30.06: The Doctor's Daughter

[thaddeus6th]

That's not the case: Romana regenerated into Lalla Ward (who was quite delightful).

Mind you, she did try out a number of bodies before settling on one.

[Interference]

Originally Posted by Talysia

I can definitely see the Doctor's daughter returning (though I hope not in another spin-off).

Totally agree.

And while I naturally dread the intent, the execution worked ok for me.

[PTeppic]

Having just watched for the third time, I've realised something about the "Jenny regeneration" discussion... did we miss a trick and fall foul of Occam's bladey thing: she was shot dead in the midst if a cloud of super-duper planet resurrecting terraforming gas... designed with the soul purpose of bringing life to the dead (planet). I was prompted by the artistic content of the tongues of gas which escaped her mouth: I thought they so closely resembled the "source" that they might just be...

Edit: I've also just watched "The Christmas Invasion" and the Doctor's energy exhalation was different, no "tongues" as with the "source" gas, just a solid stream of particulate energy

[Dave]

Originally Posted by PTeppic

...did we miss a trick and fall foul of Occam's bladey thing: she was shot dead in the midst if a cloud of super-duper planet resurrecting terraforming gas... designed with the soul purpose of bringing life to the dead (planet).

Just like the Genesis device in Star Trek III: The Search for Spock. By George, I think you've got it!!!

[thaddeus6th]

I'd forgotten about that, PTeppic. Makes perfect sense, as does the regenerative thing the Doctor used to grow a new hand.

Hmm. It does make me wonder slightly why the Master didn't survive and had to regenerate.

[PTeppic]

Originally Posted by thaddeus6th

I'd forgotten about that, PTeppic. Makes perfect sense, as does the regenerative thing the Doctor used to grow a new hand.

Hmm. It does make me wonder slightly why the Master didn't survive and had to regenerate.

I'd say they were both different mechanisms, though in their own way both new canon detail.

The Doctor explicitly said that he had "residual cellular energy" because he was still within the first 15 hours of his regeneration. This would be the closer of the two to Jenny's miracle, though she was progenated rather than having regenerated into her current form. Would have been within 15 hours though.

The Master implied (if not said explicitly) that although he was dying he CHOSE not to regenerate, probably with some quite specific bio-mental control. <conspiracy="on">Or, he knew he was only a clone (or possibly stand-in), and that Mrs Master was the real Master, or some other twist that means he'll reappear next season... <conspiracy="off">

[Ursa major]

Originally Posted by PTeppic

The Master implied (if not said explicitly) that although he was dying he CHOSE not to regenerate, probably with some quite specific bio-mental control. <conspiracy="on">Or, he knew he was only a clone (or possibly stand-in), and that Mrs Master was the real one, or some other twist that means he'll reappear next season...<conspiracy="off">

I started to post just as you added the conspiratorial comment.

I think he was probably up to something.

[PTeppic]

He's the Master - of course he's up to something...

[Teresa Edgerton]

Originally Posted by Selati

I couldn't work out why the leader didn't know the truth though. Surely he was older than 7 days (he looked around 50 to me) unless the machine just randomly made him older than the others or they age really quickly.

I wondered about why he looked so old, too. As you say, if he had been one of the original settlers he wouldn't have accepted the mythology. And if they all age that much in less than 7 days, why didn't we see anyone aging during the course of the episode? Besides, if the machine is supposed to populate the planet after the terraforming is complete, wouldn't you think it would make them more durable?

[PTeppic]

As I think's already been alluded to, the feasibility of the entire landing party having been killed, and indeed probably several entire early generations, is one of the biggest flaws in the episode. But if they can do that they can have differently aged clones.

[Teresa Edgerton]

Originally Posted by PTeppic

But if they can do that they can have differently aged clones.

Sure. But why would they want to? Obviously, the clones don't automatically come out at the same age as their progenitors, because Jenny looks several years younger than DT. And if the machine can produce clones that are younger than their originals, why not in his case? I don't see the value to the proposed colony.

I realize this is not the only plot hole, but it's one of the bigger ones, and they don't offer an explanation, not even a lame one.

[PTeppic]

True, true. What they really need amongst the new colonists is, as highlighted in season two(?) of new Galactica, lots of virile young people making babies...

[Dave]

These problems are mostly the same problems that always arise with stories of fully-grown, aged, adult clones with learned abilities and skills, identical personalities, and fully-formed memories. Science Fiction writers should just stop doing these stories.

Here, they did try to dress it up as something a little different to cloning, the machine is an interesting idea for planetary colonisation, but the same holes are appearing anyway.