It’s a weird one, this. A brave concept I must say. Basically what we have is a story entirely set within the TARDIS and with no characters other than our 4 heroes.
Episode 1 focuses on the TARDIS not so much crashing as just stopping with a jolt. We have no idea what caused it and the crew are having intermittent and inconsistent memory loss. This does make it very hard to follow in parts.
I like some of the attempts to build up suspicion between the crew and it’s very Alfred Hitchcock in parts but there’s a lot of jumping around. One minute The Doctor is accusing people of things, the next minute he’s offering them all a nightcap and coming out with sub-philosophical claptrap.
I like the idea floated that an alien intelligence may have entered the ship and then entered one of the crew. It seems quite advanced but never really gets developed. We end with a mystery pair of arms throttling the Doctor.
Episode 2 starts with the bickering continuing but it does quickly become more focused. The first few minutes focus on the revelation that it was Ian trying to choke the Doctor and he starts seriously discussing putting Ian and Barbara off the ship. A phrase that somehow seems very dark.
Episode 1 focuses on the TARDIS not so much crashing as just stopping with a jolt. We have no idea what caused it and the crew are having intermittent and inconsistent memory loss. This does make it very hard to follow in parts.
I like some of the attempts to build up suspicion between the crew and it’s very Alfred Hitchcock in parts but there’s a lot of jumping around. One minute The Doctor is accusing people of things, the next minute he’s offering them all a nightcap and coming out with sub-philosophical claptrap.
I like the idea floated that an alien intelligence may have entered the ship and then entered one of the crew. It seems quite advanced but never really gets developed. We end with a mystery pair of arms throttling the Doctor.
Episode 2 starts with the bickering continuing but it does quickly become more focused. The first few minutes focus on the revelation that it was Ian trying to choke the Doctor and he starts seriously discussing putting Ian and Barbara off the ship. A phrase that somehow seems very dark.
It becomes apparent, however, that most of the random crap that was happening in part 1 was actually the TARDIS trying to send signals to the crew that something was amiss. They’re all pretty cryptic but it is quite a nice way to introduce the idea that the ship is alive but thinks differently to humans – a theme that occurs from time to time throughout the show and gets developed beautifully in a much, much later Matt Smith episode.
The Doctor and Ian grow closer in adversity and the Doctor acts in a surprisingly chivalrous (albeit hugely sexist) fashion in trying to protect the ladies of the ship as to what is happening and how dire the situation is.
But in the end, Barbara’s deduction and The Doctor’s knowledge work together and it is revealed the ship has been flung back to The Big Bang (but sadly not the one with Sheldon Cooper. That would have been awesome). There is a truly magnificent scene where The Doctor explains the birth of a star and a solar system. Almost certainly a push from the educational aspect but it’s a lovely moment and we can see The Doctor’s vast knowledge coming out.
The last minutes of the episode show the Doctor softening and the first signs a family or team atmosphere between our 4 heroes. The Doctor even suggests he’s “going round the bend”… So maybe out first hint of a “Mad man with a box”.
And we also get the Doctor starting to name drop. Apparently he was given a coat by Gilbert & Sullivan.
Definitely a game of two halves, this. Episode 1 is uncomfortable and odd but 2 brings it all together and I think we start to see the show finally start to work it’s way into the format we’ve known and loved ever since.
The Doctor and Ian grow closer in adversity and the Doctor acts in a surprisingly chivalrous (albeit hugely sexist) fashion in trying to protect the ladies of the ship as to what is happening and how dire the situation is.
But in the end, Barbara’s deduction and The Doctor’s knowledge work together and it is revealed the ship has been flung back to The Big Bang (but sadly not the one with Sheldon Cooper. That would have been awesome). There is a truly magnificent scene where The Doctor explains the birth of a star and a solar system. Almost certainly a push from the educational aspect but it’s a lovely moment and we can see The Doctor’s vast knowledge coming out.
The last minutes of the episode show the Doctor softening and the first signs a family or team atmosphere between our 4 heroes. The Doctor even suggests he’s “going round the bend”… So maybe out first hint of a “Mad man with a box”.
And we also get the Doctor starting to name drop. Apparently he was given a coat by Gilbert & Sullivan.
Definitely a game of two halves, this. Episode 1 is uncomfortable and odd but 2 brings it all together and I think we start to see the show finally start to work it’s way into the format we’ve known and loved ever since.