"Doctor Who," American Speed: So many places to go with this one. Moffat's playing an odd game, putting cards on the table early and trusting that he viewer will at least recognize that cards have been put on the table, and indeed, have been on the table all along, but really, there's still not enough information to figure out exactly what's going on. Because "we keep meeting each other out of order."
Prisoner Zero expected that the Doctor should know what the crack is. The Angels wanted the crack's energy, but didn't know they couldn't handle it, and it's unclear whether they were arranging things for it to show up, or just pleasantly surprised. The latter seems unlikely. Both Prisoner Zero and River Song mentioned the Pandorica opening. River Song killed someone who is, if not the Doctor himself, someone Doctorish.
And then there's Amy ... who, as my wife points out, was wearing a red hoodie. But let's leave her aside for a moment, and look at the angels.
The Angels are acting differently from the first time we (and the Doctor) met them. At no point do they drain anyone's potential and send them back in time, and it's never adequately explained why they don't. Which begs the question ... can they? Is that an ability they've gained yet? Or is that something that happens after they go through the crack? Were they erased, or just changed? And why were the two Time Lords in "The End of Time" so clearly positioned to reference them (up to and including a direct reference to them by Rassilon?
There were points where there appeared to be continuity errors between the Angels' two appearances, but now I'm no longer sure. I think we're meeting them out of order. I'm beginning to suspect the angels from "Blink" are from further along in the time stream, that they've fallen through time, like the Daleks and the Cybermen before them. And I'm beginning to suspect a connection between the Angels and the Time Lords, but that's a path I'm hesitant to purse, without more evidence.
But are we encountering the crack out of order? I'm beginning to think so: Prisoner Zero knew what it was, and whatever happens at the Pandorica is obviously significant. Does the Doctor somehow cause the crack? Does River Song kill him? Does the Doctor try to rewrite time? (Because, as we know, that likely leads to bad things. Bad things like two pieces of space and time touching that never should. Bad things like people not remembering Daleks or giant Cyberman robots rampaging in London. Except for the time travelers, naturally. So ... go easy out, Sarah Jane Smith and Jack Harkness!)
I've been enjoying this season, but I'll admit: Up until now, it's only been almost The Doctor. Now, with its establishing-pieces out of the way and its forcing us to go back and look at things we've taken for granted before, now I feel very engaged.
ETA: Wikipedia tells us "The Time Lord President compares two dissident Time Lords to the Weeping Angels as he shames them. In 'Blink', the Doctor described the Weeping Angels as being 'as old as the universe, or very nearly, but no one really knows where they come from.'" Oh, dear. I'm gaining suspicions ...
Correct me if I'm wrong, but in last week's episode, didn't The Doctor say that the three angels they encountered in "Blink" were rogues who were somewhat weak? I thought the implication was that that was why they weren't so vicious as they were this go-round, however, thinking back to "Blink," Ten made reference to their methods of assassination as benevolent, so he had some familiarity with them-- at least, that particular iteration.
And you know, Victor, I was perfectly happy being annoyed with Moffat for messing with the best villain of the last few years, but now you've got me thinking... ARGH. Brain hurty!
The Doctor called the Blink Angels scavengers, barely hanging on.
DW, UK speed: I really liked the episode. And I love Eleven SO MUCH.
"Bench. What will they think of next?"
He's just so entirely random and oddball but totally committed all the same. And I love Amy too:
"If we're gonna die, let's die looking like a Peruvian folk band."
I wonder whether the fact that
Eleven sees the Dream Lord in his reflection is symbolic or literal.
Who UK: it was
surprisingly downbeat, but I enjoyed it nonetheless. I'm probably going to have to rewatch the whole thing in light of the information at the end. It makes perfect sense, though. And any logical inconsistencies can be explained away easily this week because it was all a dream anyway
!
Agree that the
casting was superb. I almost hope Toby Jones comes back.
And I'm loving
Matt Smith more and more. That little smile he did just before the credits, just after he said, "This is going to be a tricky one"? Perfect
.
I don't like it when Who meets my own anxieties, however. I'm holding lectures for three days from tomorrow and this morning I had
at least three dreams where I was late for them and spent the whole time rushing about not sure whether I was dreaming or not, then making myself wake up (in the dream) and the whole thing started again. I had to wait until I was really awake to find that it was Sunday and I was OK. Ooof
.
Edit: and no
crack
stuff at all this week, which was actually quite refreshing.
Who UK:
I loved it. One of my favorite moments was when Amy freaked out the Doctor by pretending to go into labor--just to make a point. I am also starting to like Rory a whole lot. I love that after prisoner Zero, he started reading up on the latest science and therefore knew immediately what was going on with the interior of the TARDIS.
As for the
Dream Lord, upon the reveal of who (heh) he was, did anyone else who's somewhat familiar with the old series think 'Valeyard'?
UK Who: I completely loved it, in a 'Simon Nye* is my new hero' way, up until about half way through - when it got a bit silly. Wasn't in the least bit interested in the elderly people with eyeballs in their mouths. (And I flinched every time they hit an old person. I know, they were aliens, but I couldn't watch!) Basically, a good concept, not as well executed as it could have been.
But there were some great moments, especially on the part of Matt Smith, who seems to be getting better every week. I adore the nervously manic side of this Doctor. His little apology about landing in their flowers was so cute. And Rory wasn't as bad as last week. I liked him better once we'd put some character to him, via his dream of being a quiet, settled village doctor with a wife who bakes cakes. Which marks him out as being, in fact, a very different character from Mickey. So I'm willing to take back my complaint there, if he continues to develop.
*Talking of whom, he was always a good comedy writer, but wasn't this his first Doctor Who episode? I don't remember seeing his name in the credits before.
Flashforward: "He told my mother he would take care of me. He didn't say it would be good care. It wasn't."
I am bummed about Flashforward. I'm much more interested in knowing what happens next with it, rather than V.
