Doctor Who: 3x08 "Human Nature"

[kerravonsen]

After a bit of a delay, I've now watched "Human Nature". Well, well, well...
It's rather interesting to compare this to the New Adventures novel that Paul Cornell wrote, upon which he based this script. I re-read the novel in preparation for this, but I have to admit that I skimmed a lot in the middle, because it was dragging so (which kind of surprised me, because I remember liking it heaps when I first read it).

Naturally, the biggest difference is that this is Ten rather than Seven (and Martha rather than Bernice). Interestingly enough, Ten fits more naturally into the role of Mr. Smith than Seven did, IMHO. Seven felt a lot more... diminished. I think it was because Seven's Smith didn't fit that well as a schoolteacher either.

Next-biggest difference is, of course, that the plot has to be much quicker and tighter, due to the limitations of television versus a novel. Which means much had to be cut out, but as I said above, I found the novel was dragging a bit anyway, so I'm not really missing it. Though I do kind of miss Aphasia and her bird-eating and her murderous red balloon-that-isn't-a-balloon. While they still kept the girl-with-a-red-balloon motif, it isn't as sinister. On the other hand, we get walking scarecrows, which we didn't before.

One thing I like better, plotwise, in the episode as opposed to the novel is that it gives a better reason for him becoming human; it's the opposite way around from the novel. In the novel the Doctor became human as his way of gafiating, and the Family pursued him because they had provided the means of his transformation, and they wanted his bio-data. That always felt very weak to me, because why couldn't they have just stolen it then and there? Whereas in the episode, the Family are hunting him because he's a Time Lord (and of course that makes even more sense, since Ten is also The Last Time Lord) and he becomes human in order to hide from them.

Another interesting comparison between the book and the novel; Martha's emo!angst that "you fell in love with a human, and it wasn't me." Whereas Bernice was more "Oops! Oh dear." But then, Bernice was posing as Mr. Smith's niece, rather than his maid, so the relationship was different anyway.

Random bits I liked:
The creepy head-turning in unison.

I liked the scene where Mr. Smith was telling Timothy about "not being yourself", for the double-layered meaning in it, yes. And I liked that he noticed that Timothy wasn't doing as well as he could.

The way Smith was staring at the sonic screwdriver, obviously recognising it, but speechless.

We shall see how next week goes.

Comments

[astrogirl2.livejournal.com]

I'm very interested to go back and look at the book and compare it, myself, but I'm deliberately not doing so until after I've seen part 2, as I think I'll enjoy it more on its own terms if I'm not constantly comparing it to the novel. And it's been long enough since I've read it that I pretty much only remember the general concept, rather than any of the details.

[kerravonsen]

I think I'm able to enjoy it on its own terms, well, possibly because, as I said, I didn't enjoy the novel as much this time around. I don't really think of them as the same story at all, just something with common elements.

[watervole.livejournal.com]

I'm really enjoying this one. Having not read the book, I'm tempted to go and find it if the second half is as good.

[kerravonsen]

I would suggest that, if you do read the book, don't think of them as the same story. Seven is quite different to Ten, and that does shape the nuances.

[kalypso-v.livejournal.com]

I may as well recycle two comments I made in another journal, as they seem as relevant here:

Did you notice the little girl's first appearance was accompanied by the nursery rhyme music for the little girl in Remembrance of the Daleks? Which confused me, because on hearing that I thought "She's one of them!" but it turned out she wasn't, at the time, and then we didn't get the music when she was.

Martha's line about the Doctor falling in love with a human "and it wasn't me" sounded like a deliberate echo of a line in Russell T. Davies's Bob and Rose, when [SPOILER FOR B&R] Holly, played by Jessica Stevenson (now known as Jessica Hynes, and playing Joan Redfern in Human Nature), lamented that her gay friend Bob had fallen in love with a woman, and it wasn't her.

[jhall1.livejournal.com]

In the novel the Doctor became human as his way of gafiating....

?

[kerravonsen]

Fannish term: Getting Away From It All; usually means taking a break from fandom, or permanently leaving fandom.

[jhall1.livejournal.com]

Thanks. It's clearly a very useful coinage.

[jthijsen.livejournal.com]

For more fannish terms and their explanations I recommend the book Fallen Angels by Larry Niven, Jerry Pournelle and Michael Flynn. A great read and a very amusing insight into the world of fandom.

[jhall1.livejournal.com]

Thanks for the rec.

[vilakins.livejournal.com]

I really enjoyed it! Unlike the Shakespeare one which didn't give me a sense of another time at all, this one very much did. They have the accents, attitudes, and costumes just right. Oddly enough, the only bit that didn't seem to fit the feeling of it all was the cricket ball rescue of the baby. It seemed too slick and Timelordy when he isn't one right now.

[kerravonsen]

I think the cricket ball rescue was supposed to hint, like the dreams, that there's "something underneath", and also that Mr. Smith does yearn to be heroic, but I agree that it was too over-the-top.

[jthijsen.livejournal.com]

I rather liked it, actually. Here's this perfectly normal, quite nerdy schoolteacher, and all of a sudden a little bit of the Doctor breaks through. And then he becomes a quite surprised nerdy schoolteacher once again, who thinks it was just a lucky shot.