Doctor Who - Série 5

The Eleventh Hour (5x01) 5/5: Hello. I'm The Doctor. Basically... RUN. Moffat, as the author of the best episodes under Davies' supervision of the series, faced an ungrateful, if not even impossible, task. To start from scratch so even new audience can watch it, but at the same time to let those who know forget as well as to follow the "relational London space opera" era of Mr. Davies and, as if that alone was not enough, replace Tennant. And I think Moffat's genius best illustrates that he managed all of the above during the introductory caption scene, which, with its sad adult fairy tale, not unlike Faun's labyrinth, clearly determines the style of the following seasons. Matt Smith's swagger with a lot of one-liners fits well into this trend and on top of that he has a charming companion, Amelia Pond, by his side. Although calling her female companion might not be precise, as until now, female companions have only been considered more or less important sidekicks, but Amy has been conceived from the very beginning as an equal, wayward partner who does not wait "until the Doctor tell her that to do or saves her". The development of their relationship is charming. However somewhat obviously taken from the Pompadour/Doctor relationship from (unsurprisingly also Moffat's) movie The Girl in the Fireplace. And in addition to the above, it is also an excellent episode, which is packed with "Moffat's staff", thus portraying everyday matters in a very disturbing way, repetitive sentences, hints of things to come… Well, you will simply love it. Meanwhile in the Tardis Part I 3/5: A mini-episode, after which it is already quite clear that the chemistry between Smith and Karen Gillan will be one of the main highlights of this season. The Beast Below (5x02) 4/5: The modern incarnation of the Doctor always first points into the distant future, and the episode eleven is no exception. What sets this episode apart from the standard "Doctor on a space station where something fishy is going on" is the cleverly crafted atmosphere of a police state and touching overlap. Victory of the Daleks (5x03) 4/5: Episode "Necessary Evil" with iDaleks. Doctor Who can't do without the Daleks, and given what Davies did to them and that every time he met them he "completely exterminated them once and for all", it was necessary for the Gatiss/Moffat duo to come up with something that would put them back to the game with dignity. And they did it smartly. They made the Doctor make Sophie's choice, the consequences of which will affect (not only) him for a very long time. And could there be anything more disturbing than "Ironside" ingratiatingly offering a cup of afternoon tea, considering the fact that Daleks are super-villains? The Time Of Angels (5x04) + Flesh And Stone (5x05) 5/5: Two-part sequel to "Blink," which plays like the "Aliens" to its predecessor’s "Alien". I didn't come up with this, but despite a certain degree of excessiveness we can completely agree with that, because it fits like the red-hair fits the Doctor. Meanwhile in the Tardis Part II 3/5: Space Gandalf is simply a womanizer, in other words it’s a tribute to all the Doctor's female companions. The Vampires of Venice (5x06) 4/5: The Vampires of Venice Rather a standard padding episode, which, however, significantly benefits from the dialogs of the Mother of Family and the Doctor, from the setting in Renaissance Venice and sexy monsters. Amy's Choice (5x07) 5/5: Am I dreaming or in other words "tell me what your dreams and fears are and I will tell you who you truly are". Although it becomes soon clear what’s going on, the more enjoying it is to watch what solutions the three main characters will think of. It’s a magnificent watch with great Toby Jones as Lucifer. The Hungry Earth (5x08) + Cold Blood (5x09) 4/5: Earthlings are in danger, both contemporary and ancient. A much smarter and darker episode than one would expect when watching trailer showing storyline of "lizards-people have survived at the Earth's core for millions of years and are now returning to get back what belongs to them". Although somewhat ant-pacifist moralizing, but it is not at the expense of fun or tension. Vincent And The Doctor (5x10) 4/5: Love Actually... for Amy. Love Actually ... for Amy. The beginning looks promising and ambitious (depression, madness, genius, loneliness), but in the end I would expect something more sophisticated from Curtis than a variation on overplayed "celebrity versus monster". However, purely for those emotional moments at the end (à la Vincent at the exhibition) or consistent thematic stylization, it’s hard to say anything negative. The Lodger (5x11) 4/5: A comedy adaptation of the Tenant, which should have been named Ten(n)ant. Paradoxically, the theme and style give the impression that this episode is written by Richard Curtis and not the previous one. The Pandorica Opens (5x12) + The Big Bang (5x13) 5/5: Okay kid, this is where it gets complicated. Nowhere else is the Moffat and Davies's different approach to the same thing so obvious than it is in this final two episodes. Basically they both address the same thing ("the end of the universe") and it´s yet so, so different. And it cannot be said that one approach is better than the another. Each of them has something special, although I do not want to conceal the fact that, that I prefer Moffat's approach. And only because for once he made Daleks, Cybermans (the "zombies" scene finally enabled them to regain the necessary respect they had not received in the modern version of the Doctor) and Sontarans become heroes and saviors. In addition, it won my favour with the playful prologues of both parts as well as the montage on the moving music. After all, this would do the job even as the ultimate ending of the entire fifty-year-old Doctor Who phenomenon. Moffat closes the whole season "in a circle" and is able to get by only with a minimalist style (a sky without stars, everything takes place at one museum), which, however, gives you a better sense of the end of ages than the global scenes made by Davies. The problem is that there are so many ideas and themes that many of them simply fade away (especially 2,000 years without stars, the career of a "Roman" guardian, etc.). The second part is based on the assumption that after watching previous twelve episodes you already care for all those characters (not just the main ones). If not, you might not be able to handle this emotional and intimate version of averting the apocalypse easily. A Christmas Carol (5x14) 5/5: See profile of the special. Space & Time 4/5: Two relaxed comedy mini-episodes about the paradox of space and time, whose only task is to keep you entertained for around eight mins. And it’s enjoyable. That's for sure. (21/10/2016) (moins) (plus)