I was somewhat torn about this episode in the lead up. On one hand, it was stuffed full of stuff guaranteed to interest me - dinosaurs, Queen Nefertiti, Ruper Graves. On the other hand, while I don't spew forth the vitriol about Chris Chibnall that much of fandom seems to, I've never been particularly impressed by his Doctor Who episodes.
What do you, know, Chibnall managed to come through!. I thoroughly enjoyed that. There may have been nothing startling about the plot, no high brow concepts to explore, but it was good, rollicking, traditional Doctor Who adventure. And the acting of everyone (and there was a fairly large guest cast) was excellent. I was thoroughly enthralled.
Speaking of which, Chibnall managed to make sure that all the guests had a purpose, had something to do. Rupert Graves probably had the least important role, to be honest, yet it still wouldn't have been quite the same without him.
There were a few of great quotes. "I've got a gang. Yes!" "Just don't wake the baby" (In reference to a sleeping T-rex) "Spelling it out is hereditary, wonderful."
Was Amy's jealousy over the Doctor possibly having companions other than her and Rory really necessary. I suspect it's one of those hints that are leading up to the end of the Ponds in episode 5. There were a few of those in this episode I think. Amy's obsession with the Doctor can be a little scary sometimes. It's not really healthy. Another of the hints was right at the end of the episode. When the Ponds and Brian were looking out over the Earth, the Doctor was standing behind them, and his face kind of fell. He looked a bit left out. The danger of allowing companions to have lives separate to him I guess.
Speaking of Brian Williams - Mark Williams was excellent in this as Rory's Dad. There were enough similarities to show that they were relatives (see quote above about spelling it out), but he was his own character. In the, end, he was there for a reason as well. I liked the way it linked back to the idea of gene chains and there for father and son were the ones flying the ship. Brian was so very, very English (sitting in the TARDIS door eating a sandwich and having a cuppa while looking out over the world) and obviously set in his ways, yet still able to have his horizons expanded by the utterly bizarre experience that he was going through. I loved the fact that after they got back he went travelling, sending Amy and Rory postcards from all over the world. It reminds me of Donna's plans after The Runaway Bride, but with a happier ending (we hope!).
Amy was in pretty good form this episode, without being overly perfect, which I like. She's still a flawed character, as the jealousy and her issues with the Doctor show. However, she got the chance to be the Doctor, complete with her own companions, and she did a good job. Loved the comment about learning from the Doctor that when you walk into a strange place, you press buttons. She, Nefertit and Riddell managed to find some key information and let the Doctor know what was going on.
I loved the character of Nerfetit, and that she was willing to sacrifice herself for innocent creatures and her friends. She was truly noble, yet also feisty. I love the fact that Amy is a bit of a Nefertiti fangirl. I suspect it will be a case of bring on the Nefertiti/Riddell fanfiction. Rupert Graves had just the right amount of sleaziness for Riddell.
Now for the villain of the piece. Not a redeemable feature of him. So icky. Killing the triceratops (who, btw, was absolutely adorable, rather like a puppy) made me so angry. To be honest, even more so than the genocide of the Silurians, probably because we were given a chance to connect with the triceratops. And the insinuations about 'breaking in' Nefertiti made me feel dirty. Ugh! So horrid. Which meant, in the end, when the Doctor behaved so coldly, leaving Solomon to die, and was almost triumphant about it, I didn't have a problem with it. It wasn't a very Doctor-ish thing to do, but then, he's always had a dark side, it just takes a lot to set him off. This guy managed it.
A couple of small points to finish off. The Doctor not being identifiable by the computer system, was much more subtle than the Daleks asking 'Doctor Who' last week. I definitely prefer subtle.
Is the Doctor being one of the musicians in a piece of music going to be in every episode now? Because I suspect that will getting annoying if it becomes a 'thing'.
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