What did RTD write last year?
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Everything that wasnāt Boom and Rogue
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So not the ones I like?
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First RTD2 RTD W
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LMAO.Classic
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Only took him about 40 scripts then!? 
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This was a good episode,
4/5 for me
Belinda and 15 mesh well, Robots were fun.
One of the best of RTD2 so far.
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What does that mean?
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Iām not sure what it is, but I find a lot of episodes in this era are just sortaā¦ nothing? Like, the episode starts wrapping up and I go āis that it?ā, or I finish the episode and realise I wonāt need more than two or three sentences to explain the plot of it. I guess it might be a pacing issue, but I think itās moreso in the premise of the episodes.
That being said, I didnāt have a terrible time watching this. I already like Belinda, Iām glad theyāre letting her show off her medical skills, I hope they keep letting her do that (donāt do a Martha, please). I also like that sheās not star struck by the Doctor.
I did think the incel thing was a little heavy-handed, but not too much so. I liked the line āplant of the incelsā, my issue was more with the proposal scene. Just having him say āI know girls arenāt very good at mathsā at the beginning was enough for me to go āheās a prickā.
When the Doctor shed a single tear after Sasha died I did groan a little, though as the episode went on I felt it was more justified this time than most episodes he cried in. Itās just that we didnāt get to know her at all, we didnāt see the six months he spent with her, and it was incredibly obvious she was going to die, that I didnāt feel the episode had really earned the time it spent focusing on that death at first. I do like that it left on impact on the rest of the episode, though.
Obviously, I liked the polish robot. The Mrs. Flood cameo was fun, too. Overall, Iād rate this a 6/10, though my rating is likely to rise on rewatch.
Full review:
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Dullish is known to dislike RTD episodes xD
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Sack Russell T Davies
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Nothing like some good olā positivity on this lovely Saturday afternoon, right folks
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Just quoting Christopher Eccelston
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Did anyone here NOT get that robots couldnāt hear every 9th word? when the Doctor was telling the story.
Genuine question.
Because the IMMEDIATE recap as soon as heād finished his hidden sentence of what heād actually said to Belinda made me have to pause the episode in frustration.
Like I say, genuine question. Did anyone actually need that immediate recap? If so, then Iāll concede maybe it was needed but if not, then itās another indicator to the approach going forward, namely one that feels increasingly not for me. It was more necessary for the callback at the end with Alan but not that first instance, surely?
I also feel that the structure was utterly wrong at the beginning. I just feel the Doctor being the historian should have been the first time we saw him, for maximum impact. But they even give him away by showing him prominently in the line.
Mannyās attitude towards Belinda was childishly immature and not in a way which made Manny feel like a person, just an artificial glob of conflict.
The Alan twist was fairly guessable but that wouldnāt have been so bad if it also werenātā¦ Rubbish. But I really thought it was.
Belinda really was excellent though, her chemistry with the Doctor was wonderful and Ncuti and Varada are a lovely duo. Given how much I liked Millie as Ruby, the three of them together later on is a delightful prospect. I also approve of the slightly different nature of their friendship, it makes for a dynamic we donāt always see every time and that (I hope) will make for a really fresh feeling going forward.
The death of Sasha 55 didnāt hit like it should have at the time, not to mention her being utterly terrified and asking Belinda for help before being revealed to have trusted the Doctor all along to do just that, even having quite the confident swagger about itā¦. However, Belindaās citing of it at the end really really worked for me. Sheās going to be something special I think.
Great ābigger on the insideā reaction from Belinda too and even though the TARDIS not being able to get Belinda home was hammered home and laboured a bit much, the final shot promises an intriguing arc. But then, I wasnāt enamoured with how the last season concluded so while I did go, āOooooh,ā at the debris, it was tempered by the burn left by Legend and Empireā¦
Sorry, I wish I had more positive things to say and I get that this is an opener, frothy and light, but they can still be solid stories (loads have been) and I found this one lacking. Which is a huge shame because last yearās finale did such damage to my faith in the current regime and neither episode since has restored it so I was desperately hoping to get my WhoGroove back.
But itās not belligerence, promise. I want it back. So next week is a new episode and Iām really hoping with all my heart itās a good one.
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Feels a bit - damned if they do, damned if they donāt. It wouldāve been a nice reveal, I agree, since weād all be waiting to see how and where he pops up, but I guess they also just wanted to kick off with the Doctor in action because heās the main character and itās a first episode. We didnāt need the Doctor looking through the hospital (with him turning off life support machines, oops I guess), nor did we really need him shouting at a rocket, but hey.
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Im super interested in who that āHeā the 15th doctor mentioned is, my personal theory, maybe conrad ties into it all.
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While I really enjoyed this, I agree with so many of your criticisms! Namely, Sasha and when The Doctor should have first appeared
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What?
12 characters
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Thatās obviously why they didnāt, sure, but then more retooling was needed in my opinion.
As it was, it felt like the Doctor should have entered at a certain point but then already had several times.
If the feeling is that he needs to be in it earlier, then that can work. But this didnāt.
Church on Ruby Road did it much better with the policeman scene I think. This felt jumbled.
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Okay, Iāve watched it; Iāve been thinking about it, and Iām writing my review.
But some initial thoughts first.
Really great opener. Better than Space Babies, for sure. Iāve seen this sentiment from others online as well. I was beaming throughout this!
Belinda is a strong companion, and I think I already prefer her to Ruby. The way the Doctor sees her as a mystery, and sheās having none of it, is just perfect. It makes for an interesting dynamic between them. Also interesting is that the Doctor already knew Belinda from the start after being tipped off by someone - who?
I loved the production values - the sets are amazing and big. The robot design is great, and the music and visuals all worked. I loved Polish Robot - itās one of those cuties like BB-8 or Gadget from Waters of Mars.
Killing the cat was inexcusable.
Mrs. Flood! Here comes the mystery!
The supporting cast was a bit forgettable. Sasha, 55, was disposed of early on, and they didnāt do a lot with Manny.
The AI generator stuff was funny, but I groaned when RTD went for another āoh, itās the wrong anagramā type of thing with it not being AI but Al(an). The incel thing was well handled in my opinion. It made sense; it didnāt stick out too much.
Love the timey-wimey stuff (and the new phrase āschwupā) with time being out of sync and the every ninth word thing.
And the ending in the TARDIS. I love to see a bit more scenes inside the big set and Ncuti actually using the controls! And the last shot is very intriguing, of course.
Iām so very happy to watch the new Who and elated that it was with such a great episode! Bring on the rest!
Gotta go finish my review now 
8/10.
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