got my secret weapon."
"What's that?"
"You."
"Somehow, that's not making me happy."
Aww, man, the Doctor can be ruthless at times. He deliberately sent Donna to the Sontaran ship, placing her in grave danger. He believes in her, trusts her, and that's a good thing. It's still ruthless, though, and I'm not sure he'd have done it to Rose. Rose was his responsibility, to be protected. Donna he regards as more capable, somehow, more of an equal, standing on her own two feet. "I'm sorry, I swear, I'm so sorry, but you've got to try."
But she's so scared; her fear is palpable. Nice shot with the mallet, mind – like mother like daughter! And her success is another demonstration of the positive influence the Doctor has on the people he engages with. He encourages them to become more, to push their limits and find out just how much they are capable of.
"Are you my mummy?" Best line of the episode. So funny.
I like that although the Doctor is so sceptical, Unit actually cope pretty well by themselves, finding a way around the cordelane [sp?] signal and using the Valiant to disperse the gas. The Doctor isn't always around; they have to be able to stand on their own – that's a message that comes through loud and clear on the re-booted show, over and over. His anti-war stance is commendable, but isn't always practical. The Unit troops are being slaughtered; they need to be able to fight back to stand any chance. And their engagement of the Sontaran troops allows the Doctor to find and save Martha.
It's a very bloodless battle, as usual. Who just doesn't do blood.
Captain Jack reference. Hee.
There's a nice little moment between Martha and the clone – where the Doctor too frantic to do other than treat it as an enemy and a resource, Martha's compassion wins a breakthrough and brings the desired result. And then she retrieves her engagement ring, which is a nice touch.
"Have I ever told you how much I hate you?" Heh. Nifty reunion.
It's a very technobabble plot resolution – best to just not think about it. It makes no sense. It isn't scientific. Just let it go. Who was never about science. They like nice, clean endings with no mess to clear up, as well, so perhaps we should add that they aren't about realism, either!
The Doctor has to give enemies a choice. It's his thing. And he has pulled the trigger before now – it's how the Time Lords were destroyed. But Rattigan is more ruthless, so having him step in for his moment of grace to save the day means, of course that the Doctor lives to fight another day. But shouldn't there be Sontaran troops left running around on earth, though, or were they all recalled?
"I've missed all this. But I'm good here, back at home. And I'm better for having been away." I love that – especially after the Doctor told Donna that he'd ruined Martha's life. She doesn't see it that way. It's good for him to see how well she's doing now, back at home.
Next week looks…intriguing. Judging by the trailer, it has enormous potential to be really awful, but let us hope for awesomeness, instead.
