'The Star Beast' Review - Doctor Who 60th Anniversary Special
Вставка
- Опубліковано 17 жов 2024
- It's been a LONG year, but we're finally here! The 60th anniversary celebrations of Doctor Who are underway, and we've kicked things off with The Star Beast!
Has this been the return to form we've all been waiting for, or are we still needing a few more wins in the specials to come? #DavidTennant
Check out Amy and I's NuWho rewatch podcast here:
anchor.fm/kaste...
#DoctorWho #TheStarBeast #DoctorWho60
![[UA] NAVI vs MOUZ | BO5 | IEM Rio 2024](http://i.ytimg.com/vi/CMBYk0cbGoA/mqdefault.jpg)
As a trans person myself, I do think that the transgender stuff was kind of forced into the plot or at least the dialogue. I think Rose being trans would've been enough.
Yeah. Me and my partner were talking about this after the episode. There was the scene where the guys on the bike were calling Rose ‘Jason’ and you immediately think ‘oh, okay so there’s obviously something there’, and anyone with a brain could work it out. Also, DW has always been about inclusivity so it didn’t need to feel like it was being waved in your face. Plus the fact that the Doctor can literally be either a man or a woman.
As I’ve said, there were a couple of scenes where it was subtle enough to figure it out without spelling it out with the dialogue they used a couple of times
100% agree as a trans person too. the ending bit especially felt weirdly forced in
@@nickcollins5191i think the deadnaming scene is important, since it depicts some of the struggles trans people go through. The non-binary scene was great, too.
The lines right before Donna and Rose let go the meta-crisis needed more time in the oven.
@@nickcollins5191doctor has never been non binary
@@edadankmemes I’d probably agree with that. There’s also the scene where she asks if the doctor assumed meeps gender, which makes three scenes total.
I think it’s definitely the last scene (the one right before they let go of the meta crisis) that either needed more time in the oven, like you said, or could have been left out all together
i really hope the next episode is actually scary and not like in a "might be a little bit scary for younger children scary" because scary episodes are my favourite kind of episodes
I saw the teaser next time trailer for WILD BLUE YONDER and I immediately felt some horror vibes similar to the FNAF movie, (btw loved that movie, it was like my childhood returning, and yes I've played all the games and know pretty much all the lore tbh lol), but I agree on that bro.
im hoping for horror similar to the god complex cause that was an actually creepy episode
RTD has already said it will - he said episode one is "basic Doctor Who" all the core elements you want to kick off the run. Episode two is there is gets "scary" he says and then Episode three is where it is just "manic".
Yes!
We need something genuinely scary!
Like, I don't know about you, but Blink was pretty scary! And that basically featured freakin' angel statues! And yet! It had me at the edge of my seat!
@tommyq374 Scary? How does it affect you? It has nothing to do you you. If a person feels they identify as another gender, if they are legal age, they can do what they want and should have the love and support of society. In the same way people who are anti same sex marriage, how does that affect people? It doesn't.
Sylvia had became so much better now, definitely a character development
The Doctor has won her over in End Of Time part 2 along with Donna being alright despite remembering everything (not a plot choice I like but guessing it's so they can bring the Temple/Nobles back in the future)
How did I come out of the 60th anniversary of Doctor Who with Sylvia as my favorite character? Lol
@@christophersheets5452 Because you are a decent human being, who knows people can change. Many grannys find it hard to understand of their grandchildren want to identify as a different gender. But many accept it, because love is love, whoever they are. And that is what happened to Sylvia.
Shaun was great too. I enjoyed the scenes with him. And I like Fudge too. I hope he returns!
@@johnking5174 Yeah it was a slip of the tongue and she immediately corrected herself fair play (Donna wasn't happy but clearly knew her mother just needs to get used to saying "her" and wasn't being malicious)
Honestly it's so cool that they brought back so many Tennant era peeps. Like, they even brought back Donna's husband and referenced Wilfred! Truly a NOBLE episode right there. :P
@YungAtzhe was at the table read for the star beast as well meaning he was probably supposed to be in this episode but I'm guessing they didn't get all the scenes filmed
The Doctor"s reaction whan he learned what Donna did with the money was totally believable and relatable, I think most of us would be baffled at someone doing something like that, especially if we'd been the one to give them such a gift
Love Donna with all of my heart but her reaction at the end when she realises what she's done and why was so in character 😂 (her family being in London is arguably the reason she didn't let the Meep kill them both)
I would have kept at least a couple million and then give the rest away. Just seems impractical.
@@Wrightbrain Yup keep it and donate from the interest or a non-profit organization.
I agree...I think given this is a pre-doctor Donna too I wasn't convinced that she would have given it ALL away... she'd have kept a good amount so she could have had a good life.
yeah and also the whole point of donna winning the lottery was to set her up for life so having lingering parts of the doctor in her mind screw it all up was funny and when you think about it it makes total sense, although part of the tragedy of donna was her going back to her loud slightly selfish persona, theres no way with her mum being more supportive and bits of the doctor bleeding through that she wouldn't soften slightly again. that being said theres no way even donna in her best self pre mind wipe would be mental enough to give it all away lol
Why did the grandmother never notice Rose was making plushies of previous aliens that Donna had encountered? She'd definitely have known the Dalek one.
True, Sylvie should have noticed that. Or Wilf, when he still lived with them.
Did Sylvie or Wilf actually see the inside of a Dalek or did they just see the outer shell. Even if she did, the plushy probably wouldn't be recognizable if you weren't already thinking about the daleks
Also since there's a cyberman Plushie, that means Donna did meet the Cybermen at some point offscreen during series 4. Sounds like a cue for Big Finish!
Because she never saw them, she only saw Daleks but not the mutants
(because the script sucks!)
Yeah the male presenting line was my only real grievance with the episode, felt the same when Jodie said lines like "I've had an upgrade" in reference to being a woman, feels like bear poking for the sake of bear poking and kind of against the message they're trying to portray, other than that i haven't smiled so much at Doctor Who in years
The “male presenting” line doesn’t make sense because The Doctor was a woman just hours before.
It's basically like coming up to a trans person right after they've had their last surgery and saying to them "Shame you're not a woman anymore." Can you imagine someone doing that? @@rvbremastered7527
@@rvbremastered7527Rose and Donna don’t know that.
@@MsJaytee1975 Donna specifically references the fact that the Doctor was a woman in the episode (although she really shouldn't know that by any stretch of the timey wimey imagination)
@@MsJaytee1975 donna literally brings it up
I didn't like when the Doctor was scolded about pronouns. He's met a myriad of aliens of the years and he recently was a woman. He understands pronouns. It seemed unnecessary.
11-28-23 Edit...
I just want to clarify, that I mostly liked the episode. I approve of the representation as I have gay, gender-fluid and trans people in my life. I just thought some scenes were written awkwardly and it muddled the message a bit. The ending definitely got a tad muddled with the "male presenting" line. And how Rose is referred to as non-binary when she was constantly referred to a "she" and "daughter" throughout the episode. Of course she could be binary as well, but it wasn't established.
So I mostly liked the episode, I just have nit picks.
I felt exactly the same. I could have possibly let it go if it had just been once, but it happened at least twice, and the second time (the one near the end of the episode) was EXTREMELY in your face and just… so unnecessary. I understand wanting to show inclusivity, but DW has ALWAYS been inclusive. It could have been done much more subtly
Also, my partner made a point that the doctor has been a woman and a man (like the master) and probably like many other time lords/ladies. You could make an argument that the time lords are non binary/gender fluid (although I understand this is more restricted entirely on how they’re regeneration goes)
It was an eye rolling moment. 🙄
@@nickcollins5191 its still being inclusion, it was just one time about pronounse and the scene was like 2 seconds, its not big deal
@@nickcollins5191 I mean, as I said he's an alien hundreds of years old, and he was just recently a woman. If anything he should be sharing his broader views...not being scolded
@@gonzaloavila1710 I mean it wasn’t just once. I can remember twice where the character brings it up. The first one I could have looked past but like OP has already said, scolding the doctor on pronouns near the end of the episode wasn’t needed or necessary. Anyone who’s ever watched doctor who understands inclusion, and could have worked out within 20 minutes of the episode could have worked out the character was trans.
Please understand, I have no issue with the character OR the actor being trans, I just don’t think the scolding of pronouns was needed
12:48
_"The fact that they're just sort of above it all"_
Except when in *S35 E12 "Hell Bent"* the General castigates a subordinate,
" Back to normal, am I? The only time I’ve been a man, that last body. Dear Lord, how do you cope with all that ego?"
There’s also the logic that being binary is part of two, and by adding a third person into the mix means it is no longer a binary scenario? To make it more programmy? 😂 But yes the shaking it off as women was a tad cringe after all these years of wondering how they’d solve it…
It's a "we have only got 3 hours with DT and CT, so we've got to get this sorted and move on with 10 and Donna within an hour, but I also really want to do the Star Beast" kind of move
The solution was disappointing. I didn't understand the shaking it off thing at all. Looked sexist to me. Men can't do it? Why..? All is well just because she's a woman? I like the explanation of a third person making the situation no longer binary, but Rose's daughter is as binary as you can get. Couldn't live as a feminine man and had to switch to a woman or something.
Yeay Rich is back and manages to eloquently vocalise pretty much everything I thought about the show. Huge hugs to you and Amy 🤗
@@mavisedwards totally agree, its been doing my head in all night. they male and female part, what?! binary means 2 parts becoming one whole..human and time lord, the doctor donna? whats that to do with gender? and then the non binary part had be confused as well.
AND yes! wtf do you mean male presenting time lord cant do it? he isnt male presenting for one thing its a biological regeneration. 12tgh doctor literally said "were billions of years ahead of your petty human need for gender and all its assosiated steriotypes" so why was that even a thing, if they both had the mind of the doctor that shouldnt have come up at all.
also if anything my husband is more likely to let something go before i will so >.>
In her previous episode she said that being part-human allowed her access to extra information. "you two were just Time Lords, lacking that little bit of intuition that gut instinct". It's possible the Doctor has the wrong info about the meta crisis because Time Lords were brutal and may have just let people die rather than focus on a solution. It is a bit cheesy but a lot of Dr Who is@@mavisedwards
I agree with so much of this. Overall I thought the episode was fun and such a great nostalgia trip! Seeing Donna as a fiercely protective mother was such a treat. The "we can shake it off because we aren't male presenting" line though...such a huge miss that it's threatening to ruin the episode for me altogether (as a not-male-presenting person it's a bit ironic, eh?) I'm giving myself a couple days to calm down about it before re-watching.
Just found your channel and really enjoyed the review!
I would have thought, instead of the 'let it go' solution, 14 could have lost a hand again and the time lord energy could have been stored in it. Full circle.
I saw someone say that if the splitting of the meta crisis could slow down Donna and roses death then they could have done all the events of the 60th anniversary and then wiped their memories again and it would all make sense.
I agree with you on the whole trans representation stuff.
I thought of the way that Rose was introduced as a trans character was very naturalistic (the bullies deadnaming her, rather than, say a character telling The Doctor Rose is trans). I also thought the Donna/Sylvia story on slipping up with pronouns was - as you say - quite relatable and also reflects my personal experiences of sometimes slipping up while friends have transitioned.
The scene where The Doctor is berated for “assuming he pronouns” felt a bit…preachy? Like, The Doctor is thousands of years old and we know from Capaldi that Time Lords don’t think about gender the same way humans do. The same point could have easily been made by, say, Donna using “she” and The Doctor using “he” then Rose saying “has anybody asked The Meep what they are?”. A bit more naturalistic. A bit less confrontational and not berating our central character for something they weren’t doing maliciously.
I also found the suggestion that 13 would have been able to fix the meta crisis because, as a woman, she would know to “just let it go”. Whittaker’s womanhood was hardly ever mentioned during her time as The Doctor unless it made sense in the script. It was part of who her Doctor was, but not her defining feature. So for Donna and Rose to now mention it like some sort of superpower that The Doctor lost now that they are “male presenting” again felt a bit…off?
i agree with your comments completely. the dialogue could have been a lot better, and while i didnt like the whittaker stories, they definitely need to honor her existance as a woman before saying that the doctor couldnt understand because he was male presenting..
@@db5094 Agreed. Maybe even if they had Tennant joining the dots, realising that Rose and Donna could just let it go after Donna saying “shame you’re not a woman anymore”. It wouldn’t have changed the weak resolution to the Metacrisis, but it would have at least shown that Whittaker’s Doctor was still rolling around inside Tennant’s head somewhere (especially as normally post-regeneration, The Doctor is normally quite discombobulated and not quite themselves yet)
I also felt Jodie's Doctor was not the freakin' star example of someone who can easily let stuff go... like it felt so weird to imply if 14 was a woman it wouldn't be a struggle, but 13 could've easily done it... when she probably would have been worse at it than 14 because he seems a little more emotionally balanced to me than she was? Maybe he just hasn't had a chance to be in enough crisis' but y'know what I mean?
@@WWalton1996 Jodie couldnt even help a friend calling out for help with his cancer fears. She wasnt the best doctor lol
I agree with tennant joining the dots, im still iffy on the whole "timelord woman trick", but just that bit of tennant going like "The ability for a woman to pass on regenerative capabilities must learn them the ability to move that energy out of themselves, of course!" would have at least been better haha@@billydeeuk
I think this episode was pretty solid and really looking forward for the next episode, obviously David and Catherine was brilliant and I pretty much agree with everything you've said, the only other thing I didn't like was at the end all the damage to London somehow reversed which made no sense to me
Oh yeah that was weird
Don't worry, by the third special, the population seems to go mad and trash the city so that kinda makes up for it.
😊yes, it it was a literal time reversal it would have made sense. But just reversing what is effectively a drill also repairs damage? We need one of those for roadworks...
It is absolutely a 'mid' rtd era episode and that's exactly why I loved it so much lmaoo. It wasn't fantastic, it wasn't terrible, it was good and that's all I've wanted for a long time. Most importantly though, it felt like Doctor Who. Cant wait for more.
It's very much a step in the right direction after 5 years of Chibnall's era.
This. As a lapsed fan coming back after the better part of a decade it felt exactly right. Nothing too amazing, a fairly standard plot with a mildly threatening C-list baddie to set up the new Doctor and whet your appetite for bigger adventures. It reminded me a bit of Series 3's opener - space police on the hunt for a fugitive alien that's good at feigning harmlessness.
Very excited for the next one as we know nothing about it and it appears to be a 'scary' one - and those are notoriously good (Blink, Midnight, and Silence in the Library spring to mind). And I can’t wait for the Toymaker episode either - I only know him from the Who encyclopedia I was glued to as a child, it'll be great to see him in action.
About the opening sequence logo: I think it’s because Disney Plus has localised versions of the logo for different languages, they likely thought rendering a different logo in 3D for all the different territories would have cost too much money. It would have been nice to have the default "Doctor Who" version be properly rendered, since it’ll be used more.
It's not difficult to add slight motion blur and possibly shading.
Great to see you back reviewing who! Roll on the rest of the specials.
I think TSB is going to age very poorly because of the male presenting line. I’m female & I was offended. Also the fact that Donna & Rose could shake off the Time Lord energy, and that only female presenting people could know that was possible, means that the DoctorDonna knew that’s all she had to do & let the Doctor erase her memories anyway? Or that the Doctor did it so quickly without consulting w/ another Time Lord genius & erased her memories (w/ the consequence of Wilf losing his passion for the stars) completely & totally unnecessarily. Just something that RTD completely ignored about his resolution. Also, 14 knows he’s 14. And he had a convo about with Sylvia. But at no point did he mention it to Donna. And when Donna becomes the Doctor Donna again she’s not with Sylvia. The last Donna knew of The Doctor he had that face as 10 & he was alive and kicking. So all the emphasis that Donna puts on 10’s face having come back makes absolutely zero sense. She should have no understanding that he isn’t still 10. Sure, she’s got a Time Lord’s genius & her memories back that point, but it doesn’t mean that she’d know he regenerated again.
I think there is an explanation for her knowing. It's quite possible that upon "regenerating?" she reinhereted some memories? That's my only real theory on that. That somehow she reconnected to The Doctor when he unlocked the Metacrisis. It's convoluted, but so is most of Doctor Who lol.
I think because the metacrisis was shared, it got diluted enough so it could be released. I don't know why they put the male presenting line in there, it felt unnecessary. Poor Doctor and Wilf were cut up about what happened to Donna for years, if there was another option, the Doctor would have gone with that ages ago. The whole DoctorDonna thing was because Donna's human, her gut instinct allowed her to think of ideas the Doctor couldn't. If they reinforced that instead in the special as that was how Donna and Rose worked it out then that's fine. Plus If Donna knew how to get rid of the metacrisis then she would have said so back in series 4. So I think at the very least, it wasn't until Donna had Rose, it became possible to resolve the metacrisis situation. Felt like a cheap shot to the Doctor about male presenting after he was so worried about Donna for so long.
@@jeremythomaswebb1485 They could have also left it alone all together, the fact it was shared and diluted enough not to cause her brain to overload was enough of a reason to leave it be. They could have also made a note that because its not the whole thing anymore donna wont be a super smart timelord and just retained a little extra iq points lol
@@charg1nmalaz0r51 Actually yeah, that could have worked too. With it shared, both Donna and Rose weren't in as much danger.
The Male Presenting comment nearly ruined the whole experience for me.
The pronoun nudge I didn’t care too much about, but again this is The Doctor who has taken many forms (we’ve seen just the human ones so far) so is beyond our gender bias and stereotypes - imo anyway.
None of the scolding was needed, you’re already in a show that has accepted and represented people and views from all corners of the planet.
Come you are overblowing that line a bit. It's a Bad line mind you, but it's Not that Huge. But yes they could have made this more about the doctor who always had trouble letting go.
@@keit99 you don't think its a problem because its exclusionary of men? Or just because you don't mind exclusionary language in broadcast TV?
@@TheGreatPower365 no I think the line is a problem, just a bit overblown. I don't like the line, but it didn't Ruin the experience for me.
Agreed... It brought you out of the story. Lots of the ending was pretty ropey and didn't make a lot of sense. It seemed that any old button in the factory would control the Meep's ship and everything was fixed because trans/gender/non-binary is a superpower...
The using the meep as a way to talk about pronouns I thought was simple and not too in your face which is what doctor who is good at. The only thing that wouldve been better is if Rose was the one to get the pronouns wrong to show we ALL slip up like how Bill got caught out with the roman soldiers being queer herself but assuming the soldiers sexuality. The doctors been travelling the universe for hundreds of years he would have an insight into different species and pronouns.
the only gripe I had was with that end thing with them doing the male presenting thing that Rich talked about it really threw me off guard while I was immersed into the special. But other than that the episode was fantastic and I cannot wait until next week!!
My only significant complaint is the dig at male presenting people at the end. They could have said something like ‘it’s something your timelord arrogance couldn’t conceive of’ instead. Make the solution their humanity instead of not being masc.
I did really like the screwdriver being able to draw holoscreens but not the shields, that felt a bit too much.
Respectively making it about the doctor specifically. Along the lines of: 'It's something YOU could never conceive. Simply letting go. You've always had trouble with that'
Yh that's Disney for you trying make doctor who in cinematic universe with shields now! 😂
Edited: sounds familiar
I honestly like the shield bits, but to quote the war doctor 'It' s a screwdriver'
In before watching:
The first of the 60th anniversary specials, I thought the "The Star Beast" was an entertaining affair. As a celebration of everything that had come before it worked brilliantly, marrying classic Doctor who sensibilities (unsuprising given the source material) with the tight witty dialog and well drawn characters which helped a whole new generation fall in love with the show in RTD's intial run (seriously, I felt the impact of Zogroth and Zreeg dying within a few minutes of having met them)
The whole thing looked amazing too, with both the pratical effects and the visual effects being were some of the best Doctor Who has ever had, Beep the Meep in particular being brilliantly expressive.
Additionally, the pace plotting and direction were on point. The only negative, for me, came from another hallmark of the RTD era; an over reliance on the Deus ex Machina. And it wasn't Rose's true nature, that was signposted pretty well and tied things together quite neatly. It was the resolution to that, best summrised by "Let it go". Just felt that the whole sequence sequence felt incredibly pratonising and a little too rooted in unhelpful stereotypes. I feel it could have been resolved in a better way, perhaps even hinting towards the Celestial toymaker' s influence or giving them a reason to travel on together (also. Why did the damage magically revert?).
However, That minor gripe aside. The episode was really rather good.
I'd give it a solid 8/10
It did hint.... even though it left open who the level boss was.... in gamer terms! Meep begins by being way too cute.... and sympathetic. However.... we have 2 hours more.... to go! i love 10/14 and the way it all dovetails! :)
This felt like an opener for a new season and not a 60th anniversary special. Not necessarily a bad thing but it felt like it needed to do too much to set up the new specials rather than being something bigger. I think the metacrisis should have been over 3 episodes, because a lot of scenes felt shoehorned in and came out of absoltely nowhere. 14 getting upset about giving Donna her memories back was trying to draw on the End of Time scene with 10s iconic "i could do so much more" and thay would have slapped if we had more build up and a breathing time. Great episode still, felt better than anything we've seen in a while. But now the metacrisis stuff is out the way, we've introduced the new characters and set the stakes, there should be a bit more room next week for some cool stuff.
Part of me feel like the specials are part of series 14 (or season 1 as it's now called). Like how some people refer to the 2009 specials as part of series 4.
This episode made me feel like I was a little kid watching aliens of London again
Really agree about that one line near the end (took me back to school, being told I was mansplaining which left me feeling dejected and different from my female friend group. As a man, many realities are different, but it didn’t feel like the time and place for such remarks), but seeing the cast together again, I was too happy to let it ruin things. Had a great time, and seeing him run around the Tardis all giddy like a kid in a candy store felt me with such wonder ❤
The sparkly part of the intro just screamed Disney. I know they had some creative influence, but we might as well had Tinkerbell come out and bop the screen with a Sonic Screwdriver.
That was quick! yeah I had all the feels...some issues with the script - how did donna know this wasnt just 10s face? - and one REALLY clunky line ...but that aside my fave line of the whole show was a single perfectly delivered word 'YOU!'
This little fact stuck in my craw a little too. How was she to know that the face ever went away? It should have just been a bloke coming back after many years.
I feel the idea of "shaking off the metacrisis" implies that you can choose to no longer be a Timelord, and THAT is a huge character detail. Rose Tyler as Bad Wolf was clearly in so much pain and as much as I'm sure she wanted to cast it off, she couldn't until a genetically superior being, the Doctor, steps in and take it away from her. But at the same time, HE could cast off that excess energy.
If Timelords are able to let go of their innate Timeless Child energy, then it really shows how desperate a TImelord is to be superior and have those advantages. It could help rationalize the Timeless Child stuff too, in my mind.
That’s actually a really good point.
I also thought that the "letting go" of the metacrisis would be something that comes up again in future episodes and like this theory about how timelord energy can be a choice.
Well no firstly if you are into the timeless child plot point, the doctor being the timeless child cannot just let go of the energy because it is part of him, its not something he was given like the other timelords or donna. Also the fact rose couldnt sake it off in the original just proves how stupid the line about male timelords not understanding they can let thigns go are because she didnt and also the doctor was the one that took it.
This episode delivery more depth and good representation in one hour than Chinibal era in three seasons..
Even if it was kinda preachy at the end, I would take that over ANY of the Chib era preachiness.
Why? Because in The Star Beast, under the preachiness lies a valuable moral lesson about accepting identities and consideration of the non-binary.
Underneath Chib’s preachiness lies some stupid shit about not mercy killing with a gun because guns are bad even though the creature is literally painfully suffocating to death (I really really hate Arachnids in the UK).
@@edadankmemes totally agree with you, now let's just forget that horrible times, and hope that Chinibal stay far away from Doctor Who
Funny, I thought the opposite. This is a loud, brash 'Disneyfied' version of Dr Who with everything turned up to 11 and enough diversity and wokeness that Chibnall fans love. Many anomalies such as Donna knowing that the Doctor's face had changed. How did she even know about regeneration? A miracle sonic. The Doctor meeting Donna's entire family by absolute coincidence. The aliens talking about 'the hunt'. Hunt? Donna keeps saying that 'something is missing'. This episode was as subtle as a fart in a lift. Murray Gold's music was loud, intrusive and OTT, including the noisy theme music. It was as preachy as a Chibnall episode. We need to hear about pronouns? I have little confidence for the Dr Who preachyverse coming.
Calling this good representation is insulting to the idea of what good representation is. The only good part about the representation is at the beginning with Rose getting deadnamed, that was a good scene that represented something trans people actually face. And maybe the missile wheelchair, though that is an old idea that even the old Bond movies did, so giving the writers special credit for that would be like giving them credit for managing to breathe. All other attempts at representation in this episode were lazy and insulting.
Ah, yes, valuable moral lesson of... checks notes... "Shame you're not a woman anymore." Now, imagine saying that to a trans man or someone who's non-binary irl. Go on, imagine it. Do you like it? Congrats, you're transphobic. Do you hate it? Congrats, you're a hypocrite. @@edadankmemes
I get that they have been very fast and foose about the sonic screwdriver in the past but I actually prefer it doing what it’s doing here than it working like a magic wand and opening wooden doors etc. it being a piece of technology that projects energy of different kinds in the past is a reasonable head canon explanation of it being used as a “deus ex machina shield” (excellent phrase btw).
regarding the sonic, I don't mind the screen as we know the doctor can read what the sonic scans. But with the shields, that's so unbelievable and just makes it look even more OP than before
This is one of the most fair reviews I’ve seen. I love doctor who for trying to establish this messaging but at times the way they went about it felt very forced and heavy handed. It resulted in taking me out of the story multiple times rather than just enjoying a brilliant episode. I really hope they work on it.
The one thing I'll say about "destroying London to fuel Meep's ship" being a "so-so threat" is that the stakes had to be enormously high for the doctor to even consider restoring Donna's memory and presumably killing her. I guess there could have been a scenario where Rose alone was facing death but given that this is the 14th Doctor and not the 10th, I don't know if it would have been enough for him to intervene unless it was for the sake of self preservation. Yes, of course, we knew the doctor wasn't going to let London be destroyed. What we didn't know is what the trade-off was going to be.
But he knew about the drive from the beginning. At NO POINT did he put dots together and go "oh, snap that thing might try to launch again"
The danger was ignored until it was convenient, and then rectified with something completely unrelated.
Let's just magically disable the rocket from outside the ship.
So glad to see you talking Who again! You have been missed sir!❤
I loved having David back as the Dr and the funny throw away lines and running about on the new Tardis was infectious
For me, there wasn’t enough exploration of the identities of the Doctor, Donna & Rose for resolutions that we got. Felt a bit out of nowhere, a bit Deus ex machina-y. When Rose said, paraphrasing here, that she could finally be herself, we hadn’t seen any real conflict for her leading up to that, it wasn’t immediately obvious that she’d been struggling with her identity. Now, anyone reading this will say “she’s trans” but what I mean is, there’s nothing to suggest she hasn’t already had that moment, something which might’ve been why she transitioned in the first place.
The pronoun thing was a bit eye-rolly, but I honestly thought it was a joke.
The “non-binary” bit did get a “huh” out of me but again, it’s because it was out of nowhere for me story-wise. More fleshed out backstories of Rose & Donna, both struggling with who they were to the point of conflict, would’ve helped for me.
Same with the “letting it go” thing, that was, for me, unearned.
Sounds like I’m complaining but I’m not really, as these are just mild narrative issues for, and I loved the episode. If they had extra things in there that I’ve mentioned, it would’ve been 90 minutes long!
Yeah, only real complaint was the “male presenting” line and the simple shaking-off of the meta-crisis. The former seemed like an awkward fumble , completely unnecessary. And the latter seemed like waaay too simple of a solution. Would have been better to have the meta-crisis hanging over their heads for a bit.
That said, loved the adaptation and the chemistry between all the characters! The meep was wonderfully realized and the whole pace of the episode was super tight. I appreciate that they gave us an introductory adventure and didn’t throw everything in our face at once.
Glad to have the old team back and excited for what’s coming next, including the new new Doctor!
Loved it, I like the sonic doing new things but agree the shields were a bit too powerful and may be limiting going forward.
The one issue I had was the joke about Wilf being dead, feels in bad taste now, I think I'd have re-edited that scene.
They oddly cut his scenes out for some reason,
Glad to see you back! Love your reviews. Cant wait for next week.
Yes, it's official. The Sonic is over powered. LOL
It has always been😂😂
It literally caused things to suddenly combust in the past, I don't understand why everyone is complaining. What because now it can make hard light shields and projections ? People gotta lighten up .
As a disabled person I love the way it was represented here. Like with Rose the episode managed to represent people and still touch on the positive and negative aspects in realistic ways.
That’s a very fair assessment and the most reasonable I’ve read in the 5 hours since I saw the episode.
As a Trans gal I gotta agree, the deadnaming is a good thing to call out and same with the misgendering, these things just happen unfortunately so it's good it's being called attention to, and Im also disabled funnily enough, so it's nice that they're treated as just normal
@@AussieGamer-jd6qd I appreciated the way they incorporated Roses family still trying to grapple with her transition and not wanting to say the wrong things out of love for her. A very relatable part of life for allies and family.
@@AussieGamer-jd6qd That’s the power of representation, the more people see what others go through, positive and negative, the better. It all helps with awareness and empathy.
The magic pencil thing was what came to mind for me, glad to know I'm not alone in that 😂❤
Thank you so much for doing a review that actually talks about the episode.
Thought it was a pretty enjoyable start. I'm genuinly excited for the show again. Keep up the great work Rich!
The new sonic making a holographic display? Awesome. The hard-light walls, though? Just a TINY bit too overpowered. Also, THE ROUND THINGS! So many of them! After seeing teasers of the new interior, my first thought was "Well, we don't have to wonder where they've been put anymore." (TARDIS reveal scene of Deep Breath, for anyone wondering)
I think the whole point of the introduction was because it was Airing on Disney Plus and it was meant to introduce Doctor Who to people who've never seen the show.
You know on that note something really bugs. Me why license the specials and NOT the series from 2005 on? How the heck are they supposed to build viewership for the new ones? After watching the special there's nowhere else for people to go unless they have Max or BritBox. And if they have BritBox, they wouldn't need Disney+
@@Wrightbrain I think that has something to do with previous licencing agreements with Warner-Discovery, or what ever that company is calling it's self right now. They cant move the series over becuase the current agreement with Warners hasn't expired yet. When it does, they might be able to move the Show over.
14:11 well... they made the daleks and a double deck bus levitate... why not the wheelchair?
I left the episode REALLY confused at when/how the sonic screwdriver became so overpowered. I mean, we always joke about it being able to do anything, but now a sound-powered device can create holograms and bulletproofed surfaces??? What? What?! WHAT?!?!
Yeah, if it can do anything, the doctor doesn't have to think as much or worry.. What was he trying to accomplish having them all just go upstairs? I felt like the writers just wanted to show something that looked cool.
Protego Totalum! 🙂
It felt like a Disney+ show more than Doctor Who 💔
I didn’t like the monologue at the end about how the doctor could not let go, because apparently he was a man??
Doctor Who never shied away from controversial topics. But come on!! The writing was way better!
The dialogue was very cheesy. It’s like they have a checklist they have to apply.
I was underwhelmed.
Frankly that line was bollocks and could easily be cut out entirely. Or even better have hime retort that they have been both Male and Female and that gender hasn't been an issue to them for far longer than Humans think they have somehow suddenly introduced some massive innovation.
@@enigmagenesis7341which is exactly what Capaldi said once! It was part of beautifully written episode.
This episode was written for Disney+ audiences. They have to bang it on your head, just in case you don’t get subtlety. 🤷♀️
Accurate as hell on the intro, it's so ridiculously half baked. The Logo is literally a png. Waveform, David Burgess, Neon Visual, Voidstuff, they're all magnificent youtube openings, and they're eons better than what we just got (not to mention their themes too)
very fair review, Doctor Who is most certainly back, Im looking forward to seeing more of Rose and how her character is treated, this episode focused heavily if not entirely on her identity so im hoping over the next two specials we look more into the different aspects of her character. Overall, a decent return to form, could've been better, however given the last 5 or so years of who it could have been a hell of a lot worse
Great video lad keep up the good work ps I can't wait for next Saturday
Very good start man. Happy to see more the Doctor and Donna together again. With Russell t Davies back I'm excited to see more next week.
It feels just like the Dr and Donna have picked up where they left off. Cracking first episode. Love the look of the Tardis too!
Pretty much agree with all of what was said. Yes, the 'binary/non-binary' thing was a little awkwardly on the nose, as it were, but it was also quite clever. So overall I can accept that RTD has done a decent job here. The episode was carried admirably by the actors' performances and the dialogue was well crafted, which is something I have not said about Doctor Who in a long time. I'd give it 9/10. And I'm hopeful about the coming episodes and the new series 1. I think I need to have a wee lie down now! :-)
I can see the memes when they say Let it go - cue Frozen "Let It Go" song 😂
When I saw Yasmin Finney had been cast, I hoped she wouldn't be playing Rose as transgender - but not for the reason you may imagine, before folk jump down my throat.
Whilst I agree the dead naming scene and the following one between Donna and her mum, were very naturalistic and worked well, I have an iffy feeling about the decision. To put it simple, Rose, a transgender girl, was born from Donna who posseses the Doctor/Donna dychotomy - it feels like it could be inferred that that duality, could have literally created the dismorphia within Rose, and that feels a bit off when presenting it as reprsesentation.
You then have Rose saying she finally feels like herself once the metacrisis has gone, which I presume was an attempt to reballance the above interpretation, but that makes no narrative sense. Unlike Donna who lost part of herself and would new be whole again, that is who Rose has always been, so suely that would be like loosing part of herself, not finding it?
They don't seem to know what they're doing with it. At the conclusion Rose refers to herself as Non Binary, but she isn't, she's a M to F Transgender woman and referred to a she and her all through the show so "binary". Then you have the "male presenting" moment at the end - it all feel a little derisory
You are absolutely right that the whole point about rose is she is going from male to females so she is going from one binary point to another she is absolutely not non-binary.
THIS^
It was nice representation, that I skipped her being transgender (which internet easily explained to me), but show decided that... non binary isn't human/normal. Like wtf show. Either is representation of trans people (or non binary or both) or... she is non binary because her mother had alien space magic in her while she was pregnant. You can't do "this thing is normal" and then change it into "this is why she isn't normal".
Oh my gosh, I just realised something else. Rose used the Beep's tech to remove the Mind controlling energy from the soldiers right? So what if instead of letting it go, The Doctor, Donna and Rose put their minds together and rework that same tech to safely remove the metacrisis energy from Donna and Rose safely! The answer is right there! The Timelord/human ingenuity working together to come up with the solution like how Donna and the Doctor did back in Journey's End.
I really love this review. I’ve seen so many people that are focusing on all the things they didn’t like about the star beast. I love that you’re focusing on what you love and adding in a few things you didn’t like but not letting them ruin the whole episode.
When it comes to a character's race/gender/beliefs, I feel it should be part of the character identity and background rather than a plot point.
I'm my opinion, I feel like it was handled well at the start but a bit "on the nose" at the end however I understand I am not the target audience and fully support the representation.
Also, the ending where the Doctor couldn't understand it because he was a man/male presenting felt odd because it felt too much like "Only I can solve it because I am a man/woman/because of race/ethnicity" which feels more exclusive than inclusive to me.
Good episode on the whole although the story was a bit rushed.
I also fully support the idea of representation, but only when it's done properly. After seeing my trans classmate go on rants about how he hates it when writers and media use his identity as a weapon or a shield from criticisms, it really dawned on me that this is not the way. At the start, the representation was perfect. And then it got destroyed when they both, mixed up what trans and non-binary means (aka called Rose non-binary when she's trans), they also made it because then, they can say "Look, we are diverse!", which is precisely the problem I described before. And the "Shame you're not a woman anymore" shit is just vile. Would you walk up to a trans man and tell him that? Or someone non-binary? In their attempt to insult men (their enemy no. 1, it seems), they, in a twist of irony, just committed friendly fire instead.
Completely agree.
The vast majority of people don't want to be beaten over the head with political messages when they're watching Doctor Who.
They want a good story with characters that they can connect with.
It is possible to have characters that are part of a minority without making the story all about that.
With good writing you can weave in characters that are trans or gay etc and not come across as preachy.
Series 1-4 and the spin offs around the RTD era did that perfectly.
It had characters that were all of different races and sexualities and nobody moaned about it because they were written well in a bigger story.
The reason why the show lost the majority of its viewers (and the reason why they've now brought back David Tennant and RTD to win them back) was due to poor writing and constant political messaging.
I want the show to survive and this isn't the way to do it.
Can anyone explain the letting go thing to me? It made absolutely no sense to me. I watched it with my dad after work and he looked at me in confusion and I was like. I don't get it either. Is it about holding grudges? Most other woman I know, myself included are, are pretty petty, so I'd think if anything it'd be the opposite.
Personally I liked that they worked in the “Binary” “Non-binary” aspect with Rose and her inheriting the meta-crisis. That felt organic, and worked perfectly with the story, the “male-presenting” like was the only bit that seemed forced. (And was totally an eff you to all the close minded “fans” who hated Jodi for being a female doctor)
Yes, well said. For example, when Martha went back in time to Elizabethan England (the Shakespeare episode), she has well written lines that were in context like "well, I'm not exactly white," when she expressed her concerns of time travelling to the doctor. Her dialogue pertaining to the topic of race and colour were pefectly melded into the storyline adjacent to her character in a believable way, so it felt like Martha was saying it as opposed to just an actress saying her lines.
Took way too much scrolling to find a review where the title/thumbnail wasn't some clickbait rage crap about wokeness or whatever. Thank you. Hell, I'll subscribe. xD
The main thing I hated was the casual sexism of saying that The Doctor couldn't understand as a male. Seriously, sexism is sexism, no matter the target.
gota disagree on the title sequence i thought it looked better then previous eras i take your point but while it could be improved it was still one of the best
The kinetics felt inconsistent between cuts
To say that the Doctor is male, female, both, and neither in one breath and then chide him for being a male presenting Time Lord in the next is a major tonal dissonance. And Donna and Rose just shrugging off the metacrisis energy and letting it go was WAY too easy; it should have been more complicated than that.
I always look forward to your review and good to have you back
Hey, look the round things.
I love the round things.
What are the round things?
Good review, I agree with almost everything as usual!. I would perhaps just say that the opening title sequence does match the music more closely than was suggested. For example, the TARDIS is whizzing around in the first few seconds during the musical introduction.. ... And when the main theme plays, the TARDIS pops out from the cloud cover and the camera zooms in as it's 'flying free', very interesting effect.
I loved the episode, but my one gripe is the sonic. How long has been between the regeneration and the start of episode in the context of the show? Unless it was replaced the same time as the regeneration, hows he already got a new sonic screwdriver?
That floating pencil clip 😮 by gawd that took me back
I loved this episode and mostly agree with your review. The Meep's threat to destroy London didnt really feel threatening but I dont think that was the intention. Throughout the episode, it was the risk of Donna remembering the doctor that was a threat and that did have a heavy weight in the final act.
I really love the intro, it feels dynamic and lively, i didnt catch any special effect issues when watching. I've gotten goosebumps on every rewatch when the Tardis gets slingshotted through the nebula. My only issue with it is that the Title Logo doesnt feel like it appears at the best time with the music nearly reaching the drop. It would of been awesome if the title appears at the drop with the regeneration lights and sound enveloping it.
I'm also incredibly lucky that i didnt read up on who Beep the Meep actually is because that twist was surprising
Everyone outside London would just be thinking, "You're going to destroy London? Fine, just do it 👍"
I think we shouldn't minimize the bad writing and the purposeful insult to all men. It was a brilliant episode that was dragged down by a few moments. Instead of having a fantastic episode with a trans person in, letting online assholes fester in hatred, they had to give those trolls a reason to be smug by injecting insults, bad faith and poor writing into it. Just let Rose be, for fuck sake. She was enough as it was, and having her be able to split the metacrisis by being Donna's daughter was more than enough. Pushing the gender stuff did nothing but minimize her identity
13:40 -- I would have preferred if they'd said that shaking off the excess power wouldn't have occurred to the Doctor because he's full time-lord, and for him it would be shedding an essential part of himself, whereas for humans it made more sense. Make it a human vs. Time Lord thing, leave gender out of it
Well, I think the point was it wouldn't occur to most men to just give up power, whereas when do this willingly more often. It could've been a funny joke/commentary, but was rushed.
@@etherealtb6021 Most men perhaps, but not all; to turn it something that wouldn't occur to any man is so essentializing. Besides, the Doctor has shown on multiple occasions, *including as a man*, that they're happy, indeed eager, not to have power
@@ugolomb True, but I liked the idea of it, that lots of men are taught from a young age to cling to power, but lots of women are taught it is bad (like you're "bossy" if you're a leader), so we can let it go easier. It definitely needed more time to get that idea across and would've been better not directed at The Doctor, like you said.
Do women give up power more readily than men? If so, is that why hold less power?
The whole thing was stupid and seems strange for an episode trying to show people how bad it is to assume someone about someone because of how they look/identify.
@@calebland6246 Yes and maybe? I'll give you the example of one of my bosses. I asked her if she was going to try to move up in the company and she said no, she was good. She earned enough money, had a short commute and could spend more time with her kid. It would be no question for a man in her job to move up (even if they also didn't want to).
Women also give up power when a human grows inside them. The point is, it is something women (in general) are more used to doing. 🤷♀️
Bruh the lottery thing was weird. If I’m winning £166m .. ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTY SIX MILLION POUNDS.. after I didn’t have money to begin with… I’m giving £10m to charity mate.
I couldn’t compute Donna’s giving away the lottery money
The "presenting male" line was out of place and hit me wrong. They could have said, you as a Time Lord would never consider this option, but being people who've lived without it, we can give it up. Make it a Time Lord vs Human thing.
I think it was a 16 year old being snarky rather than the accurate truth.
Yeah, the targeted comments on cis people made me roll my eyes, especially since it's been long established now that timelords don't have genders, at least not conventional ones like us. That just felt like Russell was trying to rile up the rage bait mob here on UA-cam.
But aside from that, this episode was just fun. I can't remember the last time Doctor Who was genuinely fun. It was a great first episode and I can't wait for more!
I feel like the sonic screwdriver needed a scene where he mentions that he has been working on it or him saying “let’s see if this if this works or some just small comment of acknowledging that this is a new thing
Thank you for calling out that incredibly unnecessary line re: a man not understanding letting go. It would have made some sense to say that "you" wouldn't understand -- which would fit into his incomprehension about Donna giving up the lottery money and/or 10's whole past with "I don't want to go", but what actually came out was just cringe.
While I did like this episode as a whole, there are some issues that i think are worth pointing out. One being that I felt like I was watching the episode on 1.5x speed. Like I was able to follow most of the plot but in the intro from instance: we start the episode with the doctor coming across donna, meeting Rose AND have a spaceship conveniently crash over head in the span of under 2 minutes without any context. And I honestly completely missed all the identity talk because there was just so much noise. Hope next parts have a little more breathing room.
Myself being born intersex and a huge Dr. Who fan I would love to watch, but I can't afford the Disney bundle. 😢 😫 Anywhere else I can watch it?
Gotta say, I disagree about the credits. I loved them.
1. Colour palette of RTD's original titles
2. Nod to the "cloud sphere" in Moff's first titles
3. Nod to the big open spaces as TARDIS switches between past and future in the time vortex during Chib's episodes
The sonic has done lots of weird things like stopping bullets in mid air
A much better story line for the Metacrisis would have been, that since Rose was born with it - encoded into her DNA - she would have been physiologically able to withstand the metacrisis entirely into herself. Freeing Donna from it, solidifying her gender-fluidity as she becomes the Doctor Rose. That way, when we do eventually say goodbye to Donna she will always have (in some way) the Doctor with her. This would have been a much better and far more logical solution to the metacrisis rather than simply - letting it go.
They could’ve even just said because there’s now Donna and Rose with the meta crisis stuff split between them, it’s not strong enough to kill them anymore.
The music and titles were HYPERACTIVE!
Is the 60th anniversary on DISNEY+ NOW?
The pronouns bit:
(A) its totally reasonable for Rose to raise the point. They were assuming things about Beep the Meep and wanted to find out more about what it was.
(B) it led to one of my favourite lines. "My chosen pronoun is fhe definite article". It was a funny bit of dialogue that people are overlooking becase they can't see past their rage at the word 'pronoun'
I can't excuse the 'just let it go' bit though.
It also plays into Beep 'cutesy' act. It's trying to avoid being found out, so of course it will try to endear itself to Rose.
Yep it felt like "attack helicopter, deal with it" and later doctor made face "ok, stupid question, let's pretend nothing happened here"
I’m glad I’m not the only one a bit thrown off about the sonics new powers, I thought the VFX for them was done well but the fact it just “happened” (a bit like how I thought they solved the Donna death situation) didn’t sit well with me. Apart from that I loved it.
Also I will petition with you for that Miriam cut to the end of the earth 😂
I’m FINE with Rose Noble being Trans, theres nothing wrong with it at all, and the scene where Donna wanted to kick the bully’s ass when he was picking on Rose was heartwarming and well done…but all in all the subject felt REALLY FORCED. The episode itself was SPECTACULAR tho, had a lot of fun watching it.
As usual, I completely agree with this take!
Considering in S14 we have a character called Roger ap Gwilliam who leads the New Albion Party I think he is Meeps boss who planned to use the blacklash from Meeps successful plan to garner support
Often missed and I did have to look out for it in the much longer credits roll is that Murry Gold has returned managing the music in the episode. His absence has been profound. The audio element is as important as the visuals.
Its been confirmed that about 6 to 7 seconds have been cut from the title sequence, as i suspect this is Ncuti's so that cut maybe Ncuti's face. Also there was meant to be a 3d logo but the animators couldn't get it to look right in time and they went with that. I loved it, has some clunky dialog at points. but overall i enjoyed it. Though i wish someone would destroy that bloody sonic screw driver!! it can now all of a sudden make touch screen displays and force shields?????
Completely agree with everything you said! great they're back!
Finally a video where I can just watch as a fan instead of feeling like the rest of the who community hates people like me and the things I like ❤ thanks for that
I think just sharing the metacrisis energy with rose, to a point where using it just makes it fizzle out wouldve been a better explanation than “only female presenting timelords can release it”
Absolutely spot on review, summarises my thoughts so much more articulately than I could do with my friends and family. Some of the dialogue was very jarring, but overall what a return
It wasnt perfect but it had heart. And i think thats what was missing a lot during the chibnall era. Things dont need to be perfect they just need to have HEART
So, Star Beast is Evil Yoda. Got it.
I was fine with what came before it, but As a male presenting human, I rolled my eyes at some jumped up 16 year old (who looks to be in her 20’s at least!) giving the Doctor a condescending, snarky gender snipe! Whats more, everyone stood around looking all heavenly and joyful. “Isn’t she amazing.” She deserved a Clip round the ear hole for that!
Also it was lucky the cracks from the star drive only went down the streets and then somehow sealed themselves back up again. Magic engine reversal.
Other than that, loved it all. Even the clanky, banging pots and pans theme tune.
To be fair a 16 year old, looking in her 20s, and being condescending and snarky to an adult, is like a lot of 16 year olds.
@@MsJaytee1975 fair point :)
He's Back ❤
And so quickly