Doctor Who

Get Tin to send you some of her rasberry flavouring spell.

Here's a review of the Girl Who Waited- contains huge spoilers naturally but at least in a review the Beeb can't stop them showing clips. Plus its the excellent Mr Tardis, probably one of the most popular and in my view (although I often disagree with him) one of the best Who reviewers on the net- I always find him very engaging to listen to, agree or not.

I never ment that big eyes was a bad thing. I also said she looked like Finrod's sister and that is a MAJOR compliment. Far better than supermodel.
I know what it looks like to see life and character in a face like that, and I couldn't see it in Amy.

But here's the thing. We saw the Dalek and the two Angels episodes yesterday and somewhere in the space between the beast and the Daleks they must have received their pay checks and gone shopping because suddenly they OWNED their characters. Suddenly Amy had life and attitude! Thank Eru for that, I was dreading two seasons of eye-widening as only sign of life and a frustrated Smith doing his best all alone. I'm still adjusting to the new doctor, but I do like him. And I like River. But do I love them? Don't know yet.

Glad you are starting to enjoy them Amarie. The Dalek episodes is generally considered to be the poorest of series 5 so all good from here on in!
I think you will come to find Amy has no shortage of attitude.

I am sorry Petty but you are talking a load of BS, I have never critisized her appearance, like ever, so where you get the cheek to say I have is beyond me. I want proof please. otherwise you can take it back.
I am not nor ever will be a person that critisizes other wimmin by the way they look.

Rose meaning it.

"if Amy wasnt very pretty I doubt anyone would like her at all"- Mrs Figg
"stiff brittle dead eyed Amy"- Mrs Figg

and just for good measure you had a go at Rory's features too-

"no chin Rory"

Sorry Mrs Figg I hugely dislike the Rose story ending, the ludicrous two Doctors thing etc. Wasn't impressed with it then, still amn't now- just another female companion who is in love with the Doctor (yawn)- Amy means so much more than that to him. (I also found Donna Nobles ending far more moving and tragic than Roses').

I called her very pretty, is that an insult, or am I in a parallel universe where compliments are insults??
Stiff brittle Amy is referring to her ACTING skills not her physical appearance or am I in a parallel universe where critisizing someones acting is considered code for she is pretty and therefore I dislike her cos I am a jealous cow??
just askin.
My critisism of Rory is about him or am I not allowed to critisize him because it somehow weirdly reflects on Amy or am I in that parallel universe again? plus no chin referrs to his wimpy acting actually.
I find your assumption I am jealous insulting to my intelligence quite frankly.

The clip I posted did not have the 2 Doctors it was before that, and it was 100 times better than any Amy scenes for realism.

You weren't complimenting her by bringing up her looks Mrs Figg, come off it. You said you didnt think any one would like her if she wasnt pretty- that is an insult to her performance using her looks against her which ever way you cut it. And I thought that was a bit low, and not only insulting to her but to me and other viewers who have found her performances strong enough to provide an emotional response and even move me to tears (something that never happened for me watching Rose, but did at the end of Donna Nobles run).

If she was plain to look at you wouldnt get so steamed up about her. There are plenty of pretty actresses who get more attention than they deserve because they are good to look at, and my personal opinion is that she is just another one of those characterless dolly birds. The fact that they chose her is less about her talent and more about appealing to the teenage male demographic. Its good marketing. My problem has all to do with the fact that she can just stand around with a short skirt on and doesnt have to do much else. She bores me to tears. Sally Sparrow is by far the most beautiful of the "assistants" and I love her acting, her personality and she never bored me for one second, so what is your argument now?? it just doesnt hold water I am afraid.

Now I think you are insulting Moffat! His concept of Amy, the roots of her charcater can be found in the Madame Pompadour episode, way back in the Tennant run- to say he just cast someone becasue they were pretty is crazy. Amy is Moffats charcater, loved, nurtured and developed over several years at least. He is hardly likely to go to such length creating this character then be happy to cast someone who cant act but looks good.
To say all Karen does is stand about in a mini skirt is another flippant remark that the evidence of the episodes, or the acting nominations she has reveiced, fails to uphold. She carries most of the emotional beats of series 5 and 6.

By a strange coincidence, I am at my mothers for a traditional Sunday dinner, and reading yesterdays newspaper (The Daily Mail horribly enough but she likes the tv magazine that comes with it! ) and there is a two page piece on Karen Gillan under the headline 'Karen Gillan on the edge of global fame-and will she survive? (well it is the Mail).
The piece is mainly about We'll Take Manhattan the BBC biopic where she plays 60's icon Jean Shrimpton during her rise to fame and her affair with the photographer David Bailey.

'Mckay (writer/director) a veteran of BBC drama such as Life on Mars, Cantebury Tales and Robin Hood, said of his leading lady, 'Karen is a star. You want to watch her. She's just got it- amazing. One of the reasons I chose to offer the Jean Shrimpton part to Karen was because I think she is really brilliant at portraying feelings. She demonstarted this as Amy Pond, even when the Doctor is doing all the action stuff....Bailey does all the talking and yet, somehow, Karen as Jean is the soul of the film.'

This is the Karen Gillan I recognise and have been watching for the last two years. Honestly Mrs Figg it is as if we are watching two completely different actresses.

I see no emotion in her episodes, apart from a few half smiles and staring about. She lacks emotion thats my whole problem, she lacks an inner life, its all very well saying the writer wanted her to have this facinating backstory, but I dont find it facinating, I find it boring so for me with all the best writing in the world, it fails. its weird that in one short episode with Sally, I got instantly hooked with the mystery and excitement when a whole series put together with this recent lot fails to interest me.

Its her ability to convey the emotion, and her charcater has a lot more than any other to get through, that has attracted the attention of directors (such as the one quoted above) and award nominations alike. I just don't see how you can say she doesn't convey emotion. Of all the things she does as Amy emotion is the main thing, portraying this vulnerable, broken girl who hides it all behind mental walls and her abrasive behaviour and pulling that off is one of her triumphs in the part.

OMG Figgs, she has won awards! That changes everything, doesn't it? Surely this means that you are not entitled to an opinion that differs.

Petty, I too really believed that you were too blinded by her looks to see that her acting was rubbish. She had NO personality, and yet you were rambling on about how fantastic she was. Her looks were all that was left that could be appealing. I cannot comment on the episodes that Figgs have seen that I haven't, but I will when I get there. I can't see the over-earthly magnificence you see, Petty, but maybe later. But so far it is River Song who is excellent and solid as a rock. Like Tennant was. The Doc and Amy was sort of orbiting around her and being lifted by acting with her. What was it Song said to the Doctor? "maybe when you are older". My thoughts exactly, with regards to both Amy and the Doctor.

Mrs Figg is entitled to her opinion I just find it odd the main thing she has singled out for crit is the one thing Karen is roundly praised for across the board even by her detractors- like I said above its like we are watching two different actresses.

I am less sure where you stand Amarie- you said after 11th Hour Matt Smith was the Doctor (something I agree with wholeheartedly) but you seem to have been rowing back from that view since.

Thanks Amarie, I am glad you understand what I am talking about.

reasons to be bored by amy Pond.

1. Basically we are being told By Moffat and co that we must like her because they do.
2. She treats her husband Rory like poo, whats with the "stupid Face" rubbish
3. She is constantly wingeing and complaining
4. She doesnt look excited to be on the Tardis, wtf.
5. kissing the Doctor wtf we dont need tarty assistants thanks
6. She thinks she understands the Doctor, like she can read him, yeah right.
7. She always looks bored out of her mind
8. she is dull and arrogant.
9. Little Amy was 100 times better than Big Amy
10. Blank staring expression
11. The Doctor sends for the Ponds in the Imp Astronaught as his most faithful assistants, when they are clearly not, Martha or Sarah Jane would be his most trusted assistants by any stretch of the imagination.

Dont agree with 1- I dint feel like I was told by anyone to like her, I just did. Found her character fascinating from the word go.

2-6 I dont have a problem with. I dont agree but they are opinions on the character she plays which is fair enough. Its attacks on the actress I have a problem with.
7,8,10- seem to be back to attcks on the actress- which for all the resons I have given seems unfair.

I for one found a companion who was neither besotted not awed by the Doctor refreshing- in fact she has grown up with the Doctor being both a psychcological problem -4 psychriasts worth- and being someone who lets her down, who lies. Its a whole different dynamic and because of where the story goes its played unlike any other companion/Doctor releationship.
Give me something new and original over yet another clingy, pining Rose/Martha story any day.

Rose and Martha were neither clingy or pining, they loved him and showed it, Martha was in a bad situation as she knew the doctor loved Rose and could not take her place in his hearts, she tried to hide her sadness but was generally chirpy and brave. Rose was about as feisty and brave as assistants get, she was brokenhearted to lose him but thats normal? isnt it.

And Amy doesn't love him- not in that fashion. He is her friend, her best friend, as she tells him. I find that refreshing, she doesn'tr see the Doctor as superior or some great wise ancient person becasue the Doctor she first met was none of those thngs, mid regenerations. He was her imaginary friend all through childhood. And there is something wonderful happens to the dynamic on the Tardis when you have a married couple living on there. It reminds me somewhat of teh Davidson Doctor years when the Tardis when there were always at least 3 people on the Tardis (perhaps not suprising as Moffat's Doctor was Davidson and its clear he has a strong spot for that era of Who as this Children in Need, Moffat penned special shows).

Everyone needs to chill out. I'm hoping the worst of it is passed, but I'm not thrilled at seeing such cattiness and sniping at each other, especially not over a TV show. Don't make me get all Admin and call the Sheriffs (Eru knows I don't need to owe a debt to Mirabella).

Oh come now Eldo- ole GB and I had far more heated disagreements over LotR's than this particular argument. It's hardly a flame war and both myself and Mrs Figg are I am sure more than able enough to take a few knocks and come bouncing back to the fray- even when she is so clearly in the wrong.
Besides I hope there will be some agreement to be found over the excellent Matt Smith and how he grows to become the part and there will always be agreement Eccleston was a very good Doctor, the WW2 two parter his finest moment and that Tennant was excellent but the writers got lazy in their writing for him. Those are probably at least points of agreement. (There may be more but I have no idea if Mrs Figg knows the classic stuff or not).

Smith confuses me, I guess. From the stills he looked far from promising. But with little Amelia he was indeed the doctor, and I was so relieved. Then there was something really off with the chemistry between him and Amy, and what is Dr Who without chemistry between the Doctor and his companions?! (And yes, I did understand that she had been "damaged" by the Doctor, I got that from the little girl and the Doc but not from Amy.)

Smith is the Doctor with all the greatness that holds and yet he is also very "excuse me for existing". I don't know the orignal Doctors, like the one with the bow tie that I get the impression Smith is inspired by(?). ('spose that's him in the video there, might take a look at that) Smith may be just as a doctor should be, I just don't know it. And for this season(s) I see that mr "it doesn't need to be said" doesn't belong at all, but I am still not sure if I like where the Doc is heading. Even if I think River is gold.

I am trying to remember what I thought of Tennant in the first episodes, since he too was quite different from previous doctor and more emotional. I had longer to get used to him though, as I was under the mercy of BBC entertainments ever changing schedule and their "we'll just end the episode 5 or 10 minutes after what the schedule says, just for the fun of it! HAHA! In your FACE you who thought you had recorded the whole thing!" And of course they don't send the Christmas specials, because it is not like they are important to the story in any way. Um.... *cough* Aaaaaanyway... We'll see some more episodes tonight I think.

Getting heated is fine, I was just put off by some of the personal attacks/assumptions about why people were saying what they were saying (particularly on the topic of Amy). I'm a fan of letting people speak for themselves and not telling them why they feel a certain way. But so long as the thread continues with a spirit of good nature, then carry on.

Amarie the reason Smith has struck such a cord with old Whovians like myself is he has come up with a unique Doctor which nevertheless has apsects of all the previous Doctors personlaities within.
However the main three he channels I would say are the 1st Doctor- William Hartnell- when you get to the Doctor's monologue beside Amy's bed this is the Doctor who is speaking.
The 2nd Doctor- Patrick Troughton - the first Doctor to ever grab an unsupecting soul by the hand and say "Run!"- he ran a lot and set the pattern for all future Doctors to like a good run at things. Smiths Doctor most closely resembles Troughtons in his comic movements and in his clothing, although he is not the only Doctor to wear a bow tie, the Doctor has had rather a liking for them in several regenerations.
An the 7th Doctor, Tom Baker- its not that Smith copies Baker eccenticties just that he brings a similarly alien feel to the character. You could mistake Ecclestons or even Tennants Doctor for being human, you couldn't with Baker, or Smith- their is something off about them from a human point of view- and the Doctor not being human is an important part of his character, its why he takes humans with him because without them he has no counter balance, no morality either- he is the oncoming storm, cruel and cold.

Here's three vids of the three Doctors I have mentioned you can see for yourself how Matt brings aspects of each to the role.

I am not a fan of prejudiced assumptions of why have the opinions I have either, and thats why I will defend myself against said assumptions, but having said that I personally dont mind a bit of argy bargy as long as people dont talk AT me and talk To me, which makes all the difference. I dont take offence at heated discussions as it can be interesting getting to the root of why people really have the opinions they do. its all ok and I hope I am mature enough to see the funny side, and see how daft it is to get all huffy over a silly tv programme.