xkcd

by **Kag** » Mon Dec 26, 2011 6:22 pm UTC

That's a real science thing in the Doctor Whoniverse!

by **mister k** » Mon Dec 26, 2011 10:52 pm UTC

It was nifty, kind of where I want a christmas special to be pitched.

by **EdgarJPublius** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 6:29 am UTC

I thought it was pretty disappointing. The Doctor didn't really do anything but set up the story and explain everything, and the other characters mostly weren't very interesting. The mother had a few good moments, but mostly was drowned out by all the 'blah'.

Overall, it just felt mechanical.

by **Angua** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 11:15 am UTC

Spoiler:

by **xkcd follower** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 1:40 pm UTC

I guess they had to make a story and they had little time to do it. Besides that, it wasn't really all too good, but I do not mind. They had a season to work on and they are doing other things.

Spoiler:

by **TaintedDeity** » Tue Dec 27, 2011 10:32 pm UTC

Spoiler:

by **SlyReaper** » Wed Dec 28, 2011 12:08 am UTC

He does have previous on that.

by **Joeldi** » Wed Dec 28, 2011 8:29 am UTC

For me, it was another example of Moffat not really getting women as well as he should. Like he's heard the criticism and tried to write something to counter it, but got stuck in affirmative action/ special flower territory when all we really wanted was equality. That said, the first 15 minutes were great, it was cool to see Bill Bailey, and the bit with the mech appealed to my mech-loving side. Overall, So OK it's Average indeed.

by **AvatarIII** » Wed Dec 28, 2011 11:59 am UTC

Link wrote:
LE4dGOLEM wrote:It was... okay.

This, pretty much. I thought it lacked some suspense that may well have been there if the episode had been longer. Of course, it was (A) Doctor Who and (B) Christmassy, and those two facts alone give a real head-start to making good TV, but if you look beyond that, it was pretty much So Okay It's Average -- especially compared to other Moffat episodes.

I agree, it was definitely "okay"

it's problem was that it took no risks, on the whole, DW Christmas specials have been pretty shit, but they have all been pretty memorable and "BIG" and i think that's what I've come to expect from DW Christmas Specials.

also the fact that once again the head writer is spreading himself too thin, it happened with RTD, who can write good stuff, but by the end of his reign was writing so much that it all became dreck, explosions held together with shoddy dialogue and bombastic music, and now the Moff is writing so much everything is becoming watered down and "Average". his big Black and White idea's are becoming darkish and lightish grey.
Moffat should write 1x 2 parter, and just consult on all the rest of the series as far as I'm concerned

by **mister k** » Thu Dec 29, 2011 11:50 am UTC

Yeah the whole "women are magic" is something the moff seems to suffer fun...

by **AvatarIII** » Thu Dec 29, 2011 1:48 pm UTC

mister k wrote:Yeah the whole "women are magic" is something the moff seems to suffer fun...

you gotta admit, women are pretty awesome.

by **TaintedDeity** » Thu Dec 29, 2011 10:26 pm UTC

No more awesome than men. It's kind of a nonsensical statement. Some people are awesome; it's pretty irrelevant of gender.

by **Zorlin** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 11:19 am UTC

TaintedDeity wrote:No more awesome than men. It's kind of a nonsensical statement. Some people are awesome; it's pretty irrelevant of gender.

BUT SHE'S A /MOTHER/

by **Angua** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 11:27 am UTC

Zorlin wrote:
TaintedDeity wrote:No more awesome than men. It's kind of a nonsensical statement. Some people are awesome; it's pretty irrelevant of gender.

BUT SHE'S A /MOTHER/

To be fair - they did have a dad saving the day with the power of love for his child too.

by **AvatarIII** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 11:29 am UTC

TaintedDeity wrote:No more awesome than men. It's kind of a nonsensical statement. Some people are awesome; it's pretty irrelevant of gender.

Whether someone is awesome or not is a matter of opinion, you can't really quantify it. you saying "no more awesome than men" is more nonsensical than me stating my opinion of "women are pretty awesome", it's like a couple arguing over who loves who more, there is no right answer because love cannot be quantified.

by **TaintedDeity** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 4:29 pm UTC

AvatarIII wrote:Whether someone is awesome or not is a matter of opinion, you can't really quantify it.

Maybe you can't.

by **AvatarIII** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 5:41 pm UTC

TaintedDeity wrote:
AvatarIII wrote:Whether someone is awesome or not is a matter of opinion, you can't really quantify it.
Maybe you can't.

Well, I could, I'd just be wrong.

by **Spambot5546** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:24 pm UTC

I finally got around to watching Doctor Who on Netflix. Ran out of shows and decided to follow a friend's recommendation. It didn't do much for me until "Silence in the Library". That episode was...jacked up. There's no way whoever wrote that wasn't a Phillip K. Dick fan. Anyway, I'm now officially a fan.

by **TaintedDeity** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 7:27 pm UTC

AvatarIII wrote:
TaintedDeity wrote:
AvatarIII wrote:Whether someone is awesome or not is a matter of opinion, you can't really quantify it.
Maybe you can't.
Well, I could, I'd just be wrong.

I'm sorry to hear that.

by **EdgarJPublius** » Fri Dec 30, 2011 10:32 pm UTC

Angua wrote:
Zorlin wrote:
TaintedDeity wrote:No more awesome than men. It's kind of a nonsensical statement. Some people are awesome; it's pretty irrelevant of gender.

BUT SHE'S A /MOTHER/

To be fair - they did have a dad saving the day with the power of love for his child too.

Yea, but the problem in that episode was basically just a kid who didn't think his daddy loved him.

by **sugarhyped** » Sat Dec 31, 2011 1:24 am UTC

EdgarJPublius wrote:
Angua wrote:...
To be fair - they did have a dad saving the day with the power of love for his child too.

Yea, but the problem in that episode was basically just a kid who didn't think his daddy loved him.

I did not get that at all from the episode. Yeah he was referred to as not-mom but that was just a joke. It was the love of a parent can overcome a cyberman's reprogramming attempt.

by **Whelan** » Sat Dec 31, 2011 1:38 am UTC

I thought the doll's house episode was the one being referred to.

by **sugarhyped** » Sat Dec 31, 2011 1:57 am UTC

Thanks that makes a lot more sense.

by **EdgarJPublius** » Sat Dec 31, 2011 8:29 am UTC

Ah, I completely forgot about the Cyberman episode. That one was a pretty good 'Dads are Awesome' resolution.

by **AvatarIII** » Sat Dec 31, 2011 9:45 am UTC

Spambot5546 wrote:I finally got around to watching Doctor Who on Netflix. Ran out of shows and decided to follow a friend's recommendation. It didn't do much for me until "Silence in the Library". That episode was...jacked up. There's no way whoever wrote that wasn't a Phillip K. Dick fan. Anyway, I'm now officially a fan.

"whoever" is Steven Moffat, the current head writer. he pretty much wrote every good episode up until he became the head writer though.

TaintedDeity wrote:
AvatarIII wrote:
TaintedDeity wrote:
AvatarIII wrote:Whether someone is awesome or not is a matter of opinion, you can't really quantify it.
Maybe you can't.
Well, I could, I'd just be wrong.
I'm sorry to hear that.

Not as sorry as I was to have to say it.

by **Kulantan** » Sat Dec 31, 2011 3:59 pm UTC

Joeldi wrote:For me, it was another example of Moffat not really getting women as well as he should. Like he's heard the criticism and tried to write something to counter it, but got stuck in affirmative action/ special flower territory when all we really wanted was equality.

Interesting, that was not my Humourless Feminist Problem with the episode. I'd didn't mind the special snowflakeness, that is normalish for Dr Who. My HFP was with the combination of "WOMEN ARE MOTHERS/THIS WOMAN IS THE EPITOME OF MOTHERHOOD" with "LOL, WOMEN DRIVERS". Either would have cause much eye rolling, combined they were pretty offensively sexist for me. Not to mention threatening stalker behaviour being presented as romantic which iced the crapcake.

by **Diadem** » Sat Dec 31, 2011 4:19 pm UTC

Kulantan wrote:
Joeldi wrote:For me, it was another example of Moffat not really getting women as well as he should. Like he's heard the criticism and tried to write something to counter it, but got stuck in affirmative action/ special flower territory when all we really wanted was equality.

Interesting, that was not my Humourless Feminist Problem with the episode. I'd didn't mind the special snowflakeness, that is normalish for Dr Who. My HFP was with the combination of "WOMEN ARE MOTHERS/THIS WOMAN IS THE EPITOME OF MOTHERHOOD" with "LOL, WOMEN DRIVERS". Either would have cause much eye rolling, combined they were pretty offensively sexist for me. Not to mention threatening stalker behaviour being presented as romantic which iced the crapcake.

I entirely agree with your first objection, but I have to disagree with the second.

The line 'followed me home' was a bit unfortunate, and I remember feeling a bit uncomfortable when I heard it, but from the rest of the context it was pretty clear what was meant was more along the lines of 'walked me home' rather than 'pursued me home'. Unless my memory betrays me, in the flashback shown he was walking next to her, not behind her.

by **Kulantan** » Sat Dec 31, 2011 7:12 pm UTC

Nah, he was shown behind her (the miracles of ABC iView) for the first shot (which is a pretty creepy shot). The second shot of that is them talking but with her comment over the top that "he said he would keep following me home till I agreed to marry him, didn't like to make a scene."

While I agree that from the emotional context of the thing it was not unwelcome. But this is a HFP and it is shaped exactly like a thing that is totally not cool. The problem is less "I think Reg was a stalker or rapist" and more that it reinforces the cultural acceptance of things that are shaped like a totally not cool thing.

by **Diadem** » Sat Dec 31, 2011 7:24 pm UTC

Kulantan wrote:Nah, he was shown behind her (the miracles of ABC iView) for the first shot (which is a pretty creepy shot). The second shot of that is them talking but with her comment over the top that "he said he would keep following me home till I agreed to marry him, didn't like to make a scene."

While I agree that from the emotional context of the thing it was not unwelcome. But this is a HFP and it is shaped exactly like a thing that is totally not cool. The problem is less "I think Reg was a stalker or rapist" and more that it reinforces the cultural acceptance of things that are shaped like a totally not cool thing.

Alright, you've convinced me.

I now agree with both your criticisms.

by **Joeldi** » Sun Jan 01, 2012 12:16 am UTC

Me too. I noted all that stuff at the time and in hindsight, it really was more offensive than what I managed to remember, but when it came to tapping out a rant, all I could think about was the cringe-worthy "You go girl!"

by **Diadem** » Sun Jan 01, 2012 4:52 am UTC

What, by the way, is a HFP?

by **Kulantan** » Sun Jan 01, 2012 5:10 am UTC

Humourless Feminist Problem.

by **Sprocket** » Mon Jan 02, 2012 8:02 am UTC

MY SISTER GOT ENGAGED! WOOT!

SO I need some great Dr. Who potential wedding-related quotes, clips, etc. Tennant and Smith Heavy.

by **Link** » Mon Jan 02, 2012 9:41 am UTC

http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Tenth_Doctor
http://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Eleventh_Doctor

Those pages should be a decent starting point for quotes.

by **Sprocket** » Tue Jan 03, 2012 4:38 am UTC

maybe I could get a Dr. Who impersonator to do a schtick at her rehearsal dinner.

Thoughts on the season finale

Spoiler:

SANTARII wrote:Talking about cross overs...
I sort of want to see a Buffy cross-over with Dr Who.
Mostly because, in my head, the Gentlemen are Silent-Human hybrids.

and cuz of the master. he's so straight out of buffy it hurts. and a bunch of other crap that I can't remember right now that is all very buffy. Probably because Joss Wheadon was inspired by Dr. Who here and there?

by **TaintedDeity** » Fri Jan 06, 2012 2:36 am UTC

Thoughts on River:

Spoiler:

by **sugarhyped** » Fri Jan 06, 2012 3:15 am UTC

TaintedDeity wrote:Thoughts on River:

Spoiler:
I prefer the idea of River's timeline not being directly opposite. It leaves less room for maneuvering and fun. It's strict and dull, and a little odd seeing as it's monumentally unlikely to happen unless somebody or something orchestrated it.

Worry not.

Spoiler:

by **phlip** » Fri Jan 06, 2012 1:07 pm UTC

TaintedDeity wrote:
AvatarIII wrote:Whether someone is awesome or not is a matter of opinion, you can't really quantify it.
Maybe you can't.

According to my experiments, women in general are at a level of around 15.2 milliHammer of awesome, and men at around 14.9 mHa - seems slightly higher, but within the error bars, so not statistically significant.

by **Fedechiar** » Fri Jan 06, 2012 5:46 pm UTC

phlip wrote:
TaintedDeity wrote:
AvatarIII wrote:Whether someone is awesome or not is a matter of opinion, you can't really quantify it.
Maybe you can't.

According to my experiments, women in general are at a level of around 15.2 milliHammer of awesome, and men at around 14.9 mHa - seems slightly higher, but within the error bars, so not statistically significant.

I'm sorry, but the urge to say "The Hammer is my penis" is impossible to resist :mrgreen:

Spoiler:

by **EdgarJPublius** » Fri Jan 06, 2012 8:19 pm UTC

sugarhyped wrote:
TaintedDeity wrote:Thoughts on River:

Spoiler:
I prefer the idea of River's timeline not being directly opposite. It leaves less room for maneuvering and fun. It's strict and dull, and a little odd seeing as it's monumentally unlikely to happen unless somebody or something orchestrated it.

Worry not.

Spoiler:
Its already been shown not to be directly opposite.
Yes the first time the doctor meets river is the last time the river meets the doctor.
When river first meets the doctor though can either be as amy's baby, the astronaut child, or melanie.

Plus if it was "exactly opposite" they wouldn't sync up diaries because they wouldn't have any shared memories. All of River's past would be the doctor's future and vice versa.

Spoiler:

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