Christmas Special 2008 - The Next Doctor

[PTeppic]

So, we were right after all, not the next Doctor, just someone who thought they were.

Very light and fluffy. Easy to watch and easy to forgot. Didn't add much to the canon, except perhaps the vortex stuff. Who was Ms Hartington? No explanation at all.

Christmas fluff.

 

[Ursa major]

She was called Miss Hartigan; other than that I know nothing about her that you don't.

 

[Foxbat]

I liked it. A bit of Steampunk a la Doc was just what I needed after a heavy christmas meal.

I didn't want to think - just to expand my girth and watch something mindlessly entertaining. This did the trick just fine

 

[Ursa major]

It was all good fun really.

(I'd been worried when someone mentioned that there'd be stuff taken from the series of previous doctors; basically, I hate clip show episodes. I was relieved that this segment took only a few seconds and was a proper part of the plot, not just shoehorned in.)

 

[Erunanion]

Admittedly I was only watching with half an ear and a quarter of an eye, but the chap playing the other Doctor was utterly dreadful, and with some dire lines to boot. Silly little winks and salutes and things - whatever, I'm not a fan of Mr Who anyway; I just thought I would chime in with a downer note because I'm like that.

 

[chopper]

I liked it. A bit of Steampunk a la Doc was just what I needed after a heavy christmas meal.

I didn't want to think - just to expand my girth and watch something mindlessly entertaining. This did the trick just fine

you took the words right out of my mouth.....but i'll have the mince pie back please!

 

[HoopyFrood]

As is usual at Christmas, I watched the episode in a room full of kids, so as usual I did watch it -- but hardly heard a thing. Picked up bits of it, though, and will definitely be watching it again soon. When I saw the balloon and heard "The Doctor" referring to it as the TARDIS, I turned to my mum and said "This guy's just got the Doctor's memories and thinks he's The Doctor". I liked the ending -- although, as I say, I didn't hear much of it, it seemed like he finally got quite a happy Christmas for once, which I was rather happy to see.

 

[thaddeus6th]

Mostly good, although the destruction of the cybermen and Hartigan having a strong enough mind wasn't to my taste. Anybody else reminded of the Iron Giant cartoon (animated version of the Iron Man, I think)?

However, I thought the explanation behind the Doctor Who Wasn't was very good.

 

[sloweye]

i have recorded it to watch later, but got most of it. thought it was great, and at last, he stoped for xmas dinner

 

[Tillane]

I thought it was really good - if a little thin in places. David Morrissey wasn't anything like as annoying as I'd thought he might be after seeing the preview clip, Dervla Kirwan was suitably wicked (if a little under-used), and The Cyber King put me in mind of a cross between The Iron Giant and the Stay Puft Marshmallow Man. Good fun.

 

[chopper]

i was thinking as much of Steamboy as of Iron Giant.

 

[Pyan]

As Chopper and Foxbat said, fluffy fun for watching just as you're coming round from the after-Christmas-dinner snooze....

Heigh-ho - at least the Easter special sounds more meaty...

 

[PTeppic]

Oh, the one thing I forgot to put in my original post: please, not London? There's a lot more world to be covered, especially since you're not even filming there!

 

[Dave]

i was thinking as much of Steamboy as of Iron Giant.

I agree, and I also thought there was some Metropolis imagery used there, especially in the conversion scene.

Dervla Kirwan was good (This is not just Doctor Who... This is Christmas Doctor Who...)

The idea of Steampunk Cybermen was one that interested me, but I don't think they took the idea far enough. In reality, this was just a reason to give us Dickensian Christmas scenes.

I thought David Morrisey did a good job of playing an amalgamated stereotypical Doctor. He was meant to be over-the-top because that fitted the plot of him having false memories.

Christmas fluff.

Yes, but in a good way, no intelligence required, but good set pieces like the graveyard battle.

I believe Ms Hartigan said she was a Workhouse Master. At least I assumed that was the explanation for the child slaves, and for her source of humans for conversion.

I missed some parts too because of background talking. Might watch it again sometime. Was there an explanation of the animal things with cyber heads?

There was no explanation of why the Cyber King was required this time, but not before, or why a walking cyber conversion unit was the preferred design. (Haven't the Cybermen ever watched Star Wars: The Empire Strikes Back? Those AT-ATs fall down every time.)

 

[PTeppic]

Was there an explanation of the animal things with cyber heads?

Didn't see one. Since Cybermen are humans converted, it's hard to see what they could physically be beneath the cloaks. Were they called Shades?

 

[Tillane]

Didn't see one. Since Cybermen are humans converted, it's hard to see what they could physically be beneath the cloaks. Were they called Shades?

Yep. There was a "blink and you'll miss it" explanation right at the start where the first Cybershade is climbing up the wall of the warehouse - something along the lines of "some sort of primitive conversion. Like they took the brain of a cat or a dog." That was about it, though.

 

[sloweye]

Now i've had the chance to watch it again, got to say it was better than last years special. and i had to laugh at the explination of the (non) sonic screwdriver and the TARDIS name

 

[Ashley R]

Christmas Special; the one, the only and the best!

Loved it. Mindless fun, perhaps, but what was there not to love? Cybermen tick. Villainess in red dress, tick. Two Doctors for the price of one, tick. Giant stompy Cyber-robot, tick.

 

[Tyrael]

The fantastic visuals and sense of atmosphere at the end made up for what was a pretty simplistic and shallow storyline. That said, missed the first 20 minutes so maybe I missed something.

The villainess seemed to be evil for the sake of being evil though, but her fate was a nice one and reminded me somewhat of Pratchett's Wyrd Sisters. I liked how they managed to flesh out the second "doctor" despite how obvious that it was that he was just there to screw with the heads of fans.

Still, on a shallow level 'tis all good.

 

[Ice fyre]

My take was that it was good harmless fun. The cyber shades were interesting kind of like updated cybermats.

The villian of this years show was indeed given very little backstory, from what I gathered she had a history with men of money and standing, I thought she was a high class courtisan myself, this was why the Cybermen chose her, she had links to the upper classes.

The story was a bit thin but in so saying I enjoyed it.