[QuickTidal]

....well prepare thyself for the awesomeness that is Matt Smith then. He is a complete revelation in the first episode of Series 5 THE ELEVENTH HOUR.

"Bowties are cool."

[cerveza_fiesta]

Oh wow, gratuitous "tennant serious face" in the end of time Christmas Specials.

And good ending/"death" for Doctor Tennant. Playing up the whole time that:

and I spoiler this cause it pretty much ruins the entire 2 part show if you know the ending right away...

Spoiler

the 4 knocks were the heartbeat of a timelord / the signal to the Master / the time vortex - and then flipping it at the end so that the knocks were simply whassisface trying to get out of the radiation chamber.

I also really liked the way they handled the escape from the time-lock. Timelords had no idea what the hell was going on with the Master until the exact second they decide to implant the drumbeat signal in his head....and the Master has no idea what it is until he finds the White-Star diamond. Nice to see somebody at least make an attempt at proper sci-fi time travel. Dr. Who does it very very well I find....which is good since it's kinda the basis of the show.

Genius. I love it when TV shows have writing quality sufficient to completely surprise me. Very good acting on the part of Donna's Grandfather too...the teary old man act was damn-near bulletproof.

I wasn't a fan of the 15 minute extended Tennant goodbye scene at the end...kinda wank when the rest of the show was so cool and fast-paced. But the show often has that type of ending, so I guess it wasn't totally out of place.

One thing I didn't really get though...what was up with Tennant saving everybody's life at the end. Killing the Sontaran to save Micky and Martha, saving Sarah-Jane's son...was he just being a general dick to the timelines at that point or were we supposed to take it as Tennant trying to reconcile for his half-evil-ness in "waters of mars".

I also hope the Timelords come back as a regular bad guy. They are fucking cool as fuck. Is there much of them in the previous seasons (ie pre-eccelston) of Dr Who?

[QuickTidal]

cerveza_fiesta, on 17 June 2010 - 11:36 AM, said:

Oh wow, gratuitous "tennant serious face" in the end of time Christmas Specials.

And good ending/"death" for Doctor Tennant. Playing up the whole time that:

and I spoiler this cause it pretty much ruins the entire 2 part show if you know the ending right away...

Spoiler

the 4 knocks were the heartbeat of a timelord / the signal to the Master / the time vortex - and then flipping it at the end so that the knocks were simply whassisface trying to get out of the radiation chamber.

I also really liked the way they handled the escape from the time-lock. Timelords had no idea what the hell was going on with the Master until the exact second they decide to implant the drumbeat signal in his head....and the Master has no idea what it is until he finds the White-Star diamond. Nice to see somebody at least make an attempt at proper sci-fi time travel. Dr. Who does it very very well I find....which is good since it's kinda the basis of the show.

Genius. I love it when TV shows have writing quality sufficient to completely surprise me. Very good acting on the part of Donna's Grandfather too...the teary old man act was damn-near bulletproof.

I wasn't a fan of the 15 minute extended Tennant goodbye scene at the end...kinda wank when the rest of the show was so cool and fast-paced. But the show often has that type of ending, so I guess it wasn't totally out of place.

One thing I didn't really get though...what was up with Tennant saving everybody's life at the end. Killing the Sontaran to save Micky and Martha, saving Sarah-Jane's son...was he just being a general dick to the timelines at that point or were we supposed to take it as Tennant trying to reconcile for his half-evil-ness in "waters of mars".

I also hope the Timelords come back as a regular bad guy. They are fucking cool as fuck. Is there much of them in the previous seasons (ie pre-eccelston) of Dr Who?

Indeed they were, there was a bunch of episodes where the 4th Doctor was called back to Gallifrey, and then the whole entire season for the 7th Doctor was the Trial of a Time Lord and we saw some more in that. They never came off as right out evil...well...maybe Rassilon did (Timothy Dalton's character), but they are always arrogant and think of themselves as gods, in contrast to the Doctor who sees his own race as severely flawed.

The extended ending (the goodbyes), I guess he saved everyone's life one last time cause he knew he could. It was something he could give them as a nod to their time with him...and I was blubbering like a little girl with a skinned knee when he gave the winning lottery ticket to Wilf as a wedding day gift for Donna.....purchased with a dollar from her father before he died "Have that. Have that on me." he said. Goddamn that's a tear jerking moment.

[Coco with marshmallows]

Now THAT was a good episode



can't wait for next week....

[Binder of Demons]

They've done a great job of building up the story (and tying things together) for the season finale. Looks like it'll be monumental.

[RodeoRanch]

Helluva a first parter for the season finale. Just bloody great.

[cerveza_fiesta]

Finally almost caught up.

I just got done up to the Van Gogh episode. I liked the lizard-men 2 part episode too actually. Fave of the new season was the weeping angels one I think. Those things are damn creepy. Stoked to see what happens with the crack in time, which I assume is slated for the season finale.

And as for the new doctor's companion Amy:

Which part of her is not legs???

Seriously....holy crap. Costume director really likes putting her in "skirts"...which I put in "quotes" because they are barely even that.

[caladanbrood]

Hmm. Well, I'm enjoying the finale so far, with the exception that I've guessed pretty much everything that was going to happen. Hopefully the finale of the finale will be a bit less predictable.

[McLovin]

My guess for the crack in space-time:

Spoiler

Space-time needs to pull up its pants.

[Sir Thursday]

caladanbrood, on 24 June 2010 - 05:51 PM, said:

Hmm. Well, I'm enjoying the finale so far, with the exception that I've guessed pretty much everything that was going to happen. Hopefully the finale of the finale will be a bit less predictable.

The thing is, pretty much all the foreshadowing they've built up up to this point in the series was pointing to the first half of the season finale. I feel like there's nothing to go on for the second half, which is refreshing (no trailer to tell me vaguely what's going to happen next time = no preconceptions = more enjoyment).

ST

[Binder of Demons]

Well I found that to be a thoroughly enjoyable season finale. Not as much action as i thought there would be given the end of part 1, but it was well planned out (and tied together the whole season so well) and as a result, I found it very satisfying.

Pity we have to wait so long for another season.

[Coco with marshmallows]

I liked it.

a Series ending that satisfied while leaving left open several threads to be continued at Christmas or in the next series.

Oh, and CV, in answer to your question re Amy: not much.

[Traveller]

Just watched finale - very happy with it too. I liked the way different events throughout the series were tied in; and I just love the use of time-travel, which has been wierdly lacking in previous seasons.

Usually the plot is about alien races set on alien worlds, or in London.. which is a bit of a waste considering the interesting stuff that can be done with time travel. Anyone read The TimeTravellers Wife, by Audrey Niffenifen..eger?

..Red haired little girl meets timetraveller, grows up, meets him again, then at different points in time? THis season reminded me of that.

Have to say though, 'The Lodger' episode was very entertaining - not so much the main plot, but the new Dr really is great.. loved the football.

[QuickTidal]

Loved the season finale, both parts actually. I agree that THE PANDORICA OPENS had some really awesome action moments and even when they give us the mystery revealed about the pandorica itself I still was curious what the second part would be about cause they sewed up so much of the speculated mysteries. So THE BIG BANG for me was ALL surprise (minus my theory proving correct about the future Doctor visiting Amy during FLESH & STONE after his version of himself on that episode had already left for the control room, proving accurate) and really felt that it gave me everything I required from the finale.

A GREAT season all told, problably one of the best of the resurrected series. Much moire like the Doctor Who I remembered as a child. Moffat...you done good sir!

[Sir Thursday]

If you don't stop to think about it, that finale is a rip-roaring ride...and it doesn't let you stop to think. Really enjoyed it, although I think it might suffer a little on rewatch.


Sir Thursday

[Binder of Demons]

@ Sir Thursday
I agree with you. I'm kind of afraid to think to hard about the finale and all the time travel in case I start nitpicking. I am curious to see how it holds to a re-watch later.

Looking back now on a full season, I must say I'm really impressed by Matt Smith as the Doctor. I was hesitant when they first made the announcement, but he pretty much nailed it in the first episode and has continued on at a high level. For me, he manages to portray the right blend of being melancholic at times, as well as manic (without seeming too cheesy).

[stone monkey]

Loved it. The cold open was great: who caught that line about Richard Dawkins Star Cult? (He does show up a lot in Doctor Who, I've noticed. I guess that comes of being married to a Time Lord )

The Doctor actually cheating and taking advantage of time travel was great. But as he said, the Universe was collapsing so I think it was allowed...

Spoiler

Anyone else notice that his escape from the Pandorica is a paradox? After all, he had to be out of it to tell Plastic Rory to let him out of it in the first place...

There was a certain mournful and elegiac atmosphere to the way the universe wound down leaving only our heroes to deal with it...

Great lines all the way through too:

"I wear a fez now."

Also:

"I can buy a fez."

And:

"Come along Ponds!" (which still cracks me up)

Fantastic performances. Matt Smith is a standout; he already inhabits The Doctor in a way that David Tennant didn't even manage. You really get the impression of an old man in young body. I'm still warming to Karen Gillan's Amy; she had a fair bit to do this time around, rather than the usual look leggy and pretty and act stroppy and snarky. Arthur Darvill's Rory really came into his own this time; there's iron (or at least a sturdy plastic) under that rather bewildered exterior and you finally see what it is that Amy sees in him. And Caitlin Blackwood, who played the young Amelia, is a fantastic find I do hope we see more of her; she has a brilliant deadpan that completely undercuts the madness around her. I still don't know what to make of Alex Kingston's River Song; the character is just that bit too self-satisfied and irritating at the moment. btw My money is on her being a villain next season...

Speaking of which; I'm rather glad they didn't tie everything up neatly, as has been the way with previous season finales. Questions are still left hanging: Such as, why was the TARDIS manipulated into blowing up just then? And what is The Silence and what has it got to do with anything? Good job all round. Roll on Christmas...

[QuickTidal]

Indeed, and Moffat said that next season will finally solve who exactly River Song is....who by the way...is it me or did those gratuitous shots of her ass in spandex and her cleavage make me see her as hotter than I ever thought she was before?

[stone monkey]

[url="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJaZMCoNO6k"]http://www.youtube.c...h?v=XJaZMCoNO6k[/url]


Sound quality's pretty appalling, but I've actually seen Orbital perform this live; it's fantastic...

This post has been edited by stone monkey: 29 June 2010 - 09:27 PM

[RodeoRanch]

Going to be a long wait for that Christmas episode. I want more Doctor!