Doctor Who S4 episode 1...SPOILERS

[rabid1st]

I had the day from heck...and I wasn't sure I would even get to see the episode because of so many transportation problems and recording glitches. But thankfully my UK buddy came through again (Brice, thank you so much for doing the back-up for me)...and I've seen it. So, even though it is an awful hour of the morning in the States...I am posting my reactions under the cut.

SPOILERS HEREAFTER...

OMG! OMG! OMG!

I was completely totally not expecting that...and judging by the commentary neither was anyone else. Go Russell! That is JUST what I would do in your place. Let them know a little...then BAM! No spoiling the story. HA!

And if you haven't seen it...I'm not telling you what I am on about...even though you probably have heard by now. But I will say...I teared up...and I felt a little faint, too.

I will also say this...I said we would have this sort of scenario in Episode 11...and if we did...it boded well for my theory of a life together...because it is the sort of tease that sets up expectation in viewers. Even adult viewers...let alone little kiddies. We all know how the story is supposed to end for a true hero and his love...so it should end that way.

Now...onto the show...the monsters were adorable. The nanny was just perfect. Donna and the Doctor's reactions to Donna were so very on the money for me. They are both just as I imagined them to be. I'm even happy that the BBC trailer was so misleading...because it set me up to be happy. And I was very happy with this episode. I thought it was clever and fun and I really enjoyed myself. The Doctor with the luggage...just too good for words. And Donna about his suit. How many times in Old School did I think...for Pete's sake wear something else? At least, there is some variety in New Who.

I loved them missing one another...and how it tied-in to other things. I loved well...everything about this episode.



Anyway...sigh! I am in the mood to write now. So you should be getting new fic from me this week...fingers crossed.

Rae

Comments

[roxyk630.livejournal.com]

that *points to above and makes mass sweeping gestures*

YES. Exactly.

Cept, unfortunately I got spoiled on the "OMG" bit. I was pretty pissed.

WOOT NEWFIC! <33333333333333333333333333333333333333

My fave? THE WINDOW AND AND AND... the pre going with the doctor "talk" YES. THANK YOU RTD.

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

God, I feel like I should be asleep now. I have terrible jetlag and it is only going to get worse as this day goes on. But since there is sunshine when their shouldn't be...yes and YES to the window. I loved the way the Doctor sort of loses track of what she's saying as she babbles on...and then the baddie reaction. Priceless stuff. This is what RTD needed...a real shot of fun dynamic. Donna was such an inspired choice...and it can all tie back into Rose...and then...it can all be set up for the future of the franchise.

Rae

[roxyk630.livejournal.com]

YES. YES YES. It made my day and... kinda made up for the things that upset me during S3. It was a fantastic start!

[kitmarlowescot2.livejournal.com]

Loved it too, I just hope that two minute show up didn't count as the three times Rose shows up this season.

[kitmarlowescot2.livejournal.com]

Loved it too, I just hope that two minute show up didn't count as the three times Rose shows up this season.

I don't suppose when you start back on your fic we might get some Rose/Jack/Doctor love in the epilogue when the Doctor might be a woman ?
And they been together 600 or 900 years, and they are in a mood for a special holiday betwen the two of them with Jack ?

ANd I don't suppose you have heard but Charlton Heston has passed away.

[(Anonymous)]

Haven't got a livejournal so hope you dont mind me posting here anonymously.

I've watched the Rose appearance several times now, and I swear when she fades out I can hear the sound of the Tardis, which wouldn't make sense if it was the Tardis as the haven't left yet.

Now maybe I'm wrong but I can't recall that sound been made in Doomsday when ever any character popped from one world to another

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

I don't mind you commenting...hope you stop back. Yes, there's a noise alright. But it's not the TARDIS or it's noise...I would say something to do with a mechanism of some kind though. My feeling is that Rose is looking for him not because she misses him...but because something has gone wrong and she needs his advice. I think she wouldn't risk the world if she only was doing it for herself...not that she doesn't want to be with him. I just feel like maybe she's got bigger weights on her shoulders now than just her own feelings.

And it is also possible that this is accidental...and she's simply popping back and forth for some reason...and isn't aware of it even. Maybe he's drawing her to him or something.

Rae
happy to have something so wonderful to speculate about...I hope the ratings go up next week.

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

Finally, just to answer your question...yes, there is a noise with the dimension hopper things in Doomsday. However, it is not the same noise...it is higher pitched. But then, it is highly unlikely that Rose would use something that the Doctor had made very clear was harmful to both worlds. So, she's using some other method...or she's not using a method at all. It is possible that this is a projection of Rose not a real version of her. Donna was so excited she might not have noticed...and Rose doesn't say anything. Currently, not enough info to go on to know what's happening here.

Rae

[maniacalshen.livejournal.com]

Wasn't Rose leaning on the police barricade, though? I got the impression she was corporeal from that.

And, hey, I forgot you owned a lovebird, too - like my icon? I bet yours is spoiled just as badly as mine is. XD

[phdelicious.livejournal.com]

This has been a good weekend for scifi. I'm firmly sitting my own little happy place now. Also, this is totally why I love being unspoiled. I'd seen set photos of that scene but pictured it being waaaaaay later in the season/series so yeah, total shock.

The little babies were adorable. And the silent conversation cracked me up.

[fidesangelus.livejournal.com]

Whoa. You didn't have the slightest idea that Billie was going to be making an appearance either?! I flipped out personally. People on my floor were knocking on my door to make sure I wasn't dying because of all the squealing and screaming.

[nyaaaaaauuuuuuu.livejournal.com]

"You...have a...hat box."

I just about DIED.


Now, of course, I have high, high hopes for the season (I do hope Donna's Luggage of Doom returns in some way....hee). And especially for the finale. I wonder if we'll be getting more hints about that as the season goes on - especially in the episodes set in present day London.

They did throw in a couple of unobtrusive Bad Wolf references in S3...though you can't get too much MORE obtrusive than her actual presence...! So I'm guessing there'll be a bit of hinting/teasing/clues that can only be understood retroactively/other tricks up RTD's sleeves.

:D

[sensiblecat.livejournal.com]

Since we'd already had three Grim Reapers with scythes in Torchwood, I had high hopes of Donna's Luggage sprouting little feet for a full-on DW/Discworld crossover, but I guess I'll just have to write it myself.

[nyaaaaaauuuuuuu.livejournal.com]

Since we'd already had three Grim Reapers with scythes in Torchwood

I know! When I saw that scene in the hospital in Dead Man Walking, I thought to myself, "But he's quite nice, really...Or rather, unflappable, and not quite so...angry...or inarticulate."

And I think I'll have to think of Donna's Luggage with a capital 'L' from now on. ;) It had a bit of a lurking quality about it, too...

I would adore a DW/Discworld crossover. I keep imagining how characters in one might react to characters in another...Another thing - there are a strangely large number of parallels between Death and the Doctor, if you think about it... *ponders*

[bluevolvic.livejournal.com]

RTD is very Sneeky he he!

I can't believe that she was in the first ep, I was so shocked, I shouted out to everyone "It's Rose!!!" he he!

I loved this ep it was really funny, Donna is fantastic!

can't wait to read more of your fics ^__^

I saw it too!

[princessblue791.livejournal.com]

Thanks to a lovely Brit. Donna was fab! The fat things I could've lived without. Seeing Rose was the best part. I get the feeling that the Doctor is saving himself for her. Maybe thats just me and my insanity.

To all American folks - April 18th on the Sci-fi Channel is the premere date for us. Squee!

Thank you Uncle Rusty!

Re: I saw it too!

[princessblue791.livejournal.com]

And oh yes I can't wait to read your next fic.If you ever get published, do tell me so I can raid my nearest book store.

[wickedgillie.livejournal.com]

I was totally unspoiled, and just when I thought the episode couldn't get any better, well, it did. Wow. I teared up, too! I bounced in my seat! I clapped and squealed a bit, too, if truth be told.

The entire episode was such fun. The aliens were great. The matron kicked ass. The pantomiming was nothing short of fantastic. And I must say, I did love Donna's Granddad.

In short, RTD utterly made my weekend!

[ladyofgallifrey.livejournal.com]

I continue to say that your canon is what I am holding out hope for - I believe it can be done and the show can go on with #11 and new companions (possible offspring?) after their time together "ends".

But OMG - when I first read the reaction posts (haven't watched - still not sure I'm going to) I thought of how you have Rose now in "Disheveled"!!!

All for the ground work has been laid

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

It absolutely can be done. What's more...it is the right thing to do for the fans and for the show as it goes forward. It adds to the mythology and gives an entire generation of new fans something to be part of without taking anything away from them or the Doctor. And...it gives us a chance to have David Tennant be the Doctor for his whole life. Any time they want to bring him back...they can. Win! Win! Win!

So, hopefully, it will be canon. And #11 will still have me watching and all of my fellow Rose-lovers, too. And all of the non-Rose lovers, too. Nothing puts the specter of something to bed like fulfilling the promise of it. Once the life is lived...there's no reason to go on pining for it. And no reason to go on fearing it will happen. You can sustain hope forever...but hope fulfilled...can sustain forever.

Rae
getting poetic on you there :grin:

Well...it WOULD have been poetic

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

If I hadn't been typing so fast I left out a bit.

What I meant to say was..."You CAN'T sustain hope forever...but hope fulfilled can sustain forever."

This is what I get for showing off my philosophical side. But...it's not really philosophy just common sense that should be apparent to TV writers and producers but never is...they keep pushing the idea of fulfillment of their ships forward...tantalizing the viewers with hope but never allowing hope to find satisfaction. Then, the viewers leave and the show fails...and they wonder why? It's because hope is what lets people go on...hope sustains...but you can't sustain hope unless once in awhile...it is fulfilled.

Rae

Re: Well...it WOULD have been poetic

[ladyofgallifrey.livejournal.com]

This is why I love you - you get it. Hope without action is what? A waste of energy. Hope fulfilled, as you point out, is when we get to experience something wonderful. It makes the energy expended in the hoping all worthwhile.

When ever I get bummed out by all the naysayers and Rose-haters, I spend time here soaking up your perspective, because I truly do HOPE you're right about this and many other things.

I will hang right in there with you. And if that doesn't work, I'll just read "Disheveled" over and over again...

Thank you...I am always happy to hear

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

...that I make sense to someone. :grin:

My feelings on this issue are quite strong. I think that people need hope. Especially hope that their efforts can pay off in success. I don't think that is a whitewash of the world. I've had a lot of success and I came from a very hope depleted environment where everyone not only gave up but insisted giving up was all you could do.

So when I hear people say...well...the Doctor can never settle down...I think, why not? Isn't it just a matter of giving him the right conditions? How do you know he wasn't settled in the past? In fact, we could even assume he was...because he is an old man when we meet him and he said he got tired of the life they led on Gallifrey. So, we can assume he lived there for a time. Now, he's been traveling for hundreds of years...and his home planet is gone...it isn't beyond the scope of reason that he might want a little rest.

Traveling...he tells us in VotD isn't fun anymore...then we go on to see how very UNFUN it is...with all of those people dying and him unable to save the one he really wants to save. It was different in Old School...there the Doctor was a rascal of a wanderer...he got into mischief...he thumbed his nose at authority and did things that the stuffy old Time Lords wouldn't like. He was a man seeking adventure and excitement and new horizons...and that's a big part of who he is...but, as Jack says, cubicles are exotic if you've never spent any time in them.

RTD created a longing that the Old School Doctor never had...the longing for a normal life...then he created the woman who could domesticate the Doctor...in Rose. Then he removed every obstacle to the union...relative time, biology, aging, children, the concept of if he can love, does he love...and he's only got a few barriers left to lift...2 really...

1) Now that she has a good life...and doesn't want to escape it...will Rose still want him.
2) If she can't go away with him...does he love her enough to change HIS life for her.

Two is the big barrier in my mind...because...that's the one I'm sure shifts the paradigm...people always go with him...but he could go with her. And when he does...his life will be complete as it stands so far...and after he's lived the life he thought he could never have...he can go back to doing what he loves...exploring, traveling...getting into mischief.

Rae
hoping I've read this all right...because I do believe that is the proper end to the story. Just like Owen and Tosh should have ended in tragedy...because they were not going to be a successful couple.

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

You know...how people tell you to watch and you still feel like you shouldn't. But I think you should definitely watch this one. It's pure Doctor Who fun...with the OMG! tossed in on top.

I was thinking...before the show aired. I had this screensaver on my laptop that was a close up of the Doctor in this episode. And that face...I had missed it so much...seeing him with light in his eyes again. And I thought...how much Rose must miss him. There is simply no way if the Doctor loved you...you would "move on to someone else." Over and over we've seen ordinary people...Sarah Jane, Jack, Martha, Mickey...now Donna...fall under his spell...they can't forget him. I just can't see how the one woman he actually loves could prove less devoted than Donna?

However, I do think that he should be tested...by her not being able to fly away with him. All his 900 years...he's taken them away from their lives. They've gone willingly or not...but he's never put anyone else above himself. Rose I think should be the person he's willing to live that life for and with.

Rae

[princessblue791.livejournal.com]

This is why writers map our society. Rae, bravo! Well put! I recently heard a fan say it wouldn't make sense that the Doctor has been grieving Rose this long and that she would go through that much trouble to see him, just so they could both turn around and say "sorry this won't work because blah,blah, blah".I agree, it would be pointless and we've all waisted our time.
Even Mulder eventually fell in love with Scully. At one point even Capt Kirk married ay one time.Superman married Lois and the list goes on. So, why can't the Doctor just been in love? Seriously why would anyone choose Mickey over the Doc? What sense would it make that Donna and even Jack is more devoted to him than Rose is?RTD has gone way off the tradition of Who up until now. Why follow the rules after all that? I would be disappointed if he did. Rae I think you should've written the finale.

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

Thank you for the compliments. But until I've seen the finale...I am going to go on believing RTD will get this right. He's been getting it right all along...so, I'm willing to imagine him doing just what I would do with it.

Which is not to say that's what I will do in Disheveled...as that is a different story...the story of how Rose could travel with HIM forever. RTD obviously puts a lot of stock in Rose remaining human...and bring THAT experience to the Doctor. So, in his story...the Doctor goes on without her one day. The only real question is will they have their "lifetime of happiness" in canon. And I have hope that they will.

Rae

[rabid1st.livejournal.com]

See? This is what I said early on...all we need is a year off. And now, we have a year off coming up. As you say...who is to say how much time elapses off camera. Especially, if we are dealing with two separate universes.

And the season opener is very positive for this...because the very idea that they were doing ONE episode where we would see Rose but the Doctor would not..which was the scenario presented to us before episode 1...sets up a huge expectation in the audience. And a good storyteller doesn't set up expectation they don't later deliver on...so setting up the missing one another...this early on...is going to build a tremendous sense of expectation. And then, what?

Sorry, let's go back to Doomsday? Because she WAS already gone...you don't have to say she's gone AGAIN. People only carried on with the hope because RTD gave us hope throughout S3...he kept the memory of Rose alive for us in every way he could. He's built up expectation...so I have hope.

And I'm happy to have more people on the hope train.

:grin:

Rae

[wiggiemomsi.livejournal.com]

I don't have satellite TV. I don't have cable. I don't have any way of seeing the new series...until it comes out on DVD! Soooo...I depend on the kindness of strangers...to let me know what happens!

Thank you for your summary; loved it!

Dartzy1 has also kindly posted the show on YouTube, in five parts, and I'll actually get to see it *Happy Dance*!

[webeh.livejournal.com]

You know, the ending make me really curious about how the season will be ending. Or more specifically, when. Because you have the big surprise and then the fading, which I thought was very interesting. Is there some exploring (geographically or chronologically) going on or something else?

I'm not sure how much I can get into the details of the episode. So, I'm being kind of vague. People who watched the episode should understand what I'm talking about.

Those cute squishy white things. I want one and apparently other people do as well. Someone already made a plushy version of one. :)