The Woman Who Fell to Earth (3701 / 1101)

[GateWorld]

DOCTOR WHO - SEASON 37 (11)
THE WOMAN WHO FELL
TO EARTH
EPISODE NUMBER - 3701 / 1101

Two separate alien incursions in a South Yorkshire city collide, and Ryan Sinclair, Yasmin Khan, and Graham O'Brien have their lives turned upside down when the newest regeneration of the Doctor -- unable to remember her own name -- falls from the night sky.

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[GodAtum]

Unfortunately a disappointing start ... I fell asleep half way through. Alex Kingston would all have made a better, more cooler, Doctor than Whittaker.

[P-90_177]

I wasn't exactly overwhelmed either. I do like the companions and Whitaker did a great job. But the writing and the direction just lacked that spark. Same with the music score. The new theme is great but the rest of the music just felt kinda incidental. It didn't have the flair Murray Gold used to have. Whittaker likely has the same issue as a lot of Doctors. She's still not quite defined yet. It happened with Capaldi and Tennant and many others from the show. It takes a while for them to discover who they are and where their own eccentricities come in. Matt Smith and Chris Eccleston were lucky in that they kinda got how they wanted to be straight away. But it's a tough ask for any actor to take a character that has lasted over 50 years and be that exact same character but still different at the same time.

[DigiFluid]

I liked how it was shot and directed, I thought it was really beautifully cinematic in its visual scope. All the actors in this were excellent too.

If it fell down anywhere, I think it was in the story itself — it took a long time to get from Plot Point A to B to C to D, and a bit more frustratingly, I found it difficult to invest in the safety of the victim (Carl IIRC). But I guess that’s forgivable, since this is effectively a pilot episode.

I’ll admit, I got a little sad when Jodie’s Doctor said the words “deep breath”...

And hey what was with the lack of an intro/title sequence? I hope that’s not a regular thing, as I quite liked the version of the theme that was played over the end credits.

[P-90_177]

I liked how it was shot and directed, I thought it was really beautifully cinematic in its visual scope. All the actors in this were excellent too.

If it fell down anywhere, I think it was in the story itself — it took a long time to get from Plot Point A to B to C to D, and a bit more frustratingly, I found it difficult to invest in the safety of the victim (Carl IIRC). But I guess that’s forgivable, since this is effectively a pilot episode.

I’ll admit, I got a little sad when Jodie’s Doctor said the words “deep breath”...

And hey what was with the lack of an intro/title sequence? I hope that’s not a regular thing, as I quite liked the version of the theme that was played over the end credits.

I don't think it is. I think it was just them trying to cram as much as they could in the time slot.

[tomstone]

i think this was pretty good for a first Episode, given that the first Episode is always difficult for a new Doctor. I really like Jodie and I had a good chuckle at some of her lines. Her explanation of regeneration however was a little depressing. It has been done before, but no Doctor before has driven the point home that it is pretty much like their previous incarnation dying.

I felt saddend that we had to have a death so early in the season and that from such a likeable character. I would imagine there could have been quite some fun Episodes with her.

Anyways, lets see where Jodie takes us.

[pscard]

I agree with many of you on how the first episode ran a little slow and the story was not as exciting as it could have been.

While Jodie Whitaker's comedic timing was spot-on, I think she needs to develop her interpretation of The Doctor and I'm confident that will happen over time.

One concern I've always had is when a major change is made to a character for the sake of ratings, to be PC, to shock the audience, etc. I've always felt Doctor Who needed to have a Time Lady with the same care and concern for others as well as a sense of adventure as The Doctor himself. While not necessarily as a companion, but as a fellow Gallifreyan who would join him from time to time. Despite that, I'll give it a chance and continue watching Doctor Who for as long as it airs.

BBCA advertised the 8-10 PM airing as a special, and seeing that it would run longer than the premiere at 1:45 PM, I assumed there was going to be additional scenes. Instead, we saw more interviews from the Ultimate Watch Party. They probably should have been more specific.

It would be a riot if, like the sonic screwdriver, she rebuilds the TARDIS in the shape of a cell phone. (jes kiddin' )

[cosmichobo]

Some stream of consciousness stuff whilst it’s fresh…

Loved the longer format, which I feel allowed for the story to be much better fleshed out (even with a lot of stuff going!), not to mention giving us a good bit of character building.

Loved that characters died, and there was no “Everybody lives” - even when it was Graham’s wife. Knowing ahead of time that she was not one of the new companions, I figured at first she’d just “not go with them”… then when she said “Is it wrong to be loving this” - her end was clear… and brilliant! For me, this has hopefully set up the new era as being one where there is some real threat again that’s sorely been lacking since the series was rebooted.

The Doctor: We’re all capable of the most incredible change. We can evolve whilst still staying true to who we are. We could honour who we’ve been, and choose who we want to be next.

Little tip - that line wasn’t meant for the alien…

New sonic… nice change from the TARDIS just popping one up.

New clothes… Fun scene, but without being a huge deal. Love that they were in a thrift store! :slight_smile:

Spoon... when she held the spoon up - couldn't help but think of Capaldi...

No intro theme music - That’s a first for Doctor Who, btw. The end music, when it finally arrived, certainly felt like a reasonable retake on Grainer’s score. The visuals looked vaguely howl-around.

I think the new music director has done a pretty good job overall - there were a few scenes where the music felt a little obtrusive but not so much that it got in the way. Other times it was really bang on great addition to build the atmosphere.

SFX - Are they using someone new? The episode had a vastly different feel to it compared to previous years, IMO.

The real question (for me) however is - did I accept Whitaker as the Doctor? It’s a question I’ve been sweating since the reveal, being an anal 40+ year old stick in the mud.

Let’s say - it was on the tip of my tongue; and I am excited to see what comes next.

[pscard]

While there was no opening theme, it is played for about 30 seconds as soon as she appears on the train at the 9-minute mark.

[Gollumpus]

I agree (at least in part) with all of the criticisms which have been made here of this episode. I didn't find it that gripping, but I suspect that things will look up once everyone associated with the show gets their feet under themselves.

For a moment or two, I thought that the writers were going to have the Doctor use that garage as a base of operations while she was trying to make contact with the TARDIS. Over an episode (or so) the Doctor would acquire bits and pieces while solving some problem. This would (at least for me) give us a chance to get a feel for the new characters. However, due to budget concerns etc, I suspect that the producers didn't have that kind of luxury.

regards,
D.

[cosmichobo]

My 11 y/o says - It was good.

[pjt]

I enjoyed it a lot. I was so excited to see Jodie as the Doctor, so when she fell into the train I watched how great she was, but it lasted about 20 seconds, and after that she was the Doctor and I watched the episode.

[gnoel809]

The fact that the latest Doctor is a woman is irrelevant. What matters to me is storytelling and her ability to act, which so far is promising.

Many complained when the new BSG came out that Starbuck was now a woman, yet Katee Sackhoff was amazing. In the new Lost in Space, Doctor Smith is now a woman, yet Parker Posey did a great job. Captain Marvel is going to be a woman in the next movie, we'll see how Brie Larson does, though if her past work is any indication, she'll do very well.

When a lot of these shows were originally on, there was no question that important roles would be men and women would be window-dressing. Mainly because it was men making those decisions. Now that things have (supposedly) changed, women are finally getting access to better and more prominent roles.

[cosmichobo]

What I "saw" was a new Doctor, doing a lot of "new Doctor" things - a bit manic, little bit of amnesia, working out who they are, change of clothes, walking off at the end with a reasonable degree of certainty.

All very Doctor Who.

All what I was hoping to see.

(And indeed - nothing I didn't like seeing.)

[I have, for the record, been against this gender change.]

I am trying not to judge on gender, or anything other than what I am seeing. I want to believe.

[cosmichobo]

Eating dinner tonight... without any prompting... aforementioned 11yo stated that he liked when the 13th Doctor [said something or other that was funny].

Have to say, a little to my surprise, he seems to have made the transition incredibly easily!

My 5yo on the other hand... (who, one has to admit is going through an incredibly whingey stage) "Why does the Doctor have to be a girl now!?"