one thing i will say is that this is the episode that has stayed with me more than any other since i was a kid. it’s rules are strange and paradoxical and i like that about it. it’s not interested in answering questions it’s just comfortable being strange and personally i’ll always prefer sci fi which feels like part of a strange and surreal fantasy world than super grounded and realistic sci fi. also i get the impression that though ruby doesn’t remember the details of the loop she does carry some sense of those lessons with her, hence the slight changes in dialogue. also the circle breaking totally summoned mad jack which is why all of this had to happen
im suprised there wasnt more downs, the lack of answers kind of kills me. also major plot hole that I cant get over is when they make the women drop her bubble to explain what creatures are around yet when Ricky September is there they more around to speak to them, and they can clearly see him as they comment on him.
I tend to watch while playing games and whatnot, so I didn't process racism and thought it was just classism, so appreciate that insight. That being said this felt way to similar to the echelstein's game show episode with a mash of the Ed's colony adventure, so for me just more re-hashing with not enough substance. That being said thew cast and crew are doing amazing jobs, I almost wonder if this is protest writing for working with Disney. Anyways hopefully we get some fun new ideas with the throughlines of recurring characters. And *only* 8 episodes yeesh, hopefully can do a fast green light assuming they're close to targets. This doctor and companion deserve to shine... oh and bring back the kilt :)
I can’t believe how the writing or effort in writing has been so awful .. I’ve given this a chance .. but gif .. the haters hate but the quality is really is appalling .. this lot confronting the conflict in the fandom.. most of the loyal old ones gone?? This show is really finished .. discussing fashion ?? On the actor than the characters?? This is awful …
Racism or classism or both? It seemed ambiguous. The fact that everyone there was so white and blond just left me thinking they were aliens. Also, she seemed just as rude to Ruby as to the doctor. As a white person, I’m prepared to be corrected on this. There could be plenty of things I missed.
It might just have been how Lindy uses the bubble but it lowkey needed more development because all these videos going by without actually watching any of this except for video calls and ricky september.
For me, the headcanon I have about the bubble around Finetime isn't that it's deadlocked (although that point can still be made), it's that there's a filter to prevent People of Color from getting in. That there's almost a biological, or even perceived filter because the Doctor is perceived as black, he wasn't able to land, whereas if it was a previous version or just Ruby, they could. On the notion that it's deadlocked, these are the 1% of the eugenics population, the cream of the crop, if you will, and the bubble of their settlement is to keep them from seeing anything or being exposed to anything else, like a summer camp
I agree about the character being one dimensional... However, considering her entire life is spent in the bubble, I would expect her to be extremely one dimensional in "real life". People also have a habit of saying or doing whatever they want online and assume there are no real consequences. So while she is boring and one dimensional i thought it was a perfect fit for her.
Lindy was NOT one dimensional. That's ridiculous. She cared about herself only and there are people like that. I wish though that they did not make her betray Ricky because that made her nasty even before we find out she's racist like everyone else. Would Ricky be, too?
Oh dear, bad story, (yes i get the social media bit), bad acting all around, RTD has really lost his way. We have no idea what the monsters are, although the line the dot has learned to hate, this doesn't explain why the home word has them too. Too much Disney fantasy and not enough Daleks
I didn't realize it was a race thing until you mentioned it, i thought it was the social media thing, it's one thing to hack into my account but it's another to associate in person type deal, because she kept talking about them both being punished for hacking the dot and bubble system. But the racism also makes sense unfortunately ☠️☠️☠️
Russell frequents social media, I don't think we're supposed to read into it much further than with the AI and the aliens, not that all social media bad.
I was almost expecting the racism in the end. I saw it coming, when I saw how everyone on the feed looked so much alike. I saw that as another social media trait. We link into people just like us.
I saw the racism coming after some of the many remarks Lindy makes and then went online to check when other people clocked it. I like how someone on reddit put it, which seems to be the case for many viewers: "I got to spend an entire episode laughing at a girl not notice a massive problem just barely outside the bubble she's presented with. Then the end of the episode happened and I realised I hadn't noticed the massive problem just barely outside what I was presented with."
I’ve used VR (as many of us have) and even after being in it a short time feel very disoriented when getting back out. Sometimes just after waking up or getting up too fast you lose control a bit. These people have spent probably their ENTIRE lives using the Bubble, any movement they’ve ever made has probably been using the Bubble, so I completely buy into how difficult it was for her to walk without it. WE can look at it and think “seriously, you can’t walk?” (As did The Doctor and Ruby), but that’s because it’s so obvious to US. When you think about it though it makes sense and I’d say it’s how quickly she learns to walk and run without it that would be a down.
Actually enjoyed Shawn doing it because Ellie will give Ups for fairly banal things sometimes and Shawn at least comes off less like he's constantly trying to look on the bright side. It's good to look at the show more critically!
Only time I will comment. Doctor Who is dead. This episode is the last straw. RTD has completely forgotten how to write as he has been surrounded by sycophants, never criticizing him. As for the entire series: just designed to corrupt the minds of the young and impressionable. The only way this show can continue is for them to instigate the 'Dallas' defense, explaining the last three regenerations were just a fever dream going from the 12th Doctor, to the 13th and final Doctor. I know that the truth hurts, and your generation can't take criticism, and I make no apologies for being a middle aged, white heterosexual male, the prime target for all your hatred. The 'acting' is dire, the writing 'propaganda'. Please put this once great show to bed. RIP Doctor Who
15’s faith speech in this episode gave me the same chills as 12’s war speech in Zygon Inversion. Absolutely brilliant! I did have a thought kicking round my head about Ruby since Devil’s Cord. Maestro said that the Toymaker is their father so who is their mother? Could Ruby and Maestro share a mother? Is that why Ruby was abandoned, so she wouldn’t be influenced by the Toymaker? 🤷♀️
"This is the 'social media' episode" ?!!! WTF. How can you not see that this proves what utter garbage this Disney Season 1 of whatever the hell it is!!!! It certainly is NOT Dr Who. Dr Who is a sci-fi adventure series presenting ripping good stories for ENTERTAINMENT.... Dr Who is not a bloody up it's arse message vehicle..... The ignorant laziness of taking a beloved series and twisting it into something very different to carry your personal and minority opinions and judgement of society is extreme.... Why not create your own vehicle for this. Wake up and look at the plummeting viewing numbers 🤦 All real Dr Who fans have long since accepted and grieved the murder of the legacy. Read the comments below.... No one gives a shit about the story, it's quality, it's massive plot holes, all they comment on is the message. This programme has given up on telling good stories, on anything making sense, on developing characters, it's just about the message.
I definitely wasn't about racism it was just classism posh wankers and it was definitely disturbing that the Doctor was crying over these garbage people 🙄 voodoo SMDH
I totally got the impression that The Doctor was breaking the 4th wall and was talking to the audience (The Whovian Fanbase) and berating them for not giving a black/non-cis actor a shot.
I think they did “hit it out of the park”. The bubble was only in part about social media; it was more about all the bubbles/blinders/biases we all live in, are limited by, fear to “look past”, or lower. Finetime was “deadlocked” because it was the ultimate “gated community”- it was designed to keep people “like The Doctor” out. The twist was intended to be about us, the viewer. I didn’t notice everyone on the feed was white- I was unconscious of my bias of that being normal- of my “bubble”. Becoming conscious made me feel ill, embarrassed, and resolving to keep working at becoming conscious of my blind spots/biases. Reviewing the episode with new eyes, it was all there- her blocking the doctor, her being horrified he and Ruby were in the same room, asking if the slugs were his doing (great catch), telling everyone he would be “disciplined “, etc come into sharp focus. I think it was a tremendous episode- keep‘em coming!
I loved this episode because of the betrayal. It touched on my own experiences. The look on his face, the fact she kinda gets away with it, resonated with my experiences. It was cool that she didnt see the state of homeworld because Ricky hid it to keep her calm, and so in that way karma is served. It was a super cool idea, but I still am not left satisfied. I hope we can someway see Ricky again, or at least catch up with the blonde whos name I forgot
This was actually an awesome episode in my opinion! Especially when the doctor was identifying the alien/ beetle. It just felt extremely classic doctor who and also loved the tardis view we haven't seen it like properly in quite a few episodes 🎉 It feels like we are properly starting to get doctor who back ❤
Dr Who is a children’s show. If you look at this episode as being written for children I think it all makes sense . Obvious messages, clearly made. Adults know the dangers of Social Media but try explaining that to children. See also Racism. And the thing about giving consent to be touched. With hide behind the settee monsters but nothing gratuitously gruesome. And a puzzle that younger minds could grasp - alphabetical names. This was an episode for children . Imagine parents watching this story with their children. It would provide a great gateway for some important conversations.
I know I can’t really be mad at it because it entirely fits in with how the toy master works but it just felt really anticlimactic to defeat one of the strongest villains ever, by winning a game of catch…
The inconsistencies are what bother me. I appreciate the subtlety, but the fact that the basis of the story doesn't make sense, and the plot has to be shoehorned in to make the message work.
Well the deadlock part is for me logic. The baddies doesn't want the food to escape. They want to Kill them With slow monster so in à enclosed space where no one can enter or exit it's simpler
First episode I was glad I watched, I really hope we get justice for ricky although I appreciated that she went to homeworld because ricky was dead and couldnt tell her everyone was dead, he only hid it to keep her calm
I liked this episode a lot, but there were some things I interpreted differently. 1 The episode is not about the harms of social media, yes there are references to that, but it's not the focus of the story, the focus of the story is racism, how stupid and harmful it is. 2 Lindy is not a character written to be liked, from the first moment there is no doubt that she is a horrible person. 3 Everyone in FineTime is a horrible person and I'm sorry to burst your bubble, but I think Ricky September is as much a racist as anyone. the fact that he helped Lindy doesn't mean he would have chosen to go The Doctor and Ruby that he isn't a racist shit too. 3 Another thing that is clear to me is that The Slugs were programmed by Dot, The Doctor says so too, and I think Dot also created them but I'm not sure about that. 4 I think the moment we see Susan Twist is a pre-recorded video message, which is why she doesn't interact with The Doctor and Ruby, and given how slow all the Finetime are being eaten by the Slugs I think the same applies to their Home Planet. To finish, "people of colour," although an acceptable term, is imperfect. It is used to describe people who are not white, but it is flawed because it groups too many racial and ethnic groups together, who have different experiences and needs. It is useful when discussing broader issues that impact all non-white people, such as white privilege. However, when it is possible, one should be specific. Therefore, when speaking directly about Ncuti, it is more correct to say that he is a black person rather than saying that Ncuti is a person of colour.
