Thirteen's Second Outing

LC and I finished the most recent season of "Doctor Who" last night. We had been in the practice of watching it as we went, but then stopped after five episodes (three of which had been dire, one was pretty good, and one was good but didn't match the hype). We then banked up the second half of the series, and have now completed it.

It's very much a mixed bag.

As noted, the first half of the series pretty much sucked. To the point where I strongly considered giving up completely, was all set to declare that everyone involved in this travesty needed sacked, and indeed considering that maybe it was time for another hiatus.

The first two episodes back were slightly better, but then the next two were generally excellent. The finale was... okay. (Though I hated the big revelation. The only good side to it is that there's a massive amount of wiggle room, so that the next guy can treat that like the revelation that the Doctor is half human (from the TV movie) - basically, that it never happened.)

Some more detailed thoughts:

• Unfortunately, Jodie Whittaker is now rooted right to the bottom of my list of favourite Doctors. I don't think she's terrible in the role, but she's being really badly served with material. And, unfortunately, much of that material presents the character as an enthusiastic but overwhelmed supply teacher. Sorry.
  
• The three Companions are likewise a weak spot, especially the idiocy of refering to them as "fam". Even Graham, who was the high point last time, doesn't hit the spot this year. Time for them all to go. (And that's a shame, because at least two of the actors are clearly very good. That's the material again.)
  
• There's too much bloody talking, most especially in the form of the Doctor talking to herself. That's particularly galling because the purpose of the Companion is to ask the stupid questions so the Doctor can inform the audience, but they've dropped the ball on that one. Instead, the Doctor has to ask herself all the stupid questions, gurn a bit, and then we get to see a lightbulb gradually come on.
  
• Too little tension. This is the thing that made the difference between episodes 8&9 and the rest - previously, the characters would talk and talk and talk, and then eventually something might happen. In the good episodes, things zip along at a pleasant speed. The worst offender was episode 5, which as I've mentioned before had a literal ticking clock which then expired... and then an age more talking.
  
• I do need to give a great deal of credit to Sacha Dhawan (the Master), Jo Martin (the Doctor), and Patrick O'Kane (the lone Cyberman). All three guest stars were good in their roles (though the Master, again, was somewhat let down by the material). To the extent that I think I'd actually much rather be watching Doctor Ruth squaring off against the Lone Cyberman in a series than the one that actually aired.

And that's basically that. I obviously have no idea when "Doctor Who" will be returning, nor do I know what we're likely to see when it does come back. When it does, I'll give it a go, but it does remain very much on the brink of abandonment. Which is not something I thought I'd say, even back when Peter Capaldi's first season failed to impress me.