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Blink
daveyboy7472
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I find it another weird coincidence that Episodes 8-11 in Series 2 were the worst imo while in Series 3 they were the very best. Blink continued the mini-run of amazing episodes and for me this is by several hundred country miles the best story to feature The Weeping Angels so far.
What makes their debut story the best for me is the way they were used and the incidental music is key to this as well. Aside from Kathy there were a couple of times when the close up of Billy and later Larry as we watched them Blink has not been repeated much in subsequent stories. Neither has the music for when Larry was trying to keep his eyes on the Angels, was just utterly superb. In fact, that last scene where the lights go out as the Angels try to attack, nothing in the following stories has been as good as this. The Angels I thought were quite effective and I loved the last scene where The Doctor is warning the viewers over different statues and then Blinks himself.
Though the most recent episode had the time element back in it, I preferred it here also. I love the 'Back To The Future 2' moment when Kathy's Grandson delivers the note just after she vanishes. I nearly expected Sally to dance a little jig and go 'She's alive! Kathy's Alive!'
It was also great so see more of how being transported back in time affected both Kathy and Billy's life, something done on a greater scale than The Angels Of Manhattan.
Away from the Angels, I have to say I absolutely love Sally Sparrow. Sometimes I fail to understand why people dislike her so much. She wasn't childish like Vicki, Bossy and argumentative like Tegan, Whiney like Peri, Theatrical like Mel and she wasn't Smug or Lovesick either. Okay, she isn't a companion as such but watching it last night, I still find her a likeable character with a very dry sense of humour. She doesn't act nasty towards anyone so why people have beef with her, I don't know. I would love to see her come back back but as Carey Mulligan is a big star now that's unlikely.....:(
Unlike Love And Monsters, this is a Doctor-Lite story that actually works in it's own right. I can watch this and forget The Doctor and Martha are mostly absent in this but the scenes they are in are actually quite funny. Martha doesn't get to do much but she shows her fun side. The rest of the episode works fine without them, it's like watching a completely different show sometimes. I did love the Doctor's Timey Wimey detector thingy though!
The Timey Wimey elements that Moffat loves so much are well done here. I always like stories involving Time and those Moffat does in his own Era are some of the good ones. In this, I loved the idea of The Doctor talking to Sally via a DVD using information no-one knows how he got hold off and then it's revealed it was Sally herself who gave the info to him. It wrapped things up nicely(and she ended up with Larry as a boyfriend after initially rejecting him proving the situation was over for her. Great stuff)
And there's one sentence The Doctor comes out with when he meets Sally which seems the Genesis for Moffat's time on the show.....' Look, sorry, I've got a bit of a complex life. Things don't always happen to me in order. Gets confusing, especially at weddings, I'm rubbish at weddings, especially my own.'
As with the previous story, can't find too much to fault about it really. Was just superb imo.
What makes their debut story the best for me is the way they were used and the incidental music is key to this as well. Aside from Kathy there were a couple of times when the close up of Billy and later Larry as we watched them Blink has not been repeated much in subsequent stories. Neither has the music for when Larry was trying to keep his eyes on the Angels, was just utterly superb. In fact, that last scene where the lights go out as the Angels try to attack, nothing in the following stories has been as good as this. The Angels I thought were quite effective and I loved the last scene where The Doctor is warning the viewers over different statues and then Blinks himself.
Though the most recent episode had the time element back in it, I preferred it here also. I love the 'Back To The Future 2' moment when Kathy's Grandson delivers the note just after she vanishes. I nearly expected Sally to dance a little jig and go 'She's alive! Kathy's Alive!'
It was also great so see more of how being transported back in time affected both Kathy and Billy's life, something done on a greater scale than The Angels Of Manhattan.
Away from the Angels, I have to say I absolutely love Sally Sparrow. Sometimes I fail to understand why people dislike her so much. She wasn't childish like Vicki, Bossy and argumentative like Tegan, Whiney like Peri, Theatrical like Mel and she wasn't Smug or Lovesick either. Okay, she isn't a companion as such but watching it last night, I still find her a likeable character with a very dry sense of humour. She doesn't act nasty towards anyone so why people have beef with her, I don't know. I would love to see her come back back but as Carey Mulligan is a big star now that's unlikely.....:(
Unlike Love And Monsters, this is a Doctor-Lite story that actually works in it's own right. I can watch this and forget The Doctor and Martha are mostly absent in this but the scenes they are in are actually quite funny. Martha doesn't get to do much but she shows her fun side. The rest of the episode works fine without them, it's like watching a completely different show sometimes. I did love the Doctor's Timey Wimey detector thingy though!
The Timey Wimey elements that Moffat loves so much are well done here. I always like stories involving Time and those Moffat does in his own Era are some of the good ones. In this, I loved the idea of The Doctor talking to Sally via a DVD using information no-one knows how he got hold off and then it's revealed it was Sally herself who gave the info to him. It wrapped things up nicely(and she ended up with Larry as a boyfriend after initially rejecting him proving the situation was over for her. Great stuff)
And there's one sentence The Doctor comes out with when he meets Sally which seems the Genesis for Moffat's time on the show.....' Look, sorry, I've got a bit of a complex life. Things don't always happen to me in order. Gets confusing, especially at weddings, I'm rubbish at weddings, especially my own.'
As with the previous story, can't find too much to fault about it really. Was just superb imo.
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It's odd to think that one of the best episodes of the RTD era (if not the show's entire history) features so little of the regular cast. The previous 'Doctor Lite' episode tried hard but really didn't deliver and for all series after this they managed to change things around to at least have one of the main characters to carry the story. Here Moffat strikes out alone and creates something spectacular, somehow managing to pull off an out-and-out horror story in a (borderline) family friendly way that eclipses most cinematic efforts of recent years.
There's a wonderful cast too, in fact I don't recall a single bad performance here. Of course Carey Mulligan absolutely steals the show as a wonderfully real character with immense charm and charisma. The screen lights up whenever she's around and you could see she had an incredible amount of potential (a comment I may be repeating when we get to the Eleventh Hour...). I really don't think she gets enough credit for this role, she carries an incredibly risky episode on her shoulders and does her job so well you don't really notice the absence of the Doctor or Martha.
One of the criticisms I hear is this doesn't stand up well to multiple viewings and while I disagree with that I can understand why it might be so. It's an episode that relies on making the audience jump right along with the cast, something that's much harder to do when you know where the scares are coming. For me it's just damn near perfect and I'm really struggling to find anything to criticise... in fact I may just have to end this without thinking of anything worth writing!
I don't think it stands up well to multiple viewings.
I loved it when I first saw it (and still do). A brilliant concept, brilliantly executed. Everyone in it was good, especially Carey. I didn't even miss the presence of the Tenth Doctor all that much, which is saying something!
The Angels were the first ever DW monsters, btw, who were scary enough to make me look behind me with apprehension when going to bed! Just genius. The timey-wimey plot was also a revelation at that time; so clever, why hadn't DW used it before? (Of course, you can have too much of a good thing, I now realise).
The trouble with it is, when I now watch it, I find myself wondering why Kathy was transported to Hull, and why she was then buried in London? Why on Earth was old Billy in a ward which looked as if it was in a closed-down hospital? If he was dying, where were all the doctors/nurses/machines going beep?
Why did an Angel throw a stone at Sally when she first visited the house? That's not their MO at all.
These things and others I didn't think about when I first watched, because the story was so good, and went along at such a cracking pace. They don't ruin the episode for me, but I do watch it a bit more critically than I did at first.
If they ever come back will he hate them more then the daleks and cybermen ?. They did kill his best freinds/inlaws after all.
Because the Angel was suffering from a bit of Timey Wimey. If the Angel had taken Sally then, there'd have been no story. No message on the wall, no Doctor to meet Sally so he could begin his part of the message and write the words on the wall. Cause and effect.
This is where Steven Moffat really exercised his timey-wimey tellings. Elements of them existed back in Series 2's The Girl In The Fireplace, but this is full on paradox-fun and it's brilliantly realised. Before I consider the episode though, may I please note that most people still regard this as the best of the Weeping Angels episode. Just as, Dalek is widely considered to be the best Dalek episode of Nu-Who, and the Cybermen have been generally unimpressive since their Series 2 appearances. Whilst I think all three are capable of being as brilliant as whatever we've already seen, and whilst I can't dispute that some more recent appearances haven't done the enemies justice, I think too many people are quick to shoot down a return appearance from a particular alien race in the show, purely because they haven't delivered as successfully since their introductions.
On to the episode, Blink is a pretty simple and clever premise wrapped up in a complex ball of timey-wimey...stuff. Despite the shortcomings of Love & Monsters from last year, we're given another Doctor-lite episode here, and this time it hits the nail on the head with a fantastic story, a menacing villain, and some pretty decent characters. Sally Sparrow is introduced, portrayed and rounded off wonderfully by Carey Mulligan. At the time it might have felt awesome to see her return as a companion or something, but as time has passed I have been increasingly satisfied with this being a one-off appearance. It is the one element that adds longevity to the episode - repeat viewing won't have the same impact as an initial viewing due to the fact we know when the jumps are, and we know how it is all going to be resolved. It is therefore up to the characters to leave a lasting impression, and as such I now see Blink as a shining example of an episode that shows what happens in The Doctor's world from an outside perspective. We see it all unfold through the eyes of a bit-character, and through the people she happens to come across. It shows the scope of The Doctor's reach, and how many people there are that end up embroiled, even in this relatively low-key attack. On that level, this isn't really that much different to a normal episode of Doctor Who, with the key contradiction being that we look at the story through someone elses eyes. This was one woman's encounter with The Doctor, and that was it. No big overarching meaning, no foreboding of something bigger in the pipeline, a simple story with a complex plot.
There's not much that can be said for Blink's plot. It's good, and that's about it. It doesn't afford itself rewatchability like a number of two-part stories might, but it is fresh and original and a real winner for the third series. Backed up by a more-than-decent cast and mostly amazing production values and we have what is a real highlight of the third series. I wouldn't go so far to say it was the best episode of the RTD era, as it doesn't have a huge amount of depth and as well written as the characters are, they are ultimately disposable angel fodder. But it deserved the praise it got, and would have been successful even if it was a standard style of story, and if it had been in the Moffat-era too.
What would be nice at some point, given that we didn't get it here, would be a story that looks into the psychology of characters impacted by the Angels a bit more. Adjusting to life in a new time and a potentially new place cannot be easy, and I think the consequences of the Angel's method of murdering are a little bit downplayed. They aren't as scary as they could be, and that's even within the limits of a family show. The Angels are a dark villain, but only if they're written to be - in future, a story that looks in more detail at a character like Kathy would be intriguing. Aside from that, Blink was a recipe for an all-new range of playground games, merchandise, and as we'd see in Series 5 and 7 more angels episodes.
I can't speak for anyone else but from what I've read the majority opinion and one I think is right is that in the case of the Cybermen and The Weeping Angels their debut adventure has so far been their best ones. In both cases I believe it is because the subsequent stories haven't been as strong and you can even apply that to The Master as well. It's not a case of being too quick to shoot it down it's what I generally believe to be true. I'm sure others may think that as well(or not as the case may be)
Dalek is a slightly different matter. I think in terms of plot and characterisation it has been the best but in terms of drama and excitement the Season 4 Finale just pips it.
I...disagree with you Granny! :eek::eek::eek:
I remember thinking when I first watched this, and on learning it was going to be a Doctor-Lite story, that we were in for another Love And Monsters and as I've said before, don't like episodes much where the lead character is mostly missing.
Blink on subsequent viewings have made me appreciate the episode more because I can watch it these days and not worry it is a Doctor-Lite episode. At the time, Love And Monsters still burned fresh in my mind and I thought this episode was going to follow suit. However, as I said at the top, I don't worry think about The Doctor's absence at all these days, it's a good story in it's own right.
"No, no, you and Rory work out just fine. But your kids! Amy, something's got to be done about your kids!"
I just can't work out why they were presented in such an unrealistic way. As I said, it doesn't really spoil the episode for me, but it makes me watch it with criticism rather than appreciation as my foremost emotion.
Also, the fact that we have had so much timey-wimey stuff since tarnishes the episode slightly. Instaead of being unique, it's just another typical Moffat plot. Even the grandson delivering the letter was used again in the scene when Amy and Rory's adopted son delivers his letter to Brian.
The episode itself was good; on later viewing it doesn't stand out because it's all been overused since.
Sally Sparrow is a really excellent character, well played by Carey Mulligan. Larry is fine too, though considerably less attractive for me. Billy and Kathy are smaller roles, but also are played well - especially old Billy.
If it was an episode of casualty or holby maybe. Also while we expect people to be attached to machines that beep it's not really the case. It would depend why he was in hospital - a patient who is dying and there is nothing to be done they can disconnect everything and allow the person a quiet and peaceful end. Particularly if there is a family member with them.
Sadly, it's experience rather than expectation that makes me think it's odd to abandon a patient in a ward full of empty beds (not a side ward) when there is no family present and no medical staff nearby, seemingly.
I know it's not a realistic programme, but you can go just too far with the style over substance stuff. If you had asked me if I liked Blink before this thread I would have said yes; thinking about it has put me off. Apart from the Angels, an excellent concept, there's not that much to it, except timey-wimey stuff, which I've had more than enough of since.
Blink's OK. It's overrated.
Don't worry about it. When the Angels catch you it'll give you time to think over just how wrong you are. :D
BTW, have you noticed just how many elements from Dr. Who are common with The Woman In Black?