Doctor Who 9x05 - The Womanl Who Lived (spoilers)

[Parallax]

This was .... odd.

The episode was poorly placed. Why have this one immediately after the establishment of Ashildur? Why not leave it later in the season? That way Ashildur's reveal might actually have been interesting.
That being said, I did like how the Doctor is ignoring people.

The comparisons between Ashildur and the Doctor was blatant and ham-fisted, to the point where it became overly simplistic. More subtlety would have been better.

The episode seemed to have conflicting styles throughout. The afore mentioned seriousness of the examination of the Doctor's existence, then you have utter silliness with the music (burglary scene), the incompetent guards, the entire jokes at the hanging nonsense.

The cat alien was idiotically bizarre. He has fur on his face and yet breathes fire. This is not a winning combination.
Likewise, his betrayal was telegraphed so ham-fistedly that it became a facepalm moment when it finally happened.
Why not reuse the time sensitive cat people from Warrior's Gate? It'd reuse old lore and have a race that'd make sense - time lost, desperate to escape, and serves as a third reflection of the Doctor and Ashildur - that being trapped and alone invariably leads to corruption of the individuals sense of ethics.
Heck, the costumes are pretty damn similar already.

The effects of immortality on Ashildur was actually done well. The loss of sense of self, of memories, of ethics. Having to write things down.

The Doctor has travelled with more than one 'immortal', as I'm assuming for the sake of what the Doctor is referencing ... he's forgetting Romana.

Oh look, the Doctor is on the guitar again. And the coincidence of that photo takes suspension of disbelief and screws it right up the rear.

This could have been a great character examination but they really fumbled the ball in numerous ways.

[Bedlam]

I actually liked the jokes at the hanging scene, mostly because the highway man was clearly terrified but putting a brave face on it and desperate to stretch out his life by a few minutes more, despite knowing sooner or later the crowd would turn against him.

[SpottedKitty]

The effects of immortality on Ashildur was actually done well. The loss of sense of self, of memories, of ethics. Having to write things down.

<nod> It took me a moment to realise that huge room full of books was her diary.

And now the Doctor knows she's survived until "now". Is she still sane? Is that other highwayman still with her, or was the Doctor making it up as he goes along (again) in his speculation about the second Mire medkit?

I'm going to have to watch the repeat again to figure out what actually happened; things got a bit chaotic after the portal opened.

[DaveJB]

Why not reuse the time sensitive cat people from Warrior's Gate? It'd reuse old lore and have a race that'd make sense - time lost, desperate to escape, and serves as a third reflection of the Doctor and Ashildur - that being trapped and alone invariably leads to corruption of the individuals sense of ethics.

Well, I'm sure there's all sorts of thematic reasons why the Tharils wouldn't have worked in this episode... but they all probably took a backseat to the fact that actually using them on-screen would have meant paying a big chunk of royalties to the guy who wrote Warrior's Gate.

Overall, the episode's biggest problem was that the whole study of immortality really didn't offer anything new; it's been done much better elsewhere, even in Doctor Who. Apart from that though, it was actually a reasonably entertaining story overall. Though I imagine Me's going to be a little annoyed come the year 2000, when she realises she's accidentally named herself after the worst version of Windows.

As an aside, since this was a "Clara-lite" episode, presumably that means we're getting a "Doctor-lite" episode somewhere down the line.

[Bedlam]

As an aside, since this was a "Clara-lite" episode, presumably that means we're getting a "Doctor-lite" episode somewhere down the line.

Maybe it's been a while since they doubly banked in that way but it's certainly a possibility.

[Iroscato]

I actually really enjoyed that. Wacky fun with some really great scenes between Me and the Doctor discussing the ramifications of an endless life.

Clara was barely in it, which was also a bonus.

[Broomstick]

I found myself enjoying this episode much more than I anticipated.

Far from perfect, but there was more humor than I expected and most worked well. The "gallows humor" was actually funny. Yes, the problems of immortality have been addressed before, and arguably better before even in Who, but it's been awhile. I like the reasoning of why the Doctor doesn't travel with a fellow "immortal", even if he has in the past.

I don't mind the guitar. I know there is still an association of electric guitars with youth, but the Stones, the Who, and what's left of the Beatles are in their late 60's/70's now and Capaldi actually plays it, not just mimes it.

The final scene, which was more from the Doctor's viewpoint than usual, shows very nicely that however gruff and distant he may act, he genuinely values Clara. Him spotting Ashildir in the background of the photo Clara shows him is also well done - he clearly has no intention of telling Clara about seeing Ashildir again, but it also explains why she was so familiar: she's been lurking in the background for centuries.

[Eternal_Freedom]

Yeah I'm gonna rate it as a four. It had some silliness for certain, but it had enough well-acted serious scenes to make me enjoy it. In other words, generally average, sometimes impressive.

As for Twelve playing the guitar? Honestly it doesn't bother me. Two played the recorder after all, and I can overlook it because it is (as best I can tell) actually Capaldi playing it rather than just faking it. As far as incarnation's quirks go, this one is pretty harmless.

[EnterpriseSovereign]

Why not reuse the time sensitive cat people from Warrior's Gate? It'd reuse old lore and have a race that'd make sense - time lost, desperate to escape, and serves as a third reflection of the Doctor and Ashildur - that being trapped and alone invariably leads to corruption of the individuals sense of ethics.

Well, I'm sure there's all sorts of thematic reasons why the Tharils wouldn't have worked in this episode... but they all probably took a backseat to the fact that actually using them on-screen would have meant paying a big chunk of royalties to the guy who wrote Warrior's Gate.

Overall, the episode's biggest problem was that the whole study of immortality really didn't offer anything new; it's been done much better elsewhere, even in Doctor Who. Apart from that though, it was actually a reasonably entertaining story overall. Though I imagine Me's going to be a little annoyed come the year 2000, when she realises she's accidentally named herself after the worst version of Windows.

As an aside, since this was a "Clara-lite" episode, presumably that means we're getting a "Doctor-lite" episode somewhere down the line.

I hope not, the last one like that had Peter Kay as the "Abzorbaloff" was fucking awful!

It's a shame how it played out, since the second medkit (why it wasn't continually active in the troops that had it is another matter) was the most awesome thing the doctor could have given her. She said that no-one was good enough to receive it (and ultimately being forced to give it to some petty thief). Assuming that means in terms of a spouse, why she didn't bestow it upon her child (even if it was just to save them from the plague) makes absolutely no sense. And I agree, I was expecting this to be aired later in the season, so some of the impact was lost.

[Iroscato]

Why not reuse the time sensitive cat people from Warrior's Gate? It'd reuse old lore and have a race that'd make sense - time lost, desperate to escape, and serves as a third reflection of the Doctor and Ashildur - that being trapped and alone invariably leads to corruption of the individuals sense of ethics.

Well, I'm sure there's all sorts of thematic reasons why the Tharils wouldn't have worked in this episode... but they all probably took a backseat to the fact that actually using them on-screen would have meant paying a big chunk of royalties to the guy who wrote Warrior's Gate.

Overall, the episode's biggest problem was that the whole study of immortality really didn't offer anything new; it's been done much better elsewhere, even in Doctor Who. Apart from that though, it was actually a reasonably entertaining story overall. Though I imagine Me's going to be a little annoyed come the year 2000, when she realises she's accidentally named herself after the worst version of Windows.

As an aside, since this was a "Clara-lite" episode, presumably that means we're getting a "Doctor-lite" episode somewhere down the line.

I hope not, the last one like that had Peter Kay as the "Abzorbaloff" was fucking awful!

Actually the last two Doctor-lite eps were Blink in 2007 and Turn Left in 2008, both of which are highly-regarded - Blink especially, often being called an all-time classic
But yeah, Love and Monsters was a special kind of shit, I still have no idea what the hell they were on back then.

[madd0ct0r]

I really liked Love and Monsters. It was a good example of a ripple from the doctor.

Almost certain Me will be a character being setup for the Class spinoff show, given she is young enough to be a student, and old enough to actually deal with aliens and monsters capably. Hence them showing her at Clara's school, and her promising to look after those the Dr casts off.

As for this episode, I liked it. It's a kids show remember, and judged on the criteria that it still has to make sense to a 10 year old it cafrries a lot of philosophy and smutty jokes

[The Romulan Republic]

I was actually thinking that they might be setting her up as the main villain for this season, though given that their fates were left undecided, they might have a reprise from Missy and/or Davros instead.

However, setting her up for Class could work too. But if that's what's being done, I'm not sure that bodes well for Class, since from what I've seen, Me's two episodes to date had a rather mixed reception. Not the best thing to build a spin-off out of.

[xerex]

I hope not, the last one like that had Peter Kay as the "Abzorbaloff" was fucking awful!

.

But yeah, Love and Monsters was a special kind of shit, I still have no idea what the hell they were on back then.

The effects and last 5 minutes were shite. But as a story its quite good. Its also perfectly encapsulates -- The Doctor destroys what he saves and the Doctor is not a good man.

[jwl]

I hope not, the last one like that had Peter Kay as the "Abzorbaloff" was fucking awful!

.

But yeah, Love and Monsters was a special kind of shit, I still have no idea what the hell they were on back then.

The effects and last 5 minutes were shite. But as a story its quite good. Its also perfectly encapsulates -- The Doctor destroys what he saves and the Doctor is not a good man.

Nothing happens in the first 40 minutes of "Love and Monsters", I can't say I see that as any better.

But the last doctor-lite episode was not "Love and Monsters", it was "Flatline". "The Girl Who Waited" was also a doctor-lite (or at least, according to the production team they count as ones [proof]).

[Enigma]

I didn't want to create a new thread but Capaldi is confirmed to stay as The Doctor for at least the 10th season.

[Broomstick]

That's not really a surprise to me. I expected him to stay at least three years. Whether he'll stay more is another question.