Inkwell: Authors and Artists

    
Accessible, thanks.  There have been 'making of' extras available
when I've paid for seasons on Apple or Amazon....but Disney rolls
differently.  
  

    
You’re welcome! It is a curious omission on Disney+ given all the
fanfare! Are there commentary tracks? 
  

    
I think 'Unleashed' is a BBC production separate from their Disney
deal, although I think some bits have been distributed on the Doctor
Who channels on YouTube? Jon posted some links a few days ago IIRC.

We're lucky in the UK, they're broadcast on BBC3 free-to-air
immediately after the premiere broadcast of the episode itself and
on iPlayer later.
  

    
SO this is the final 'formal' day of this topic in the Inkwell,
although in truth John and I will still be here talking about new
episodes and fielding any questions people might have about any
aspect of Who.

I'd hoped to use today to dig into the most recent episode "Boom"
but work matters meant I still haven't been able to watch it
properly so my input on that will have to wait until later in the
week, although by all means go on without me. 

But it seemed a shame to let the conversation peter out on a damp
squib so I thought I'd take inspiration from a tradition in British
schools in which on the last day of the academic year before the
summer recess, children get to bring in board games and have some
fun.

So our version of that is a free-fire shout-out. What are your
reactions if I ask you for:

* The Doctor Who story/episode you're happy to watch again and
again?

* The DOctor Who story you NEVER want to see again?

No explanations necessary. No thought required! Whatever comes to
mind.
  

    
I mean, you could go for classics. Or maybe you'll pick something
surprising and unexpected?

For the story I'm happy to watch again and again, I'm going to go
for a 2006 two-parter called "The Impossible Planet"/"The Satan
Pit". It's a simple straightforward sci-fi adventure with a tinge of
horror, no pretensions to anything greater, and I can rewatch it
endlessly.

As for the one I never want to see again: "Legends of the Sea
Devils". I hated it on multiple levels, especially as a big fan of
the 1973 original.

So what other titles are people going to throw into the mix?
  

    
How time flies! It's been a privilege to be a part of this. 

In terms of a story I can watch over and over:

The Girl in the Fireplace

A story I'll never watch again:

Aliens of London
  

    
Inkwell thanks Andrew and John for the lively and QUITE informative
conversation about Dr. Who and the Whovian universe. And thanks to
all other participants. 

As Andrew said, this is the last day formally scheduled for the
conversation, which usually means the last day of a guest's
commitment. But we never freeze a discussion at the end - it's
always open for more conversation, and since they're both members of
the WELL, I'm sure they'll have more to add. Onward, through the
fog!
  

    
As Oat Willie sez
  

    
There will be an episode of Doctor Who set in the far, far future that 
features the moment when the final Inkwell topic finally flickers out of 
existence. And it will be this one.

Wait: quite interesting? QUITE? I demand redress and satisfaction, sir!
  

    
I need to preface this list with a brief explanation: I have already
watched 2005+ Doctor Who multiple times.  but I only re-watched it
up to whatever was the current series. So this list is heavily
biased towards the earlier seasons because those are the episodes
that I have seen the most, enough for some of them to become quite
familiar in a good way. I have not yet re-watched any of the Jodie
Whitaker seasons and some of the Peter Capaldi as well.  So these
are the ones that I seek out to rewatch, not necessarily "the best",
but the ones that have a combination of elements that adds up to a
positive feeling when I'm done with the episode.  so some episodes
that I have really loved, and that I feel we're very powerful in the
overall context of the series or as standalone episodes, are not
necessarily on this list when there was a bit too much darkness to
them to rewatch at a moment when I just want entertainment.

Vincent and the Doctor
Rose
A Christmas Carol
Girl in the Fireplace
The Eleventh Hour
Closing Time
The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe
Partners in Crime
Flatline

And I don't think I have any that I would put down as never watch
again.  Although there are certainly some that I would only rewatch
when I'm going through in sequence.

I probably will remove the Inkwell conference from my list
(something you can do on the WELL So that you focus on the
conversations that are most of interest to you at a particular time)
after a bit And stop participating in this conversation, but I will
not easily forget it.  In fact, I will bookmark the topic For future
reference (another thing easily done on the WELL To help you keep
track of particularly important bits Of conversation):  i'm sure
there will come a point in the future when I want to search back
through previous conversations (again, a wonderful and valuable
feature of conversations on the WELL) about
Doctor Who as I try to remember where I learned a particularly
valuable nugget or when I want to remember how I described an aspect
of my appreciation for it when I want to share it with someone
else.... Conversations here live on in a very functional way as part
of my auxiliary memory--I call that a feature, not a bug, since I do
not have a Time Lord brain to remember millions of languages,
thousands of years of experiences, and the histories of millions of
worlds. 
  

    
That's a wonderful summation of what makes The WELL so special in terms of
being a place for long-form posts and wide-ranging discussions that you just
can't get anywhere else on social media, plus the longevity of it. I've just
started reading a science fiction book called Revelation Space by Alistair
Reynolds and idly wondered if anyone had posted about it in the past, and
in five minutes uncovered a whole Well Book Club topic from 2002 that had so
much quality content it's slightly unreal.

So yes, while it might look like some of this Dr Who topic has seen a weird
mix of puns, quips, tidbits, anecdotes and really long analysis feature
pieces - that's pretty much the WELL for you in a nutshell. Thank goodness
it gives us some of the tools that (debunix) describes or else we'd be
forever searching for things we know are there and value so much unless we
get that AI PremimumMemorySearch module upgrade.
  

    
And even if you don't swing by Inkwell so often I hope you won't be a
stranger to the <whovians.> conference which will continue for quite some
time to come. We need you there!

Talking of Who, I love your suggestions for shout-out episodes. Some real
classics there: Vincent and the Doctor, for sure, although I'm not sure I
could watch it too often - in part because it kind of rips the heart out of
you, and also because I wouldn't want to blunt it by too many repeated
viewings. Same with The Girl in the Fireplace actually, it's such a
beautiful and gorgeous romantic story that I hold it back to that it still
sparkles every time I take it out.

No Blink though? That's a surprise. Everyone puts Blink on these sort of
lists. Or is it that once you see the 'trick' it doesn't have the same
impact watching it a second, third, fourth time?
  

    
I thought long and hard about Blink, and about a number of other
really terrific episodes.  But to avoid listing too too many, to
narrow it down, I decided to focus on episodes that I watch when I
am in need of a little bit of positive distraction.  and Blink is
just a little bit too intense at moments to fit that particular
need.  I have re-watched it probably almost almost as many times as
the others on this list and it does well with every rewatch--that
intensity is still there every time.  It is definitely one that I
would consider as an introduction to the doctor for people who are
not already fans, although it's a little bit tricky as a first time
because it doesn't really feature the doctor and his companion to
the same degree as other episodes and it might give a new viewer a
little bit of the wrong idea.
  

    
> a little bit of positive distraction

I totally get that. Blink (and so many of Moffat's stories) require
your full, dedicated attention and is not a light distraction. I'm
certainly glad that it hasn't dimmed for you in any way.

In many ways that's why I went for The Impossible Planet, because
it's just st a good adventure story, nothing deeper to it. The Girl
in the Fireplace is complex both emotionally and in a twisted
timely-wimey way, while Vincent is so emotionally intense I couldn't
imagine having that on without getting totally involved and
devastated by it.

The Snowman (Clara's introduction) is up there with A Christmas
Carol in terms of festive specials with a lovely warm feeling for
me.
  

    
Thanks to all .. as a wrap-up can you post links to the new series? 

Might be worth signing up for a month? (Probably a free trial!?)
  

    
A good nudge, but that's a tricky one for me to answer TBH! From the
UK you can access all the new episodes from 1963 to the very latest,
plus all the spin-offs, from this URL:

<https://www.bbc.co.uk/iplayer/group/m001rzf7>

Anywhere else you'll need to sign up at Disney+:

<http://disneyplus.com/>

But I can't use that from the UK (and Doctor Who isn't on it when
viewed from here) so someone else will have to step in and help out
with that one if they can?
  

    
For any US-based members, classic Doctor Who streams on Tubi!

A primer I wrote:

<https://www.generationstarwars.com/2023/11/classic-doctor-who-streaming-free-o
n-tubi.html>

Tubi:

<https://tubitv.com/>
  

    
We move into this topic's retirement home, waving at our new
neighbour Forrest Mims who is just unpacking and getting ready to
talk about his book "Maverick Scientist", but that doesn't stop us
marching on with Who talk as well now that I've finally (re)watched
the latest episode Boom written by former showrunner Steven Moffat.

There's more detail in <whovians.> where we can include spoiler
talk, but in summary:

It's hard to go wrong with a 'ticking time bomb plot' but it takes
real genius to expand what's usually a tense five minute sequence in
a full length drama, all the way to the entirety of a whole 45
minute episode. Moffat not only does it, he makes it look like the
easiest, most natural thing in the world. 

Nailing an actor as intensely kinetic as Ncuti Gata to one spot for
the whole running time both brave and perverse, but it actually
allows him to show off even greater aspects of his range. His
expression and naked emotion (and terror) shown in extreme close-up
are quite brilliant. I don't think we've ever seen as Doctor as
scared as this before. I was gripped for sure. But he's still able
to get in a quip or too: "I"m a lot more explosive than I look. And
honey, I KNOW how I look!"

Moffat gets in quite a few shots about weapons manufacturers and
modern capitalism, and also takes aim at religion as well although
there's a softening on this point toward the end which felt tonally
inconsistent. Did Moffat bottle it in pursuit of a happy ending
(he's been known to in the past) or was this Russell T Davies
wanting to maintain a lighter, more upbeat tone? There's quite a few
RTD series continuity elements in this story, more than usual for
Moffat guest scripts which are usually resolutely 'standalone'.

But none of this detracts from an outstanding episode. Best of the
season so far, I'm sure, although each week builds on the one before
so it's not in isolation. And there was another Twist this week,
although not at the end this time but firmly in the thick of the
action. Thoughts and Prayers!
  

    
Thoughts and Prayers! 
  

    
So we've just had the latest episode of Who broadcast on BBC One
having already streamed on Disney+ and BBC iPlayer.

No spoilers here but I highly recommend it. Not just to fans of Who
but anyone who likes quality drama with a folk horror inflection
like "It Follows". Unmissable, as far as I'm concerned.

And now we return you to your regular Inkwell programming (until we
break in again!)
  

    
I’m going to say it’s one of the best-ever episodes of Doctor Who!
As you were. 
  

    
And a great opportunity for Millie Gibson to carry an entire episode!
  

    
And she handles it flawlessly.

Amazingly this was her first episode filmed. She came direct from
finishing her stint on the soap ensemble Coronation Street to be the
main player in what is effectively a short feature film based
entirely around her.

(Although Ncuti had been cast, he was still filming the final
episodes of Sex Education at the time which is why he's not really
in this episode.)
  

    
That's especially impressive with it being her first episode.  
  

    
Season one is midway through, and 73 Yards showcased Millie Gibson's
acting ability in one of the best-ever episodes in the long-running
BBC sci-fi series history.