WHOCHURCH: The Chris Chibnall era

The very final scene (shot even) - and ignoring the mid-credits stuff (for which around the stripped down version of the theme was also a nice touch) - really was the best bit here, much as it was with Chibnall's first episode as gaffer (Doc and her newfound crew floating in space). He's alright at these (I realise this ep was a co-write so credit to Maxine Alderton also). Ten years since their last proper story but for all the obvious flaws (cool cool you can transcend media but have you ever thought about just not being made of stone and moving while observed) the Angels do make a badass iconic monstah. What's next week? oh, a fucking Ood again.

It is extremely odd/disorienting to be watching a season of Chibnall Who and to be genuinely enjoying it without being massively overgenerous in ignoring its flaws

ok ok i'm sold

Oh dear oh dear oh dear. Maybe the worst single show he's ever written.

Kevin McInally, on the other hand, is the best actor on it in years. I wish we could keep him.

The doctor is the most important person in the universe. Earth is the most important planet in the universe. Dot probably made UNIT to destroy the universe. The Doctor's mom, Tekwaroon, wants to destroy the universe. Historical figure of the week did it all to save everyone in the universe. The villain is the most powerful being in or outside of the universe.

I laughed when Yaz created a message visible in space with two buckets of white paint. And it's on both sides of the great wall of china because of the canard that it's visible from space, meaning anything beside the wall will also be visible.

The timelords said nobody is allowed to change history but The Division did anyway so The Doctor is cross with them, and the timelords said nobody is allowed to change history but The Doctor did anyway so The Division is cross with her?

Was it previously set up that every time period got changed on a Halloween? That seems like something important but also something that Chibnall didn't fully think through.

It's time for Chibnall to make a formal apology to Pip and Jane Baker

Absolutely typical to introduce two characters in a story, one with an interesting background and and played by a decent actor (Jericho), and one whose entire character consists of the word 'Scouse', and go with the second one as the companion.

well he won't be around for long, thank god.
Already annoying.
Do wonder what the next iteration of the Doctor is going to be like.
& would have preferred o have Jodie Whittaker used properly.

Nobody intentionally introduced shaky scenery as a return to the roots yet?

As with the previous episodes, I enjoyed it more whenever The Doctor was offscreen - It looked like it was setting up a younger-viewer-friendly spinoff with Yas, Dan and Jericho for most of the episode, and I'd have been fine with that.

I was very 0_o about The Doctor warning Yas (Yas!) about the serious danger of incoming murderous refugees.

doctor who fucks

the whole family sat down to watch the first two episodes of this season and they were very loud. sort of an unusual mix of chaotically confusing and simple-minded

It’s bad but it’s still fun so I’m happy this season

I mean, it’s abysmal in many ways, but this is the most fun the show’s been since the Bill season, so I’m basically happy

Oops double messaged

I feel that way about Hartnell too.

Another “evil monologuing genius who can’t run away from an obvious threat” moment

This episode was more like the Chibnall I’ve come to expect

it really did remind me of the last bit of Trial of a Timelord - the cod-Victorian stuff, the sense of making it up on the fly - but also that very particular flavour of "oh I really don't think they should be doing this with the mythology"

like all that shit with the Doctor's mother? WTF? lamentable.

i think of flux is trying to be ghost light but ending up as the eastenders crossover

haha that's even better (or worse)

I was very 0_o about The Doctor warning Yas (Yas!) about the serious danger of incoming murderous refugees.

I usually think his demonstrated incompetence in all other areas of writing mean that the various pro-fash themes and statements in Whochurch are probably completely accidental. Returning to this one so soon suggests it might be his actual thinking.

i just remembered what that one scene in the angels episode reminded me of

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F6X9KcrXHwg

Such a classic WTF ending, totally spooked me as a kid

So now Sony own Doctor Who. Good work everybody.

(RTD2 made his return contingent on Bad Wolf taking production rights as of September. Bad Wolf today announce 51% sale to Sony )

i know what you mean but obviously the BBC still owns dr who

A commercial entity has had “production rights” to Dr Who during the Chibnall era. The commercial entity run by the RTD1 producers will have “production rights” during the RTD2 era, because they will be producing it.

Not going to get dragged into dick waving over this.

i’m paying for some guys to fix my roof. it doesn’t mean they own my roof. even if they are currently attacking it with a sander.

Since when have the Sontarans looked so shit. I mean like literally.

Just seems a really bad look.

Always? https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/File:Sontaran.jpg

Fecal no longer oval.

Well that episode obviously wasn't finished. Lots of shots of the doctor that cut to other shots of the doctor; obvious cuts in the middle of lines (dan: "time" cut "rather than space"); pointless scenes that feature sontarans or lupari because their mouth movements don't have to match the words. Not that finishing it would have made the ideas any better.

the mad mole's plan to avoid the flux (which is currently everywhere in the universe except for earth, except when it's not, such as when bel was at that prison planet) was to dig a big hole and put everyone in it.

the doctor said "divide and conquer" aaharahrarghgh

Brilliant Chibnall move, taking it to a whole new level of half-arsedness, to have a 6-part story explicitly about everything in the universe except the Earth being destroyed, and then literally forgetting at the end that this is what happened.

Fucking tiresome.

Really not enjoying his approach of 'What if DOCTOR WHO, but utterly crap?" approach.

Is redesigning one of the enemies so they look like turd monsters symbolic for him. Synecdochal like.

Also does the end count as the doc committing genocide. Which i thought was an absolute nono

she did two genocides (for the price of one) in the previous story

this is such shit

ok I've watched it now and she squeezed four in this time, good work.

also chose to have most of the human population of the human-colonised universe die two stories ago rather than spoil one goth poet's weekend

What was the time thing re regenerations. I think Chibnall can't have more lasting legacy can he. Hoping that Davies turns things back to worthwhile. Or somebody does.

maybe that should be Time since it was the embodiment of time saying it

I would really, really like for the 6th Doctor to meet this incarnation so he can be completely aghast

"I accidentally knocked someone into an acid pit, you go out of your way to murder entire species multiple times! You're a monster!"

Does just seem odd that Chibnall is trying to set things up now doesn't it? Is the New Year's special the last episode by him?
THough I guess there are other media that can be inserted in the timeline. Or does that work like that?
JUst not engaged with either books or audio outside of the main show in ages.
& has there been a lot more near continuous action recently?

The BBC’s charter forbids material essential to the plot from taking place in for-profit third-party projects. Chibnall has three specials left in 2022: New Years, spring and October or November.

The general care and attention taken is exemplified by the scenes showing an Earth, completely surrounded by a spere of interlocking spaceships admitting not a single tiny gap, that somehow still has the sun shining on it.
https://i.ibb.co/SRD32c3/Untitled.png

*sphere

she did two genocides (for the price of one) in the previous story

Just realized this is also two stories in a row where the resolution is “trick a dalek invasion fleet into flying into a living being that is bigger on the inside, in order to genocide them.” except this time they immediately showed you that the next story would also have daleks invading in it, again