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Doctor Who Regeneration 03: Reversing the Polarity

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    Orphan 55
    I'm doing this without reading what I wrote last time till I'm done so I'm curious if I come out with the same stuff. This episode largely reeks of Eccleston and early Tennant era in set up and execution which is refreshing in a way. The usual things that plague S11 and S12 stop it from landing the execution though and just as remembered the ending makes zero sense.

    Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror
    A better one, largely because the supporting cast is doing all the heavy lifting. There's the potential in this to deliver something similar in weight to the Vincent episode but it never really goes for any emotional stakes which is another central issue with these recent series in the show, maintaining a disconnect of investment in the characters. Overall though, solid.

    Fugitive of the Judoon
    It's been nine series since Tennant's Human Nature two parter and the idea of returning to the concept hidden within a pretty standard set up is actually really good and the execution is well done for the first 30 minutes too. I'm curious to refresh myself with the later episodes as so far the reveal in this is only really poorly handled because of the direction it later takes, there's an incredibly easy 'out' for a new showrunner at this point so it'll be interesting to refresh on how deeply entrenched the later eps ended up going. On the intended storyline though the handling is pretty weak beyond the reveal.

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      Praxeus
      Man, this one was a slog. Crows and plastic and multiple global locations. I know many jokes used to be made about quarries etc but I think I've come down on the side that the introduction of location shooting in other countries has actually been to the shows detriment. It's supposed to make the series look more grand but in reality it sucks up the budget and removes the visual style. Instead of trying to imaginitively dress sets we get lots of vistas that could literally come from any BBC production. Being grounded due to COVID might actually help the next series.

      Can You Hear Me?
      The set up of God like beings who use mankind for their own amusement has a fair few windows of possibility for the show as well as stacking up a challenge she might struggle against but all we get here is some fingers in peoples ears. Who has done episodes focused on preying on peoples fears before but this one poorly delivers and marks another downturn in a series that increasingly isn't holding up on rewatch.

      The Haunting of Villa Diodati
      Ironically, the haunting section with Shelley is the weakest part of the episode. Once the Cyberman turns up it adds a whiff of older Who to proceedings and Whittaker is forced to play the role with more agency and less CBBC and so things improve a bit. It's nothing special though and doesn't really deliver on the weight of threat Jack had suggested just a short while back.

      Ascension of the Cybermen
      Continuing on from the prior episode this is much of what we've seen before, the only real new spin is the drawn out return to the timeless child storyline. I've yet to watch the series finale episode and can't remember the ins and outs but purely on paper of what's in this episode it still doesn't make any sense, even applying it without objection it still feels very poorly handled and the finale will have to explain all sorts of oddities to the delivery.

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        The Timeless Children
        I forgot how exposition heavy this episode is, it spends a huge amount of time trying to justify the concept of the Doctor not being a Time Lord and to be honest it doesn't land. The ironic thing is, there's a moment where the Master is detailing the reveal and if in that moment he stated that it was about himself it would actually fit really well and wrap around not just the prior teases but also what motivates the Master and his constant returns as well as why he destroyed Galifrey. Instead though they stick with it being a tantrum, throw in some bizarre Cyberman x Time Lord element that doesn't really make much sense and then the continuation of the Doctor being the Timeless Child. The thing remains that it's just so very... fanfiction. I can sympathise with trying to come up with new arcs and concepts for a near 60 year old series to explore but it's just a very weak concept that dismantles far more than it builds. Dhawan really seems to get his iteration of the Master down pat though in this, he carries it a lot, whilst the companions remain utterly pointless to proceedings.

        In my head Series 12 is still on the whole better than Series 11, but I remember it being a bit stronger than it is on rewatch. Given the short serialised form Series 13 will have it also seems incredibly unlikely that the show is headed to a good place in the next 18 months either. Unless they plan on ignoring the revelations of this run and leaving it to the next showrunner to sort out we're likely wrapping up Whittakers era delving further into a rabbit hole no-one particularly wants to go down.

        Just the most recent Xmas special left to go now...

        As a small aside: Reading my old posts back I don't think S12 landed as well as I recall it doing. It also put in my head how pointless Jack's Cyberman warning was too, the Doctor ignored it anyway and never put any thought to the extinction of the human race as a result regardless. Another sign of the poor writing at work.

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          Revolution of the Daleks
          Done! Finished the rewatch now and whilst this special isn't anything... special, it was still an improvement on what came before it. It's just a retread of past Dalek episodes really, there are no new ideas in it at all but that old familiarity works in its favour.

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            Well, this presumably means the BBC is taking getting the shows popularity back on track very seriously...

            Twelve years after departing the series, Russell T. Davies is set to return as showrunner on The BBC’s flagship sci-fi series “Doctor Who”. Davies and his Bad Wolf production label will succeed “Broadchurch” showrunner Chris Chibnall who departs next year alongside current leading star Jodie Whittaker. Both exit ahead of the show’s 60th Anniversary in […]

            Russell T Davies has been announced to be returning as showrunner for Doctor Who: Series 14

            Twelve years after bowing out alongside David Tennant both he and his Bad Wolf production company will once again helm the show. Davies return will coincide with the shows 60th Anniversary.

            I mean, this cements that Eccleston will never be tempted back to appear but it probably helps to salvage the Captain Jack and Torchwood arm of the property. It's also a smart move. I know 'classic era' fans took issue with the revival seasons but Davies take on the show was blatantly the right one for that time and it's very hard to imagine he will walk it back to exactly that state. Very curious as to whether he embraces or unties the recent storyline but there's definitely a sense the show needs to refind itself before it can move forward and Davies is safe hands for that.

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              Billie Piper says that under the right story and conditions she'd be open to returning as the Doctor's companion as Rose Tyler

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                Originally posted by Neon Ignition View Post
                With Whittaker - it's kind of awkward to say but after this long I don't feel there's much dancing around it - she's simply not very good. It's not her as an actress, more that it feels obvious that she's miscast.
                I don't even think it's down to being miscast - Whittaker is a perfectly capable actor, any failings in the show are entirely down to writing and direction. Much of the story focus was taken away from The Doctor by having three companions needing to be storyboarded for - and it was probably too much of a distraction. Hopefully Davies will par this back again.

                They should probably cast another female lead, otherwise the whole the Doctor can only be a male will cast a shadow over everything and get too much of the told you so crowd mooing.

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                  The next casting is definitely going to be an issue for them. The shift away from female will definitely seem like an obvious knee jerk yet I can't help but feel it'll be inevitable for them given how they went post-Capaldi. If they go male again though they should go down the non-white route so it doesn't feel like a race back to Tennant in effect. With Whittaker, I've seen her in other stuff and she can act etc but not one moment of her tenure has felt like 'the Doctor'. She just doesn't feel like the right fit despite how much time there's been and it doesn't feel like the shows bad direction is the entire reason why, I think they just miscast.

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                    I felt she was good enough. But the dialogue and direction of her character was not good enough. Nothing to do with the actress.

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                      I only watched her first season so can't comment beyond that but I thought she was great. But I thought the writing and feel of the entire show had dropped in target age range. I thought it was tricky juggling the companions too. But I'm not anywhere near as invested in Doctor Who at all and many things that bugged me about it (like the endless exposition explaining the plot in every beat) were there before.

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                        Stick with another Jodie. Jodie Comer

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                          Hmm, not sure she'd be a good fit, Thandie Newton would be an ideal choice, but I suspect she's a bit above the available pay grade.

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                            I'd actually lean quite hard to Jodie Comer too. It has to be someone who can flit from comedic, quirky, dramatic etc naturally in a not-quite-human but still quite a bit. It's why Whittaker has never landed it for me and why I'm doubtful it's just direction, she's too much of a dramatic actor so her quirk comes across with that CBBC style to it.

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                              Comer is perfect for the role. Marty be trippin'.

                              Takes some skill, casting the role. I never thought Eccleston could be topped, but then Tennant nailed it, as did smith really. By the time we get to capaldi I'm getting bored though. Maybe watched one Whittaker episode.

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                                Nick Mohammed needs to be involved somehow.

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