[watching] Doctor Who

Nathan said:
My thoughts on The Story and The Engine.
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I was really hooked by the concept and the situation but disappointed that it came to a crash bang wallop ending - I wanted something more clever - more "story"> However, some great acting.
 
My thoughts about the season finale.

There was a lot to unpack in last night's episode. I will begin by saying it was a typical RTD finale, with everything thrown in, including the kitchen sink! Overall, I thought the episode was good, even if it was a little jumbled. It certainly wasn't the best of the current run. I was sad to see Ncuti go, but I understand that we probably wanted to leave early, because his star is rising. I wasn't surprised by the "surprise" regeneration, because it's something that RTD has wanted to do in the past. Nor was I surprised when the new Doctor(?) turned out to be Billie Piper. Someone let slip to me a couple of weeks back that Billie was going to return, but at the time, I dismissed the news.

There were a few things I was disappointed with. The resolution was too quick, Omega was wasted, and Rose Noble didn't really need to be there because sadly she added nothing to the overall story. I like the character of Rose, but I feel RTD hasn't done her any justice. As I thought the whole business with Poppy was sweet, I felt too much time was spent lingering on that story arc that went nowhere. It would have been cool if Poppy was a Time Lady, and she was the mother of Susan. Talking of which, I also thought that Susan's (and Rogue's) cameos were another wasted opportunity.

Now for the bits I truly loved, the first being the return of Jodie! Yes, I loved seeing her back in the TARDIS, even it was for a briefly rushed scene. I think it would be fun to get her back for a proper multi-Doctor story. No matter what the trolls and haters say, she happens to be my favourite Doctor of the revived era. I'm also glad that Anita Dobson's Rani survived and got a way using a Time Ring. I thought she was the creepier of the two Ranis and I would love to see her return. I'm sorry Archie Panjabi, you did okay, but I think you were outshone by Dobson.

Now for Billie as the Doctor. I just hope that this isn't a RTD fake out. I would love to see her take on the role, even if she was just a stop-gap Doctor for a number of specials to tie us over until we get a new series, possibly in 2027. But there's still time to film a Christmas or New Year's special. I think she would make a cracking Doctor, as she's a brilliant actress, and as a fan favourite, she might attract back viewers that may have lost interest in the series.
 
I thought this series was pretty good.
The cartoon episode was pretty poor and there was too much reliance on magic instead of sci fi… but most of the other episodes were pretty good.
The penultimate episode was just a confusing mess and the sound mix meant I could hear half the dialogue but the finale itself was fairly coherent.
Also, fair play to RTD for setting up a 2-series story ark just so
he could make a two ranis joke
 
Nathan said:
My thoughts about the season finale.

There was a lot to unpack in last night's episode. I will begin by saying it was a typical RTD finale, with everything thrown in, including the kitchen sink! Overall, I thought the episode was good, even if it was a little jumbled. It certainly wasn't the best of the current run. I was sad to see Ncuti go, but I understand that we probably wanted to leave early, because his star is rising. I wasn't surprised by the "surprise" regeneration, because it's something that RTD has wanted to do in the past. Nor was I surprised when the new Doctor(?) turned out to be Billie Piper. Someone let slip to me a couple of weeks back that Billie was going to return, but at the time, I dismissed the news.

There were a few things I was disappointed with. The resolution was too quick, Omega was wasted, and Rose Noble didn't really need to be there because sadly she added nothing to the overall story. I like the character of Rose, but I feel RTD hasn't done her any justice. As I thought the whole business with Poppy was sweet, I felt too much time was spent lingering on that story arc that went nowhere. It would have been cool if Poppy was a Time Lady, and she was the mother of Susan. Talking of which, I also thought that Susan's (and Rogue's) cameos were another wasted opportunity.

Now for the bits I truly loved, the first being the return of Jodie! Yes, I loved seeing her back in the TARDIS, even it was for a briefly rushed scene. I think it would be fun to get her back for a proper multi-Doctor story. No matter what the trolls and haters say, she happens to be my favourite Doctor of the revived era. I'm also glad that Anita Dobson's Rani survived and got a way using a Time Ring. I thought she was the creepier of the two Ranis and I would love to see her return. I'm sorry Archie Panjabi, you did okay, but I think you were outshone by Dobson.

Now for Billie as the Doctor. I just hope that this isn't a RTD fake out. I would love to see her take on the role, even if she was just a stop-gap Doctor for a number of specials to tie us over until we get a new series, possibly in 2027. But there's still time to film a Christmas or New Year's special. I think she would make a cracking Doctor, as she's a brilliant actress, and as a fan favourite, she might attract back viewers that may have lost interest in the series.
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Apart from the fact I think bringing back a companion as the Doctor is an absolutely terrible idea, there are a couple of reasons why I could see it not happening.
When the rumours about Billy Piper came up, my immediate thought was that she's too busy; and adding in an interview comment about stepping into the TARDIS one more time, suggests that was it.
Given that the regeneration energy is still flowing, RTD could pull a fake by having her appear for a moment, and then when/if filming starts again have her morph into the new Doctor; or maybe she'll just get a special and then regenerate again.
Finally, the credits said "Introducing Billy Piper", but not "as The Doctor"
We're just going to have to wait and see
 
I liked this season. I loved the cartoon episode. I also really enjoyed the penultimate episode. I think there was enough in the finale to stretch to two more -- but I know a 3 episode finale would be too much.

I could enjoy BP as the Doctor, and even as a fake out. It's cool. I also think Poppy was wasted.
 
News has reached me that television actor Prentis Hancock has passed away, aged 83. Best known for playing Paul Marrow in Space: 1999, Hancock also appeared in a number of Doctor Who stories throughout the 1970s. He played Jimmy a reporter in Spearhead from Space, Vaber in Planet of the Daleks, Salamar in Planet of Evil, and Shrieve Captain in The Ribos Operation.

Prentis Hancock..webp
 
On the Doctor Who finale, all I will say is that I cannot remember a piece of TV in recent years which has had all the people in my living room hooting, hollering, cheering and gasping like children. We were utterly entertained, sometimes bamboozled, and then utterly shocked and it was magnificent just for that. In an age where every moment of an upcoming project is leaked and dissected, this was something else.
 
Nathan said:
News has reached me that television actor Prentis Hancock has passed away, aged 83. Best known for playing Paul Marrow in Space: 1999, Hancock also appeared in a number of Doctor Who stories throughout the 1970s. He played Jimmy a reporter in Spearhead from Space, Vaber in Planet of the Daleks, Salamar in Planet of Evil, and Shrieve Captain in The Ribos Operation.

View attachment 5949
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He did a fair amount of genre TV - I remember him as one of George Baker's henchmen, along with Brian "Terry the Chef" Hall, in You Gotta Have Friends, an early episode of Minder seemingly done as a homage to Raymond Chandler's "The Long Goodbye"
 
The final +28 day consolidated UK viewing figure for The Robot Revolution stands at 4.08m. It was the 11th most watched programme of the week, and 3rd most watched drama of the week behind Grace and Beyond Paradise. That’s up 0.51m (14.3%) from the +7 day viewing figure, for a total time-shift of 1.94m, up 90.6% from the overnight ratings. However, the overall viewing figures will never be made public, as more and more people will watch on the iPlayer over the coming months.

The BBC measure the success of a series based on the +28 day ratings and iPlayer views, and not on the overnight or +7 day ratings. Further more, overall UK viewing figures are down across the board. The fact that Britain's Got Talent cannot get above 5 million viewers now, when the programme once peaked at 17.3 million viewers, goes to show that viewing habits in the age of streaming are changing fast.

https://www.blogtorwho.com/doctor-who-viewing-figures-robot-revolution-28-finale-update/
 
Here are my initial ratings out of ten for each episode of series 15 (Season 2). In comparison, I will share my Series 14 (Season 1) ratings comments below.

Dr Who Series 15 Ratings.png

Dr Who Series 14 Ratings.png
 
Rocking a very generous 5 for Space Babies....;)
 
The BBC is set to expand the Whoniverse as it launches plans for a brand new pre-school animation series which will see the Doctor’s adventures come to CBeebies for the first time ever. The BBC is looking for a production company to create and produce the series, which will run independently from the main show.

www.bbc.co.uk

Doctor Who - The Tardis is set to land on CBeebies

The BBC is looking for a production company to create and produce the series, which will run independently from the main show
www.bbc.co.uk
 
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