Thoughts on Deep Breath, Into the Dalek, and Robot of Sherwood
Herein lie my own personal opinions of Season 8 so far. They may or may not match your own; while I try to be objective, it's inevitable that something as near and dear to my heart as Doctor Who is going to evoke a strong emotional response that I may not be able to reign in. And yes, I am going to proceed to over-analyze a children's TV show and read way too much into it and pick apart every detail; this is just what I do, as well as the fact that something as wonderful as Doctor Who deserves to be recognized for the amount of detail and care that the writers and producers and everyone who works on it puts into it. So, without further ado, here we go. Allons-y!
Episode 1: Deep Breath
First of all, I have to say, WHAT AN ENTRANCE. The episode opens with a dinosaur stomping through London, and what should fly out of its mouth but THE TARDIS. Out of all the ways a season has opened, at least for New Who, I don't think there's been one that's had such a fantastically absurd entrance only a minute or so in. There is no time wasted at all in getting into the weird, wonderful wackiness that is Doctor Who, and, while its silliness knows no bounds, it really is just a dramatic, comedic, fun, incredible way to start the season.
The Doctor himself: I think every Doctor has a moment where you realize that you really love them, whether it's a line that they say, something they do, or just a facial expression that touches your heart. For me, I fell in love with Nine at the beginning of "The Unquiet Dead," when Rose comes out of the TARDIS wardrobe in full Victorian costume, and this formerly closed-off, fairly unemotional man transforms before our eyes as he looks at her, his face the epitome of wonder as he says, almost breathlessly, "You look beautiful!" Of course he recovers himself a moment later, but in that instant we see the man beneath the mask, and the heart that he tries so hard to hide. For Ten, I knew I loved him when he started quoting The Lion King in "The Christmas Invasion"; for Eleven, it was in "The Eleventh Hour" when he first declares to the Atraxi, "Hello; I'm the Doctor." For Twelve, in "Deep Breath," it was his very first line: "Shush!" Instantly I was sold.
I don't know what it is about Peter Capaldi's Doctor that makes me like him so much; maybe it's the sass, an echo of Nine that I have greatly missed; maybe it's his serious nature, which I felt had been sorely missing from the Doctor for awhile; it's definitely got to do with how obviously skilled Capaldi is as an actor. Tennant and Smith both had the motor mouths, the incredible speeches they could rattle off and enthrall us all with their passion. Capaldi doesn't need all those words; he can deliver it all with just a look. I'm also a fan of how Capaldi himself is such a big Doctor Who fan; I can only imagine how great his job must be, waking up every day getting to say that YOU are the Doctor, YOU are this hero you've admired since childhood, and then you get to go to work and hang out in the TARDIS and watch Daleks explode, etc. This may just be my wishful thinking, but I think his passion for the show and the character really comes out in his performance, and it is marvelous.
Clara: Oh, my goodness, CLARA. Before Season 8, if you had asked what I thought of her, I probably would have gone off about how she had no personality, met the bare requirements for a companion - "I'm cute and sassy!" Great, so is every other long-time companion who travels with the Doctor! - and was really a testament to how badly Steven Moffat can write female companions. I mean, there was nothing there - she was a cardboard cutout of a person, never questioning the Doctor, never displaying any sort of relatable emotion, and stuck inside that stupid "Impossible Girl" arc with seemingly no escape.
Thank, GOD, for Season 8.
I mean, my god! Look at Clara! She's actually DOING things! The Doctor leaves her to fend for herself, and, while that was kind of a cruel trick to pull, she was forced to think for herself, and lo and behold, she's actually kind of awesome! Like the Doctor says, "You're great on adrenaline!" THIS is the potential missing all throughout Season 7; without Eleven there to hold her hand and protect her (for his own selfish reasons, I might add), she is forced to make decisions, to ACT, and actually show aspects of her personality that make her seem like an actual person. MIND-BLOWING. I believe this is what we call CHARACTER DEVELOPMENT, Mr Moffat. Amazing what it can do, isn't it?!
That's enough of my sass, but you see my point! While I still don't put her above Rose, Donna, or Martha for great companions, it's such a shame that Clara only has the one season to really develop as a character (with the rumors that she is leaving at Christmas).
The Doctor and Clara: A new adjustment for Clara this season has been to accept the new Doctor in place of Eleven, who, for all intents and purposes, was her love interest. While I'm not against the Doctor having romantic relationships with his companions, I hated how Eleven treated Clara, and so I jumped up and punched the air in triumph after this exchange between Twelve and Clara:
Twelve: Clara, I'm not your boyfriend.
Clara: I never said you were.
Twelve: I didn't say it was your mistake.
Finally, FINALLY, Eleven's manipulative, selfish treatment of Clara was being addressed, and I for one am so glad they did that. Instead of Clara being Eleven's Impossible Girl, now she can just be Clara, opening up a whole world of possibilities for showing how she, as an ordinary person, can be extraordinary, which I think is what the show should really be about; it's what made me love it in the first place.
The whole age conundrum for the Doctor is actually kind of funny if you think about it. Of course, with Peter Capaldi being so much older than Jenna Coleman, they (understandably) wouldn't think of having a romantic relationship between them. However, within the show, the Doctor has always been MUCH older than his companions - for example, Nine was about 900 years old when he met Rose, who was nineteen. It's purely the Doctor's face that gives his companions an illusion about his age; if he really looked his age, I doubt any of us would want any more sexual tension in the TARDIS.
That being said, now that Clara and the Doctor won't be love interests, Moffat has decided to trade us one romantic relationship for another, namely Madame Vastra and Jenny. The secondary narrative of "Deep Breath" is really Vastra and Jenny's relationship; the episode begins with both of them investigating the dinosaur, and then continues with Vastra painting Jenny as she poses (or, Vastra having Jenny pose simply for her own enjoyment), and ends with the now-infamous kiss. To be fair, it's a pretty fascinating love story, with a couple who do seem to genuinely love each other, however odd they may look to outsiders. I also am at a loss as to why the lesbian kiss was such a big deal; does no one remember when Captain Jack Harkness kissed Nine in the Season 1 finale??
Missy: Who is Missy? What is the Promised Land?? It's definitely not heaven, I can tell you that. This particular story arc seems to be one that will continue throughout the season; I have a sneaking suspicion it may be leading up to explaining why the Doctor has seen his face before (in Pompeii and Torchwood, to name a few). As to what Missy' identity is, I rather like the idea of her being a dark version of Clara. Since we have a much darker Doctor this season (who may even be the Valeyard - we can't be sure yet), a great way to balance that would be to have a dark version of the companion. Missy's sort of dressed the way Clara was in "The Snowmen," and she calls the Doctor her boyfriend, which is how Clara has referred to Eleven. What if when Clara jumped into the time vortex in "The Name of the Doctor," when she was splintered across all of the Doctor's timelines, in some parallel universe the splinters came back together wrong? Hence we get Missy, a crazy, dark version of Miss Clara. I, for one, would be very excited if that ended up being the case.
Other notable moments:
-The new theme music
I'm not a big fan of the new music, although the new visuals are very cool. The score is just a little too electronic; the trills especially are just grating on the ears. It's unexpected, I'll give them that, but I wish they hadn't gone SO overboard with the change.
-When Strax threw the newspaper and it hit Clara in the face.
I'm sorry, I don't usually enjoy slapstick, but that moment never fails to make me laugh. While I wish they would give Strax more of a role than just comic relief, that scene was just genius.
-The Doctor drawing calculations on the floor.
What are the calculations? Can his mind simply not contain all his thoughts racing from regeneration, so he decides to write them all down? Or is it something more significant that will play out later on in the season?
In sum, I felt like the only place where "Deep Breath" was lacking was the story. It was just so random; we started off with a dinosaur and ended with a bunch of humanoid robots harvesting human organs. Granted, most introductory episodes aren't too heavy on story, since they're more concerned with getting the audience to accept the new Doctor, but when being compared to, say, "The Eleventh Hour," which didn't have the definitive plot either, "Deep Breath" isn't the best for a comprehensive story line. Hopefully the stories will improve as the season continues.
Episode 2: Into the Dalek
Obviously since I've said so much about "Deep Breath" I'll have less to say here, but I'll just come right out and say that this has been my favorite Season 8 episode so far. No, it's not a fantastic episode - it's a bit lacking on plot, for starters, and tension as well - but the concept itself is fascinating. A good Dalek? And one that doesn't know who the Doctor is, since Oswin erased the Daleks' memory banks in "Asylum of the Daleks." What would happen if the Doctor was shrunk down and let inside a Dalek, even let inside its mind? What would he find?
It's less of an action-packed episode and more of a psychological study of the Doctor himself. His relationship with the Daleks has always been tenuous at best; his capacity for hating them has always provided a link with their hatred for everything that isn't a Dalek. Similar to Nine's episode "Dalek," we see that internal struggle as the Doctor tries to fight for the good that they find within the Dalek while he tries to find good within himself.
Double Jeopardy question: Is the Doctor a good man?
For most of New Who, I would have said yes. Nine, for all his brooding, was a genuinely good soul; Ten, despite his "no second chances" rule and the Time Lord Victorious, seemed sincerely bent on doing what was right. Eleven, however, for all his childish behavior, was the one who became darker, especially throughout Season 7, and we see that darkness magnified in Twelve, particularly in "Deep Breath," when he presumably murders the half-faced man. Only time will tell what sort of man the Doctor is; but for now, as Clara says, at least he tries, and that's the point.
Other notable moments:
-Clara being a badass
Once again, the Doctor calls upon Clara to figure out how to make the Dalek good again. I love that he trusts her so completely; such a contrast to Eleven, who almost never let her do anything on her own. Clara figures it out and delivers; if they keep going in this direction with her character, I think I will genuinely be sad when she leaves, which up to this season I never thought I would say!
-The Doctor and Clara as friends
Twelve and Clara really have such an adorable friendship. I really love Capaldi and Coleman's dynamic, particularly in little moments, like when Clara and the Doctor are looking down at the Dalek's brain:
Clara: Are those cables?
Twelve: Not all of them.
He mimes tentacles, and she bursts out laughing. It seems like such a genuine moment, I have to wonder if that was in the script or if Capaldi was ad-libbing and just trying to make Coleman laugh! Well, it worked, and it was such a sweet little moment. There are so many of those in the exchanges between them. The hug in "Deep Breath," him telling her "I need you" in this episode - not a romantic "I need you," but a sincere, I-can't-do-this-alone-and-you-are-the-only-other-person-I-trust "I need you." Even though the Doctor still has his caustic moments - like when he abandons her in "Deep Breath" - I think he genuinely loves Clara, and she him. It's a bit like Ten and Donna in the TARDIS - just two best friends, off to see the universe! Sometimes, that's just what the show needs.
-Danny Pink
While I really like Samuel Anderson's performance, I feel like the writers are trying too hard to get us to like him. A soldier with a troubled past, yet with an awkward yet adorable side? I guess we have to like him now, although I really wish they would have waited until he could have had a longer introduction as a companion. If we had cut out the ten minutes or so at the beginning of the episode where we're introduced to him, we might have had time for a proper plot. There's obviously going to be tension in the TARDIS later on, with Danny being a soldier and the Doctor obviously against having soldiers in the TARDIS; I just hope the writers don't overdo it.
Overall, the episode could have done with more tension; Daleks are no longer that scary because of their overuse. The only other real "monsters" were the antibodies; those could have been made a whole lot scarier.
Otherwise, it was a well done episode, particularly with the cinematography, and the glimpse inside the Doctor's psyche was definitely intriguing.
Episode 3: Robot of Sherwood
Oh, dear. I really don't have much to say about this episode. I just don't know if I have the words.
This episode was written by Mark Gatiss, who is also the writer of episodes such as:
The Unquiet Dead (Season 1)
The Idiot's Lantern (Season 2)
Victory of the Daleks (Season 5)
Night Terrors (Season 6)
Cold War (Season 7)
The Crimson Horror (Season 7)
Out of all of these, the only ones I would say are decent are "Night Terrors" and possibly "The Crimson Horror" (I personally didn't like it that much, but I know many people did).
Gatiss likes to have fun with his episodes; unfortunately, I'm not sure his skills as a writer match his enthusiasm. To his credit, he is a big fan of Doctor Who, as can be seen as the end of "Robot of Sherwood," with the exchange between Robin and the Doctor about men becoming legends. He understands the heart of the show; I just wish I could say I enjoyed his writing more.
Yes, okay, it's a fun episode; it's entertaining, I'll give it that. But it's just so silly - I mean, "I am the Doctor and this is my spoon"? Really? I just...I don't know. If you enjoyed it, that's great; I just couldn't get past the Doctor dueling Robin Hood with a spoon.
To be fair, it is fairly adorable to see Clara fangirling over Robin Hood. And it is nice that the Doctor still gives his companions the choice of where they go in time and space.
I just felt like the jokes and the story were a bit predictable. You could see the punchlines coming from a mile away. And some of the physical humor, too, like when the Doctor and Robin are struggling to get the key to unlock their shackles and they knock it out of their reach - surely there must have been something else that could have happened instead of a scene that's been done over and over in a thousand bad comedies.
Other notable moments:
-The Doctor's calculations
What is the Doctor writing on the blackboard? Are those the same calculations from "Deep Breath"? Is this going to end up being something important in the season story arc?
So, not a big fan of this episode, but I suppose if you're looking for a Who episode that's mindlessly entertaining, this would be one to watch. I guess I can't forget that this is still a children's show, thus it can't be serious all the time.
However, I think from the look of it, I will definitely enjoy next week's episode, "Listen"! It looks so creepy - and maybe we'll finally get a proper plot line!
Season 8 Ranking So Far:
1. Into the Dalek (Ep. 2)
2. Deep Breath (Ep. 1)
3. Robot of Sherwood (Ep. 3)
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