Reading through this thread; and, indeed, reviews for this ‘series’ (which I’m aware as being incomplete) in generally I find that there seems to be a generally negative vibe towards the show at the moment. Which doesn’t surprise me, because I’ve really enjoyed this series (possible exception being Dinosaurs on a Spaceship, which was dreadful in terms of storyline but still enjoyable for the witty dialogue) more than any since Christopher Eccleston left, and my view tends to differ from that of the majority.
Really, I think the Moffat has gotten the series back on track based on these five episodes. By no means have they been perfect; occasionally drifting into tackiness but at least the cardinal sin of presenting an impossible to follow storyline to an audience looking merely looking for light entertainment hasn’t been committed. The series hasn’t been overplayed or overcomplicated and is all the better for it. I didn’t like the last series; personally, it confused me and didn’t intrigue me enough to pay attention.
Asylum of the Daleks was the best episode I can actually remember seeing of Doctor Who; it involved a unique and intelligent plotline for the Daleks, introduced a new character whom the viewer couldn’t help but fall in love with, and then twisted and turned in ways that could never have been predicted, whilst remaining simple and emotional. But what worked best was that it wasn’t the alien threat which was key to the plotline; it was the good humoured, fun nature of the show and (more importantly) the human element. Emotions and moral dilemmas.
This, I feel, has been a recurring theme throughout the last five episodes. Gone, it would seem, are the explosions of Russell T. Davies, and hopefully now the mindf*ck of the last couple of series’. Instead the entire logic of “let’s focus upon the human aspect of things” and use aliens/exploration as a backdrop seems to be settling in, most predominantly in ‘The Gunslinger’, which was gripping from start to end precisely because of the character development. The existence of alien technology in that episode was almost irrelevant, much more like Torchwood or the original Doctor Who series than I have become accustomed.
So... Angels Take Manhatten was alright, for me, Amy and Rory deserved a far better send-off than what they got but the storyline as a whole was cleverly worked and paced well enough. The opening scene, too, was very effective.
But, erm, yeah. Just thought I’d say how much I’ve been enjoying this series. Some people take the show far too seriously, sometimes picking faults for the sake of picking faults. Whilst I feel that what’s been shown over the past few weeks has been ideal; incorporating a family friendly scenario with a simple plotline into a show which develops its characters nicely and provides moral dilemmas and humour for older viewers. Though obviously I appreciate that others' have differing opinions which is totally fine.
