Already Nuwho is into Its five-year run and It seems that I am sad to say that one thing that Steven Moffat hasn't seem to have learned from RTD and the numerous misplaced errors he made is this: You can often have too much of a good thing. And none has arguably been more the case than the now tiresome overuse of one of the show's most iconic and lauded creations. "Victory of the Daleks" penned by the talented and versatile actor, comedian, and writer Mark Gatiss, a long-time devoted fan of the series who delivered the sublimely eerie "The Unquiet Dead" and the less satisfying yet entertaining "The Idiots Lantern" back in 2006. VOTD attempts to achieve something contradictory to what we've seen with the mythological menace a la 2005's "Dalek". To Gatiss's credit, the overriding plot to VOTD and the motivation behind what the monstrosities conspire to achieve Isn't too bad and isn't without some imaginative merit. But with a running time of just over forty minutes to cram as much narrative detail we're left with a clankingly constructed story that veers into the profoundly ludicrous to forward proceedings. The presence of the Time Lord protagonist as seen in the closing moments of the previous week's "The Beast Below" is strongly requested by a certain Winston Churchhill(A suitably portly Ian McNeice)in blitz-torn Britain. Relying on the contrived notion that the pair have already been acquainted in the past, Churchill wants the Doctor to witness the new weapon the British forces are utilizing in their fight against the Nazis. A weapon that bares an uncanny resemblance to one of the ancient time travelers' eldest and malignant foes. If you can get past the awkward and bizarre notion of the Dalek's supposed subservience there is, of course, a somewhat feasible rationale to it given how the story develops. But even then it leads the core audience to ask more questions which are basically left unanswered and no doubt might have been had it not been for the episodes now customarily imposed running time.
And once the true nature of the Dalek stratagem is unveiled the story takes further twists without any undue care or consideration to logic or sound reason. An error made all the more frequently by former executive producer and writer Russell T. Davies. Which given that not only Mark Gatiss wrote the script but the new executive producer and renowned writer Steven Moffat was allowed to grant it his stamp of approval. If you can swallow some of the inane tawdry revelations of a key character and the true nature of who that person is and their involvement with the Daleks, you won't be able to stomach where Gatiss exploits said character to further the story's sublime but clumsily handled narrative i.e. WWII spitfires dogfighting in outer space?! Visually given the cutbacks made to the show's budget Moffat is able to incorporate some eye-popping visuals into some of the episode's ludicrous scenarios. And as for some of the insipid cheesiness that was a cornerstone of Moffat's predecessor, it is ever the more evident and reduced me to moments where I felt I had to balk. And the addition of new Uber-Daleks seems to have been designed by the very same man or woman who invented the Teletubbies.
As for the general performances, they're basically of the decent quality you might expect from a BBC production. Matt Smith is proving to be pretty dependable although it might be noted that his emotional acting when he is forced to convey fury or frustration needs to be fine-tuned and less showy. Karen Gillan who is forced a little more into the foreground is still never the less excellent but what of the guest cast? Ian McNiece, one of Britain's oldest if not necessarily famous names gives an inoffensive if merely adequate performance as Churchill. He seems to attempt to imitate the iconic, historical figure and his unmistakable vocal tones but feels too forced and not completely convincing while Bill Pattison fares better in a thankless job as a walking-talking plot device. Although he does really give it his all and delivers a thoroughly emotional performance which is never less laughable within its context.
The result is that VOTD is a disappointing if not utterly awful run-around which all in all had the potential to be so much more than it was but is instead a bit of a tawdry bore with the odd moment of the brilliantly sublime to elevate it above being a complete disaster. But admirers of Steven Moffat need to take some note here. He may be a gifted writer but he has yet to totally prove that he has the chops to be a magnificent executive producer. But the preview signals the return of the ominous Weeping Angels and the feisty, Prof. River Song in the "Time of the Angels" which heralds the first part of a two-part story. I can only hope things once again elevated to a higher trajectory of standard.
And once the true nature of the Dalek stratagem is unveiled the story takes further twists without any undue care or consideration to logic or sound reason. An error made all the more frequently by former executive producer and writer Russell T. Davies. Which given that not only Mark Gatiss wrote the script but the new executive producer and renowned writer Steven Moffat was allowed to grant it his stamp of approval. If you can swallow some of the inane tawdry revelations of a key character and the true nature of who that person is and their involvement with the Daleks, you won't be able to stomach where Gatiss exploits said character to further the story's sublime but clumsily handled narrative i.e. WWII spitfires dogfighting in outer space?! Visually given the cutbacks made to the show's budget Moffat is able to incorporate some eye-popping visuals into some of the episode's ludicrous scenarios. And as for some of the insipid cheesiness that was a cornerstone of Moffat's predecessor, it is ever the more evident and reduced me to moments where I felt I had to balk. And the addition of new Uber-Daleks seems to have been designed by the very same man or woman who invented the Teletubbies.
As for the general performances, they're basically of the decent quality you might expect from a BBC production. Matt Smith is proving to be pretty dependable although it might be noted that his emotional acting when he is forced to convey fury or frustration needs to be fine-tuned and less showy. Karen Gillan who is forced a little more into the foreground is still never the less excellent but what of the guest cast? Ian McNiece, one of Britain's oldest if not necessarily famous names gives an inoffensive if merely adequate performance as Churchill. He seems to attempt to imitate the iconic, historical figure and his unmistakable vocal tones but feels too forced and not completely convincing while Bill Pattison fares better in a thankless job as a walking-talking plot device. Although he does really give it his all and delivers a thoroughly emotional performance which is never less laughable within its context.
The result is that VOTD is a disappointing if not utterly awful run-around which all in all had the potential to be so much more than it was but is instead a bit of a tawdry bore with the odd moment of the brilliantly sublime to elevate it above being a complete disaster. But admirers of Steven Moffat need to take some note here. He may be a gifted writer but he has yet to totally prove that he has the chops to be a magnificent executive producer. But the preview signals the return of the ominous Weeping Angels and the feisty, Prof. River Song in the "Time of the Angels" which heralds the first part of a two-part story. I can only hope things once again elevated to a higher trajectory of standard.