Doctor Who "Boom" EPISODE 3 REVIEW
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- Опубликовано: 16 май 2024
- Steven Moffat is back to Doctor Who with a fun bottle episode... or should I say back with a bang?
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Found an interview where Moffat explains the "Thoughts and Prayers" as him just trying to get people to *stop saying it*.
Gonna post it here because it's such a good quote, and it makes me love this episode even more. Moffat's writing can be a mixed bag but damn when he's on point, he's really on point.
"Because I want people to stop saying it. It is witless; it is appalling that in the face of people's genuine tragedy and traumatic loss, you trot out a stock phrase. What is the matter with you? "Thoughts and prayers?" How about you send money? I mean, how about you send some help? How about you do something? "Thoughts and prayers" is, "Nevermind. Oh, well."
I thought that if I can just get it in there like, "Exterminate," as what evil robots say, then maybe people will stop saying that idiotic phrase."
Oh, I shall watch that...
I think this is the second dig at Republicans, the other being about preventing birth control, then not looking after the kids that are born as a result (Space Babies)
@@bookie5667I don't think Moffett, Bad Wolf, or the BBC are taking pot shots at Republicans in the US.
However, there are people around the world who don't understand the hypocrisy they see in the US... And if it's used in a story so be it, there it is.
I get the frustration he feels, but sometimes the only thing you can do to help someone is let them know you're hoping for their welfare. Like, for example, the average person can't cure their relative's cancer, and can't do much to tangibly help with the actual problem. So, to try and show their support and let the person know they're a shoulder they can lean on, they might trot out a "meaningless" platitude. Its like saying "rest in peace" and even "how are you?" You can't villainise the nicety, just inspire people to act when they can.
However, I feel that despite that poor take, the use of the phrase in the episode is correctly villainising corporate and meaningless uses of the phrase rather than the use case I mentioned above.
@@thenamelessdragon If you want to express your condolences, then do so without using what is essentially a catchphrase. Either actually relate to/express how bad the situation is, or don't talk at all.
I love how Moffat is in the thumbnail as if he's a character in the episode
In a certain light, he kinda looks like a Doctor in that shot.
I literally screamed when the Doctor talked about the drums, and he started a freaking *BRAZILIAN FUNK* rithm beat! 🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷🇧🇷
Now that part I did not like. I read it as the Doctor letting off steam after have had to be so very still for so very long. I didn't read anything else in to it.
The ambulance specified "calendar age" when it pulled up Ruby's age, so yeah, it's a "pulled up old records" thing ^^
I also liked the kid at the end stating "Dad isn't gone. He's just dead." - because it doesn't matter if you believe or in what you believe, if you keep the memory of a person alive, the person isn't truly gone. Dead, but not gone. It was such a nice way of framing, because it felt less religious then other phrases could've been.
I thought it was just a reference to the fact that due to 51st century tech, death isn't as scary as it is today. Like Nine said in The Doctor Dances: "What's death to a nanogene?" But yeah, your explanation makes more sense.
Yeah I like it. If she needs to believe in a heaven, let her. But mainly he'll live in her memory forever ❤
What's that quote, you die two deaths, the first when you cease living and the second when your name is mentioned for the last time? It's kind of like that.
@@RickReasonnz The two I think of most are from Sir Terry Pratchett
“Do you not know that a man is not dead while his name is still spoken?” - Going Postal
“No one is finally dead until the ripples they cause in the world die away, until the clock wound up winds down, until the wine she made has finished its ferment, until the crop they planted is harvested. The span of someone’s life is only the core of their actual existence.” - Reaper Man
@@MultiClassGeek Hm. Seems Pratchett kept the thought of death forefront in his mind.
I will say the fact the doctor seems to appear when needed is tackled in the epsiode where the Tardis os forced into a human body.
The doctor complains she never takes him where he wants to go and she replies "i take you where you need to be".
Its clearly an excuse to explain why the plot happens but there is an in universe "logic" and its the TARDIS did it
Bingo. That's the thing to always keep in mind. Everywhere they go, the TARDIS is the compass.
@@kadosho02And with how Sexy has been acting over the last couple of episodes...makes me wonder if she's trying to get Fifteen to figure out Ruby's mystery by using certain times and places on her "To Do" list - and you know the TARDIS has a list of places to visit and people or civilizations to save, but knows certain incarnations would be better at it than others - to nudge certain things into happening.
@@generalilbis indeed there so many connections, meant for a reason
And also it's an active war zone, where people die constantly. I have no idea why Jessie is so confused that someone died when the Doctor happened to land.
Honestly honestly it doesn’t even feel like an excuse, it just feels like how things are supposed to be
After classic Who fans had to get used to it becoming Series 1 in 2005, it’s fun to watch modern fans refuse to acknowledge it becoming Season 1 now.
It's honestly hilarious how uptight some new fans can be over a simple change when it's already happened before
@@Venemofthe888 It's almost like they think the show started in 2005 or something. XD
As someone who has followed it since the 1970’s, I thinks it’s such a trivial issue I can’t believe people actually get upset about it.
the gap between Survival and Rose was 16 years (9 years if you go with the TV film), the gap between Power of the Doctor (the last episode of New Who) and the Star Beat is 1 year and 1 month, or 1 year and 2 months for TCORR
It's extra jarring because I had to get used to calling seasons "series" when I started watching British shows, and now I apparently have to go back to using "seasons"...
absolutely unprecedented levels of We Are So Back this week, such a great episode
The doctor discusses how beautiful the planet is and how there is nothing to fight. Ruby is still getting changed, and it is established that it is her first new planet. So I think they landed and the doctor was prepping for the big reveal, not realising that it would be an active war zone. Then he ran out when he heard a scream, which makes sense.
Also it's an active war zone with people dying all the time... and Jessie is confused why someone happened to die when the Doctor was there. I don't even know where to start with that weird comment from her.
I think Ruby’s age was the simple math of the year she was born to now. They did the same thing with Amy in The Beast Below when she entered the voting booth. However, I think Ruby’s age is going to be something because when The Doctor scans her at the end of Space Babies it shows her age as “10 years + 3 months”.
I think it said 19 years but the font made it hard to see
@@taanwallbanks9841you’re right, it does say 19 years. The font threw me off
The question of Faith in Doctor Who has been longstanding - The one that always gets me is Curse of Fenric, where characters can fend off the Haemovores by the power of faith itself, not faith in a particular thing.
When the Seventh Doctor needs to protect himself, he recites the names or his former companions, the people he believes in the most. Not a blind faith, in any sense.
"Dad to dad" they have brought up the doctors family more in the last two episodes than in the last decade.
Its promising
It always kind of bothered me that they never talk about his kids
the Blind Father was killed by the AI Ambulance because the 4 weeks needed to heal his blindness in a hospital would have cost more then his value fighting in the field.....the bottom line, the corporation did not want to spend the money to heal an injured soldier when his death saved them so much more money
also they need a certain level of casualties, otherwise it would quickly become obvious that there isn't another side in this war
Though they were willing to spend resources on keeping his child there.
I think losing the child would have "decomplicated" this, streamlined it down - just have it be another soldier who is his partner as the emotional link, or I'd you need a parent, make them parent and child both fighting
Probably also a dig at the "death squads" who would kill all patients that became too costly when Obamacare was going to come in.
@@prestigepea1235spending the little bit of extra resources on having one extra person there is pennies compared to the cost of repairing some bodies blindness, even with future technology factored in
People seem to be missing the point that the guns the soldiers use don't kill anyone.
Even the mines only work by turning the soldier into a weapon.
The AMBULANCES kill, the guns are the reason you need an ambulance.
I had a list of introductory episodes. For a looong time it was just Blink and Midnight. Now it's Blink, Midnight, and Boom.
Thought the same thing!
Tbh Blink is a terrible introductory episode. You want to pick representative episodes. Nothing else is like Blink (also picking some what are considered the best episodes as an intro might not always be the best idea since it could lead to disappointment).
@@Aneurin_Hunt Eh. Blink is what got me hooked.
Well, that and the space Titanic episode, but that's a story for a different day.
@@Aneurin_Hunt I can see the argument both for and against Blink. It is Doctor-lite, and it can be a bad idea to start with the best of the best due to disappointment like you said. But I've found that the very fact it is Doctor-lite gets the viewer interested in the story and learning more about his character. The Doctor's limited presence forces a newcomer to the show to learn alongside Sally about who he is and how he knows what he does, which creates increased interest in the character and raises the stakes in the episode. Using such a good but stand-alone episode also shows the very sort of provocative and entertaining sci-fi concepts the show can tackle, proving that the show is great, when the first episodes can be goofy and rough for new people.
No Rose/Pilot/Eleventh Hour?
So about the Doctor turning up here...
The Doctor : You didn't always take me where I wanted to go.
Idris : No, but I always took you where you NEEDED to go.
The Doctor : You did!
Have we forgotten The Doctor's Wife so soon?
With the kid's reactions, the very strong impression I got is that, as scripted, the hologram of her father was intended to be a Star Trek style fully-realistic image that she would accept as being real right up until she touched it, and still mostly perceive as real even afterwards. I'm guessing that they went with the Star Wars style obviously-fake projected hologram at some point in post-production, perhaps to avoid confusing the audience, and that left the kid's responses to it looking unrealistic.
I read the drumming diary thing being him burning off the suppressed adrenalin
Also the melody he mentioned, reminds me of Wakanda. Instruments help tell a story, where you from, to how you feel, and the atmosphere
Susan Twist was the Ambulance AI....that is now "Wild Blue Yonder", "Church on Ruby Road", "Space Babies", "The Devil's Cord" and now "Boom"....Susan Twist may either be a part of the Toymaker's Pantheon....she might be Susan.....or she could be "The One Who Waits".
She is also Susan Triad. From the Trailer.
There's always a twist at the end
@@EwanDavidson-xs5fg S Triad, anagram of Tardis. Is she somehow the human form of the Tardis again? explains how she can jump around in time.
@@keith.morganRTD does love his word games.
Also Munday is the Same actress as the next companion
Ruby's age of over 3000 was the AI Ambulance pulling up old Earth Records.....in "The Beast Below" when Amy was forced into a voting both the AI did the same thing to determine that Amy was infact still a citizen of the United Kingdom
I was hoping someone would mention that. I thought it was a nice callback. But I also like the idea that it could have a double meaning.
On thing that I just realised is that Monday is played by Varada Sethu, who is set to play the new companion in the next season.
I think it should be called "Season 40" .
Honestly at this point the 2024 season is the best way to refer to it.
Season third 1
Season D-1, for Disney.
Season 40 for us old Who fans, but I do get why Disney was reluctant to put out a 'new' show and mention that it's multiple seasons in.
Vol. 3, 1x3 😥
I'm surprised the continued use of the fourth wall breaks wasn't mentioned. When Ruby and the Doctor were talking in the TARDIS doorway near the end of the episode, they were staring straight into the camera. It may not have been entirely intentional, but it felt very much so.
I hate fourth wall breakages but I didn't read that as one of them.
To be fair, this isn't the first time the Doctors given a monologue that is arguably given directly down the lense but also has the plausible deniability of talking to somebody else who's there
@@TetchyEquationListen?
John De Lancie is coming to a comicon near me June 2-3. If I get to see him, I will tell him I can't wait til Identiteaze. It comes out the day before my birthday too!
Ahh happy earlier birthday! And yes, please do!
As an atheist, I loved this perspective and the very direct and undiluted message it had. If we have overt religious messaging in so much of our media, I love it when I see that rare counter to that. So your negative to me is a damn big positive.
Oh, me to for the same reason, but I have learned not to paint all 'believers' with the gunk of an organised religion.
@@tortysoft that's not the point...media often has only the religious perspective and very rarely the atheist perspective front and center from the lead voice.
@@chemicalhap I took your pont and made another.
Organized religion isn't all bad but it certainly can be. I've been an atheist before so I understood the Doctor's sentiments toward it. Religion is a big part of my life now so I feel differently at this point. Though I suppose the organized religion I'm in places far less emphasis on faith than evangelical christians for instance. Even as a person who does have faith I honestly don't think the episode as a whole was too demeaning about it. It points out many problems that exist within some groups and I agree that it's good to have an atheist perspective represented as well. We certainly have enough Christian media that's for sure, though I wouldn't say that's the case for most other religions. The Doctor's initial feelings about faith didn't feel great even if I've had the same take before, but by the end it was nuanced enough in my opinion for both perspectives to exist.
I hate both in your face religious messaging and in your face anit religious messaging so huge L
Regarding trying to "not offend anyone" is that by deliberately trying not to send a message, itself sends a message. You see it in videogames where the protagonist is ALWAYS a generic grizzled white guy. Any deviation is seen as being "woke" and sending a message. By trying to be neutral, you're inadvertently making a statement anyway.
I'm all for diverse stories, but I'm also all for recognizing where progress is made. This was a talking point from the early 2000s, but it hasn't really been true for a while. I mean, this week's big release is the sequel to the game about the viking girl suffering from psychosis, last week was all about the indie puzzle horror game with a woman as a protagonist and the sarcastic narrative horror game about a Russian nun. The big release from the other console maker is the samurai game. There's the black Spider-man games, the upcoming second season of the hit TV show about a grudge between two women that heavily features a trans character. We get pansexual vampires, Caledonian toddlers, buff Greek bisexual street fighters, several playable cats and tons and tons of character creators.
"Always a grizzled white guy" hasn't been a thing for a decade, and that's great. It's ok to acknowledge it.
@@mademedothis424 Yeah, but my point is that games where that isn't true, are the ones that the gamers throw tantrums about.
They complain about the Viking girl, but not about the Caucasian boy, even though both protagonists each send their own message about what's considered to be the "default" ethnicity, gender, etc. for the lead character.
@@antney7745 Sure, but the bigots complain arbitrarily. They complain about female characters not being "hot enough", they complain about black characters being "unrealistic" in fantasy settings. This week Ubisoft announced their game set in feudal Japan stars an actual, real, historical black guy... and now they're complaining that the realistic historical figure is not representing Japanese people.
They kinda just... complain. There's nothing you can do to appease them. And the gaming industry doesn't, to their credit. They threw a hissy fit about neutral pronouns in character creators, too, but those are increasingly standard.
And, importantly, they used to whine about black or female protagonists more. Turns out no, they don't complain about the viking girl much. Because nobody cared the first time they did and now it's the sequel and everybody knows that fight is lost.
So yeah, they're trying to push the stupid culture wars for clicks and views, but nobody is seriously trying to appease those guys anymore. Like I said, credit where it's due, the gaming industry features more diverse and flexible characters, the "grizzled white guy" archetype has not been the default for a while, and certainly not for that reason.
Ncuti this episode proving the importance of balance boards, yoga and meditation...one day you might step on a bomb and need great balance and relaxation techniques to stop it blowing up.
Why is everyone misunderstanding the age thing. It's just based on her birthday. It said "calendar age". And did the maths. These are future humans that checked her records. This happened way back with Amy in the beast below. The voting cubicle thought she was really old.
Ladies and gentlemen, boys and girls, step right up, step right up! Behold the amazing tent of STEVEN MOFFAT REFERENCES! To your left, we have the weapon factories of Villengard, straight from a name first dropped in Moffat's first ever episode of Who! Did you know there's a banana grove there now? To your right, we have the Catholic Church being all military again in the future, from that Weeping Angels sequel that probably shouldn't have happened! Over here in our library we have... oh! It's "A dying mind gets uploaded into the cloud at the moment of death, preserving a tiny fraction of consciousness that constantly repeats phrases!" And deeper into the exhibit hall we have, of course, our main attraction: a fish fingers and custard reference!
Look, the good parts of this episode were the snappy dialogue, the incredibly tense sequences with the bomb, Ncuti Gatwa acting his face AND ass off, and the bottle-episode-y, high-concept simplicity of it all. And to be clear, that's most of the episode! And also to be clear, keeping him at ONE episode, safely contained within an RTD-helmed season, is an extremely judicious and acceptable use of your Moffat.
BUT. This man craves the smell of his own butthole so goddamn much that he cannot resist falling back on his ONE trick of being like "Hey, remember that MOFFAT episode? You know, that MOFFAT episode, written by me, MOFFAT?" It's like how modern Star Wars thinks that all we care about are Star Wars references. With the notable difference that Star Wars is more than just one incredibly conceited dude, and it has arguably done more to EARN some of its nostalgia. This episode could have been INCREDIBLE if my guy Steve had just come up with a NEW war being fought by NEW soldiers, using NEW robots. As it is, I just kinda felt cheated. I wanted to watch an episode about my friends Ruby and the Doctor, and I ended up watching an episode about my guy Steve.
I've not watched your review yet, its 3AM here and I still can't calm down.
I've never been held so hard and so long by the show in it's 60 years.
I'll post more after the UK has seen it in daylight and I have watched your review. I expect it to be glowing !
I loved this episode. Ncuti’s acting skills are incredible. I was blown away. He gives Tennant and Capaldi a run for their money. Such a small episode with such big concepts. Well done Moffat! ❤
Although, we were all convinced Susan would be returning when we saw the picture of her on 12’s desk in series 10.
That's what I keep saying. And that's also why I'm keeping my hopes low.
Goodness I remember that too and I think I remember saying "it's just a picture on a desk"
This episode was a wonderful exploration of the Doctor's own faith.
That faith being faith in humanity. Even when it makes no sense to have it.
At the beginning, he has faith in Ruby's curiosity. That she'll ignore his instruction to stay behind and come find him.
When Ruby is shot, he tells her she can't die because he needs her. He believes she'll survive for no other reason than he needs to believe it.
Later, he has faith in a father's love despite, according to Mundy's outburst, the thing he wanted the ai to do being outside its capacity.
And this faith he has in humanity, he holds while standing on a landmine on a battlefield in a war driven by lies and greed. About the worst humanity has to offer. And it's amidst the worst we have to offer that the Doctor shows his faith in the best parts of us.
What an episode.
And of course he's a major hypocrite to Mundy about faith.
I love the ones where the Doctor learns a lesson.
I think it muddled the faith discussion a little bit with time restraints. Wish it'd been a little more clear on the problem being faith in a system. But it had a lot to say as an episode and said most of it rather well.
Except the problem wasn't faith in a system. Faith wasn't the problem at all. But since the characters belong to a religious army, their institutionalization can be easily coopted by the systems which govern their lives and keep them in perpetual war. They don't believe in the system; they just take it for granted. It's not quite the same thing. Everything you say about the Doctor's faith here is true. In fact, faith in family is what saves the day.
I just don't think the ending salvages the attacks on faith, so this disconnect prevents me from enjoying this episode.
I'm not saying this with anger towards you, Jessie, I'm livid about the reality of the subject:
The murder of disabled people by the state is a CURRENT issue. It's not historical. Disabled people who could easily survive AND thrive if given treatment and/or basic financial support. They are being killed by their governments RIGHT NOW, including in the Global North; for Anglosphere Who fans this isn't some far-away thing, it's being done to people in our local communities.
Assisted dying is currently on the table here in the UK, and I'm in favour of it in principle. BUT Canada is using it to murder its disabled population, something I never see mentioned by anyone other than disabled Canadians.
And given that the British government already uses starvation to kill disabled people here, putting those two things together, it's no stretch to see that Canada's crime could be coming here in the near future. I appreciated the nod to the issue in this episode, as well as the other political elements. I would like to see full episodes of any show condemning it, tbh; it's been culturally erased for far too long.
Solidarity with disabled people worldwide at immediate risk of murder by the state, and I ask all abled people to please include that when listing ongoing genocides and abuses of human rights.
Anyway. Great review, thank you ❤. I agree that Splice's personality was way too young for the actor cast, that was weird. Overall, I thought it was tremendous, and I say that as someone very "ehhhh" on Moffat's writing generally
You're so right
+
I'm fully convinced that the kid in this episode had somekind of mental impairment. She clearly isn't perciving the situation as clearly as someone her age would be expected to, which to me signals that her cognitive faculties are not developing fully. This would explain why the father needed to get special permission to bring her to the front lines instead of leaving her with his parents. She was fully dependent on his care. Even while the dad is out on patrol he's talking to her over comms, something that wouldn't be easy to do if she was on another planet. And the kid clearly has no concept of death or self preservation; even the soldiers grieved for the dead, so it wasn't a religion thing. This kid wasn't fully perceiving reality.
I sort of interpreted it as the result of her upbringing. Like the war has been going on for so long she takes any potential danger or risk for granted. It could also explain why she was exclusively focused on her father more than anything else at the beginning. Do I think she was written flatly? Yes. But I do think that her behaviour is realistic to some degree.
I felt like the kid was cast too old, or maybe suffered from a partial rewrite at some point. Like, she clearly understood the technology of her time well enough to track her dad down on an actual battlefield, but somehow couldn't tell an unrealistic hologram from her actual father? This kid who lives in a war camp and has more than likely seen how casualties are returned? She's confused enough to try to hug it? It was the moment that shook me out of the episode for a bit.
She has enough awareness to pick up on the two soldiers crushing on each other, but she seems to think Ruby and the Doctor are hiding an adult man in the clearly empty crater. Again, she grew up in a war zone, but no one ever warned her about the land mines out there and maybe even what they look like? Idk, should've been maybe 5 years old for what they had her do.
Have you heard of a revolutionary new concept called “denial”?
@@Jackson-ub1uv Sure. But generally denial would be "This can't be true," or, "He can't be gone," or similar. Denying the thing that hurts, not denying the way commonplace things work. Like, seeing a loved one pass via video call might make someone deny that the video was real - it seems super unlikely it would make them think they could physically reach through the screen to hold hands. I feel like that's a big step past denial.
@@mandassassin Maybe she's just delusional; I could see a child getting it into their head that their dad _must_ be there because they heard his voice; that belief might then be reinforced by the appearance of an interactive hologram of the father, with the child then latching onto it for comfort.
@@Jackson-ub1uv I just don't think anyone in the story is reacting to her like she's delusional though. I work with kids of all ages every day. If one of them was having a break with reality, people would be concerned in a very different way than just oh-how-sad-she-lost-her-dad. And honestly, the whole writing of the character was internally inconsistent to me, not just the hologram bit.
I get where you're coming from, but I'm allowed to not buy into what the writers are putting down.
@@mandassassin Fair enough
And don't forget the headless monks
Thank you, i completely forgot they exist
I love the way that the Doctor ends up right there when someone needs him. I love the conceit that the TARDIS always takes him where he needs to go because it's an entity that's aware of all reality all at once. I like Fortune.
Also, yeah, that kid's lines were written for a six year old. But even then, she knows how to read a geotag and find her way through a battlefield, but also she's confused and stupid and wants to touch the hologram but also knows it's a hologram and doesn't notice everyone arguing and being angry and tense?
Canto dying really fucking hit me because "I love you, and it doesn't matter if you love me back" is literally something I've said. But also he died like ten seconds before the dad AI fixed everything.
But yeah, Ncuti and Ruby are *so good*. And Mundy is played by Varada Sethu, who will be coming back in Season Two.
I don't know if the daughter was meant to be this, but...
My youngest daughter was diagnosed soon after her birth with global developmental delay. Basically, in every area of development, physical, emotional, social, whatever, she has always been behind the mainstream. For much of her school days, she was shorter and clumsier than her peers. Speech came slower. Picking up any sense of her relationship with others and responsibility for self-care... In some areas, she's advanced. Fiercely intelligent and compassionate. But it often looks to others as if she is intellectually incapable.
I don't imagine that is the intention, perse. My daughter's situation is uncommon, and can make some people uncomfortable. But I think a number of people express themselves or relate to others in awk-weird ways.
Anyway.... There's always going to be people who "don't act their age". I get frightened sometimes by my own obtuseness in certain situations. But those people are around us, and we can't make them something other.
I loved this episode so much, for so many reasons. THIS is how you take down a modern corporation run by an algorithm in a sci-fi show. Rather than making them out to be the good guys (I’m glaring at you ‘Kerblam!’). The tension throughout the episode was palpable and I teared up at the end when Splice said her Daddy isn’t gone. 🥺 This episode hit my buttons emotionally, logically, intellectually, politically. All the best buttons! I loved the double meaning of the title too. Essentially, business is booming and booming is business. Fantastic. I think Moffatt did it again; I think he wrote the best episode in a series overseen by RTD. 🤣 Kiss kiss. 😉
Loved this one too! Had a few of the same issues, but telling the soldier she’s a “faith grl” when she equivocates was fine to me bc they are all just about dead if she does nothing. (Gee never heard of that before…) So frustrating, I totally get it!
The Doctor is not indulging the girl at the end, but is right there with her, believing how the father lives on. They both have very different beliefs; one in a literal heaven and The Doctor in how we all live on in other's memories and hearts.
Regarding your dissatisfaction of them arriving at that exact time... just remember back to "The Doctor's Wife"......
"You didn’t always take me where I wanted to go."
"No, but I always took you where you needed to go."
Wild Blue Yonder was the start of the "gods" from outside of the universe era we are in.
"Pantheon Era"
The moment about Faith that started to irk you, I was punching the sky, Yes! Thank you!! Different folks different strokes.
I loved this episode. This was properly done to me in almost every way. This is like Girl In The Fireplace level good though, not Heaven Sent.
The mysteries interest me but not to the point of heavy speculation. That said, I'm more interested to see how Varada comes back! Is her character the same as who she'll be in Serial 2, or related by blood in some way like with Danny Pink that time, or what? Another Clara-type thing seems dumb, especially with them casting Susan Twist in every episode. Is she like Karen Gillan in Fires of Pompeii, getting her job in the future by being great in this?
I would have shouted my support with the first Faith comment - but was also delighted by the second one later on.
Oh I keep missing the Susan Twist bits, well, it is 3AM for me.
To be fair, Heaven Sent is like the highest bar possible! A Girl in the Fireplace is still a really good episode. I was hyped for this one as soon as I heard whispers of a "the Doctor steps on a landmine and can't move or it'll blow" episode, and was not disappointed at all. Amazing premise executed very well.
Maybe she is regenerated Susan.
This was both a *fantastic* bottle episode and a real heart-wrencher. It just overflowed with emotion and says a lot of things about the military industrial complex that need to be said often and loud. Ncuti got me so good, every tear and every shaky breath felt painfully real.
This also proved my personal theory that when Moffat is allowed to run wild, he's awful (still angry about what he did with Coupling), but when he has a strong guiding hand he's capable of creating some truly transcendant work. And that's nothing to be ashamed of! Some people need someone to keep them focussed!
That moment of "Just because I don't like faith doesn't mean I don't need it" was so strong. Faith doesn't have to be religious, and faith in other people is what makes us human.
More proof that Moffet is a fantastic episode writer. Really really strong episode and a great shake up of the typical doctor who plot with the whole episode taking place on the landmine.
The Doctor saying they were explosive was kinda giving 7th Doctor Cartmel Plan Vibes and I love it❤
Agree that the child "Splice" was a bit grating at times. Got strong (Orphan 55) "Benny!!!! Bennnny! Benny!...." with her constant calls for "Daddy!".
She seemed to be a stronger character before entering the Battlefield. May need another rewatch... see if Splice exhibits a bit of "regression" when faced with her Father's death. (Thinking Buffy Summers discovering "The Body" of her Mom and reverting to "Mommy" when trying to get a reply). Don't think it happened (or at least shown)...
Think "Splice" and "Monday" (Mundy Flynn) both got good intros but afterward lose that goodwill from me... Willing to keep an open mind
Honestly, the kid really reminded me to "Are you my mommy?"
The guy who played the dad in the episode also played Max in Across The Universe. One of my favorite films of the 2000s
My biggest problem with Steven Moffat has been his conviction that The Doctor should never have to deal with grief. He thought it was somehow better for The Doctor to FORGET Clara than to grieve her loss! That just isn't healthy.
The Doctor ALWAYS loses the people he cares about; it's a fact of life for an immortal living among mortals. Yes, _Doctor Who_ began as a children's show, and many people still consider it to be a children's show, but it deals with serious issues, adult issues, and when it does so it needs to show children how healthy, responsible adults face those issues.
Not every child lives in an ideal situation, with two healthy, loving parents and however many healthy, loving siblings. Children lose people, too. They can be orphaned. Many of them have experienced the loss of one or more beloved grandparents. They lose pets all the time. To tell children that it's better to forget the missing loved one is just sick.
I'm so glad that the pushback he got on this issue seems to have gotten through to Moffat. In "Boom" we meet a child with the wisdom to hang onto all the good things about her father, to hang onto the love, even after her father's death. It still doesn't deal with the grieving process - that takes time and the episode just covers one day - but it leaves us with the conviction that both of the characters who've lost a loved one will be all right. They WILL grieve, together, and they will help each other make it through.
Boom had me at the edge of my seat in a way the previous ones this season haven't, that basic lesson of tension about the ticking bomb really works. It's funny how a criticism of the last couple episodes, that he ran twice in a row and all, is followed by one where he has to stay absolutely still.
Great review but you may have missed the (Susan) Twist in this episode.
i am considering BOOM to be a continuation of the political messaging of the 12th Doctor's episode "OXYGEN".....the message is GREEDY Corperations will try to make as much money on anything, even the "DISGUSTING" expense of life.....starting a war against dirt?
Funny how it works like that
This episode was phenomenal! Best of the RTD 2 era in my opinion. I forgot that when Stephen Moffat isn’t writing his own long-form story, which he’s kind of bad at, when he’s just writing episodic one-offs, he’s a fantastic writer. This is some of the most Doctor Who-esque dialogue we’ve ever had. It was filled with so much tension. My shoulders still hurt. And it was filled with all of Moffat’s classics: religious soldiers, evil robots, faltering tech. And it finally felt like Ruby had a defining moment as a companion in defying the Doctor by handing him John’s casket and not tossing it. I also loved the inclusion of the “Skye Boat Song.” Does anyone know what the Doctor was saying about the dead president and his wife? Was he quoting something or is that another clue to this season’s mystery box? I think the whole "Faith in and of itself not being a bad thing" is addressed when Slpice says that her dad's not gone, just dead.
A very obscure reference to the season 9 episodes The Magicians Apprentice and Hell Bent - at some point in the First Doctors life it is stated that he “stole the moon and the [Gallifreyan] President’s Wife” - haven’t seen anyone else pick up on it yet, which surprises me because Who fans tend to be a pretty anal retentive bunch… poor form, folks! I grinned when it was mentioned. Do your homework!
This episode was incredible, this to me is doctor who at full force. I was kinda nervous about Moffat coming back I guess because of the few issues I have with him as a showrunner, but as a writer this was has singlehandedly given us some of the absolute best doctor who individual stories. And not shit on Russell, but this reminded me how mid many of the episodes under his original run could be. I think Russell understands the heart of the show the most out of the three showrunners of the revival and thus why his og run is the most nostalgic for me, but yeah, so many of the episodes of those seasons only become great when thought of in the abstract taking the seasons as a whole.
My favorite episode in a long time. Agreed about the child but it's something I can live with when so much else is right in the episode.
The Doctor has mentioned he's been a dad before especially in the episode the doctors daughter. I don't think it's even a reference specifically tied to Susan it's more the kids the character had and surely Susan being his granddaughter wouldn't count as him being a dad but more a fatherly figure
That kid spoiled the episode, they were acting like the hologram was actually her dad.
The "Fish Fingers and Custard" reference distracted you from the fact he said: we 'll see each other again. And they will! Because she will be the new Companion, when the Mistery Box is solved.
One thing I'm loving in the current season/Doctor is the repeated use of music. Ncuti's Doctor sang to stall the Goblin King, he played piano to stop the Maestro (and danced at the end), and he sang the Skye Song to defeat the land mine's sensors, and I am HERE for it. Music is a great way to add a numinous, fantasy aspect to a story, so a musical Doctor lands for me. Waiting to see if Moffat continues to make music a theme (pun intended) of these stories
Can we just say Splice looks like a mini Rey, there's even a scene in the end where she hols her dad's remains like a light sabre.... just saying.
yea I thought the same
The Tardis always brings The Doctor where he's needed.
I thought the machine not being able to identify Ruby's mum was such A weird move. Like dude. We KNOW her bio parents are a mystery and we KNOW it will probably stay a mystery all season, no need to shove it in a place where it doesn't really work. If that machine can pull up Ruby's name and birthday it could surely find some document referencing her adoptive mother, it makes no sense for it to get stuck on identifying biological relatives.
A couple of episodes ago we had her saying they'd see her mum on Christmas and, of course, she was referring to the woman who raised her and I loved that. I don't like this idea that adoptive families are less important than biological relatives and although Ruby's bio parents are the big mystery I'd been hoping we'd get plenty of her loving and being happy with her adoptive family.
Dr Who is still going strong. Looking forward to seeing how this season works out
Im my opinion the best episode since Capaldi left. Though I doubt the Anglican Church will last 30 years let alone 3000.
Before I address this episode, I want to say congratulations to Jessie on getting the teaser out for Identiteaze. John de Lancie has such a perfect voice for that menacing voice over - I was generally interested in seeing what you'd made, but now I am genuinely intrigued to see more.
Anyway, this was a fantastic episode, really strong writing, and certainly my favourite since the Tennant specials (not sure if it edges out any of them, would have to spend a while debating it with myself). It certainly feels a lot like a Moffatt episode (especially that resolution), feeling echoes of the Library & gas masks in WW2 without feeling like it was just stealing from his prior work or anything. The directing was fantastic, really emphasizing the emotion and tension, and great performances from Ncuti Gatwa especially but also Millie Gibson. Ruby Sunday's quickly established herself as a good companion, even if she initially felt very much like Rose Tyler 2 and now has some Clara Oswald traits (makes sense to see more of those in a Moffatt episode, I suppose) - it doesn't feel exactly like them, but I could certainly see Clara doing a lot of what Ruby does in this episode.
My biggest problem with the episode stems from the broader story of the season, the Impossible Girl 2: The Squeakquel aspect of it all, as that plot has bothered me for reasons I can't explain outside of saying "this feels like another version of the Impossible Girl story". I was also a little thrown off by the Doctor slagging "faith" - I know it was meant to be an attack on organized religion, but it feels odd for him to attack the concept of faith. I agree the girl seemed too childish for her age (at least after she first talks to the Doctor & Ruby), it was starting to bother me a bit.
this episode had me holding my breath and nervous for this bottle episode.
Moffat really doesn't like ambulances...
They did specifically say “Calendar age” for Ruby not “biological” so yeah I think they looked up medial records of when she was born. (Or at least when her earth records say she was born)
Yes. It's SUPPOSED to be a soft-reset 'Season 1', but I'm finding it extremely difficult to suspend my disbelief this time.
Ruby Sunday had NEVER met The Doctor, nor seen a TARDIS, nor travelled in Time and Space before, yet she's strolled into that life with barely a question, and trusts The Doctor from the off. Rose, Martha, Amy & Rory, Clara, etc, etc. . .all had a good few episodes before they were truly comfortable travelling with The Doctor.
Re the kid, her behavior is explained by her faith as shown at the end. It's also the point where he supports faith - as you saw :-)
The Moff is back baby!
I read the drum diary bit as enthusiasm for drums.
This episode was so well done. Every part, and moment.
Btw congrats on your film 🥳🎉🎉🎉
"Designated favorite person" is pretty cute ngl
Oooooooooh. So Ruby's gonna be Susan, huh. That... could be neat.
Moffat has a pathological issue with his Anglican Space Marine gimmick.
Has he even met an Anglican?
Moffat's anger was palpable this episode.
Have you heard about the theory about the Trickster (from Sarah Jane Adventures) being the big bad in this season? There are many hints leading to that. The pantheon of Chaos (known menbers are Trickster, Toymaker and Maestro), and Toymaker and Maestro being embodiments of entertainment, the mention of "the music of the Spheres" when the Doctor met the Graske, who worked for the Trickster, then the memories of Ruby manifesting, the Doctor being able to regenerate, thus being the embodyment of life. Maybe the Doctor is a member of the pantheon too.
Remember Sarah Jane Adventures? Sarah Janes adopted daughter in the last season was supposed to turn out to be the daughter of the Trickster. But they couldn't finish that storyline, so maybe they are picking it up here and they are going to make Ruby the daughter of the Trickster now
It's a war torn planet and people die all the time. That's the point of the episode!
Jessie: "How come someone just died when the Doctor arrived"
Many, many congratulations on your film. You have worked hard to get it done, and you did. That's more than 95% of the currently living humans manage. Wishing you and for all the people who participated in the film to be recognised and appreciated.
Regarding Ruby's age, the AI in "The Beast Below" made a similar reference to Amy Pond's "age," so I think it's fair to assume that this is just an AI thing. AIs aren't sophisticated enough to deduce that The Doctor and his companions are time travelers - how could they be? It's hardly an everyday occurrence.
nice trailer; as for 'Boom', some nice characterization (esp for the Doctor), even if a bit forced for the others. I agree, the daughter needed to be played by a younger actor. At least Moffat didn't use the Silence or the Papal Mainframe in addition to the soldier/clerics. This was, overall, again ok, no bad episodes but none that have totally thrilled me.
This episode is as dense as a Philip K. Dick novel. So many ideas that could be their own episodes on their own.
The Doctor Who classic episode with Jon Pertwee, The Green Death is the fifth and final serial of the tenth season, was very "woke"
Doctor Who was always 'woke' from Susan telling off an Aztec priest for being sexist on forwards. XD
@@eshbena Every stupid person: "No it wasn't woke. It was progressive. Now it's woke because [standard ramble]."
@arubinojr5670 everything progressive is "woke"
"Woke" is just the modern word the right uses.
In the past, they used other words.
I think the daughter character Splice was written for a 6 year old and they cast a 12 year old. Well that is how it came off anyway. This is the only thing that took me out of the story at all. It was great overall.
That was my major complaint about the episode. If she's supposed to be 12 then she should be able to realise that's a hologram and not actually her dad. If she was 6 then I'd be willing to give benefit of the doubt.
Yeah, that kid was *way* too old to behave like that!
That edgy atheist moment was a bit much, even for me (an edgy atheist), and I was glad to see it was changed. By the end of the episode, I figured that the Doctor was maybe trying to provoke Mundy, but by then I'd already forgotten what the scene was exactly about.
Moffat doesn't make his side-characters feel like fully fleshed out people, he uses a short cut (and I'm saying this as a massive fan of Moffat since long before Doctor Who) which is to create caricatures. He digs deeper into them later if the format allows, but his starting 'trick' is to create someone with a hat, write to that trait, and let you do most of the 'character' work yourself.
Chibnall's era had very real, very believable, people that had their real thought and behaviors and interactions - and a lot of people didn't like it.
Moffat does the opposite - he starts off with a trope, and people love it.
And Moffat himself knows he does this, and parodies it HIMSELF within the show - remember the two married soldiers we met at Demon's Run? What were their names?
As a note, the doctor’s mentioned being a parent or grandparent every episode of this season thus far, which is *so* many referencing. And the reference about “the moon and the presidents wife” is actually a reference to the moon and the presidents daughter… who’s supposed to be susan.
I'm in my 70s, and to the best of my knowledge I've seen every episode of _Doctor Who_ (which isn't to say that I actually remember every episode). Ncuti Gatwa is the first incarnation of The Doctor (not counting William Hartnell or the single episode Doctors) who has seemed to me to be fully The Doctor from his very first appearance. All of the others needed time to work into the role.
Do you remember Alan Rickman as Hans Gruber in _Die Hard?_ How about Alexander Dane in _Galaxy Quest?_ And Professor Snape in the _Harry Potter_ movies? One actor, who brought three totally different characters to life (not to mention all the other characters he played throughout his career). And Alan Rickman was so good at what he did that I have trouble seeing the actor when I watch the movie - all I can see is the character. I think Ncuti Gatwa is that good.
That kid was about 10 years too old to act like that (only slight exaggeration). Aging her down "sightly" wouldn't have helped much. They either needed a much younger actor or changed her writing completely.
Other than that the episode was great though. Reminds me of the episodes Moffat wrote before he became showrunner.
The age thing is probably a reference to the Starship UK episode where Amy is given a similar scan and it recognizes her as a UK citizen and offered anvote regarding the space whale. I imagine all the doctors companions are never officially declared dead for various reasons
Thank you for the video, Jessie!
That was an excellent episode by Steven Moffat, and overall, it was able to make its points to come across very well, especially about capitalism driving wars, religion and people's lives and deaths.
Two curious things about the episode: it was a "bottle episode" taking place (narratively) in open air; and Varada Sethu, who portrayed the cleric Mundy, will also portray a new companion of the Doctor next year.
What an episode this was! I forgot this was the Moffat episode! I was tense and unsure what was going to happen. I would say this is my favorite so far as well. Also congrats on your movie, I will look into that trailer as well!
❤ thanks for the great review!
Love the film teaser! But live video? Can't find that, where is it?
I REALLY needed someone to break it down to the girl that her dad is dead. It's the elephant in the room that dragged the episode down for me. Not in a rude way like "suck it up!" But more like, "(Sigh)...Honey, your dad isn't here anymore. I'm sorry. I'm so, so sorry."
This episode felt so fast! 42 minutes felt more like 42 seconds. This episode feels very topical, but never felt heavy-handed. I always say that "Ripped from the headlines" only works if it makes sense within the worldbuilding. The AI being coldly utilitarian makes sense, etc.
As a Christian/Catholic, I kinda think the Doctor could have clarified his hatred of blind faith in an institution rather than just not liking faith as a whole because he obviously has faith in his companions and he experienced ppl having faith in him.
Reference to either Susan or Jenny
It didn't click for me until just now, but it being machines mindlessly, automatically, apathetically repeating "Thoughts and prayers" is extra darkly satirical. What a great middle finger to the people who just blurt that out after every tragedy.
The Doctor saying "Dad to Dad" to the AI might be a Susan refrence, but not necessarily, after all, hes not Susans dad, we know the Doctor has children, and presumably one of them is Susan's parent (assuming you dont believe the Doctor adopted Susan, but given where this season is going that will probably be confirmed or denied soon, maybe, who knows etc etc)
You didn’t notice that Mundy is the new companion coming next season. Also the parent reference could also be about the 10th Doctor’s daughter?