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What happened to monsters in Doctor Who?
Firegazer
Posts: 5,888 Forum Member
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In my opinion since Series 5 the "monsters" or "aliens" in the episodes have been quite weak, and their importance in Doctor Who has been overpowered by companions and characterization which was never really taken notice of in Doctor Who in the Classic era and now it's all been shoved down our throats.
I liked "Flatline" and the turning of 2D objects into 3D killers, it was a very original and a very cleverly written episode by Mathieson, as was his episode last week. But it was resolved so lazily.
All it took was the Doctor stepping out of the TARDIS and telling the wall to 'go away' and they went away. And then there was the explosion in Mummy that everyone miraculously survived. It was borderline offensive!
Don't get me wrong, I love the concepts of the episodes, but we really need some more action from the enemies and a bit more of a resolution on their part.
I liked "Flatline" and the turning of 2D objects into 3D killers, it was a very original and a very cleverly written episode by Mathieson, as was his episode last week. But it was resolved so lazily.
All it took was the Doctor stepping out of the TARDIS and telling the wall to 'go away' and they went away. And then there was the explosion in Mummy that everyone miraculously survived. It was borderline offensive!
Don't get me wrong, I love the concepts of the episodes, but we really need some more action from the enemies and a bit more of a resolution on their part.
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What this series is lacking is a green blobby alien in a G String, with a Bolton accent.
Give the Doctor two minutes with a malfunctioning teleport and call it a miracle when he fixes it...um...
He could ram it with a car
Bertie vs Bessie
The monsters are still around. But the Doctor gives them a chance not to be and counsels against knee jerk reactions like i dont understand the situation, lets kill or blow up the problem. It is kind of a major part of the character to do this.
Very good point re the writing, but there's also the sophistication of the viewers to take into account.
Back in the 1960s the poor resolution of the TV reception meant that viewers generally had lower expectations as to what could be achieved on TV and were more willing to suspend their disbelief - hence things like the Slyther, which was actually considered scary back in 1964. Black and white, or dark flickering pictures were better at hiding the monsters and frequently what we can't see is scarier than what we can...
Now, with CGI and multi million dollar special effects movies, and thanks to behind the scenes DVD features and stuff like Doctor Who Confidential / Extra, viewers are far more aware of how these monsters are created - so it's become much harder for the programme makers to come up with stuff that's both achievable and convincingly believeable.
I thought that the 2D monsters in Flatline were superb - the effects of the melting sofa and the policewoman being dragged into the floor were also terrific.
Series 6 was very similar in that respect - much of it was either "alien free" or the aliens were in the background but we still got Silents, headless monks, big-head toys, a drop-dead gorgeous Minotaur, a whiney hamster, helpful white handbots, a gorgeous "sea ghost" and more
Put simply - those two series weren't really about aliens so much as the machinations of the Silence and time travel. Most of the aliens we did see weren't meant to be a major threat but we STILL got great "things" - old and new.
Series 7 - insane Daleks, cyborg gunslinger, vile old fart killing a dinosaur, literally DOZENS of "naturalistic" aliens in Akhatan, well- re-imagined Ice Warrior, very ugly "ex people" inside the Tardis, humans changed into screaming, red-faced animals - and the a number of episodes about the Time War - but even that gave us beauties like a wooden Cyberman.
And now series 8 - which is still going on.
Basically, quite a lot of relatively "alien free" stuff cos of the \river/Silence arcs and then the 50th and the regeneration but even so, we've had some real winners. We had the disappointing new Daleks but the redesigned Cybermen look good - we had the incredible Silents and the wonderfully daft Headless Monks - and so much more besides.
So sorry but I totally disagree with the suggestion that there's been NO good aliens. There's been a couple of failures but on the whole, they've been imaginative and beautifully realised.
Even the current series - the one I've liked least since Moffat took over - has given us stunning new creatures in the Teller and the Foretold alongside the very clever "Boneless" from the latest episode.
My apology, I'm not allowed to post my queries on a forum without being called a 'whine'. Grow up.
No, I agree.
But their isn't much explanation with monsters. What are they, why are they invading... they're mainly being used as plot devices and stay undeveloped throughout.
Can you list the creatures that you believe were not "explained".
Smilers, Vampires, The Man Upstairs, The Flesh, Cybermen in a shop (CT), Dinosaurs, Gunslinger, The Cubes, Angels in Manhattan, The Crooked Man, Robot of Sherwood, Teller, whatever it was in Caretaker, the Mummy
Smilers weren't alien - they were a robotic interface to a ship's systems made to resemble a fair-ground booth in order to control a population
The vampires had fled their homeworld when they realised that the cracks were about to delete it
"The man upstairs"? What episode is that from?
The Flesh weren't alien - they were temporary, semi-concious organic "copies" of humans that gained sentience and sought the right to exist independently of their owners.
Cybermen's ship had crashed and was buried - they had finally tunnelled up and came out at the point where a shop had been built,
Dinsoaurs are not "alien"
And the rest of those were so clearly explained that just reading the synopsis of the episodes will tell you exactly what they were.
***
Smilers - Androids. Built for a purpose, no background to speak of. A security system. What more needs explaining?
Vampires - They weren't just 'vampires', they were Saturnynians who were forced to flee their home due to the cracks in time. They began converting Humans in to Saturnyns as only the male children made it with 'Rosanna.'
The Man Upstairs - There was no man upstairs. It was a disguised timeship attempting to repair itself / recharge after a crash.
The Flesh - Eh? Programmable matter used so that duplicate workers (the gangers) could work the factory as it was too dangerous for real people. A piece of technology.
Cybermen in the shop - Cyber-ship crashed decades ago. When the town's electricity grid was installed, cybermats used it to salvage the ship so that it could begin converting.
Dinosaurs - Preserved on the Silurian Ark to save them from the catastrophe that would wipe them out.
Gunslinger - Created by Kahler-Jex while attempting to create a new race of soldiers to fight in their war.
The Cubes - Used by the Shakri to wipe out Humanity before they could colonise the stars.
Angels in Manhattan - Using Manhattan as an energy farm.
The Crooked Man - Just a creature, like The Teller, who had become separated from his mate. Wasn't a traditional 'monster.'
Robots of Sherwood - Their ship crash landed on Earth while seeking The Promised Land. Unfortunately, a big part of their explanation was cut due the beheading scene. But they came to an agreement with the Sheriff (who they saved / rebuilt) to use his lands and people to repair their ship.
Teller - See: The Crooked Man
Skovox Blitzer - Drawn to Coal Hill School by Artron enegy created by the strange events that have taken place there over the years. Built and programmed for war, it would have besieged Earth.
Mummy - Ancient soldier 'revived' / augmented with technology. The Doctor tried to find out who created it, but GUS destroyed the train before he could. Perhaps something to be revisited.
All explained on screen.
Working backwards -
The Mummy / The Foretold was an ex-soldier that had been modified to become an assassin, presumably by GUS (which is, admittedly still to be explained).
Scovox Blitzer in The Caretaker was a massively weaponed-up robot that had been lured to Shoreditch by the high levels of Artron energy around Coal Hill School. The Doctor saw it as his duty to remove it from Earth.
The Teller was a psychic creature that could sense guilt and was forced to work for Miss Delphox because its mate was being kept hostage.
The Robots of Sherwood come from a spaceship that fell back through time. The ships databanks contain stories of Robin Hood and as a result the robots disguised the spacecraft as a castle and themselves as Knights. They also robotised the Sheriff.
Etc.
Certainly sometimes the explanations are sketchy, and aren't given to the viewer on a plate, but I don't believe that Doctor Who, certainly in its current 45 minute format, has time for massive info-dumps, or lengthy back stories. Enough information is usually provided if you pay close attention.
I got half way through and thought - someone's taking the pistachio nuts are lovely, aren't they.
Is it 1) They just didn't pay attention to the episodes or 2) They didn't get the explanation they wanted/expected so it doesn't count?