Last of the Time Lords

[taleya]

Well.

What can I say.,

It's RTD all right, all in his rather dubious giggling fanboy glory. RTD through and through. It had the elements of something that could have been really, really great, but he went over the top and buried it under a pile of WTF.

Where to start:

ok. Simm - Legendary as per usual. His Master is delightfully batshit. I have never loved a villain more than this man's portrayal of an insane Time Lord :D :D :D

Jack, learning to take his enternal recycling in stride, and going more than a tad over the top with it - it's going to be interesting in Torchwood S2, now he's no longer...'hoarding' his resurrections, as it were. And as much as I love JB, he was terribly underused in the ep. Why was he in the three parter? To explain his destiny as RTD sees it (Dude, if you're going for a Cartmel Masterplan, you FAIL), provide the mechanism for a few quick & dirty escape sequences and I really can't think of a third one. Raising awareness for Torchwood S2?


Plot....ahhh.. Well, you see, it would have been more than good. It would have been great. But instead...

Ok, the Doctor being aged? You may remember last week I said there had better be a good reason, other than RTD needing to have a fanboy orgasm. Well there wasn't. The entire pupose - especially fucking Dobby was to make us believe that yes, when you get old enough, a 51st century human can eventually mutate into a giant head in a jar with a pair of testicles perched on his chin.

Not buying it. (And torasin has said he's taking the road of "Jack is fucking with them", which I much prefer)

The rest of it wasn't bad - but...

The Jedi Mind Powers Scene.

You know, that RIGHT THERE is just a massive showcase of how RTD likes to use shock and awe to try and cover up fucking shocking science and plot. I won't go into how torasin had a good splutter and mini-rant at the incorrect useage of matrices, but hell, you know what would have saved that scene?

Get rid of the glowy lights
Get rid of the Doctor magically becoming young. Hell, get rid of the dobby doc entirely.
Have him stand up, and change the speech.

"I've had a whole year to tune myself into the psychic network. Do you know what I can do with the power of six billion minds?"

And suddenly it changes from Peter Pan on crack to actual sci fi.

(There ya go RTD. Your mastery and lordship of all things television and who just got fucking pwned by a bored and slightly shat off amateur fanfic-writing blogger.)

It's not as impressive, but jesus christ, it would shit off a lot less people. And from there, you have the Doctor becoming younger as the paradox is reversed.

Actually, I should give RTD props. The useage of the TARDIS to stabilise the paradox? Brilliant. See, you can actually write real who if you try! And Martha actually having a chance to grow up and hopefully let the writers get over their sick obsession with companions falling maaaaaaadly in love with the Doctor and going a bit bunny-boiler over it.

And that Master death scene? *wibble* (Even with torasin next to me laughing his arse off and saying "I'm half-expecting him to start pistol-whipping him and scream "Regenerate! Regenerate, mothafucka!!") Although I am shat off at the regenerate refusal. If, at the instant of regeneration, they want to die, they can. That's book canon. But saying they have to will the process? Wrong. wrong wrong wrong. Just have him saying "What are you doing? Stop fighting it!" FFS

Anyway, I refuse to believe he's dead. It's a clone, Lucy was acting under orders, and he'd damned well better be back. So there. Because he's too fucking beautifully batshit to lose after three eps.



Overall? Mehh, I'm feeling generous. And Simm rocks.

7/10

Comments

[snowgrouse.livejournal.com]

ILU

[aristaea.livejournal.com]

provide the mechanism for a few quick & dirty escape sequences and I really can't think of a third one.

RTD claims that Jack only exists because the Doctor won't use a gun and someone has to shoot the bad guys. So hey, I guess he's capable of being consistent after all...

It's a clone

Oh noes! I could just see that ending up like Baal on Stargate. The Master will go off and start New Gallifrey and all the Time Lords will be clones of him. Which, a planet full of John Simm, might not be a bad thing, but you know Rusty would write it and — oh, hell. *checks clock* Is three in the morning too early to start drinking?

[maldeluxx.livejournal.com]

yes, when you get old enough, a 51st century human can eventually mutate into a giant head in a jar with a pair of testicles perched on his chin.

*wipes screen* That was funny XD

[madscot.livejournal.com]

Thank God I wasn't the only one who was thinking 'Dobby'. It added nothing to the story.

The Master isn't dead. I don't believe it.

I could really have done without the lifebelt. It's such a cliche.

Torchwood S2 will be very interesting, now that Jack has been 'unchained' in terms of his mortality. I'm worried it will make him big-headed though :p

[taleya.livejournal.com]

We need to keep Simm. Muuuuuust have him back. He's a fucking brilliantly batshit master, and I love him and pet him and call him george. So there :P

People have been making Horcrux cracks about his ring at the end. It amuses me :D


I'm less worried about the size of Jack's head than I am about the balls on his chin. Talk about self-bukkake

[harliquinn.livejournal.com]

I wandered over from reynardo's journal. Aren't mem's great? :P

Anyway, re: regeneration rejection and death... Waaaaaaaay back in the old series there was an episode during the ... hmm... Sixth Doctor, I think it was Twin Dilema episode. He encounters another Time Lord who is at the end of his regenerations who, at the end of the episode dies instead of regenerating. I assume the character wanted it that way, but it didn't seem as if he had much of a choice. "I'm at the end of my regenerations..." and the he died.

i haven't seen the ep. yet, this one with the Master and Jack, but I've been waiting patiently and lo! it cometh.

I don't know if the Books are considered Canon. I've seen a number of places say they are not, but who am I to say? I just thought I'd add my two pence since I've been running through the old episodes.

[taleya.livejournal.com]

Waaaay back? The Twin Dilemma?

Um, dude,

1) Way to make me feel old because I saw that when it was first broadcast

2) yes, there are other old school fans in existence. Please do not assume I am purely new school canon.

And 3) no, it wasn't the twin dilemma.

You're not thinking of Trial of a Time Lord are you? That's the only sixth doctor one that actually has a time lord (or faux simulacrum of one at any rate) actually popping out of existence...And the Valeyard was a whole nother ball game

*yes, I know which time lord you're actually thinking of. But I'm mean and nasty and I'm not allowed to eat anything for the next half hour because of these damned antibiotics, so I'm spreading the crank :P)=*

[harliquinn.livejournal.com]

I about when it was first broadcast as well, but I wasn't allowed to watch t.v. Oh, well. It just feels "waaay back", I suppose. So, it's really not that old chronologically, I guess I'm feeling old today myself. Must be the new reading glasses.

I didn't mean to assume you were new school canon, I just happened to read an article about whether the books were considered canon (the article was considering it in regards to the Time War) or not and thought I'd let in my two cents. It wasn't Trial of a Time Lord I was thinking of, however, mostly because I never watched that ep. all the way through. :P

And 3) no, it wasn't the twin dilemma.
Really? I thought Azumel/Edgeworth (http://www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho/classic/episodeguide/twindilemma/detail.shtml#cast) was a Time Lord.

I know how you feel with not being able to eat with antibiotics. I hope the cranky doesn't last and you feel better.

[jahbulon.livejournal.com]

This episode was a giant pile of fully-functional R-Type anal-plunging arse-tripe and absolutely nothing you can say will make me think otherwise. I, like you, was enjoying this story arc, despite its many drawbacks. Then he went and made it worse. That fucking motherfucker can fuckin fuck fuck a fuckery fuck magoo motherfuck fuck. Entire episode made me so angry I can hardly articulate why. For fuck's sake, fantasy is better than PSEUDOSCIENCE. Fuck that RTD fuckin motherfuckin fuck. He has destroyed this series for me and I hate him with the burning vengeance of a million suns.

[taleya.livejournal.com]

*takes away the coffee pot*

no more caffeine for you!

[taleya.livejournal.com]

oh, and someone said something that cracked me up and is such a good reason to get rid of RTD

"Why the hell would you have a head writer who wants to avoid putting sci fi into the longest running sci fi series on the planet???"

[nicodeimus.livejournal.com]

*heartses you* THANK YOU!

I made the mistake of watching this with new!skool fans who couldn't work out why I was so upset by the Blackpool Illuminations Doctor (how fitting, since DT is the celebrity illumnations lighter this year...) Or by the Master choosing not to make himself regenerate- I have not your eloquence or knowledge *bows in worship*

[exegesis.livejournal.com]

I just saw this ep on channel 2. Overall - plot = sucky as I anticipated for this because I haven't been terribly fond of the eps so far. But oh, that last bit with the doctor and master...it set my little slash ears wiggling. I like the guy who plays the Master anyway

The fact the doctor wanted to 'keep' the Master (visions of bdsm fic and slavefic swimming in my head) and then him begging the Master to live because of 'all we've done together' and 'don't leave me alone!' The master dying in the Doctor's arms...Ahhhhh. *slashy organ is happy*

I reckon the Master's gf killed him on purpose and then took his ring, so he'll be back, but that is neither here nor there. I want slash! :D :D :D

Okay, now I want Master/Doctor fic (current incarnations). Any suggestions on where to go for that?

[taleya.livejournal.com]

guy who plays the master = John Simm = Sam Tyler in Life on Mars (know that cop poster next to the SGA one on Fred's desk? :P)

dw_slash and Whofic.com are full of fic. Although the former is currently suffering a glut of squealy fangirl fic. :/