GJMarshy
TS Member
Erm...
I really, really wanted to like these episodes (and this new series) but in all honesty it's been the most cringe-worth camp-fest I've ever seen. There's nothing wrong with that in moderation, heck I loved the "Spice up your life" scene in The Giggle, it was a fun! RTD has gone far too overboard on this front though from the Christmas special to The Devil's Chord. I get that he's frustrated at the push-back from people who don't agree with his political and social stances (many of which I agree with) but it seems this is now what's driving the writing, rather than the story itself.
He's gone on record saying he changed the sonic as the old one "looked like a gun" and worried about the effect that might have on kids. Sorryrussel, but how on earth does a screwdriver (that looks more like a pen) even remotely resemble a gun? It's as if he's actively looking for *anything* to make an issue out of. Why does it need to be mentioned by Maestro that ruby wrote a song about "lesbian lovers" or that whole thing where "I'm them" etc etc. It's making a big deal out of something that really doesn't need to be one, and every time something like that is injected into the story, it takes you out of it completely and breaks what could be riveting scenes.
Anecdotally I also found Maestro more irritating than even remotely frightening. It was like watching a spoilt child with main character syndrome have a tantrum for an entire episode. The musical number at the end? The fourth wall breaks? Just so unbelievably cringey and again, completely breaks any sense of immersion or suspension of disbelief. It's as if RTD is parodying his own show for some reason, as if he's become a bitter old man who just wants to stir up unnecessary controversy. I'd say he's akin to Rishi Sunak in that way. Alienate people, push them away rather than attempt to bring them on board, then divide and conquer.
As someone who is a firm ally of the LGBTQ+ community, I find the way its being handles here incredibly distasteful, and only fuels the so called "culture wars" by giving fuel and ammunition to those who aught to be gently "brought onboard" by shoving stereotypes like drag queens, over-the-top camp-ness, rainbows and musical numbers at them, whilst prioritising all that above story. If social/political commentary is important or adds to the story in any way, by all means put it in there, but drive the show's writing so completely? Not my bag.
There was a real chance to utilise the charisma of Ncuti and the inflated budget to bring new life to the show, and as much as I'm very sad to say it, Ncuti's talents are wasted with this writing, as are Gibson's and the shows budget. If RTD wants to focus solely on messaging start a podcast, radio show or something, and limit injections into DW to places where they make sense and crucially *bring people on-board* rather than alienate them.
Overall what this has resulted in is an incredibly boring show that's actually painful to watch, stereotyping minorities, neglecting story-telling and pushing away new or existing fans focusing on a very niche demographic. I can't even see it bing all that appealing to kids (the main demographic). If this were on tv when I was 8-10 years old there no way it'd have interested me. It's a drag, quite literally!
Do better Russell. Ditch the stereotypes, ditch the message-driven storeys. Focus on writing compelling science function drama that appeals to a wide audience. Don't be Chibnall. Don't do that.
I really, really wanted to like these episodes (and this new series) but in all honesty it's been the most cringe-worth camp-fest I've ever seen. There's nothing wrong with that in moderation, heck I loved the "Spice up your life" scene in The Giggle, it was a fun! RTD has gone far too overboard on this front though from the Christmas special to The Devil's Chord. I get that he's frustrated at the push-back from people who don't agree with his political and social stances (many of which I agree with) but it seems this is now what's driving the writing, rather than the story itself.
He's gone on record saying he changed the sonic as the old one "looked like a gun" and worried about the effect that might have on kids. Sorryrussel, but how on earth does a screwdriver (that looks more like a pen) even remotely resemble a gun? It's as if he's actively looking for *anything* to make an issue out of. Why does it need to be mentioned by Maestro that ruby wrote a song about "lesbian lovers" or that whole thing where "I'm them" etc etc. It's making a big deal out of something that really doesn't need to be one, and every time something like that is injected into the story, it takes you out of it completely and breaks what could be riveting scenes.
Anecdotally I also found Maestro more irritating than even remotely frightening. It was like watching a spoilt child with main character syndrome have a tantrum for an entire episode. The musical number at the end? The fourth wall breaks? Just so unbelievably cringey and again, completely breaks any sense of immersion or suspension of disbelief. It's as if RTD is parodying his own show for some reason, as if he's become a bitter old man who just wants to stir up unnecessary controversy. I'd say he's akin to Rishi Sunak in that way. Alienate people, push them away rather than attempt to bring them on board, then divide and conquer.
As someone who is a firm ally of the LGBTQ+ community, I find the way its being handles here incredibly distasteful, and only fuels the so called "culture wars" by giving fuel and ammunition to those who aught to be gently "brought onboard" by shoving stereotypes like drag queens, over-the-top camp-ness, rainbows and musical numbers at them, whilst prioritising all that above story. If social/political commentary is important or adds to the story in any way, by all means put it in there, but drive the show's writing so completely? Not my bag.
There was a real chance to utilise the charisma of Ncuti and the inflated budget to bring new life to the show, and as much as I'm very sad to say it, Ncuti's talents are wasted with this writing, as are Gibson's and the shows budget. If RTD wants to focus solely on messaging start a podcast, radio show or something, and limit injections into DW to places where they make sense and crucially *bring people on-board* rather than alienate them.
Overall what this has resulted in is an incredibly boring show that's actually painful to watch, stereotyping minorities, neglecting story-telling and pushing away new or existing fans focusing on a very niche demographic. I can't even see it bing all that appealing to kids (the main demographic). If this were on tv when I was 8-10 years old there no way it'd have interested me. It's a drag, quite literally!
Do better Russell. Ditch the stereotypes, ditch the message-driven storeys. Focus on writing compelling science function drama that appeals to a wide audience. Don't be Chibnall. Don't do that.
