So underrated. Currently going through new Who and watching (and rewatching) the key episodes, mostly the ones with high ratings, and I nearly skipped this one! This is probably my favourite episode of this journey yet though. Not only is the plot riveting and has something to say, particularly about class, but this has fantastic moments of progression with characters, namely the relationship between the Doctor and Martha and then of course the devastating moment with the Face of Boe at the end. "You are not alone." David Tennant's acting in that scene is some of his best work too.
Literally great from start to finish.
A mostly really solid episode that follows the present day-past-future formula of the first three episodes of any given season that RTD stuck to quite frequently during his era. The dystopia set-up of an endless motorway of caravans is established with ease, the return of the Macra is handled really well, and I love the establishment of the "You Are Not Alone" mystery with the return of the Face of Boe. Maintains its suspense throughout and Tennant is able to sell even the cheesiest of scenes with the emotional beats handled really well. Novice Hame is handled much better here than in New Earth, and it acts as a great sequel.
"I've Invented a Sport!"
Oh, I could watch David Tennant talk about Gallifrey forever :heart_eyes:
Shout by TshepisoBlockedParent2023-10-17T23:43:06Z
I don't know why I was dreading Gridlock so much. For some reason I remember finding "the traffic jam episode" really boring before. But it was actually really good. For sure its a bottle episode and we are stuck in two cramped boxes for the most part but I think Davies utilises the small scope of the story as well as he can. We are introduced to a pretty wide set of characters and while we only get snippets of their lives their still intriguing looks into the dystopia New Earth has devolved into.
This episode also had a surprising amount of emotional weight to it. This is the first episode Martha and the Doctor really connect, which is funny considering they spend almost no time together for the majority of the episode. But seeing the doctor confront the weight of the loss of Gallifrey in the final moments of the episode really was impactful and Tennant really sold that scene. It's definitely one of my favourite moments of series 3 so far and a standout moment for him as the Doctor.
Plus the kittens were adorable.