Posted: Apr 20, 2010 12:32 pm
Byron wrote:So was the writing, tho' to be fair to Gatiss, he might have been constrained by the decision to wheel out the new Daleks. Which felt pointless, the "old" (2005) design was fine, and these Daleks look like bloaters, with their bulging midsections. That's where the ep went wrong. Plot shouldn't serve product placement. There were great elements, like the opening 10 mins when you wondered what the Daleks' game was, but it all fell apart when the Technicolor(TM) Wonder Daleks rolled out. The episode felt like a vehicle for a new toy line, although some elements, like the absurd "talk the robot out of going boom" scene, are just bad writing, hangovers from the sloppier moments of the Russell T Davies era.
Well I disagree!
The old design may have been "fine", but the new ones are much better than fine! They're more menacing somehow, and way more interesting! The "technicolor" is a throwback to how the Daleks were originally imagined, and also fits artistically with the "fairy tale" atmosphere that's seems to be the hallmark of Moffat's first series. Being less than impressed in general with Davies' take on Doctor Who, I was happy to see the new Daleks totally obliterate the old ones, signifying this series is going to be something completely new.Talking the robot out of going boom was "fine", I thought, and as a plot device gave the companion an important role; it was the Doctor's plan, but it took Amy to execute it properly. I was well impressed with the sneaky Daleks acting nice and offering everyone cups of tea, and the mystery of how Bracewell "designed" the Daleks kept me baffled, and was pleasingly resolved They designed him! Genius!
I don't even care to question the physics of the Spitfires in space, since the very idea of "Spitfires in space" is just so cool it had to be done!
Still not worried for the new series. If Moffat pulls off the weeping angels/River Song two-parter, all shall be well on track.
Oooh! I can't wait!! Loving it all so far!