I loved that this episode was simply a fun adventure. Not too cerebral or timey-whimey. Just the Doctor and his companions trying to save a spaceship - with dinosaurs on the passenger list.
Observations:
It's funny that the Doctor saves Egypt from locusts.
I loved Rory's Dad, Brian. I loved how he was brought aboard the Tardis accidentally. I loved how flumoxed and flabbergasted he was and how excited he was to discover things he never could have dreamt possible, and I loved how he had a big hand in saving everyone.
I loved the dinosaurs, and I love how the effects for Doctor Who just keep getting better and better.
It's interesting how when the gang was split into two separate groups, that Amy took the role of the "Doctor" in her group. She's learned a lot from her travels with the Doctor, and she loves taking charge anyway.
I loved seeing Brian sitting at the open door of the Tardis, looking down at earth.
I don't know how I feel about the Doctor at the end of the episode. I'm not sure if it's supposed to be in his character to do what he did.
Questions:
Why does Nefertiti want to go with the Doctor? She's the Queen of Egypt, not some slave girl trying to escape from her life. And how does she know they'll be going somewhere in that big blue box? This is ancient Egypt. She would have no concept of time travel in a Police box. And why isn't she more surprised at the world in the 24th century? It's a bit different from ancient Egypt. And why does the Doctor call her "Neffie"? They don't know each other that well. If they made it seem like he'd been there before and they really knew each other then I'd believe it more. All we know is the Doctor saved Egypt from locusts, and now she wants to leave her boring husband.
It's like when the Doctor asks Rory, "Isn't it obvious?" And Rory responds, "It's sort of the opposite of obvious." Hmmm.
Why does the Doctor need Ridell's help? As much as I like Rupert Graves, I'm not completely sure why the Doctor brought him along. I don't always understand what Matt Smith is saying because he speaks so quickly sometimes, and he may have said why he chose to bring him. I just feel like they were "playing the ending" - having a game hunter on a spaceship with dinosaurs, when the Doctor didn't know there were dinosaurs on the spaceship before they got on it.
Indira says that there's been no response from the spaceship on any channel in any recognizable language. Is she saying there was a response in an unrecognizable language or no response at all? If there's no response at all, what's the difference between no response in an unrecognizable language and no response in a recognizable language?
Quotes:
Doctor: You think you can just bring your Dad along without asking? I'm not a taxi service, you know.
Doctor: This is the gang. I've got a gang.
Rory: You know when Amy and I got married and we went traveling?
Brian: To Thailand.
Rory: More like the entire space and time. In that police box.
Doctor: Time flies. Never understood that phrase.
Amy: They're with you. Are they the new "us"? Is that why we haven't seen you?
Doctor: No. They're just people. They're not pawns. I thought we might need a gang. Not that we had a gang before. It's new.
Amy: Doctor!
Doctor: I know. Dinosaurs! On a spaceship!
Brian: Are you saying dinosaurs are flying a spaceship?
Doctor: Brian, please, don't be ridiculous. They're probably just passengers.
Rory: Dad. I'm 31. I don't have a Christmas list anymore.
Dcotor: I do!
Nefertiti: And you, Amy. Are you also Queen?
Amy: Yes. Yes, I am.
Amy: I've spent enough time with the Doctor to know - whenever you enter a room, press buttons.
Amy [to Ridell and Nefertiti]: Stop flirting. I will not have flirting companions.
Rory: [to his Dad]: While you carry a trowel, I carry a med pack. It's all about pockets in our family.
Nefertiti: You and the Doctor - are you his Queen?
Amy: No, I'm Rory's Queen. Wife. I'm his wife. Please don't ever tell him I said I was his Queen. I'd never hear the end of it.
Doctor: Brian Pond, you are delicious.
Brian: I'm not a Pond.
Doctor: Of course you are.
Doctor: Phase two sorted. Now for phase one.
Amy: No. No. Phase two comes after phase one.
Doctor: You are so linear.
Riddell: This is a two man job. [Amy grabs a gun] What are you doing?
Amy: I'm easily worth two men. You can come too, if you'd like.
A few things I'd like to add:
ReplyDelete1) I like that this episode had a "movie"-type quality. Really big and really crazy. So fun!
2) Watched this with my dad, and it was the first time he'd ever seen anything Doctor Who. When Amy asked if she was a queen, Dad asked, "Really?" I said, "No, she just doesn't want to feel inferior while she's in charge." Pretty much anything Amy said made me laugh during this episode. She's growing on me.
3) LOVED Mark Williams as Rory's dad! I want more of him!
4) I agree on all your points about Nefertiti and Riddell. They were really, really random characters. But it all ended well.
5) I'm SO HAPPY I've caught up on this show! I love it!