Doctor Who - Season... Spring 2013

[Richmond Clements]

Anyone else wince at the mispronounciation of Metabelis Three? 

Previously it's been pronounced Meta-bee-liss, this time around they pronounced it Meh-tabble-iss (something I guess you would never be aware of, Goaty) but it really threw you out of the story, hearing it pronounced differently

Well, I suspect it will mean nothing at all to the majority of the viewers who will not be aware that it's been in the series previously.

[Tiplodocus]

Yep. I've seen quite a bit of Doctor Who and Metabalis meant duck all to me.

[Tiplodocus]

Ps: Much enjoyed in the Tips household again. I was sat next to a scared and creeped out  ten year old. (And no, not because he was sat next to me!). I actually liked the love story elements of it. It wasn't just a generic  "the power of love/tears/memory conquers all" but very specific love that tied the two story strands together.

Thought Dougray Scott was excellent - and had good potential for another guest spot.

Oh and I really liked the companion/assistant gag.

[Greg M.]

That was a great episode - well directed and atmospheric (though I wasn't really sold on the final twist, which for me undercut the spookiness.) Would agree that Dougray Scott was very good. Funny to think that story was by the same writer as the absolutely dire 'Rings of Akhaten' - they were miles apart in terms of quality.

[Jimmy Baker's Assistant]

That was a great episode - well directed and atmospheric (though I wasn't really sold on the final twist, which for me undercut the spookiness.) Would agree that Dougray Scott was very good. Funny to think that story was by the same writer as the absolutely dire 'Rings of Akhaten' - they were miles apart in terms of quality.

Seconded.

[Hawkmumbler]

Apparently Palmer was originaly going to be Quatermass. How odd.

[Link Prime]

though I wasn't really sold on the final twist, which for me undercut the spookiness

Agreed. Not knowing what the f*ck that thing was or wanted would have had a much stronger impact from my point of view.
First episode of 2013 that not only held my attention, but I enjoyed.

Still can't stand Coleman's Buffy Season 1 sassiness, nor do I rate her as an actor. I'm hoping she's killed off permanently after her (probably tiresome) twist is revealed.

[MIKE COLLINS]

Anyone else wince at the mispronounciation of Metabelis Three? 

Previously it's been pronounced Meta-bee-liss, this time around they pronounced it Meh-tabble-iss (something I guess you would never be aware of, Goaty) but it really threw you out of the story, hearing it pronounced differently

Well, I suspect it will mean nothing at all to the majority of the viewers who will not be aware that it's been in the series previously.

Annoyed me too! I wondered why Moffat didn't pop by and correct em... oddly, by setting it in 1974, doesn't it actually co-incide with Planet of the Spiders?

[Mardroid]

That was a good episode.

And an interesting twist at the end. I assume we have to wait for next week to find out the connection between [spoiler]the monster and 'her', (whoever 'her' is. Presumably Carla since something held her hand. A bit of an Evil Dead 2 gag there. Brrrr.).[/spoiler] It left me wondering if I missed something in the episode. Apart from those bits where characters talk mutter something fast and I don't catch it, which happens a lot in New Who.

I haven't disliked any of this series* but I think this might just bet the best one. Episode two the worst, and that was mainly due to the resolution.


*By that I mean this run as I really count this as a separate series to the other last year. I'm not sure why they don't just class them as two smaller series rather than one series split in two. Each is as long as most other series after all, if not longer.

[Bat King]

I enjoyed it but for some reason don't think it lived up to its potential, can't say what I think is missing though...

My review - http://judgetutorsemple.wordpress.com/2013/04/21/1071/

[Zarjazzer]

I enjoyed it and the storylines all dovetailed together quite well in the end. Nice 'n creepy too when it had to be.

[qtwerk]

Anyone else wince at the mispronounciation of Metabelis Three? 

Previously it's been pronounced Meta-bee-liss, this time around they pronounced it Meh-tabble-iss (something I guess you would never be aware of, Goaty) but it really threw you out of the story, hearing it pronounced differently

Yeah, I bet it spoiled it for millions

[Grant Goggans]

There was a little theory about the mispronunciation at Gallifrey One, where the signal of "interesting" is often buried under more noise than anything else, anywhere.

The theory is that in each story since the Doctor first left Earth with Clara, there's been an Easter egg reference to something kind of exclusive to each original series Doctor, in sequence:

Rings of Akhaten: his granddaughter, only ever mentioned by the first Doctor (until the new series, when she was mentioned a couple of times)
Cold War: The HADS, only mentioned before by the second Doctor
Hide: Metebelis Three, mentioned regularly by the third Doctor and visited twice, but never again.  Oddly, one of these visits was during the serial "The Green Death," when Jon Pertwee famously mispronounced the word "chitinous."  So I think that Matt Smith was directed to mispronounce it.  It's a cute Easter egg callback.

Somebody also spotted the dates on Clara's mother's gravestone.  She was born on the same day that Sydney Newman's "Pathfinders" serials began, and died on the same day as the Auton attack on London in "Rose."

[Charlie boy]

 Dr Who does a ghost story with nods (or steals, depending on your viewpoint) to The Haunting of Hill House (he's not holding your hand, Clara!) and The Changeling* (not the Eastwood film of the same title) [spoiler]The Changeling of course getting a bit of stick at the time because it wasn't just "scary ghost film" but "scary ghost film/tragic story of a murder", which sort of goes with this week's episode seeing as it was "scary ghost story/ actually it's more of a love story of sorts[/spoiler] and then gives it the sci-fi explanation. Enjoyed it up til the ending, thought the [spoiler]alien creatures in love[/spoiler] angle could have been kept out of it. Theme of lost/absent love and sacrifice is still going.
*the pounding sound combined with last second twist of sorts to the plot had me liken it to The Changeling

[Grant Goggans]

I missed the similarity to The Changeling, and that's one of my favorite horror films.  (It is not a long list.)  Not overt, but I see the connection.