Doctor Who 9x02 The Witch's Familiar

[kerravonsen]

Wow.

Very psychological, the interaction between the Doctor and Davros.
I was expecting that there would be some kind of trick, but then I wasn't so sure, and then I was taken by surprise.

"You will die of your compassion."
"I hope so."

I didn't catch the explanation that Missy gave about why what Clara said came out differently in the Dalek's voice. So I'm confused. Can someone explain it to me?

Oh, but the "road trip" of Clara and Missy... oh marvellous. Such snark.

"Can I have a pointy stick?"
"Make your own."

"The next time you take my stick, make sure you kill me."

"We're a team."
"We're not a team!"
"Every coalmine needs its canary." (or something like that)

Obviously the "witch's familiar" is Clara, with Missy being the Witch.

Oh, I loved, loved the whole turnaround of the meaning of the "this is the only way I can save my friend... Exterminate!" scene. Yes.

Yes, I'm not being terribly analytical this time, but I did enjoy it.

Comments

[kalypso]

There's a useful site at chakoteya.net which produces transcripts very quickly. But it's still not terribly clear exactly how the Dalek's translating Clara's thoughts; Missy talks about nanotech, but the closest she gets is this: "Cybermen suppress emotion. Daleks channel it through a gun. That's why they keep yelling exterminate. It's how they reload." Maybe it's like a phrasebook of recorded words that have been programmed into the speech circuits - the biological Dalek may not have the power of speech in itself - and the nanotech searches for a suitable phrase to correspond to the thought, but only Dalek phrases are available, and the rule is that the default for anything emotional is "Exterminate!"

[kerravonsen]

Ah, so I didn't misunderstand it or miss it, it simply wasn't explained. Okay.

[jaxomsride.livejournal.com]

I can't remember the exact explanation but it had something to do with the Dalek being programmed for hate. Though if "I love you", or "help" is translated as Exterminate!, I am not going to be able to hear that phrase without now wondering what the poor blighter is trying to say!

I am not one for predestination but this episode shows that the Daleks being able to ask for mercy means the Doctor went back to rescue Davros and it was not a change after all.

So Davros trying to make the Doctor forgo compassion would have been sealing his own death warrant if he had succeeded because then the Doctor would not have gone back and rescued him.