Doctor Who Season Four

[rhu]

We've made it to the end of season four. A few thoughts:

"Silence in the Library" reminded me of more other stories than anything I've ever seen or read. We Can Remember it for You Wholesale; A Mind Forever Voyaging; that ST:TNG episode with Scotty; The Matrix; Raiders of the Lost Ark; and many many others, sometimes just for one fleeting detail ---- and yet it didn't exactly feel derivative.

The finale was disappointing from a plot perspective, although it was touching to see Season Two finally get its happy ending. There was too much spoken exposition, followed by manic technoaction (the action version of technobabble, that is). It was exciting to have an episode with essentially five Companion credits at the beginning, yet they didn't really use any of them particularly well. They threw in everything but the Tardis sink, but it was just noise.

And, frankly, I really liked Doctor Donna and it's a shame they couldn't have given her a few episodes to explore that.

I like the tradition of having one author episode per season. Shakespeare was fun, Dickens was fun, Christie was fun. I can't remember whether there was one in Season Two. But I was thinking it would be really cool for them to do one for Beowulf. One wonders what the Doctor would do with Grendel's mother.

At the start of the season, I found the new theme music arrangement annoying; thirteen eps later, I found myself really digging it.

Comments

[mabfan.livejournal.com]

The new theme music digs you too.

I would like to know how "Silence in the Library" connected in your mind to each of the other stories you mentioned.

[530nm330hz.livejournal.com]

I don't remember all of them offhand (and don't have time to rewatch it mow) but of the ones I mentioned above:

"We Can Remember It for You Wholesale" -- when Donna realizes that her years of life in the computer have taken mere seconds in external time.

"A Mind Forever Voyaging" -- the child growing up in a virtual reality, unaware of her real existence as a computer program.

The ST:TNG episode -- the idea of saving people's lives by storing their patterns in the transporter for later extraction when circumstances are safer.

The Matrix -- the psychologist explaining to the girl that what she sees isn't the true reality. (No doubt the parallel was emphasized by, I am ashamed to admit, the skin color of both the psychologist and Morpheus.)

Raiders of the Lost Ark -- the archaeologist-led team running through the stacks

[tahnan.livejournal.com]

I loved, really loved, the Agatha Christie episode. About a minute before she arrived, I said, "Good Lord, this is so frickin' Agatha Christie." They really nailed it.

[introverte.livejournal.com]

I was rolling on the floor with all the throwaway Christie titles flying fast and furious.

[arib.livejournal.com]

As much as I enjoyed the season four finale, I liked season three's a lot more.