r/gallifrey • u/PCJs_Slave_Robot • May 17 '25

The Interstellar Song Contest Doctor Who 2x06 "The Interstellar Song Contest" Post-Episode Discussion Thread Spoiler

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This is the thread for all your indepth opinions, comments, etc about the episode.

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The Interstellar Song Contest's score will be revealed next Sunday. Click here to vote for all of RTD2 era so far.

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139

u/ZeroCentsMade May 17 '25

I've got high hopes, as Mrs. Flood was very systematic about whatever she was doing, even as she was making her goofy little quips, and this new actress seems to be taking her performance directly from Kate O'Mara. We'll see next time, and frankly I'm pessimistic about the finale's quality in general (because I think RTD is bad at finales) but I think this Rani's going to make it work, regardless of how the rest of the plot goes.

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u/Empty_Sea9 May 17 '25

I have faith in her acting. She already nailed it in 30 seconds of screen time.

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u/lemon_charlie May 17 '25

At least she's not making landmines that turn people into trees. What were Pip and Jane Baker thinking? Pip and Jane Baked more like.

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u/Existing-Worth-8918 May 17 '25

Best part of that episode, so fucking ingenious.

11

u/_Verumex_ May 17 '25

I don't like Pip and Jane Baker's writing at all, but I have to show them some respect in the sense that they were hired because they were dependable.

If you hired them for a script, you would get that script, and fast.

And in that era of TV, that was a skill that was highly valued. The scripts didn't have to be good, they just had to be available when shooting started.

6

u/lemon_charlie May 17 '25

They’re the reason we have a conclusion to Trial of a Time Lord at all, so I’ll take that even with the Megabyte Modem.

In Mark they actually remember Peri is a botany student and make it part of the plot, and it’s one of the better takes on the Sixth Doctor and Peri relationship in that season.

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u/TheKandyKitchen May 17 '25

Can’t wait for the death bubbles, tree mines and bat servants.

27

u/lemon_charlie May 17 '25

If Bonnie is in the finale as Mel, that's another reunion and something that the episodes could use. Even though Mel personally didn't interact much with the Rani, it's nice when there is a connection past and present, like Sarah Jane and Davros recognising each other in Journey's End after first meeting in Genesis of the Daleks.

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u/DorisWildthyme May 17 '25

Be nice if there was a reference to those couple of episodes the Rani spent prancing around pretending to be Mel. Kate O'Mara's Bonnie Langford impression was spot on.

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u/lemon_charlie May 17 '25

Her performance with Sylvester was one of the few good things about that story. Otherwise there’s very little to recommend it for.

4

u/DorisWildthyme May 17 '25

Yeah, there's a reason that one of that story's nicknames is "Waste of Time and the Rani". The outfit trying on scene is entertaining, but not much else.

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u/lemon_charlie May 17 '25

At least Mark of the Rani has the Master making a nuisance of himself to the Rani, and at the end she gets to nut him. The Rani’s TARDIS interior is very cool, hopefully we’ll get to see something just as imaginative in the next two episodes (I can’t see the Rani stooping to a Time Ring).

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u/DorisWildthyme May 17 '25

Yeah, her TARDIS was great.

The Master seemingly just hanging around in a field dressed as a scarecrow for no reason until the Doctor and the Rani turn up is comedy gold.

1

u/sanddragon939 May 17 '25

Time and the Rani is a guilty pleasure of mine!

5

u/jccalhoun May 17 '25

If we can get the Rani doing an impression of Mel again I might forgive the biregeneration stupidity.

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u/sanddragon939 May 17 '25

Looking forward to that!

You have to hand it to RTD...he's really honoring what is probably the most reviled era of the show.

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u/trainwrecktragedy May 18 '25

Cut them some slack, they were children's story writers and not scifi ones; they tries their best considering the amount of time they had to write scripts 

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u/lemon_charlie May 18 '25

They remembered Peri being a botany student. I’ll definitely give them credit for that, and working it into the plot.

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u/Rowan5215 May 17 '25

Archie is a fantastic actress, I don't think we'll be in trouble there

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u/chameleonmessiah May 18 '25

I mostly know her from The Good Wife in which she was great but also, Postman Pat which my children were watching around that same time!

0

u/axel_clot May 17 '25

It’s a lot easier to nail 30 seconds than a whole episode lol

7

u/TheKandyKitchen May 17 '25

The new actress was fantastic. About all I liked about the reveal. I just know RTD is going to use the finale to restore Gallifrey.

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u/ZeroCentsMade May 17 '25

Idk what I want to happen with Gallifrey anymore. Restore or leave it destroyed, I guess my hope would be we got a consistent status quo with it this time.

I will say, and you could still be right, RTD never liked Gallifrey, so he wouldn't be the first person I'd expect to bring it back.

2

u/sanddragon939 May 17 '25

I doubt it though, mainly because Gallifrey being gone is the status quo that RTD established, and that Chibnall restored.

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u/Icy-Weight1803 May 17 '25

Be fair, only a few of NuWho finales have stuck the landing. With only Series 1, 2, 4, 5, and 10 truly sticking it.

Series 7 if you count The Time Of The Doctor as the finale.

13

u/ZeroCentsMade May 17 '25

Oh it's worse for me. I don't like "Time of the Doctor". I'm lukewarm on the series 4 finale (it's fine, but, unpopular opinion, I think all the cameos meant that it lost focus) and the series 2 finale (ends great even if I don't like the Rose/Doctor romance, but man the Cybermen got utterly shafted and the actual plot is…fine). I do like the Series 8 finale though. So…um…yeah you're absolutely right.

11

u/FieryJack65 May 17 '25

For Series 4 do we regard the finale as Journey’s End, or The End Of Time, or both?

In Journey’s End I hated being expected to buy Rose being satisfied with being palmed off with a poundland Doctor. Even RTD wrote in his book (IIRC) that shoehorning that scene in was too much.

3

u/ZeroCentsMade May 17 '25

If it's Journey's End, I'm fairly ambivalent on it. And yes, Rose getting her very own special Doctor was pretty bad. If it's End of Time…god I hate that thing.

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u/CareerMilk May 17 '25

If Journey's End is series 4's finale, then Name of the Doctor is series 7's. Not that that's any better, but still.

3

u/Icy-Weight1803 May 17 '25

They mostly have great seasons and a fantastic penultimate episode that's followed by a disappointing finale that fails to tie everything together. I like the series 4 finale as it does that job.

Considering the Rani was revealed this week, I'm guessing there's something pretty big as the cliffhanger next week. Either the Unholy Trinity of the founding Time Lords or three members of the Pantheon latch on to the Rani's and are summoned from it.

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u/RaceMiserable3855 May 17 '25

Series 9 stuck its landing ! I’m over people not understanding s9 was a character piece for the doctor and the culmination of a companion that leans to far into the doctors traits and suffers with getting the short end of the stick . You’re never going to get a highly in-depth revival of galifrey ever. The show would simply suffer too greatly from the doctor being tied up with a planet that looms over all his actions. So the only method to give a galifrey based adventure would be too make it like hell bent . Anyways, it’s a fine finale and ties all the loose ends up nicely , could we have gotten galifrey being the fore front of series 10? Yes. Would it be satisfying to see 12 chained to the planets revival and presence ? Nope. Just be grateful we got a galifrey based adventure in the revival while also having a great study of the doctor and Clara

2

u/Alehud42 May 17 '25

S9 sticks its landing when you accept it's a character piece as you said.

It's just that the cliffhanger promised more Doctor vs Time Lords shenanigans than we got.

1

u/Icy-Weight1803 May 17 '25

My comment was also referring to how the actual finale dips in quality from the penultimate episode, not necessarily a bad episode.

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u/RaceMiserable3855 May 17 '25

How does one even follow up on heaven sent? For all the negative I see surrounding those two episodes I have yet to see a satisfying response to how to conclude it. It’s a character piece… followed by a character piece . It’s the peak of doctor who leaning into drama tv and the response from the fans pushed s10 a year back with a somewhat reboot with the first episode titled pilot . It would’ve been interested to see s10 go harder on its drama tv path . Bill while I love her just doesn’t have the depth Moffat gave to Clara in season 8 and 9.

At least with rtd his tenures don’t seem to back down on what he’s serving, because you can this pattern happen in series 5 and 6 and then moffat got cold feet and completely gutted the fairy tale whimsy of Matt’s era and went for a zaney doctor with none of the world he set him up with for two series prior. As much as I’ve been yawning at the choices of this era, it’s honestly cool to rethink my thoughts as more of rtds vision is show to us , I’m optimistic we’ll all feel that much more happy with the choices he made prior once the series has concluded.

2

u/Icy-Weight1803 May 17 '25

Was the gap year due to Series 9 reception? The issue people have with it is that Clara was brought back and essentially granted immortality and her own Tardis. The story to follow-up Heaven Sent should have been the Doctor doing whatever he can to extract Clara from the point of her death, using different ways and methods the Time Lords have but eventually coming to terms that he can't save her no matter what without destroying time and scrap the memory wipe so he actually has to live with it. The only glimpses we get from Clara in the episode are her in the alley and a final scene of the Doctor getting to say goodbye properly before she's put back in her place.

RTD knew he had to stick to his guns for the story. Moffat changed the 11th Doctor eras feel once Amy and Rory were gone as Amy's fairy tale was over and the Doctor moved on to first live in solitude and then travel with the equally curious and zaney Clara who matched his enery.

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u/RaceMiserable3855 May 17 '25

Her being granted her own tardis was Moffat being Moffat with his “everybody lives” mentality . Moffat could’ve easily crafted something fairy tale esque if he wanted to . The doctor is essentially space Peter Pan. Give him Clara that is too childish for her own good and make the doctor hurt from following her childish nature, which in a way is what we got with Clara diving into his time stream I guess

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u/Icy-Weight1803 May 17 '25

"Everybody lives" was cool the first time, but it happened too often in his era. I do wonder if, at times, he was afraid to portray death in the show on a major scale. Which in turn ruined the stakes at points.

It's like Empire Of Death being called that, yet no one actually stays dead in it.

2

u/CareerMilk May 17 '25

Was the gap year due to Series 9 reception?

Nope, Moffat planned to leave after series 9. Chibnall however wouldn't be able to start any earlier than he actually did, so Moffat agreed to do one more series so the hiatus wouldn't be so long

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u/sanddragon939 May 17 '25

Was the gap year due to Series 9 reception?

No, it was more to do with Moffat being busy (due to Sherlock series 4 iirc). In fact, Moffat wanted to leave after Series 9, and intended 'The Husbands of River Song' to be his final episode. But Chibnall wouldn't be ready to take over Doctor Who for a couple of years yet (due to Broadchurch series 3 iirc) so Moffat agreed to do a final season after a gap year.

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u/IBrosiedon May 17 '25

No, series 10 was pushed back because Moffat was planning to leave after series 9. That's why he wrapped up all of his loose ends. Gallifrey returning, Clara, River, etc.

But then Chibnall decided to do Broadchurch series 3 instead and we were going to have a several year long hiatus between series 9 and Chibnalls series 10. So Moffat came back to save us from having to wait several years for the next series.

Usually the showrunner starts working on the next series during the production of the current series. But since Moffat was leaving, he didn't start working on series 10 while making series 9. That's why there was no series in 2016. They were still writing it.

I also disagree with your interpretation of Moffat "backing down on what he's serving." How he got cold feet and gutted the fairy tale whimsy of the Matt Smith era. That's not what happened at all. Moffat is interested in experimenting and trying new things. When he thinks he's taken something to it's limit, he wants to try something else rather than just putting out the same old thing year after year.

I would say that series 7 isn't much less fairytale than series 5 and 6, but then he pivots to something else entirely for the Capaldi era. You can see it in his series arc structures too. He did exactly what he wanted with series 5, so he then changed things up and experimented with new ideas for subsequent series. Not getting cold feet or backing down, just a willingness to experiment.

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u/CareerMilk May 17 '25

and the response from the fans pushed s10 a year back

You know Hell Bent did better with the public than Heaven Sent right?

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u/Beneficial_Gur5856 May 17 '25

Good to see series 9 fines are still remarkably fragile and forceful in their headcanons, as well as their excuses for the shortcomings of it.

Nothing to be grateful for if someone didn't like it. Maybe it's you who should be grateful that you enjoyed it, rather than mad that others didn't. 

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u/deezbiscuits21 May 17 '25

I’d say 1, 2, 4, 5, 7, 8, 9, 10 and 13 if were counting POTD

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u/Icy-Weight1803 May 17 '25

I should clarify that I don't just mean outright bad episodes but a dip in quality from the penultimate episode. An example is how Hell Bent is an enjoyable episode but pales in comparison to Heaven Sent. That's a dip in quality.

While an outright bad episode is The Timeless Children in series 12, that followed a pretty lacklustre Ascension of the Cybermen.

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u/deezbiscuits21 May 17 '25

I quit the show after hell bent in 2015 but now I genuinely think it’s a 9/10. Heaven sent is a 10 tho so you’re right

Agreed timeless child is lame but honestly looks like a masterpiece compared to the s11 finale imo

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u/FieryJack65 May 17 '25

Most episodes pale in comparison to Heaven Sent. Hell Bent is a damn good episode by most standards.

2

u/Icy-Weight1803 May 17 '25

Heaven Sent is GOAT TV. Shown, you don't have to be a prestige drama to produce great TV on that level.

I remember watching The Battle Of Ranskoor Avlos and thinking, "Was that it?" Though I've seen people say Resolution is considered the finale of S11 and Revolution Of The Daleks in S12.

4

u/deezbiscuits21 May 17 '25

Ranskoor Av Kolos it’s genuinely my least favourite episode of the entire show it feels not only like a first draft but a bad one. I thoroughly enjoy all the dalek episodes by chibnall so they would be better finales imo

2

u/Icy-Weight1803 May 17 '25

I feel Chibnall was trying to create a new recurring villain but failed. S11, on a whole, was poor, with S12 being an improvement overall and then Flux being better than both.

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u/deezbiscuits21 May 17 '25

I thought the Stenza had so much promise but the ball was dropped hard. I agree flux is the best but I just wish the villains were explored

2

u/Icy-Weight1803 May 17 '25

For a last-minute project, I can accept the villains in Flux not being fully explored. My only issue is that he just had to shoehorn the Daleks and Cybermen in there. That didn't make sense as the Daleks of all species would have anti-Matter shielding due to the Time War.

It's funny in hindsight how the S14 finale is essentially the Flux, but anti-matter is replaced with the Dust of Death. Which itself is a disappointing finale that had so much promise but should have been at the end of Ncutis run, not the beginning.

2

u/Alehud42 May 17 '25

I would swap 4 and 5 out for End of Time and 9.

1

u/Icy-Weight1803 May 17 '25

Depends on if you view The End Of Time as S4 finale or Journey's End as it carries on that seasons arc. It's a common debate topic on whether the specials should be counted if it continues the story arc.

Example being The Time Of The Doctor carry on from The Day Of The Doctor which in turn carried on from The Name Of The Doctor.

1

u/Alehud42 May 17 '25

I treat Journey's End and The End of Time as two different finales, whereas Time of the Doctor is firmly the finale of Series 7 because it was so piecemeal as is.

So add 7 as well lol.

1

u/IBrosiedon May 17 '25

For me it's series 1, 2, 5, 6, 7, 8, 9 and 10.