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October 21st, 2018 98 comments

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Poll – What Did You Think of Rosa?

Now that the third episode of series 11 has aired what did you think? Was it everything you had hoped for or not what you expected.

Montgomery, Alabama. 1955. The Doctor and her friends find themselves in the Deep South of America. As they encounter a seamstress by the name of Rosa Parks, they begin to wonder whether someone is attempting to change history.





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98 comments

  • Mary Kings

    October 23rd, 2018 - 12:19pm

    I am very disappointed by the new series. It seems as if the characters have no chemistry, the Dr. is just not alien enough (she may as well be an inter-galactic counsellor) and there is no excitement. I remember with nostalgia the excellent characters and enemies of the past, and am worried that the future may be a bit insipid and lack-luster in comparison (let’s not forget that Broadchurch took 8 drawn-out episodes to tell a story that could have been told in 3). I hope that is not going to be the new pace. It will be hard to take after the action-packed recent history. Perhaps we are going back to the original series, where a story that Moffat could tell in one episode was drawn out over five. Snore. Please let’s have some more pacey stories, and make the most of Jodie Whittaker – she’s a great actress. Dr. Who is not the girl next door – she is tough, unpredictable, feisty, a genius and ALIEN! And let’s have some more interesting dialogue, please! Where are all the clever quipps?

    Reply
    • The Moffat Paradox

      October 23rd, 2018 - 3:45pm

      And those that look like their causing these elements to be lost and split the fan base with their actions and seemingly weird sense of creative direction claim to be “fans” themselves. With friends like these……………

    • Arthurian2

      October 24th, 2018 - 9:22am

      Totally agree. I’ve always been a huge Dr Who fan and always felt that criticism from many fans, was really negative. But now I find myself in that place, and I hate it. I don’t think Chibnail was ever a real fan of the show because, if he had been, we wouldn’t be getting the kind of show we’re seeing. Before the reboot started I revisited the early Torchwood series, and his stories were the least satisfying, dodgy plots, no conclusions and a cyber woman, all the warning signs were there. As for Broadchurch, if you had taken Tennant and Colman out, there was a simple whodunnit.

    • techmki

      October 24th, 2018 - 6:18pm

      Totally disagree, I think that the reverse is true.

    • lorraine

      October 25th, 2018 - 1:52pm

      Do I so agree with you Mary, Moffat Paradox and Arthurian2. I cannot understand why everyone is raving about it when I am silently crying. Jodie is like a big sister not a 2000+ year old time person. Chibnall has no idea about the magic and concept of the programme but we do not know what pressure the Beeb put on him to make DW non-fan based and user friendly for previous non or casual viewers. It just isn’t working and I don’t think the rest of the series will improve much as already in the can. You need a real sense of alien and a great TARDIS interior for the programme to spark. Jodie has no alien aura and the TARDIS interior is far too small to film in this time around seemingly. Jodie and the team make it feel like a run of the mill programme and waving the sonic around endlessly is pointless (expect they are trying to sell these and the stupid Barbie). This is not their fault the writing just isn’t that good. Agree about Broadchurch as well; Tennant and Coleman made it. I think Jodie played the Mum whose Son was killed but if you had asked me before she got the DW gig I could not have told you who this actress was.

    • Dalek Eye Stalk

      October 25th, 2018 - 4:05pm

      They could have cast another male actor in the title role, and they may not have been suitable. The issue for me isn’t the fact the Doctor has different gender. If they wanted a female Doctor, It’s whether the actress is suitable for the role or not, and I never felt Jodie was a natural choice to play the Doctor in the first place. Yet with turning the ‘Master’ into ‘Missy’ they got it spot on! Michelle Gomez was perfect. One thing Moffat definitely excelled at was casting exactly the right people for the Doctor and Master/Missy. How did they get the Doctor so wrong? One would be interested to know who Moffat would have cast as the Doctor if it was to be female. Clearly Chibnall is going for broke, and completely changing the style and dynamic of the show. I’m not sure this is the right way forward though?

    • Derek Angell

      October 25th, 2018 - 6:00pm

      Moffat struggled to tell any kind of story and when you combine that with Matt Smiths `nails on a chalkboard ’ portrayal of the Doctor followed by lack lustre writing that betrayed the great Peter Capaldi this new direction is a much needed change.I am loving this new series and it‘s great to be watching for pure enjoyment again and not because of clenched teeth loyalty .

    • Anonymous

      October 25th, 2018 - 7:41pm

      I would say say Moffat struggled to tell stories in his later work with who, but now his years with RTD and Early years as head writer, for my e he got burnt out very quick in his time as show runner, but now and then gave great stories like heaven sent and terrible ones like hell bent.

    • techmki

      October 25th, 2018 - 9:41pm

      The problem with a lot of Moffat stories is that he kept using (Bill and Ted *rolls eyes) ‘magic endings’. 1. Something terrible happens. 2 but don’t worry its all ok because I time traveled and did [INSERT ACTION HERE] to fix it. Hence almost anything that happens can be undone or probably will be anyway. Total loss of dramatic tension.
      The truth is that is the past now, his era is over. If you don’t like the new series then take the advice that was given to many fans that didn’t like the Moffat era by fans that did like that era: go watch those episodes you love on Netflix or DVD or whatever. Someone high up in the BBC must also have had the same thought that something was wrong with the Moffat era otherwise why was his contract cut short! It gets a bit tedious.

  • Richard Vandame

    October 23rd, 2018 - 4:49am

    Unlike episodes 1 and 2, I did not like this one. It reminded me of suffering through the first couple of episodes of the Timeless series before abandoning that. There should be a clever story line, not a rehash of history. There’s also an underlying feeling the focus has been forcing inclusiveness by having such obviously diverse characters. Previous seasons demonstrated the worth of diversity with strong companions like Martha and Bill. The emphasis was story, not PC.

    Reply
    • Tyler Prescott

      October 25th, 2018 - 10:17am

      I think it’s clever, how they set up to have a Black companion, his white grandad, and an Asian, to be affected more greatly by the racism.

      Also, Graham being a bus driver (and, to a lesser degree, Yaz being a police officer) tied in with the plot really well.

  • Tarsetburn

    October 23rd, 2018 - 12:16am

    I think Jodie has heaps of potential as The Doctor….but….she is let down badly by the writing. Please keep the pc stuff for documentaries and serious drama and let the Doctor help us escape to a fantasy world. So far the writing has been poor, the ideas limp and the fantasy and action woeful. Give Jodie a chance writers! Less social commentary and introspection and more Dr Who please.

    Reply
    • Doctor Stu

      October 23rd, 2018 - 11:21am

      I don’t understand how being anti racist means something is ‘PC’

    • The Moffat Paradox

      October 23rd, 2018 - 4:09pm

      Nobody with any real intelligence has a problem with anti racism etc as such. It’s if “messages” are so in peoples faces that people can start to find this irksome and an impression created of their being too obsessive in trying to fill a diversity tickbox.It’s how it’s done more than if it is.

  • Rebecca Delph

    October 22nd, 2018 - 8:33pm

    While I was not terribly excited about having a female Doctor (and I do like the actress), I hate to say that after 3 episodes I am completely unimpressed with the new series. I wasn’t fond of Matt Smith, but the story line and writing drew me in. Now I’m afraid it’s the writing and story line that is lacking.

    Reply
  • the ergon

    October 22nd, 2018 - 5:39pm

    I was slightly taken aback by Yas’ use of the ‘P’ word on a primetime BBC show. I understand the characters are dealing with racist attitudes but do we really need these sort of connotations at this hour.
    On the other hand as a ‘mostly’ straight forward historical I rather liked this episode. I prefer the pseudo historicals but it made a change.
    P.s-That police officers accent tended to wobble. Was that an english actor? That was a drawl too far. Brought back thoughts of those dreadful Accents from ‘The Gunfighters’.

    Reply
  • Angie

    October 22nd, 2018 - 2:42pm

    A very memorable and moving episode. I loved that we saw two sides to the Doctor, her strength of body and mind when she confronted the villain, and her uncertainty and doubt when she thought there weren’t going to be enough people on the bus which gave a note of vulnerability to her too. Great that Ryan had his moment to shine, Graham was on top form in this episode too. I was very much looking forward to Malorie Blackman’s writing and it didn’t disappoint. On a lighter note Jodie’s teasing about whether or not she might be Banksy and her comments about lending Elvis a mobile phone added just the right amount of humour

    Reply
    • the ergon

      October 22nd, 2018 - 5:44pm

      Those were some of the funnier moments,i agree and also it was nice too see Yas’ character coming to the fore and starting to make her mark.

  • whovian

    October 22nd, 2018 - 2:03pm

    After watching last week’s Ghost Monument, I was actually fed up already with Bradley’s Graham, but after “Rosa”, his dialogue on the bus after they realised that they were some of the white people on the bus genuinely moved me by saying he didn’t want to be a part of it. And when the Doctor realised that neither she or her friends could get off the bus as there would be more room for white people and Rosa wouldn’t need to move from her seat, Jodie really looked genuinely upset and guilty that as part of history, she couldn’t get up.

    In my opinion, I don’t think the ending theme would have been suitable for the episode’s end due to the powerful storyline. But I do have to agree that the villain was indeed wasted. Yes, we got a reference to the Stormcage Facility, obviously that’s where River Song was locked up. For me, the best scene (although I enjoyed the whole episode), was on the bus where the Doctor and co have inadvertently become part of the timeline and Graham states he doesn’t want to be a part of this fixed event. I won’t lie, I did get emotional and I cried.

    Reply
  • Jamie

    October 22nd, 2018 - 1:57pm

    Absolutely excellent!

    Reply
  • Exterminator

    October 22nd, 2018 - 1:05pm

    I enjoyed this weeks episode and found it very moving. It was more like an episode of Quantum Leap though with the ‘evil leaper’ trying to rewrite history. The bad guy knew what the Tardis was when he saw it so why not make him another meddling monk style rogue time lord?

    Reply
  • ADAM

    October 22nd, 2018 - 12:58pm

    This new version is very much aimed at a younger audience. It was like Horrible histories meets the sarah jane adventures. And again the regular cast fail to impress and are just bland…
    If you took away the theme tune and the police box,you wouldn’t even know you were watching Doctor who.

    Reply
    • Arthurian2

      October 22nd, 2018 - 3:07pm

      Sorry, the Sarah Jane Adventures, with the lovely Elisabeth Sladen, were more dynamic than this reboot. At least Liz commanded some presence, and kept her ‘gang’ involved with the story.

  • lorraine

    October 22nd, 2018 - 10:41am

    I am not surprised Chibnall said we would not see much of the TARDIS this season as they have spent zilch on it. Almost looks smaller on the inside. The actors look claustrophobic and squashed in there and are they holding up those rather gaudy poles? Certainly you could not have a TARDIS based theme at the moment. Also see they all have clean tee-shirts etc. for each episode but poor Jodie is still stuck in her charity shop garb but guess she cannot change that because of the big hype on what she was going to be wearing and the merchandise aspect. I do think that if you did not know about Rosa Parks then the latest episode may have been more enjoyable but overall I feel Doctor Who has been hijacked by alien beings from Planet BBC. It has no soul somehow. Think younger fans are enjoying more but these standalone episodes are not hitting the spot for me. I will plod on though but it is no longer a big highlight of my viewing week which it always used to be and that makes me kinder sad

    Reply
    • Judooning

      October 22nd, 2018 - 11:54am

      I love the look of the new TARDIS and the colours, but I have to agree with you about them looking crammed in there. I can’t imagine them being able to do those shots too easily of the Doctor running round the console as things pop and fizz without the camera man running into one of the arches.
      Still we’ve seen little of it yet so they may surprise us.

  • The Master

    October 22nd, 2018 - 10:35am

    Very good episode indeed! This run is shaping up to be a very good series ! The doctor is strong and dynamic! Companions are excellent and this handled racism very well .

    Reply
  • Arthurian2

    October 22nd, 2018 - 10:11am

    Week three, and after two weeks on the sofa I’m now behind it! This series has been heralded as a new era for Dr Who, but is it really? I can see Sydney Newman sitting at his desk telling Chibnail that he wants an educational adventure show with no bug eyed monsters. Back in the 1960’s the historical shows were eventually dropped in favour of more science fiction based stories, but when it was rebooted in 2005 historical characters started to make more regular appearances. Queen Victoria, Shakespeare, Winston Churchill, Agatha Christie, Elizabeth 1st and Canton Delaware were all portrayed. The difference was that those characters were part of the Doctors world, thrown into it, whether they liked it or not. Rosa was about Rosa Parks, and the Doctor was there to observe and the science fiction element of the story was tacked on to give a reason for the time travellers intervention. The villain was a bigot, simple, dressed in 20th century earth garb. All white people were rude, aggressive, and generally unpleasant. The villain had a suitcase with a cloaking device and some contents which looked like they’d come from a charity shop. After establishing they were in 1950’s South Africa, the gang were soon embroiled in it’s politics, but after the scuffle in the street, the point was hammered home again as the gang sat in a bar where they were told, very ungraciously, to leave. Knowing the political situation, was the Doctor that inconsiderate to put her friends back into another hostile situation? Did Ryan drive a left handed car?

    Dyspraxia Symptoms:
    Poor balance. …
    Poor posture and fatigue. …
    Poor integration of the two sides of the body. …
    Poor hand-eye co-ordination. …
    Lack of rhythm when dancing, doing aerobics.
    Clumsy gait and movement. …
    Exaggerated ‘accessory movements’ such as flapping arms when running.
    Tendency to fall, trip, bump into things and people.

    None of these symptoms have been apparent in Ryan so why set up a character with a medical condition and only use it when it suits a scene? This story was so, (forgive the metaphor), black and white, no greys to be seen. No lightness of touch in the writing, it was hammered home. Dr Who is a rare format in that it can be absolutely anything, but for me it was always an escapist show, somewhere I went to get away from the realities of life. This reboot comes straight from the W1A boardroom, where we laughed at the antics of BBC executives……

    Reply
    • Anonymous

      October 22nd, 2018 - 7:12pm

      Just saying, Canton Delaware is fictional, created for the story.

  • Anonymous

    October 22nd, 2018 - 8:59am

    The villains plan made no sense think, about it. Racism still exists in the 71st Century when humanity is sailing among the stars and yeah some people never change. But even if the villain basically just wanted to make sure Rosa Parks never never stood up on a bus. His plan is the first doctor who plan to not even be cinematic. Also even if Rosa didn’t do what she did. Someone else would have anyway. History always repairs itself anyway. Also That scene was Yaz and Ryan behind the bins was a little jarring as I feel they were just telling us stuff about racism in their life, but this could haven been shown in other episodes. This episode should have been episode 5 or 7, not 3. Also may I say, Montgomery 1955 is the scariest place doctor who has ever been to, it feels like an ailen world and it’s terrfying. Well done. Also the credits music shouldn’t have been replaced. I know the song is motivational but it’s doctor who don’t replace the credits for pop music. All and all 7/10. And Jodie was excellent for this episode

    Reply
  • R1ch1e

    October 22nd, 2018 - 6:57am

    Firstly I’ll get the negatives out the way. Krasko was the very worst baddie in Who history. I’m still not sure why he did what he did but this episode wasn’t about him so I can kind of gloss over it. However as with Epzo and Angstrom last week, I don’t think his story is quite done yet so fingers crossed.
    Secondly, and this is nobody’s fault really just a niggle of mine, I think the placement of this episode was my great. I feel it should have been episode 5 or 6. It was just a bit early in a brand new era, at episode 3, to have such an intense episode.
    Apart from that though, I LOVED IT! A fair play to Malorie Blackman and Chris Chibnall. They really took it back to the shows Hartnell roots. As I said before on here this is exactly the kind of story that Sidney Newman wanted for the show and they handled it with dignity and respect. It really worked as a biopic with the Doctor and her mates just witnessing a pivotal moment in history. But because they didn’t take centre stage they didn’t get a chance to shine in the way that they have the previous episodes. That said there was a little more between Ryan and Yaz. There will be alo t more to come from them in sure but I do really like the companions. And Jodie is still great. Just as It was great to see her reunited with the Tardis last week, it was so amazing to see her step out of it at the start. week
    Also how great was Vinette Robinson? One of the all time brilliant guest performances in my opinion. Also like the little reference to Missy and the end, how it signed off like Vincent and the Doctor and the Unicorn and the Wasp.
    8/10
    Chris Chibnall has really taken the show in a completely fresh direction. I loved Steven Moffatts era but he did make the show exclusively for adults it seemed. Very dark, but very good. Chibnall has made the show very accessible for people of all ages. It’s not going to please everyone, but I really respect what he is trying to do.

    Reply
    • Doctor Stu

      October 22nd, 2018 - 9:22am

      I never understand people who think Moffatt wrote the show exclusively for adults when his era had some of the most childish, cringy dialogue and over the top acting of the whole show

    • whovian

      October 22nd, 2018 - 4:05pm

      R1ch1e, where was the reference to Missy? I didn’t spot it, I got the Stormcage reference.

    • R1ch1e

      October 22nd, 2018 - 9:04pm

      “Cheap and nasty time travel” from The Magicians apprentice

    • Sambot22

      October 23rd, 2018 - 1:33pm

      The Eleventh Doctor said it first in the big bang.

  • The Moffat Paradox

    October 22nd, 2018 - 1:12am

    Historical context which was well done aside for what is STILL supposed to be fundamentally a SCI-SHOW one word came to mind: Insipid. I fear just getting more of this by episode 10 even if any PC/SJW element isn’t as overt as might have been envisaged.

    By coincidence the other week I found my self watching “Genesis Of The Daleks” and which of the two things that are both supposed to be Who I’ll leave others to guess that I thought was the more gripping and quintessential. And that was Tom Baker just getting started.

    Reply
    • The Living Shadow

      October 22nd, 2018 - 1:19pm

      It’s a show about Time Travel; of course they’re going to go back in time and explore history. And a lot of history was a living hell for any people and that’s kind of impossible not to address in a narrative that takes place in a time and place like America I’m the mid-20th century.

    • The Moffat Paradox

      October 22nd, 2018 - 2:37pm

      Yeah but historical themes are not new to Who and I think it’s been done in ways that were more interesting than a time travelling humanoid ex con from the 79th century with pre industrial revolution attitudes. Such as the Master trying to stop the signing of Magna Carta (how’s that for retarding enlightened development) or the presence of in seventeenth century London the Terileptils causing the great fire. Or how about portraying the Doctor having had a role in stopping the Cuban Missile crisis leading to World War 3 as an idea.

    • The Moffat Paradox

      October 22nd, 2018 - 2:57pm

      Might have been an opportune moment as well to reintroduce post Master/Missy The Meddling Monk maybe with more blending garb assuming “The Doctor Falls” really closed the lid on that character.

  • Mark Davis

    October 22nd, 2018 - 12:35am

    The script was clunky and asinine. My 11 year old daughter called it cheesy. I think that just about sums up the first 3 episodes.

    Reply
  • RORY DOCTOR RIVER POND

    October 22nd, 2018 - 12:27am

    enjoyed it for what it was, but the storyline felt forced. kind of felt like they wanted to do rosa parks but didnt have much to add to it
    really good character work/moments, but the plot was lacking
    if the villain wasn’t there I doubt it would make much difference, not sure what the point of him was, hence my thought that they didn’t really know who to ‘whoify’ the whole event
    I’m scared of spiders so not looking forward to next weeeekkkk

    Reply
  • KORSAIR

    October 22nd, 2018 - 12:20am

    An excellent episode, I loved it.

    Reply
  • timefish

    October 21st, 2018 - 11:31pm

    Travellers

    Reply
  • Doctor Stu

    October 21st, 2018 - 10:26pm

    I thought it was a beautiful. Perfect reminder of history and how far we’ve come, it moved me and the end scene where she’s walking off the bus was beautiful with the music in the background and over the credits. I don’t understand how someone wouldn’t be moved by that or think it wasn’t very good. Could have made the out of space racist a little less attractive though XD

    Reply
  • Anonymous

    October 21st, 2018 - 10:23pm

    The most horrific monster ever to feature in a Doctor who episode. Beautifully and sensitively delivered. 9/10

    Reply

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