# Doctor Who Series 9 discussion (spoilers as it airs) **URL:** \ **Category:** Cafe Society\ **Created:** [September 19, 2015, 11:40am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754 "2015-09-19T11:40:59Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 20\ **Page:** 11
**Author:** ![Penfeather](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penfeather/32/384_2.png) [@Penfeather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Penfeather)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 7:56am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/201 "2015-10-01T07:56:49Z")
> [@standingwave](#): > > Two countries separated by a common language… > > Even with subtitles, the slang still throws me at times, like when Missy called the Doctor a ‘swot.’ I had to google that. It’s the same as a “clever clogs”. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 10:02am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/202 "2015-10-01T10:02:44Z")
I watched the two. Generally enjoyed the pair of episodes, but did feel the lead in was a bit long and unnecessarily clunky. Missy is great. Not that I want her to be the Doctor’s constant companion or villain, but she played a great job in this role here. > [@Nobody](#): > > The colors of getting zapped and teleporting were different. If I remember correctly, getting shot by the Cybermen was red, and teleporting was green. When Missy got “shot” she glowed green. BBC America reran that prior episode before the first of this season. (I needed the Christmas episode, dammit.) Disintegration causes red dust to fall. Teleportation is blue energy streaming up. The Doctor witnessed each from Missy’s device. Clara had not. Ergo, he hit the button and she went teleport, not disintegrate. The bigger question is whether the Doctor intended to teleport instead of dust her. The look on his face suggests not, but he didn’t let on to Clara either. > [@Penfeather](#): > > The short [Prologue](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8-fFyrxbSes) to the episode. Moffatt, why must you taunt me thus, serving up noisy gimmicks and pointless characters in the episode but hiding scenes like this? This was much better than much of what you served up in the episode, just a great character scene with some cracking acting and great dialogue, and it set the scene wonderfully. I agree, overall that was a great clip and it sucks stuff is unaired. Though it would have made the reveal of the Doctor hiding behind the rock not as much of a surprise thing. I was a bit miffed by the “it’s Davros” and that sets his hatred for all eternity, but justify it wasn’t the Doctor’s abandonment, it was the overall life spent at war. > [@dropzone](#): > > And how did the Doctor get a tank through the tiny TARDIS door? It’s a TARDIS. You just move the dimension differential and make it closer in this dimension, so it’s bigger. Then open the door. Oh, a tractor beam, how silly. > [@DSeid](#): > > How did “mercy” get in there? Through Dalek’s getting it from their father because The Doctor planted it there in his childhood? Okay that could explain why that Dalek in a past season could see beauty and mercy once his emotional dampers were damaged, but the Dalek inside the shell was killed before Clara went in. The shell is not the Dalek. No, it’s not the Dalek, it’s the Dalek _langauge_. You see, everything Clara says inside is translated into Dalek, but then when it is broadcast outside the armor, the gift of the TARDIS allows us to hear it in English. But it’s translated from Dalek, which doesn’t have those words, so it can only say words that Dalek contains. > [@Master\_Wang-Ka](#): > > That being said, it remains unclear why she tried to manipulate the Doctor into killing Clara. But, then, that’s the kind of thing that would tickle the hell out of Missy… for no other reason that it would tickle the hell out of Missy. That’s why she didn’t tell him Clara was okay when he asked. She’s all “what about me?”, but then later she has the chance to set up the Doctor to kill his companion, because that’s just the kind of mean prank she would pull. > [@Nonsuch](#): > > I agree that the show has changed enough that era-to-era comparisons aren’t always meaningful, and that the old show can look hokey compared to the show of today. But I reject the idea that the producers of the classic series somehow didn’t understand television the way today’s post-Whedon producers do. They were not transplants from the world of theater; they understood their medium just fine. The culture has shifted and audiences demand a different approach to fantasy stories than the more broad, on-the-nose style of the 70s. Yes, many movies and television shows of that era are clunkier and slower and more plodding. It’s a shift in cultural expectations. > [@Morbo](#): > > So why was the Doctor so certain he was going to die at the start of last week? My DVR cut off right when Missy ran away and the Doctor was trying to unhook Clara from the Dalek - did they explain it then? They never explained. Or why he suddenly has a will thingy he’s never used before despite facing death. The “send to a Timelord” is a fanwank that is thin but at least there. No, I don’t like the sonic shades replacing the screwdriver. As mentioned, screwdrivers can be brandished. Shades, not so much. Yes, the Doctor was too smart to touch the cables early. He specifically suspected a trap and avoided Davros’s requests he touch them for various reasons. So when he finally did, he did so knowingly. Did he expect to die? Was destroying the Daleks again that important to him? Or did he fully expect to get rescued by Missy? Set that up with the disk thingy? Knew about her teleport bracelets and knew she could pull that. The TARDIS being destroyed was a ploy. It was done to make him seem more vulnerable. He lied. Dispersal was just to hide it from the Daleks. ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 3:00pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/203 "2015-10-01T15:00:49Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > …but then later she has the chance to set up the Doctor to kill his companion, because that’s just the kind of mean prank she would pull. > … Or did he fully expect to get rescued by Missy? Set that up with the disk thingy? Knew about her teleport bracelets and knew she could pull that. …yeah, I guess I can see Missy talking the Doctor into killing Clara as a prank. Which makes me think, “Teleport or no teleport, I am NOT counting on Missy for ANY damn thing.” ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 7:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/204 "2015-10-01T19:11:18Z")
> [@Irishman](#): > > They never explained. Or why he suddenly has a will thingy he’s never used before despite facing death. The “send to a Timelord” is a fanwank that is thin but at least there. I thought it would turn out that he did that to get Missy to show up… except in the end, it really didn’t matter that Missy and Clara were there at all. The only real purpose they played was to give the audience an explanation of how a Dalek sewer works. Also, it bugged me that all Clara had to do was think, “Open,” to get out of the Dalek. If that’s all it took, how did it not pop open the instant she met the Doctor and he couldn’t tell it was her? Wouldn’t “Open up, you stupid thing!” basically be playing on a constant loop in her head at that point? ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 7:45pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/205 "2015-10-01T19:45:10Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > I thought it would turn out that he did that to get Missy to show up… except in the end, it really didn’t matter that Missy and Clara were there at all. The only real purpose they played was to give the audience an explanation of how a Dalek sewer works. > > Also, it bugged me that all Clara had to do was think, “Open,” to get out of the Dalek. If that’s all it took, how did it not pop open the instant she met the Doctor and he couldn’t tell it was her? Wouldn’t “Open up, you stupid thing!” basically be playing on a constant loop in her head at that point? Actually, I just figured she panicked. Being in that thing couldn’t have been comfortable, and being on Skaro would give ANYONE the creeps, even if they hadn’t come up via a Dalek sewer. That being said, it bothered me that there is an apparently insane Dalek in front of the Doctor, jabbering “I am a Dalek, I am a Dalek, I am a Dalek,”… and he nearly shoots it? Maybe the Eccleston Doctor, but not this one. And, sure enough, he figures it out… ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 8:28pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/206 "2015-10-01T20:28:49Z")
> [@Master\_Wang-Ka](#): > > Actually, I just figured she panicked. Being in that thing couldn’t have been comfortable, and being on Skaro would give ANYONE the creeps, even if they hadn’t come up via a Dalek sewer. Right - panicked, on a nightmare planet, trapped inside a small, confined space, and about to be killed by her best friend - and she didn’t once think, “I WANT THIS THING TO OPEN RIGHT NOW!” until the Doctor told her to? ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 8:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/207 "2015-10-01T20:57:29Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Right - panicked, on a nightmare planet, trapped inside a small, confined space, and about to be killed by her best friend - and she didn’t once think, “I WANT THIS THING TO OPEN RIGHT NOW!” until the Doctor told her to? People have burned to death pulling like hell on a door that said PUSH. Plus, I will admit, if the Doctor, of all people, was pointing a Dalek zapgun at me, and I felt that he would likely use it, it would do nothing for MY composure. ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 10:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/208 "2015-10-01T22:07:48Z")
> [@Master\_Wang-Ka](#): > > People have burned to death pulling like hell on a door that said PUSH. Right, because they weren’t thinking, “How do I operate this door to effect my egress?” They were thinking, “OPENOPENOPENJESUSFUCKINGCHRISTWHYWONTTHISOPEN!” Again, all she had to do to get out was think, “Open.” I don’t find it realistic that she wouldn’t be thinking that on nearly a constant loop in that circumstance - and even _less_ realistic if she was panicking. ---
**Author:** ![anyrose](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/54ee81/32.png) [@anyrose](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/anyrose)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 10:13pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/209 "2015-10-01T22:13:58Z")
I’m curious, **Miller**. Have you ever been in a true panic scenario yourself? I have. The rational thinking part of the brain just shuts done and instinct takes over. It takes tremendous effort to think rationally in that situation, and only the most disciplined can do it. I would not call Clara disciplined by any stretch of the imagination. More likely, she was having a flashback to Oswin, and couldn’t get past the “OMG!OMG!WHATDOIDONOW?” phase. ---
**Author:** ![Penfeather](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/penfeather/32/384_2.png) [@Penfeather](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Penfeather)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 10:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/210 "2015-10-01T22:17:06Z")
> [@Master\_Wang-Ka](#): > > …yeah, I guess I can see Missy talking the Doctor into killing Clara as a prank. Which makes me think, “Teleport or no teleport, I am NOT counting on Missy for ANY damn thing.” I think that with Missy she was testing the Doctor: _everything_ is a test with her; she constantly sets people up in horrible situations but with some way out, and if they can find the escape they’re worthy of her company, up until the next trap. Clara failed miserably; I like to think Donna would have hauled off and punched her out. ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 10:22pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/211 "2015-10-01T22:22:04Z")
No, I understand **Miller’s** point; I just don’t necessarily think that EVERYONE would react that way, is all. It’s called panic. Still wouldn’t count on Missy for much of anything. ---
**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:** [October 1, 2015, 10:35pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/212 "2015-10-01T22:35:19Z")
> [@Miller](#): > > Right - panicked, on a nightmare planet, trapped inside a small, confined space, and about to be killed by her best friend - and she didn’t once think, “I WANT THIS THING TO OPEN RIGHT NOW!” until the Doctor told her to? I got the impression that she wasn’t aware the unit _could_ be opened until she was told. ---
**Author:** ![Aquadementia](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/aquadementia/32/555_2.png) [@Aquadementia](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Aquadementia)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 10:57pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/213 "2015-10-01T22:57:46Z")
I wouldn’t think “open” until I found a button, handle or latch to open it. Otherwise I’d be to occupied wonder “how does this open?” “where’s the seem for the door?” or “is there some sort of button, handle or latch?” ---
**Author:** ![Miller](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/miller/32/481_2.png) [@Miller](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Miller)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 11:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/214 "2015-10-01T23:01:52Z")
> [@anyrose](#): > > I’m curious, **Miller**. Have you ever been in a true panic scenario yourself? Yes, I have a panic disorder, and get panic attacks somewhat regularly. ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 11:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/215 "2015-10-01T23:02:37Z")
I forget; how’d Missy open it? And more importantly, I’d think Clara would be more’n a little concerned about how to get OUT once she was IN. Like I said, I wouldn’t depend on Missy for anything. ---
**Author:** ![AlsoNamedBort](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/alsonamedbort/32/3213_2.png) [@AlsoNamedBort](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/AlsoNamedBort)\ **Post date:** [October 1, 2015, 11:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/216 "2015-10-01T23:17:35Z")
Also, based on Missy teaching her to turn right and left, it’s not just thinking the word “open.” It’s like how I can think, “Raise my left hand” right now but nothing is happening. ---
**Author:** ![Irishman](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/i/b487fb/32.png) [@Irishman](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Irishman)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2015, 6:04pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/217 "2015-10-02T18:04:40Z")
I’m still trying to figure out why Missy needed Clara. She set up the stopped planes to get Clara’s attention, why? Oh yeah, Clara had the computers to locate the Doctor. Why drag her along? For the fun of it? As a “sandwich” (a la Orphan Black)? ---
**Author:** ![Master\_Wang-Ka](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/master_wang-ka/32/3325_2.png) [@Master\_Wang-Ka](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Master_Wang-Ka)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2015, 6:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/218 "2015-10-02T18:07:34Z")
Ever since Roger Delgado, the Master has _always_ needed an audience to be at his best. ---
**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:** [October 2, 2015, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/219 "2015-10-02T19:18:25Z")
Look no farther than the title … A Doctor may need a Companion (or pet) but a Witch like Missy needs a familiar. And what’s this about [a new spin-off for teens](http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-34415344) … Class? ---
**Author:** ![Baron\_Greenback](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/baron_greenback/32/48_2.png) [@Baron\_Greenback](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Baron_Greenback)\ **Post date:** [October 2, 2015, 7:27pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754/220 "2015-10-02T19:27:51Z")
> [@DSeid](#): > > Look no farther than the title … A Doctor may need a Companion (or pet) but a Witch like Missy needs a familiar. > > And what’s this about [a new spin-off for teens](http://www.bbc.com/news/entertainment-arts-34415344) … Class? It’s going to be set in the [Coal Hill School](https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Coal_Hill_School). That’s got quite a history in Who, but the history of Who spin-offs is mixed, at best. We’ll see. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754.md?page=10) [Next page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/doctor-who-series-9-discussion-spoilers-as-it-airs/731754.md?page=12)