New Who: The Satan Pit
Jun. 12th, 2006 03:45 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
selenakThe Curse of Fenric was only the third Dr. Who adventure I ever saw and the one that made me fall in love with the seventh Doctor and Ace, so guess what my reaction to the big climactic scene in Satan's Pit was?
I loved it. Because I see it as perfectly in the tradition of said Curse of Fenric, where the Doctor starts to recite the name of his companions to defeat the Haemovores. Seriously, I might be catching up on my Who canon but freely admit there are still so very wide, wide gaps I've yet to fill, but from my imperfect knowledge, that seems to me one crucial thing about the Doctor-Companion (or Doctor/Companion, I really don't care either way) relationships - he believes in them. What this scene also did was giving me a clue as to why I have a slight preference for Ten over Nine (though neither is my favourite Doctor) - Nine wouldn't have smashed the urns. He came directly from the Time War and wasn't capable of making the choice of the universe above Rose anymore. Ten, on the other hand, might have to talk himself through it, but he does make it, and while he's at it, he makes an important point about Rose; she's not the damsel to be saved. Companion, all Firefly jokes aside, implies comrade to me, partner in a quest, brother or sister in arms, fellow knight of the round table, no matter how you put it - someone who participates in the journey in an active way. And you know, say the Doctor would not have found the TARDIS. Then Rose and the others would have died. But through her actions, Rose would have stopped the Creature from invading the universe. (Which is why I think she shot the glass rather than Toby directly; Rose has seen more than her share of zombies by now, plus the Evil/Creature/Whatever had shown itself capable of jumping carriers. ) She's a fellow knight, she truly is.
Another thing I dug about the episode were of course the continued Alien saga homages. As opposed to most fans, I'm not that fond of Cameron's Aliens, but I see a replication of the death of Vasquez when it's put in front of me, and in fact I thought this variation was more affecting, because Jefferson was no Marine, and didn't die with the classic action movie soundclip on his lips. My favourite Alien bit was Zack's final broadcast, though, which echoes the report Ripley makes in Alien( after she has escaped the Nostromo and defeated the Alien on board the shuttle) but which we don't hear until the end of Alien³. (Of course, Evil!Toby revealing himself and then getting sucked into space is the final showdown between Ripley and the Alien from Alien which gets copied two more times in subsequent films.) That simple recitation of names, the last mission report - it has a sadness and dignity one shot characters rarely get on shows. And I loved that Zack included the Ood (as well as that the Doctor said "I couldn't save the Ood" instead of passing their fate over; they, as well as Toby, had not had a choice, after all).
Ida's quiet conversation with the Doctor about faith was the perfect counterpoint to the dramatic goings-on upstairs where Rose was rallying the and coordinating remaining crew. Like the Doctor, I hope to see Ida again some time. If not, then both she and the rest of the crew were very real people I came to care about a great deal within the space of two episodes.
I loved it. Because I see it as perfectly in the tradition of said Curse of Fenric, where the Doctor starts to recite the name of his companions to defeat the Haemovores. Seriously, I might be catching up on my Who canon but freely admit there are still so very wide, wide gaps I've yet to fill, but from my imperfect knowledge, that seems to me one crucial thing about the Doctor-Companion (or Doctor/Companion, I really don't care either way) relationships - he believes in them. What this scene also did was giving me a clue as to why I have a slight preference for Ten over Nine (though neither is my favourite Doctor) - Nine wouldn't have smashed the urns. He came directly from the Time War and wasn't capable of making the choice of the universe above Rose anymore. Ten, on the other hand, might have to talk himself through it, but he does make it, and while he's at it, he makes an important point about Rose; she's not the damsel to be saved. Companion, all Firefly jokes aside, implies comrade to me, partner in a quest, brother or sister in arms, fellow knight of the round table, no matter how you put it - someone who participates in the journey in an active way. And you know, say the Doctor would not have found the TARDIS. Then Rose and the others would have died. But through her actions, Rose would have stopped the Creature from invading the universe. (Which is why I think she shot the glass rather than Toby directly; Rose has seen more than her share of zombies by now, plus the Evil/Creature/Whatever had shown itself capable of jumping carriers. ) She's a fellow knight, she truly is.
Another thing I dug about the episode were of course the continued Alien saga homages. As opposed to most fans, I'm not that fond of Cameron's Aliens, but I see a replication of the death of Vasquez when it's put in front of me, and in fact I thought this variation was more affecting, because Jefferson was no Marine, and didn't die with the classic action movie soundclip on his lips. My favourite Alien bit was Zack's final broadcast, though, which echoes the report Ripley makes in Alien( after she has escaped the Nostromo and defeated the Alien on board the shuttle) but which we don't hear until the end of Alien³. (Of course, Evil!Toby revealing himself and then getting sucked into space is the final showdown between Ripley and the Alien from Alien which gets copied two more times in subsequent films.) That simple recitation of names, the last mission report - it has a sadness and dignity one shot characters rarely get on shows. And I loved that Zack included the Ood (as well as that the Doctor said "I couldn't save the Ood" instead of passing their fate over; they, as well as Toby, had not had a choice, after all).
Ida's quiet conversation with the Doctor about faith was the perfect counterpoint to the dramatic goings-on upstairs where Rose was rallying the and coordinating remaining crew. Like the Doctor, I hope to see Ida again some time. If not, then both she and the rest of the crew were very real people I came to care about a great deal within the space of two episodes.
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Date: 2006-06-12 03:18 pm (UTC)I would be much more comfortable about this point, had not almost every other episode this season, including the previous story, made exactly the opposite point and made all their Big Emotional Moments hinge around it. Because it's a good point, and it's the point that should be true... but it very much doesn't ring consistent with the rest of the season, and, indeed, some parts of last season.