Doctor Who Season 8 - Ep 9 - Flatline
Added 2025-02-28 01:11:37 +0000 UTCA problem happens with the Tardis, trapping the Doctor inside and leaving Clara to fend for herself against a two dimensional enemy.
Comments
Yep, I thought of Davros' words exactly when writing my comment. While it's a bit of retreading familiar ground, it's nice to revisit these themes with a Doctor who is so tonally different, especially after 11 who was arguably the kindest, most gracious Doctor we've had since 9. Smith was a bit of a break from focusing on The Doctor as such a "flawed being", so I appreciate it being put under the microscope again, especially with a new companion and a bunch of other fresh variables to give some different perspective on the matter.
Turnt SNACO
2025-03-02 21:18:18 +0000 UTCAs Davros said in series 4. He takes normal people and turns them into weapons . I'm not sure if this is a deliberate action but more the companion experiences the Doctor in action and aspires to be worthy. The Doctor is aware of this which is why he tried to drop Amy and Rory but was unable to do it full time. He now seems to be working on at what time is the right time for moving on. The Doctor appears to be torn between the inevitable danger to the companion and being alone. The Doctor is as addicted to the companion as the companion is to the Doctor.
Colin Bayley
2025-03-02 21:00:53 +0000 UTCThere's also some really interesting parallels between The Doctor's moral dilemma this season, and Danny's history as a soldier. Like I said in my other comment, the overall theme seems to be "Doing the right thing, but at what cost?" What does it cost you as a person to do what is best for others in the most dire situations? In the case of Danny - it's implied he's killed people in combat; and you can tell he's not proud of that part of himself. And his biggest worry for Clara is that The Doctor will make such a "soldier" out of her that she won't realize the lines she's crossed to prove herself to him, to be what he wants her to be, until it's too late and there's no turning back, and she can't take back the things she's done. And what's crazy is, he doesn't seem like like a worry wart or obsessively paranoid. It's hard not to think he could be right, especially after seeing her go as far as CALLING HERSELF The Doctor in this episode. She wants so badly to be as "amazing" as he is and do the things he does, but as the show is putting on the table: is The Doctor someone you really want to be like? Are his abilities truly a gift, or more like a curse that he just makes the best of by spinning them to his advantage?
Turnt SNACO
2025-03-02 15:56:16 +0000 UTC"You were an exceptional Doctor but not necessarily a good one" is not what Capaldi said to Clara, nor what he meant. He said "goodness had nothing to do with it" - as in, doing what The Doctor does isn't about being "morally good". It wasn't an insult to her performance or ability - it was a window into his perspective of himself from a moral viewpoint. This entire season has spent a lot of time asking the question "Is the Doctor a good man?" literally and philosophically - and giving us reason to see both sides of the equation. He tries to do good things for people and the universe as a whole, but sometimes it requires him to make difficult or even questionable decisions. Like Clara teased, he lies to people saying they'll be okay, whether or not he knows they will be, because it will keep them in better spirits - not that I think that outright makes someone a bad person. But it is manipulative, and just a small example of the sort of lengths he will go to in order to maintain control while he tries to "solve a problem". There is a distinct lack of empathy with the 12th Doctor, like when people are on the clock facing the mummy and he's just like "yeah yeah, now tell me what it looks like!" Other times he gets almost giddy about whatever's happening and people are like "Are you seriously enjoying this?? People are dying, you know!" Mind you, I think he does what would be impossible for most people, and makes decisions no one else could. I think that's one of the things that MAKES him The Doctor, and so great of a person. But that's basically what the show is putting into question: does the fact that he views something like the inevitable death of a victim as nothing more than a resource to solve a problem make him a "bad person"? Like, sure, he does the "impossible" and fixes problems no one else could.....but at what cost? What type of person do you have to be to pull off what he does? And that's basically what this episode was looking at by putting Clara in The Doctor's shoes. They could have gone a lot deeper and darker with that if they wanted to, and I almost wish they did, but because it was a monster episode they went a bit light on that theme. At least the monster was really cool in this one.
Turnt SNACO
2025-03-02 15:32:16 +0000 UTCthe tardis has shrunk a few times in the show, I think both the 1st doctor and the 4th doctor had their tardis’ shrunk
Samwell54
2025-02-28 22:19:25 +0000 UTCThe general idea of this season to me is the morals of the doctor. Being an 'exceptional' doctor has nothing to do his 'goodness'. The idea in this is that Clara has to drop her morals to do what the doctor does well.
Jason Jeffery
2025-02-28 18:36:20 +0000 UTCReally like this episode. Unusual bad guys that were well realised and formated. Clara's take on being the Doctor is probably what The Doctor was concerned about. She displayed a reckless tendency that a timelord can get away with but a human can only fail once. Capaldi gets his first 'I'm the Doctor ' speech.
Colin Bayley
2025-02-28 13:48:10 +0000 UTCI don't think the doctor's last comment to Clara was him being mean as such. He's genuinely concerned at her eagerness to be like him. In his view there's a difference between being good at being the doctor and being a "good" doctor and the two things are not always mutually exclusive.
Jennifer Mcilvenny
2025-02-28 13:06:20 +0000 UTCand thats the point when Capaldi became my doctor, he makes the speech at the end so epic. THE MAN WHO STOPS THE MONSTERS, I AM THE DOCTOR! aaaaaahhhhhhh love this fkn show
Marc Alg
2025-02-28 05:55:25 +0000 UTC
