"Better a fallen rocket than never a burst of light."
~ Tom Stoppard, The Invention of Love

Sunday, July 22, 2018

Doctor Who: Series 2, Episode 7 – “The Idiot’s Lantern” (2006)


I was lukewarm on this episode the first time I saw it, but on subsequent viewings, it’s grown a lot richer for me.  I like it a lot now; while there’s a little plot clunkiness going on, there’s also snappy dialogue, engaging one-shot characters, and some nice work on the part of our heroes.

The Tenth Doctor has taken Rose to see Elvis perform, but he’s gotten the timing and place a bit wrong:  they’re in 1953 London, just before the coronation of Elizabeth II.  There, they find a typical London street that has had a dark pall cast over it, people mysteriously turning up with their faces stolen and a police force that’s fighting to cover it up in lieu of investigating.  It’s Rose who notices something out of place – a proliferation of TV aeriels in a working-class neighborhood – but it’s up to the Doctor to work out what sinister force is lurking in the airwaves.

I really like how the episode uses the ‘50s setting, that optimistic post-war veneer that disguises something less friendly.  Meeting the Connollys handily demonstrates that these aren’t the “good old days” people like to remember – rather, this is an era when a man commands his wife rather than works with her, his suspiciously “soft” son is a point of contention, and secrets are hidden away because that sort of unpleasantness Just Doesn’t Happen Here, leaving them to fester in the dark instead of acknowledging the problem and asking for help.  Yeah, Rose and the Doctor are super-fun with their ‘50s styles and cheeky slang, but it’s this aspect of unspoken fault lines running through a family that really makes the episode pop.

I will admit that, while the basic concept of the alien mystery is both cool and creepy, The Wire itself leaves a little to be desired.  If I had more of a cultural awareness of the old-timey telly woman, it might have a bigger impact, but I still think the overall execution on the baddie and its motivation is a little lacking.  It’s my only big misstep for the story.

I think Rose tends to get kind of a bad rap this episode.  It’s true that she gets sidelined pretty heavily in the second half and the Doctor has to be the one to save both the day and her, but before that happens, she fares wonderfully well for herself.  She’s clever, perceptive, and bold, and what the Doctor somewhat-patronizingly refers to as her “domestic approach” – knocking on doors to see what people in the neighborhood know – is what leads to them to important clues in solving the mystery and a valuable ally in Tommy.  I just like the idea that, while the Doctor’s brain is racing a million miles an hour and he wants to run headlong into danger, Rose is picking up on these little things that are instrumental to carrying the day.  Oh, her and the Doctor’s tag-team against Mr. Connolly is the absolute best, especially that impish grin she flashes after telling him that “only an idiot hangs the Union Flag upside down.”

As for the Doctor, he gets the job done, too.  He gets a little “I will move heaven and earth…” in the second half for my tastes, but I love how he turns the tables in his scene with the detective, and I don’t think you can ever go wrong with the Doctor frantically building a solution out of spare parts while the world’s already in the process of going to hell.  Finally, it says a lot about both him and Rose that, although they’re focused on the mystery and helping the people who’ve been changed, they also don’t suffer bullies, and they take time out of their crazy schedule to put Mr. Connolly in his place and make sure Rita and Tommy are getting the bolstering they need.

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