Gavin WintersUnlike many fans I don’t have an issue with the basic concept of “The moon’s an egg!”, but the wonky physics of the creature that hatches then laying a new egg… exactly the same size as the one it just came from… that’s really pushing it. #DoctorWho
Who’s daft decision was it to have them land back on a beach near the end… where you can clearly see the waves still coming in during the sequence where the moon has supposedly just disintegrated…? 🤔 #DoctorWho
I might be ambivalent about Clara but Jenna is a bloody good actress. Her argument with the Doctor is one of the best pieces of acting by any companion to date.
Not sure if that scene is really right for #DoctorWho though. They’re kind of forgetting to be kid-friendly again.
Mummy On The Orient Express: apparently at this point in the filming Capaldi had seen the finished versions of his first episodes, and between them he and Moffat decided to soften his portrayal a bit. So thankfully he’s not such an arse from this point on! #DoctorWho
“Only Mummies with eeeevil in their hearts go to Maiden’s Point!” #DoctorWho
The Mummy itself is a great design, worthy of a feature film. The ‘mummiest mummy’ you’ve ever seen.
Though once again it’s an example of “malfunctioning tech” being responsible for the problem, even directly referred to as such in the dialogue. #DoctorWho
Frank Skinner is brilliant as Perkins, and would have been a welcome additional companion if he’d taken the Doctor up on his offer. #DoctorWho
Flatline: another decent one from Jamie Matheson. This has a strong original concept and villains, with some nice visuals of the flattened people, and a clever resolution at the end. #DoctorWho
Clara taking over the role of the Doctor grates slightly in a way it probably wouldn’t with any other companion. It feels like another example of Moffat trying to elevate her status to ‘most important character ever’. #DoctorWho
When Clara places the tiny TARDIS on a mantelpiece for Riggsy to see the Doctor inside, you’d think someone’s first assumption there would be that they’re looking through a hole in the wall to the room next door. #DoctorWho
You can’t help but smile at the bizarre sight of the Doctor doing Thing from The Addams Family to drag the tiny TARDIS along. #DoctorWho
The only slightly naff bit is the Doctor’s big speech at the end concluding with “I name you… The Boneless!” which is a bit over the top. #DoctorWho
In The Forest Of The Night: I’ve never been that keen on this one but I was surprised to find it a lot more tolerable this time round. It kind of has a strange fairytale quality to it that would probably make it fit in more with the early Matt Smith episodes. #DoctorWho
I think that after the moon being a giant space dragon’s egg, to then have a sentient race of trees protecting the earth was probably pushing the audience’s tolerance for out-there, wacky ideas in #DoctorWho
I suppose you could link these trees into wider #DoctorWho continuity by assuming they’re related to the ones from The Doctor, The Widow And The Wardrobe. Or maybe they’re the ancestors of Jabe’s species.
Yeesh, that ending though… when the missing girl comes home (brought by the trees??)
“Annabel! My Annabel!”
Dark Water / Death In Heaven: on one level this is one of the most imaginative finales by Moffat, with a movie-level scale and an excellent directorial debut from Rachel Talalay, but it’s still a bit cold and bleak, once again forgetting to have family-friendly appeal. #DoctorWho
In particular the storyline about the dead screaming not to be cremated because they can feel it has come in for a lot of criticism as being potentially a bit too adult. It doesn’t bother me, but I can see how it would be an issue for some. #DoctorWho
Missy is properly introduced at last. Love the “Master” reveal. She’s arguably never been more utterly unhinged than she is here, and Michelle Gomez’s expressive face brings so much to the character.
Poor Osgood though. (I choose to believe that was the Zygon) #DoctorWho
Ugh. Clara rattling off lots of facts and trivia about the Doctor to the Cybermen sets my teeth on edge. Moffat overloading her with knowledge and importance again. It’s like seeing a #DoctorWho fan inside the Doctor’s universe. At least Osgood has an excuse as it’s her job.
The Cybermen crawling all over the outside of the plane is a great sequence, as is the Doctor skydiving into the TARDIS.
Cyber-Brig though… Hmmm… Not exactly what you’d have wanted to see as the ultimate appearance of that character. 🫤 #DoctorWho
Season 8’s gone up a bit in my estimation after this rewatch, even if it’s still hampered by the decision to make Capaldi’s Doctor such a dick early on, which was as stupid as having Colin strangling Peri in terms of turning the audience off. #DoctorWho
Last Christmas: sort of ‘Inception meets Aliens’ with added Santa Claus. A fun little Christmas special, and one that shows another noticeable improvement in the characterisation of the Twelfth Doctor. #DoctorWho
Plus the actual mention of Alien, the film, implies that John Hurt exists in the #DoctorWho universe… 🤔
The clash of egos between the Doctor and Nick Frost’s Santa, like with Robin Hood, is very funny. Especially when the Doctor can’t exactly rubbish Santa’s claim of having a vehicle that’s bigger on the inside… #DoctorWho
Shona is one of the most instantly appealing side-characters ever, and was set to be the new companion. Can’t believe we missed out on that for another year of Clara… 🙄
(And I refuse to believe the Doctor wasn’t thinking about her when he regenerated into 13…) #DoctorWho
The ending with elderly Clara would have been a fine send-off (mirroring the Xmas cracker from 11’s finale is a nice touch), but that last-minute rug pull where it’s revealed there’s yet *another* layer to the dream comes across as the awkward rewrite it actually is. #DoctorWho
The Magician’s Apprentice / The Witch’s Familiar: this goes to great lengths to be a sequel to Genesis Of The Daleks, picking up on the moral question of “Could you kill a child that grows up to be a dictator?” and running with it. #DoctorWho
I like the recreation of the battlefield from Skaro’s thousand year war, with its strange mixture of different levels of technology.
The handmines are great, but it’s a pity we only get a mention of the murderous clams, without seeing them in action. 😁 #DoctorWho
The pre-titles “shock” reveal of the boy’s name as Davros might have been slightly too fannish for some casual viewers, especially when you think that at that stage the character hadn’t been on screen for seven years. #DoctorWho
Moffat again uses his familiar idea of “the hero faces his last day before dying”, except here it’s a bit muddled and unclear. The Doctor’s only going to “die” in the same sense as the War Doctor giving up the name Doctor, in shame at his actions towards young Davros. #DoctorWho
We finally see the Dalek City of our imaginations on screen, looking like something straight from the pages of TV Comic.
On the downside, the Special Weapons Dalek makes another cameo without firing his big fuck-off gun. Come on! Let me see that in the modern show! #DoctorWho
Under The Lake / Before The Flood: I quite like the whole time loop bootstrap paradox element of the story, especially as it gets more into it in part two, but otherwise this is a fairly underwhelming base-under-siege tale. Nothing particularly exciting about it. #DoctorWho
Pritchard is your standard slimy corporate guy, a third-rate knock-off of Burke from Aliens. And would there really still be petroleum companies looking to drill for oil in a hundred years time? Bit depressing if so! #DoctorWho
If the ghosts can only harm people by picking up objects and swinging them about you’d think they wouldn’t be that difficult to fight/disarm/get away from. #DoctorWho
People say the Doctor’s explanation of the bootstrap paradox via the Beethoven story is an example of him breaking the fourth wall and addressing the audience, but I always assumed that, in-universe, he’s talking to the two crewmembers who are currently on the TARDIS.🤷🏻♂️#DoctorWho
The Girl Who Died / The Woman Who Lived: is this a two-parter? It’s one of those ones that sort of blurs the definition. Anyway, it’s a good exploration of the effects of immortality on a human. (Plus the second part benefits enormously from no Clara 😆) #DoctorWho
The Mire are yet another “deadliest in the galaxy” race. It never works when you just declare that without any previous sight of them, does it?
And would any kids watching know the Benny Hill theme? It’s an odd reference even for someone of Clara’s age. #DoctorWho
Lol at the Doctor’s names for the villagers - ZZ Top, Noggin the Nog…
And the aftermath of his first attempt to train them as fighters reminds me of this…
✨🏳️⚧️Timelordiroh 
🇵🇸@gavinwinters The ZZ Top and Noggin the Nog references were lost on me. I knew that ZZ Top was some sort of musical performer, but nothing else (and when people mention him, i always think of that doctor who ep).
The Benny Hill theme had kind of come back as a meme at that point. While I'd never heard of Benny Hill as a tv show, I knew that rhythm, probably from Vine or something of the era. I think Clara could reasonably have known about it
(for context, i'm millenial/gen z american)