The Satan Pit (2809/209)

[Flyboy]

The TARDIS rescued him.

That or a wizard did it.

[dipsofjazz]

Sadly,I didn't enjoy this episode as much as last week.

I hated all the 'shippy' stuff. I felt they went overboard with it.
I felt that there was far too much sermonising from the Doctor, where he just stood around and talked.

I did enjoy the special effects, and enjoyed the chase from the Ood in the vents.

I loved the way that the crew started to work well together, each having their own job to help save everyone.

Satan was pulled off brilliantly and Toby holding his mind was even better (when he looked at the Ood with his red eyes, gave me the shivers

I loved that bit too, and you just knew that something bad was going to happen in the rocket.

I enjoyed the show, but after last weeks great episode I think I was expecting more. (although I'm not sure what I was expecting!)

[ShadowMaat]

It was a good ep, but a bit of a let-down after last week.

The Ood were a lame waste of time. I'm horribly disappointed. I was waiting for them to be something more interesting than puppets. *sigh*

Satan was a bit... cliche. I mean, who's to say that the Human vision of Satan is the "right" one? I dunno. I guess that's what makes him identifiable, but I was kinda hoping for something a bit... more. Also, if Satan is just an idea, then isn't he technically being carried away by the survivors? Maybe not the full-fledged version, but shouldn't there be little seedling ideas in everyone? Or was that the whole point of the Doctor not saying whether or not it was the real deal?

The bit about Rose is interesting. Is that a set-up for the possible future writing out of the character? A Rose doesn't last forever, after all.

Poor Toby. *sigh* So cute, and he died a virgin. What a waste.

Kudos to whoever called the Torchwood expedition thing.

As for next week... oy. Again with the Tyler Family Drama. *headdesk* I don't suppose they'd kill off Jackie so we could stop getting stuck with these damn stories, eh? It has some possibilities, but I am so SICK of Jackie. And Pete. Enough, already!

I'll second the wanting of proof that there's a God to counter the Devil. And the whole "God is about faith" stuff doesn't cut it- if there can be a physical representation of the Devil, there can be one of the Other Guy, too. And the Doctor as God so doesn't work for me.

Gotta say, I was a bit disappointed that it was the Doctor who rescued the ship because I was all for it being the proof of God. Ah well. Maybe in another ep. LOL!

[Easter Lily]

Unlike a lot of people here, I really liked this episode for its ability to combine both tension and emotion. The quiet scenes were so nicely done, evoking a sense of dread as well as sympathy.

I don't care for the Doctor and Rose getting up close and personal either... but I can always delude myself with the notion that the Doctor wasn't about to make a declaration of love. Who's to say that he wasn't just going to apologize... that he wasn't there to save her? Besides, it was just a small part of the episode and not enough to annoy me.

I thought there was some good acting from DT and Billie Piper... I liked it... A LOT!

[yaaayoubetcha]

I thought this was a good episode.

I also am wondering if rose will be killed of by the end of the season base on what satan said and who will be involve in the battle, I hope it not it not the same enemy as last season final.

rumours have indicated that

Spoiler:

she will leave part way thru S3. no indication if it'll be early on or mid or near the end.

[Willow'sCat]

I liked this episode not as much as last weeks but still it was fun and not too heavy handed on the Satan fantasy. There were more than enough cliche's to keep any true fan happy. Come on what is Doctor Who without cliche's?!

I agree too much shipping between The Doctor and Rose, I don't mind him being a caring Doctor but could you really see CE's Doctor doing the hug thing? It was straight out of a romantic novel or so my Mother tells me. I don't know. I am putting a lot of this down to DT being that kind of actor and the writers just playing to his strong points. And given Billie's time is limited in the future I don't think their relationship is really going anywhere, so does it matter?

No problem with the T.A.R.D.I.S just showing up, that is what she is for to help/save The Doctor and it isn't like they would abandon her so what other solution would you have? She is just there, bless her.

I did think the ending last 10-15 minutes was rushed this could have been a three parter but again what else would they do? It had to end like it did it just makes sense that way. And you know a pretty happy ending as endings go.

Next week looks um, interesting. Pity it is another Earth based episode, when will we really see an Alien planet?

Oh and I missed the Torchwood reference last week but it was loud and clear this week. Am I the only one getting sick of it? We know it is important just get on and make the show so we can see it already.

[Major Clanger]

i missed the Torchwood thing, when was it?

I loved his ep, and Gruesome #2 was gripping on to me and crying when they were trying to get away from the Ood in those tunnels.

[Willow'sCat]

i missed the Torchwood thing, when was it?

The Captain says's something about it (mining vessel) representing the Torchwood archive... I didn't write it down so not sure of the wording but it was very loud and clear.

[Naonak]

Great episode - very dramatic, excellent acting. The CGI for the Beast was amazing. The Doctor was very good.

Didn't like the Torchwood reference - way too obvious, they should be more cryptic and hidden like the Bad Wolf things.

[ShadowMaat]

Here's a question: other than sheer melodrama, what was the point of trying to kill off the human crew? He's SATAN, right? It's not like they could stop him and isn't he gonna need/want more worshippers? To say nothing of the fact that he probably needs the crew to pilot the ship so his "human vessel" can escape. I can see needing to convince the crew they have to leave, but... I dunno. The ep was still effective and all, but I can't help wondering what would have happened if the Captain had been killed.

As for the shippy stuff, yeah, it was obnoxious, but when the Doctor was all angsty about the "If you see Rose, tell her..." thing, it never even occurred to me he might have been trying to say "I love you." I was thinking more along the lines of, "It's been fun" or "You were fantastic!" (which could be interpretated shippily, I suppose) or something along those lines- more about the adventure than the relationship. The unspoken romance stuff is getting a little overbearing. I wish they'd drop it already. Guess that won't happen unless/until they get rid of Rose.

Oh yeah, and Toby was a bit of a waste, wasn't he? Rose starts ordering people around and it's, "Toby! Go... translate something!" And then we never get any result from that. He just sits there staring intently at some writing-covered bit but we never hear whether or not he translated anything. Might have been nice to get a bit of something- anything. A warning about the literal Hell to come, or some cryptic bit about how to stop Satan, with the specific details "mysteriously" missing and/or untranslatable.

[Commander Ivanova]

The shipping was disgusting. Absolutely awful.

Couldn't agree more.
I watched this ep in a room of 20 or so people post beers and BBQ. At the big reunion half of us were cheering and going 'awwww', the other half trying (and luckily just succeeding) to keep their sausages down.

[Wraith Scientist]

The Impossible Planet/The Satan Pit is IMO, one of the best Whos I've ever seen. It had everything from psychological creepyness, aliens, an alien planet, lost civilisations, a likable group of exploring humans with a good team dynamic and excellent reflections on human nature

Yeah, it was full of cliches and the Doctor's timely rescue was predictable because we know Rose has got to survive, but I was more worried about the other characters, who, as we saw with Jefferson and Scooti, the writers weren't above killing off. Ida was a great character. So was the Doctor, as I've said many times, I really like his optimistic reflections on humans.

It would be great to meet that human exploration team again. I think they just work, do you know that I mean?

There was also an interesting theme of mystery. The Beast left many questions unanswered ...

The music in this one was also brilliant

One of the only things I disliked was the fact that it wasn't longer. There was enough there for more development: the characters were so well developed and the concept was so interesting. This would have done for the arc of an entire season with its mix of mystery beyond even the Doctor and the impossibly ancient, powerful civilisation that imprisoned the Beast, the evil from before time itself.

Army of Ghosts/Doomsday?

Spoiler:

That's supposed to be a war between the Cybermen and the Daleks though, but you never know if the beast would be a part of that ...

I wonder if this isn't going to get revisited at some point. It certainly deserves it.

[Flyboy]

Just because there's some significance behind the representation of the devil doesnt mean there's a God. If you can get away from the religious aspect and focus more on an actual creature of pure concentrated evil being the inspiration for Satan, there's nothing saying God must exist. Or, God could be supernatural, whilst Satan is merely extraterrestrial and not preternatural at all.

Im a little annoyed with the way the Doctor is now CONSTANTLY saying how much he loves humans. Its getting VERY repetitive.

Overall, great ep on the effects and action side, terrible in terms of plot depth. They just stuck the devil in and didnt explain a thing. That bothers me.

[Wraith Scientist]

Overall, great ep on the effects and action side, terrible in terms of plot depth. They just stuck the devil in and didnt explain a thing. That bothers me.

The Beast was an evil from before time (kinda like Fenric, I think), an ancient race defeated him and imprisoned him on the edge of a black hole with a power holding him in orbit. If he left, he would remove the power and he would be sucked in and would die. Nothing escapes a black hole.

Maybe there was a rule or something saying that the Beast could only be killed by himself, and so they imprisoned him in such a way that escape would be his death.

I have to admit, there was a lot left open. There was tons of detail (like the manner in which the Beast was imprisoned and why, and by whom) that could have done with expanding.

[Prior_of_the_Ori]

The mystery is left there because sometimes a mystery is better then knowing the truth, as the Doctor said in the end when Rose was asking him about the creature and he said that if he knew everything then there would be no point exploring. But who knows...maybe we might see the 'Disciples of Light' who the Beast mentioned were its captors.

I quite enjoyed this episode..parts were predictable but still enjoyable and loved all the 'Speech of the Beast' like when he says 'You will die and I will live' and was amazed that the Beast itself was well...huge! Didnt expect that...kind of expected some human shaped and sized thing but it turned out better. Two things that were kind of creepy were the whole Toby going 'shhh' and the Beasts physical body laughing at the Doctor.

Also isnt it said that the guy who did the voice of the Beast was the same person who did the voice of Sutekh in the earlier Doctor Who? Sutekh being a creature that may have been the Devil as well. Sutekh being an alien who came from an incredibly powerful species who even the Time Lords feared.