The Randomizer: Planet of the Ood

Planet of the Ood is something of an odd story. It is very nearly almost the kind of strange and wonderful thing Doctor Who intermittently serves up (often, you get the impression, as much to the show's surprise as everyone else's) but at the end of the day it is in the "big dumb" half of its season.

( More (though not much) under the cut )

I went back and looked at my review at the time of transmission and note that I was both approaching the story with a greater interest in nit-picking the science, but also with less of a sense of missed opportunities. "I suspect it might not stand up so well on repeated viewing when the stylistic flourishes are forced to compete more heavily with the comparatively light-weight plot and the moral message may begin to appear rather facile and heavy-handed." I said, and I think the repeat viewing bears that opinion out. I kept thinking it was a shame this story didn't appear later in the season when the production team often appeared more prepared to go out on a bit of a limb and be more difficult, more strange and more different.