With Empire of Death and The Reality War now both being out, it’s difficult not to notice a seemingly maligned trend in RTD2 thus far; two well-loved classic villains in Sutekh and Omega have both shed their traditional depictions and became Big CGI Monsters (BCGIMs, for short).
And it got me thinking - is there a time and a place for updating a classic monster into a BCGIM? I’m aware that many amongst us are tired of the classic who nostalgia mining, sure, but let’s say as a thought experiment - if you had to choose any classic who monster design to update into a BCGIM, which one would you pick? Which ones would you never want to become a BCGIM as I’m aware many of us wanted Omega not to?
If the meddling monk returns as a big cgi monster I’ll quit the show I fear but if the absorbalof returns as a big cgi monster I’ll give the ep a 10/10
Not the biggest fan of CGI in general. Nothing wrong with it I just love silly looking practical effects. There are some I’d be fine with, like the Gods of Ragnarok or the Mara, but plenty I wouldnt like at all.
Okay, so let’s get through this Topic.
To answer the Question: Nah. I don’t like them, well, at least those that we got in RTD2.
As far as I am concerned, I would prefer if none of the Classic Who Monsters or Villains get updated into a Big CGI Monster. Not to say that it’s impossible. Like @sircarolyn suggested, the Mara could work as a CGI Monster (as long as they are still a Purple snake..). I don’t mind a Redesigns for Classic Creatures or Villains, I mean the Dalek one is iconic, and I really like the Chibnall Cybermen, even the newer Silurians aren’t too bad (I still prefer their OG Look, but fine I get it why they redesigned them and it does look good).
This may sound all very negative, but trust me, I have nothing against CGI (even if I prefer practical Effects more, they are always charming to me, unlike CGI), I think it can and has been used quite well in Who.
Maybe talking about Sutekh and Omega would be a good Way to elaborate on my Point: I don’t mind either designs honestly, I’d even go so far and call them both as good. The Problem arrives to me that those Designs are attached to Characters with such iconic simple designs to them that comes down to a Bloke (or Person) in a Mask and some Robes. If either of those Designs belonged to Original Villains, I think I would be more favourable to them, if that makes any Sense.
So to answer the Question: BCGIM for original Villains please!
Big CGI monsters? Sure. They can look cool when done well, and I think they do CGI pretty well. I don’t like classic and iconic things from the show’s past being turned into big CGI monsters that are unrecognizable as the original thing though, especially when that thing was just humanoid with a mask. I think Sutekh and Omega would have both been really cool if they just started from the original design and zhuzhed it up a bit as a modern take on the original. And that even can incorporate a little CGI mixed in with the practical to make some really interesting stuff, I’m not saying it has to all be just make-up, prosthetics, and other practical things. I maybe don’t like Arc of Infinity’s take on Omega, design wise, especially how they actually incorporated a Ω onto the mask that I think is rather on the nose, but it was still definitely Omega, a progression that still felt in the realm of that character. And I still like that better than what they just did in The Reality War
I don’t really have a problem with it conceptuallly, it’s fine to update old designs IF you can do something interesting with them in the story. I like the new design for Sutehk, though there really wasn’t a reason to make him look like Anubis. And HOW he’s used in the story means he doesn’t do a whole lot.
The idea of Omega becoming this lumbering mass that can barely fit through that tunnel can be interesting, but how he’s used in the story is not interesting and quite frankly the design is ugly.
My rule for storytelling is that MOST things can be made interesting if they are executed in an exciting way that fits the story and the characters. Neither of these things fit Omega and Sutehk, not did they really work within the stories being told or how they connected to the characters.
For example, if Omega had returned in a smaller form and had a bunch of screen time and got to interact with the characters and then maybe in the Wish World final moments evolved/revealed into his new “true form” as the Devourer of Time and Time Lords THAT could have been an interesting and potentially more well executed scenario. But that’s not what we got.
Some classic monsters would look better as CGI imo. The Destroyer from Battlefield, and the Mykra would probably look better.
But as a rule of thumb, i do think most monsters lose what makes them sinister and iconic. Imagine Fenric as a Big CGI monster - it would make him less creepy through his interactions and more scary through appearance. Which in my opnion would be worse.
I think thats where CGI monsters fail. Omega lost all personality for the sake of being a grand set piece that whilst visually good, wasn’t a chracter anymore.
Im sure Big CGI varrients could work on a character level with some effort, but currently I think it sacrifices monster’s iconic appearances and their characters.
I really think it depends on the monster, something like the Macra or you could even have a big CGI monster Dalek as a one-off, that works. However, if you have to drastically alter the design of the villain to where they’re barely recognisable, it doesn’t work for me.
That being said, even the best big CGI monster design can feel tired if you keep using them. I think the way the big CGI monsters are used at the moment is closely tied with another issue, which is the need to have a high stakes final.
I don’t think it’s right to say big CGI monsters don’t fit in Doctor Who, but in my opinion they shouldn’t be the default for finals. The main monster of a final can actually just be some dude in a suit.
I was so happy in Lucky Day when the monsters just looked kinda bad, like I could easily tell it was some person in a suit, and that is the perfect level of cheapness for Doctor Who. It looking cheap because in-universe it actually was just a guy in a suit sent me, hilarious.
I’ve posted a bit about this elsewhere but I don’t think it has worked doing effectively the same thing twice over - taking an iconic villain from the classic series and turning them into a giant, roaring CGI monster.
There are, however, options from the classic that could work. The Mara, as mentioned, is just a big snake (when it manifests) so a CGI monstrous version of that would work. The Nestene as depicted on the front of the Target novelisation (I was never hugely convinced by the one in Rose but as it was the first time they’d ever done it I can forgive it). A monstrous version of Axos in its blobby, gestalt form. The Fendahl could work too.
This is it, exactly. Context is everything! CGI allows the show to realise creatures that the classic show could never pull off (Chronos, the Time Monster, would be much improved as CGI). It also allows beautiful embellishment and enhancement to practical effects (The Meep, The Mantrap Slugs).
The Mara would be perfect. Practical effects for the big ol’ snake never got close to working. As a conceptual horror with a scale way beyond what could easily be practically achieved, CGI could be effective.
That said, for most of what we see in the Whoniverse, practical effects are almost always superior. Application of CGI to embellish said effects, whilst still relying on practical effects and costumes as the core of the representation - that’s pretty much pitch perfect for me.
BCGIM replacements for classic greats such as Sutekh or Omega… It’s a big ol’ “nope” from me.
