Birdsong

Big Bird reference!

Prerequisites: None needed.

Birdsong is a fairly alright opener, although I can't say it wasn't a little underwhelming. The premise is very solid, as the crew finds a planet seemingly devoid of a presence beyond that of two women and their bickering. Unfortunately, I didn't find either Myra or Bex to be interesting characters, and as such none of the subsequent twists and turns in the story really grabbed me. The ending was quite nice though, I'll give it that. I also wish there was more actual conflict between Helen and Liv here, because it seemed like a perfect setup to have that. Still, this was a fine story, just nothing essential.

What an emotionally engaging episode when you think it’s all figured out there’s another layer to the cake of mystery and I love it

🙏🏼51% = Underwhelming! = Skippable!

Thworping through time and space, one adventure at a time! 

IT'S HITCHCOCK IN SPACE!

This story kicks off with a very standard set-up, as Eight, Liv, and Helen arrive on a stranded planet and meet two colonists waiting for the rest of their people to arrive. One of the people is unwell and speaks of weird creatures in the night, while the other dismisses her worries and tries to simply maintain life on the base. But as we know, these birdlike creatures are very real, and the Doctor decides to investigate.

The scope of this story is fairly limited, and there are hardly any sound effects to bring the setting to life. The actors are fine, but they don’t leave a lasting impact, except possibly for Jane Asher as Myra. There are some basic character moments here and there that don’t add much in terms of characterization.

The sporadic appearance of a flock of killer birds adds a touch of tension, and the birds themselves seem to be an attempt to make this story stand out, but there's little reason for them to be specifically birds. However, the rest of the story progresses as if it's been automated. There’s the inevitable (and obvious) twist in the second half that suddenly turns Bex much less likeable. The one effective scene, in which Myra transforms into a bird, adds an effective body horror aspect to the story.

I was hoping for some kind of heightened tension at the climax, but it kind of comes and goes with little fanfare.

This is an interesting story, an interesting mystery makes this a fun and at times a bit creepy as we don’t know who to trust. The cast is brilliant as always . This story gives Helen some good characterization, and as the next story is likely to focus on her even more I’m excited to see how this set continues to develop her, her being able to have such a healthy relationship with liv that even though they disagree they can still make up easily and talk past their differences is really nice to see. This story also really suggests that we’re gonna be having solo Helen and 8 adventures once Liv leaves and I’m excited to see how Helen fairs as in this story it’s explicitly said that she kinda relies on liv as an emotional rock , she’s glad she’s there and as much as she loves the doctor she needs liv to really ground it all (that was my interpretation at least). The plot twist in my opinion is alright, I certainly didn’t see it coming but the flipping of Myra isn’t real too the real bex was alive in the ship felt kinda quick paced.

finally, the final scene showing bexs death as liv and Helen sing the birdsong is beautiful , I think the doctor using the sound of the birds to signify that the planet is safe is really sweet too, overall fun story! Nothing amazing but certainly a fun story with a fun team

I was quite excited going into this boxset as I always enjoy an outing with Eight and his team. I like Liv and Helen as much as anyone else, and I was pleased at the idea of getting to see more of them. However, I do feel that they, as a team, have not had any real new challenges or developments for a while, and I feel this story suffered for it.

The team show up on this spooky planet with two women who seem to be harbouring secrets and lies, while surrounded by sinister birds. The setting is very well realised, and the sound design of the people turning into birds was very horrible in the best kind of way. It was atmospheric and a little bit spooky. And that's about it.

I found myself zoning out in various places, and though overall I found it to be entertaining enough, it very much felt like a run of the mill, generic story. Nothing overly compelling happened. The monster is defeated. And it ends. It didn't really push the characters forward, and saw Liv and Helen stuck in this little loop of what they usually do which I would love them to break out of.

That said, I did enjoy the conversations about Helen's family - I always like when the 8DAs dig into that, and giving her a space to remember her mother gives her a dimension that she is often not afforded. But while Helen had some nice moments, nothing really happened for Liv. She used her medical skills, and helped save the day. I did like her mention of Tania, though - that, I feel, is a plot that was not used to its full potential. But that is a different review.

Overall, it was fine. But not something I'll be hankering to relisten to.