Customer Reviews

Doctor Who: The Waters of Mars

5 star:		(14)
4 star:		(2)
3 star:		(1)
2 star:		(2)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

I wasn't too terribly impressed by the previous two specials, "The Next Doctor" and "Planet of the Dead", but this one was much improved.

The Doctor pays a visit to Mars where he meets a group of people he knows well from history, and that he knows are doomed. He knows that this isn't one of those times when he can intervene and that the best thing to do is just to leave. He knows all this. But he stays, and in staying winds up showing the audience just how very few the steps are between the Doctor and the Master.

The overall problem of weird alien things at the Mars base isn't that interesting. We're told up front everyone's going to die, so there's not much tension there. What we get instead is a fascinating example of how the Doctor's mind works and just how dark he can be at times. We see how close he is to the Master and, going even farther back, just how he might end up as the Valyard.

This wasn't a perfect story, but it was very, very good, and I'm really looking forward to owning it on DVD and to seeing the last two specials. I feel much more confident about them being good than I had after watching "Planet of the Dead".

I keep asking myself if I'm ready for the David Tennant finale, and I'm not quite sure that I am. It's gonna be hard and emotional and if this episode is any indication, Tennant and Russell T. Davies are going out with a bang, and rightfully so. Of all of the episodes Davies has penned for the series, "The Waters of Mars" ranks somewhere at the very top. It's a little more menacing than what we've seen before and Davies takes our favorite Time Lord down a darkened path that will disturb the faithful, while recalling echoes of the classic series (remember the Valeyard?). But Davies really shows his brilliance and passion for the Doctor with this episode, and even as the Doctor is reacting to the situation in frightening ways we'd never dream of, there is the underlying reason for his behavior, which Davies reminds the audience of, which in turn makes your heart ache for the Doctor and his truly tragic existence. This is an episode full of pathos, and Tennant absolutely dazzles, proving exactly why he will be missed by millions the world over. Lindsay Duncan as Adelaide Brooke is also a stunner in her role and her final scenes with Tennant, as she confronts the Doctor and tries to set him straight, will send a shiver down your spine.

All in all, it's going to be interesting to see how they bring the Tennant era to a close, to the heartbreak of a multitude of fans, and I hope it lives up to the expectations. But even if it does or it doesn't, it ain't gonna be easy. David Tennant has completely endeared himself to the Whoniverse and it's going to be hard to watch him leave and watch that first episode without him. But that is the nature of the Doctor Who beast, I suppose. Change is never easy, but the next chapter in the life of our favorite Gallifreyan awaits. As for Russell T. Davies? The Whoniverse owes him a debt of gratitude for resurrecting our beloved time traveler and returning him to our screens and hearts with such brilliance and care. Bravo to all!

This is getting serious now. As we near the end of the Tennant era the episodes are going to get intense if this one is any indication. This episode saw the Doctor walking into something casually and then trying to run out when he realized he should probably not be there. The episode was really creepy. The monsters were just downright sick looking. Perhaps the best monsters are those that can't be seen, as when we are children, and those which do not speak, as is the case here. It is really hard to negotiate with a nasty killer when they refuse to speak to you. It has long been a belief that when Timelords get to the end of their regeneration cycle-13 times, that they begin to get a little loopy. As was the case with Borusa, and a number of others we have seen over the years. The Doctor gives us a glance at his really downright nutty side when he takes control of the situation and decides he has the power,the right,etc. to wield time and space to his will. This was the most intense we have seen Tennant as far as slipping a disc. He has taken some liberties sure, but this was way out of line. The Ood Sigma appearance at the end brought him to his knees. Perhaps he thought at that moment that time and space were the ruling forces and he was just their pawn. My son disagrees with me on that. He believes that Tennant has made his stand as the Last of the Timelords and history be damned. We shall see....

The story is not entirely new (the Doctor and a group of people battle monster in isolated setting), but the script takes the character of The Doctor (in both senses of "character") to places he has never been, particularly toward the end of the episode. Dr. Who fans know that David Tennant's Doctor, and the scripts through which he has conveyed the character, have recreated him as a tragic figure. That same general arch is continued in Waters of Mars in a very engaging, poignant fashion. The supporting actors are fine, as are the effects.

I also suggest that after you watch the episode itself (and only AFTER), you then watch the making-of documentary. It could easily have been condensed into half the time, but it does offer some good commentary on The Doctor by Tennant and Russell T. Davies.

TV is not the most important thing in the world; that said, I am very, very sad to see Tennant and Davies departing the series. With only one more Tennant episode to go (as was publicly announced ages ago, so this is no spoiler), we can only hope they are leaving The Doctor in good hands.

After that weird fake-doctor-with-a-big-balloon episode then that stupid bus-in-the-desert episode, I wasn't expecting much of The Waters of Mars, and because I got it on the same day I got The End of Time, I almost skipped it entirely to watch the episode I'd been waiting for. Luckily, I did watch it because it was an awesome episode.

It started out a bit slow, but soon developed into this wonderful emotional piece exploring the moral dilemmas of time travel while portraying the Doctor as a man darkened by the many losses he had felt over the last few years. Great great. Definitely the best of '09 (including the two that followed it) and within the top 10 of the entire show.

The third stand alone adventure from 2009 sees The Doctor landing on Mars in the year 2059. After the Doctor lands and encounters a crude robot he his taken to the Mars base called Bowie. There he meets the first group of human settlers and realizes they are all going to die. The Doctor knows the base explodes and that thier is nothing he can do to save any of them. Soon enough the first crew member comes into contact with a strange life form that turns him into a mindless monster that can wield water. Soon enough the others contract this strange illness and a desire to return to Earth with all that water. The captain realizes she has to get those not infected off of Mars and back to Earth. But the Doctor knows none survive and he can't do anything. For the first time the Doctor has to walk away and not be able to save anyone but himself. Can he come to terms with what fate has in store for them. Or will water come to Mars in a way no one saw coming?
Like the two before this sees the Doctor in a new light one scary and one we never saw coming. He always helps and saves those from monsters and aliens bent on destroying the world or the universe. But we see two sides of him, the one who has to step away from those points in time that can never be changed no matter what. And a side in which he realizes he is the last of his kind and all the power he wields can be used to save true innocents from the ravages of history. We see what he would have been like if he was the Master. And I have to say from all my years of watching this episode truly saw things in the Doctor we never saw. And I have to say I liked it. This was a great way to lead things into the last of David Tennats time as the Doctor. And I can assure you its not something you don't want to miss.

There seems to be a pattern here in the world of Doctor Who. Those stories that fall right before the final episode of a certain doctor's reign seem to always take on dark, serious tones, and usually stray from the lighter material found in earlier episodes of the season: The Keeper of Traken, Planet of Fire, Terror of the Vervoids (although this whole season was dark), The Curse of Fenric, and Boom Town. This one is no exception.

Right off the bat, we get a Titanic like feel going in, knowing the fate of the occupants of this Mars outpost. This gloomy episode features a strong supporting cast, which certainly helps the viewer on this ride toward impending doom. Unlike another reviewer, I did feel it still had tension and suspense. Even though we were given the premise and apparent ending right up front, you just never know what the doctor was going to do, and how he may have affected the outcome. An enjoyable watch, right up to the surprise ending, but a little darker than I would have liked. I enjoyed the previous two specials a lot more.

The best of the specials starring David Tennant - and I say that even having absolutely loved the last fifteen minutes or so of "The End of Time, Part 2." As a complete experience, however, this episode is tops.

The storyline is, as others have noted, rather bleak for a Doctor Who episode in that it shows more than one of the Doctor's darker qualities, and because the ending suggests that even the Doctor can't save everyone. And yet the darker elements make sense - both in terms of plot and character. Those grayer shadings have always been in the Doctor's character; it's just that this one time, they come to the forefront in a controlled way that may throw some viewers. But let's not overstate the case here - this is still Who, is still relatively family friendly, and is still soundly entertaining.

Scary and moving....A really good Dr. Who special with aired following season 4, the Doctor borders on complete inaction worthy of Tennant's Hamlet here because of the sheer scale of future events tied to the deaths of these individuals... But his 360 degree turn is both awesome and terrifying ! Lines are crossed as he nears the end of his 10th regeneration.

This is one of the best stories in the second Doctor Who series. What a coup to get that marvelous actress, Lindsay Duncan, to appear in this series. I have been an avid watcher for the first and second Doctor Who series. I am not convinced of the stability of the program with the third Doctor. He talks too fast and jumps around too much. But what do I know. I am only a 73 year old woman and have followed the series since the Doctor before Tom Baker (I think that is his name. The guy with the long scarf and teeth).