Doctor Who v. Patrick Troughton

[Mister Gold]

Here's my review for both Time Heist and The Caretaker.

~

Two weeks ago, I decided that I would do a weekly review of each airing episode of Doctor Who Series 8. One week in, I botched it up by never bothering to write a review for Time Heist. As a result, I figured that I might as well get back to the swing of things by doing a two-part review.

With the airing of Time Heist, I am reminded that Doctor Who is a show that is all about change. Companions come and go, the Doctor regenerates and the showrunners switch around into other projects. As a result, there are that many more fans out there that can love Doctor Who, because it's ultimately an eclectic show.

Unfortunately, change does not please everyone. Sure, nothing can please everyone, but change often frightens people. It's understandable. After all, the new Doctors and companions tend to take awhile for the general fanbase to accept and appreciate.

I point all of this out because the changes that we have seen thus far in Series 8 have all been things that I have absolutely adored. Peter Capaldi's weekly performances as the darker and more alien Twelfth Doctor has been exactly what I wanted from the show. I think it says a lot that my previous Top 3 Doctors before Twelve were Four, Seven and Nine.

The first half of Series 8 has been comprised of a blend of old and new. Every episode has featured a veteran Who screenwriter, all working with a brand new and very different Doctor. Everything has been either a romp or a character piece. The villains, aside from Rusty, haven't been very interesting at all. However we've gotten to see a lot from Twelve already and Clara has finally been properly established as a singular and definitive character, rather than being an all-encompassing idea ("The Impossible Girl").

I loved episodes like Into the Dalek and Listen, because they embraced the best and most interesting elements of Capaldi's Doctor. These are bold and thought-provoking episodes. After all of the silly romps and adventures we had with the Eleventh Doctor, this was a great change for me.

Time Heist, like Robot of Sherwood, is an incredibly basic romp. Ms. Delphox and the two other members to the Doctor and Clara's team are simple characters. There isn't much to see about them, though I will give them credit for being better fits to the Twelfth Doctor than the Paternoster Gang were in Deep Breath.

It's rather odd to think about how average this episode feels, because Doctor Who hasn't ever really had a full-on heist episode before. By all accounts, this episode should feel far more exciting and original than it did.

Someone pointed out to me that a mistake the episode makes is having the Doctor trick himself and the rest of the team, rather than it being about the Doctor and the team tricking security the entire way through. The tension of the episode is inward, rather than outward. This would work brilliantly in a horror or psychological thriller episode like Listen or Into the Dalek, but it feels incredibly flat here.

I will give credit to the episode's direction. When Peter Capaldi described this episode as being a "cross between Ocean's Eleven and 2001," I figured the latter comparison would be more of a reference to the incredible cinematography featured. In that regard, I completely agree with Mr. Capaldi.

Of the episodes that comprised the first half of Series 8, the three I looked most forward to were Into the Dalek, Listen and The Caretaker. While all three were episodes that had veteran Who scribes to their credit, these were scribes that had a habit of making interesting and dynamic episodes for the show, unlike the generic scripts of Robot of Sherwood and Time Heist.

The Caretaker is a tricky episode to talk about, because it tries to be to Twelve what The Lodger was for the Eleventh Doctor, while also trying to set up the plot for the second half of Series 8. As a result, it leaves me with mixed feelings like Deep Breath did at the start of the season.

Don't get me wrong, The Caretaker has plenty of hilarious moments. Gareth Roberts comes up with some very interesting and memorable jokes that are well delivered by the cast, whereas Mark Gatiss's decidedly average script for Robot of Sherwood was elevated entirely by great acting. There's something that I feel is far more rewarding and memorable in seeing the Doctor whistle Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall" than the squabbling that comprised most of Robot of Sherwood.

As with Into the Dalek and Listen, The Caretaker is very much a character piece. We finally get a lot more to see from Danny, we see Clara's struggle in attempting to prevent her three lives (personal-human, personal-Doctor and professional) come crashing together and we get a little bit of a better understanding how nasty Twelve can get.

The core problem with this episode is Danny and Clara's relationship. I enjoyed watching the seeds of their romance being planted in Into the Dalek and Listen, but The Caretaker breaks the rule of "Show, don't tell" in order to move their relationship into a more 'serious' position. If you pay close attention to Danny's dialogue when he speaks to Courtney's parents and cross-examine that with the dialogue said in Into the Dalek, you'll learn that there has been a subtle year long time-skip somewhere in-between Listen and The Caretaker.

Presumably, this was all done in order to add credit to Clara's declaration of love to Danny during the three-way argument between them and the Doctor that occurs in the middle of the episode. While it helps a little bit, it still doesn't change the fact that this episode is forcing us to like Danny, as well as his relationship with Clara. We're informed that they're in love, rather than actually getting to see it for ourselves throughout the series thus far.

As stated before, The Caretaker gives us a bigger view into the darker parts of Twelve's personality. He's incredibly grumpy and more than a little bit manipulative. Not to mention his previously established disliking of soldiers, which results in some pretty big tension between him and Danny. Furthermore, we see how envious and jealous the Doctor is of Danny and his relationship with Clara.

The other weak point of the episode is the Mons- er, Robot of the Week. It's just there. Sure, this episode isn't supposed to be about the robot, but it felt like a waste of a really good design. Maybe next time!

With the first half of Series 8 out of the way, I now turn towards the second half with a great deal of excitement and eagerness. From what I understand, the final shifts into what will really define Peter Capaldi's era as the Doctor will be made in next week's episode, Kill the Moon, which is pinned by the first of three new writers, Peter Harness. I am eager to see how the new blood will influence the show and Capaldi's run, especially since it is supposed to transition into a much darker and scarier direction, which is exactly what I love about Doctor Who.

Remember fellow Whovians: Change is a part of the show.

Time Heist: 7.5 out of 10

The Caretaker: 8 out of 10

[Dani Helios]

Here's my review for both Time Heist and The Caretaker.

~

Two weeks ago, I decided that I would do a weekly review of each airing episode of Doctor Who Series 8. One week in, I botched it up by never bothering to write a review for Time Heist. As a result, I figured that I might as well get back to the swing of things by doing a two-part review.

With the airing of Time Heist, I am reminded that Doctor Who is a show that is all about change. Companions come and go, the Doctor regenerates and the showrunners switch around into other projects. As a result, there are that many more fans out there that can love Doctor Who, because it's ultimately an eclectic show.

Unfortunately, change does not please everyone. Sure, nothing can please everyone, but change often frightens people. It's understandable. After all, the new Doctors and companions tend to take awhile for the general fanbase to accept and appreciate.

I point all of this out because the changes that we have seen thus far in Series 8 have all been things that I have absolutely adored. Peter Capaldi's weekly performances as the darker and more alien Twelfth Doctor has been exactly what I wanted from the show. I think it says a lot that my previous Top 3 Doctors before Twelve were Four, Seven and Nine.

The first half of Series 8 has been comprised of a blend of old and new. Every episode has featured a veteran Who screenwriter, all working with a brand new and very different Doctor. Everything has been either a romp or a character piece. The villains, aside from Rusty, haven't been very interesting at all. However we've gotten to see a lot from Twelve already and Clara has finally been properly established as a singular and definitive character, rather than being an all-encompassing idea ("The Impossible Girl").

I loved episodes like Into the Dalek and Listen, because they embraced the best and most interesting elements of Capaldi's Doctor. These are bold and thought-provoking episodes. After all of the silly romps and adventures we had with the Eleventh Doctor, this was a great change for me.

Time Heist, like Robot of Sherwood, is an incredibly basic romp. Ms. Delphox and the two other members to the Doctor and Clara's team are simple characters. There isn't much to see about them, though I will give them credit for being better fits to the Twelfth Doctor than the Paternoster Gang were in Deep Breath.

It's rather odd to think about how average this episode feels, because Doctor Who hasn't ever really had a full-on heist episode before. By all accounts, this episode should feel far more exciting and original than it did.

Someone pointed out to me that a mistake the episode makes is having the Doctor trick himself and the rest of the team, rather than it being about the Doctor and the team tricking security the entire way through. The tension of the episode is inward, rather than outward. This would work brilliantly in a horror or psychological thriller episode like Listen or Into the Dalek, but it feels incredibly flat here.

I will give credit to the episode's direction. When Peter Capaldi described this episode as being a "cross between Ocean's Eleven and 2001," I figured the latter comparison would be more of a reference to the incredible cinematography featured. In that regard, I completely agree with Mr. Capaldi.

Of the episodes that comprised the first half of Series 8, the three I looked most forward to were Into the Dalek, Listen and The Caretaker. While all three were episodes that had veteran Who scribes to their credit, these were scribes that had a habit of making interesting and dynamic episodes for the show, unlike the generic scripts of Robot of Sherwood and Time Heist.

The Caretaker is a tricky episode to talk about, because it tries to be to Twelve what The Lodger was for the Eleventh Doctor, while also trying to set up the plot for the second half of Series 8. As a result, it leaves me with mixed feelings like Deep Breath did at the start of the season.

Don't get me wrong, The Caretaker has plenty of hilarious moments. Gareth Roberts comes up with some very interesting and memorable jokes that are well delivered by the cast, whereas Mark Gatiss's decidedly average script for Robot of Sherwood was elevated entirely by great acting. There's something that I feel is far more rewarding and memorable in seeing the Doctor whistle Pink Floyd's "Another Brick in the Wall" than the squabbling that comprised most of Robot of Sherwood.

As with Into the Dalek and Listen, The Caretaker is very much a character piece. We finally get a lot more to see from Danny, we see Clara's struggle in attempting to prevent her three lives (personal-human, personal-Doctor and professional) come crashing together and we get a little bit of a better understanding how nasty Twelve can get.

The core problem with this episode is Danny and Clara's relationship. I enjoyed watching the seeds of their romance being planted in Into the Dalek and Listen, but The Caretaker breaks the rule of "Show, don't tell" in order to move their relationship into a more 'serious' position. If you pay close attention to Danny's dialogue when he speaks to Courtney's parents and cross-examine that with the dialogue said in Into the Dalek, you'll learn that there has been a subtle year long time-skip somewhere in-between Listen and The Caretaker.

Presumably, this was all done in order to add credit to Clara's declaration of love to Danny during the three-way argument between them and the Doctor that occurs in the middle of the episode. While it helps a little bit, it still doesn't change the fact that this episode is forcing us to like Danny, as well as his relationship with Clara. We're informed that they're in love, rather than actually getting to see it for ourselves throughout the series thus far.

As stated before, The Caretaker gives us a bigger view into the darker parts of Twelve's personality. He's incredibly grumpy and more than a little bit manipulative. Not to mention his previously established disliking of soldiers, which results in some pretty big tension between him and Danny. Furthermore, we see how envious and jealous the Doctor is of Danny and his relationship with Clara.

The other weak point of the episode is the Mons- er, Robot of the Week. It's just there. Sure, this episode isn't supposed to be about the robot, but it felt like a waste of a really good design. Maybe next time!

With the first half of Series 8 out of the way, I now turn towards the second half with a great deal of excitement and eagerness. From what I understand, the final shifts into what will really define Peter Capaldi's era as the Doctor will be made in next week's episode, Kill the Moon, which is pinned by the first of three new writers, Peter Harness. I am eager to see how the new blood will influence the show and Capaldi's run, especially since it is supposed to transition into a much darker and scarier direction, which is exactly what I love about Doctor Who.

Remember fellow Whovians: Change is a part of the show.

Time Heist: 7.5 out of 10

The Caretaker: 8 out of 10

This being the first time I've seen your avatar.... That is fucking genius! Love it 

[Dimitrius]

I liked the episode except for two things: 1) we're suppose to believe and d'aaaaww that Clara "loves" Danny even though all interaction we've seen from them is either awkward conversations where Clara makes Danny feel bad or straight up arguments. Yeeeaaah... no. 2) Danny went from crying in front of his class and being timid and awkward to somersaulting-over-lasers and being judgmental in just over, what, 50 minutes of screentime in 6 episodes? Where's the character growth?

Also, there's no reason Clara should be either running late or just getting off from the TARDIS to their dates... it's a freaking time machine!!!

[Mister Gold]

This being the first time I've seen your avatar.... That is fucking genius! Love it 

Thanks! What did you think of my review?

I liked the episode except for two things: 1) we're suppose to believe and d'aaaaww that Clara "loves" Danny even though all interaction we've seen from them is either awkward conversations where Clara makes Danny feel bad or straight up arguments. Yeeeaaah... no. 2) Danny went from crying in front of his class and being timid and awkward to somersaulting-over-lasers and being judgmental in just over, what, 50 minutes of screentime in 6 episodes? Where's the character growth?

Also, there's no reason Clara should be either running late or just getting off from the TARDIS to their dates... it's a freaking time machine!!!

Exactly. The whole thing with Danny (both his character and his romance with Clara) went from being set-up in Into the Dalek/Listen and straight into the other direction. Completely broke the "Show, don't tell" rule and made him far less interesting than he originally could have been for me.

[BlobVanDam]

I liked the episode except for two things: 1) we're suppose to believe and d'aaaaww that Clara "loves" Danny even though all interaction we've seen from them is either awkward conversations where Clara makes Danny feel bad or straight up arguments. Yeeeaaah... no. 2) Danny went from crying in front of his class and being timid and awkward to somersaulting-over-lasers and being judgmental in just over, what, 50 minutes of screentime in 6 episodes? Where's the character growth?

Also, there's no reason Clara should be either running late or just getting off from the TARDIS to their dates... it's a freaking time machine!!!

That stuff bugs me too. Point 1 is the same thing we got with River, where they skipped showing all of the relevant stuff to make it feel believable, although Clara/Danny has still been much better in that regard, because we have seen them establish a real relationship, we just saw pretty much nothing between the awkward first date, and being apparently completely in love. We never saw that dynamic change, or really saw why Clara would like this bumbling weirdo.
And there's no reason Clara couldn't have taken some time to clean herself up before returning back to her time. The tan was understandable, since that's going to last a while, but the fish people? Girl, at least look in a mirror before going on your date! And maybe change your clothes at some point?

[Mister Gold]

I liked the episode except for two things: 1) we're suppose to believe and d'aaaaww that Clara "loves" Danny even though all interaction we've seen from them is either awkward conversations where Clara makes Danny feel bad or straight up arguments. Yeeeaaah... no. 2) Danny went from crying in front of his class and being timid and awkward to somersaulting-over-lasers and being judgmental in just over, what, 50 minutes of screentime in 6 episodes? Where's the character growth?

As I mentioned in my review, it seems Moffat sneaked in a subtle timeskip in The Caretaker. If you pay attention to when Danny is talking to Courtney's parents, you'll find out that he's been teaching at the school for a year now (he had just joined in Into the Dalek). Still, it breaks the "Show, don't tell" rule and makes me disappointed with how they handled him and his romance with Clara. 

Also, there's no reason Clara should be either running late or just getting off from the TARDIS to their dates... it's a freaking time machine!!!

Actually, I can think of a reason: accidentally meeting her past self, which is an established no-no in the show. Still, I could imagine her trying to find ways around it.
That stuff bugs me too. Point 1 is the same thing we got with River, where they skipped showing all of the relevant stuff to make it feel believable, although Clara/Danny has still been much better in that regard, because we have seen them establish a real relationship, we just saw pretty much nothing between the awkward first date, and being apparently completely in love. We never saw that dynamic change, or really saw why Clara would like this bumbling weirdo.
And there's no reason Clara couldn't have taken some time to clean herself up before returning back to her time. The tan was understandable, since that's going to last a while, but the fish people? Girl, at least look in a mirror before going on your date! And maybe change your clothes at some point?

[ariich]

If you pay close attention to Danny’s dialogue when he speaks to Courtney’s parents and cross-examine that with the dialogue said in Into the Dalek, you’ll learn that there has been a subtle year long time-skip somewhere in-between Listen and The Caretaker.

Presumably, this was all done in order to add credit to Clara’s declaration of love to Danny during the three-way argument between them and the Doctor that occurs in the middle of the episode. While it helps a little bit, it still doesn’t change the fact that this episode is forcing us to like Danny, as well as his relationship with Clara. We’re informed that they’re in love, rather than actually getting to see it for ourselves throughout the series thus far.

I don't think it's forcing anything - I thought it was pretty obvious that she hadn't realised that she loved him prior to saying that, as it came out suddenly and surprised all three of them.

I would also add that before this episode we've seen the first few dates between them. The opening scene was a montage of a load more dates and a load more adventures. And then, as you say, it's hinted that he's been at the school for a while now.

So yeah, it's fairly quick, but I don't see a problem with that. Companions generally last a couple of seasons at most, and so in order to have proper relationships they generally come with partners already (Amy, Rose) or romance never really comes into it. Back in the classic series companions would often meet a character for the first time on another planet and then decide to stay behind with them forever at the end of that serial. But I think it's good that this time we're seeing the whole relationship developing, just at a slightly quicker pace.

EDIT: Oh and yeah, I loved the episode. Great humour and some nice touching moments - Gareth Roberts really is the master of those sorts of episodes!

[Kotowboy]

Sorry to be a parrot

Just finished Time Heist. I still have the same problem - as much as I enjoy watching Capaldi and I know it's only a short runtime to shove everything in ...

But these 4 people woke up in a place with no memory and told to rob a bank and they all sort of go " Yep, definitely " and get on with it immediately.

I think DW would work a lot better if it had Sherlock's run time. You could have time to write in and film all the discussions and motivations.

Capaldi is very Tom Baker though. Agreed.

Currently downloading The Caretaker.

[ozzy554]

Sorry to be a parrot

Just finished Time Heist. I still have the same problem - as much as I enjoy watching Capaldi and I know it's only a short runtime to shove everything in ...

But these 4 people woke up in a place with no memory and told to rob a bank and they all sort of go " Yep, definitely " and get on with it immediately.

I think DW would work a lot better if it had Sherlock's run time. You could have time to write in and film all the discussions and motivations.

Capaldi is very Tom Baker though. Agreed.

Currently downloading The Caretaker.

This is why I kinda prefer the classic format.

[ariich]

But these 4 people woke up in a place with no memory and told to rob a bank and they all sort of go " Yep, definitely " and get on with it immediately.

Well, no, they didn't. In fact they all looked very sceptical until they heard the recordings of themselves pledging to do it.

[Kotowboy]

Agreed. But there still wasn't much deliberating after that or " what do we do then ? " .

[BlobVanDam]

Agreed. But there still wasn't much deliberating after that or " what do we do then ? " .

They woke up to evidence from themselves that they apparently agreed to do it, and immediately had security on them, so they didn't have a lot of time to think about it at that point. They all kept going because of the group mentality and pressure, and already being incriminated anyway, and then when they had time to stop during the episode, then they discussed it more. I liked the way that unfolded. The episode wouldn't have gained anything from having them sit around for an extra 10 minutes beforehand talking.

[ariich]

Yeah exactly. Character motivations in Doctor Who are rarely very complicated, I'm not sure why you struggle to follow them Kotow.

[Kotowboy]

I guess they just move too quickly for me personally.

I watched one episode where each time something was set up - it was paid off in the very next scene.

[Mister Gold]

I can understand where Kotowboy is coming from here, actually. Moffat apparently isn't a very big fan of doing two-parters and tries to push for as many singular episodes per season as possible.

I do think that played a part in why Series 7 wasn't as strong as it could have been, because the writers struggled in making the episodes paced right under such a short time span. Aside from maybe Time Heist, I think Series 8 has done a pretty good job in making the singular episode pace work to its advantage. That being said, Robot of Sherwood is easily the weakest episode so far, not because of pacing but because of how generic it felt. 

[ariich]

I can understand where Kotowboy is coming from here, actually. Moffat apparently isn't a very big fan of doing two-parters and tries to push for as many singular episodes per season as possible.

I'm not aware that it's a general preference (as Kotow mentioned before, the Sherlock running time is much longer). But I remember him saying in interviews around the mid-point in series 6 that Doctor Who had been doing regular two-parters since it came back, and they wanted to switch to individiual episodes for a while, so that each episode was a bit more standalone/more of an event.

I don't agree with his reasoning at all, and I wish we'd get some two-parters back. Fair enough that they tried doing it a bit differently, and I agree that they settled better into getting the pacing much better and series 8 has been absolutely cracking so far. But I do miss the slower buildup that we sometimes got in two-parters.

[BlobVanDam]

I can understand where Kotowboy is coming from here, actually. Moffat apparently isn't a very big fan of doing two-parters and tries to push for as many singular episodes per season as possible.

I do think that played a part in why Series 7 wasn't as strong as it could have been, because the writers struggled in making the episodes paced right under such a short time span. Aside from maybe Time Heist, I think Series 8 has done a pretty good job in making the singular episode pace work to its advantage. That being said, Robot of Sherwood is easily the weakest episode so far, not because of pacing but because of how generic it felt. 

I personally don't think pace had anything to do with it. S7 wasn't good stories told badly, they were just weak stories, which wouldn't have improved by drawing them out longer.

While the double episodes were usually the better ones of the RTD era, they also often felt overly drawn out for what they were. Doctor Who is a fast paced show. I prefer them just having longer episodes if needed, as they do for the specials, and the S8 opener. To me that's a good middle ground that lets them expand the episode with more of those extra moments, without the padding that their double episodes often have. And it means the episode is only as long as it needs to be, instead of being compelled to fill 2 x 45 minutes. Usually I love the idea of double episodes in scifi, but for Doctor Who, I'm pretty indifferent to it.

But I don't have a problem with the pacing of the show. I actually like the changes they've made this season to editing, and the new things they've been trying. I still think this season is on track to be the best of the modern era.

[Mister Gold]

I personally don't think pace had anything to do with it. S7 wasn't good stories told badly, they were just weak stories, which wouldn't have improved by drawing them out longer.

A fair point, but I certainly don't think the pacing helped those episodes either.

For example, I think Nightmare in Silver could have been improved on if it had been expanded into a two-parter. Use the first episode to set up the rise of the new Cybermen and their siege against the protagonists, with the second episode dealing with the Doctor and Cyber-Planner. Still would've had to deal with those dumb kids, but I think more time could have helped make the Cybermen more intimidating than they ended up being.

I also think both of the finales for Series 6 and 7 could have worked better as two-parters.

While the double episodes were usually the better ones of the RTD era, they also often felt overly drawn out for what they were. Doctor Who is a fast paced show. I prefer them just having longer episodes if needed, as they do for the specials, and the S8 opener. To me that's a good middle ground that lets them expand the episode with more of those extra moments, without the padding that their double episodes often have. And it means the episode is only as long as it needs to be, instead of being compelled to fill 2 x 45 minutes. Usually I love the idea of double episodes in scifi, but for Doctor Who, I'm pretty indifferent to it.

But I don't have a problem with the pacing of the show. I actually like the changes they've made this season to editing, and the new things they've been trying. I still think this season is on track to be the best of the modern era.

Oh believe me, I agree that singular episodes are fine in Doctor Who. Episodes like Blink, Midnight, Listen or Dalek are paced absolutely perfectly. But I think that the recent push towards avoiding two-parters has been a bit of a detriment to the show, at least until this season came along. The writers seem to have figured out to how to properly write a good paced Doctor Who episode in forty-five minutes.

Oh and a review just came out for this upcoming episode, Kill the Moon. Apparently it's right up there with Listen as the best of the season so far!

https://www.cultbox.co.uk/reviews/episodes/doctor-who-s08e07-spoiler-free-review-kill-the-moon

[Kotowboy]

I still have caretaker to watch tonight.

[Mister Gold]

I still have caretaker to watch tonight.

It's a funny and smart episode overall (the Danny stuff aside), but it took me a second viewing to really appreciate it.

[Kotowboy]

Thanks to one Mr. Capaldi - this may be the first ever season of "Modern" Dr Who i've watched in full.

[Scorpion]

So I liked The Caretaker a lot, but I didn't love it. There was some great stuff, but some awkward stuff - like the robot being "one of the most deadly killing machines ever" and then it misses EVERY FUCKING SHOT, or that Danny salto - but it featured some nice character development, and I have to say that I never felt that the Clara/Danny dynamic was unrealistic.

A theory I've heard: Missy is a Time Lord - either female Master or The Rani - and Heaven is her TARDIS. We've seen the Doctor saving Journey Blue from what seemed like a certain death in Into the Dalek by materialising the TARDIS around her just nanoseconds before she actually died, could Missy be doing the same?

[wasteland]

Well, we did see the incinerated forearm of the poor police officer after his unfortunate meeting with the Scovox Somethinkz. I believe those people are quite dead.

[Scorpion]

Was that really the Police Officer though? I mean, there were quite a few mannequins standing around in that abandoned warehouse...

[wasteland]

Anyway, I am not sold on the Master/Rani theory. Maybe because it's one of the most common Missy theories up there floating. I tend to favour those claiming that Missy is a personification or at least in some way connected to all the Doctor's mistakes.

[Scorpion]

Wouldn't that be The Valeyard? That's a theory that I'm not sold on.

[Kotowboy]

Just watched Caretaker. A good episode I think. Better than Robot Of Sherwood yes.

[Onno]

Finally caught up tonight by watching Time Heist and The Caretaker both tonight. I really loved them. It's really cool that Robot of Sherwood is the 'worst' episode yet this series, but it's still quite good! It's a lot better than a few other 'lows' like The Rings of Akhaten or Victory of the Daleks.

[BlobVanDam]

Finally caught up tonight by watching Time Heist and The Caretaker both tonight. I really loved them. It's really cool that Robot of Sherwood is the 'worst' episode yet this series, but it's still quite good! It's a lot better than a few other 'lows' like The Rings of Akhaten or Victory of the Daleks.

I don't know why Victory of the Daleks is so disliked! I liked it a bit more than Robot of Sherwood, but Robot of Sherwood is better than Rings of Akhaten. If Robot of Sherwood didn't have such a weak ending though, I'd probably rank it higher than both.

[Onno]

I agree about the weak ending; I thought the whole Robin Hood vs. Villain face-off was a bit cheesy, and the rest of the ending was very cheesy as well. About VotD: I just think it was quite silly.

[Scorpion]

So I caught up watching Night and the Doctor - which I didn't know was a thing until earlier today - and it's definitely recommended and works pretty damn well, especially with regards to the whole River arc in First and Last Night, and some great character moments between the Doctor and River.

[hefdaddy42]

I finally got caught up.  The last two episodes were fantastic.  Sherwood remains the season's weakest link for me. 

I love Capaldi.

SHUT UP!

[Scorpion]

Top 5 Steven Moffat scripts, go!

1. Silence in the Library / Forest of the Dead
2. The Day of the Doctor
3. Listen
4. Blink
5. The Pandorica Opens / The Big Bang

[BlobVanDam]

Top 5 Steven Moffat scripts, go!

1. Silence in the Library / Forest of the Dead
2. The Day of the Doctor
3. Listen
4. Blink
5. The Pandorica Opens / The Big Bang

It just wouldn't be DTF without mindless ranking, would it?

My approximate list would be-

The Day of the Doctor
Listen
Blink
The Pandorica Opens / The Big Bang
The Eleventh Hour or The Time of the Doctor

Not 100% on the order, but close enough.

[Mister Gold]

Top 5 Steven Moffat scripts, go!

1. Silence in the Library / Forest of the Dead
2. The Day of the Doctor
3. Listen
4. Blink
5. The Pandorica Opens / The Big Bang

1. Listen
2. The Day of the Doctor
3. Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead
4. Blink
5. The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances

I will say, the monsters in Silence in the Library are definitely the scariest Moffat has ever invented. That's probably because he's never brought them back, unlike the Weeping Angels, which diminished in quality with each appearance.