Mixed feelings about "Dinosaur on a Spaceship" for me. Admittedly once I got over the initial giddiness of the dinosaurs and the effects I started to enjoy it less as it went on.
Again, I think this episode could have benefited from being 60 minutes long instead of 45. I felt like there were too many companions this week (I could have done without Nefertiti and Riddel) which dragged the story back a bit, which on the whole I thought was fine. Golf-ball fetching Triceratops? No thanks. Doctor, Rory and Brian riding the triceratops? I liked that. Mitchell and Webb robots? No thanks. Wasn't a big fan of the toilet humour in this one and I certainly thought the line about "breaking in Nefertiti with pleasure" was too dark for both the show and felt especially out of place within the episode. I actually cringed at that.
Mark Williams and David Bradley were the highlights of the episode for me. The scenes between the Doctor and Solomon were also fantastic! To be honest I think Solomon has been one of the best villains in NewWho so far, but I think he'd have had a greater potential to shine in a darker story and this one felt more like a RTD-era fun romp. (Although I'd liken it to "Gridlock" as opposed to the OTT "kitchen sink episodes".) Oh and I'd like to point out that the CGI and the effects were gorgeous! I did think it was visually stunning as an episode!
In conclusion, it was big, it was bold, it was fun but it was let down a bit by unnecessary characters (IMO), some terrible attempts at humour and the fact it was very rushed. Far from the worst episode in my opinion but far weaker than last week's episode.
7.7/10
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So back to the blog which Rowe posted. I have to agree with many who have said it seemed like a sensational rant against Moffat. The fact that she has nothing positive to say about AotD says to me she can't construct a good argument and writing that "she couldn't be bothered" sort of says that she's just a bitter fan who doesn't like change and wants to complain for the hell of it. The fact that her sister supposedly complained that "everything is in space all the time" suggests she clearly doesn't know what the show is about.
As for some of her points:
"Why the hell there are suddenly [swear word removed] of Daleks."
All the way back to "The Eleventh Hour" the Doctor makes a big thing about Amy not remembering the Daleks. I assume that's because they've been erased by the cracks in time so when BigBang v2 happens they get sent back like Amy's parents. Easy.
"Why the Doctor has a new nickname (The Predator) that is also apparently age-old that we’ve never heard of"
Why is this such a big issue? The Doctor's been given many nicknames in the past? "The Destroyer of Worlds", "Bringer of Darkness", "The Oncoming Storm", "The Lonely God". This just seems like nit-picking for the sake of it.
-How Skaro has magically appeared again,
It was in the television movie if I recall? I might be wrong but it certainly doesn't look like it's been left in such a good state anyway...
-Why Moffat thinks we all have the attention span of five-year-olds (a continuing theme)which means he has to break up an important couple off-screen and then BOOM reunite them in the same episode before it even sinks in and we can actually Give A [swear word removed] (Again, a continuing theme – Moffat, I am not going to Give A [swear word removed] about Mels if you cram her down my throat in a montage, and then shoot her, and then have her be River Song all in the space of ten minutes),
This one makes no sense to me and I disagree strongly that Moffat thinks we have the attention span of five year olds, surely if they had broken up on-screen and got back together that would be seen as spoon-feeding the audience? Admittedly, I agree the introduction of Mels into River Song is poorly done and should have been built up in another episode but there were plenty of hints beforehand (girl regenerating at the end of "Day of the Moon"). Moffat likes to leave clues for us and it seems to me the poster is just thinking with retrospect to the one episode or she's just not following on.
-Why Amy’s only concern with the whole children thing is ‘oooh poor Rory’ and not ‘actually I was trapped by a freaky cult and forced to give birth against my will so yeah, no, won’t be doing that again’ – Seriously, when she said “I can’t have children” I IMMEDIATELY assumed she meant that it would be mentally too traumatic for her.
Again... why is this a complaint? Isn't being infertile one of the most traumatising feelings for a woman to feel? Amy has a sense of feeling useless because she can't provide. Basically what this poster is saying is "Amy only cares about Rory"... and that's supposed to be a bad thing why?
The Rory thing (quote too long)
Probably one of the few things of the blog I agree with. I thought it was a very un-Rory like thing to say, even though it's quite apparent to the audience that Rory feels that way, you can tell his reluctance to sign the divorce papers at the beginning of the episode.
-So many other things. Too many other things
I think this to me, highlights a poor argument. You can be bothered to write up a rant about AotD on an Internet blog but you can't be bothered to list all the things you have a problem with the episode? I just think this to me confirms that the author of said blog has a very narrow-minded view on the matter and either wants some good internet traffic or she's just a rabid-hater. I think it's fair to dislike something and I can emphasise that the blogger liked the way the show was before, but if you can't be bothered (to use her words) to justify your opinion accordingly then I don't see how I can take it seriously? I'm surprised that so many of you having enjoyed AotD changed your mind so abruptly after reading it.
I realise that I come across as a bit of a Moffat-fanatic here (which I am to some extent) but I can understand where he went wrong last season with far too much emphasis on the River Song arc. The lack of an overarching series arc so far says to me that he knows where he went wrong, and he's listening to feedback when planning this series. I also get a vibe that he's a very arrogant man (particularly from his Twitter) but I genuinely think he's very imaginative and he's pushing the show (particularly Series 7 so far) into the right direction.
Oh and for everyone who says Moffat's work is no good for the kids may want to watch this:
[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9QhliTHMDcY[/youtube]
Now that was a very long reply so i think I'll end my waffling there. I've been typing for the past forty minutes and I think another viewing of "Asylum of the Daleks" and a cuppa tea is just what I need to bring myself back to reality again.