The Power of Three

[Crimson_Dragoon]

I quite liked the episode overall, just because it gave us a better view of what the Ponds do when not with the Doctor. And the Doctor playing Wii Tennis. But the ending was...eh. Bringing everyone back to life felt like a bit of a cop out, because surely they'd be dead after their hearts failing for so long?

The cubes provided intel on the best http://www.escapistmagazine.com/forums/process_add_bookmark/6.389476way to take us out, finally settling on using electricity to disrupt our hearts. I'm not entirely sure why it took so long - one season of any medical drama will tell you out how fragile the human heart is.

Well technically it only took them a few moments. The rest of the months were spent making sure they were taken to every facet of human life. Then they had a few moments of activity where they scoped us out before the countdown

But why wait a year? It was well established early on that pretty much everyone had one after only a few days. And why do a bunch of crazy stuff and have a countdown? All that would accomplish would be to make people aware of them again and try to get rid of them, something that is completely counter to the plan. Why is only a third of the population affected? And how would a "second wave" help, now that everyone knows the cubes are dangerous and to be avoided?

I know you can poke holes in just about any Doctor Who episode, but this one was ridiculous. Between that, the wonky direction, and the rushed ending (let me wave my sonic screwdriver and now all the people suffering from cardiac arrest for an hour are somehow living AND the alien spaceship will blow up), this whole episode was a mess.

 

[TimeLord]

Did the Brig actually appear in SJA, or was he just mentioned? I've never actually seen SJA, so I may have incorrect info.

Yeah he did actually appear in the SJA.

OT: A great episode for 40 minutes, let down by the rushed ending. More forshadowing of the Doctors death me thinks? The Tally, the fields of Trenzalore, the "fall of the Eleventh", the question etc, all connected?

 

[Albino Boo]

Did the Brig actually appear in SJA, or was he just mentioned? I've never actually seen SJA, so I may have incorrect info.

And I didn't know that about Ian! That would make more sense, actually. Thanks for sharing.

He did appear in SJA, didn't watch it myself either but here is a clip


he appears about 1:35

 

[SciMal]

This episode's ending has to be the most disappointing out of the lot. I was really enjoying the first 40 minutes of this episode and when it got to the "5 minutes left" mark I was expecting it to go into "to be continued" but instead we get a hastily thrown together ending in which the most interesting element is glossed over in minutes.

Yeah, it did feel rushed at the end. I also think that contributed to the new baddie not being perceied as much of a threat - something I hope they'll remedy if we meet them again.

Then there's the plot holes:

- What's the point of the little girl in the hospital?

She was the control hub/infiltrator.

- What were those cube-faced men and why were they taking humans onto the ship?

No idea. They were pretty disappointing.

- Why can't the Doctor always bring Amy and Rory back a minute after they left? He has a time machine and it has been proven that he can do it.

That wasn't the issue. The problem Amy and Rory face is that they still age while time-traveling (as ya do). If they go on a 7-week adventure and get returned a minute later (which happens in the episode if you listen to Rory's father), they're still 7 weeks older. Imagine if every single time they went with the Doctor they averaged 5 days on an adventure, and that The Doctor came around twice a month. At that rate they're aging 30% faster than everyone else they know.

It's a real problem because they would physically be 40 while everybody thought they were about 30 years old. If they kept it up, they'd look 80 while being "60", and Rory would probably be dead. Amy would die when everyone thinks she's 65 - almost two decades before the average in England, despite her body being closer to 90.

The Doctor is essentially sentencing them to a "premature" death.

I loved the concept of this story and the character interactions are where it shone the brightest, but damn was it ever wrapped up in some mediocre plot contrivances.

Agreed. I thought it was good (I haven't been disappointed by this season) - but at the same time the last 10% was subpar. Admittedly, it's usually mid-season where they start rolling out the episodes which really draw me in - so hopefully a very good episode is still ahead.

 

[shintakie10]

This episode's ending has to be the most disappointing out of the lot. I was really enjoying the first 40 minutes of this episode and when it got to the "5 minutes left" mark I was expecting it to go into "to be continued" but instead we get a hastily thrown together ending in which the most interesting element is glossed over in minutes.

Yeah, it did feel rushed at the end. I also think that contributed to the new baddie not being perceied as much of a threat - something I hope they'll remedy if we meet them again.

Then there's the plot holes:

- What's the point of the little girl in the hospital?

She was the control hub/infiltrator.

- What were those cube-faced men and why were they taking humans onto the ship?

No idea. They were pretty disappointing.

- Why can't the Doctor always bring Amy and Rory back a minute after they left? He has a time machine and it has been proven that he can do it.

That wasn't the issue. The problem Amy and Rory face is that they still age while time-traveling (as ya do). If they go on a 7-week adventure and get returned a minute later (which happens in the episode if you listen to Rory's father), they're still 7 weeks older. Imagine if every single time they went with the Doctor they averaged 5 days on an adventure, and that The Doctor came around twice a month. At that rate they're aging 30% faster than everyone else they know.

It's a real problem because they would physically be 40 while everybody thought they were about 30 years old. If they kept it up, they'd look 80 while being "60", and Rory would probably be dead. Amy would die when everyone thinks she's 65 - almost two decades before the average in England, despite her body being closer to 90.

The Doctor is essentially sentencing them to a "premature" death.

I loved the concept of this story and the character interactions are where it shone the brightest, but damn was it ever wrapped up in some mediocre plot contrivances.

Agreed. I thought it was good (I haven't been disappointed by this season) - but at the same time the last 10% was subpar. Admittedly, it's usually mid-season where they start rolling out the episodes which really draw me in - so hopefully a very good episode is still ahead.

A question about the aging thing. Why is Rory aging at all? Isnt he still a plastic guy thing or have they completely ignored that whole plot line?

 

[Albino Boo]

A question about the aging thing. Why is Rory aging at all? Isnt he still a plastic guy thing or have they completely ignored that whole plot line?

They have mentioned it the first episode of the current run, but you are right Rory shouldn't age.

 

[silver wolf009]

I thought it was an alright episode, but the plotholes like the girl and the mouth men and the people they let asplode did take me out of it.

I liked the Doctor on the Wii, and his little manic energy display really did fit the character though. And as you mentioned, seeing what the companions do when they're not companion...ing...ing... is fun.

I'm undecided on whether or not I like this, but I did notice the plot's similarity to one of my favorite Slayer songs.


[HEADING=2]

The Human Strain! Reach out in vain! Drink the tainted blood, from the only child...​

[/HEADING]

Fun to play that over the ending.

 

[The Harkinator]

How does Rory still have his job? It states in the episode that Amy and Rory are gone for months at a time, yet Rory is a nurse, so the hospital really needs him and if he is away for months why don't they fire him for someone more reliable?

Besides, do either of them need to work? They have no mortgage to pay on the house and Amy owns a perfume range. Plus they don't have to pay for food or bills for a good part of each year.

 

[Frontastic]

It's really interesting reading these little articles every week. The generation gap between New-Who and Classic-Who fans is quite striking. Susan's reviews seem to be looking at each episode as slightly worse than the last with 'Asylum' being a clear winner as the best so far. While personally (as a New-Who) I found 'Asylum' to be a very weak episode (good individual points but overall not very good) with each subsequent week getting gradually better. This being the best so far.

But my, my. How good does next week look?
1. River is FINALLY back.
2. Angels.
3. Proper Angels (timeline altering, not murderous).
4. Baby Angels!
5. It's the last one, something worthwhile has to finally happen.

 

[SciMal]

A question about the aging thing. Why is Rory aging at all? Isnt he still a plastic guy thing or have they completely ignored that whole plot line?

Nope. He was plastic during the Pandorica plotline, but the end of that Season ended with The Doctor utilizing the Pandorica and Amy to re-create reality. One side-effect was that Rory was re-created as Amy saw him; human, not plastic.

However, due to timey-wimey/power-of-the-human-soul stuff he still remembers the entire 2000 year span he protected the Pandorica, and Amy currently understands what happened - but Rory is human.

 

[ThePS1Fan]

- Why can't the Doctor always bring Amy and Rory back a minute after they left? He has a time machine and it has been proven that he can do it.

This bugged my so much. I even got a sense that he did that when in the last episode Amy said something like "Our friends will notice we're ageing faster than them"

Other than that I liked the episode up till the end. I like the idea of the Shakri and would actually like to see more of them in an episode where they can have more development instead of just being there.

 

[Evil Smurf]

my favourite episode of Dr. Who this season. It reminded my of the seasons where the Dr was grounded on earth.

 

[SomeLameStuff]

How does Rory still have his job? It states in the episode that Amy and Rory are gone for months at a time, yet Rory is a nurse, so the hospital really needs him and if he is away for months why don't they fire him for someone more reliable?

Besides, do either of them need to work? They have no mortgage to pay on the house and Amy owns a perfume range. Plus they don't have to pay for food or bills for a good part of each year.

It's stated in the episode that Rory was working part-time. Though I don't think "part-time" means "come in and work whenever you like"...

Also Amy quit her modeling job. I'm not sure on how the contract works, but they might have stopped any future payments once they took her posters down, seeing as they're no longer using her image.

Also bills crop up even if you're not around. Trust me on that T_T

 

[ritchards]

However, due to timey-wimey/power-of-the-human-soul stuff he still remembers the entire 2000 year span he protected the Pandorica, and Amy currently understands what happened - but Rory is human.

In the Season 6 DVD set, there is a set of episodes called Night and the Doctor. In one of them, the Doctor and Amy talk about how Amy remembers the other time line. The Doctor says that's just natural, time is being rewritten all the time (sic) and that's why people remember stuff they didn't do.. because they did in another time line.

A cheat, really, but at least Moffat gave it a go.

See also: Amy remembering the collapsed timeline from Wedding of River Song.

 

[Mouse_Crouse]

It's more fun watching the Doctor get bored than those black cubes.

Must say Susan, thank you for doing this series, as a very-new watcher this has been a very entertaining and informative feature.

 

[Albino Boo]

OT: A great episode for 40 minutes, let down by the rushed ending. More forshadowing of the Doctors death me thinks? The Tally, the fields of Trenzalore, the "fall of the Eleventh", the question etc, all connected?

They also played up memory as thing in 1st episode. The Dr says in the parliament make them remember you. The new assistant to be as a dalek also says remember me. I think memory will be a theme in next weeks show.

The whole foreshadowing thing is overplayed a bit, I think they just like leaving open ended plot hooks which can be used later. Another writer comes along and runs with one and you end with a bit of a story arc. I have feeling its less planned than people think.

 

[008Zulu_v1legacy]

I can live with Matt Smith replacing Tennant as the Doctor, but it's Steven Moffat. He can't write Doctor Who, that is, he doesn't have the skill/talent/grasp to. The series took a pretty steep downward turn when he took over as head writer. He isn't up to the task. Maybe if they replace him there will be less convoluted and more engaging.

 

[scw55]

I can live with Matt Smith replacing Tennant as the Doctor, but it's Steven Moffat. He can't write Doctor Who, that is, he doesn't have the skill/talent/grasp to. The series took a pretty steep downward turn when he took over as head writer. He isn't up to the task. Maybe if they replace him there will be less convoluted and more engaging.

And my opinion is that I am glad RTD is gone. The best RTD era episodes were not written by him imo.

 

[Lilani]

But my, my. How good does next week look?
1. River is FINALLY back.
2. Angels.
3. Proper Angels (timeline altering, not murderous).
4. Baby Angels!
5. It's the last one, something worthwhile has to finally happen.

Glad to see I'm not the only one excited about River coming back, lol. There is just so much hate for her and I don't really understand why. Yes I've heard all the complaints: "She's such a Mary Sue!" "She's annoying!" "She's conceited!" But you can apply nearly all of those traits to most characters who have ever been on Doctor Who, including the Doctor himself.

But yeah, on the topic of this episode, it seems my complaints are about the same as the rest. Very strong start to the episode, but the ending was rushed and there are so many plot holes you can drive a truck through I'm amazed they let it air in that condition. Like...why were there a few humans being kept on the spaceship? Why were they just allowed to walk out with Rory's dad and the other? When were the cube-men converted? What exactly was going on with that villain, anyway?

And I understand this is science fiction and they are allowed to take some blind leaps in technology, but you can't tell me those people could have been revived after 10-20 minutes of being dead without having any brain damage. The brain will begin to suffer damage immediately without a pulse to keep the blood moving, and after 4 minutes even if you do get a person's heart to beat again they will be completely brain dead. And then there's the thing that other person wrote about defibrillators not working that way. Misinformation regarding emergency medical equipment is not something any show should allow.

 

[Sonic Doctor]

The Power of Three

It's more fun watching the Doctor get bored than those black cubes.

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Great read. I've been away from the site for a bit and didn't know about this nice new segment. I'll have to go back an read the others.

The episode was okay, but just as the others in this seventh series, it further pushed me deeper down into an abyss of annoyance(and anger) because I can't stand the Ponds.

I feel the show went off the rails for me with the series 5 finale episodes. The show became much less about the Doctor and his adventures and more about Amy and Rory. Before that, except for special circumstance episodes, the Doctor had always had the most on screen time. That should be the case because the show is about him; it is called Doctor Who after all, but for awhile now it has felt like the show should be called Amy, Rory, and that Crazy Time-Traveler.

So, I personally can't wait to say so long to the Ponds.