The Friday Docback Does Not Hide From 'Hide'!! This Week's DOCTOr WHO, And Much More!!

Matt Smith and David Tennant in costume as the 10th and 11th Doctors, filming DW's 50th Anniversary special.

[via IGNUK]

Glen here...

..with a very brief look at Hide, the second episode of DOCTOR WHO Series/Season 7 to be scripted by LUTHER’s Neil Cross. This one is unusual in its structure and pacing, and is not what I was expecting when I initially saw promos for it.

‘Not what I was expecting’ for better or worse? You decide, although I’ve included a few thoughts below. But first...

THE NEW WHOTINNNINES PODCAST IS HERE

** A very tired and stressed Glen attempts to dissect Hide and probably does so clumsily

** Ken flies off the handle about the recent MAN OF STEEL trailer...

** Ken is queasy about gnarly pictures of ___ that Glen insisted on texting him...

** and more...

...can now be found --->HERE!<---

Last week's WHOTININNIES...which is HERE and HERE...

** basks in the greatness that is Cold War...

** discusses our enthusiastic belief that BBC/Team Moff should use those two/three minute shorts to even greater effect (say, catching up with old companions and broadening the pieces’ scopes to include vignettes of DWverse side characters, etc.)

** finds Ken & Glen proposing that Adric should show up in NuWHO, only to be summarily exploded by Strax, who enthusiastically informs the Doctor that he has just ‘destroyed an annoying girl!’...

** finds Ken asserting that the recent announcement regarding Christopher Eccleston’s non-participation in the 50th Anniversary episode is a conspiratorial ruse - and Glen attempting to explain why Eccleston not shooting NEW material may be irrelevant given today’s technical capabilities...

** and Glen attempting to figure out why Ken was Tweeting pictures of a dark drug store parking lot at some dopey hour of the night.

** And much more!

BBC RELEASES POSTERS FOR REMAINING S7 EPISODES

...now including artwork for (and the title of) S7's finale! ---> THESE ARE RATHER EMBIGGENABLE! <----

DOCBACKER HORNORSILK REVIEW THE ELDRAD MUST DIE BIG FINISH AUDIO

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DOCTOR WHO - Eldrad Must Die Big Finish Audio Cover

Big Finish 172 – Eldrad Must Die!

By Marc Platt

When you get a Big Finish story by Marc Platt, you are likely in for a treat. Even though there have been a couple tales by Marc Platt which do not live up to his normal excellence, this is not one of them. While it is not his best Big Finish story, Eldrad Must Die! is certainly all an enjoyable story which takes a classic Who villain (Eldrad) and adds some unique twists to him (or is it her?).

In the fishing resort town of Ambermouth, the lake is off limits. Radioactive crystals are forming in the lake as well as on people (and animals) which touch them. The Doctor finds out that Eldrad, somehow, continues to live, and that every part of Eldrad can be used to recreate him. How does one go about stopping such a foe? There can be no doubt, for the Earth, for the Galaxy to survive, Eldrad must die.

Marc Platt has given the current Fifth Doctor “trio” of Nyssa, Tegan and Turlough one of their better stories since they have been grouped together. It is the kind of story I’ve been hoping to hear. It is gripping. It is fast paced. It has nice twists and turns, giving more backstory to Eldrad. But it is also a Turlough centered story, and one which is far better at doing this than the last one they did (Kiss of Death). We, once again, get more backstory with Turlough, but now we learn more about Turlough on Earth and those who went to his school with him. It turns out, he wasn’t the only exile sent to Earth.

I have said before that I am a big Turlough fan. I’ve always found the idea behind his character to be one of the best for companions in classic Who, and Marc Platt has been able to do a good job adding to the qualities I like about him here. Turlough is capable of being used by people, and yet, he knows in the end where his loyalties lie (with the Doctor). Indeed, in this story, we see a new take on possession (not too surprising, because this is an Eldrad story), giving us a greater insight into Turlough’s psyche. He is a hero who doesn’t want to be a hero, someone who isn’t always the most righteous and yet is capable of being led to doing what is right. He is cowardly and yet there is something, beneath his cowardice, which can be brought out when the time is right. Even his relationship with Tegan is brought to a new level, where they don’t always trust each other, and yet they do see themselves as friends willing to help each other if need be. She watches over Turlough in this one, but we see, he sometimes does the same for her, too. This is the kind of dynamic which is necessary if there are going to be several people in the TARDIS, for it is the kind of dynamic which keeps things interesting.

Nyssa, while she has an active part in this story, is given less to do. There is a point in the story the Doctor takes off without her, and we get a glimpse of her thinking “Oh no, not again. I will wait, because I’ve done it before.” Nyssa has become the girl who waited for Big Finish. I wonder if something will come out of this. Here, we only get hints. But sometimes hints like this go somewhere now. It’s hard to tell.

The ending of the story requires one to pay close attention to what is going on. It is a bit muddled, but not in a bad way (because Marc Platt is tying many story threads together). All in all, I will give this one 8.5/10. It’s good. It’s very good. But not the best.

- HornOrSilk

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HIDE (SPOILER FREE MINI-REVIEW)

There’s more to this story than the ‘haunted house’ motif its promotional materials have advanced. Spooky happenings and plenty of lightning are certainly a key part of the equation here, but Hide’s central core works on an altogether different emotional and metaphysical level. This is a very difficult episode to review without spoilers, but suffice to say the ‘supernatural’ - as ultimately presented here - represents cutting edge theories which I, as someone who has had considerable experience with the paranormal, suspect may be more ‘right’ than not.

Under the direction of Jamie Payne (THE HOUR, DA VINCI’S DEMONS), Hide often feels like it’s reaching for more atmosphere and heart than it actually achieves, but it still comes together as an interesting and even touching tale which feels comfortably middle-of-the-road. It’s evocative of classic WHO, pointedly recalls a legendary 1982 horror thriller, is supported by lovely and nuanced performances from Dougray Scott’s Alec Palmer and his Jessica Raine as Emma, his ‘assistant‘. In fact, one could even argue that Hide is more about this duo and their connection than the face value spooky shenanigans it's being sold on. In these character movements between Alec and Emma...and in a particularly nice moment between Clara and the Doctor (when the weight of being a companion to a madman in box is pointedly addressed)...Payne’s direction shines most brightly.

While Hide may ultimately be perceived as a fun, frothy one-off, it’s hard not to wonder if the conceits fueling the core of this episode might somehow come into play again at some later date - or somehow pertain to a particular leading character on the show?

Jessica Raine, who plays Emma in this episode, will return to the WHOverse when she plays WHO Demigodess Verity Lambert in the ADVENTURE IN TIME AND SPACE docudrama later this year.

Hide transmits Saturday April 20 on BBC America, BBC One, and Space.

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Glen Oliver

"Merrick"

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The Friday Docback Does Not Hide From 'Hide'!! Glen's Spoiler Free Mini-Review Of This Week's DOCTOR WHO, HornOrSilk On The 'Eldrad Must Die' Audio, New High-Res Ep Posters + S7 Finale Title!!!