Re: Rate 'Planet of the Dead'

by **Dave Webb** Mon Apr 13, 2009 4:03 pm

Rich Flair wrote:
WTF? A UNIT captain is going to shoot the Scientific Advisor in the head for not obeying her order. Do y'think?

It must have crossed Mike Yates's mind a few times. And the Brig's.

Rich Flair wrote:
Another bit that grates: they let her steal the bus. All those UNIT soldiers and they let her nick the bus.

To be fair, no one said she couldn't. She's obviously very "with" the Doctor so maybe they assumed she was a companion and would prefer to not mess with her?

Alternatively, being squaddies they were all off for tea and a smoke once the shooting had stopped.

by **Zoltar** Mon Apr 13, 2009 4:32 pm

Rich Flair wrote:WTF? A UNIT captain is going to shoot the Scientific Advisor in the head for not obeying her order. Do y'think?

Nope, otherwise she would have. What she did was scare him. Fear is a great motivator and she hoped it would get him to do "his duty".

Rich Flair wrote:Another bit that grates: they let her steal the bus. All those UNIT soldiers and they let her nick the bus.

Sure, the UNIT chaps should've wanted to hold on to the alien tech powered flying bus, yeah. I suppose they could've showed a scene where UNIT tried to stop her and the Doctor did something to prevent them doing so, but it didn't bug me that they didn't.

by whoisthedoctor Mon Apr 13, 2009 9:13 pm

4/5 for me.

Good solid, not particularly consequential fun. Nothing too terrible important in an ongoing story sort of way (bar the odd reiteration of the Doctor's current desire to travel alone and a bit of side-foreshadowing at the end.)

Little less than impressed by the Waters of Mars preview at the end, but it was so short that it might not be doing the thing justice.

by Lucy McGough Tue Apr 14, 2009 3:14 am

I was less than impressed too. But then I remembered that the Silence in the Library preview was rubbish, and the actual two-parter was some of the best Who ever.

by stanmore Tue Apr 14, 2009 3:25 am

Dave Webb wrote:
Rich Flair wrote:
WTF? A UNIT captain is going to shoot the Scientific Advisor in the head for not obeying her order. Do y'think?

It must have crossed Mike Yates's mind a few times. And the Brig's.

Yes, I'm certain this hasn't been the first time that a gun's been pointed at the scientific advisor's head by a UNIT soldier.

Dave Webb wrote:
Rich Flair wrote:
Another bit that grates: they let her steal the bus. All those UNIT soldiers and they let her nick the bus.

To be fair, no one said she couldn't. She's obviously very "with" the Doctor so maybe they assumed she was a companion and would prefer to not mess with her?

Alternatively, being squaddies they were all off for tea and a smoke once the shooting had stopped.

I can't help but feel that Rich is nit-picking here. A raised gun and a stolen bus are hardly too hard to swallow in a series about one eccentric man and his pretty sidekicks blowing up armies of aliens...

by **Dave Webb** Tue Apr 14, 2009 5:45 am

stanmore wrote:
I can't help but feel that Rich is nit-picking here. A raised gun and a stolen bus are hardly too hard to swallow in a series about one eccentric man and his pretty sidekicks blowing up armies of aliens...

Rich makes a good point, even though normal rules of behaviour are suspended for companions.

I think one of the reasons this doesn't quite work is: it's an RTD script and he only gets to melt the bus driver. Actually, now I come to think about it further, this isn't an RTD script: none of his usual touches are present.

1: Everybody lives, bar the token Horrible Example at the beginning.

2: The Doctor actually saves the day himself.

3: His companion is anything but ordinary. In fact, she's a pretty aristo who would be a superb match for the Doctor.

Ladies and gentlemen of the Wrinkly Jury, I submit to you that this story may have been written by RTD, but I contend that all the production meetings took place on the Barnett Bypass and were overseen by the papier mache figure of Steven Moffat.

by Lucy McGough Tue Apr 14, 2009 6:25 am

Well, it was co-written with Gareth Roberts.

by **Patrick** Tue Apr 14, 2009 6:55 am

Dave Webb wrote:Ladies and gentlemen of the Wrinkly Jury, I submit to you that this story may have been written by RTD, but I contend that all the production meetings took place on the Barnett Bypass and were overseen by the papier mache figure of Steven Moffat.

Point of Information (trivial, of course): isn't the Barnett Bypass where Tegan managed to find her way into the Doctor's TARDIS? I specifically recall Nyssa pointing this out to Tegan in Mawdryn Undead when Tegan starts grousing about Turlough's suspicious arrival circumstances.

by **Zoltar** Tue Apr 14, 2009 4:40 pm

Lucy McGough wrote:Well, it was co-written with Gareth Roberts.

So they sent a papier mache figure of Steven Moffat to stand over him too?

by **Dave Webb** Tue Apr 14, 2009 4:57 pm

Patrick wrote:
Point of Information (trivial, of course): isn't the Barnett Bypass where Tegan managed to find her way into the Doctor's TARDIS? I specifically recall Nyssa pointing this out to Tegan in Mawdryn Undead when Tegan starts grousing about Turlough's suspicious arrival circumstances.

In fact no. Although the last standing Police Box was on the Barnett Bypass, it was demolished prior to filming. I used to pass it weekly on the way to my Grandparents house.

So, my reference is a ref to Logopolis and The Watcher etc.

by The Browncoat Cat Wed Apr 15, 2009 11:14 am

I thought it was a bit pedestrian. It struck me as being a standard series openner, with added houseflies to fill in the extra 15 minutes of air-time needed to make a not very special story a Special. My full review is on my web log.

by Lucy McGough Wed Apr 15, 2009 11:57 am

The Browncoat Cat wrote:I thought it was a bit pedestrian.

Me too. I dislike the specials format anyway (apart from TCI and TRB), and this one felt like it was filling in time until the Big, Exciting, Important stuff happens later this year with Ten regenerating. The location was fantastic, of course, but that's no substitute for a decent plot.

I am fed up with aliens wearing jump suits (is Earth the only planet that has invented fashion?) and UNIT felt gratuitous. I found the scientist irritating rather than endearing, and David Tennant seemed to be on auto-pilot.

Sadly, I'd have to give this Pertwee out of Davison at the most. It felt as if the Who team were painting by numbers. It would have worked as a mid-series episode with a regular companion (or two). Possibly.

This episode was co-written by RTD and Gareth Roberts, who have both written excellent Who stories in the past. Talk about the whole being considerably less than the sum of its parts!

by **Zoltar** Wed Apr 15, 2009 5:02 pm

Lucy McGough wrote:I am fed up with aliens wearing jump suits

Actually, funny story, the Flyguys were a pair of comedy janitors who got trapped on the ship when it accidentally launched. If they hadn't crashed on San Helios, they were going to have wacky adventures together on the ship for a series or two.

If the Sun quotes some of this as evidence of a proposed Flyguys in Space! spin-off, I'm going to become rather miffed. Razz

by **The Co=Ordinator** Thu Apr 16, 2009 12:56 am

Zoltar wrote:If the Sun quotes some of this as evidence of a proposed Flyguys in Space! spin-off, I'm going to become rather miffed.

I'll buy that for a dollar!

by **Dave Webb** Thu Apr 16, 2009 5:51 am

Zoltar wrote:
If the Sun quotes some of this as evidence of a proposed Flyguys in Space! spin-off, I'm going to become rather miffed.

I thought it was the reboot of Red Dwarf you were talking about.

by The Browncoat Cat Thu Apr 16, 2009 1:00 pm

This made me laugh, even if they have missed the point of the endless vistas of sand that you can only get in a desert.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZvbMA6xtjQ

by Lucy McGough Thu Apr 16, 2009 2:56 pm

That was bloody HILARIOUS Very Happy

by **Zoltar** Thu Apr 16, 2009 4:48 pm

The Browncoat Cat wrote:This made me laugh, even if they have missed the point of the endless vistas of sand that you can only get in a desert.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CZvbMA6xtjQ

The ending with the song was my favorite bit. Very Happy

by **The Co=Ordinator** Fri Apr 17, 2009 1:44 am

That is superb! Very Happy

by Dingdongalistic Fri Apr 17, 2009 3:40 pm

Blimey, is this where everyone's got to? I've missed this place.

Rich Flair wrote:Worst special yet. Weak characterisation, no depth, no jeopardy, danger or excitement and the minimum of laughs. Lee Evans managed to keep me interested, but only just. Makes The Next Doctor seem like The Christmas Invasion.

The next one looks better.

I see the tradition of Rich and I disagreeing on virtually everything is continuing in fine form. Wink

EDIT: I just love the custom avatar. Looks like something Malcolm would do.

by Dingdongalistic Fri Apr 17, 2009 3:44 pm

Rich Flair wrote:I've never actually required gravitas to enjoy Doctor Who, and don't particularly look forward gravitas appearing.

I must confess, I've never been able to take the word gravitas as seriously as I used to - not since I read about Blair/Brown. I'm avoiding all similar restaurants and words now.

by Dingdongalistic Fri Apr 17, 2009 3:52 pm

Horizon Chaser wrote:How long before the bus or final scene gets a "Chitty-Chitty Bang Bang" backtrack on YouTube?

I like that idea.

by **The Co=Ordinator** Fri Apr 17, 2009 3:56 pm

Dingdongalistic wrote:I see the tradition of Rich and I disagreeing on virtually everything is continuing in fine form.

As you haven't been around dingdong I'll let you off, but disagreeing with Rich is one of the Terms and Conditions of membership here. Razz

by Dingdongalistic Fri Apr 17, 2009 3:59 pm

Horizon Chaser wrote:I gave it a 4 out of 5 for different reasons. As I stated before I enjoyed it. I've only seen it the one time, but I'll re-watch it soon.

Here's what I think is part of the difference of perception is: I watched with my critical switch turned off. I only watched to be entertained looking for light-hearted fare - just a good ole sci-fi romp. There were bits of action, drama, and comedy. There were some clever lines. There were some nods for the Wrinklies.

Otheres, who did not like it as much, watched, I think, with a more critical eye. Their expectations were higher than mine. I also think the pre-conceived notions of what it should be may have adversely coloured their perception (or should I say reception?) of 'Planet of the Dead.'

It is this same pre-conception that is discolouring my perception of 'The Waters of Mars'. The criticism that RTD & co are falling back on themselves is justified for this piece. Clearly, it is a formulaic "space station siege" tale. We've seen this many times starting with Troughton's era. While the water destroying the rock making up the isolated space station/Mars Base may seem like a new idea, but it's really nothing more than a variation on a tired theme (especially tired for this crew). So, with this perspective going into 'The Waters of Mars' I'm giong to be harder to please.

However, when I re-watch 'The Waters of Mars' I may be more accepting of what it is for its own sake and be more entertained. Just like when I re-watch 'Planet of the Dead' next time I'll be more critical and may enjoy it less as I pick it apart.

Fair play to us all. We benefit from different perspectives, opinions, and insights of the show. I'm sure we're all just glad the show is still popular enough to keep going.

Y'see, this is why I avoid spoilers and even trailers nowadays - I don't like to try and second guess what the show's going to give me. I think that's happened in the past, particularly on the episodes my viewpoint has changed enormously on.

by Dingdongalistic Fri Apr 17, 2009 4:04 pm

Rich Flair wrote:I didn't really pick up on how terrible this bit was until the 2nd viewing:

Magumbo: Destroy the wormhole
Malcolm: No, the Doctor's coming through it on the bus
Magumbo: Okay soldier i will shoot you in the head

WTF? A UNIT captain is going to shoot the Scientific Advisor in the head for not obeying her order. Do y'think?

I read that more as a desperate attempt to get Malcolm to close the wormhole than an actual threat she was willing to carry out.

- not least because she probably didn't know how to close the wormhole herself.

Another bit that grates: they let her steal the bus. All those UNIT soldiers and they let her nick the bus.

The story's full of plot contrivances, but that one I don't find so bad. UNIT seems pretty uninterested in the interests of the police from the beginning.

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