jadesfire | (no subject)

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I am almost never inspired to do this, but, well, after last night...

What struck me most about this were two things - the acting and the writing.

Whoever made the casting decisions for Doctor Who should be given a medal and possibly a small statue. Casting serious, incredibly talented actors as the Doctor is paying dividends. CE and DT have utterly different styles (which is a good thing) but last night, DT excelled himself. The Doctor and John Smith may have had the same face and voice, but they were completely different men and you could really see the difference. The struggle was utterly heart-breaking to watch, and I thought the woman playing Joan did an amazing job as well, despite not liking her very much in the first episode. I love that she said no, that she loved her John Smith and that she called the Doctor on his casual treatment of human beings - "choose the place on a whim" was a killer of a line.

Speaking of which, I think this story really benefitted from having the author adapt his own book. Paul Cornell took what could have been a sci-fi/fantasy cliche plot and made it into a searing human drama. All the best fantasy does this - does he have the courage to sacrifice himself for the sake of others? In this case, it was made 100 times worse by knowing that the Doctor would still be out there, while John Smith was gone, and how much that was going to hurt Joan. The writing never pushed them into 'emo' territory, giving the actors what they needed to tear everyone's hearts into little pieces. This episode was like a masterclass in how to write character-focussed adventure drama. Wonderful.

Oh, and let's hear it for Martha. Strong without being scary, intelligent (the bones of the hand! Oh my!) without being a know-it-all, human, compassionate and brave. She's brilliant and I love that we have the situation between them expressed far more clearly than it ever was with Rose. Yes, we all knew that the Doctor was in love with Rose, but it was pointedly never expressed. I love that here, it is; that Martha's far more up front about things (and not a little embarrassed - that was a superb line in the abandoned cottage). Great stuff

And can I just ask something that's been bugging me for a while? I've been wondering about differences in acting styles here and in the US. I know that acting is different for the stage compared to the screen, and I've also noticed (particularly in Torchwood) that the acting tends to be 'bigger' in UK TV than US. I know the TV industry is much, much bigger in America, whereas over here, almost everyone who acts has to start on the stage. I was wondering if that made a difference to the way they act on the television.

I'm thinking of characters like Grissom and Jack Bauer where, although they're terrifically acted and I've got no complaints, everything hangs on small looks, little gestures and they're not really much for the big gesture. Whereas in Doctor Who and Torchwood - and even to an extent Hugh Laurie as House - it's not that the little gestures aren't there, it's just that they tend to be part of what feels to me like a much 'bigger' performance. *shrugs* I'm not sure I'm expressing this very well, but it was just that the finale of Torchwood in particular made me wonder about the extremities the actors are prepared to go to. Gwen's breakdown is almost too raw to watch, whereas (say) Foreman's terror over dying in House is much quieter, much more internal. It's just something that interests me...

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I agree. The acting was superb, and the differences - and, to an extent, the similarities - between John Smith and the Doctor were very, very clear.

On one hand, we have John Smith being unable to kill, just like the Doctor. Oh the other we have John saying "He didn't even consider that he might fall in love? What kind of a man is that?"

And, right at the end, the offer of 'Travel with me.' Because that's the only thing the Doctor can give, in the end. He can't love like a human. The one adventure he can never have is falling in love and living his life with someone, and that's something almost heartbreaking.

The big gesture/small gesture thing never really occurred to me. I think you're right about the stage thing - on stage, while you do have to keep it subtle, you also have to make sure that the little old lady at the back can see and hear you. You have to turn your head to look at someone on stage, rather than just move your eyes.

That could also have something to do with the vocal difference between stage and TV actors. Anyone who's performed on stage knows how to project and will, consciously or not, bring that to TV. Take John Barrowman as an example - every time he speaks on TV, he's got that 'projection' intensity in his voice. Compare some US TV actors to this - for example, the husband on Medium (which I saw two episodes of and then stopped watching), who mumbles so much that I can't make out what he's saying. It even happens in shows like Heroes, where Syler tends to talk rather than project clearly.

I hadn't thought of the Doctor's offer in those terms, but you're absolutely right. His only offer can be the temporary one, and I loved that Joan didn't hold out the hope that he could fall in love with her. Unlike Martha.

Paul Cornell took what could have been a sci-fi/fantasy cliche plot and made it into a searing human drama.

Yes. I hadn't thought of it quite like that, but yes!

I hadn't noticed the UK/US actors thing, but I'm going to look out for it now. I agree, though, that actors who 'grew up' on the stage definite speak more clearly.

I can't remember what made me notice it in the first place, but I think there's a stage/screen and UK/US difference. It's quite intriguing...

I agree with everything you said about the writing of the differences...and as Crystal said...the similarities too. The first episode of the two-parter I found to be quite frustrating...almost stupid with the things like the watch being taken by the boy, but I'm glad that I stuck with it. And all becameclear in the second part, everything happened for a reason. The boy needed to have the watch, to keep it until it was the right time, but also so that he would be able to help in the future and ultimately save his and someone else's life.

The bit at the end gave me goosebumps and the hairs on my arms stood on end. I've never been affected like that by something. I think because you connected with the character as a boy, saw him as a man and then as an old man... it was just... poignant and the perfect end to it. It could have been done cheesily but I thought they got it spot on.

Rather sad that the doctor would never think that falling in love could happen...but it could be because he thinks his hearts already belong to someone else?

nate

I thought the following Tim through the years was incredibly poignant, and the ending had me sobbing.

On the falling in love front, I'm not sure. I think it's more that the Doctor doesn't process human society in that way, and that he doesn't fully think through what's going to happen once he's human. I get the feeling that he thinks he's still going to be more or less himself, just with no memory of being a Time Lord. Since love isn't really something he handles as the Doctor, I just think he didn't think of it. Which makes it all the sadder...

In the first episode I thought Joan 'meh' isn't that Jessica whosit from 'Spaced'.

Second episode I thought OMG LOVE JOAN!!! (complete with caps lock and everything). Now I have Joan fic in my WIP list, because you just *know* she joins Tochwood after this...

I found her acting a bit wooden rather than restrained in the first episode, but it turned into a kind of resolved courage in the second, and I thought she was wonderful. I loved her interactions with Martha and her gentle acceptance at the end. Just wonderful.

Joan joins Torchwood? *mind boggles*

Have to put my nose into this conversation, since I just ten minutes ago finished watching it.
That episode gave me chills. I was a sobbbing mess at the end.
Sometimes, I let my habit of watching people act ruin a good show. Not just the sort that makes up 98% of local theatre. Even the best actors give a performance that pretty much boils down to 'Look at my fantastic thespian skills!' This could have been the case with DT on this episode, but he sold the John Smith/Doctor struggle. It was fantastic to watch.

Martha is great. I need a Martha icon.
All right, now I need to go become obsessed with Who fandom. (Which I've avoided for fear of being called an American fangirl interloper or something like that.)

Welcome to the party! No interlopers, only new converts :)

I have a habit of doing the same with the writing. I'm really interested in screen-writing, and tend to focus on things like structure and form rather than the performances. I know what you mean about 'watch me act' though. I felt that way with Omar Epps, most of the way through 'Euphoria', which is just such a contrast to Hugh Laurie and RSL (both more used to live audiences).

But I thought DT did what I've heard called 'internalising' the characters really well - you could *see* the two different men, and just forget he was acting. Wonderful. And Martha rocks :D

(Which I've avoided for fear of being called an American fangirl interloper or something like that.)

HA! *interlopes like crazy* *like, see, right here!*

There's less of a UK/American divide in this fandom than there is oldschool/newschool, so I play the "PBS" card and brag about having been around since 1987. :D

But generally people are very nice in this fandom, regardless of where you're from.

Oldskool/Newskool that's a scary divide in any fandom. But, feh! I'm interloping and it's fun!
I do remember the 4th and 5th Doctor every Saturday night on my PBS station when I was a kid. Good old PBS, so many weekend nights watching Red Dwarf and the Young Ones and the like. Ahhh, youth...

Yeah, I feel welcome already. Fun.

The last two eps were the first ones where I haven't been thinking the whole time, "Christopher Eccleston could have done this better." DT really did an awesome job.

(Of course, all that says is that I like him better as a human than I do as the Doctor. Which doesn't help a lot in the context of this particular show...)

What bugs me about Martha is, WHY is she in love with the Doctor? Okay, I get that she is, and she expressed it beautifully last night...but we never saw a moment that started the whole thing, we've never really seen much development of it; just that she is, and we're supposed to go with it. They did Ninth/Rose so well, I bought that completely; can't they do a one-sided crush that believably? If not, why not?

I've always thought that Gwen (or Eve) over-acted, but I thought that was part of the character. I never have a problem with JB as Jack, because I picture Jack as being over-the-top anyway, and he did tone down some for TW, which makes sense for his character.

That said, during most of "End of Days" the exact phrase running through my head was "Play it to the back row, Mr. Barrowman!"

I'm not sure about differences in US vs UK TV, because to be honest I don't watch enough of either to be really familiar with it. I usually prefer my acting "small", but that's because I have a kink for characters who are emotionally constipated anyway. :D I think there's going to be different styles not only based on the actors, but based on the characters they're playing; Foreman is going to be more restrained than Gwen, just because of who he is, how he's been raised, what he has to deal with every day. (House vs. Weevil Deathmatch--who's coming out alive?)

If it's really going to go all out, then I'm very skeptical and I usually end up laughing instead of whatever I'm supposed to be feeling. "Doomsday" missed the mark with me (except for the Music of Doom, which still gives me chills).

Gwen's breakdown on the floor physically hurts to watch, which I take as a sign that it was right, although usually I'm focusing on Jack, who is hiding his face at that moment. And then John Smith's freak-out seemed to me to be absolutely perfect, but I took it as the Doctor himself, the repressed part of him, running scared from his own life, not wanting to be who he was anymore. (I feel a new soundtrack coming on. With Clint Black's "Wherever You Go" on it. "You can run from yourself, but you won't get far. You can dive to the bottom of your medicine jar, but wherever you go, there you are." Wait, am I mixing House or the Doctor?)

*re-reads this comment* Wow, that was even more random than usual.

Wow, that was even more random than usual.
Only a little ;)

I had the opposite reaction to Doomsday, but then I've been known to cry at adverts on TV, so I guess that doesn't count...

My instinct is that it's more of a stage/screen difference than a UK/US one - it might pan out geographically just because the TV industry is a hell of a lot bigger over there. I remember reading an interview with a film star (can't remember who) who said that when your face is going to blown up to fifty feet high, you have to be really quite restrained because everyone can see everything!

As you say, JB can be a bit over the top, but he can also get away with it. One of the things I liked about Torchwood (and Doctor Who) was that it felt like the actors were allowed to cut loose a little - the people I know tend not be that restrained when they're annoyed or happy or whatever, so I guess it just rang true to me because of that.

House vs. Weevil Deathmatch--who's coming out alive?
I'm backing House and his cane against the big spikey teeth any day :)

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