Playing the Gaim

I like Neil Gaiman. Or rather, I like his work. He may be the same breed of smug, mildly pervy git as Steven Moffat but as he generally writes novels and comics as opposed to TV scripts it doesn't come across as much. His work can develop at a better pace in those mediums. His themes are left with time to develop without being overshadowed by his more annoying traits (comely wench casting for example).

I wasn't a fan of his previous Doctor Who effort though. The Doctor's Wife, it was called. For those who haven't seen it or have forgotten its premise (yeah, spoiler warning here...) the soul of the TARDIS is wrenched out of the time box and stuffed into a patchwork woman. This takes place on a sentient planet called House who hunts Time Lords.

As a premise it's pretty ruddy good. The episode is well directed and well-acted and features some pretty lovely sets and CG-scapes. It's a highlight of Matt Smith's second season and will likely number among his best episodes when he finally leaves.

Can you sense the but that's coming?

The trouble I have with the episode (and I'm sure I'm not the only one to feel this way) is that it's incredibly arrogant. Neil Gaiman, in his first stint writing for the show, decides he's going to give the TARDIS a voice. That's something that nobody in the forty-plus year history of the show had ever done before. If Robert Holmes didn't feel the need to do something like that then what gives Gaiman the right? He should have been made to earn his stripes first before roaring into a story so heavy in the programme’s continuity.

I don't object to what the TARDIS says. The presentation is what it is. Anybody writing a speaking part for the TARDIS post-2005 would have taken the exact same approach Gaiman did. I don't care about the TARDIS referring to the Doctor being her companion or feeling him move about inside her (steady, that's the reaction Gaiman wants). I’m certainly not against the casting of Suranne Jones. She’s a very good choice for the part.

It's simply that Gaiman felt he was the right guy to do it.

None of which has any direct bearing on this evening's episode of course. But it does make you (or me at any rate) wonder what firsts Gaiman's going to pursue with the Cybermen.

The Butler, the Maid, and the Ninja Lizard

Having read several various Who-related, Moffat-penned propaganda interviews over the last couple of days I've come to the conclusion that Doctor Who’s current showrunner is far too keen on the "comedy" trio we'll see in tonight's episode. Not only will they be in tonight's show they'll also be in episode six of the next run, as well as the final episode.

This is not just annoying because they're being overused, or because they're not actually entertaining, but because Moffles has stated in at least two interviews that he barely mentions in the script how the Sontaran is revived from death. He's said for those being pedantic he'll include a DVD extra explaining how Strax (is that his name?) is brought back. Is it pedantic to want to know how a character that was killed off is actually alive? No.

It feels like Moffat is desperate for his creations to be accepted as a new Robert Holmes-esque comedy unit. They won’t be. They’re just not interesting enough. Moffat has confused quirky ideas (a lesbian maid with a penchant for bestiality, a crime-fighting Silurian, and a Sontaran medic) with decent characterisation. That’s nothing new though.

Sadly I think it’s highly likely that in twenty years’ time Big Finish will be churning out audio plays featuring the aging actors reprising their roles.

Also, has he forgotten the Sontarans are a race of clones?! Why couldn't he just get the same actor in the same outfit with a different name (even the same name!) and say it’s a clone of the one that died? That’s the sort of question there’s no point in asking when Moffat is involved.