This week's Doctor Who was Dinosaurs on a Spaceship and with each episode of Doctor Who set to be a blockbuster, did this episode live up to this statement? Let's see in my review...
Overview
A great episode but the first time I watched it, it did seem a bit rushed at parts. However, I watched it again and it didn't seem as rushed, so I think that this episode certainly lived up to last weeks cracker!
Continuity
Compared to last week's continuity greatness, Dinosaurs on a Spaceship certainly did falter at bits of continuity. Here's what they were:
- Amy's job as a Kissogram and a model were touched on again, now with Amy saying she 'gave up' being a model
- The TARDIS on the Siluria postcard was the Tenth Doctor's TARDIS
- The Doctor says 'GERONIMO!' when jumping on to the Triceratops
- Solomon's scan of the Doctor revealing he doesn't exist, carries on with the fact that most of the universe thinks he is dead
- The gaps between the Doctor visits to the Pond's is touched on again
- The dark side to the Doctor was present again when he killed Solomon
Story Arc
The 'Doctor Who?' theme wasn't present much in this episode but Solomon's scan of the Doctor showed he doesn't exist, leading on from the whole universe thinking he is dead
Story
The story was again simple: stop a spaceship from crashing into Earth. Very well thought out, but some parts were slightly rushed and I would have liked a more explained pre-title sequence. Apart from this, no plot holes and I loved how we were finally given a Doctor Who story with dinosaurs in it!
Problems
Apart from the TARDIS error on the postcard, there nothing wrong with this episode, story wise. However, the 'rushed' feeling that this episode gave was a slight problem and if it were an hour long, I feel I would have loved this story even more.
Dinosaurs
CGI on this episode was faultless in this episode and they are the most real dinosaurs I have ever seen on TV or film! The Triceratops' saliva on Brian was great and the actors were really good having to act with things that they can't see!
The Gang
I loved how the Doctor had a gang in this episode (not just the Pond's for once). Brian was a great addition to the cast and the chemistry between him and Rory was one that made it truly believable that they were father and son. Riddell was a really likeable character and above all else, he was cool! Finally, Queen Nefertiti was the female addition that the gang needed and her spark made you really believe she was a proper queen.
Conclusion
Monsters - 5/5 - Dinosaurs, Robots and an evil space businessman! Doesn't get much better!
Story - 4.5/5 - The rushed feeling let it down a bit
Doctor - 5/5 - Matt Smith gave a phenomenal performance, switching between his comedy side and dark side in an instant.
Companion - 5/5 - The whole gang was fantastic, with my favourite being Riddell!
Arc - 2/5 - With the arc being a major part in the last episode, it was nice to see it take a back seat, but for the major arc we have this series, I feel it should have contributed a bit more
Continuity - 2.5/5 - Average, but the TARDIS on the postcard, really let it down
Dinosaurs on a Spaceship (overall) - 24/30 - Great
So that's it for my review on Dinosaurs on a Spaceship. I hope you agreed with me on most things and enjoyed reading the review.
Next Week - A Town Called Mercy
Overall Mark Comments
15 - 19.5 - OK, nothing special
10 - 14.5 - Bad, very poor
5 - 9.5 - Shocking, turned off after 10 minutes
1.5 - 4.5 - Worst thing to be shown on TV ever
0 - 1 - Doctor Who is over
