Identity crisis or Amnesia?
I don't usually write reviews but as a long-time fan of this franchise I was so saddened by the atrocity that Disney has produced with this new season, but I am not in the least bit surprised. Between the flash-bang info dumps, the loose plot-points, and the completely random disconnected scenes I had whiplash after every episode I forced myself to watch. It feels as if not one on the set or production/script/writing team has watched a single episode of Doctor Who, not from the 60's nor the 2000's.
This season felt like a complete abandonment of what made Doctor Who worth watching no matter how absurd the plot was, which was the well-written depth behind each and every character (even one-ep characters), the historical weight behind the title the Doctor carried, and his ability to make you not only fall in love with adventure but also the value of life, all life when the characters were faced with impossible choices to save those the universe sent their way.
It is really sad to see such talented actors waste their skills on such a poor example of television. Not only are they forced into roles that they clearly don't understand the importance of, but they are given such weak scripts that honestly feel like a fever dream rather than good sci-fi (I'm still confused about the space babies - what was that? Why didn't they age? Why are we given more questions than answers at the end of every episode? Why are we constantly being thrown into story lines with absolutely no explanation or details like in Dot & Bubble?).
Also, another big shift from the old style is that connection, that feeling of being a part of the story as cohorts with the doctor and his companions, now we are fully cast out and stumbling around in confusion every time we are thrust into a storyline that has already started without us even getting to be in the Tardis for the ride (and don't think we haven't noticed how diminished the Tardis' role has become), it is jarring and not at all inclusive of the audience's role in the show.
*I can't stress enough that it really isn't the acting that's the problem m, but the fault is squarely on the bad writing and possibly the fact that Disney always Disney-fies everything it gets its claws in until they ruin it. I can see peeks of how great Gatwa could be if he was given even half a chance (and maybe a history lesson on the Doctor).
I mean, even Whittaker was a more realistic portrayal of the Doctor and she was a completely different gender! She tried her best to capture the essence of the Doctor and by the end of her FIRST episode the new gender was just another quirk the audience got to roll with.
I'm sorry to say this but Russel T. Davies really should have stopped while he was ahead and wrapped this franchise up last season if this was the best they could do for the next generation.
I truly can't even relate this season in my mind to any of the previous seasons, it feels like too much of a betrayal to the Doctors and actors who have gone before.
I can admit that this is a ridiculous show about aliens, and I should not be this upset but Eccleston, Tennent, Smith, and on were at the very least true fans of this show who wholeheartedly honoured the history behind it and who the Doctor is, no matter what face he wears. Unfortunately that can't be said anymore with this new confused doctor and his overly familiar companion.
This season felt like a complete abandonment of what made Doctor Who worth watching no matter how absurd the plot was, which was the well-written depth behind each and every character (even one-ep characters), the historical weight behind the title the Doctor carried, and his ability to make you not only fall in love with adventure but also the value of life, all life when the characters were faced with impossible choices to save those the universe sent their way.
It is really sad to see such talented actors waste their skills on such a poor example of television. Not only are they forced into roles that they clearly don't understand the importance of, but they are given such weak scripts that honestly feel like a fever dream rather than good sci-fi (I'm still confused about the space babies - what was that? Why didn't they age? Why are we given more questions than answers at the end of every episode? Why are we constantly being thrown into story lines with absolutely no explanation or details like in Dot & Bubble?).
Also, another big shift from the old style is that connection, that feeling of being a part of the story as cohorts with the doctor and his companions, now we are fully cast out and stumbling around in confusion every time we are thrust into a storyline that has already started without us even getting to be in the Tardis for the ride (and don't think we haven't noticed how diminished the Tardis' role has become), it is jarring and not at all inclusive of the audience's role in the show.
*I can't stress enough that it really isn't the acting that's the problem m, but the fault is squarely on the bad writing and possibly the fact that Disney always Disney-fies everything it gets its claws in until they ruin it. I can see peeks of how great Gatwa could be if he was given even half a chance (and maybe a history lesson on the Doctor).
I mean, even Whittaker was a more realistic portrayal of the Doctor and she was a completely different gender! She tried her best to capture the essence of the Doctor and by the end of her FIRST episode the new gender was just another quirk the audience got to roll with.
I'm sorry to say this but Russel T. Davies really should have stopped while he was ahead and wrapped this franchise up last season if this was the best they could do for the next generation.
I truly can't even relate this season in my mind to any of the previous seasons, it feels like too much of a betrayal to the Doctors and actors who have gone before.
I can admit that this is a ridiculous show about aliens, and I should not be this upset but Eccleston, Tennent, Smith, and on were at the very least true fans of this show who wholeheartedly honoured the history behind it and who the Doctor is, no matter what face he wears. Unfortunately that can't be said anymore with this new confused doctor and his overly familiar companion.
- gurciullob
- Jun 5, 2024