tardis_stowaway | Doctor Who S7 Thoughts

I haven't yet seen 7x05, but I have thoughts about Doctor Who series 7 so far! I'm enjoying it more than S6, although Moffat's episode was my least favorite by far.

While Asylum of the Daleks was a good episode in many ways, there were a number of things that I very much didn't like. Like many of the plot arc episodes in series 6, it felt overstuffed. Especially at the beginning, the episode seemed to jump around as frantically as an eight year old with ADHD on a sugar high. The explanation of what was going on in the Dalek ship went by way too fast. Maybe this would be less annoying if I watch the episode again.

I don't want to be one of those fans who gets up in arms about alterations from previous canon, but the Daleks acquired a few too many new abilities at once for my taste. Some of those new abilities and activities seemed to deviate a long way from their basic mission. Daleks value purity and consider themselves vastly superior to every other lifeform. The Daleks in "Parting of the Ways" were forced by desperation to rebuild the race from humans, but they pulped the humans down to the component cells, weeded the cells out to only the most Dalek-like, and still hated themselves for their polluted origins. They aren't like the Cybermen, who are out to convert other lifeforms into themselves. The Daleks' conversion of human bodies into their puppets seemed unlikely enough, and I just don't see them EVER putting an entire human mind into a Dalek as they did with Oswin. Also, if they have nanogenes that can convert humans into Dalek slaves, why the fuck don't they just release them on every planet they can get to? And how is Skaro in existence and not time-locked and/or blown up? And why the hell have we given the Doctor another nickname that is much lamer than The Oncoming Storm?

I could forgive a considerable lack of logic from the monster plot if the character-driven story was good, but it wasn't. The last thing I wanted from Doctor Who was another plotline revolving around Amy Pond's uterus. I know that infertility can cause stress and marital strife for a lot of couples, but after the damn mystical pregnancy plotline in S6 I really wish Moffat had found some other reason for their marriage to be suffering that didn't concern Amy's reproductive system. While I wanted to see the emotional fallout from Demon's Run addressed, this didn't even mention the daughter Amy and Rory had stolen from them. It didn't address Amy's feelings about having her bodily autonomy violated so badly aside from her guilt at being unable to provide children for Rory. Not for herself, for Rory.

It was just plain lazy writing to have the marriage fall apart offscreen so the episode could cut straight to the reunion. Also, I know Amy is not the best at communicating her feelings with Rory, but I still find it extremely difficult to believe that she was able to have enough medical tests done to determine for sure that she was infertile, then ruled out adoption entirely, all without ever letting him have the slightest hint of what was going on, then attempted to divorce him without even telling him the reason. Finally, Rory is normally my favorite of the Moffat-era regulars, but he was really being a dick when he said that him loving her more was a basic fact of their relationship, then threw the 2000 years guarding in her face. It's not like she was offered that opportunity and turned it down. Not cool, Mr. Pond.

Unpopular opinion time! I've read reviews from a number of people who thought Oswin was the best part of this episode. While I thought the reveal about her was powerful and moving (though, as I said earlier, not very believable as a stratagem by the Daleks), I was not super fond of Oswin herself. I felt like the episode was trying so very hard to tell me that I should be charmed by her that my response was to feel something like "You don't get to tell me who to like, Moffat! I DO WHAT I WANT!" She seemed to be falling into the River Song & Irene Adler mold of perfect flirty Moffat dream-girls.

There were a number of things that I liked about the episode! First, it is on the very short list of episodes that actually make the Daleks scary. That is no small feat. It was often visually impressive, especially the room where Amy saw a ballerina that was actually a Dalek. As mentioned earlier, I thought the reveal about Oswin was well done. I'm intrigued to see what happens when Jenna Louise Coleman returns as a companion. I desperately want Oswin to be the companion while still living in a Dalek shell. We'd get to see the actress reacting to things in her little imaginary room, but the Doctor would still have no idea what Oswin looks like other than a Dalek. They could have adventures where she has problems with the ability to levitate and they have to find ways to save the world that don't require stairs. She could learn to use the plunger and the whisk-arm to make soufflés in the TARDIS kitchen. It would be awesome.

Moving on, I found Dinosaurs on a Spaceship to be a much more enjoyable episode, although it still had a few problems. It delivered exactly what was promised on the tin, and it did so with humor and style. Rory was a badass nurse, Amy was competent and fun, and Rory's dad made a lot of sense for Rory's character. Eleven kissed Rory on the lips, out of who knows what mix of attraction and simple puppy-like excitement. Nefertiti was awesomely queenly, although I REALLY didn't like the ending where she apparently left behind her queenhood to shack up with a somewhat sexist hunter, even if he was charming, talented, and attractive. A one-night stand I would have believed, but it's not like she can easily go back from his time to hers once the Doctor leaves.

Solomon was a pretty over-the-top bad guy, but it was still quite chilling that the Doctor ensured his death. This is a big sign that he's been traveling alone for too long. (And speaking of that, what the heck is he doing on his own for so long without any indications that he's trying to find a full-time companion? He picked Amy up in the Eleventh Hour because he realized that being alone was bad for him. It was one thing when he was counting down to his death at Lake Silencio. It makes zero sense now, with doom no closer than it usually is for him.) Eh, whatever. There were dinosaurs on a spaceship! And Brian!

A Town Called Mercy addressed some of the themes I find interesting in Doctor Who: the tension between doing what is right for the victims and the need to be better than the bad guys, people who are mirrors for the Doctor, reminders of the Time War. The Doctor rode a horse. I thought the episode was a nice mixture of fun and seriousness. On the downside, Rory had pretty much no purpose for being in the episode. This episode lacked the special something that makes for a really outstanding episode of Doctor Who, but overall I enjoyed it.

The Power of Three

-THIS EPISODE FILLS ME WITH JOY.

-Apparently Chris Chibnall has attended the Steve Thompson School of Vastly Improved Writing. Huzzah!

-Look at all the character arcs being addressed in a way that makes both logical and emotional sense! Look at the way Amy and Rory BOTH have conflicted feelings about continued travel with the Doctor! Look at how the Ponds get to look hot in Victorian finery and orange underpants! It's glorious!

-Laughing forever at the cube playing the Chicken Dance on loop. Also Amy accidentally ending up married to Henry VIII.

-I'm now doubly bitter to the plotline of River Song being Amy and Rory's daughter, because if the Doctor wasn't already married to their daughter then I think I might be shipping Amy/Rory/Doctor right now. (Look at the episode title!) As it is, I start to get shippy feelings and then get skeeved out. Oh well.

-Was it just me, or did that hologram on the spaceship bare an uncanny resemblance to Emperor Palpatine? I don't think the rest of the ending made much sense (why exactly were the Hoover-faced medical orderlies kidnapping people?), but I really don't care because I was laughing at the Palpatine look-alike and the rest of the episode made me too damn happy.

-Brian Williams: new favorite Pond? Maybe not, but he is pretty amazing. I loved his dedication to watching the cubes.

-Amy's uterus was not a part of the plot, and she has a job that makes sense with her interests. IT'S CHRISTMAS.

-Kate Stewart! Scientist woman in charge of UNIT! References to the Classic Who past! This is awesome.

-I loved that we got glimpses of the Ponds' life on Earth, including people who are important to them, so we could actually SEE the reasons why they might stay on Earth. Then they choose the Doctor anyway, at least for now. Because how could you not?

-Eleven is adorable with his inability to sit still and his unfailing tendency to plonk himself down between Amy and Rory. Also, I really liked his heart-to-heart with Amy. This episode brought out more feelings that I've received from Doctor Who for a while.

I will probably see comments to this entry before I see Angels Take Manhattan, so please no spoilers! Even hints!