Doctor Who Series 37 Episode 1 - "The Woman Who Fell To Earth" Spoilers

[Crazedwraith]

The first Episode of the new Doctor's tenure. Should be airing soon/is airing now.

I will try and catch it on iPlayer since new Doctor & new showrunner means I hope it will be good. Never got on with Twelve.

[Bedlam]

Overall a good solid start. A bit more grounded than most of the previous seasons.

It was interesting that there weren't really any links to previous Dr Who at all, at least not what I noticed, I am all for a fresh start but it would be nice to have some connection to the last 50+ years, maybe later in the season.

I did wonder if the tentacle monster would turn out to be a Rutan and the armoured figure a revamped Sontaran and was a bit disaponted they turned out to be new creations.

I think they probably went in the right direction with just not raising the sex change issue all that much. I think it's something that however it was dealt with in depth would have offended one group or another.

The larger cast is interesting, I do wonder if they'll have enough screen time for all of them going forwards particularly with the shorter season this year.

[Q99]

Overall a good solid start. A bit more grounded than most of the previous seasons.

It was interesting that there weren't really any links to previous Dr Who at all, at least not what I noticed, I am all for a fresh start but it would be nice to have some connection to the last 50+ years, maybe later in the season.

It makes sense: This doctor is going to have a lot of newbies so they can build to that later.

[bilateralrope]

I'm not a fan of end of episode cliffhangers that get resolved within the first few minutes of the next episode. Which is the only option when you've teleported everyone into a vacuum. Why not just teleport everyone onto whatever ship picks them up ?

Apart from that, it's looking good.

[SpottedKitty]

Well, that was a fun steampunkish scene where she built her own sonic screwdriver. I got a good few Girl Genius vibes all through it — all it needed for complete Agatha-ness was a tuft of hair going <sproing> right in the middle.

Looking forward to the next episode, and wondering how long they can hold their breath.

[Bedlam]

Well, that was a fun steampunkish scene where she built her own sonic screwdriver. I got a good few Girl Genius vibes all through it — all it needed for complete Agatha-ness was a tuft of hair going <sproing> right in the middle.

Looking forward to the next episode, and wondering how long they can hold their breath.

Although as the pointed out in last season's episode Oxygen, holding your breath in a vacume is not a good idea.

[Batman]

nuWho is back, and it's back with-I'm not sure. I suspect part of it is getting used to a female Doctor and being miffed by the cliffhanger ending, but I don't quite know how to rate this episode beyond 'definitely not a bad one'. The good Doctor not remembering being the Doctor was, I think, new, whereas the complete and utter lack of fashion sense was not. Apparently you can construct a sonic screwdriver from earthly materials (though at least the failed attempts seemed to involve an inordinate amount of applying welding torches) and the good Doctor showing up without the TARDIS was unexpected. The Doctor not being able to get to her we've seen before. The damned thing not being around is I think a first, at least for nuWho

[EnterpriseSovereign]

They were clearly trying to pack as much diversity into the show as possible, and wasn't even trying to be subtle about it either. Overall the episode was pretty 'meh' for me. They were going for the 'hoist by his own petard' method of disposing of the villain, it was unclear if he was dead or transported away. I noticed the "face full of teeth" thing was copied straight from Men in Black III, among other things.

[bilateralrope]

They were clearly trying to pack as much diversity into the show as possible, and wasn't even trying to be subtle about it either.

So what would you have prefered ?

A less diverse cast ?

How could they have been more subtle about having a diverse cast ?

[mr friendly guy]

They were clearly trying to pack as much diversity into the show as possible, and wasn't even trying to be subtle about it either. Overall the episode was pretty 'meh' for me. They were going for the 'hoist by his own petard' method of disposing of the villain, it was unclear if he was dead or transported away. I noticed the "face full of teeth" thing was copied straight from Men in Black III, among other things.

In the first six minutes my thoughts were, this is going to really trigger the anti SJW sci fi fans and makes them salty. Followed by ha ha ha. In any event the diversity isn't an issue. The characters were just regular people and not characterise by their ethnicity. This is definitely an improvement considering classic episodes like, um, Talons of Weng Chieng with white guys wearing yellow face make up. That story was decent, but that part has not aged well.

. Apparently you can construct a sonic screwdriver from earthly materials (though at least the failed attempts seemed to involve an inordinate amount of applying welding torches) and the good Doctor showing up without the TARDIS was unexpected. The Doctor not being able to get to her we've seen before. The damned thing not being around is I think a first, at least for nuWho

I will raise you the classic episode "The Time Monster." Jon Pertwee's Doctor creates a device to detect temporal fluctuations out of things like tea leaves and a few bits and bobs using science which Time Lords understand, but we humans don't. This seems par for the course of what the Doctor can do. Eat your heart out MacGyver.

**************************************************************************************************
Overall it was an ok episode. Generally a new Doctor starts their reign with an ok to strong episode, but the series tends to degrade as it goes along. This was particularly so over Moffat's run, so I guess we will have to see how Chibnall's run goes.

[SpottedKitty]

Although as the pointed out in last season's episode Oxygen, holding your breath in a vacume is not a good idea.

Good point, I'd forgotten that. Lungs don't take kindly to anything that stresses them enough to invalidate the manufacturer's warranty. Ow. <gurgle> <thud>

[Eternal_Freedom]

Which makes it probably a good thing that she said "not you guys" after saying take a deep breath.

Anyways. I thought that was a solid-to pretty food episode, especially for a season opener/new Doctor episode. Jodie as the Doctor, I am completely sold, and was within a few minutes. The ensemble cast is a nice touch, we haven't really had that since Five and the characters are reasonably interesting.

Incidentally, I knew they did the filming in and around Cardiff but damn, I didn't realise it was that close to home. The alleyway with the drunk guy throwing salad at armoured suit guy is literally right behind my house. I even saw them filming it a while back (though from afar so I didn't know what it was).

[bilateralrope]

How many dead bodies does a cop need to see before she calls for assistance ?

[Crazedwraith]

Did that new sonic look.. .well even more phallic than usual? Or is it just me?

Decent episode, no complaints, other than the companion death. It was rather low key, but I think that's kind of the point it shouldn't matter if the Doctor is rescuing one person or a thousand it's that compassion and willingness to help that defines her.

Not sure why she was so upset with Karl at the end though. The guy was mid melt from DNA Bomb anyway.

It was a lot better than 12's entry. Not quite as good as 11's or 10's. On par with Rose I'd say but a little less focused with the bigger cast.

[Eternal_Freedom]

Amusingly, a website called TheDailyMash (or it might have been NewsThump), essentially an English version of The Onion, had an article proclaiming "New Doctor Who Slammed As Highly Unrealistic For Portraying A Working Train Between Sheffield And Manchester."

Worth a snigger at least

[bilateralrope]

Not sure why she was so upset with Karl at the end though. The guy was mid melt from DNA Bomb anyway.

It comes down to the mindset between the two acts:
- When he set off the DNA bomb, he showed that he was willing to kill to get his way. So having him die as a result can be seen as defending the people he was trying to kill.
- When Karl pushed him off the edge, it was after he was no longer a threat. Karl wasn't defending anyone, he was taking revenge.

It's the difference between shooting a guy charging at you with a knife or shooting that same guy after he has dropped the knife and is running away. The first is self-defense, the second is murder.

[The Romulan Republic]

I only caught the end of the episode, unfortunately, but I liked it. Jodi Whittaker is... different, in more ways than one, but not too different. I can still see her as the Doctor. I like the diverse casting, and the return to Companion ensembles. I feel like with that, and the plot line of the Doctor being separated from her TARDIS, they're trying to evoke the old series. It makes a sort of sense- try to appease fans who are unsettled by a major change by bringing in lots of familiar old stuff as well (though in that case, the choice to use original monsters is odd). Then again, The Force Awakens tried that, and it didn't do much to dampen the hate. We'll see if Who can pull it off more successfully.

The most important thing to me, though, is that it felt... sincere, in a way that Moffat's era hand long since ceased to, for the most part. At least to me, it didn't feel like they were trying really hard to be clever, or self-referential, or gimmicky. It wasn't any single thing, or even anything necessarily tangible- just an overall vibe. But it was a very welcome change of pace.

[Crazedwraith]

How is separated from the TARDIS evoking the old series?

Third Doctor's TARDIS didn't work but he still had it. And that's long enough a go that modern fan's aren't going to be comforted by it.

[ray245]

Well, Doctor Who is a series where changes is constant. Some fans leave the show, new fans jump onboard and the hardcore fans stay with the show because they're probably used to the idea of change by now.

It's not quite the same as Star Wars.

[The Romulan Republic]

How is separated from the TARDIS evoking the old series?

Third Doctor's TARDIS didn't work but he still had it. And that's long enough a go that modern fan's aren't going to be comforted by it.

You may be right. I'm sure there are still fans who remember those days, but its a somewhat different situation.

Which, actually, is the direction they ought to be going in- familiar, but not identical.

Well, Doctor Who is a series where changes is constant. Some fans leave the show, new fans jump onboard and the hardcore fans stay with the show because they're probably used to the idea of change by now.

It's not quite the same as Star Wars.

True. Star Wars doesn't have change built into its structure to the extent that Who does, and while Star Wars is (among the more vocal fans at least) still dominated by OT-worship, there is no single era of Who at this point that overshadows all the others (at most, Four's is the definitive era of the old series, and 10/11's is for the new series).

That and frankly, its been my experience that Who fandom is one of the least toxic out there, for whatever reason. Prior to the inevitable deluge of whining about them making the Doctor not a white man, the worst I'd usually see from the Who fandom was people wanting Tennant back forever because they thought he was hot or shipped Rose/Ten. And even the attacks on a female Doctor seem less vitriolic and all-encompassing than reactions to similar changes in some fandoms.

We might partly owe Moffat for that, though- he spent a lot of time foreshadowing and setting the groundwork for this development over his run, and that made it maybe less of a shock to people and more "Yeah, we knew this was coming". I'll criticize a lot of what he did as Head Writer, but not that.

[ray245]

True. Star Wars doesn't have change built into its structure to the extent that Who does, and while Star Wars is (among the more vocal fans at least) still dominated by OT-worship, there is no single era of Who at this point that overshadows all the others (at most, Four's is the definitive era of the old series, and 10/11's is for the new series).

That and frankly, its been my experience that Who fandom is one of the least toxic out there, for whatever reason. Prior to the inevitable deluge of whining about them making the Doctor not a white man, the worst I'd usually see from the Who fandom was people wanting Tennant back forever because they thought he was hot or shipped Rose/Ten. And even the attacks on a female Doctor seem less vitriolic and all-encompassing than reactions to similar changes in some fandoms.

We might partly owe Moffat for that, though- he spent a lot of time foreshadowing and setting the groundwork for this development over his run, and that made it maybe less of a shock to people and more "Yeah, we knew this was coming". I'll criticize a lot of what he did as Head Writer, but not that.

Well fandoms usually don't take well to sudden changes. Furthermore, the marketing team also didn't try and make a celebration out of the change in gender of the doctor. It's less confrontational.

[The Romulan Republic]

True. Star Wars doesn't have change built into its structure to the extent that Who does, and while Star Wars is (among the more vocal fans at least) still dominated by OT-worship, there is no single era of Who at this point that overshadows all the others (at most, Four's is the definitive era of the old series, and 10/11's is for the new series).

That and frankly, its been my experience that Who fandom is one of the least toxic out there, for whatever reason. Prior to the inevitable deluge of whining about them making the Doctor not a white man, the worst I'd usually see from the Who fandom was people wanting Tennant back forever because they thought he was hot or shipped Rose/Ten. And even the attacks on a female Doctor seem less vitriolic and all-encompassing than reactions to similar changes in some fandoms.

We might partly owe Moffat for that, though- he spent a lot of time foreshadowing and setting the groundwork for this development over his run, and that made it maybe less of a shock to people and more "Yeah, we knew this was coming". I'll criticize a lot of what he did as Head Writer, but not that.

Well fandoms usually don't take well to sudden changes. Furthermore, the marketing team also didn't try and make a celebration out of the change in gender of the doctor. It's less confrontational.

I see what you mean, but at the same time, I don't see why celebrating progress in inclusiveness for women is "confrontational", except to those who are very insecure and easily threatened. I don't take celebrating the success of women as an attack on me as a man, because I don't view society as a zero-sum game played on demographic lines, where one group can only succeed at the expense of another. Besides... its like "Yeah, after millennia of subjugation and being treated as sexual property or at best second-class citizens, women can be equal, as long as I don't have to hear about it." It just seems... so petty.

But there are a lot of people who think that way, unfortunately. And maybe Who ruffled their feathers less than some other franchises did. But mostly I think its probably down to the fact that if you're that pissed off by sudden changes, you probably lost interest in Who a long time ago.

Edit: As I've said pretty much all along, Who is pretty much the PERFECT franchise to do something like this.

[Crazedwraith]

Star Wars hasn't been "confrontation" about its cast either as far as I recall.

[ray245]

I see what you mean, but at the same time, I don't see why celebrating progress in inclusiveness for women is "confrontational", except to those who are very insecure and easily threatened. I don't take celebrating the success of women as an attack on me as a man, because I don't view society as a zero-sum game played on demographic lines, where one group can only succeed at the expense of another. Besides... its like "Yeah, after millennia of subjugation and being treated as sexual property or at best second-class citizens, women can be equal, as long as I don't have to hear about it." It just seems... so petty.

But there are a lot of people who think that way, unfortunately. And maybe Who ruffled their feathers less than some other franchises did. But mostly I think its probably down to the fact that if you're that pissed off by sudden changes, you probably lost interest in Who a long time ago.

Edit: As I've said pretty much all along, Who is pretty much the PERFECT franchise to do something like this.

Whether it's a good or bad thing is besides the point. I'm simply providing an suggestion for how communities behaves. Communities feels more threatened when you remind them of the change rather than when you simply changing it without much fanfare. Sure it'll be nice if human societies as a whole can react differently, but I highly doubt so. I think most of humanity are very insecure and very easily threatened.

Star Wars hasn't been "confrontation" about its cast either as far as I recall.

Well they did try and market the idea that the force is female, which can be seen as confrontational.

[Crazedwraith]

Huh. Totally missed that marketing.