50th anniversary
Nov. 24th, 2013 01:22 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
regndoftI am having Thoughts and I want to get them out before I read too many other people's opinions.
Let's begin by saying that (as I'm sure everyone has noticed) I'm not Steven Moffat's greatest fan. I have loads of problems with his time as screenwriter, both when it comes to plot and representation. I almost didn't go to see the special in theaters, partly because I didn't find out they'd actually screen it here until the day before, and even then because I was 90% sure I'd find it disappointing and didn't know if I wanted to spend 140 SEK on a ticket for that. I was fully prepared to stay at home and rewatch The Five Doctors.
That being said, The Day of the Doctor? Was excellent.
I WAS NOT EXPECTING THIS?? But I really did love it. I haven't felt like this about New Who in years. Am I catching something? It was lovely, though. Not anywhere near perfect, but no episode ever is-- I think, for me, as someone naturally prone to nitpicking, it's more a question of whether I enjoy something to the extent that I'll be willing to overlook the less good bits and usually Moffat doesn't do that for me. Except this time he did.
It probably also helped to be surrounded by other fans who were just as pumped as we were. The theatre was almost full, and that was the second screening we attended, not the first (it was sold out). Take that, mum, who thought we would be the only ones silly enough to go (hah!!1).
"We" were me,stalkerbunny, another friend, my sister and a friend of hers, btw. Sis and friend were not actually caught up on series 7/hadn't watched more than a couple of episodes, but seemed enthusiastic enough and even more so afterwards, which made me happy. I recently got sis to watch some McCoy serials and she's really in love with Seven, so hopefully the months to come will be a successful process of conversion. :D
All that being said, what about the actual episode?
- OLD THEME TUNE AND OPENING AND COAL HILL AND CLARA WORKS THERE AND IAN IS CHAIRMAN AND THEY CAN HAVE TEA AND GOSSIP AND LAUGH AT THE DOCTOR TOGETHER RIGHT?? BRING ME FIC
- The Time War was. Welll. Very Star Wars-y, which I don't think any of us ever really imagined. I guess this being the last days of the war all the messing about with history and creating terrifying paradoxes and temporal anomalies have been abandoned for good old physical violence. The slo-mo and close-ups on children in peril felt a bit nauseatingly full of pathos too, but I suppose I can live with that. On the other hand, I really loved the costume design. It's different from what we've seen before while still retaining a sense of Time-Lordiness.
- Some people find that Billie Piper not actually playing Rose ruined the thing for them. I don't agree, mostly because I don't really care about Rose. But I also quite liked the Moment as a plot device. And it just wouldn't the an anniversary without absolutely ridiculous and lethal Time Lord technology, would it? Fucking Time Lords.
- The entire subplot with Elizabeth I being infatuated with Ten was probably my least favourite part (because someone has to be swooning over the Doctor all the time, right? And yet it was more tasteful than Rusty's line about the "Virgin" Queen), BUT. Ten was a lot of fun in this one. I think I'd forgotten how enjoyable Tennant's Doctor could actually be when not bogged down by angst and hypocrisy (and unnecessary romantic subplots, but we didn't escape that one...).
- The Zygon plotline, while largely... unresolved, was largely? Just fine?? The Zygons looked great, I loved their base and how much it looked like the original back in the 70s despite being heavily upgraded.
- Kate and UNIT and bRIG (altho I literally lol'd at the fact that the conspicuous photo NEXT TO the one of the Brigadier is... Kamelion. Seriously, KAMELION. Also why was Mike photoshopped into a picture with Sara Kingdom? Surely there's fic material there). 70s or 80s, we just don't know. Not so fond of the mindwiping, on the other hand. Osgood's "the Doctor will save me" mantra was very enervating though-- and even moreso because it was never really resolved? Especially since she did end up saving herself in the end (or am I wrong?)
- John Hurt. I WAS NOT PLANNING ON LIKING JOHN HURT. I am still extremely resentful about Paul McGann not being in it (and just being asked to return for a regeneration, eheu) but at the same time The War Doctor... was great. He was old and tired and having moral qualms and still so obviously the Doctor. He was also funny and full of snark and so over these young-old whippersnappers claiming to be his future incarnations.
- The Big Red Button
- Choosing not to press the Big Red Button
- ALL 13 OF HIM
- PETER CAPALDI'S FIERCE EYEBROWS
- AT THIS POINT I DON'T THINK ANYONE HEARD ANYTHING ANYMORE EVERYONE WAS SCREAMING SO HARD
- GALLIFREY IS COMING BACK
- Tom Baker was there. I have no idea if that scene made much sense. But Tom Baker was there and it was quiet and reflective and aowh. I probably liked it.
- End scene!!
- CREDITS!!1
- Does this retcon The End of Time? Because let's be honest anything that gets rid of that shitfest is a-ok in my book. La la laa can't hear any complaints about ~*continuity*~
TL;DR it was not what I thought I wanted, but it turned out to be something I wanted anyway. Presumably they sucked all the awesome out of series 7 just to pump it into this special instead. I am okay with that.
Still have The Light at the End left, and have been unable to watch The Five-ish Doctors because BBC hates me, or something.
Let's begin by saying that (as I'm sure everyone has noticed) I'm not Steven Moffat's greatest fan. I have loads of problems with his time as screenwriter, both when it comes to plot and representation. I almost didn't go to see the special in theaters, partly because I didn't find out they'd actually screen it here until the day before, and even then because I was 90% sure I'd find it disappointing and didn't know if I wanted to spend 140 SEK on a ticket for that. I was fully prepared to stay at home and rewatch The Five Doctors.
That being said, The Day of the Doctor? Was excellent.
I WAS NOT EXPECTING THIS?? But I really did love it. I haven't felt like this about New Who in years. Am I catching something? It was lovely, though. Not anywhere near perfect, but no episode ever is-- I think, for me, as someone naturally prone to nitpicking, it's more a question of whether I enjoy something to the extent that I'll be willing to overlook the less good bits and usually Moffat doesn't do that for me. Except this time he did.
It probably also helped to be surrounded by other fans who were just as pumped as we were. The theatre was almost full, and that was the second screening we attended, not the first (it was sold out). Take that, mum, who thought we would be the only ones silly enough to go (hah!!1).
"We" were me,
stalkerbunny, another friend, my sister and a friend of hers, btw. Sis and friend were not actually caught up on series 7/hadn't watched more than a couple of episodes, but seemed enthusiastic enough and even more so afterwards, which made me happy. I recently got sis to watch some McCoy serials and she's really in love with Seven, so hopefully the months to come will be a successful process of conversion. :DAll that being said, what about the actual episode?
- OLD THEME TUNE AND OPENING AND COAL HILL AND CLARA WORKS THERE AND IAN IS CHAIRMAN AND THEY CAN HAVE TEA AND GOSSIP AND LAUGH AT THE DOCTOR TOGETHER RIGHT?? BRING ME FIC
- The Time War was. Welll. Very Star Wars-y, which I don't think any of us ever really imagined. I guess this being the last days of the war all the messing about with history and creating terrifying paradoxes and temporal anomalies have been abandoned for good old physical violence. The slo-mo and close-ups on children in peril felt a bit nauseatingly full of pathos too, but I suppose I can live with that. On the other hand, I really loved the costume design. It's different from what we've seen before while still retaining a sense of Time-Lordiness.
- Some people find that Billie Piper not actually playing Rose ruined the thing for them. I don't agree, mostly because I don't really care about Rose. But I also quite liked the Moment as a plot device. And it just wouldn't the an anniversary without absolutely ridiculous and lethal Time Lord technology, would it? Fucking Time Lords.
- The entire subplot with Elizabeth I being infatuated with Ten was probably my least favourite part (because someone has to be swooning over the Doctor all the time, right? And yet it was more tasteful than Rusty's line about the "Virgin" Queen), BUT. Ten was a lot of fun in this one. I think I'd forgotten how enjoyable Tennant's Doctor could actually be when not bogged down by angst and hypocrisy (and unnecessary romantic subplots, but we didn't escape that one...).
- The Zygon plotline, while largely... unresolved, was largely? Just fine?? The Zygons looked great, I loved their base and how much it looked like the original back in the 70s despite being heavily upgraded.
- Kate and UNIT and bRIG (altho I literally lol'd at the fact that the conspicuous photo NEXT TO the one of the Brigadier is... Kamelion. Seriously, KAMELION. Also why was Mike photoshopped into a picture with Sara Kingdom? Surely there's fic material there). 70s or 80s, we just don't know. Not so fond of the mindwiping, on the other hand. Osgood's "the Doctor will save me" mantra was very enervating though-- and even moreso because it was never really resolved? Especially since she did end up saving herself in the end (or am I wrong?)
- John Hurt. I WAS NOT PLANNING ON LIKING JOHN HURT. I am still extremely resentful about Paul McGann not being in it (and just being asked to return for a regeneration, eheu) but at the same time The War Doctor... was great. He was old and tired and having moral qualms and still so obviously the Doctor. He was also funny and full of snark and so over these young-old whippersnappers claiming to be his future incarnations.
- The Big Red Button
- Choosing not to press the Big Red Button
- ALL 13 OF HIM
- PETER CAPALDI'S FIERCE EYEBROWS
- AT THIS POINT I DON'T THINK ANYONE HEARD ANYTHING ANYMORE EVERYONE WAS SCREAMING SO HARD
- GALLIFREY IS COMING BACK
- Tom Baker was there. I have no idea if that scene made much sense. But Tom Baker was there and it was quiet and reflective and aowh. I probably liked it.
- End scene!!
- CREDITS!!1
- Does this retcon The End of Time? Because let's be honest anything that gets rid of that shitfest is a-ok in my book. La la laa can't hear any complaints about ~*continuity*~
TL;DR it was not what I thought I wanted, but it turned out to be something I wanted anyway. Presumably they sucked all the awesome out of series 7 just to pump it into this special instead. I am okay with that.
Still have The Light at the End left, and have been unable to watch The Five-ish Doctors because BBC hates me, or something.
