I didn’t see a thread on last week’s (on the Sci-fi channel here in the States) episode “Girl In the Fireplace” and only just got around to watching it on YouTube. (And since the new episode will be in an hour or so, I guess I’ll start the thread for it.)
Anyway, “Girl In the Fireplace” - loved it! I was genuinely impressed in every way. The story was unique for “Doctor Who”; built around a time paradox and the Doctor trying to defend a single person rather than saving the whole of the human race. The clockwork robots were great monsters. Even the romance between Madame de Pompadour and the Doctor worked. I really felt bad for the good Doc when the hearse pulled away. Great acting on behalf of David Tenant and “Madame de Pompadour.” This is my favorite episode of the new series thus far.
That said - tonight’s episode has the CYBERMEN!!! Yay! Can’t wait.
Liked the look of the cybermen – they were much like their usual appearance, but updated. I wonder if they have the same vulnerability? Ricky was also an interesting character.
But didn’t the cybermen’s creator remind you of Davros?
I’ve never had opinions about Mickey’s acting one way or the other, but seeing the actor play his alter ego “Ricky” left me boggling that this guy can get a job acting. I haven’t seen acting that bad since I don’t know when.
I wonder if Ricky’s going to sacrifice his life for Mickey? Or maybe Ricky will get killed, and then Rose and the Doctor begin to mourn because they think it’s Mickey, until Mickey jumps out from behind a bush or something.
Okay, so I missed the sci-fi airing yet again and had to catch up with it on Youtube today. So anyway -
Were the Cybermen supposed to be erased from history (in the ‘normal’ universe) in “the Time Wars” along with most of the Time Lords and the original race of Daleks? Nothing in the episode said so, but neither Rose nor Mickey seemed to be aware of the Cybermen, when (in the original series) they were already well-known to the human race by the early 21st century.
I don’t share the general anti-Mickey attitude that most fans of the show seem to have, although I do think that the writers haven’t given him much to do but piss & moan about being left out in the cold by the Doctor & Rose. I’m actually glad they gave him something to do in this story.
The creator of the new Cybermen did seem a bit reminiscent of Davros, but it makes sense to me that a wheelchair-bound mad scientist might want to create a cyber-suit that would enable him to walk (presumably because of bionic implants). I started to wonder exactly why Davros would have built his ‘master race’ with what are essentially wheelchairs rather than substitute limbs?
Perhaps this is nitpicky, but I’ve noticed that all the cliffhanger endings for the new series are virtually the same - the Doctor, Rose, Mickey (or Captain Jack) & whoever else are surrounded by the alien / monster / menace of the story, menacing figures advance, cut to credits. It happened in “Aliens of London”, “the Empty Child” and now in this story. It’d be nice to see some more variety.
Rose’s reaction when she saw the parrallel universe Jackie with her dog (named Rose) was a well-done touch. Man, what a bitch Rose’s mum is, in any universe. Here’s hoping she gets Cyber-ized!
All in all, a decent outing, but I wasn’t blown away. The Cybermen look great though, and I’m looking forward to seeing how it’s all resolved.
I don’t think that Cybermen were erased from our universe’s time line, I just think that the UN (UNIT) and/or world governments have “covered up” all this alien stuff. Sure, sure, the whole “10th” planet thing was supposed to take place in 1986, but maybe it was a mass hallucination? Doctor Who hasn’t ever been very good with consistency.
Like the look of the Cybermen, but really, “Delete…delete” was a bad choice as a catchphrase. Trying too hard to make them more like Daleks, I guess.
Unfortunately, the Cybermen’s original catchphrases (“Resistance is futile” “emotions are irrelevant”) were stolen by writers from Star Trek: TNG and given to the Borg.
Be careful what you wish for, those Earpods of hers will turn out to be more trouble then their worth, and don’t think you’ve seen the end of the Cybermen yet…
Okay, I haven’t watched Dr. Who since the olden days of Doctors Four through Six…
Why are there no more Time Lords? There’s only one TARDIS left?
My favorite villains were always the Daleks, Cybermen, and The Master. I’ve only been watching since the Werewolf episode. Obviously the Cybermen have made their first appearance…but what about the other two?
What regeneration is The Doctor on? I’m guessing 10ish. Am I right? Are there any plans for what happens when The Doctor hits 12? The last Doctor only lasted a season, right - seems like the legendary Doctor could hit magic Regeneration 12 pretty quick…
Series 1, with Chris Eccleston as the Doctor, had Daleks. He was officially Doctor #9, and David Tennant is #10.
As far as the Time Lords go, supposedly there was a massive Time War with the Daleks, destroying Gallifrey and wiping out Most of the Daleks. You know…they’re like cockroaches. They just keep coming back. The Doctor doesn’t think any other Time Lords survived.
The TARDIS is the last of her kind…for now.
I read something where the head producer/writer said something along the lines that if the Doctor runs out of regenerations he’ll just discover the magical crystal of “ZOG” and boom, new regenerations. How serious he was, I don’t know.
I thought the parallel between the creator of the Cybermen in this episode and Davros was very cool. After all, they’re in a parallel universe: things are similar (wheelchaired crazy genius creates super-race) but not identical (Cybermen vs Daleks.)
I don’t find Mickey irritating, but I do find him incomprehensible. We’ve finally started putting the subtitles on when we watch, so we can understand what the hell they’re saying. Accents thick enough to cut with a knife.
Never actually shown: the ninth doctor was portrayed as being the last survivor.
Not that there were many shows set on Gallifrey on the old series (they didn’t even name the planet until the third doctor). Offhand, I can only think of handful of series actually set there (“The Deadly Assassin,” “The Invasion of Time,” “The Five Doctors,” and parts of the “Trial of a Time Lord” arc).
I must be the only person that really likes Mickey. Perhaps I identify with him more than any other companion of the Doctor since Ian and Barbara. Sure, you can go gallivanting across time and space, but do you really want to risk life and limb to do it? Once you leave there’s no guarantee you’re coming back.
I can see your point, and he doesn’t annoy me as much as others.
Persoally, I sympathise with a guy who is very much the afterthought and the third wheel. If the Doctor needs to choose between saving Rose or Mickey there wouldn’t even be the least hesitation.