Boom Town
daveyboy7472
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Watching this yesterday, I found it very hard to put any sort of definitive opinion on it as it such a weird combination of cheesy, fun, nice moments, and overall one of the weaker stories of the Series.
On the cheesy front, you have the reactions of the three regulars in the first half of the episode when they appear to be getting on really well and seem to have formed quite a bond. Jack especially seems to have had a personality transplant and has gone from smooth talking conman to this over the top action man. The way they talk to each other is also OTT as Mickey points out. Then there is the scene in the restaurant as they all sit around laughing which Mickey himself gets involved in. Another scene which backs this up is when they all check their mobiles when first entering the Mayor's building and have various check points to be at as The Doctor confronts Margaret.
On the other hand, though, these scenes are also quite fun to watch and it sort of sums up the lighter feel of the episode. Margaret dropping her cup as realises The Doctor is outside prior to the teleportation scene is just hilarious. As is The Doctor's 'date' with Margaret in the restaurant as he avoids every Slitheen trick in the book to kill him.
The more serious but nice moments involve The Doctor sussing out the project's name as Bad Wolf in preparation for the finale and all the stuff to do with The Doctor and the consequences of his actions as Margaret pushes him as far as she can to avoid being sent home to be executed. The resolution is a nice touch as well as The Doctor uses the TARDIS Console as another option which she appreciates.
The Ninth Doctor, though not quite as good as the previous story, is still an improvement here, joining in the humour. I'm never sure about the Rose/Mickey relationship by this point. She clearly is being a bit selfish here, using Mickey to see him again, but not realising his own feelings for her as he dumps everything to be in Cardiff with her. She's not letting Mickey get on with his life as he actually says, as he can't stop thinking of her while being with other girls. In fact I'm really sure if this story really needed Mickey at all. He took a bit of a backwards step here, going back more towards the idiot we saw at the beginning of the Series. And he didn't really make that much contribution to the episode. Four main characters was a bit overkill.
Watching this episode in hindsight always intrigues me, as it's clear from later Torchwood Episodes that Jack must have been around in two places at the same time during this episode. He was waiting for The Doctor to come back but obviously couldn't show himself at this point as he was there also.(Plus being buried for all those years means he was in fact there in a third guise!) I just love the whole warped timeline of Jack!
Overall though, this episode is not as strong as some of the others from this series but I do prefer it to the original Slitheen two-Parter. There was less of the farting for a start and it seemed a more personal story for Margaret as the last survivor of her race. I really liked the scene where she let the pregnant lady live and you see her sorrow at her family's demise.
So the best way to sum it up is to say what it lacked in plot it more than made up with solid cheesy fun with a few good moments included.
On the cheesy front, you have the reactions of the three regulars in the first half of the episode when they appear to be getting on really well and seem to have formed quite a bond. Jack especially seems to have had a personality transplant and has gone from smooth talking conman to this over the top action man. The way they talk to each other is also OTT as Mickey points out. Then there is the scene in the restaurant as they all sit around laughing which Mickey himself gets involved in. Another scene which backs this up is when they all check their mobiles when first entering the Mayor's building and have various check points to be at as The Doctor confronts Margaret.
On the other hand, though, these scenes are also quite fun to watch and it sort of sums up the lighter feel of the episode. Margaret dropping her cup as realises The Doctor is outside prior to the teleportation scene is just hilarious. As is The Doctor's 'date' with Margaret in the restaurant as he avoids every Slitheen trick in the book to kill him.
The more serious but nice moments involve The Doctor sussing out the project's name as Bad Wolf in preparation for the finale and all the stuff to do with The Doctor and the consequences of his actions as Margaret pushes him as far as she can to avoid being sent home to be executed. The resolution is a nice touch as well as The Doctor uses the TARDIS Console as another option which she appreciates.
The Ninth Doctor, though not quite as good as the previous story, is still an improvement here, joining in the humour. I'm never sure about the Rose/Mickey relationship by this point. She clearly is being a bit selfish here, using Mickey to see him again, but not realising his own feelings for her as he dumps everything to be in Cardiff with her. She's not letting Mickey get on with his life as he actually says, as he can't stop thinking of her while being with other girls. In fact I'm really sure if this story really needed Mickey at all. He took a bit of a backwards step here, going back more towards the idiot we saw at the beginning of the Series. And he didn't really make that much contribution to the episode. Four main characters was a bit overkill.
Watching this episode in hindsight always intrigues me, as it's clear from later Torchwood Episodes that Jack must have been around in two places at the same time during this episode. He was waiting for The Doctor to come back but obviously couldn't show himself at this point as he was there also.(Plus being buried for all those years means he was in fact there in a third guise!) I just love the whole warped timeline of Jack!
Overall though, this episode is not as strong as some of the others from this series but I do prefer it to the original Slitheen two-Parter. There was less of the farting for a start and it seemed a more personal story for Margaret as the last survivor of her race. I really liked the scene where she let the pregnant lady live and you see her sorrow at her family's demise.
So the best way to sum it up is to say what it lacked in plot it more than made up with solid cheesy fun with a few good moments included.
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Comments
It's fun, but some of the scenes between the Doctor and Margaret are quite moving.
I loved the Doctor/Rose/Mickey/Jack dynamic and, of course, the final scene in the Tardis sets up the series finale.
Ecclestone was on top form, and I'd warmed to him by this point, but that really was the only plus point. It is not as bad as some New Who episodes, but the weakest in the first series.
It's just obvious this is a filler. It's not even a good filler, after you can get very good fillers e.g. Midnight, Blink. It just seems entirely set up to allow stories in Cardiff as well. Or even Torchwood. I dont know if RTD had thought up Torchwood yet as obviously it wouldnt be on tv till after series 2, but this just seems there entirely to introduce the characters, setting and concept behind the spin off. The scenes in the restauranat are quite good, I'll admit. But it's really quite rubbish this one, rightly seen as one of the worst episodes of series 1 and the 9th Doctors reign
I once heard the working title was "Dining with Monsters", if they had used that it would have set audience the expectations a bit more in the right direction.
still a bit meh though
But it's not too bad as filler goes. It's interesting to see how much of the earlier series is tied together in this episode - as well as the Slitheen and Mickey (and of course Jack), it links to The Unquiet Dead and offers the first acknowledgment of Bad Wolf. The funny bits are too broad and self-consciously 'wacky' for my tastes though.
By the end of it the audience is ready for the Bad Wolf reveal, we have an established team ready to take it on, and therefore the audience are emotionally invested in a group of people that we will be asked to grieve for the end of their time with this Doctor.
In some respects Mickey is not needed here, nor is Jack and nor is Rose. All their parts are largely filler, the main action is between The Doctor and Margaret. TheMcikey and Rose scenes weren't all that bad though, and its nice to see how their relationship is developing or unravelling, with Mickey doting on Rose, just as much as Martha did on 10 with very little warmth back.The scenes at the beginning were daft though to try and reinforce the new Tardis Team, and in hindsight had Eccleston stayed on another year, it would have probably been best to have Series 1 as Just The Doctor and Rose, and introduce Jack full time series 2. In terms of interaction despite the flirting scenes in the Empty Child, I still think Jack had more chemistry with Martha .
Anyway back to this story, some of the morals explored are really interesting, yes its the budget episode of the series, but in some respects the episode benefitted from this being able to focus perfectly on the Doctor/Margaret relationship who both seemed to gel reaally ell as actors together. The resolution was brilliant, and its a shame that the Tardis and its capabilities haven't been explored more (apart from in the Doctor's wife). The other benefit of this story is it sets up the final brilliantly. Bad Wolf is finally revealed as the story arc though we're still not sure what it is yet, the fact that the tardis can be opened is another key point, as is the extrapolator. Also the origins for Torchwood are really built upon here with the rift being clearly explained
And to those asking when the idea of torchwood was first devised, there is mention of it in episode 12 if you listen carefully, so by this point I think RTD had his story arc for series 2
This episode has a good feel, a lighter air. I like the dynamic between the four - Jack, Rose, Mickey and the Doctor Howver, the best scenes are in the Restaurant between the Doctor and the Slitheen Margaret, love the way she almost seems to convince him but resists releasingher. She/it/the Slitheen puts some very good points about what the Doctor is, and I just find it very interesting considering the backdrop of the Time War and Bad Wolf theme we have in this first new series. Same but different, I like the scene where we see Margaret show som emercy and not kill the pregnant woman she talks too near the beginning.
All in all a nice entertaining episode before the big end two parter that is Bad Wolf/Parting of the Ways.
However, I'm not really a fan nonetheless. I found the whole debate over mercy for Margaret not very interesting, and the fact that (as later in A Town Called Mercy) they basically copped out of resolving the debate didn't help. While the "deus ex machina" accusation is made too often, this is surely one story where it really applies, with Margaret turned into an egg by the TARDIS core.
While I agree with daveyboy that Rose does treat Mickey selfishly here, it's worth pointing out that when Mickey tells her clearly how badly she's treated him, she's clearly contrite. Her selfishness was a thoughtless selfishness, not calculated indifference. I also disagree that Mickey wasn't needed here, as his scenes with Rose were one of my favourite parts of the story.
The one I could have dispensed with here is Jack. After his great opening story, here he's at his cheesy worst. As Mickey says "What are you a captain in, the innuendo squad?"