The Ark
Previous: The Massacre of St. Bartholomew's Eve
The Ark
Oh hello froggy-lizardOH MY GOD RANDOM TUCAN.
Let's see, creepy alien with an eyeball in its mouth...this must be a Monoid.
We has TARDIS! Hello, Dodo! ......what the actual crap are you wearing?
Bouncy and curious Dodo is bouncy and curious. Angry and exasperated Steven is angry and exasperated.
Dodo also seems to possess quite an extensive knowledge of animals. And One seems to agree with her that they're still on Earth.
Must be the locals. Wait. W...what...I...I literally have no coherent reaction to those clothes.
They miniaturize people and imprison them for 700 years and call it a LIGHT punishment? Yikes, I'd hate to see what a heavy punishment is.
I wonder if the Monoids are communicating in actual sign language or just random hand gestures made up for the show.
ELEPHANT. SERIOUS LEGIT ELEPHANT. How did they have the budget to bring all these animals in?
I'm starting to wonder if "hey, look at that, then" is Dodo's catchphrase or something. Also, they do appear to be on board the titular Ark.
"This...this ground we're standing on! It appears to be trembling!"
"Did more elephants come in?"
Arguing Dodo and One. Then again, she *is* being a bit rude. Of COURSE you should ask permission before going through someone's wardrobe.
Also, One most certainly does not approve of the word "fab."
Wow. That might be the most prolonged multi-companion hugtiem shot I've seen in...not just Classic Who, but Who in general.
"You travel in that black box?" ...BLACK box? Or are they just calling it that because it's black and white television?
And that's why sterilization in the future is bad: no resistance to anything on the off chance that some disease comes back.
Apparently the common cold is fatal to Monoids. This...can't be good.
I wish One would make up his mind on how to treat Dodo. Is she a nuisance to him or does he really care about her? Or both? Gahh...
Uh oh, looks like the commander's dead. Is this the only time a companion is responsible for multiple deaths on their first trip out?
And they actually show the body being shot out into space. That was actually quite chilling. Maybe I should shut my window...
Oh wait, that wasn't the commander, that was someone else who died.
Taylor on Trial! Let's see how well his defense holds up against Angry Local People.
Wow. Steven is sweating quite a bit. Is it that hot in there or is he just under that much stress?
Uh oh, looks like the sweat might be Steven catching the virus too.
Nearly everyone seems pretty adamant that the TARDIS crew should be thrown out, which begs the question, what finally changes their minds?
Of course, I think by this point it's also likely that one of their defenders will free them secretly.
Oh wait, the commander is apparently conscious enough to override the vote! I have a funny feeling he's not going to last the whole story...
"Okay."
"What did you say?"
"I said 'okay'."
"Yes, I thought you did. Now once this crisis is over I'm going to teach you to speak English."
Wow, Dodo really does look like a court jester in that outfit, doesn't she?
Aww, One's so appreciative of his Monoid lab-partner.
We're only halfway through and that was quite a dramatic musical cue when One said Steven would be fine, so I wonder what'll go wrong next.
Wow, Earth is smoking quite a bit. I wonder how much longer it has...
They're getting into the TARDIS and taking off...wait, that can't be the end, we've still got 2 more episodes!
There we go: they've somehow landed on the ark again. I wonder how far into the future they've gone.
Ahhhhhhhhh, I get it, the giant human statue is now a giant Monoid statue! I was wondering when The Takeover was going to happen.
Looks like the fashions haven't changed in 700 years. Also, I wonder how they went about re-using actors for this serial.
Oh look, it's the end of the previous episode! I didn't know the Monoids could get BBC1 in space.
So I've only just figured out how to describe the outfits in this serial: the humans are basically wearing ribbons. ...sure, why not?
Monoid 1 certainly seems to be fond of dramatic gestures with his right arm.
SURPRISE REBELLION! ...surprise rebellion has failed.
Wait. What. There is an invisible person sitting in the capsule. And it just closed the door. What.
Some very audibly said "Hmm" and opened the door again and left. Hmmmm...
Oh WOW. Dodo's Genre Savviness just BLEW MY MIND a little. The Monoid said something kinda evil-sounding and DAMN did she call him on it!
Monoid wants attention, so Monoid goes SMASH.
DISEMBODIED BOOMING VOICE! That's actually more than I was hoping for right now. *awesome*
I love their bowls of Magically Appearing Food. Also, hidden TV screens FTW. Now the humans know of the Evil Alien Plot.
This is a planet full of invisible people with awesome voices. I approve of these shenanigans.
"When we first arrived, we exited-"
*BOOM*
And then there was a completely unexpected s'plosion!
Dodo, you're starting to get the hang of this companion business. Speaking in favor of the hopeful minority? Attagirl.
Ah, Steven's sneaky-plan appears to be underway. It's the last episode, so we know it'll work to some degree...
Aww, look, you can even see the strings on the little landing models...I mean, modules!
I just realized that Monoid 1 is pretty much the only one with no weapons. When the others turn on him, he's basically screwed.
It amuses me that the camera angle serves to accommodate both One and his invisible friend, even though there's literally nothing to see.
"Doctor, where are the Refusians?"
"I don't know. I haven't seen one."
Oh, well this is convenient. One and Dodo need to know where the bomb is, and the Monoids are kindly revealing it in expository bickering.
MONOID SHOOT-OUT!
"Master!"
*BLAST*
Aaaaand now you're dead.
Oh WOW. Either the Refusians are ABSURDLY heavy lifters or they can make things FLY.
And of COURSE it explodes just seconds after they eject it. Good ol' dramatic timing.
TARDIS take-off! Farewell to the legends once again...
And the companions get a change of clothes! Not fond of Steven's shirt, but I kinda like Dodo's get-up.
"Doctor? Where are you?"
"What do you mean, dear boy? I'm still here, hmm?"
"Doctor, you've vanished!"
"Next Episode: The Celestial Toyroom." YESYESYESYES FINALLY. I DON'T CARE THAT IT'S GOING TO BE MOSTLY RECON. CELESTIAL TOYMAKER. AT LAST.
Next: The Celestial Toymaker