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TARDIS Guide

Overview

First aired

Saturday, May 28, 2011

Production Code

2.6

Written by

Matthew Graham

Directed by

Julian Simpson

Runtime

45 minutes

Story Type

Two-Parter

Time Travel

Future

Story Arc (Potential Spoilers!)

Amy's Pregnancy, Melody Pond, Silence Will Fall, The Flesh

Location (Potential Spoilers!)

Earth

UK Viewers

6.72 million

Appreciation Index

86

Synopsis

As the conflict between the miners and their gangers escalates, the Eleventh Doctor has to deal with Amy Pond's distrust of his ganger, while Rory Williams tries to help Jennifer.

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Reviews

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4 reviews

This review contains spoilers!

It's alright.  I really wish that the story wasn't so in your face about its message, because it feels kind of tired pretty quickly and doesn't hold up well on re-watch because of that.  I get it, the Doctor and the Almost-Doctor are both being of value, and there's definitely something worth exploring here but the show doesn't really engage with the idea at all.  It feels a bit silly that we kind of undermine the main theme of this episode with the ending.  It's a decent twist, but then the Doctor destroys Almost-Amy and the show kind of moves on - as if she doesn't have value and isn't important compared to the real Amy.  It's all a bit silly, even if the twists around these character's identities aren't bad.  The problem is that this is all surrounding by a story that isn't much of a pleasant watch.

The characters at the factory and their dopplegangers aren't significant enough to leave an impression, so it just becomes a kind of loud base under siege episode without any big moments to make it meaningfully distinct in any big way.  It's an episode I didn't really think much of but the more I've seen and thought of it, the less I like it.  The banter between the two Doctors felt annoying more than fun and none of the other characters feel fun or meaningful here, even Rory and Amy.  This and The Rebel Flesh feel like something that could have been decent as a single episode, but by dragging things out into two parts, everything moves way too slowly for the better twists around the Doctor and Amy to be worth it.


dema1020

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It was a fun episode, enjoyed the banter between the two Doctors and there were a couple of great twists at the end. Looking forward to seeing where everything goes.


AndyUK

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Boring and made me look at Matt Smith's disgusting lizard face twice on the same screen. Booooooo


captainjackenoch

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This review contains spoilers!

There is some good philosophical sci-fi in this one, but they spend two episodes skirting round the edges of the idea, never really probing deeply.

Its a shame that the Gangers go loopy-crazy, because it undermines the idea that you have two creatures who are equally human who have been created in different ways. It would be easier to empathise with the Gangers if you didn't see them turn into a malevolent snake, or run down a corridor screaming with their mouth's wide open (which was giving me The Lazarus Experiment flashbacks). At some points Matthew Graham was going to efforts to make them actively evil, more so than the human's opposite them.

The child on the avatar space phone call was used to ram the point home that its a struggle for two people to share the same history. I think they pushed the emotion too far, it felt forced and ineffective. Also the child was left on the line saying "where's my daddy" for what must have been 3 hours. I doubt any kid is hanging on that long on their birthday - regardless of who is on the other end of the line.

I don't know how I feel about The Doctor snapping his fingers and getting rid of a blood clot, feels disrespectful for audience members who have these problems in real life. Feel equally odd about him killing Ganger Amy after a story which seems to otherwise resolve itself by saying how we should be treating the Gangers humanely, and with parity to humans.

Why was Matthew Graham given a second crack at Doctor Who given his work on Fear Her. There was a data point which was ignored here. Very few writers have been given this chance, why are we double checking the skills of writers who we know struggled with previous contributions?


15thDoctor

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Statistics

AVG. Rating796 members
3.11 / 5

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AVG. Rating1,098 votes
3.90 / 5

Member Statistics

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Quotes

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DOCTOR: She's having a baby. I needed to see the Flesh in its early days. That's why I scanned it. That's why we were there in the first place. I was going to drop you off for fish and chips first, but things happened and there was stuff and shenanigans. Beautiful word, shenanigans.

— Eleventh Doctor, The Almost People

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Transcript Needs checking

[Chapel]

(The new Doctor is suffering.)

G-DOCTOR: Argh. What's happening? I wonder if we'll get back. Yes, one day. Argh. I've reversed the polarity of the neutron flow.
DOCTOR: The Flesh is struggling to cope with our past regenerations. Hold on.
DOCTOR 4 [OC]: Would you like a jelly baby?
G-DOCTOR: Why? Why? Why?
DOCTOR: Why what?
G-DOCTOR: Hello. I'm the Doctor. No, let it go, we've moved on.
DOCTOR: Hold on, hold on, you can stabilise.
G-DOCTOR: I've reversed the jelly baby of the neutron flow. Would you like a Doctor, Doctor, I'm, I'm the. I can't.
DOCTOR: No, listen, hold on. Hold on.
G-DOCTOR: No! Argh.

(The other Gangers are trying to batter their way in. Then it all goes quiet.)

BUZZER: I think I liked it best when they were being noisy.
AMY: Mmm hmm. Doctor, we need you. Get over here.
G-DOCTOR: Hello.
AMY: Doctor.
DOCTOR: Cybermats.
G-DOCTOR: Do we have time for this?
DOCTOR: We make time. I'd like more proof that you're me. Cybermats.
G-DOCTOR: Created by the Cybermen. They kill by feeding off brainwaves.
AMY: Are you sure there aren't any weapons to can get to, like big guns with bits on?
BUZZER: Yeah, big guns would be good right now.
JIMMY: Why would we have guns? We're a factory. We mine.
AMY: Acid.


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