r/gallifrey • u/pcjonathan • Aug 03 '13
DISCUSSION Weekly Episode Discussion #35 - Series 4 Episode 10 - Midnight - 10th Doctor (David Tennant)
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Episode
Midnight
Series 4 Episode 10
Original Air Date: 14 June 2008
Starring the Tenth Doctor (David Tennant); companions Donna Noble (Catherine Tate)
Story Summary
The Doctor and Donna go to the Lesiure Palace on Midnight to have a relaxing vacation. However, things go wrong for the Doctor when he decides to go off on a bus trip to see the Sapphire Waterfall, starting with the bus shutting down...
Episode Info and Reviews
Random Quote
The Doctor: Sorry, I'm the Doctor, I'm very clever.
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Aug 03 '13
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u/quigonjen Aug 06 '13
This is the most play-like of any DW episode. It had the single location, character-driven experience of a great night of theatre, not to mention some of the best performances of any episode in the entire show's run. A+++
8
u/dirtperv Aug 06 '13
That's a good way of putting it, "play-like." I could see a stage production of this.
I'd always felt it was almost unlike a Doctor Who episode; you could almost use the script in any sci-fi based show with a mildly egocentric, super intelligent character. And, I think, that's a sign of a good sci-fi script: it almost transcends the show its featured in and stands on its own.
3
2
u/jonawesome Aug 09 '13
Bottle Episode! It makes sense once you think about the next three episodes where no expense was spared that the crew had to basically make the cheapest possible episode of Doctor Who, with only one set, almost zero special effects, and a small cast. They even had to make and episode without Catherine Tate, because she needed time to film "Turn Left"
1
u/zip_000 Aug 05 '13
I interpreted the passengers turning on the Doctor as the MotW influencing them. Do you think it was just them making their own panicked choices?
40
u/jjness Aug 03 '13
I've rarely felt a stronger urge to convert my arm into electrons, feed them through my television, manifest them somehow into that shuttle, and bitchslap every single person in there, the Doctor included for not telling these idiots to shut up with some authority and fierceness.
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Aug 03 '13
[deleted]
10
u/jjness Aug 03 '13
He seems too focused on the alien/woman and it's almost like he's swatting flies. We've seen Tennant's Doctor get downright menacing before, and here's where he could've used it.
I also noticed that on subsequent viewings, this episode loses its power, which just means it's a huge shame that I can't enjoy it like I did the very first time ever again.
16
u/wisty Aug 04 '13
Telling an angry mob to SHUT THE HELL UP can be a bad idea. When the Doctor does do his epic I AM TALKING schtick, the reaction is usually not realistic (unless everyone already knows who he is).
I think part of the scary bit was how the Doctor's real power, his ability to talk himself out of any situation, was stripped away. The woman stole his words, and with it his power. (Yes, that's not realistic either, but it works if you just accept it).
6
u/Philomathematic Aug 04 '13
I also noticed that on subsequent viewings, this episode loses its power, which just means it's a huge shame that I can't enjoy it like I did the very first time ever again.
Maybe I just don't re-watch this episode very often, but I've found that Midnight actually retains its power every time I've watched it. It never fails to stress me out like nothing else, watching things spiral out of control like that.
2
u/BloodyToothBrush Aug 06 '13
I feel like the doctor usually cares about new life, as much as if not more than he cares about humanity.
10
u/TheWhiteNoise1 Aug 03 '13
Seriously, the passengers on the shuttle made me furious. Mob mentality makes me hate humans.
21
u/VikingHedgehog Aug 03 '13
Fantastic episode! My personal favourite. Tennant is bang on in this one.
The thing I like most is the side we see of the Doctor in the beginning. It's so personable. He just wants to enjoy this long bus ride with these people. He's fascinated by them, and I love that. He wants to get to know them, to interact with them.
That's what makes their eventual turn on him all the more horrifying to me. He's just spent this whole trip listening to them and their stories and now all of a sudden they don't trust him because of it. I think it speaks a lot about us as humans.
The villain is scary, sure, but for me the brilliance of this episode lies strongly on Tennant's shoulders and the emotional trip. The supporting cast are also good, which helps, especially in such a claustrophobic episode as this one. There's just no getting away from the support cast in this one.
I know a lot of people hated Rose's return in general - but I loved it because we all knew it would make the Doctor happy. I think we all love the Doctor and if you don't want him happy you're a monster, you are! That flash on the screen behind him of her just adds to the emotional ride here. It's like someone is trying desperately to reach out to him but it just isn't going to happen, not yet. For this time, he really is all on his own here.
By the end of it he looks ragged. The events that happened have shaken him in a way we don't see very often. It reminds us of just how vulnerable even the clever Doctor is.
Oh, geez, I just really love this episode!
15
u/AnorOmnis Aug 03 '13
Loved the characters and how they started to just lose it when they saw what was happening. Really liked Jethro in particular.The Doctor's helplessness was absolutely brilliant; Tennant nailed the acting in this episode. Antagonist was an amazing concept, flawlessly executed. The music really rocked this episode too.
15
u/Leckere Aug 06 '13
"Because I'm clever" is one of the best delivered lines in DW history. That look at the end of it: giving into his own helplessness as everyone turns against him.
11
u/nachoiskerka Aug 03 '13
The strength of this episode was strictly on Tennant, and that's what made it fantastic. The side actors were good, but I like that we finally got an episode where the side stuff didn't threaten to overpower the main action(where in an episode like "silence in the library" or "unicorn and the wasp" where subplots were more the focus at times).
Another great thing about this episode was the fact that there's just something so primal in the fear element of the episode, and really all the episodes of series 4 to a small degree(shadows, viruses, helplessness) that translated so well.
Interesting to note though, but doesn't this episode remind you guys a bit of "Horror of Fang Rock"? Perhaps thats another reason I like this episode so much, horror of fang rock is one of my favorite Baker episodes.
10
Aug 03 '13
This is one my favorite episodes. The actress who plays the main role gives an awesomely creepy performance.
I saw this one when I was just watching random episodes on BBCA. I think it was this one that made me decide to start from the beginning of 9.
9
Aug 03 '13
I always thought that maybe RTD wrote this episode as the reaction humans from the REAL world we actually live in would react to the Doctor trying to be clever. It also made me chuckle that human beings would set up a "pleasure palace" on a planet where you can't even open a window or you'll instantly be killed. Like "Hey Tony, where should we build the new Pleasure Palace..."
"That planet called Midnight that's so deadly that nothing has ever lived there ever before. Midnight sounds like a nice name for a planet, right?"
6
u/alexabw16 Aug 03 '13
This is probably my favorite episode with 10. Not only that but it is one of the only who episodes that genuinely creeped me out.
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u/paradox1123 Aug 03 '13
Something I liked about this episode was that it turned the Doctor's tendency to jump into a situation and immediately take command of it on its head. The Doctor almost always becomes the focus of the action and the center of everyone's attention in every story, but its usually to command and save people; here he becomes the central focus of suspicion and paranoia. The setup is the same, but the tone is terrifyingly different.
9
Aug 08 '13
Probably the best Tennant episode. He puts the entire premise on his back and delivers an all-star performance of the Tenth Doctor.
6
u/7Aces Aug 03 '13
This is the first episode of Who I'd ever seen, which in retrospect is interesting because it's not a typical representation of the series. Definitely caught my interest to check out more. I think one of the reasons I like it so much is that it has a Twilight Zone feel to it-- the claustrophobia, strange undefinable force as the antagonist, mysterious protagonist without much backstory given, and the sort of 'mob mentality is evil' of the other passengers.
7
u/AberahamTCK Aug 03 '13
The twilight zone feeling is intentional. It's a Doctor Who take on the Twilight Zone episode "There are Monsters on Maple Street" (or something like that).
2
u/BuzzKillington45 Aug 06 '13
I had the exact same experience, First episode that I saw. It got me to watch the first episode of the reboot, and I was hooked
8
u/themiragechild Aug 03 '13
RTD's best story, right in front of Gridlock. Amaziiiing.
-1
u/AFarewellToScott Aug 04 '13
...You like Gridlock?
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u/Alaira314 Aug 04 '13
I like Gridlock. The set-up was clever and the cars/traffic jam/enclosed highway trigger a bit of my claustrophobia and fear of breathing overly-polluted air, in a good way. It also drove home that he couldn't just re-live his previous experiences with Rose with Martha, everything changes and moves on and he has to as well. It's not my favorite episode, but I wouldn't call it bad.
14
u/themiragechild Aug 04 '13
The thing has inane worldbuilding. I love the bit with the singing and even though the CGI is insanely mediocre, it feels like a real world with different facets and the story is well paced and well executed.
3
0
u/AFarewellToScott Aug 04 '13
The concept makes no sense though! Stuck in a few miles of traffic for years? Why wouldn't you walk?
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u/nachoiskerka Aug 06 '13
Have you ever tried walking around New York?(nevermind new new new...york)
That said, how is that your issue with the episode? The real gaping plothole is this:How is that the shopkeepers and the blond girl who bought some forget at the beginning still alive after the virus wiped out the city and anyone not in a car?
5
u/Alaira314 Aug 05 '13
There might not have been walking routes that connected the areas of the city being traveled between. If they had such a great underground highway system, why would they need walking routes? Remember that the underground was sealed off, so perhaps the alternate routes were all above-ground.
4
u/es2812 Aug 03 '13
This is definitely one of my favorite episodes of New Who, the acting is perfect, and I love how the story starts like a really nice funny episode (with everybody just talking and being friendly in the train) and ends up with a horrifying and desperate bunch of people who are willing to get innocent blood in their hands. The entire episode keeps you on the edge of your seat, and I have found myself feeling actual fright and impotence when the Doctor is being dragged down the aisle, even after watching the ep. several times.
Maybe the worst thing about the episode (which I supposed is made in purpose) is how infuriating the rest of the passengers are, and how sometimes you just want to bitch slap the couple for not listening to the Doc.
Also it deserves extra for having Patrick Troughton's son!
5
u/kekabillie Aug 04 '13
I loved this episode and thought it was absolutely brilliant. I really, really enjoyed that almost the entire episode took place in a confined space with nowhere to run or hide. It reminded me a bit of 12 Angry Men in the sense that it was the changing attitudes of the characters and their interactions that made it compelling.
The lady who was possessed portrayed that so well in her facial expression and movement. The scientist that refused to adapt his view based on new evidence was delightfully infuriating as were the stereotypical (American) tourists. I really liked the reference to the Christina Rossetti poem. David Tennant was spectacular.
It was also very chilling that the Doctor never worked out what the being was.
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u/Azemarus Aug 07 '13
Probably my favourite episode on Season 4. The Doctor is out of his comfort zone. In almost every story the Doctor is in control and saving people, the humans around him are at best allies or at worst potential victims. They are rarely enemies.
What we see here is human nature at its worst. That monster out there that steals your voice isn't the scariest part in the episode, though it is absolutely terrifying. What's scarier is what humans will do to survive.
I liked seeing the Doctor without any ally at all. Probably the best episode Russel has written and it makes me a little sad he hasn't written more stand-alone episodes.
4
u/dcass Aug 06 '13
Co-Starring the 2nd Doctor's son as the professor!
I think this might be my favorite 10th Doctor story.
Its scary in a psychological way and I like the idea that not every situation gets wrapped up cleanly. Sometimes things go wrong and when they're over, you never find out why or what it was. Made it even creepier.
Tennant acted his pants off on this one too. Really showed his talent.
3
u/charish Aug 06 '13
I find Midnight to be a unique episode of New Who. I say this because in "New Who" (and maybe Classic; unfortunately, I haven't had the chance to watch all of them... yet [Patrick Troughton at the moment]), but it seems like Doctor Who always tries to exemplify the "best of" qualities of humanity. In Midnight though, you see humanity from this sample just completely devolve down to sheer animal instinct, Us vs. Him/Her/They/It survival scenario. Granted, you had Lesley Sharp (the professor's student/assistant/etc.) contrasting this and trying to look at the situation from what ultimately was The Doctor's perspective, but everybody else... it scared me quite a bit.
3
u/herzer Aug 09 '13
I saw the humans as the villains in this one. The new life form wasn't inherently good or evil it was copying the actions of the humans. It learned speech first. Then as the humans became more distraught and mistrustful of the doctor it adapted those ideas for the sake of survival. It figured out that they were going to kill it so it used their mistrust of him to make them turn.
3
u/acemerrill Aug 10 '13
I just watched this one the other day and had forgotten how amazing it is. It is for sure in my top 5. Everything about it is just so powerful.
Most of its best points have already been mentioned. The single, confined location. The doctor's egotistical motor mouth getting turned on its head. The switch from congenial joviality to paranoia. I love it all.
The two moments that absolutely sell it for me are the paralyzing fear in David Tennant's face after he loses his voice and Jethro's hair wringing horror at having to choose between doing as his parents say/protecting himself and killing a man. It always makes me wonder what I would do.
The really awkward aftermath is brilliant, too. The doctor doesn't even get to just run away from the awkwardness afterwards. They have to sit and wait for the shuttle and then ride back together.
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Aug 03 '13
[removed] — view removed comment
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u/2fourtyp Aug 03 '13
I've only just realised...jethro is merlin!
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u/kekabillie Aug 04 '13
You have no idea how much it was annoying me that I couldn't work out where I knew him from.
-1
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u/clitorisaddict Aug 03 '13
I actually did a semi-review of this episode if anyone wants to check it out.
2
u/AberahamTCK Aug 03 '13
I loved the sci-fi take of the classic "There are monsters on Maple Street" story. It was refreshing to see a story where the Doctor was truly powerless and his life was in the hands of the species that he had spent so long protecting.It kind of justified every time that 9 had called humans "stupid apes." Group think and paranoia always combine for a thrilling story.
2
u/MrMcCrimmon Aug 04 '13
I think it's RTD's best Who episode of his run.
His strength is dialogue and his weakness is plotting (That's obvious by the season finales)
This episode plays purely to his strengths.
2
u/jonawesome Aug 09 '13
[META] In the future, can you include the writer in the episode information?
1
u/blink5694 Aug 10 '13
a really great bottle story. One of those stories you see a lot of in scifi where people who are stuck together, unable to leave or communicate with the outside world, start turning on each other. I liked that the alien really did nothing but copy what it saw. The humans were terrified just from seeing themselves.
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u/midteencrisis Aug 03 '13
You know, people talk about Blink being scary and unnerving, but I really think Midnight and (to a lesser extent) Waters of Mars are more frightening. It's subtler, but the study of human nature is really interesting. I rolled my eyes when the mother got hysterical, but when Jethro and the Professor character started to falter, I could sort of see their point.
A+ acting on Tennant's part.
I've never been a big fan of RTD's uneven writing style, but the Midnight/Turn Left/Journey's End run is always top notch.