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[APZonerunner]

Hmm, that one never really seemed to get going.

Going back to the Autumn thing, Moffat has always in interviews made it seem like it was his idea. I've never seen any evidence it was done against his wishes.

The whole situation with the Autumn thing was REALLY kicked off by the Series 6 split. Moffat/the BBC framed the Series 6 split as being down to an attempt move Doctor Who out of the hotter summer months (June/July/early August) and when the kids are off school because they hypothesised they were losing ratings to kids/families going outside to play, but it never really made much sense in that regard as the kids weren't back when it kicked back off in August and it was still plenty hot. Truth there, at least if you believe the rumour mill and Private Eye, is that the schedule got completely ruined during Series 6 due to Wenger and Willis buggering it - and the latter doing some really iffy stuff that was hugely questionable with aspects of the budget - and pretty soon after that, they both quietly left.

I think during the Smith years both of the splits were basically forced by circumstances and they just announced to avoid issues... Similarly, the Series 7 split was inspired by Smith and Moffat - Smith only wanted to do one more series plus the specials with his Hollywood desires, Moffat needed more time for Sherlock. Moffat also didn't want Smith & the Ponds to leave at the same time to write himself into another companion-less regeneration ala The Eleventh Hour, thus Clara's half-season introduction.

I think the decision to shift Capaldi's series' into this time of year has been wholly deliberate, though. I'm not sure the slot is better, mind.

 

[Dryk]

I enjoyed that, but I thought the glowing writing was a bit strong of a clue. Still the foreshadowing is good. The writing was obviously the trigger for the ghosts attacking, that one guy lived because of something to do with the reactor that we're not sure of yet,

Spoiler

the suspended animation chamber which in retrospect is obviously going to be how the Doctor dies without actually dying.

 

[doop_]

Huh, enjoyed that more than the season opener, i like how the doctor does not really rely on his sonic device much anymore.

 

[Tregard]

Huh, enjoyed that more than the season opener, i like how the doctor does not really on his sonic device much anymore.

Sonic sunglasses ;-;

 

[Dryk]

Sonic sunglasses ;-;

Well their use so far has certainly been more limited than the screwdriver. He's only summoned the TARDIS and streamed video with them.

 

[KingKong]

The problem I have with these episodes (and to be fair it's a problem I have with most tv shows MOTWs) is all the side characters/actors are just no good. They're all bland and forgettable.

The best show at doing MOTW was the X-Files and one of the big reasons was that they managed to get interesting and slightly strange side characters. That's what Fringe could never replicate. You can see a show like Justified do it really well too, where they'll find a way to have a character that's only in a 3 minute scene and exists to move the plot end up being really memorable

 

[VegiHam]

that one guy lived because of something to do with the reactor that we're not sure of yet[/SPOILER]

The signer guy? My guess is the ghosts can't use him cus the boss wouldn't let him in the dangerous ship to see the squiggles; so they just left him.

 

[Hot Coldman]

I liked that. Trapped-in-a-base episodes are always good. This one gave the Doctor a lot of room to just be himself, and it felt... I dunno, just really pleasant to watch.

Killer cliffhanger, though. I've been begging for a dual-timezone episode for ages.

 

[Dryk]

The signer guy? My guess is the ghosts can't use him cus the boss wouldn't let him in the dangerous ship to see the squiggles; so they just left him.

The way that was shot to me was to me a big red flag that the base reactor had something to do with it. But I hadn't remembered that he wasn't actually infected yet.

 

[Hot Coldman]

The scene with the Doctor's cards got a big laugh out of me, which is nice.

God I love Toby's episodes.

 

[Razmos]

Theory:

Spoiler

The Doctor carved the message into the ship and created the ghosts so that it would eventually give him the coordinates to reclaim his own sleeping self, so that he would wake up back in the future and know how to fix the threat and save Clara and the others (which is what he went back to the past to figure out how to do)

Though that doesn't account for the crewmembers that went with him, nor the TARDIS.

 

[APZonerunner]

Will say this: Glad they've bought back the stinger this year. No idea why the latter Smith years (and Capaldi's first) dropped it, but it should always be there.

 

[Jacobi]

Theory:

Spoiler

The Doctor carved the message into the ship and created the ghosts so that it would eventually give him the coordinates to reclaim his own sleeping self, so that he would wake up back in the future and know how to fix the threat and save Clara and the others (which is what he went back to the past to figure out how to do)

Though that doesn't account for the crewmembers that went with him, nor the TARDIS.

You are probably right with the

Spoiler

chamber

...

 

[ClivePwned]

a really nice episode but we'll have to see what next week holds.

 

[infiniteloop]

BBC may scrap Doctor Who series in favour of feature-length specials due to 'crisis period'

Worried BBC chiefs are considering scrapping next year’s series of Doctor Who and screening feature-length specials instead.

The legendary sci-fi drama – starring Peter Capaldi as the Time Lord and Jenna Coleman as his companion Clara Oswald – is the Beeb’s biggest-selling ­programme overseas, earning an estimated £60million a year.

But the cult show has hit a crisis period. Viewing figures have plunged below four million.

http://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/bbc-scrap-doctor-who-series-6567112

It seems that a specials year was on the cards way before the series aired any episodes, so the Mirror is talking nonsense again.

 

[MrBadger]

honestly really enjoyed that. It's nice to have a monster mystery after last week's. I'm actually starting to get bored of Daleks.

 

[DangerMouse]

Show time here. The preview looked great so I've been looking forward to it all week

I liked that. Trapped-in-a-base episodes are always good. This one gave the Doctor a lot of room to just be himself, and it felt... I dunno, just really pleasant to watch.

Killer cliffhanger, though. I've been begging for a dual-timezone episode for ages.

Cool. This is why I was looking forward to it. I agree the trapped-in-a-base eps tend be cool.

 

[Grover Cleveland]

Black guy dies first eh?

You ain't shit Moffat/Whithouse

 

[PaulloDEC]

Well, I enjoyed that more than I've enjoyed an episode of Doctor Who in quite a while. Very much looking forward to the second part.

 

[DangerMouse]

Haha "why aren't you happy?"
Heh, Clara gets it, we've been looking forward to a save-something ep.

No high-fives from the Doctor.

 

[Future Foundation]

BBC may scrap Doctor Who series in favour of feature-length specials due to 'crisis period'



http://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/bbc-scrap-doctor-who-series-6567112

It seems that a specials year was on the cards way before the series aired any episodes, so the Mirror is talking nonsense again.

Isn't that the Mirror's M.O.?

 

[StalkerUKCG]

BBC may scrap Doctor Who series in favour of feature-length specials due to 'crisis period'



http://www.mirror.co.uk/tv/tv-news/bbc-scrap-doctor-who-series-6567112

It seems that a specials year was on the cards way before the series aired any episodes, so the Mirror is talking nonsense again.

Twoddle, Doctor who is showing along side the rugby world cup. BBC isn't stupid. They know exactly what is draining the viewing figures.

The viewing figures are still rock solid. For comparison

The Witch’s Familiar 3.7m (overnight) AI 83

Listen 4.8m (overnight) 7.01m (final) 7.80m (L+7) AI 82

Listen got 1.1 million more in the overnight figures and wasn't showing alongside anything. It's AI was 1 point lower.

Capaldi might of soured some of the fan girl crowd who watched the show more to oggle at Smith and Tennant than they did for the show but the BBC brand teams wouldn't be looking at spin offs like class if it didn't have confidence in the show.

Doctor Who is one of the BBC's big 3 exports and it makes a truckload of cash for them. If they are moving towards specials it's got nothing to do with ratings it's got to do with schedules, companion replacements and wanting to do something more grandiose

It's already been mentioned that Moffat was planning to focus on Sherlock next year which means Doctor Who has to scale back.

 

[DangerMouse]

Hell yeah, the Doctor hates that money grubbing guy's ass as expected.

LOL cards

 

[Grover Cleveland]

Clara's got cards to keep the Doctor in check now?

lol

 

[Grizzlyjin]

I love that Clara made notecards for The Doctor.

 

[hamchan]

Really liked that episode. Just the standard Doctor turning up and solving a mystery, saving a group of strangers. Something that felt needed after all those eps in a row with the Doctor being the main focus.

I like the mystery with the ghosts and they were suitably creepy. I'm enjoying this current group and don't want any more of them to die. I like the continued development of Clara being an addict to this lifestyle and trying to be like the Doctor which started last series.

Twelfth needing cue cards to say nice things is pretty damn hilarious.

It was just a good, solid episode.

EDIT: Also just saw Australia knocked England out of the Rugby World Cup. This has been a good day so far.

 

[DangerMouse]

Those cards were glorious lol

 

[PaulloDEC]

Flash cards:

 

[Gvitor]

Again I enjoyed more the dialogues than the actual story. Capaldi literally carried this episode to me, even Clara was bad, she just merely existed.

 

[DangerMouse]

That was a pretty cool speech.

 

[somedevil]

I don't get that Aberdeen reference.

 

[zychi]

So how's the season been so far? I still need to watch the Xmas special.

 

[tuffy]

I don't get that Aberdeen reference.

When Sarah Jane Smith had to leave, the 4th Doctor dropped her off in Aberdeen rather than her home.

 

[Kevin]

So how's the season been so far? I still need to watch the Xmas special.

Solid. Maybe a slight improvement over series 8.

 

[KuwabaraTheMan]

This was a very good start. I'll be interested to see how the story wraps up next week. It's nice to see a proper two part, with a nice sized guest cast (who I think all seem like decent characters, although Cass is the only standout so far). The episode also looked gorgeous, and there were a lot of really tense moments throughout the episode.

All in all, it's nice to have proper Doctor Who back. Good dialogue, the Doctor and the characters acting like scientists and trying to piece a situation together, complete with forming hypotheses, testing things out, etc, and some intriguing antagonists who might have more to them than first appearance would suggest.

I think this story feels very Season 7-esque. It would fit in well next to The Ambassadors of Death or Inferno.

 

[Kinsei]

Best episode of series 9 so far IMO.

Doctor Who should just be two-part stories from now on.

We are all in agreement, yes?

Only if they get rid of the stupid cliffhangers.

 

[somedevil]

When Sarah Jane Smith had to leave, the 4th Doctor dropped her off in Aberdeen rather than her home.

lol, what a dick move that was. I never saw the old series. I started with the new version but my father has tons of dvds of the old series.

Plus for the ratings I just find it weird how its down in England but in America its getting more popular.

 

[BatDan]

I thought this was a good episode. Very reminiscent of oldschool Doctor Who. Trapped in a base, unexplained monster. Though normally more people would be dead by this point.

Can't wait for Part 2.

 

[Fireblend]

Brilliant episode. Holy shit. Depending on how the second part goes, this might end up there with Flatline and Mummy on the Orient Express for me. I can see how people seem to think the episode seems "familiar" due to the "crew locked in with monsters" episode archetype, but it's definitely got more than enough of its own things to make it unique, and at the very least it's a pretty good implementation of the concept: The monsters and mystery surrounding them are interesting, I liked the crew members even if they didn't overwhelm the episode with exposition about themselves, the jokes were absolutely on point, Clara is firing on all cylinders, the Doctor is acting like the cool alien detective he's supposed to be, the pacing is perfect and I can't wait for the resolution.

Not only that, I adore the idea that time-travel is actually going to be part of the mystery's solution, which surprisingly isn't that common on the show, and the way the second part's been setup with

Spoiler

Clara and part of the crew still trapped in the base and the Doctor out and about in the village in the past and seemingly causing stuff to change in the future

sounds great. Now that I type that out this really is starting to sound like Time Heist done right.

Also, I wonder if

Spoiler

the first 2 ghosts repeating the coordinates is what brought the TARDIS to the base in the first place, instead of it being upset about there being ghosts around. That could support the theory that the Doctor was the one who carved those symbols so that he'd show up in the first place.

Anyway, solid episode. I'm so happy with this series so far - there's been plenty to love in these first 3 episodes.

Oh, and

@ the cards. 10/10 would laugh again.

 

[Guri]

I'm so glad the Doctor isn't completely rude this season and actually has a great personality. Capaldi is finally showing what he can do with the character. Great episode.

 

[Chezzymann]

That was pretty good. The setting and premise were a little too similar to past episodes, but the execution was great. Glad to see the show going back to how its supposed to be: Monster of the week mysteries. The two parter format seems to be working well, it really helps with the pacing and keeps things from being too cluttered and rushed.

 

[Bobby Roberts]

That was better than the last two combined. Loved the Doctor's try not to be an arse notes.

This is exactly my feeling.

(although Jesus Christ they killed the black guy in a fuckin' hurry, didn't they? Didn't even make it to the title card)

All the annoyances I'd had with the superheroization of the Doctor and the Doctor and his personal history being the focus of the show were directly addressed in this episode. It's basically exactly what I was asking for: A mystery, with quickly sketched yet very interesting characters with distinct personalities (even if they don't have the most memorable names) that are aided/assisted/vexed by this whirlwind madman trying to fix their problem by thinking it through on the fly.

Hell, even Clara was more companion-y than she normally is.

I really, really liked this episode. Moody as hell, but still lighthearted and funny in just the right doses. Curious to see how it plays out.

 

[Jest Chillin]

I dug this episode. Never one to be bothered with a slow pace.

Something that has slowly started to become a bother... didn't the Tardis used to automatically translate languages (spoken and written), either just by it's presence or through the Sonic before? I want to say it was established during Series 6 maybe? Yet, it didn't at all this time. Am I wrong?

 

[StopMakingSense]

I dug this episode. Never one to be bothered with a slow pace.

Something that has slowly started to become a bother... didn't the Tardis used to automatically translate languages (spoken and written), either just by it's presence or through the Sonic before? I want to say it was established during Series 6 maybe? Yet, it didn't at all this time. Am I wrong?

The Tardis not being able to decode the glyphs was a major part of the mystery.

 

[Quick]

Definitely better paced than the first two-parter. Could not believe the 40 minutes was up by the time it hit the cliffhanger.

The cards were god damn hilarious. Especially when he started reading everything word-for-word (including "slash").

I'm guessing it's the Doctor inside the chamber, and that he put the coordinates in there himself in the past.

Also, kudos for writing in a deaf character. I don't think I've seen sign language portrayed on screen in the method they did in the show - rather than being the focus, it was in the background nonchalantly.

 

[Guri]

I dug this episode. Never one to be bothered with a slow pace.

Something that has slowly started to become a bother... didn't the Tardis used to automatically translate languages (spoken and written), either just by it's presence or through the Sonic before? I want to say it was established during Series 6 maybe? Yet, it didn't at all this time. Am I wrong?

It does that and the Doctor wonders why she didn't translate it this time.

 

[Jest Chillin]

The Tardis not being able to decode the glyphs was a major part of the mystery.

Sure. But that's what kind of bugs me. I feel like the effect of the glyphs could've been accomplished without ignoring a tardis function for plot.

It does that and the Doctor wonders why she didn't translate it this time.

Really? I must have missed his comment then (was watching with the kids so missing details can definitely happen). Maybe it gets explained in part 2 then.

 

[Quick]

Sure. But that's what kind of bugs me. I feel like the effect of the glyphs could've been accomplished without ignoring a tardis function for plot.

That's the thing: they didn't ignore the TARDIS function at all. It's one of the big mysteries of the episode. Why isn't the TARDIS translating, when it usually does?

Do you mean showing that the TARDIS was actively trying to, but can't? Like, adding in a special effect?

 

[Guri]

Really? I must have missed his comment then (was watching with the kids so missing details can definitely happen). Maybe it gets explained in part 2 then.

Yep! Right when he first notices the code.

 

[Jest Chillin]

That's the thing: they didn't ignore the TARDIS function at all. It's one of the big mysteries of the episode. Why isn't the TARDIS translating, when it usually does?

Do you mean showing that the TARDIS was actively trying to, but can't? Like, adding in a special effect?

Nah. Apparently I missed the dialogue where they acknowledged that the Tardis should be translating the glyphs but wasn't for some reason. So it was just my fault entirely.

Yep! Right when he first notices the code.

Thanks. I'll watch it again.