Moon-Crane wrote:I do sometimes wonder what pressure and politics the showrunners are surrounded by to include various 'popular' elements in any given year. I'm sure there are programming directors with a checklist of things they expect to see included - choking on their cappuccinos when something's missing.
That's a very interesting idea.
Or, I wonder if the showrunners have ever sent a script back to the writters with a memo attached "ENOUGH WITH THE ^"^*$^ "%^&$£ $£"%^$$&% DALEK STORYLINES! INVENT SOME NEW MONSTERS IMMEDIATLY YOU LAZY BASTARDS!!!!!!!!!!"
I've always been quite happy to see the Daleks myself, but in retrospect it seems that they are trying to make it bigger and bigger.
Let me explain.
In the episode "Dalek" there was a Delek. Single. Non plaural.
Then (trying to remember these in order) The Doctor fought a small army of invading Daleks (led by the Emperor Dalek, no less) on a TV satelite.
Then you had the Cult Of Skaro. Only 4 Daleks initially, but they went on to open the prison that brought forth thousands of the buggers.
Then the Daleks moved to Manhattan where they raised a pig army and made human Daleks.
OK, that was quite original.
Then we got to the part where the Daleks stole the Earth.
Not just the Daleks, but Davros got wheeled on, and Dalek Caan, as well as a new Supreme Dalek.
There were thousands of them.
Plus, we got a regeneration, two docrors for the price of one, and more assistants that you get working in Sainsburys on a Sunday afternoon
I enjoyed the episode very much at the time, but now I look back and think "just how much "AWESOME" were they trying to squeeze into one story?
I saw the advert for the Dalek ep of this years Doctor Who, and it appeared to be a Dalek planet.
Just how many Daleks does the Doctor have to be surrounded by for the viewer to think "ooh, he's in trouble now".
Chris E had his hands full with one.
You don't need to have the Doctor on a ship with thosands of Daleks, surrounded by a fleet of hundreds of ships, each containing thousands more Daleks, to create a dangerous atmosphere.
It seems that the question "But haven't we done this before?" is answered by "No, this time there are 54% more Daleks, that makes it new and more dangerous".
Still, i've not watched any of the Matt Smith eps. I've seen a couple of clips, but it doesn't do much for me.
Amy Pond can do something for me if she likes
One was on the other evening, I think it's one discussed here, a christmas ep, and it just didn't work.
The dead dad who turns up alive at the end of the episode just seems a little cheesy now.
Maybe it's because it's made with kids in mind, noy cynical gits
, or maybe (probably) it's because it's a Xmas episode so they want to spread some cheer, I don't know, but it just seemed to be too much happy ever after.