(no subject)
So, I watched Utopia, and let's say...not too chuffed.
Spoilers ahoy for Utopia, some S1 and S2 Eps..heck, approach with caution if you haven't seen anything broadcast in S1, S2 and S3. Oh, and Torchwood.
Dr. Who - Utopia
The Doctor is recharging the TARDIS over the rift, which will only take 20 seconds, I think because the rift has been active lately. He races around the central console, manic as usual, explaining to Martha as he goes. As he prepares to leave, he sees Jack running desperately towards the TARDIS, yelling on him. Nonetheless, he pulls the lever and the TARDIS starts to leave. He looks up at the central column with a grin. *fumes* (Yes, it is like it seemed in the trailer - he does know Jack is trying to reach him and leaves him behind again).
Jack makes a wild leap at the TARDIS, and next thing the box is bucking through the vortex like it’s trying to shake something off. Inside, the Doctor sees that that ship is heading trillions of years into the future - to the end of the universe, in fact. He doesn’t know why.
Outside, Jack is screaming for the Doctor as he hangs onto the TARDIS determinedly.
At the TARDIS destination, a man scrambles desperately through a bleak, night-ridden wasteland. A group of leather clad humanoids begin a pursuit. They are tattooed and have sharp teeth. They take after him, screaming ‘human’ and ‘humans are coming’.
Finally, the TARDIS arrives, but the Doctor is extremely unnerved by where they are. Not even the Timelords came this far. He tells Martha they should leave, immediately. They suddenly share the ‘trouble’ grin, and race outside.
They find themselves in a huge quarry, and it’s pitch black. The Doctor strides forward to explore, but Martha notices a man lying prone near the box, a rucksack nearby. She rushes to help him, and goes back into the TARDIS to fetch the Doctor’s medical kit. The Doctor looks down at Jack and says, “Hello, again. Oh, I’m sorry.” (Yes, so you should be.)
Martha comes back with the kit. As she quickly checks Jack, she comments on the 1940s style of his coat. The Doctor says Jack probably came with them from their pit stop at the Rift, by clinging to the outside of the box. He explains to Martha that Jack’s a friend of his and they used to travel together. Martha looks regretful. She apologises, saying she can’t find a heartbeat.
Suddenly, Jack sucks in a breath and jerks. He grabs Martha’s arms in panic, and she hurries to calm him. He immediately flirts with her, and the Doctor tersely cautions him, “Oh, don’t start.”
Martha helps him up, and the two men have something of a stare down.
“Doctor.”
“Captain.”
There’s a bit of banter between them, with the Doctor asking Jack if he’s had work done, and Jack telling the Doctor that he can talk. Then it gets serious, with Jack finally getting the chance to have ‘the talk’. He accuses the Doctor of abandoning him, to which the Doctor replies that he has a ‘busy life’. *fumes* *wants to punch Doctor*
Jack asks about Rose - he saw her name on the list of the dead at the Battle of Canary Wharf. The Doctor reassures him - she is living in a parallel universe with her parents and with Mickey. They hug in celebration that Rose, at least, is fine.
They start to explore, with Jack explaining to Martha what happened to him. He tells her about coming to on the Game station, and finding that he had been left behind. The Doctor doesn’t rise to the bait. Jack shows Martha his wristband, the vortex manipulator, which lets him travel through time.
Here, the Doctor has to add his tuppence-worth. He acidly remarks that’s like saying that he has a car and Jack has a space hopper. Jack hits back that okay, he bounced. He starts to get man, but Martha breaks it up with a ‘boys and their toys’ comment.
Jack continues that although he wanted to get to the 21st century to wait for the Doctor, he ended up in 1869, trapped because his manipulator burned out. He had to live through the 20th century, waiting for a version of the Doctor that coincided with him to show up at the rift. The Doctor again remarks that he’s ‘been busy’ as a reason for abandoning Jack.
Martha starts to get a little concerned, and asks the Doctor if that’s how it works - he keeps his companions around until he gets bored and then leaves them? Jack gets a good shot in, telling Martha, ‘unless you’re blonde’. (Go, Jack, because if the roles had been reversed, he sure as hell wouldn’t have left Rose and you know it!)
That gets a reaction. The Doctor explodes at him, saying that they are at the end of the universe and they are busy ‘blogging’. Chastised, they continue on their way, and come across a settlement of sorts, carved into a canyon. It has walkways, entrances, and domiciles. Unfortunately, it looks like it has been deserted for some time.
The Doctor explains this is the end of things; all the great civilisations are gone. He glances up at the dark sky. It isn’t night, he tells them. All the stars have burned out.
Jack comments that the planet must have an atmospheric shield; otherwise they’d all have frozen to death by now. The Doctor, continuing with the point-scoring, remarks that he might, and Martha might, but he’s not sure about Jack. They look at each other. (And from Jack’s face, that kind of stung - double meaning, I think).
Jack is distracted by the appearance of the runner in a valley below. The mob is close on his heels, brandishing burning torches. The three of them race down to help, and as they run, Jack starts to laugh, saying that he’s missed this. (Is it just me or is that a bit much? What happened to ‘angry Torchwood Jack’ who wanted answers for his abandonment? He took longer to forgive Ianto for his betrayal, which was far more understandable than what the Doctor did, and at least Ianto was sorry.)
Anyway, they intercept the man, and Jack grabs hold of him, saying that he’s got him. He pushes the man behind him, and raises his gun. The Doctor orders him not to shoot them, so he fires in the air at the advancing mob. That stops them, and the Doctor promises to take the man to the TARDIS and safety. Unfortunately, more of the pointy-teeth show up on the ridge behind our heroes, cutting them off.
The man tells them that they will be safe in the silo, so the four make a run for it, the mob right behind him. They reach a compound that leads into the cliff, cut off by a chain fence. Armed guards demand to see their teeth and, satisfied that they are human, admit them. They drive the pointy-teeth away. The man who was being chased asks a guard if he can take him to Utopia. The guard tells him yes, absolutely.
In a laboratory / workshop in the complex, a man in his sixties, dressed Victorian style, is busy working on some kind of technology. An announcement comes over the PA that they have four new survivors, and one of them is a ‘doctor of everything’. The man, called Professor Yana, is excited.
The Doctor asks the guards to recover the TARDIS. They say they are due to go out shortly, and will try to bring it back for him. The man that the Doctor, Jack and Martha saved is busy asking for his family. The guard, Atillo, directs him to a small blonde boy who has a list of names. He leads the four through corridors. All the passages are lined with people living on camp beds, or sitting on blankets which they eat. It looks like a refugee camp, and all the people are human.
The running man finds his family, and Jack finds someone to flirt with. The Doctor tells him off, again, and notices a sealed door. He starts to mess around with it, and gets Jack to help. The door opens suddenly and the Doctor steps through automatically, only to find himself leaning out over a drop at least a mile down. Jack grabs his jacket in time and hauls him back. The Doctor thanks him, and Jack asks how he managed all this time without him! *grins*
In the huge hold is a ship - it’s enormous, shaped like a missile. The Doctor realises that the refugees are actually passengers, and this ship is how they are getting to Utopia. But with the universe falling apart, what is this Utopia? Where is it, that it’s a haven from the destruction of everything?
The Professor summons them, and as the threesome follows him to the lab, they pass by a refugee who hisses at them after they’re gone, revealing a mouthful of pointy-teeth.
In the lab, the professor asks the Doctor for help with his project. The Doctor is forced to admit that he’s basically clueless - he’s never seen technology like this before. The Professor is disappointed. Meanwhile, Jack has removed the Doctor’s hand from his rucksack, and set the unit down on a table, shocking the hell out of Martha. The Doctor explains that it is his hand, to which Martha responds by pointing out that he already has two hands. Flashback to TCI. The Professor asks what kind of species the Doctor is, and he explains is the last of the Timelords.
The Professor explains that his assistant Chando’s people used to live in the city. They are long gone now, and the Doctor seems gleeful that he was right about it being a ‘conglomeration’ until Jack reminds him that he should show some respect for Chando’s loss by saying sorry. The Doctor does. (Is it just me or is that a little out of character for him? Usually, expressing genuine regret for someone’s circumstances, especially someone in the same situation as he is - the last of their kind - is the first thing he does, and here he just wouldn’t have bothered if Jack hadn’t prompted him).
They ask about the pointy-teeth, and find out they are called the Futurekind, which is a myth in itself since they really is no future, but some people say they are what the humans will become if they do not escape this world. He tells them of the Science Foundation’s Utopia Project, a place of sanctuary for the remaining members of the human race. A beacon has been transmitting, summoning humankind from all corners of the galaxy, telling them to come to Utopia. It might be nothing, but the Professor thinks it’s worth finding out. So does the Doctor.
The only problem is that his rocket won’t fly, and the Doctor knows that the Professor hasn’t told the people yet, because he doesn’t want them to lose hope.
The Doctor has an idea. He strips off his jacket, and before he realises it, Jack is there, helping him out of it and draping it over his arm so the Doctor can work. *squeees* The Professor watches, astonished, as the Doctor fixes the rocket, and as it comes to life, they hear an announcement telling all passengers to prepare to board.
Outside, the van arrives with the TARDIS. It’s watched by the Futurekind, who don’t fail to notice the increased activity or that once the van is inside, and the gate locked up, the guards abandon their posts.
Rushing around, gathering the necessary equipment for the launch, Martha runs into the little blonde boy and finds out he is called Crete. She learns that he is alone, an orphan. She wishes him luck, and urges him to get on board the ship. As she follows Chando back to the lab, the Futurekind spy sneaks off behind them.
Meanwhile, the Doctor tells the Professor that he knows he plans to stay behind, because the rocket has to be launched from the lab. When he learns that the guards have recovered the TARDIS, he tells the Professor that he might have a way out for him. But when the Professor sees the TARDIS, he seems to have an episode of sorts, drifting away from the room, until the Doctor’s questioning brings him back. The Professor explains that he hears the sound of drums, beating his in head constantly. It’s happened all his life.
The TARDIS is moved into the lab, and the Doctor runs a cable from the ship’s innards to the Professor’s equipment. Now, all they need to do is connect the couplings, but that requires sending someone into the energy room which is full of STED radiation. The Doctor has never heard of it, and the Professor says he should be grateful - it’s deadly. They need to keep the levels below red, and Jack is left to monitor that system.
Below, Atillo has another guard suit up and go into do the work, which involves opening up four steel cylinders and turning the switches inside them before the couplings can connect. Everything is going well until the Futurekind intruder reaches a control panel and sabotages it. The damage prevents Jack from controlling the radiation levels, but the guard won’t leave the room until his job is done.
Determined to save him, Jack grabs hold of two wires that should enable them to regain control of the system. The Doctor yells a warning, but Jack shoves them together anyway, and although it works, he is killed. Unfortunately, so is the guard. He evaporates from the radiation, and his suit falls empty to the floor of the room.
The Professor is horrified by Jack’s demise, and apologises to the Doctor for his loss, especially as it was for nothing - they still have two cylinders to move, and the room has been flooded with radiation. Martha starts rescue breathing for Jack, but the Doctor comes over and pulls her away, telling her to ‘leave him, leave him alone.’ She doesn’t understand, until Jack suddenly comes alive again, asking ‘was someone just kissing me?’ The Doctor points out that the Professor needs a man who cannot die to connect the couplings, and they have just that.
The Doctor and Jack race downstairs *squees again* all action. They reach the room, and the Doctor sends Atillo to the rocket. Jack takes off his coat and shirt, and the Doctor interrupts him *growls at Doctor* to ask why he’s stripping. The radiation doesn’t affect clothing, just flesh. (So that’s okay then). Jack smirks and says at least he’ll look good. He pulls his braces back up over his T-shirt and enters the cylinder room.
While Jack works, they have ‘the talk’. The Doctor says he knew that Jack was immortal when he left him behind on the station, and asks when Jack found out.
The Professor, Martha and Chando are listening to the exchange from the lab, and the Professor is astonished that Jack has survived. He says that Jack should have evaporated. (Which is a really good point - when Susie shot Jack in TW1x01, the bullet hit him, and left a hole dead centre forehead. He then got up and we saw the wound heal. Whatever happens to kill him does damage which then heals when he revives. So shouldn’t the radiation evaporate him, or at least do some visible physical damage? Instead, nada. ????) But the conversation brings back the sound of drums, and its seems that parts of what Jack is saying seem to mean something important to him. (The drums sound more like the turning of machinery to me, or maybe a clock’s workings, amplified a hundred or a thousand times).
Jack tells the Doctor he found out in 1892, when a guy at Ellis Island started a fight with him and shot him through the heart. He got up. At first, he says, he wasn’t sure. But after he died several more times, he knew. He lists the ways he got his proof. He was trampled by horses, then there was World Wars One and Two, he was poisoned. He starved to death. (Oh, Jack). *hugs him* (And I tell you, I’m pretty pissed at the Doctor at this point, because he’s so nonchalant on the other side of that door, like this is No Big Thing. Jack had to go through that because he left him behind.)
The Doctor then proceeds to tell Jack that the reason he left him behind is the same reason that he went away in the TARDIS when he saw Jack racing towards him - Jack is just wrong now. He’s a fact, a fixed point in time and that’s bad. Even the TARDIS reacted to him, reaching so far into the future in an attempt to throw him off. Jack sarcastically thanks him, and again, it’s clear he’s really hurt by this. He smirks a little and accuses the Doctor of being prejudiced. The Doctor doesn’t disagree, but he does explain how he came back, what Rose did. Jack asks if she can change him back, but the Doctor says she isn’t just living on the parallel world, she’s trapped there. Jack says he’s sorry, and means it, but the Doctor tells him that he took back the power of the TARDIS from Rose anyway.
Jack admits that during the 90s, he visited her estate twice, just to see her growing up. He considered speaking to her, but didn’t want to jeopardise the time lines. He looks so happy when he thinks of her.
The Doctor asks him suddenly if he wants to die. Jack avoids the question, saying that one of the cylinders is jammed. The Doctor doesn’t let him evade so easily, and Jack admits that he has thought about it. *sniffs* But now he has come here, and seen how these people are determined to survive against all the odds, ready to ship out to somewhere they might stand a better chance.
Up in the control room, the Professor has another ‘incident’. Martha and Chando race to him and the Professor is crying at the thought that time travel is possible. He seems confused, reliving his youth when others said it was doable but he didn’t believe. He pulls a pocket watch out and Martha stares at it in horror. It’s the double of the one the Doctor put his true self into when they were pursued by the Family of Blood, and the Professor says he was found with it as a child, on the edge of some disaster area. She asks the Professor if he has ever opened it. He says no, why would he? It’s broken, jammed shut. He’s never done it. Martha makes up an excuse to go down to speak to the Doctor and rushes from the room, causing the Professor to look at the watch, trying to figure out what could be so alarming about an old relic like that?
Downstairs, the couplings connected, the Doctor orders Jack out of the room. Dressed again, he helps the Doctor throw the last few switches, and the Doctor orders the Rocket to blast off. Martha appears, and tells the Doctor about the watch. He seems in denial at first, but Jack snaps him out of it, telling him that this could mean he is no longer alone - there might be another Timelord! Martha backs this up, reminding him what the Face of Boe told him, just before it died. The Doctor suddenly grabs Martha in temper, and demands to know exactly what the Professor said.
Upstairs, the Professor studies the watch. A chilling, angry voice is heard, telling him to ‘open me, human fool,’ and various other threats and enticements. As the Rocket launches, the Professor flicks open the watch, and a stream of golden energy surrounds him, drawing Chando’s attention. We see the significance of YANA - you are not alone.
Outside, the Futurekind watch in rage as the Rocket blasts off, leaving them behind.
Back in the lab, the Professor is no longer the kindly, gentle man he was. He crosses to a panel, and activates a switch, locking the door that leads back to the lab. Downstairs, the Doctor reaches it just as it slams shut in his face. He yells to the Professor to let him in.
Chando protests, saying he has locked them in, but the Professor says as one door closes, another opens. He switches off the security system that stops the Futurekind just storming the fence. Seeing it is powerless, they charge the gate and tear it down, racing into the compound.
The Doctor, with Jack’s help, gets the door open, and they race through the corridors. They run straight into the Futurekind and have to flee, but find another way to the lab.
Meanwhile, the Professor is furious with Chando. He claims she could have noticed the watch before, and released him. She draws a gun on him, telling him that she has to stop him destroying their work. (But the Rocket is gone?) He tells her that is fine, because now he has been provoked. He grabs a live cable, sparking electricity, and advances on her, shocking her with it as he reveals his real identity: The Master.
The gang reach the door, but it’s sealed. The Doctor begs to be let in, and urges the Professor not to open the watch. He tells the Professor things have changed, that they are the only two of their kind left now, but his words fall on deaf ears. He begs Jack to help him get the door open, and Martha screams as the Futurekind race towards them.
Inside, The Master removes a data disk from his machines, sneering at the idea of ‘Utopia’. He removes the cable connecting his equipment to the TARDIS, but as he comes back out Chando shoots him then dies. He collapses into the entranceway of the TARDIS.
Outside, driven by the Doctor’s pleas and the approaching Futurekind, Jack smashes the lock on the door with his gun, and it opens. They rush inside, and Jack pushes the door closed. He yells for help to hold it as he has broken the lock. Martha notices Chando is dead, and then hurries to help Jack hold the door closed. The Futurekind reach it, and start to prise it open.
The Doctor advances on The Master, who retreats into the TARDIS and locks the door, flipping the mortice lock. This stops the Doctor’s key from working. (Which I don’t get because this is the Doctor’s TARDIS. Hasn’t he considered the possibility that someone might lock him out of his own TARDIS? Wouldn’t the TARDIS detect the presence of his greatest enemy and do something about it? She just jumped them to the end of the universe because of Jack, and he was their friend.)
He begs to be let in, but inside the Master regenerates into a much younger man. He starts to leave, and the Doctor tries to stop him. He does something with the sonic screwdriver, but the Master seems to override it, but when the Doctor says that he’s sorry, it may have done something after all....
The Master cheerfully tells the Doctor to have fun at the end of the universe and leaves.
The Doctor, now abandoned (see how it feels), has to watch his ship go, while Jack and Martha struggle to hold the door against the pack of Futurekind as they gradually force it open.
==
Geez, that was a long synopsis, but this was a busy episode. And can I just say - I didn’t like it. I’ve been waiting ages for this, since I heard Jack was returning in S3, and it really wasn’t worth it. I kind of feel robbed. Where’s the confrontation I’ve been waiting for? Jack should have been much more pissed. I was looking forward to seeing him knock the Doctor on his ass. So he was changed by Rose, into something ‘wrong’. He was your friend, Doctor. In a way, it’s like he got sick. If that had been the case, would you have left him alone with no one to care for him? And the worst of it is that he knew Jack might have ended up living forever alone on the Game station.
Remember what he said about Jack at the end of The Doctor Dances? About how Jack better be bigger on the inside? He was bigger than you, Doctor.
And this was an RTD episode, so that increased my expectations which frankly weren’t met. Maybe that’s my fault for looking forward to it so much, but I just feel...unfulfilled. Hopefully, the next episode will sort it all out, but I don’t want to get too excited about it so that I can avoid another disappointment. This is not how I saw it playing out.
And even if we say that the Hand in the Jar activated before the TARDIS landed, Jack must be some kind of Olympic athlete to grab his gear and make it topside in what - 20 seconds to a minute?
Not happy.
Spoilers ahoy for Utopia, some S1 and S2 Eps..heck, approach with caution if you haven't seen anything broadcast in S1, S2 and S3. Oh, and Torchwood.
Dr. Who - Utopia
The Doctor is recharging the TARDIS over the rift, which will only take 20 seconds, I think because the rift has been active lately. He races around the central console, manic as usual, explaining to Martha as he goes. As he prepares to leave, he sees Jack running desperately towards the TARDIS, yelling on him. Nonetheless, he pulls the lever and the TARDIS starts to leave. He looks up at the central column with a grin. *fumes* (Yes, it is like it seemed in the trailer - he does know Jack is trying to reach him and leaves him behind again).
Jack makes a wild leap at the TARDIS, and next thing the box is bucking through the vortex like it’s trying to shake something off. Inside, the Doctor sees that that ship is heading trillions of years into the future - to the end of the universe, in fact. He doesn’t know why.
Outside, Jack is screaming for the Doctor as he hangs onto the TARDIS determinedly.
At the TARDIS destination, a man scrambles desperately through a bleak, night-ridden wasteland. A group of leather clad humanoids begin a pursuit. They are tattooed and have sharp teeth. They take after him, screaming ‘human’ and ‘humans are coming’.
Finally, the TARDIS arrives, but the Doctor is extremely unnerved by where they are. Not even the Timelords came this far. He tells Martha they should leave, immediately. They suddenly share the ‘trouble’ grin, and race outside.
They find themselves in a huge quarry, and it’s pitch black. The Doctor strides forward to explore, but Martha notices a man lying prone near the box, a rucksack nearby. She rushes to help him, and goes back into the TARDIS to fetch the Doctor’s medical kit. The Doctor looks down at Jack and says, “Hello, again. Oh, I’m sorry.” (Yes, so you should be.)
Martha comes back with the kit. As she quickly checks Jack, she comments on the 1940s style of his coat. The Doctor says Jack probably came with them from their pit stop at the Rift, by clinging to the outside of the box. He explains to Martha that Jack’s a friend of his and they used to travel together. Martha looks regretful. She apologises, saying she can’t find a heartbeat.
Suddenly, Jack sucks in a breath and jerks. He grabs Martha’s arms in panic, and she hurries to calm him. He immediately flirts with her, and the Doctor tersely cautions him, “Oh, don’t start.”
Martha helps him up, and the two men have something of a stare down.
“Doctor.”
“Captain.”
There’s a bit of banter between them, with the Doctor asking Jack if he’s had work done, and Jack telling the Doctor that he can talk. Then it gets serious, with Jack finally getting the chance to have ‘the talk’. He accuses the Doctor of abandoning him, to which the Doctor replies that he has a ‘busy life’. *fumes* *wants to punch Doctor*
Jack asks about Rose - he saw her name on the list of the dead at the Battle of Canary Wharf. The Doctor reassures him - she is living in a parallel universe with her parents and with Mickey. They hug in celebration that Rose, at least, is fine.
They start to explore, with Jack explaining to Martha what happened to him. He tells her about coming to on the Game station, and finding that he had been left behind. The Doctor doesn’t rise to the bait. Jack shows Martha his wristband, the vortex manipulator, which lets him travel through time.
Here, the Doctor has to add his tuppence-worth. He acidly remarks that’s like saying that he has a car and Jack has a space hopper. Jack hits back that okay, he bounced. He starts to get man, but Martha breaks it up with a ‘boys and their toys’ comment.
Jack continues that although he wanted to get to the 21st century to wait for the Doctor, he ended up in 1869, trapped because his manipulator burned out. He had to live through the 20th century, waiting for a version of the Doctor that coincided with him to show up at the rift. The Doctor again remarks that he’s ‘been busy’ as a reason for abandoning Jack.
Martha starts to get a little concerned, and asks the Doctor if that’s how it works - he keeps his companions around until he gets bored and then leaves them? Jack gets a good shot in, telling Martha, ‘unless you’re blonde’. (Go, Jack, because if the roles had been reversed, he sure as hell wouldn’t have left Rose and you know it!)
That gets a reaction. The Doctor explodes at him, saying that they are at the end of the universe and they are busy ‘blogging’. Chastised, they continue on their way, and come across a settlement of sorts, carved into a canyon. It has walkways, entrances, and domiciles. Unfortunately, it looks like it has been deserted for some time.
The Doctor explains this is the end of things; all the great civilisations are gone. He glances up at the dark sky. It isn’t night, he tells them. All the stars have burned out.
Jack comments that the planet must have an atmospheric shield; otherwise they’d all have frozen to death by now. The Doctor, continuing with the point-scoring, remarks that he might, and Martha might, but he’s not sure about Jack. They look at each other. (And from Jack’s face, that kind of stung - double meaning, I think).
Jack is distracted by the appearance of the runner in a valley below. The mob is close on his heels, brandishing burning torches. The three of them race down to help, and as they run, Jack starts to laugh, saying that he’s missed this. (Is it just me or is that a bit much? What happened to ‘angry Torchwood Jack’ who wanted answers for his abandonment? He took longer to forgive Ianto for his betrayal, which was far more understandable than what the Doctor did, and at least Ianto was sorry.)
Anyway, they intercept the man, and Jack grabs hold of him, saying that he’s got him. He pushes the man behind him, and raises his gun. The Doctor orders him not to shoot them, so he fires in the air at the advancing mob. That stops them, and the Doctor promises to take the man to the TARDIS and safety. Unfortunately, more of the pointy-teeth show up on the ridge behind our heroes, cutting them off.
The man tells them that they will be safe in the silo, so the four make a run for it, the mob right behind him. They reach a compound that leads into the cliff, cut off by a chain fence. Armed guards demand to see their teeth and, satisfied that they are human, admit them. They drive the pointy-teeth away. The man who was being chased asks a guard if he can take him to Utopia. The guard tells him yes, absolutely.
In a laboratory / workshop in the complex, a man in his sixties, dressed Victorian style, is busy working on some kind of technology. An announcement comes over the PA that they have four new survivors, and one of them is a ‘doctor of everything’. The man, called Professor Yana, is excited.
The Doctor asks the guards to recover the TARDIS. They say they are due to go out shortly, and will try to bring it back for him. The man that the Doctor, Jack and Martha saved is busy asking for his family. The guard, Atillo, directs him to a small blonde boy who has a list of names. He leads the four through corridors. All the passages are lined with people living on camp beds, or sitting on blankets which they eat. It looks like a refugee camp, and all the people are human.
The running man finds his family, and Jack finds someone to flirt with. The Doctor tells him off, again, and notices a sealed door. He starts to mess around with it, and gets Jack to help. The door opens suddenly and the Doctor steps through automatically, only to find himself leaning out over a drop at least a mile down. Jack grabs his jacket in time and hauls him back. The Doctor thanks him, and Jack asks how he managed all this time without him! *grins*
In the huge hold is a ship - it’s enormous, shaped like a missile. The Doctor realises that the refugees are actually passengers, and this ship is how they are getting to Utopia. But with the universe falling apart, what is this Utopia? Where is it, that it’s a haven from the destruction of everything?
The Professor summons them, and as the threesome follows him to the lab, they pass by a refugee who hisses at them after they’re gone, revealing a mouthful of pointy-teeth.
In the lab, the professor asks the Doctor for help with his project. The Doctor is forced to admit that he’s basically clueless - he’s never seen technology like this before. The Professor is disappointed. Meanwhile, Jack has removed the Doctor’s hand from his rucksack, and set the unit down on a table, shocking the hell out of Martha. The Doctor explains that it is his hand, to which Martha responds by pointing out that he already has two hands. Flashback to TCI. The Professor asks what kind of species the Doctor is, and he explains is the last of the Timelords.
The Professor explains that his assistant Chando’s people used to live in the city. They are long gone now, and the Doctor seems gleeful that he was right about it being a ‘conglomeration’ until Jack reminds him that he should show some respect for Chando’s loss by saying sorry. The Doctor does. (Is it just me or is that a little out of character for him? Usually, expressing genuine regret for someone’s circumstances, especially someone in the same situation as he is - the last of their kind - is the first thing he does, and here he just wouldn’t have bothered if Jack hadn’t prompted him).
They ask about the pointy-teeth, and find out they are called the Futurekind, which is a myth in itself since they really is no future, but some people say they are what the humans will become if they do not escape this world. He tells them of the Science Foundation’s Utopia Project, a place of sanctuary for the remaining members of the human race. A beacon has been transmitting, summoning humankind from all corners of the galaxy, telling them to come to Utopia. It might be nothing, but the Professor thinks it’s worth finding out. So does the Doctor.
The only problem is that his rocket won’t fly, and the Doctor knows that the Professor hasn’t told the people yet, because he doesn’t want them to lose hope.
The Doctor has an idea. He strips off his jacket, and before he realises it, Jack is there, helping him out of it and draping it over his arm so the Doctor can work. *squeees* The Professor watches, astonished, as the Doctor fixes the rocket, and as it comes to life, they hear an announcement telling all passengers to prepare to board.
Outside, the van arrives with the TARDIS. It’s watched by the Futurekind, who don’t fail to notice the increased activity or that once the van is inside, and the gate locked up, the guards abandon their posts.
Rushing around, gathering the necessary equipment for the launch, Martha runs into the little blonde boy and finds out he is called Crete. She learns that he is alone, an orphan. She wishes him luck, and urges him to get on board the ship. As she follows Chando back to the lab, the Futurekind spy sneaks off behind them.
Meanwhile, the Doctor tells the Professor that he knows he plans to stay behind, because the rocket has to be launched from the lab. When he learns that the guards have recovered the TARDIS, he tells the Professor that he might have a way out for him. But when the Professor sees the TARDIS, he seems to have an episode of sorts, drifting away from the room, until the Doctor’s questioning brings him back. The Professor explains that he hears the sound of drums, beating his in head constantly. It’s happened all his life.
The TARDIS is moved into the lab, and the Doctor runs a cable from the ship’s innards to the Professor’s equipment. Now, all they need to do is connect the couplings, but that requires sending someone into the energy room which is full of STED radiation. The Doctor has never heard of it, and the Professor says he should be grateful - it’s deadly. They need to keep the levels below red, and Jack is left to monitor that system.
Below, Atillo has another guard suit up and go into do the work, which involves opening up four steel cylinders and turning the switches inside them before the couplings can connect. Everything is going well until the Futurekind intruder reaches a control panel and sabotages it. The damage prevents Jack from controlling the radiation levels, but the guard won’t leave the room until his job is done.
Determined to save him, Jack grabs hold of two wires that should enable them to regain control of the system. The Doctor yells a warning, but Jack shoves them together anyway, and although it works, he is killed. Unfortunately, so is the guard. He evaporates from the radiation, and his suit falls empty to the floor of the room.
The Professor is horrified by Jack’s demise, and apologises to the Doctor for his loss, especially as it was for nothing - they still have two cylinders to move, and the room has been flooded with radiation. Martha starts rescue breathing for Jack, but the Doctor comes over and pulls her away, telling her to ‘leave him, leave him alone.’ She doesn’t understand, until Jack suddenly comes alive again, asking ‘was someone just kissing me?’ The Doctor points out that the Professor needs a man who cannot die to connect the couplings, and they have just that.
The Doctor and Jack race downstairs *squees again* all action. They reach the room, and the Doctor sends Atillo to the rocket. Jack takes off his coat and shirt, and the Doctor interrupts him *growls at Doctor* to ask why he’s stripping. The radiation doesn’t affect clothing, just flesh. (So that’s okay then). Jack smirks and says at least he’ll look good. He pulls his braces back up over his T-shirt and enters the cylinder room.
While Jack works, they have ‘the talk’. The Doctor says he knew that Jack was immortal when he left him behind on the station, and asks when Jack found out.
The Professor, Martha and Chando are listening to the exchange from the lab, and the Professor is astonished that Jack has survived. He says that Jack should have evaporated. (Which is a really good point - when Susie shot Jack in TW1x01, the bullet hit him, and left a hole dead centre forehead. He then got up and we saw the wound heal. Whatever happens to kill him does damage which then heals when he revives. So shouldn’t the radiation evaporate him, or at least do some visible physical damage? Instead, nada. ????) But the conversation brings back the sound of drums, and its seems that parts of what Jack is saying seem to mean something important to him. (The drums sound more like the turning of machinery to me, or maybe a clock’s workings, amplified a hundred or a thousand times).
Jack tells the Doctor he found out in 1892, when a guy at Ellis Island started a fight with him and shot him through the heart. He got up. At first, he says, he wasn’t sure. But after he died several more times, he knew. He lists the ways he got his proof. He was trampled by horses, then there was World Wars One and Two, he was poisoned. He starved to death. (Oh, Jack). *hugs him* (And I tell you, I’m pretty pissed at the Doctor at this point, because he’s so nonchalant on the other side of that door, like this is No Big Thing. Jack had to go through that because he left him behind.)
The Doctor then proceeds to tell Jack that the reason he left him behind is the same reason that he went away in the TARDIS when he saw Jack racing towards him - Jack is just wrong now. He’s a fact, a fixed point in time and that’s bad. Even the TARDIS reacted to him, reaching so far into the future in an attempt to throw him off. Jack sarcastically thanks him, and again, it’s clear he’s really hurt by this. He smirks a little and accuses the Doctor of being prejudiced. The Doctor doesn’t disagree, but he does explain how he came back, what Rose did. Jack asks if she can change him back, but the Doctor says she isn’t just living on the parallel world, she’s trapped there. Jack says he’s sorry, and means it, but the Doctor tells him that he took back the power of the TARDIS from Rose anyway.
Jack admits that during the 90s, he visited her estate twice, just to see her growing up. He considered speaking to her, but didn’t want to jeopardise the time lines. He looks so happy when he thinks of her.
The Doctor asks him suddenly if he wants to die. Jack avoids the question, saying that one of the cylinders is jammed. The Doctor doesn’t let him evade so easily, and Jack admits that he has thought about it. *sniffs* But now he has come here, and seen how these people are determined to survive against all the odds, ready to ship out to somewhere they might stand a better chance.
Up in the control room, the Professor has another ‘incident’. Martha and Chando race to him and the Professor is crying at the thought that time travel is possible. He seems confused, reliving his youth when others said it was doable but he didn’t believe. He pulls a pocket watch out and Martha stares at it in horror. It’s the double of the one the Doctor put his true self into when they were pursued by the Family of Blood, and the Professor says he was found with it as a child, on the edge of some disaster area. She asks the Professor if he has ever opened it. He says no, why would he? It’s broken, jammed shut. He’s never done it. Martha makes up an excuse to go down to speak to the Doctor and rushes from the room, causing the Professor to look at the watch, trying to figure out what could be so alarming about an old relic like that?
Downstairs, the couplings connected, the Doctor orders Jack out of the room. Dressed again, he helps the Doctor throw the last few switches, and the Doctor orders the Rocket to blast off. Martha appears, and tells the Doctor about the watch. He seems in denial at first, but Jack snaps him out of it, telling him that this could mean he is no longer alone - there might be another Timelord! Martha backs this up, reminding him what the Face of Boe told him, just before it died. The Doctor suddenly grabs Martha in temper, and demands to know exactly what the Professor said.
Upstairs, the Professor studies the watch. A chilling, angry voice is heard, telling him to ‘open me, human fool,’ and various other threats and enticements. As the Rocket launches, the Professor flicks open the watch, and a stream of golden energy surrounds him, drawing Chando’s attention. We see the significance of YANA - you are not alone.
Outside, the Futurekind watch in rage as the Rocket blasts off, leaving them behind.
Back in the lab, the Professor is no longer the kindly, gentle man he was. He crosses to a panel, and activates a switch, locking the door that leads back to the lab. Downstairs, the Doctor reaches it just as it slams shut in his face. He yells to the Professor to let him in.
Chando protests, saying he has locked them in, but the Professor says as one door closes, another opens. He switches off the security system that stops the Futurekind just storming the fence. Seeing it is powerless, they charge the gate and tear it down, racing into the compound.
The Doctor, with Jack’s help, gets the door open, and they race through the corridors. They run straight into the Futurekind and have to flee, but find another way to the lab.
Meanwhile, the Professor is furious with Chando. He claims she could have noticed the watch before, and released him. She draws a gun on him, telling him that she has to stop him destroying their work. (But the Rocket is gone?) He tells her that is fine, because now he has been provoked. He grabs a live cable, sparking electricity, and advances on her, shocking her with it as he reveals his real identity: The Master.
The gang reach the door, but it’s sealed. The Doctor begs to be let in, and urges the Professor not to open the watch. He tells the Professor things have changed, that they are the only two of their kind left now, but his words fall on deaf ears. He begs Jack to help him get the door open, and Martha screams as the Futurekind race towards them.
Inside, The Master removes a data disk from his machines, sneering at the idea of ‘Utopia’. He removes the cable connecting his equipment to the TARDIS, but as he comes back out Chando shoots him then dies. He collapses into the entranceway of the TARDIS.
Outside, driven by the Doctor’s pleas and the approaching Futurekind, Jack smashes the lock on the door with his gun, and it opens. They rush inside, and Jack pushes the door closed. He yells for help to hold it as he has broken the lock. Martha notices Chando is dead, and then hurries to help Jack hold the door closed. The Futurekind reach it, and start to prise it open.
The Doctor advances on The Master, who retreats into the TARDIS and locks the door, flipping the mortice lock. This stops the Doctor’s key from working. (Which I don’t get because this is the Doctor’s TARDIS. Hasn’t he considered the possibility that someone might lock him out of his own TARDIS? Wouldn’t the TARDIS detect the presence of his greatest enemy and do something about it? She just jumped them to the end of the universe because of Jack, and he was their friend.)
He begs to be let in, but inside the Master regenerates into a much younger man. He starts to leave, and the Doctor tries to stop him. He does something with the sonic screwdriver, but the Master seems to override it, but when the Doctor says that he’s sorry, it may have done something after all....
The Master cheerfully tells the Doctor to have fun at the end of the universe and leaves.
The Doctor, now abandoned (see how it feels), has to watch his ship go, while Jack and Martha struggle to hold the door against the pack of Futurekind as they gradually force it open.
==
Geez, that was a long synopsis, but this was a busy episode. And can I just say - I didn’t like it. I’ve been waiting ages for this, since I heard Jack was returning in S3, and it really wasn’t worth it. I kind of feel robbed. Where’s the confrontation I’ve been waiting for? Jack should have been much more pissed. I was looking forward to seeing him knock the Doctor on his ass. So he was changed by Rose, into something ‘wrong’. He was your friend, Doctor. In a way, it’s like he got sick. If that had been the case, would you have left him alone with no one to care for him? And the worst of it is that he knew Jack might have ended up living forever alone on the Game station.
Remember what he said about Jack at the end of The Doctor Dances? About how Jack better be bigger on the inside? He was bigger than you, Doctor.
And this was an RTD episode, so that increased my expectations which frankly weren’t met. Maybe that’s my fault for looking forward to it so much, but I just feel...unfulfilled. Hopefully, the next episode will sort it all out, but I don’t want to get too excited about it so that I can avoid another disappointment. This is not how I saw it playing out.
And even if we say that the Hand in the Jar activated before the TARDIS landed, Jack must be some kind of Olympic athlete to grab his gear and make it topside in what - 20 seconds to a minute?
Not happy.