30.03: Planet of the Ood

[Lenny]

The Doctor takes Donna to her first alien world, but the Ood-Sphere reveals some terrible truths about the human race.

---

Not a bad episode, but definitely not the best of the three. A bit too... neat for my liking, and the ending was very sweet and nice and... eugh.

Still, it was nice to see the Ood again.

I've got to pop off, so I'll leave with this - didn't hear a mention of the Shadow Proclamation or the Medusa Cascade.

Oh, and the comment about the Doctor's song ending soon was a bit strange. And I mustn't forget the second mention of the bees disappearing.

[The Ace]

The baddie used the 'G,' word and was only turned into an ood ?

Anyone who spells 'Red.' with a 'G,' deserves a slow, agonising death.

As to the song ending soon, obviously DT doesn't want to be the Doctor forever.

[Lenny]

Looks like I'm not popping off after all.

I think he's not leaving until the end of the last special next year, so we've effectively got 13 more episodes with him, which is a very long time for a song to peter out in.

[PTeppic]

We didn't get the Shadow Proclamation but we did get the disappearance of the bees...

Incidentally, there does seem to be a genuine concern about the bees:
Mystery Bee Disappearances Sweeping U.S.
is just one of half a million Googled by: disappearance of the bees

[Harpo]

Yep, I've bee(n) watching the vanishing bees thing for a few months now

[Foxbat]

I liked this episode. It does what SF does best - hold a mirror to our faces. Good to see us as the monsters for a change.

[PTeppic]

On "Confidential" I think it was the producer who was highlighting that aspect, that it was an important message about freeing from repression. RTD was more effusive about "doing an ice planet" and having "people doing their job" and "management" as the bad guys, since it was more realistic.

[TheEndIsNigh]

Originally Posted by Lenny

The Doctor takes Donna to her first alien world, but the Ood-Sphere reveals some terrible truths about the human race.

---

Not a bad episode, but definitely not the best of the three. A bit too... neat for my liking, and the ending was very sweet and nice and... eugh.

A BIT neat! You don't find all the recent episodes a bit neat! All tied up in one episode. No edge of the seat cliffhangers.

I remmember the good old days when story lines lasted months and every episode ended with some female screaming her head off just before some monster took her head off. The school playground would be full of it the next day (and I'm not just talking about the talking here). Bring back the glory days when people hid behind the settee and stayed there untill the next episode.

[byrney123]

Apart from the bees and the thing about the Doctors song ending this episode seemed a bit like a stand alone to me, I dunno why but I just felt it didnt feel like it fitted into the series very well, but that could be because I watched it on Sunday morning very hungover. Turns out I was wrong about the Ood they were secretly evil trying to take over the world super villans. Pity that would have been very cool, I wonder if they pop up again, I hope so I would like to see some free Ood

[Lenny]

Originally Posted by TheEndIsNigh

A BIT neat! You don't find all the recent episodes a bit neat! All tied up in one episode. No edge of the seat cliffhangers.

I remmember the good old days when story lines lasted months and every episode ended with some female screaming her head off just before some monster took her head off. The school playground would be full of it the next day (and I'm not just talking about the talking here). Bring back the glory days when people hid behind the settee and stayed there untill the next episode.

The reason I say neat... well everything tied up nicely. The Ood were free, the evil management was gone, the third brain was once again accessible, hell, the Doctor probably went around with a feather duster before he left.

Episode 1: They left supernanny as a patch on the floor, preferring instead to leave it to whoever's job it is to clean up suicides.

Episode 2: Sure, he rescued Caecillius and his family, but then just left them at the top of a hill, overlooking their city get buried.

In this episode there were no loose ends.

I agree, bring back the days when the episodes were one long story, but these ain't too bad... unless the writer gets struck by the Happy Sappy Branch of Nice Endings halfway through the script. *shudder*

[Ryangj06]

i'm just guessing but i think the 'bees dissapearing' may link to the giant wasp on the trailers before the series begun

overall i thought i was a good episode, nice to revisit the ood

[Dr.Jackson]

A nice slice of a sci-fi staple theme for this episode - the inhumanity of humans, and as RTD pointed out, they had to do an ice planet. The interesting Poe-esque come-uppance was a bit ... well,.... anyone go off their spaghetti?
I missed the fact he was an Ood underneath when he peeled back his scalp. I thought he'd exposed his skull until he vomited up the tentacles.
On another note, it seems that this Doctor has the ability to do a Vulcan mind-meld, now where did that come from? Has he done this in previous incarnations and I've just missed it?

I agree with the whole 'neatly tied up by the end' thing. It is unfortunate that it is apparently the current TV climate, where people these days have the attention span of a relatively dim goldfish, leading to programming guidlines being tailored accordingly. To think that people won't be able to follow a story over a few weeks is a bit silly, but they cited that the old Doctor Who format wouldn't survive in todays fast paced media environment, as witnessed by the demise of the series during Sylvester McCoys' reign.

As for the song ending.... I don't know the outcome, but just wait until the last two episodes is all I have heard... much bigger than the 'end of the world' stuff apparently.

[Dave]

Originally Posted by Lenny

...the comment about the Doctor's song ending soon was a bit strange...

I wondered about that too. Maybe it IS just to keep fans wondering about how long DT will stay, but there has been much made about him staying next Season so if that was the reason it is a bit strange. I have no idea what else it might mean.

Originally Posted by Ryangj06

...I think the 'bees disappearing' may link to the giant wasp on the trailers before the series begun...

I missed that - and I saw the cinema trailer too. Are you sure? (or are you not confusing last Season's 'Torchwood trailer' with the 'Reset' insect?)

Originally Posted by Dr.Jackson

On another note, it seems that this Doctor has the ability to do a Vulcan mind-meld, now where did that come from? Has he done this in previous incarnations and I've just missed it?

It's the first I remember it, and it was much too like the 'Vulcan Mind Meld' for me. In the past, the TARDIS has given a telepathic ability - I thought that was how they could read and understand speech in different languages.

Other than that it was a fairly reasonable episode, though obviously on a lower budget.

Next week, my favourite Doctor Who aliens. I just hope they don't drop them and break them (on their Probic Vents or not.)

[HoopyFrood]

I remember seeing a giant wasp in the trailer -- if I'm remembering correctly, it seemed that Donna was in some kind of bedroom (there's a bed, at least) and a giant wasp hovering in front of her.

I missed this episode. Missed last week's, too. I'm useless I'll catch up eventually.

[Dr.Jackson]

Originally Posted by Dave

Next week, my favourite Doctor Who aliens. I just hope they don't drop them and break them (on their Probic Vents or not.)

Ah yes, Mr Potato Head - battle edition!