Eleventh Hour Commentary

Martyn gives up all pretence of retirement. He and Gerrod attempt their first audio commentary, for Doctor Who: The Eleventh Hour. This will probably also be our last.

The podcast is available from all good podcast services, such as but not limited to Amazon Music, PodchaserPlayer FM, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts.

Check out our Youtube.

If you’d like to support the show, then please shop via our Amazon link. A small percentage goes our way, at no extra cost to you.


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Gerrod –@InGerrodsMind

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Review: Doctor Who-The God Complex

After the past three episodes, The God Complex had a lot to live up to and on first viewing, I wasn’t sure if I liked it. The set up just seemed a little strange. But on second viewing I think it’s a strong contender for my favourite episode of Nu-Who. It’s written by Toby Whithouse who wrote the second-series story, School Reunion and the fifth-series story, Vampires in Venice.

The hotel made for a creepy, atmospheric setting. It was even shot like a horror movie, with elements of the shining added. Visually it is spectacular; director Nick Hurran worked wonders with the setting like he did with the last episode, The Girl Who Waited.



Everything in this hotel screamed creepily. The framed photos on the wall added to this; not only did we see pictures of the current residents but also previous, including some past Doctor Who monsters: there was a Sontaran, a Judoon and a Tritovore.

Almost-companion Rita is brilliant but we’ve seen that set up before and knew she wouldn’t make it. It would have been a nice surprise for her to stay on and travel with the Doctor. Retcon please, Mr Moffat. Maybe Rita was a ganger?

The fear inside the rooms was a really intriguing idea; just what did the Doctor see behind door number 11? The Valeyard? Himself?

Also, what did Amy’s door number mean? 7th Nu-Who companion? Or did the door represent the age she was when she first met the Doctor? Or am I just over-thinking it?

It was interesting after last week to see how Rory had completely lost faith in the Doctor and could have effectively saved everyone by walking them through an exit.

Once again, we get echoes of McCoy’s manipulative, calculating Doctor in Smith’s portrayal. The scene in which he convinces Amy to lose faith in him was very reminiscent of the 7th Doctor and Ace in the curse of Fenric. I also felt that the monster was a reflection on the Doctor himself. We even get the Doctor having to make quite possibly the most grown-up decision he has made in the whole of his travels in space and time: he can see what he has done to Rory; he can see what he has done to Amy. The only thing that didn’t sit right with me is why have Amy and Rory stuck with him for so long? They’ve been through worse. Or maybe this wasn’t the reason but the catalyst for the Doctor to see things how they are.

I feel bad for writing this as the man has just swum 140 miles in sewage invested water for charity but I felt David Walliams was the weak link of the episode. It could just be that he is too famous and I couldn’t get past that to truly buy his portrayal as Gibbis. Which is a shame really as I know Walliams is a life-long fan of Doctor Who. He actually had my favourite line of the whole episode: “We’re lining all the streets with trees so invading forces can march in the shade.”

Overall it’s a great episode, sharp script, great acting and great directing and has made this half of the series four-for-four. Let’s just hope next week’s – Closing Time – makes it five-for-five.



Episode 44: Doctor Who-The Girl Who Waited

Martyn’s attempted retirement fails. Vodka is drunk and the reaction is given to Doctor Who: The Girl Who Waited and, the new Fantom Films radio comedy, Fight For The Remote.



The podcast is available from all good podcast services, such as but not limited to Amazon Music, PodchaserPlayer FM, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts.

Check out our Youtube.

If you’d like to support the show, then please shop via our Amazon link. A small percentage goes our way, at no extra cost to you.

Socials:

Twitter:

Martyn – @BadWilf

Gerrod –@InGerrodsMind

Pete – @BeeblePete

Sam-@Sammichaelcomic

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Martyn-@BadWilf

Fight for the Remote: fantomfilms.co.uk



Review – Doctor Who: The Girl Who Waited

The Girl Who Waited is an exceptional episode that heralds a rare streak of quality in Doctor Who’s recent episodes. Written by the talented Tom MacRae, the episode presents an intelligent and timey-wimey adventure that deals with parallel time streams, paradoxes, and moral dilemmas.

The dynamic between the TARDIS crew is permanently altered as Rory is deeply affected by meeting an older and more cynical Amy, who spent 36 years alone.

Karen Gillan delivers a magnificent performance, particularly as the older Amy, where she subtly portrays stiffness in her joints and deepens her voice. The scene where the two Amys discuss their love for Rory is truly moving.

The episode also provides insight into the darker side of the Doctor, and the risks and dangers involved in travelling with him.

The Girl Who Waited is a visual delight, featuring a clean and white future setting. Murray Gold’s musical score further enhances the emotional impact of the episode. It is an impressive achievement, given the limited number of guest stars, and the focus on the principal cast.

The episode deserves all the high praise it will undoubtedly receive, and it is hoped that next week’s episode, The God Complex, can continue this impressive streak of quality episodes.

⭐⭐⭐⭐

Listen to our podcast review here.

Episode 42: Let’s Kill Hitler

Martyn, Gerrod and Pete look at Doctor Who: Let’s Kill Hitler.



The podcast is available from all good podcast services, such as but not limited to Amazon Music, PodchaserPlayer FM, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts.

Check out our Youtube.

If you’d like to support the show, then please shop via our Amazon link. A small percentage goes our way, at no extra cost to you.

Socials:

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Martyn – @BadWilf

Gerrod –@InGerrodsMind

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Let’s Kill Hitler: Press Launch

Right. Yes, now. Where to start? I attended the press launch of Doctor Who: Let’s Kill Hitler last night. However I, like everyone else in the room, was sworn to secrecy: to tell you anything about it would completely ruin the story for you. All I can say is it’s good. Very, very good. It feels more like the traditional series opener. It’s funny when it needs to be and thrilling when the episode calls for it.

The cast all put in exceptional performances. I’m finding this extremely difficult to write as it would truly ruin the episode if I were to say anything about it. Look, just come back here on August 28th. I’ll be able to say more then.

Pictures from the event:

 
 



Episode 31: A Good Man Goes to War

Martyn and Gerrod look at the sixth series episode of Doctor Who, ‘A Good Man Goes To War’. They also review and recommend the Third Doctor anime, that is currently doing the rounds on YouTube.



The podcast is available from all good podcast services, such as but not limited to Amazon Music, PodchaserPlayer FM, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts.

Check out our Youtube.

If you’d like to support the show, then please shop via our Amazon link. A small percentage goes our way, at no extra cost to you.

Socials:

Twitter:

Martyn – @BadWilf

Gerrod –@InGerrodsMind

Pete – @BeeblePete

Sam-@Sammichaelcomic

Instagram:

Martyn-@BadWilf



Episode 30: The Almost People

Martyn and Gerrod look at the Doctor Who episode ‘The Almost People’. Pete reviews the Eleventh Doctor audiobook The Ring of Steel, by AudioGo.



The podcast is available from all good podcast services, such as but not limited to Amazon Music, PodchaserPlayer FM, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts.

Check out our Youtube.

If you’d like to support the show, then please shop via our Amazon link. A small percentage goes our way, at no extra cost to you.

Socials:

Twitter:

Martyn – @BadWilf

Gerrod –@InGerrodsMind

Pete – @BeeblePete

Sam-@Sammichaelcomic

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Martyn-@BadWilf

Episode 29: The Rebel Flesh

Martyn and Gerrod look at Doctor Who: The Rebel Flesh.

The Rebel Flesh” is the fifth episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 21 May 2011 on BBC One and on BBC America in the United States. It is the first episode of a two-part story written by Matthew Graham and directed by Julian Simpson, concluded in “The Almost People”.

In the episode, the TARDIS is hit by a solar storm, sending the Doctor (Matt Smith) and his companions Amy Pond (Karen Gillan) and Rory Williams (Arthur Darvill) to a monastery on an island on Earth in the 22nd century, which has been converted into a factory to pump acid off the island. To prevent death from the acid, the workers have utilized a “programmable matter” called the Flesh, which creates a doppelgänger (called “Ganger”) controlled by the worker. As the solar storm hits, the Gangers become independent, and the Doctor, Amy and Rory must work to prevent the two groups from breaking into a war.

Showrunner Steven Moffat specifically asked Graham to write the episodes about “avatars that rebel”, although the Flesh and the monastery were Graham’s original ideas. The episode was filmed in the late months of 2010 with some location filming at Caerphilly Castle to represent the monastery. Prosthetics were used to create the Gangers’ facial features, while doubles of the actors were used for scenes in which a character and his or her Ganger were both in a scene, but did not both show their face.

The episode was seen by 7.35 million viewers in the UK and achieved an Appreciation Index of 85. Reviewers were generally positive about the episode; some praised the setting and characters but others commented that the story had not developed enough even though it was only the first part. The computer-generated effects used for one scene were also disapproved of by a couple of reviewers.

The podcast is available from all good podcast services, such as but not limited to Amazon Music, PodchaserPlayer FM, Stitcher, and Apple Podcasts.

If you’d like to support the show, then please shop via our Amazon link. A small percentage goes our way, at no extra cost to you.

Socials:

Twitter:

Martyn – @BadWilf

Gerrod –@InGerrodsMind

Pete – @BeeblePete

Sam-@Sammichaelcomic

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Martyn-@BadWilf