Rate And Discuss 3.3: Gridlock

[Wayne]

Hmmm...... I thought the hymn thing was a bit schmaltzy, but i agree with you about the Doctor's honesty with Martha. A good 10th Doctor moment!

[WhiteCrow]

but once again you got to give 10/10 to the prosthetics department the cat face masks were fantastic but I will have to say the ending where The Doctor is finally honest with Martha was very well done. As for the hymn, "Abide with Me" it is such a beautiful hymn and seemed just the absolout perfect hymn to use.

I liked the hymn - although at first I thought it was Men of Harlech sung by what sounded a bit like a Male Voice Choir at first, so thought it was part of some conspiratorial "Big Welsh Agenda". Watch out they'll try and sneak leeks in before the series big finish ...

Ironically as well, somehow them singing "The Old Rugged Cross" made the episode seem slightly dated already. I'd like to start a thread about what people would choose as their own Gridlock hymn - I'd go for either the theme to Easy Rider "Born To Be Wild" ...

Get your motor runnin'
Head out on the highway
Lookin' for adventure
And whatever comes our way

Or indeed "We got to get out of this place",

In this dirty old part of the city
Where the sun refused to shine
People tell me there ain't no use in tryin'

Now my girl you're so young and pretty
And one thing I know is true
You'll be dead before your time is due, I know

Watch my daddy in bed a-dyin'
Watched his hair been turnin' grey
He's been workin' and slavin' his life away
Oh yes I know it

(Yeah!) He's been workin' so hard
(Yeah!) I've been workin' too, baby
(Yeah!) Every night and day
(Yeah, yeah, yeah, yeah!)

We gotta get out of this place
If it's the last thing we ever do
We gotta get out of this place
'cause girl, there's a better life for me and you

[Jon Masters]

I gave it 7/10

Things I Liked - the traffic jam was a good solid Sci-Fi concept, a sort of twist on the colony ship travelling for several generations. Not sure what happened to those cars with only one person in who died though.
The Macra - which having avoided all spoilers I knew nothing about (and then had to explain afterwards to Sam what they were). I had a funny feeling just before they were revealed when the guy said something about nothing being able to live down there because of the fumes .
I did wonder for about 10 seconds whether the hymn singing was some kind of hypnotic control designed to keep everyone happy
Brannigan and the cat woman were great, as was old Boe's departure (I took it that although Boe could provide the last spark of energy to open the roof, neither he nor Novice Hame knew how to reprogram the computer to do it).
And BEST OF ALL - The Doctor saved the day - not his companion, not another character he persuades to do something. he did it himself.

Things I liked less - the bit about the upper classes all dying off was a bit naff - are they all supposed to have taken Bliss at exactly the same time when a airborne virus killed them in 7 minutes, and still have time for some one to shut off the lower levels ? Would have been better to link it to their poor treatment of the undercity people (e.g. a dirty telephone kiosk )
Rose got mooned over again , although Martha's reaction could have been a bit more in his face - maybe he'll get a slap next week ('Oh, Rose was always good against the Daleks - wallup! )
RTD still has a problem with airtight vessels too (though nice to see no wiffly-waffly weakness - passing out etc this week), and there was some very dodgy ANGRY acting from DT in the first section again.

Things I went 'Meh' to - the longwinded bearing of the soul. Why do these new companions feel that after knowing the Doctor for about 48 hours they have to get all 'touchy-feely- personal baggage' ? No wonder they don't seem to be able to keep a bloke. As well played as it was, it might have made a refreshing change for the Doctor to get angry and defensive and tell her to mind her own F@~king business (at least until later in the series). It was better than TEOTW but it was a repeat scene that didn't IMO need doing (until at least Martha meets the Daleks).

On balance I'd go for slightly better than last week, so gradually improvement.
(although was I alone in thinking that next weeks looked a bit.........shit ?)

[cullsoft]

When Bliss was mentioned as the thing that destroyed all life in the above city, didn't anyone else think of the Bliss drug in the Red Dwarf novelisations?

I knew the familiarity bells were ringing on that one... cheers for pointing that out.

Well... I can't think of any other epeisodes in the new series that have left me thinking "excellent!". When the Doctor announced "Macra", I felt a huge, jaw dropping grin appear accross my face and it was all I could do to stop myself shouting "F*** YEAH!"... though I agree that it was a shame that they did nothing, and didn't really bring any ncessary relevance to the plot (it could have been any old or new monster down there, the Macra just happened to conveniently fit the bill). Plus the hymn bit didn't do much for me (left me a bit confused, to be honest... why were they suddenly all singing hymns - was the whole motorway thing now some religious cult?), and I agree that the Doctor's solution was a bit anti-climatically simple, even if it did look neat in practice.

Still, as I said very few (if any) of the new series has left me thinking "excellent", so I felt a 9 was a worthy score. Besides, it had the cat people (and very well done they were too), so furdom dictates I have to give it a high score (even if that wasn't the case with New Earth).

[Paul Hayes]

No idea why anybody should find my mad fan rantings any the more noteworthy than anybody else's mad fan rantings, but nonetheless I have written a review of the episode which can be found here, should anybody wish to take a look.

Sorry about the background making it difficult to read - not my design!

[Lord President]

I was out this evening, and have just got back and watched Gridlock!

WOW! I thought this was one of the most interesting episodes of the new series, it looked stunning, great CGI, great prosthetics, great sets, great atmos! The story, while slow to get going, was really a interesting idea, an entire race living, sleeping, procreating and dying in a traffic jam (anyone who has been on the M25 during rush hour will appreciate the idea), while the more well off wiped themselves out, leaving the undercalss trapped by an automated system.

Tennant was astonishing in this ep, going through a wider range of emotions than in virtually any other episode. Freema really stepped up for this one too. The Macra (I agree with Wayne that they were underused and could have been Myrka, Malus, Daemons, or any number of earlier monsters), were a 'big grin' moment for me, being too young to have seen The Macra Terror.

The Face of Boe finally reveals the secret alluded to in New Earth, and I think we all know who he's talking about, really making the end of this season a nightmare to have to wait for!!!!!

I loved the hymn at the end as The Doctor opened up to Marth, really bringing a lump to my throat.

I had to give this episode a 9/10, it was, to coing an Eccleston term, Fantastic!

[Ralph]

I thought this was better than last weeks.

Bits I liked:

The effects did look good
Tennent seemed less OTT in this one.
The Face of Boa comes to a conclusion - so no more apperances hopefully.

Bits I didn't like:

The Songs of Praise moments...
I hate all that New New York guff
The monsters were completely superfluous to the story

[Wayne]

I thought this was better than last weeks.

I must've missed your comments on last weeks ep.
I thought you'd decided not to bother with S3.

[Ralph]

I must've missed your comments on last weeks ep.
I thought you'd decided not to bother with S3.

I haven't made any comments on the first two. I will watch it to see what everyones talking about if nothing else...

[Wayne]

Tennant was astonishing in this ep

oops sorry
Better than when he's AMAAAAZZZZING!, anyway.

[Andrew Curnow]

Our heroes separated, then finally reunited against a backdrop of whizzing air cars in a city high in the clouds; a mysterious, uberwise alien being reveals, in his last scene, that there is another...

I love "The Empire Strikes Back". But anyway, what about "Gridlock"?

Yep, I love that too. I've enjoyed all of season 3 so far, and this was, for me, the best yet. A simple 'sci-fi' idea of the perpetual motorway, but then unravelled to reveal something a bit more disturbing - it's not volume of traffic that's keeping them there, they're being deliberately kept in permanent transit.

Standout moments here

- the dropping from car to car, which we all laughed at. Little Miss did wonder whether the whitefaced guy was the chap who'd been suffering petrifold regression in "New Earth" (tt, anoraks) because the makeup was similar.
- the hymn-singing. Maybe I'm just a sucker for a good hymn well sung, but I thought it was really moving on both occasions. And, given that Hame is running the show, it's perfectly reasonable that she would have given the travellers some kind of faith in an effort to keep them going.
- the reappearance of Hame. I knew Boe was coming back, but none of us knew the catnurse was. Zel & Little Miss spent a minute or so arguing about whether it was Hame or Jatt (tt, anoraks) but I liked the little touch of her still being Boe's nurse after all this time. And Little Miss 'got' the idea that her robes were changed from white to dirty grey, because of the guilt she felt, which pleased me.
- the Macra. I had no idea they were scuttling back, but it was just a little smiley moment when I recognised the name (tt, anoraks).
- the moment where the Doctor 'confronts' Ardal O'Hanlan's character with the fact that he can see the fear in the cat's eyes, that they have all thought the unthinkable, that they're going to be stuck here forever. The look on the catman's face spoke volumes, with the tears in his eyes. So moving, and it's a bloody mask, fantastic!!
- the kittens. Aw.
- the final scene. Different from the final moments of TEOTW, but the same purpose, it was still a lovely, and very moving moment. Tennant nailed it just right, without going too far, and it was an added thrill to hear the re-use of the orange sky & silver leaves imagery. It was a very, very moving ending, and did leave me dewy-eyed I have to admit.

It may not stand up to constant rewatching, I don't know, but based on watching it last night, it's a little gem in the Who crown. I absolutely loved it, best of a strong season so far.

[Andrew Curnow]

I perhaps also ought to add (although we all know it anyway) that Freema as Martha continues to be a joy, and a worthy successor to Billie. Her enthusiasm in the TARDIS scene, her leadership skills in the aircar, her horror at thinking she might die so far away without her parents ever knowing, and her stubborn determination in the final scene... She's just a delight.

[Si Hunt]

Little Miss did wonder whether the whitefaced guy was the chap who'd been suffering petrifold regression in "New Earth" (tt, anoraks) because the makeup was similar.

At first, I thought it was Chip back from "New Earth". The actor looked remarkably similar to him, and with the same white make-up.

Si.

[Andrew Curnow]

True, there was a similarity there too, Si.

Forgot to say, I also really liked the Judge Dredd-y feel to the whole thing - which was enhanced no end by that guy in the pinstripe suit & bowler hat!!

And we all laughed at the naturists, it was just such a surprise. Very fun sequence all in.

[Si Hunt]

My Dad mentions "Gridlock" in his latest e-mail:

What did you think of DW? It was a strange episode which didn't quite work. One of those they pad the series out with and hide between better episodes, hoping nobody will remember when the series has finished.

It's the damning voice of a casual viewer!!

Si.

[Larry]

just watched the story again and just like with The Shakspear Code enjoyed it much better on 2nd viewing so much so I think episodes i'm not sure about i need to wait untill i've seen it again before rating it. As with several other episodes that RTD has written there is also a message in this story in that with the increasing number of cars we have this is what it could be like in the future.

As for the Macra, yes they were under used but just like with the Autons they were just there for window dressing and part of the sub plot to main plot which was Boe revealing his seceret.

[Pip Madeley]

Larry has a very good point there. A lot of people are complaining about the Macra being underused, but did any expect them to take center stage? They were just there, like insects, infested in all the grime. Nothing superfluous about that.

[Si Hunt]

I did. I expected them to take centre stage. They've always struck me as a great monster and I was dissapointed they didn't stalk people down corridors and take over their minds.

Si.

[Pip Madeley]

Well he did say they had de-evolved. Everything changes, they were once conquerers of empires, now they're just mindless crabs... RTD could've said Venom Grubs or Zarbi or crab-clawed Kameleous or any monster if he wanted to, just that he chose the Macra. A monster that thrives off gas? They were made for the role, and made perfect sense with all the car fumes up above. A nice way of giving some life back to a monster that would've been forgotten (like I said to my sis, only the hardcore Doctor Who fans would know about them, especially as only tiny clips still remain). Their name will live on now though, I'm sure Ian Stuart Black would be smiling.

[Jon Masters]

Do we think we can look forward to a 'to scale' radio controlled Macra action figure for next Christmas ? That'll put the willies up Grandma on Christmas morning

[Si Hunt]

If it had been some new monster, it would have been great. The problem is when you knew about the Macra you expected them to do more.

On a more positive note, wasted potential is in some ways better than no potential at all; it shows how many new ideas the show is bristling with that it can toss off a great potential monster like the Macra in a cameo role.

Si.

[Captain Tancredi]

If you look at 'The Macra Terror', the Macra there are a sinister presence in the darkness- the Pilot and Ola are the main villains as such, and they're deluded by the Macra. There's not much a giant non-talking crab can actually do to push the plot forward, so you need to build another story around them.

[Pip Madeley]

Indeed, Ian, indeed.

[Andrew Curnow]

I don't know what you're talking about. There were definitively no giant crabs in last night's Dr Who. There are no such things as Macra, no such things as Macra, no such th-- Oh, I'll just get me coat.

Seriously though, ish, I think if I'd known they were a-comin' then I would have expected more of the Macra than what we got, which was just a few fog-shrouded claws and some glowing eyes. Not knowing, it was just a quick 'grin' moment, and I'm sure if nothing else, that Tennant loved saying the word "Macra" when they were making this one!

[Si Hunt]

I think if I'd known they were a-comin' then I would have expected more of the Macra than what we got

Exactly! Unfortunately I stumbled on the news a few weeks ago so fall into that category. Spoilers are evil!

Si.