Wot ho! Some illustrated thoughts of Doctor Who (4x07)

[kaliha]

So of the Doctor and Donna go to the 1920s. These historicals are getting more and more modern.

I can get us in to any party

It's a clever thing that psychic paper. I bet he's never paid to go to the cinema either. And got backstage at gigs.

Lead Piping in the Library!

Lead Piping was always my favourite method of offing people when we played Cluedo, because it really is the most random of all the weapons. How many people keep lengths of lead piping around the house? (Unless you're a plumber) Did they used to have a cupboard somewhere in these stately homes ith lengths of different piping or did the murder rip it from the walls potentially flooding the place. I know, n know I overthink these things too much. But it always bothered me when I was little.

Do I look like a slapper for a flapper?

Very wisely, he took a moment to think about this, even though there is only one correct answer if he doesn't want Donna to punch him square in the face.

Don't they make a dashing couple?

I love the fact Donna has packed a dress for every occasion. Still no use for her hat though, which I'm a bit sad about, it was an inspired bit of packing.

It's another old new!Who reference!

This time we get a shout out to Tooth & Claw. Donna's impression is a tiny bit better than Rose's, wot wot. Tally Ho!

Donna is sad that all the pretty men are on the 'other bus'

Poor Doctor, he's a tiny bit put out about that. He still sees himself as a young, virile Time Lord. Bless him.

Big old geek out

The Doctor is pleased but Donna is completely fangirling. Not surprising really considering the amount of Agatha Christie dramatisations that were on the telly when we were going up (after all Donna's not that much older than me, Donna was probably old enough to appreciate them more than I was though)

Agatha's a bit embarrassed by all the attention though


Spinning cgi newspapers portending doom!

Now that something, you really don't see on the telly nowadays.

There's been a moider!

Donna's medical opinion is that he is dead. Definitely. She really shouldn't be touching the evidence though.

Glasses Watch time

I reckon they're not too dissimilar to Martha's magic contacts from that episode of Torchwood. How on earth would he have spotted that tiny amount of gloop if his glasses didn't have a zoom function?

And licking stuff too!

Gareth Roberts knows how to appeal to the fangirls/boys. And there was a shout-out to the Dickens episode too. Because you really can get ghosts at Christmas with Dickens. The Doctor possibly really doesn't get that what he experiences when he meets them isn't a normal course of events for famous British writers.

The Doctor's pockets are bigger on the inside too!

Then again, you never know when you might need a magnifying glass for looking for clues. Donna's not particularly impressed. She's still a bit annoyed at being a 'plucky young girl' I think ,and she's plotting on making the Doctor regret saying it.

The Doctor gets called up on his "oh a murder, with Agatha Christie, Fantastic!"

And quite right too. At least he has the grace to look a tiny bit ashamed. That's an improvement.

I LOVED the wibbly obbly timey-wimey flashback effects


1920s porn! (well –ish)

Won't someone please think of the Children!

The Doctor has a flashback all of his own

And there he is, traipsing through the woods of France, with his little bow and arrow and in his head he's going "this s BRILLIANT!"

Hello, I'm an alien slutboi tease

Yes, yes you are.

It's a clue!

I do like a good clue. They're clue-y.

Donna investigates the mysterious locked room

And you just know it's not going to end well. Investigating mysterious locked rooms never do.

I am investigating, with my investigative skillz


it's a blood great giant wasp!!

Imagine that coming to visit your picnic. It would have your jam sandwiches as soon as look at them. And drink all your ginger beer, wot wot. What are the point of wasps anyway? (And there as another reference to the bees disappearing, is this becoming more than just a topical comment?)

Donna 1 – Giant Wasp 0

It's an inspired bit of defence there. Donna's just lucky that the British Countryside wasn't suffering from a typical British Summer and the sun was actually out.

Ooh, that's a big pointy sting

Now they get that's it's not your average picnic ruining wasp.

Scenes that have a camera set up like this

tend not to end well. See?

Oh You're Beautiful!

Surprisingly, he didn't say it. Bet he was thinking it though.

Is the big scary wasp scared of a little magnifying glass?

I think he is, yes I do. Diddums.

They all did it!

Go get Gene Hunt and he'll arrest the lot of them.

Donna and Agatha bond

Agatha: my husband ran off with a younger, prettier woman.
Donna: Well mine (sorta) ran off with a giant spider and drugged my coffee. But it worked out all okay in the end. I now have my own chauffer-driven time machine and an alien to boot. He doesn't understand the importance of hats, mind.

Now that is a very nice lock picking kit.

However I feel it's a bit bulky. You'd ruin the line of your suit and you've never get it into one of those tiny little handbags.

Donna could get to like living in the twenties

Lots of yummy cocktails, but the giant wasps are a bit of a bind.

The Doctor relaxes

Well, until he discovers that someone's poisoned him with cyanide. He probably still thinks that it's brilliant/fantastic though, because he's now experiencing what many of the characters in Agatha's books went through.

Did anyone else spot him take a tumble

when he exeunt-ed the sitting room. But he kept going. What a professional.

The cure for cyanide poisoning:

Lashings of ginger beer
Almonds
Anchovies
A shock

It's something that's always worth remembering. You never know when it could come in useful.

This wasn't quite the shock the Doctor had in mind

He probably though that Donna would slap him, or knee him where it hurts or something. He didn't expect a shock AND a surprise.

And 'lo the black smoke from Lost was born

That actually wouldn't be too preposterous.

His face is a picture

We commented at the time that this is completely cracky evidence that the Doctor's got some unrequited love going on, and it completely serves him right. But we're probably reading it wrong. It made us laugh though.

'Twas a dark and stormy night

In fact, it's the perfect weather for another moider!

All the suspects are gathered together

completely unsuspecting, until the Doctor casually mentions that he's poisoned all the soup with pepper, harmless to humans, less so to shape-shifting Giant Wasps.

What a way to go

Stabbed in the back with a butter knife an then drowned in your soup. It cuts don on the number of suspects but there was no real point to his death. Did he see the wasp change? Was our wasp jealous of his half-brother?

In true Christie style, everyone is gathered in the sitting room

to find out who did it.

The Unicorn is more of a Cockney sparrow though.

he should really check his pockets, she's probably robbed him blind while she's been standing there.

The Doctor takes over for the alien-related parts

Well, it is his specialist subject.

it's that timeless love story…

Girl meets boy, falls in love, boy reveals himself to be a giant wasp and impregnates her before dying tragically. It's a classic.

The Doctor gets out his pointy finger of accusingness

Millions of DS owners giggle at the unintentional Phoenix Wright reference.

You wouldn't like me when I'm angry

Who'd have thought that the vicar dun it? Never trust the ginger ones.

I thought the morph was rather well done.


There is nothing worse than being chase by a wasp

And a giant wasp makes it about a hundred times worse. Imagine if it got close enough to sting you. Ouch!

Not even a passing reference to Bessie?

Shame.

The Doctor tries to give the angry wasp a choice

But it doesn't want to listen.

It's not a nice way to go


But the Doctor and Donna have solved another mystery

What happened to Agatha for those 10 days she was missing.

In my head

they didn't just take Agatha into a fortnight's time and drop her off at the hotel, they went off and had loads of brilliant adventures, because she'd be a great additional to Team TARDIS.

The Doctor has a filing system all of his own

But seemingly nowhere to store it apart from under the one grill on the Console Room floor that opens. Someone give them more money so e can see more rooms in the TARDIS.

I swear that they had that book in my library


Bet the Doctor picked that up on one of his visits to NewNewNew etc York


Enjoy this moment of happiness

I have the sneaking suspicion now, that it's the last we're going to get for a long, long time.

In Conclusion
I rally enjoyed it. I couldn't help myself, I'm such a sucker for murder mysteries, and when there's lead piping involved…well. Thought all the cast were brilliant. Loving the Doctor/Donna dynamic. Wish they'd have more rooms in the TARDIS.

8/10

Comments

[persiflage-1.livejournal.com]

Walnuts - not almonds (cyanide *smells* like bitter almonds)... [\pedant]

Ten totally wants to get into Donna's knickers - no one will persuade me otherwise !

And the AC book he digs out of his trunk is an actual AC book with that cover...

[staceyuk.livejournal.com]

Yay for Phoenix Wright! *giggles* That reminds me I still need to finish game 1.

[lm-jillybean.livejournal.com]

Lead is soft, with the proper application of strength you could take a lead pipe off the wall. Old manor houses would have plenty of lead piping (if not still in use) around the place, skirting the sideboards. Richer families would be replacing their lead piping, leaving plenty of odds and ends lying around.

(My father was a sheet metal worker)

[kaffy_r]

Oh, I loved the episode (Adventure! Cocktail Dresses! Manors! Murders!), I loved your pictorial tour through the show - and I completely agree with you that there should have been some reference to Bessie!