[nerys @replies]

@thane16 Wow, what an experience! Did you continue playing oboe after that?

I had something similar happen last April, when my five-piece local band was still rehearsing together. We were about a third of the way into our first piece when I fainted. I was only out for a few seconds. Fortunately we were seated in chairs on a thick rug in the home of two of our musicians, so I had a soft landing. And one of our players, the trombonist, is a volunteer firefighter trained in First Aid/CPR, so he knew to turn me on my side in the recovery position.

I had donated blood earlier that day. In hindsight, I realized that until that night, I’d never played shortly after donating blood. Because of the blood donation, I had lower blood volume, resulting in less oxygen being delivered throughout my body. And then I overexerted myself by playing. They advise you not to do any strenuous activity for at least 24 hours after a donation. I guess I didn’t consider playing a wind instrument to be a form of exertion, but obviously it is. Lesson learned!

I would imagine that, given the breath support required to play a double-reed instrument, an oboist would have succumbed even more quickly.

@whohar I have tried using Nord VPN to access BBC iPlayer, but as I recall it detected that I was using VPN and blocked me.

[nerys @replies]

@thane16 Oboe is a gorgeous instrument! Also very difficult to play. IMO, oboe is the most challenging woodwind instrument, and french horn is the most challenging brass instrument. Both make a gorgeous sound … when played well. Mastering the technique to create that beautiful sound is what’s so difficult. I admire the players who do it!

[nerys @replies]

@thane16 Congratulations on your upcoming conducting job! Brahms is challenging, but mastering those pieces gives us such a thrill of achievement.

My father taught music in public schools until he switched gears to teach counseling and teacher education at the university level. He was primarily a high school band director, but early in his career he was called upon to direct the orchestra and sometimes choir, as well. “When you’re small, you do it all.”

I did not inherit his skill, and I wish I had. I do still play clarinet. I started back up in 2016, after a 33-year pause. After the director of our small local band retired, a couple of friends and I began playing in a large concert band about an hour’s drive away. This is our second year with that group, and I am enjoying it.

People unfamiliar with the role of a conductor don’t realize how vital they are to a music ensemble. They aren’t just standing there, waving their arms … which I think is what a lot of non-musicians think. They are the rock, the glue that holds an ensemble together. They make the difference between a group of musicians playing or singing together, and an ensemble playing or singing as one. So kudos to you for giving this gift to your fellow musicians!

I echo your thoughts about @craig “keeping this site merry & kind” and that “no music can be made without it…” So very true!

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent Well, who’s to say? If cassette tapes can come back into vogue, then why not VHS tapes? Though it could be that the player mechanism for cassette tapes is much simpler than for VHS, so there’s that. We gave away our VHS tapes back in 2011, so I think there was still demand for them then.

[nerys @replies]

@devilishrobby I’m so sorry about your health issues. This must be a scary, overwhelming experience. I hope that your wait for a pacemaker/defibrillator is not long, and that once it’s implanted, it restores your heart back to proper function.

@dentarthurdent Wow, you scored in the collectibles department! LPs and turntables are indeed in demand. Who’d have thought? On the other hand, I’m not sure VHS will ever come back into fashion. We got rid of all our LPs, cassette tapes and VHS tapes several moves ago. Most of it went to Goodwill, which has a good network for used LPs and the like. So I feel confident that, rather than going to a landfill, they were routed to people who appreciated them.

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent Pleased to hear your father’s Leicas were ‘collectable’, it’s nice when that happens.

Yes, it is! That made me so happy, especially since a charitable organization we support benefited from it.

Happy New Year to you and all! @mudlark @winston @janetteb @ps1l0v3y0u @thane16 and of course @craig

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent Fair point about having the camera with you. The FZ300 is too large to fit into a pocket. So I use the neck strap, but it can be cumbersome. I use my cellphone the way you do your camera. If I don’t have my FZ300 with me, or I just don’t want to be encumbered by it, then I use my cellphone camera. For landscape shots, it often outperforms my FZ300. But for bird or wildlife shots, I have to go with the FZ300.

I’m sure you’re right, that Panasonic, at some point, bought Leica. Side-note: I had two Leica cameras, circa 1946-47 and 1951-52 (a hardbound Leica Manual came with the newer one). Both came in brown leather cases and had Summitar lenses. The older of the two cameras (Leica IIIc) belonged to my father, who bought it while he was stationed in Germany as part of the Allied Occupation after the Second World War. My maternal grandfather had the newer camera (Leica IIIf), and later gave it to my father after buying himself another camera. I inherited both cameras after my father died.

I knew it would take serious money to get them working again, so they sat in my closet for several years. Then I decided to donate them to the group who holds auctions to raise money for our local hospital. A camera collector looked at them and bid $500. Apparently that’s the low end of what they are valued it, especially for the lenses. So I feel good that they went to someone who will appreciate them, and they also benefited a valuable local charity.

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent The FZ300 has a 25-600mm focal range, so yours is quite impressive. The main advantage the FZ300 has over some other bridge cameras is that it maintains a constant f/2.8 aperture across the entire zoom, so it’s good for low-light and distance shots. I really like both the FZ200 and FZ300 image stabilization systems, as well. And the Leica lens is a bonus (as long as I don’t scratch it, as I did with the FZ200).

[nerys @replies]

@thane16 @syzygy Good to hear from you! And thank you for that bit of trivia on how much a cloud weighs. A hundred elephants, eh? Heavier than I would have guessed. As is often the case with this group, I learned something!

[nerys @replies]

@winston I’m glad that you are able to celebrate with family! Sadly, we don’t have any family in our immediate vicinity, so we visit with friends. Still, it’s a jolly time, and we are doing our own share of overeating.

@dentarthurdent Interesting that you mentioned your Konica cameras! Our first digital camera was a Konica Minolta DiMAGE Z5, purchased in 2005. Then we got an Olympus Stylus 790SW to take with us when we went kayaking (it didn’t take great photos, but it was waterproof). In 2013, we bought a Panasonic Lumix FZ200, and then in 2019 we upgraded to its successor, the FZ300. All of these are basically “point and shoot” cameras with fixed lenses, though the Panasonic FZ200 and FZ300 might be considered “bridge” cameras. I’m not entirely satisfied with the FZ300. Even though it was improved in many ways over the FZ200, it has a number of known flaws: the top zoom button stopped working (though the side slider button works), and there’s vignetting in the lower left-hand corner of images when the camera is fully zoomed out. It used to be considered a super-zoom camera, but I think several others have overtaken it.

We have two different external hard drives that we use as backups for all our files. As you say, the storage space is quite affordable. I prefer having our own backup system to using “cloud” storage. I’m not convinced that I want my stuff on anybody else’s cloud.

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent I was only teasing about the “bragging”! I’m glad that you have this opportunity to swim daily. You enjoy it, and that’s so important in life. Our daytime hours are similar in the summer. Like you, I love having such long days.

The most time-consuming part for me (and I think it’s the same with you) is weeding out all the photos I don’t want. The blessing and curse of digital photography is that you can take lots of photos, and (unlike film) they cost you nothing. So I do take lots. Weeding out the mediocre shots and trimming the photos to a manageable number can be a slog.

@janetteb My system is similar to yours. I do include a short descriptive filename for each folder, along with the date. Otherwise I’d be hopelessly scrolling through photos, trying to find what I’m looking for.

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent OK, now you’re just bragging! Oh, to be able to swim in the ocean at this time of year (especially in our hemisphere). Come to think of it, here I’m not sure I’d do it any time of year. Most of the time, the water is too cold for me. Some folks here do polar plunges. I’m not one of them!

Re: your digital photos, I could not do what you’re doing. When I take a group of photos, if they’re something I want to save, I put them in a folder, name the folder and save it on our hard drive and backups. (Looking at all the folders I have named “snowy owl” tells me maybe I took too many snowy owl photos! I currently have 1,066 photo folders. Just doing it that way takes up time, so I can’t imagine how much time this is taking you!

[nerys @replies]

@janetteb Thank you! Merry Yuletide/winter solstice/summer solstice/Christmas/holiday season to you and all!

[nerys @replies]

This isn’t exactly a Doctor Who memory, but it’s related to Doctor Who. My husband found this hilarious Rowan Atkinson sketch that was remarkably prescient:

The comments are pretty funny, too.

[nerys @replies]

@ps1l0v3y0u The “rage bait” is so true. I engage far less with social media than I used to, but I still see a lot of it. And there’s been a big increase in AI-generated content to attract clicks. It’s sad to me that people of all political stripes fall for it … and share it.

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent Yup. The whole “individual rights over the public good” mantra took an ugly turn during the pandemic, and it doesn’t seem to be losing steam.

What’s strange to me is the speed with which many people forgot how bad it was. Governments, along with health care and public health personnel, were feeling their way through terrifying terrain, made all the more frightening because so much was unknown. Were mistakes made? Absolutely. But they were made with the intent of protecting public health, and I think/hope we learned from those mistakes and have a better pandemic template going forward.

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent Ah, thanks for clarifying that. Now I know the particular “why” you were questioning. Why do it that way? Dunno. Maybe there’s an underlying social media reference I didn’t pick up on, though I can’t think of anything done alphabetically. Even my “Friends” list is ordered, not alphabetically, but some other way.

@ps1l0v3y0u I agree with you that this episode was the high water mark of Gatwa’s first season. I enjoyed it the way I’ve enjoyed so much of Doctor Who, and had all but forgotten in recent years. It felt good to feel this way again!

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent Has Donald Trump sued the CBC for a billion dollars yet?

No, but probably only because annexation is more top of mind.

Unfortunately, in Canada the “defund the CBC” rhetoric came to a head during the pandemic, in lockstep with similar protests and blockades opposing Covid public health measures and demanding to overthrow the federal government. All of this is thanks to the growing polarization that exists in Canada, just as it exists in other parts of the world, creating a fertile environment for fascism and foment.

[nerys @replies]

@ps1l0v3y0u @janetteb Sadly, Canada has its own “Defund the CBC” initiative, led by those who, quite predictably, feel their own political causes are not sufficiently championed. But, given how reliant Canada has become on American broadcasters, the CBC is really the only broadcaster in Canada promoting Canadian culture (especially music). If we lose that, we’ll lose a valuable part of our identity.

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent The only reason the slugs ignored Lindy is because they were killing in alphabetical order, and they hadn’t yet reached P for Pepper-Bean. That’s why she betrayed Ricky September in the conduit. She knew her turn was next because P was coming up in the alphabet. But then Lindy remembered Ricky September’s birth name, Richard Coombes. She blurted that out to her Dot and left Ricky to be killed while she escaped.

@janetteb I agree that this episode was RTD at his best. Very satisfying on every level.

[nerys @replies]

@devilishrobby OK, I’m sure your explanation about the fairy circle, perception filter and so on is correct … and it’s too timey-wimey for my brain to comprehend. Which explains why I was confused about much of what happened. Yet, I loved the episode, so my confusion wasn’t enough to put me off.

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent I’m sorry you had to go through the experience of a panic attack. It sounds awful.

But I like your theory of how Ruby’s “old” self (yes, I think that’s who her follower was) could induce that state in those she came in direct contact with. Their reactions seemed to be ones of abject terror.

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent Overall, I didn’t hate the ep, didn’t love it, there was enough to keep me watching.

Same here. I just felt they were trying to cram too much into one episode. Getting to know this Doctor a bit better, introducing Ruby and her family situation, plus explaining the goblins and the King Goblin … who did look an awful lot like Jabba the Hutt. (Disney owns the Star Wars franchise, so I guess they can get away with that.) And then, the song-and-dance numbers. Like, what am I watching?

Happily, things fell into place with “Boom”!

[nerys @replies]

@whohar @ps1l0v3y0u Based on what information was released, the hasty rewrite to the finale of Ncuti Gatwa’s second season was due to Gatwa’s decision not to return for a third season. But all the last-minute changes had to be stressful for RTD. So I wonder about how enthused RTD is to return. (Mind you, I’ve only read about this situation. I fear I have a long wait before the next batch of DVDs is released in Region 1.)

And yes, I absolutely agree. “Boom” was brilliant!

[nerys @replies]

@whohar The pace of filming is interesting. I think it points to Gatwa moving on quite quickly. What it means for the next season is open to debate. Maybe RTD has a fully fleshed-out, season’s worth of stories or maybe he is having to write quickly due to other constraints. Given he got burn out last time, I do wonder how much appetite he will have for a third season if he’s under this much time pressure.

I’m reading through the thread replies again, and I spotted this. Turns out you were very prescient!

[nerys @replies]

@janetteb Thank you for that clarification on corsets. I did not know that!

You also make a good observation about the TARDIS’s perception filter, whose primary purpose, as I recall, is to cause people not to notice it. But it seems like it’s been invoked as a kind of deus ex machina to conveniently explain away what would strike the audience as a problem. Wardrobe, for example, which enables the Doctor and companions to fit in with the people of the time they’re in. Like you, I was sometimes struck by the way the 13th Doctor was dressed, not at all in keeping with the way a woman would have dressed in that period, yet no one remarked upon it. Of course, I can’t think of a specific example now.

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent Every long-running series does a song and dance number, just as they all do a Western. Eventually.

Fair enough. I still found it jarring. Good question about the strings. I had the same thought. If I give the benefit of the doubt, it’s that people who heard Ruby’s piano playing added the strings in their imagination. It’s the happiness they felt at hearing music again.

I too thought about how limited the use of music was. It seemed to be very pop-oriented. What about all the classical music that spans the ages? (Though that did get a brief nod with Debussy’s Clair de Lune.) What about Indigenous or traditional music? I know it’s only an hour-long episode, but since the theme was the loss of music, a lot of that music got skimmed over.

[nerys @replies]

@ps1l0v3y0u I suppose I was prepared for some level of disappointment, having to wait so long to see these episodes (because, as I have mentioned before, I refuse to subscribe to Disney+ for one program). I probably shouldn’t have read these threads, but I couldn’t help it. I wanted to know people’s opinions. However, it had been long enough that I didn’t recall a lot of the details … which was good. I did have a general sense of what people liked, and what they didn’t. I was happily surprised at how much I enjoyed “Boom,” “73 Yards,” “Dot and Bubble” and “Rogue.” They felt like proper Doctor Who stories.

“Rogue” gives us a glimpse of how RTD might have handled the 13th Doctor being a woman. The characterization may have been too overt for some viewers. RTD seemed to have an agenda with this season, and he wasn’t the least bit shy about working it in. I admit that I prefer more subtlety, more ambiguity. Leave something to my imagination, please. But, since I enjoyed those four episodes and felt they were a wonderful gift, a return to the style of Doctor Who of yore, should I complain? I think I’ll focus on remembering the good stuff.

[nerys @replies]

@whohar @ps1l0v3y0u Thanks, and yes, I agree. In many ways, Chibnall’s tenure was a disappointment. But I always have it in the back of my mind that the blame may not land squarely on him, because I don’t know what was going on behind the scenes. Still, in most cases, the writing just did not come together for me, and since he did most of it, it seems natural to hold him responsible.

It was especially disappointing during the Flux buildup, because finally, that seemed to be going somewhere … and then we got yet another episode of endless exposition, with little in the way of a satisfying conclusion. It was a real disservice to Jodie Whittaker, who I think, with better scripts, could have been a great Doctor.

Having said that, after having watched Ncuti Gatwa’s first season as the Doctor, RTD might have gone the opposite direction and really hammered it home that the Doctor was a woman. I’m not sure I’d want that, either. I just wanted a middle ground in which it was acknowledged, sometimes with humor, other times as some form of discrimination the Doctor faced, which limited her ability to solve a problem (in much the way, for example, racism backed Gatwa’s Doctor into a wall in “Dot and Bubble”).

[nerys @replies]

@translatorcircuit @ps1l0v3y0u Many thanks to both of you, who have better memories than mine. I really couldn’t remember a single reference … but then again, I’ve forgotten significant chunks of the 13th Doctor’s storyline because so much of it was unmemorable. And I don’t feel inclined to go back and watch it again.

[nerys @replies]

@mudlark @janetteb Thanks, I will look up the summary on the home page. It looks like there are also video clips, so hopefully I can watch them. I don’t think I’ve watched any of the pre-gap episodes (though my husband did before he went off to university). Not enough time … and I’ve found it hard enough to keep up with the post-gap ones.

[nerys @replies]

I’m not sure of the correct place to post this question. This thread seems as good a place as any. It’s regarding Jodie Whittaker’s 13th Doctor:

So, this was the first female incarnation of the Doctor. And yet, I’m racking my brain trying to recall if there was ever any actual reference to her, in any storyline, being female. I don’t remember one. Which is … odd.

I’m not saying I’d want to be beaten over the head with it (which RTD might well have done). And, having the Doctor being female – just the simple fact, without leaning into it – was a relief. But not even one reference? They could’ve had such fun, for example, in the obligatory period piece, with the Doctor having to wear a corset and losing her mind over what women had to endure in the name of fashion.

If there was a direct reference to the Doctor being female, and I’ve forgotten it, I apologize … and would be happy to be reminded of those instances.

[nerys @replies]

@miapatrick he looked in pain when Ruby left – but was he crying? I’m not sure there were tears.

I feel certain I saw a tear stain streaked on the Doctor’s face after he turned away from Ruby in the TARDIS … but I’m too lazy to pop the DVD back in to check. Like you, I was thinking, “Has he cried yet in this episode?” And then I saw that tear stain and thought, “Yeah, he did.”

[nerys @replies]

All right, I made it to the end! And I was completely wrong about my surmising that Ruby’s parentage would be left unsolved (see my post in “The Legend of Ruby Sunday” thread). I thought it was touching that the Doctor tried to talk Ruby out of walking in to the coffee shop to meet her birth mother. At first, I thought he was right. All these years, and she never reached out to Ruby? But I think it was because he knew he’d lose her as his companion if she went through with it. And he did.

That was a surprise. I knew that Millie Gibson didn’t return for the following season, but I didn’t realize that she would get an actual farewell episode at the end of this season. That was lovely, yet also sad because we had her for such a short time. She and Ncuti Gatwa were wonderful together.

The episode itself was fairly good, though the personal drama is really what made it. Without that, I think it would have just been average. Somehow I didn’t find Sutekh all that scary, though the special effects were spectacular. And I did appreciate the moral dilemma Sutekh forced on the Doctor.

I haven’t read through all the posts, but I do have a quibble: Going back to the VHS tape footage, Ruby’s mother was pointing, apparently at the sign saying Ruby Road. So Ruby joyfully proclaimed that her mother really did name her. But, other than the Doctor and Ruby herself, who else was there to see it, thus giving Ruby her name? Isn’t it enough that the church where she was left was on Ruby Road?

[nerys @replies]

Confession time: I really don’t know much pre-gap Doctor Who lore, but I get the impression that Sutekh is from that period.

Early on in this episode, at UNIT headquarters, I was sad to hear the Doctor say he was going to keep this face for a long time. We know how that turned out. Also, Kate was reminded (yet again) that the Doctor does not always bring joy.

I haven’t read all the bonkerizing, but my hunch is that Ruby was used as a pawn to lure the Doctor and the TARDIS. For her and the Doctor, the search for Ruby’s mother was real, but I have a feeling it’s going to fizzle into nothing but a smokescreen, since Ruby’s need to know her birth family has nothing to do with Sutekh’s objectives.

Was anyone else worried that the VHS tape was going to break before they got through with it? I’d have thought they’d make a digital copy first.

Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson were wonderful, once again. The tension kept me transfixed to the end. I am hoping that the conclusion delivers the emotional payoff we seem to be building toward.

[nerys @replies]

@ps1l0v3y0u Hmmm, it’s been a while since I’ve watched “Forest of the Dead” (it and “Silence in the Library” are among my favorite Doctor Who episodes). I can’t really say that Rogue reminded me of River Song. Certainly, at the outset (for us and Tennant Doc), River Song was mysteriously flirty with the Doctor. And then the mystery was revealed as time went on … or back?

But, with Rogue, Captain Jack popped into my mind immediately.

I guess I shouldn’t be surprised that people freaked out about the attraction between Rogue and the Doctor. Russell T. Davies certainly did seem to have a list of social ills he wanted to address, and he wasn’t the least bit subtle about it.

There was a point when I thought, “Does every episode have to address some current societal challenge?” And yet I understand a writer’s need to tackle those topics, if the need to do so is strong, and the outlet is there. So I’m on the fence … and can waffle either way, depending on my mood.

[nerys @replies]

Another enjoyable episode, and this time a fun period piece. “Rogue” was lighter than its predecessors, and I enjoyed the humor. But things got serious toward the end.

I haven’t read through all the posts, but did Rogue remind anyone else of a less-flamboyant Captain Jack? I was immediately reminded of Captain Jack’s flirting with Rose, and didn’t he have a thing for dance club music, too? I enjoyed the scenes between Rogue and the Doctor on their respective ships.

I didn’t see it coming that Ruby cosplayed her way out of danger, though I figured the psychic earrings would come into play somehow. I’d forgotten about the battle mode.

The Doctor and Ruby are becoming closer, and Ruby is a good friend to the Doctor. That’s what I like to see in this series, and I have missed it. “The fam” almost never hit the mark. As much as I liked Bill Potts, I felt there was more of a “mentor/student” relationship between her and the Doctor. Clara was a friend, I think, in “The Day of the Doctor” … but throughout the series she was a complicated companion. As were Amy and Rory. So if I think back, the last time I sensed an unfettered friendship was between the Doctor and Donna. It’s been quite a while, at least for me.

 

[nerys @replies]

Wow, another powerful episode! I am happily surprised … and happy to be surprised, if that makes sense. Surprises were becoming few and far between, with Doctor Who.

Initially I thought this was a clever take on influencers. It was hilarious that Lindy Pepper-Bean didn’t know how to do something as basic as walking without the guidance of her Bubble. But I never imagined that the episode would take on racism and apartheid, too.

It went from funny to dark as soon as Lindy threw Ricky September under the bus … or in the path of her Dot, as it were. “Dot and Bubble” delivered a depressing commentary on our increasingly self-absorbed society that landed heavily, but believably.

[nerys @replies]

As I mentioned in my “Boom” post, having just watched it and “73 Yards” I feel like I’ve watched an entire season. I loved this episode. It felt reminiscent of Doctor Who, but without being derivative. Many others have pointed to past episodes that it harks back to, so there’s no need for me to repeat any of that.

Can I ask a basic question? What, exactly, was Ruby doing on the football pitch? I know she was counting until she reached 73 yards, so I assume she had walked to a point that was 73 yards away from Roger ap Gwilliam, bringing her old self in proximity with Gwilliam. I wonder what she said that caused him to run off and resign. But we don’t need everything explained. Allowing us to imagine is a good thing.

I loved the appearance of UNIT, though they certainly weren’t helpful to Ruby. And I wonder what “old Ruby” said to Carla to cause her to disown “young” Ruby. That was heartbreaking.

This is one of those stories that time travel can tell so well: The Doctor and Ruby accidentally breaking the fairy circle the first time around, and then not breaking when we return to that moment in time, means that all’s well.

I’m hoping that this wonderful feeling I have, after having watched these two episodes, will continue as I carry on with the rest of the DVDs. I’m happy to have Doctor Who back, even if it’s just for today.

[nerys @replies]

@janetteb I have been really looking forward to this, the return of Moffat to Dr Who and it did not disappoint. it was so good, tense, political, and with emotional depth. Ncuti really “aced” it. This is the first time we have seen the depth of his Doctor. He has so much energy and in this that is all focussed simply on keeping still. Ruby is shaping up to be a very good companion. She reminds me of Clara but I daren’t say that too loudly as some members of the household didn’t like Clara.

You have summarized my feelings about this episode. Wow! I just watched “Boom” and “73 Yards” … and I felt like I’ve watched an entire season. Now, this is Doctor Who! I almost wish it stopped after “73 Yards” (though I know it doesn’t). I loved the minimalist aspect of “Boom” … “bottle episodes” are often my favorites because they draw our attention to the characters.

Ncuti Gatwa and Millie Gibson absolutely nailed their roles here. I believed they were truly the Doctor and his companion. And I agree with you that Ruby very much reminds me of Clara.

Thanks to all who clarified the meaning of the “what survives of us is love” line. I wondered if I’d forgotten something from a past episode.

[nerys @replies]

@ps1l0v3y0u @whohar @janetteb @dentarthurdent I do agree with you about disliking what Chibnall did to the canon, especially with Gallifrey. But then, I was disappointed with how Gallifrey was handled after the 50th anniversary special. Here we had the Doctor’s jubilation at setting out to find it, and then we got little joy (I mean that in the “jubilant” sense) with the Trenzalore storyline. I think it’s just a case of, that’s not what I was expecting. And I don’t think Gallifrey was handled particularly well after that, with the exception of the “Heaven Sent” and “Hell Bent” episodes.

So I wasn’t especially galled by that aspect of the Timeless Child. For me, it was the horribly clumsy handling of it. The story had potential: What the Doctor thinks she remembers is not what actually happened (which then becomes true for the audience, as well). Here it was handled slightly better than “It was all a dream” … but not by much. (I kept wanting to tell the Master to just shut up. Not because I was upset at the content of his speech, but because such a revelation is not something that should be left to rambling exposition.) Which should have been a clue that maybe this was a road best left untraveled. In a series in which there is not such a well-established canon, this kind of tinkering can work. But, with a series as long-lived as Doctor Who, one must proceed with caution.

@ps1l0v3y0u I agree with you that this was likely a decision made by committee. I’d had a suspicion that this mess felt like a “too many cooks in the kitchen” situation, and I think that’s probably true.

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent

What do you mean, “of course Midnight was total crap”? Where did the ‘of course’ come from? Your opinion does not constitute a universal truth. And for my money, the ‘Timeless Child’ storyline was just Chibs crapping all over continuity, it certainly didn’t revitalise Who. But that’s just my opinion.

Yup, I agree on both points. “Midnight” remains one of my all-time favorite Doctor Who episodes. “The Timeless Child” could have been good, were it not for it being spoon-fed to the Doctor (and us) through reams of exposition narrated by the Master. Chibnall seems to have skipped the whole, “show, don’t tell” lesson of storytelling.

[nerys @replies]

Now, that was an imaginative intro! The segue from the Maestro tapping the opening notes into the Doctor Who theme music and opening credits, then to the jukebox on the TARDIS, was a good idea, well executed. I could’ve done without so many animated notes, but they were cleverly used to drag and bind Ruby, then the Doctor, and finally Maestro.

The Doctor and Ruby seemed to more rapport in this episode, which was nice to see.

Interesting reference to “music of the spheres” and how Maestro wanted to steal that to, what, control the universe? I didn’t quite get the purpose because it went by so fast.

One memorable scene was the Doctor using the sonic screwdriver to silence all sound. I appreciated that Ruby wasn’t a virtuoso pianist, but simply played something she had composed for a friend. I loved how the old woman sat down at her piano and played Claire de Lune. She would have remembered back to a time when there was music.

Including the Beatles was a fun teaser, and at first that’s all I thought it would be. But they were utilized in a way that made sense in the story. In the end, John and Paul saved the day. Nice touch.

Also, it looks like the Doctor gets to change wardrobe in each episode. I don’t mean when traveling to a different time. I mean “current day” (whenever that is, with the Doctor). That’s a new thing, isn’t it?

How many episodes are going to have a song and dance number? That’s a bit jarring, but points given for trying something different.

[nerys @replies]

Well, that was a letdown. It started out with such promise, and then fell completely flat, IMO.

Awful special effects to make the babies seem like they were talking. And, shockingly enough (because babies were involved), I never felt a palpable sense of threat, not even from the Bogeyman … which had an Alien-esque grotesqueness, but didn’t do a whole lot besides chase the Doctor and Ruby down corridors. Normally, corridors are spooky, but these had no effect on me.

Hoping the next episode is better!

[nerys @replies]

So, the Season 1 DVDs finally arrived via my library, and I just watched “The Church on Ruby Road.” I’m very glad that I’d read the posts here, because I found the song-and-dance segments to be quite jarring. But at least I knew they were coming.

I would not have minded the dance club scene, as that was fairly natural. But to have the goblins singing and dancing, and then Ruby and the Doctor dancing and singing along? Bleh!

There was a lot that seemed to get thrown in to this episode. The best part, for me, was seeing the change in Carla before the Doctor went back in time to ensure that Ruby was, indeed, found at the church. It was sadly convincing as to how one small thing changes everything. This is something a series on time travel has the advantage of portraying.

I thought that Ncuti Gatwa was very good as the Doctor, though it feels like RTD is feeling his way as to who, exactly, this Doctor will be. Millie Gibson was an OK companion, but there didn’t seem to be much chemistry between Ruby and the Doctor. And, as Christmas specials go, this one wasn’t very memorable. That’s unfortunate, since it was part of the 60th anniversary.

On to the next DVD!

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent I love “Brain Surgeon”, along with many of their other sketches. We saved a handful of Mitchell & Webb videos and, when we’re looking for comedic relief, we turn to them. Other favorites include “Moon Landing” and “Homeopathic A&E”.

(Sorry, back to the episode topic.)

[nerys @replies]

My husband was traveling on business, and the remnants of Hurricane Melissa had blown through earlier in the day, so I didn’t feel up to doing Halloween. We get very few trick-or-treaters in our neighborhood, anyway, so it’s hard to feel like it’s worth putting out the effort.

When we lived in Ontario, we averaged between 80 and 100 trick-or-treaters. Our first Halloween in our house, we were woefully underprepared and ran out of treats. My husband resorted to handing out packets of hot chocolate while I ran out to resupply us. That was fun.

He so enjoyed the Halloween rituals that he dressed up, painting his face, wearing a costume and playing spooky music. So, when we moved to Nova Scotia and got no trick-or-treaters, that was a huge letdown for him, and we haven’t done that since.

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent Twelve came out looking like a significant figure from his past that he had failed to save.

But, didn’t the Doctor save him? For me, that was what was so poignant about Twelve choosing that face. Donna’s tearful pleading with the Doctor got him to save Caecilius and his family. I always thought he chose that face as a reminder of his alien nature, and that he needs a human companion to stop him when he’s about to do the wrong thing.

(Speaking of faces turning up later, I’d forgotten that Karen Gillan played the soothsayer in “Fires of Pompei.”)

[nerys @replies]

@dentarthurdent With Chibz’ Doctor, one got the impression it was there simply to make it ‘sound sciencey’ or maybe make up for something that should have been better plotted.

I agree. That’s why, for me, this episode stands out among the Chibnall-penned ones, because the Doctor’s observations were pertinent, not just filler.

@ps1l0v3y0u Also eight zaps and the Doctor didn’t start to regenerate once.

You know, I never even thought of that.

Still, I find this an enjoyable episode, if one doesn’t scrutinize the details too closely. Which can be true of a fair bit of Doctor Who.

[nerys @replies]

@blenkinsopthebrave I confess that I didn’t make that connection to Hazran. What did spring to mind when I watched the episode was the connection with role played by Lillian Gish as the woman who protects her orphan charges against Robert Mitchum’s deranged Preacher in the fabulous “”Night of the Hunter”:

http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0048424/mediaviewer/rm1069923072

I think I overlooked your reply because, at the time, I hadn’t seen Night of the Hunter. I have since seen it at least once, maybe twice, on TCM, and I agree that it is fabulous!

@wolfweed I think the GIF you posted is from that movie?

[Author]

Posts