# Doctor Who 2020 New Year Special (and current season)(Spoilers!) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [January 2, 2020, 3:11am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763 "2020-01-02T03:11:57Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 8
**Author:** ![iguanas.com](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c4cdca/32.png) [@iguanas.com](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iguanas.com)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 4:44am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/141 "2020-02-03T04:44:29Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Yeah, that was a great episode. I don’t see previews, so every twist was a surprise to me. they kept the big surprises of the previews, so you wouldn’t’ve known anyway. ---
**Author:** ![iguanas.com](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c4cdca/32.png) [@iguanas.com](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iguanas.com)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 4:47am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/142 "2020-02-03T04:47:37Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > Okay ep. The heavy handed environmental messaging took me out some. you have to wonder why the aliens of the week acted that way. pretty good episode, though. as of “Fugitive of the Judoon” (last week’s episode) I have, to my own surprise, started to like _Doctor Who_ again. Chibnall’s writing improves drastically when he has a collaborator. ---
**Author:** ![iguanas.com](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c4cdca/32.png) [@iguanas.com](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iguanas.com)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 4:58am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/143 "2020-02-03T04:58:14Z")
> [@Andy\_L](#): > > In the Tesla episode, when the gang had to jump from one train car to another, everyone made the jump easily, but Ryan hesitated. I took that to be an acknowledgement of the dyspraxia. I found out that I had dyspraxia Ryan had it, so I feel thankful for that. at the same time, I don’t like how they handle it. the emotional effect of it they handle realistically. but a realistic portrayal of dyspraxia would include: slowing down the others in a plot-relevant way because he can’t run as fast as they can. dropping and smashing things. knocking over things and alerting the villains, etc. it seems that they fear to do the un-PC thing of presenting a disability as… a disability. my dyspraxia doesn’t affect my motor coordination _that_ much but then I also don’t do the dramatic things that Ryan does every week that depend on having an average or above-average level of motor control. ---
**Author:** ![iguanas.com](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/c4cdca/32.png) [@iguanas.com](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/iguanas.com)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 5:20am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/144 "2020-02-03T05:20:08Z")
> [@GuanoLad](#): > > He also mentions heights and a few other precarious situations he’s been in. I don’t really know how the condition manifests in real life, it seems very context-specific like my own fear of heights, where I am okay going up elevators and standing on high floors of skyscrapers, and also can fly in a plane just fine, but put me on a cliff edge or up a tree and I will lock up and panic. I have dyspraxia. I have a physical disability, not a mental one. it doesn’t appear or disappear except that, like anybody else, I find it harder to do things that I haven’t done before and, again like anyone else, I have more of a problem if I didn’t get a good night’s sleep or feel tired. if you want to find out about it, do a web search, please don’t just speculate. learn about it, if it interests you. ---
**Author:** ![Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/half_man_half_wit/32/21766_2.png) [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Half_Man_Half_Wit)\ **Post date:** [February 3, 2020, 9:41pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/145 "2020-02-03T21:41:14Z")
The last two episodes were both good, with last week’s perhaps the best one of Whittaker’s run so far. This week finally used the companions in some sensible way, and the Doctor felt more Doctor-ish than the whole season so far. ---
**Author:** ![scr4](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/59ef9b/32.png) [@scr4](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/scr4)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2020, 2:43pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/146 "2020-02-04T14:43:16Z")
So in “Praxeus”, the gas-mask wearing alien looked a bit like a primitive Cyberman, and the Doctor said something about the gas mask not coming off. Was that just misdirection, or suggestive of a connection with the Cybermen? ---
**Author:** ![Alessan](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alessan/32/465_2.png) [@Alessan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Alessan)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2020, 2:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/147 "2020-02-04T14:55:26Z")
> [@scr4](#): > > So in “Praxeus”, the gas-mask wearing alien looked a bit like a primitive Cyberman, and the Doctor said something about the gas mask not coming off. Was that just misdirection, or suggestive of a connection with the Cybermen? I haven’t seen the episode yet, but it sounds like a reference to “The Empty Child”/“The Doctor Dances” way back in Season 1. ---
**Author:** ![Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/half_man_half_wit/32/21766_2.png) [@Half\_Man\_Half\_Wit](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Half_Man_Half_Wit)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2020, 3:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/148 "2020-02-04T15:53:00Z")
> [@Alessan](#): > > I haven’t seen the episode yet, but it sounds like a reference to “The Empty Child”/“The Doctor Dances” way back in Season 1. There was another reference to that episode in the one before, where Jack Harkness apparently struggles against some Nanogenes. The Nanogenes turned the people into the gasmask-ghouls, so maybe there’s a connection with a kind of Cyberman-virus/Nanogene? ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2020, 7:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/149 "2020-02-04T19:39:46Z")
> [@Broomstick](#): > > Yeah, in retrospect that whole bit with Jack was a bit strange. The set was actually extremely minimal. Jack never interacted with the actual Doctor. It’s like when they weren’t using the companions for the scenes with the Doctor and Ruth they shipped the companions out to a warehouse with a stage set, brought in Barrowman, and shot a few scenes for use later down the line. Really, until the very end those scenes really aren’t connected with what’s going on in the main storyline. I had the felling that Barrowman was never even in the same room with any of the companion actors either, like he came in for a day of green-screen work and they cut everything together later. Still, it was fun to see Captain Jack, and I hope this wasn’t a one-time deal. “Praxeus” was definitely better than “Orphan 55,” but it was the second episode of the last three with a preachy environmental message. I don’t want the show to become about that. If it turns out Gallifrey is dead because they ignored the signs of global warming, I’m out. ---
**Author:** ![Dewey\_Finn](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dewey_finn/32/4222_2.png) [@Dewey\_Finn](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dewey_Finn)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2020, 7:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/150 "2020-02-04T19:52:09Z")
> [@Wheelz](#): > > I had the felling that Barrowman was never even in the same room with any of the companion actors either, like he came in for a day of green-screen work and they cut everything together later. Not even when Jack kissed Graham? ---
**Author:** ![Wheelz](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/wheelz/32/5718_2.png) [@Wheelz](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Wheelz)\ **Post date:** [February 4, 2020, 8:05pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/151 "2020-02-04T20:05:04Z")
> [@Dewey\_Finn](#): > > Not even when Jack kissed Graham? I forgot about that bit, so maybe I’m wrong. Though most of his scenes consisted of Jack by the control panel/console thingy, while the companions stood six to ten feet away. It seemed like weird, stilted blocking to me. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2020, 5:06pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/152 "2020-02-10T17:06:12Z")
Latest one was…_okay_. But since they had the finger flinger, they should have gone all the way and given the other one boob rockets. ---
**Author:** ![vislor](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/vislor/32/5933_2.png) [@vislor](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/vislor)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2020, 5:32pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/153 "2020-02-10T17:32:48Z")
I have to say, for the first time, I disappointed in the season. I blame Chibnall, as EP and head writer. I still find a few things I like but it’s getting fewer and far between. I’m so disappointed that I only watched last week’s, since we missed it, and didn’t want to catch up because of how bad I thought it was. Yes, how they wrote the “other Doctor” in _Fugitive of the Judoon_ was how they should have written Jody. She has shown she can do that, commanding presence but still quirky, and they don’t do it for her. SciFi makes us think, should make us think, and it can be preachy. I don’t think _Praxeus_ handled the message well. It was too obvious. Again, I blame the writing. When asked if this was their future, the Doctor could have said they have a choice and they know how powerful one person could be. (Would have been a nice exit for a companion. Ah, well.) I did like seeing Ryan and Yaz being more confident, though. Maybe tonight we will watch the latest episode. I can say it’s turning me off Chibnall. I don’t have any interest in seeing his other shows. ---
**Author:** ![Personal](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/b9bd4f/32.png) [@Personal](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Personal)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2020, 6:56pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/154 "2020-02-10T18:56:47Z")
I still have yet to watch part 2 of the season opener, let alone the rest of the season. I just keep reading all these reviews from a variety of sources that make me not want to catch up. I so don’t want to be disappointed. So there they sit on my DVR collecting dust. And dammit, I love Jodie Whitaker! ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2020, 8:54pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/155 "2020-02-10T20:54:52Z")
> [@vislor](#): > > Maybe tonight we will watch the latest episode. Please do. The Doctor really demonstrates a commanding presence at the end, outsmarting a couple of quasi-Q no less! ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [February 10, 2020, 9:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/156 "2020-02-10T21:30:34Z")
IMHO, the most recent episode could have been a Troughton story with a few technological changes. ---
**Author:** ![Darren\_Garrison](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/darren_garrison/32/92_2.png) [@Darren\_Garrison](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Darren_Garrison)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2020, 12:13am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/157 "2020-02-11T00:13:48Z")
> [@Skywatcher](#): > > Please do. The Doctor really demonstrates a commanding presence at the end, outsmarting a couple of quasi-Q no less! Very, very, very easily defeating them on the first try in the last minutes of the episode. ---
**Author:** ![Skywatcher](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/skywatcher/32/254_2.png) [@Skywatcher](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Skywatcher)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2020, 1:24am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/158 "2020-02-11T01:24:50Z")
They weren’t prepared. 😉 ---
**Author:** ![DSeid](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/dseid/32/20194_2.png) [@DSeid](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/DSeid)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2020, 1:35am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/159 "2020-02-11T01:35:19Z")
> [@Darren\_Garrison](#): > > Very, very, very easily defeating them on the first try in the last minutes of the episode. Good ep but yeah too easily solved given the alleged power of the villains. I was expecting some twist on her boredom with eternity as part of the solution. Was his discussion about The Guardians ( playing on the same board) something that foreshadows? ---
**Author:** ![Andy\_L](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/c67d28/32.png) [@Andy\_L](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Andy_L)\ **Post date:** [February 11, 2020, 2:16am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763/160 "2020-02-11T02:16:59Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > Good ep but yeah too easily solved given the alleged power of the villains. I was expecting some twist on her boredom with eternity as part of the solution. > > Was his discussion about The Guardians ( playing on the same board) something that foreshadows? The Guardians and the Celestial Toymakers were both mentioned. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763.md?page=7) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-2020-new-year-special-and-current-season-spoilers/845763.md?page=9)