Doctor Who: "The End of the World"
Apr. 2nd, 2005 09:27 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
iainjclarkI really enjoyed this one. A fairly functional plot was used as a jumping off point for all manner of interesting, witty and imaginative ideas and images.
After a slightly surreal but otherwise grounded first episode, the production immediately ramped-up to Farscape-levels of visual and conceptual weirdness. It was pervaded with a sense of "fun" without ever quite crossing the line from satire into parody. Or to put it another way, although some of the ideas were cheeky-verging-on-silly, Mr Davies demonstrated an immensely well-judged sense of where to draw the line. Likewise there was a very nicely-pitched level of jeopardy, with the Doctor's breezy unconcern and Deus Ex Machina rescues being offset by moments of seriousness. I especially liked his little "zen" moment of stepping though the fan. The fan itself is a good example of just how narrowly the episode walked the line between "fun" and "ridiculous". In some ways the programme relied on the audience's goodwill, but since it generated vast reserves of the stuff from the moment it began, it had plenty to spare.
The two central characters remained completely three dimensional (or should that be four dimensional..?) with Rose's reactions to being spirited away in the Tardis seeming far more psychologically real and believable than any companion I can think of. Her relationship with the Doctor continues to be flirtatious, but not quite actively romantic. Certainly their relationship is much more along those lines than most previous companions. I enjoyed Rose's delight at the Doctor's cockiness early on, and the emotional rollercoaster ride this episode took her on. Once again, Billie Piper's performance actively impressed me.
Needless to say Christopher Eccleston is a god among men. :-) The new revelation of the Doctor's tragic past is the kind of thing that seems so exactly right you wonder why it was never done before. As soon as I caught on to where this was headed, I was actively willing them to go through with it. And they did.
Lastly, I must give a nod to the effects which ranged from the merely very pretty to genuinely stunning. There were a couple of exterior shots of the station that didn't quite convince, but broadly speaking this was an incredibly rich and visually polished episode. The little metal critters were extremely well done, as was the last human.
Overall, the dialogue was snappy (the phone bill, the "retro" air conditioning, etc.), the tone light but with substance, and the overall feel was exactly right for the show. I found the whole thing hugely, hugely entertaining.
(Oh, and Meme! Meme!)
After a slightly surreal but otherwise grounded first episode, the production immediately ramped-up to Farscape-levels of visual and conceptual weirdness. It was pervaded with a sense of "fun" without ever quite crossing the line from satire into parody. Or to put it another way, although some of the ideas were cheeky-verging-on-silly, Mr Davies demonstrated an immensely well-judged sense of where to draw the line. Likewise there was a very nicely-pitched level of jeopardy, with the Doctor's breezy unconcern and Deus Ex Machina rescues being offset by moments of seriousness. I especially liked his little "zen" moment of stepping though the fan. The fan itself is a good example of just how narrowly the episode walked the line between "fun" and "ridiculous". In some ways the programme relied on the audience's goodwill, but since it generated vast reserves of the stuff from the moment it began, it had plenty to spare.
The two central characters remained completely three dimensional (or should that be four dimensional..?) with Rose's reactions to being spirited away in the Tardis seeming far more psychologically real and believable than any companion I can think of. Her relationship with the Doctor continues to be flirtatious, but not quite actively romantic. Certainly their relationship is much more along those lines than most previous companions. I enjoyed Rose's delight at the Doctor's cockiness early on, and the emotional rollercoaster ride this episode took her on. Once again, Billie Piper's performance actively impressed me.
Needless to say Christopher Eccleston is a god among men. :-) The new revelation of the Doctor's tragic past is the kind of thing that seems so exactly right you wonder why it was never done before. As soon as I caught on to where this was headed, I was actively willing them to go through with it. And they did.
Lastly, I must give a nod to the effects which ranged from the merely very pretty to genuinely stunning. There were a couple of exterior shots of the station that didn't quite convince, but broadly speaking this was an incredibly rich and visually polished episode. The little metal critters were extremely well done, as was the last human.
Overall, the dialogue was snappy (the phone bill, the "retro" air conditioning, etc.), the tone light but with substance, and the overall feel was exactly right for the show. I found the whole thing hugely, hugely entertaining.
(Oh, and Meme! Meme!)
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no subject
Date: 2005-04-03 01:55 am (UTC)no subject
Date: 2005-04-03 03:14 am (UTC)1) it prunes back the snarled and tangled Gallifreyan backstory for the Doctor, stripping him to the bare essentials (insert *snerk* here) of a quixotic loner. That's the core appeal of the charcter, after all. It has the added bonus that he now has a dark note of tragedy and mystery.
2) it replaces the old backstory with the single thread of a tragic past - a war which wiped out his planet. This is a thread that is easily grasped by old and new audiences alike, but which can gradually be unravelled to reveal depth and complexity if the need arises.
I suppose there's the danger that the revelation will get complicated (although it's hard to imagine anything more complicated than all the previous Gallifreyan political machinations) but that will hopefully be offset by it being new to the new series, and explained gradually.
no subject
Date: 2005-04-03 04:16 am (UTC)Christopher Ecclestone stripped to his bare essentials.... *sigh*
Um, moving on... I think that this plays to Ecclestone's strengths as an actor. We've all been mentioning the fact that they've very carefully balanced the lightness and humour with more serious moments, and much of the success of this is, I think, down to Ecclestone. I knew he could play dark and intense, but I wasn't aware of how well he could play chipper and oh-so-slightly-manic as well. So by providing *his* doctor with the pared-down and tragic backstory, it's really giving him an opportunity to shine, and also exploiting his talents. I'm really not sure that (for example) Colin Baker or Sylvester McCoy could have carried it off so well.
no subject
Date: 2005-04-03 05:45 am (UTC)mmmmmmmmm
*blink* were people talking about something?
no subject
Date: 2005-04-03 10:38 am (UTC)You've just made me imagine them trying, and the results weren't pretty... especially Sylvester McCoy, who in his very best moments had perhaps 1000th of the gravitas that Christopher Eccleston brings to the role.
More importantly, I never really liked and empathised with either of their Doctors, especially not compared to the way the current Doctor is portrayed, so it wouldn't have had nearly the same impact.
no subject
Date: 2005-04-04 05:40 am (UTC)They both had a different kind of manic, dark and f**cked up. McCoy used to regularly f**k with Ace's head - he was just getting started when the show got canned... With Colin Baker I felt terribly short-changed, as he never really had time to settle into the role, but when Ecclestone goes it won't feel like a lost opportunity.
Eccelstone's Doctor doesn't have any characteristics that aren't aleady *in* the character - they have been spruced up and given a modern spin. I don't think that previous Doctors could do it the *way* Eccelstone has done it - but they did it their own way... What Ecclestone has done, which makes him unique, is that he has made the character his from the outset. I think RTD has played a large part in how the new Doctor has turned out - he knew he wouldn't have time to develop the character slowly and I'm very impressed with how quickly they have got the show up and running (as it were).