Doctor Who

[meganlynn09]

Here's my review of "The Shakespeare Code".



So, I liked the beginning, especially the part where they copy Rose and Nine from "The Unquiet Dead" and link arms to set off. The added "Miss Jones/Mr.Smith" was nice too.


How in the world does he get baffled as to why Martha would flirt BACK?

I adored Martha in this episode, she was very fun, I loved her excitement and everything.


This part cracked me up because they just had a bucket of...well, piss and shit thrown at their feet and yet look at Martha's expression!

Shakespeare was okay, I loved that he assumed the Doctor was there for an autograph, but just responded with his whole entire body to Martha. It was lovely.

Okay, here's the part I was talking about. First, the Doctor invites Martha to share the bed with him.





And as he's, pretty intimately, staring and talking to her, here's what he's saying:

(I've tried to transcibe this as best I could because against by better judgement, I re-watched the scene)

"There's something I'm missing Martha. Something really close. Staring me right in the face and I can't see it." Pause, Martha looks like she wants to say something.

"Rose'd know. Friend of mine, Rose, right know, she'd say exactly the right thing." He hops away practically and says "Still, can't be helped, you're a novice, (can't make out exactly what he says here, almost sounds like "not mine"). Take you back home tomorrow."

Pissed off, rightfully so, Martha angrily blows out the candle and is able to fall asleep. The Doctor actually stays in the bed, but doesn't sleep. That was interesting because I think he knew he did wrong, his face seemed carefully blank after his comments, but he stayed, didn't wander around.

Note:

Why did this scene piss me off?

1.) I don't personally think Rose wouldn't have know what to say, not that I'm saying it's impossible, but it took a while for them to really get what was going on, she would have been just as lost as the Doctor and Martha. Or she would boost his ego by saying "You'll figure it out", which I don't know how that's helpful at all. (Not that I'm putting that down, sometimes it was lovely that she had that confidence in the Doctor, but it's truly not helpful)

2.) It's been pointed out that they're trying to make us feel sorry for Martha. I don't want to! I think she's a fantastic character on her own, she doesn't need our sympathy.

3.) Trying to make the new companion look lesser than the previous companion will not always reflect well on the previous companion. For me, it doesn't because it reminds me of Rose's lower points.

4.) It was a completely unnecessary time to bring in a Rose mention (which thank goodness RTD didn't write this episode, as I can't blame yet another thing on him!). It really was, I may have a problem with the later mention of Rose, but at least that seemed a little (stretching) more appropriate. At least here, he could have blown Martha off by leaving the room abrubtly or just saying that she was a novice and leave out the mention of Rose altogether.

5.) Personally, just like at the end of "Smith and Jones", I think Ten was just being extra assy, and while that may be a part of his personality, I hate it. Very much hate it. I don't buy the alien excuse, he's been around humans far too long to not know when he's being an ass.

I've said it before, it's not that Rose is being mentioned, I understand it, I've resigned myself to it, but please, FOR ALL THE LOVE IN THE WORLD, make them minor like the one from "Smith and Jones" or just don't do them at all.

I'd prefer the latter, but will grudgingly accept the former.

As I said to quiet_fractures in my post last night, "I would like the Rose mentions a lot more if they weren't made at the expense of the new companion. I'm all complaining about fandom unfairly comparing Rose and Martha and here we have the DW writers doing the same thing!"

What pissed me off about reading other reviews was that, including some shippers (on time_and_chips), they assumed we were Rose haters and hate all mentions of Rose. No, some just want the Doctor to move on a little faster. RTD tried to sell Ten to us so fast after Nine, we had almost no angst. Now, he's trying the opposite approach? Sorry, not working for myself. Maybe for others. But it's times like this that I feel he's pandering to certain people or that he got way too attached to one character, which in my experience with other shows is very very bad.

I just don't understand how that scene could make anyone happy when it hurts Martha and puts her in an unfavorable comparison to Rose. It doesn't make ANYONE of them look good. Um...yeah?

Ahem, moving on.

This episode provided one of the only scenes where I buy, and like Ten's showing of anger.



I loved Shakespeare's continued flirtation with Martha, and the little wink towards Ten. Eh, I'll buy it. Heh, his Dark Lady.

And then Martha having to get Ten's second heart to start beating because of the "witch".



I hope she hit him extra hard.

When Shakespeare was trying to get a kiss at the end, did he really have to say "The Doctor will never kiss you?" Or whatever the fuck he said? Man, I hope whoever wrote this episode never comes back. Because 1)He already has(The Doctor kiss Martha) and 2)They just turned good ol' Will into an ass!

There's just something about Ten that makes him piss off Queens, isn't there? I know it was supposed to be funny, but I bet he deserves it. Yes, he pissed me off for one scene and it sticks there.

So, the episode was okay. Better than "Tooth and Claw" but won't be beating my love for "The Unquiet Dead".

Next episode looks interesting.

But seriously, how could anyone be threatened by this face:

I'm sorry! I just...Tennant needs to take it down a notch. If there was ever a time to be like his predecessor, it was in his anger moments.

So, that's it, what do y'all think? :D

Comments

[nina-ds.livejournal.com]

You've seen my review, so you already know that we mostly agree on this one (the Shakespeare seems to be the only even minor divergence). Re: the Rose mentions, I agree the second one is far more defensible than the first. The first was just...well, assy is a good word. I saw somewhere today someone asserting that both Nine and Ten were insensitive, but that Nine knew it and didn't care. I don't quite buy that. I think that Nine did care, it was just the least of his issues, and he would go out of his way to comfort people like Nancy and Lynda; Ten seems more careless of people's feelings, and that to me is worse.

In that bed scene, he was selfish, most definitely, and as you point out, not even true. Rose rarely had a solution to anything, at least not to his face, but she could make him - or at least Nine - feel better - going for chips, having faith in his decisions, telling him it wasn't his fault that she couldn't outrun the Daleks, just saying she was sorry... It seems to me that she often wanted Ten to make her feel better, reinforce her faith in him the same way he needed her to bolster his self-image. This is not a knock on Rose at all, at least not with Nine, and I'm willing to put most of the blame for her backsliding on Ten, because he encouraged it.

RTD tried to sell Ten to us so fast after Nine, we had almost no angst. Now, he's trying the opposite approach?

Yeah, that does piss me off. Even if Rose moved on, would it have killed them to have a brief scene of her folding away the jacket? They did at least as much for her in TRB. I would very much like Jack to be one person who doesn't leap to the conclusion that Ten is an improvement.

There's just something about Ten that makes him piss off Queens, isn't there?

I'm not a queen (in either sense of the term), but he sure pisses me off. He is better than last year, but honestly, I do not see the charm that so many others do. And I love your last screencap - exactly! He looks like a five year old having a tantrum. But I also don't think he does cold anger well, which some fans assert that he does. He's got a very narrow, medium range of emotion. I read that Tennant wants to be the next Bond villain; I think he'd be better suited for Austin Powers IV.

Wow, I had more to say than I thought!

[meganlynn09.livejournal.com]

both Nine and Ten were insensitive, but that Nine knew it and didn't care

I would need a really good case as to how and when Nine was insensitive and didn't care because that's Ten! Show a place where Ten's said he was sorry for anything he said!

Even if Rose moved on, would it have killed them to have a brief scene of her folding away the jacket?

I think that would have been very sweet and probably well received.

I read that Tennant wants to be the next Bond villain

Really? Have I missed something that would suggest him as a good villain, because I sometimes have trouble buying into him as the hero.

[wordsalone.livejournal.com]

Martha is wonderful! I completely adore her. I don't think the Doctor was trying to be an ass. It's like he has no idea that he's hurting her. Like you, I didn't appreciate that moment in bed. I kinda wanted to smack him and I think Martha was completely justified in her anger.

And yeah, as much as I love Rose, she wasn't always there with the right answer for the Doctor. I doubt that she would have had anything else to add at that moment either.

The second Rose mention did make me go "aww" a little. I really couldn't help that.

No, some just want the Doctor to move on a little faster. RTD tried to sell Ten to us so fast after Nine, we had almost no angst. Now, he's trying the opposite approach? Sorry, not working for myself. Maybe for others. But it's times like this that I feel he's pandering to certain people or that he got way too attached to one character, which in my experience with other shows is very very bad.

That's something I never liked about the transition. I always felt that if I was having such a hard time with it, then Rose should be feeling the same way...if not worse about the whole thing. This man that she traveled with (and fell for) is gone. He's there in a way, but there's a part of him that's lost forever. I'm starting to feel better about Ten now because Rose isn't there. No, I don't want to forget her but I don't need to be constantly reminded that she's no longer there. Rose is gone. I get it! The Doctor misses her. I get it!

I've had a couple of months to deal with it and I'm ready to move on.

Shakespeare was very pretty and if he had cleaner teeth, I'm sure Martha would have accepted a quick kiss.

I'm rambling a lot. Mostly because you've already said everything that I want to say.

[meganlynn09.livejournal.com]

Yeah, the transition was always a little unsettling.

No, I don't want to forget her but I don't need to be constantly reminded that she's no longer there.

Yes! Just little things every other episode. We don't need the heavy-handedness every single week.

Shakespeare was very pretty and if he had cleaner teeth, I'm sure Martha would have accepted a quick kiss.

Definitely!

[nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com]

The bed scene's the one I don't mind, because it's got the Doctor's fear of attachment to Martha and while I don't like having to pity a companion it does more or less manage it. Whereas the other one feels like a) Rose is stealing Martha's job and she's not even there and b) all the Doctor's pain is being discarded in favour of Being Sad About Rose. :S

[meganlynn09.livejournal.com]

Yeah, I agree with that, but the bed scene just completely rubbed me the wrong way. And stuck in my head more.

[nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com]

He needs to address that whole Mixed Signals thing at some point. It's like his body's acting on attraction of some sort and his emo is going "No! No! Will leave me! Be sad! Be sad about Rose!"

[meganlynn09.livejournal.com]

He really does. He lures Martha into the TARDIS and then acts surprise the she notices he's a flirt?

Is he so naive himself?

[nostalgia-lj.livejournal.com]

At this rate episode four will contain the line "Martha, why are you flirting with me? We're only having penetrative sex."

[zerohundred.livejournal.com]

I kind of want to know why Rose had to dress in period clothing while Martha didn't LOL.

[meganlynn09.livejournal.com]

Because Nine's more romantic? Heh, I have no clue, I'd like to think it had something to do with the plot, but I don't think it did!

[zerohundred.livejournal.com]

I guess Nine was more meticulous. Still, it bugged the heck out of me!

[meganlynn09.livejournal.com]

It bugged me too as Martha's clothes would have been what attracted attention, not her skin color.