such_heights | Remix & Doctor Who 4x04: The Sontaran Stragetem

Current Mood: thoughtful

Entry tags:

Remix & Doctor Who 4x04: The Sontaran Stragetem

So, Remix reveals today! I remixed

rian219 to produce The Tyranny of Petty Things (The Unconquered Skies Remix) [HP; Remus/Sirius; PG-13], which I shall repost here and talk about sometime next week. It was spotted alarmingly quickly by

avendya, possibly because she has spies in my brain - Ave, let me know what you'd like as your smartypants prize and I'll get on it.

For tonight, though, Doctor Who!

HI MARTHA HI I MISSED YOUUUU! I feel the need to admit at this juncture that evil!Martha is kind of hot. Seriously. Also, she had gorgeous hair this whole episode. People, how is she so awesome? I want charts and diagrams and statistics and picspams, plz. ♥

Similarly - DONNA FREAKING NOBLE. YOU ROCK MY WORLD. Getting the Colonel to salute! Winding the Doctor up! Being fantastic with Martha! My love knows no bounds. Donna has a lot more knowledge about the Doctor and his history than Rose or Martha ever did, and thus her decision to go with him is a lot more level-headed in some ways. She doesn't go with him because she wants to be a hero, she just wants to see more of the universe, and that's going to involve her being a lot more badass along the way but that never means she takes leave of the common sense she's so grounded in. This is, after all, the woman who stepped out onto an alien world for the first time in her life, shivered a bit and went back inside to get a coat because she is prepared for these things and did I mention I love her?

What I'm enjoying about Series Four is the way it's a meta-arc about What It Is to be a companion. In Series 1, a lot of the focus was on Rose, I think, and on learning about just how the hell this Doctor man was, for new viewers. Series 2, it was the Doctor&Rose as a unit that was gradually being set up to take a massive fall, so in Series 3 the focus really shifted to the Doctor by himself, with the storylines they used reflecting that - the whole 'just one trip' arc plus episodes like 'Human Nature' and bringing the Master back, with nothing that was as Martha-focused the way that plotlines like 'Father's Day' and the discovery of Pete's World were for Rose. There's a lot I could say about that, actually, but my point is that now we're really starting to question just what a good idea it is to go travelling with the Doctor in the first place. Rose is 'lost', he 'destroyed half of Martha's life', and Martha is clearly concerned for Donna when she meets her. Add that to the weird prophecies that are flying around the place, and Donna's going to be more than a little freaked. I don't think this is the last time she's going to mention the idea of going home.

Also, I'm beginning to wonder if we're going to see more parallels than I'd previously thought between Rose and Martha, when Rose comes back. Because Martha's been hardened and changed and a little broken by her experiences and I suspect that maybe Rose will be the same, even though the nature of those experiences is quite different. Hmm.

Anyway! Back to this week before I start going into full-on companion essay territory.

I really, really love the Sontarans. I think maybe it's a hangover from my Star Trek days but there's just something about the honourable warrior race that I rather enjoy - that's it, I think, the fact that their motivations and limits are clearly laid out and their actions make sense within their own code of ethics, which is terribly helpful from a plotting perspective.

The supporting characters in this were in general made of win - loved everyone from UNIT, Ross especially was fab, and in general I liked the organisation much more than the Doctor seemed willing to allow. On that note, I think he's starting to take his anti-gun thing a leetle far, I mean really. As long as you blow things up more imaginatively because you happen to be a super genius then that is apparently fine. Especially, I think, coming from Torchwood, who are much less together than UNIT, seeing the Doctor being so scornful is sort of weird. I'd like people like that around to counter against alien threats, please!

Annoying child genius boy is annoying. I hope he either goes psychotic or heroic next episode, because currently he's the least developed guest character.

WILF IS AMAZING. And noooo, he is in peril! Eeep! Tying up the loose ends from the Christmas specials with him and Donna's mother (does she have a name yet?) was great fun.

Basically, I really enjoyed this, and is it Saturday yet? :D

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

a) Awesome only thought it was awesome because it had yet to meet Martha Jones! And, yes, her hair was gorgeous. And, yes, evil Martha was very hot.

b) Donna Noble is totally made of win! She's rocking my world so very hard - the salute was all kinds of brilliant, and I loved the Doctor being all emotional and woh is me! before realising that she was only leaving for a visit. Hee! Bless him being a dumbo!

c) Toughened!Rose is most definitely going to be the case, me thinks.

d) Ross is gorgeous. Seriously.

e) When do we get to see Tom Milligan again?!?! I ♥ him and him and Martha and just the general Milligan-Jonesness of it all!

f) Wilf really is amazing.

g) I WANT SATURDAY!!!!

(also, was it just me, or did you really want Torchwood - what's left of it - to show up and help? Because, hello, the earth's under attack! Of course, they are more worried about Cardiff...)

Edited 2008-04-26 21:42 (UTC)

a) YES. Gosh, what is it with these Joneses and their fabulousness?

b) Also, her calling him things like 'sunshine' and 'dumbo' makes me ridiculously happy. He needs someone to ~~stop~~ take the mickey out of him!

Wordy McWord... oh, and yeah, I lol'd at Tom being conveniently 'in Africa', or in other words the actor wasn't available and/or they couldn't be bothered to write him in, haha. I really hope he shows up sometime!

Yeah, this is the thing with Who now, a lot of the time we're going to be going 'yeah, ok, where the HELL is Jack right about now?' I guess that as it's worldwide there's no real reason for Team Cardiff to hop over to London per se, but yup, I am seeing them running about on the Plass and maybe having the only vehicle in the city that's not ATMOS'd? I'm not sure Ianto would have been terribly happy about installing that.

Oh my gosh, I can just see Torchwood 3 being informed that they need to install ATMOS and Ianto scoffing/rolling his eyes in that way of his and saying something really snarky, and Jack smirking, and basically them rebelling against everything government related because THEY ARE TORCHWOOD, BITCHES! Hee!

Man, that image is amusing me right now...

EXACTLY! All together now: they're separate from the government, beyond the police, outside the United Nations, they don't need no stinkin' ATMOS!

I just spent the last half of the episode going "mmm Ross/Doctor"? YES PLZ.

... And Tennant was clearly into it.

Sorry. My comment is crack.

Oh, so that wasn't just me? Fantastic! Because yes, that would be awesome.

Heh. I think there might be a few of us. You know it'd be all:

DOCTOR: You're very pretty, you know. A bit stupid, but pretty.
ROSS: I like your screwdriver.

Yes, yes it would.

Someone needs to go write that now. :D

The Doctor, taking the new generation of pretty UNIT boys under his gentle tutelage...

AAAAHHH. I DON'T HAVE TIME TO WRITE THIS, DAMMIT. *fends the plot bunnies off with holy hand grenades*

*sporfles* "gentle tutelage" indeed. And then he's all, you know, oh we can't be having you using guns all the time, why don't you just step into my TARDIS and we'll find you something else to do with your hands... OH GOD. I am a bad, bad person.

I so loved this episode. I loved the Doctor, I loved Donna, I loved Martha, I loved Wilf, I loved the Sontarans (are we both thinking klingons?), I loved UNIT (especially Ross - I fear he shall be another example of me being disappointed that someone isn't invited along as a companion - I commit too quickly)... so much love.

I especially loved both the Donna/Martha, Doctor/Martha and Doctor/Donna conversations - they got freakishly close to what I wanted to see happening. Especially the feeling that the Doctor has learnt from his mistakes with both Rose and Martha and is being so much more open and honest and grateful.

Oh and the Doctor teaching Donna to fly the Tardis - so perfect.

And the plot was so clever (I hope it continues) with the Atmos... simple and clever at the same time. And the Doctor winning with a tennis racket and ball - squee.

I love your descriptions of the seasons meta-arcs - I completely agree. The word that keeps coming back to me this season is 'partnership' - it's much more a relationship of equals than the rest of new-Who so far.

I love that this season we're seeing so much character development as well. Donna's developed, the Doctor's developed, Martha's developed (and not entirely positively which I love)... it fills me with hope for Rose - because the one thing I couldn't stand would be her having stayed stationery.

SQUEE!!!

P.S. I have finally plotted my quidditch fic and hopefully will get it written tonight. :D

Eeee! *flaps* Yup, I was totally with the Klingons - I just need one of them to express a liking for prune juice and I'll die of glee. And oh yes, Ross would make a wonderful companion - I'm a bit worried they might kill him off, actually, I'm sure somebody we've met this week is going to snuff it. :(

So much wonderful dialogue in this, absolutely. Now we just need some kind of resolution with Martha next week or so and I'll be quite content. The Doctor is definitely learning and doing right by Donna, but I think it's harder for him to make amends retroactively and he needs to far more directly than he's done so far. It's all very good recommending her for jobs and telling Donna how great she is but he needs to say as much to her, too. *crosses fingers*

Donna+TARDIS = win! Why have we never seen that before, it's such a great idea!

They absolutely are partners in crime and it's wonderful to see. Donna's reactions to him are just so refreshing and make for some really excellent dynamics with everyone they come into contact with.

And oooh Martha's development is so very juicy, I really hope fandom comes up trumps with the fic once this plot's concluded. Because she's changed so much and we've only seen bits and pieces as to why - and you're quite right, it's not all good and maybe even a little morally ambiguous? This fills me with joy. Rather like with Jack, they did something to her that changed her utterly and now she's back and different and it's all so interesting. I really hope she stays in the Whoverse for a long, long time, because they seem to be setting her up as someone with recurring staying power, and I'd love that.

... ah, yes. Quidditch. I would hate to say that I'd forgotten about that, because that makes me sound like a bad, bad team member, but, um. I will get back on that right away, in any case!

I've realised my lost-companions issue is clearly an issue with Helen Raynor personally - as I thought Frank last season would make a fantastic companion. This may just be because I'd love a young male companion who's not connected to Rose in some way (shallow moi? ;) )

Actually this episode has confirmed for me something that I thought of her episodes last season. Last season I thought the episodes were well written but ruined by some bad production ideas and some slightly disappointing casting. So far with neither of these problems I'm loving her stuff, although I'm waiting with baited breath for the conclusion as last time didn't make that much sense. But I'm super-excited to find out.

Yep - a resolution is needed and word on the retroactively thing. I think the Doctor had to mess up as much with Martha as he did, to learn how to make things right with Donna - it still kind of sucks for Martha though, although thankfully she was strong enough to get through that (and I'm not really complaining as I loved Martha's arc). I was saying to someone in a comment recently that I see the Doctor/Martha as one of those relationships that would have been perfect but they just met at the wrong time.

Actually do we know that the Doctor really did recommend Martha for UNIT now, he seemed a little surprised to find her now - although maybe that was just the scale of the operation now. It did strike me this could have been a set up by someone else...

I loved the Donna and Tardis thing so much, I've been waiting to see that - because it was always one of those issues sort of raised by Girl in the Fireplace - what happens to the companion if the Doctor's lost and has no idea how to use the Tardis. Also Donna would completely demand to be taught.

:D

Awww yeah, that's a good point, Frank was also great! And yeah, they need some boys in the TARDIS sometime soon, I think.

Ohh I really hope she's done something good for next week - this episode was nice set-up, so hopefully as long as there aren't any giant face penises or other such tomfoolery (I still have nightmares, I swear) then we're all good. I did love 'To The Last Man' so she's definitely back in my good books anyway.

Totally agree with you on bad timing - another interesting thing I've read recently is the idea that actually maybe Donna should have gone with him at the end of 'Runaway Bride' and might have been a better rebound companion, because she wouldn't have taken as much as nonsense and so on. Practically, of course, they had no idea they could get Catherine Tate for a whole series, but still. If that had happened then the Doctor and Martha team might have had a chance to be much more awesome.

Oooh, set up, I am intrigued. I'm not sure, because absolutely he did seem a bit nonplussed by the whole thing. And Martha never actually got it confirmed it was him, it was just "an impeccable source". Ooh, ooh, now my conspiracy theories are going wild, hurray!

Exactly! Donna would not get left around with no idea how to get herself out again, no siree. :D

I wonder if they haven't been able to have a solo male companion because male Doctor Who fans are fundamentally shallow and need something pretty to loom at. Thank god we're not like that. ;) ;)

I'd forgotten about To The Last Man - but yes great as well, she's a bit of a star on the quiet. But no, don't even get me started on the human Sek design - because, just for starters, if you're going to have a character that's meant to be hugely charasmatic you absolutely must not cover their eyes completely *head desk*.

I think it probably would have been better for both the Doctor and Martha if Donna had travelled with the Doctor first - but maybe not so much for the storytelling of the show. Although then they could have gone and picked up Ianto and formed Team Awesome!

Ahahaha, indeed. Well, they're writing Torchwood for the fangirls now, maybe it's only a matter of time? :D (Actually, I love the new phenomenon of shows written for their female fanbase - cf. Supernatural - rather than solely for the usual fanboy contingent.)

Ughhhh I have eviscerated the whole sorry mess from my memory, more or less. The one bum note in the whole of S3.

asda;lsdjkas Martha + Ianto + Doctor (+ Jack, yes?) = SO MUCH WIN I CANNOT PROCESS.

(I'm going to friend this ojournal as well, if you don't mind! I never knew you had a fandom journal, heh.)

The Martha and Donna encounter exceeded my expectations AHHH.

Annoying genius was very annoying indeed. I hope he dies after he's proved himself useful to the Sontarans, lmao ;(.

Btw, Donna's mother is called Sylvia. I think that's in the credits or it was mentioned before, I can't remember.

Oh sure thing! I am... not so great with the crossing over of links etc, apparently.

So good! Companions bitching about the Doctor is never not made of epic win. :D Paper cuts! Bwahaha.

Ohh yes, if he could die horribly that'd be neat. Err, I mean, I hope he sees the error of his ways and it all turns out all right in the end?

Of course that's it, thanks!

I AGREE WITH THIS ENTIRE POST.

Especially this, being a Trekkie myself: there's just something about the honourable warrior race that I rather enjoy. YES. I think it's because when you see their motivations and honor system laid bare like that, you understand them as more than just the vague baddies that normally crop up in sci-fi.

As to the Doctor's anti-gun stance...it is a bit hypocritical at times, but I think what he really doesn't like is the mentality that having a gun brings--you know, the whole "I HAVE A GUN THEREFORE I'M IN CHARGE," testosterone-y mindset. Maybe. One of many interpretations.

I definitely agree that we're seeing a whole new companion dynamic this season. I love it. I just wish she'd stop mentioning "going home." It's a little heartbreaking to see the Doctor react every time she says it. She needs to stop doing that to him. It makes me sad.

EVIL!MARTHA IS REALLY REALLY HOT. Like, really. *droolz*

YAY.

Definitely - they make sense! And also do adorable little haka things, which makes them even more awesome.

Oh, definitely, there's some of that - which is why he gets stroppy with Jack from time to time. But when the Colonel's done nothing but defer and generally be pretty decent to him and he's still all 'i has an allergy to your weaponery' it's a tad ridiculous.

I know! She takes care of him and needs to not make him sadface so. Still, I like the implication that she's thinking about things, I guess, even if she maybe shouldn't mention it so much.

UM YES. als;kdasj

I sort of have the feeling that the Doctor just doesn't like the Colonel and he's using the "i DO NOT WANT guns kthx" as an excuse to make him go away. He's probably just snippy 'cause the Colonel's not the Brig.

I do love that Donna's thoughtful and aware of things. She knows very well that it's not all fun and games, but she sticks around anyway. She's a good kid. :D

(Also: baddies with honor system = easier to exploit said honor code. How many times did Captain Sisko say "WAIT WAIT THAT'S NOT HONORABLE YOU CAN'T DO THAT" and Martok was all, "damn it, you're right"? MANY TIMES.)

Awww, yeah ok I'm totally taking that as the real reason. No one can beat the Brig, not ever.

Yes she is! And she does take care of the Doctor and I love that.

(Yes indeed! Many, many times! And much easier to come up with plausible explanations for why Our Heroes remain noticeably not dead!)

i am scrolling past the Who spoilers because i just got home and haven't had a chance to watch it. [BUT I WILL SAY EEE WE CAN HAS MARTHA NAO!]

BUT. omg that was your story??! dammit, how did i miss it? now that i read it over, i can't believe i didn't realize it was your pretty, pretty work. and i would like to kick myself for letting my allergy meds take over because i had about three stories open in tabs to reply to before the reveal and yours was one of them! at any rate, all this rambling means i loved it! that was a beautiful story, Amy! i'll fangirl it more when you repost, yes? yes. ♥

Ooh, enjoy! MARTHA MARTHA YAY.

And eee, thank you sweetie! I know, there was too much stuff to read in there, wasn't there?

i finally watched it and HI MARTHA HI. omg i'm worried about supercute Grandad, though. :\ another fantastic episode and DONNA JUST GETS MORE AWESOME, NO? <333

there WAS. i was trying to get as many comments in on the stories i read before the reveal but i fell alseep because i am lame like that. :3

THAT EPISODE WAS MADE OF PURE AWESOME! Evil Martha is, indeed, The Shiz and HOW ON EARTH DID WE EVER GET ON WITHOUT DONNA?! I love Donna. I really can NOT find the words to express just how much XD

*flails* Please, oh gods of television, do not let the general dude die and pleaaase please let Donna once again show the levels of awesome she has so far demonstrated. Also, please save her grand da. Amen.

I know it's common in the fandom for people to be like "I LIKE THIS COMPANION, ALL OTHERS SUCK" But while my heart really does lie with Rose, Martha is wicked cool and Donna is SASSY AND TOTALLY MY ROLE MODEL. CHRIST, I love this show. If they handle Rose's coming back with even half the awesome of Martha's, I will be satisfied. WOO, GO MARTHA. Life after the Doctor is great, isn't it?! With your saucy pediatrician and your awesome alien skills! She is fantastic.

This is, after all, the woman who stepped out onto an alien world for the first time in her life, shivered a bit and went back inside to get a coat because she is prepared for these things and did I mention I love her?

Word. Wordy Word Word McWord.

THERE CANNOT BE ENOUGH CAPSLOCK. :D :D

I think Donna may be the great unifier of fandom! I don't know anyone who hasn't fallen madly in love with her, and I think now we can all remember that hi, Martha and Rose are awesome too and oh if they keep this levels of companion epic win up I'm going to be thrilled to bits. *crosses fingers*

Flat | Top-Level Comments Only

Remix & Doctor Who 4x04: The Sontaran Stragetem

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

Re: In Which I Capslock Probably Too Much

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

no subject

In Which I Capslock Probably Too Much

Re: In Which I Capslock Probably Too Much