The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe
Jan. 11th, 2012 07:41 pm![[personal profile]](https://www.dreamwidth.org/img/silk/identity/user.png){kind=small}
purplecatWhile I can see that The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe was, basically, emotionally manipulative schmaltz, I rather enjoyed it. Ultimately, I suppose, I don't in principle think there is anything wrong with stories that are predominantly fluff, especially when they have the faint undertone of steel that Madge Arwell brings to events.
Until he actually took the reigns of series producer, Stephen Moffat had, arguably, failed to ever actually kill a character in a Doctor Who episode he wrote. Interestingly in The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe he not only fails to kill anyone but also fails to supply a villain/monster, or even an antagonist. Arguably the trees are the antagonist, but their agenda isn't really sufficiently opposed to the Doctor's own viewpoint to make them satisfactory in that role. The villains of the piece would seem to be the Andronzani Majorians, but given they are represented by three comedians in a manner best described as cuddly, it's hard to treat them seriously in that role. The end result is something very gentle, a story in which the Doctor mostly reacts to the events around him and in which Madge is far and away the most dangerous character on the screen. You are left in no real doubt that she is clever, determined and ruthless and even the Doctor doesn't really dare cross her.
In fact Madge is basically the protagonist here. The Doctor does very little, if anything he is just another of the strange forces that are threatening her children. That might account for the strangely muted reaction we see from him when he learns that the planet is to be turned into a giant battery. That's the kind of issue that you would expect to fill the Doctor up with anger but it passes almost without comment and you get the impression the denizens of Androzani Major need fear no repercussions for almost wiping out an entire sentient species. But then, I suspect, these issues were of little concern to Madge herself.
It's a shame, in some ways, that the homage to C. S. Lewis is primarily visual: the doorway into a wintery world. Perhaps that is just as well, I'm not sure C. S. Lewis' christian fable would have translated well into Doctor Who's essentially atheistic worldview, certainly its themes would have been twisted drastically in the attempt. On the other hand, drawing such an explicit comparison in a way which turns out to be entirely superficial makes it tempting to assume the whole story is superficial. The themes the episode was examining, of motherhood, family and a rather British attitude towards grief, were delivered with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer but it wasn't entirely superficial. The only real subtlety is the essential narrowness of Madge's awareness and concerns. She barely seems to question anything unless it impacts directly upon her family, and while she is clearly extremely resourceful in their defence, it is not obvious that any other issue could raise her out of her aura of mild dottiness. For this, Androzani Major should probably be relieved.
I think, actually, I mostly thought Madge was awesome and interesting and the forest was pretty, but still that was plenty to keep me happily occupied for an hour or so.
Until he actually took the reigns of series producer, Stephen Moffat had, arguably, failed to ever actually kill a character in a Doctor Who episode he wrote. Interestingly in The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe he not only fails to kill anyone but also fails to supply a villain/monster, or even an antagonist. Arguably the trees are the antagonist, but their agenda isn't really sufficiently opposed to the Doctor's own viewpoint to make them satisfactory in that role. The villains of the piece would seem to be the Andronzani Majorians, but given they are represented by three comedians in a manner best described as cuddly, it's hard to treat them seriously in that role. The end result is something very gentle, a story in which the Doctor mostly reacts to the events around him and in which Madge is far and away the most dangerous character on the screen. You are left in no real doubt that she is clever, determined and ruthless and even the Doctor doesn't really dare cross her.
In fact Madge is basically the protagonist here. The Doctor does very little, if anything he is just another of the strange forces that are threatening her children. That might account for the strangely muted reaction we see from him when he learns that the planet is to be turned into a giant battery. That's the kind of issue that you would expect to fill the Doctor up with anger but it passes almost without comment and you get the impression the denizens of Androzani Major need fear no repercussions for almost wiping out an entire sentient species. But then, I suspect, these issues were of little concern to Madge herself.
It's a shame, in some ways, that the homage to C. S. Lewis is primarily visual: the doorway into a wintery world. Perhaps that is just as well, I'm not sure C. S. Lewis' christian fable would have translated well into Doctor Who's essentially atheistic worldview, certainly its themes would have been twisted drastically in the attempt. On the other hand, drawing such an explicit comparison in a way which turns out to be entirely superficial makes it tempting to assume the whole story is superficial. The themes the episode was examining, of motherhood, family and a rather British attitude towards grief, were delivered with all the subtlety of a sledgehammer but it wasn't entirely superficial. The only real subtlety is the essential narrowness of Madge's awareness and concerns. She barely seems to question anything unless it impacts directly upon her family, and while she is clearly extremely resourceful in their defence, it is not obvious that any other issue could raise her out of her aura of mild dottiness. For this, Androzani Major should probably be relieved.
I think, actually, I mostly thought Madge was awesome and interesting and the forest was pretty, but still that was plenty to keep me happily occupied for an hour or so.
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(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-11 10:23 pm (UTC)Bill Bailey was amusing, though. The rest was emotional schmaltz.
(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-12 11:45 am (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-12 06:07 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-11 11:00 pm (UTC)The more I see of Mtt Smith's Doctor, the more I like him.
(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-12 11:48 am (UTC)I like Matt Smith's Doctor, it's very much won me around, but then I was into Doctor Who before he was supposed to be a romantic love interest, or indeed particularly sympathetic or understanding of humans. Smith's performance harks back to Tom Baker and before more closely than anything that's come since, I think.
(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-16 11:14 pm (UTC)(no subject)
Date: 2012-01-17 09:44 am (UTC)