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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