The First Doctor #22

'Bide-a-Wee' (2004) from Short Trips: Past Tense.

Certainly an interesting premise, very similar to that of Pleasantville, and experiencing the mystery becoming slowly unravelled was intriguing, although I had some fears as to what the story was going to be about when The Doctor first asked Prentice to stay away from the child and then proceeded to take the child to an ice cream parlour by himself... I thought it was about to go to a far darker place than it ended up going (seemingly?), and after that had been de-escalated I suppose my expectations were altered and I didn't find the payoff all too interesting. A fairly simple "the past isn't all that great" story, with some kind of poor characterisation of The First Doctor overall.

Bide-a-Wee - ★★½☆☆

It's barely a story, but it had potential to be a great one. We see the Doctor and Susan taking a vacation from their travels on Earth. Susan is out with newly made friends and the Doctor is enjoying his time in a local inn.

We find out, just as the Doctor, that one of the guests have been messing with time and the town is perpetually stuck in the 1933 when a couple from the 1999 arrive, shocking the guests with their marriage (and child), since the man is white and the woman is not. Their little boy seems to be the only member of the family to notice there is something wrong going on.

It has a very small scale though, and the solution is very simple. Not that I wished to overcomplicate this, but there was potentional for this one to be a full fleshed out story focusing on the ill effects of being permanently - or so it seems - out of your time. It seems like hell.

Plus, the antagonist - we can barely call him that - may or may not be the Monk.

I love how this story takes place after the price of conviction with the doctor saying him n Susan might need a Holiday and this one starting with a Holiday, starting with the Doctor sitting on a beach and Susan going off with some locals to explore. It seems the Doctor n Susan have been here a while. I love how the doctor talks to the locals playing bingo and truly having a holiday you are really transported too bird-a-wee.

its not long before things start to turn a little off racist and sexist things start to get hinted towards theirs one character Craig who keeps talking about his gameboy. now for the 1990s this behaviour is extremely off very 1930s well, there in 1933. Turns out Prentice created a time distortion to keep it 1933 outside the time distortion its 1999. Craigs family managed to enter it and there minds have changed, turning his mum n dad into 2 different people his mum was meant to be a brain surgeon but has now become a house wife.

Also new Doctor lore the Doctor has no prostate didn't want to know this but now i do.

Craig later contracts wooping cough, making Prentice have to choose this 1930s era hes created or 1990s to get the cure for Craig and save him, but it was all an act to stop the time distortion. The Doctor saying if Craig did this he could go home. Susan and the Doctor meet up again ending with the Doctor and Susan going off to buy one final ice cream before the holiday ends.

I loved this story, it has themes of oppression but also hope because, its basically saying look how far we have come and the doctor being an amazing person is what I love to see. I do wish Prentice had a reason for keeping it 1933 like in the 8th doctor story no more lies but still a strong little story