The following is a submission from guest-bot “Huon-Tron” and she might be one of the biggest Dr. Who fans I know. Here’s her take on episode 6.5 and what might be in store for us in the future.
The Rebel Flesh (fifth episode in season 6 of Doctor Who) begins with Rory and Amy throwing darts, listening to Muse, and The Doctor examining the monitor which is still debating whether Amy is pregnant…or not…Actually, it’s saying she is/she isn’t. Then the Tardis goes all wonky in a solar tsunami and we end up at a church/factory with acid running through pipes and vats of flesh.
The Doctor immediately knows they are “almost people” (the people they are about to encounter), and he clearly knows what’s going on. His mission however, is to get the cockerel down (from atop the weather vane), because the solar tsunami is coming and the consequences could be devastating…
I’m not going to go into a full review here, that’s not my style (just watch it), but the humans have been creating doppelgangers from the vat of flesh (called The Flesh), and the solar tsunami created monsters out of the vat of flesh…their gangers are now “alive”! Very Frankensteinish. They feel everything and experience everything their human counterparts do…even have their memories, but they set out to destroy the humans. It’s war. It’s The Rebel Flesh. They have taken over the Acid suits, leaving the humans defenceless against the rupturing acidic pipes and acid puddling up everywhere, which by the way has soaked up the tardis. The gangers do have the advantage, and they are not stable. They are able to shift from human-looking to ganger. It can get difficult to tell them apart.
Meanwhile, Rory is all about one of the humans, protecting her. Amy is baffled, but playing it cool…and the Doctor, well, he can’t keep his screwdriver out of the vat, and we’re left with a Rebel Doctor. So, there’s a choppy, short review, now come my thoughts!
Things I’m thinking about regarding The Rebel Flesh…..WHAT is with Rory and that Jennifer chick? I mean, let’s face it, it’s weird. He’s always all about Amy. He’s Mr. Pond for crap’s sake. Something strange there. Perhaps he’s just protecting her, and it’s nothing else…perhaps he’s just making Amy jealous. No, again there’s something strange here. I’ve heard speculation where Rory could in fact be a ganger…is that possible? I’m not sure. I don’t think he can. I know he can switch his Auton-ness off and on, but is it possible for him to be gangerfied? Doppled?
Will the new Fleshy Doctor really be part of the Rebel-Flesh alliance? Can Amy and The (real) Doctor really trust him? “Trust me, I’m the Doctor” he claims. Oh, I’m sure they can. We see in a clip from The Almost People that the Rebel Flesh Doctor and the Real Doctor are getting on quite well….Maybe it’s best the Doctor does have a ganger…an insider. Also, will this be the beginning and the end of the Doctor’s ganger? Will we see a return of the clone? Could he, as some are speculating, be the Doctor’s killer? Or, could the Doctor we saw in The Impossible Astronaut really be the ganger…and the Doctor himself in the astronaut’s suit (finishing his ganger off once and for all?? Am I confusing you now? No, you all are too brilliant and clever. Personally, I don’t think the ganger will be the one in the space suit, and don’t think they even have anything to do with one another, but I could be completely wrong. Though, I HAVE been saying that I think the Doctor will be in the space suit. I still believe that. I don’t think the ganger will be though.
What will become of the tardis? Trapped in acid-soaked earth!! We do see it underground in the “next time” trailer, but has it been affected by the acid?
Also, I’m loving the hell out of the Troughton-ness of the show…and really the entire season. I love how Moffat and his team have brought back the classic feel, the brilliance of more companions in the tardis…more characters interacting with the Doctor (and the tardis) and in the story in general. It’s not just the Doctor and a female companion anymore. If you haven’t seen any of the classics…I suggest you start. I can provide links for viewing.
The music? Topnotch. I’m digging the theme even now into season 6. And this episode’s music in particular was brilliant. The part where we first see Jennifer oozing up out of The Flesh, ah, it was eerie and mesmerising. It channelled classic Who and even Twilight Zone perfectly. Oh, and we got a bit of Muse…
Is Amy pregnant? Or not? We still don’t know. She is….and she isn’t. It’s difficult to tell. The Doctor is perplexed, or maybe he already knows and is just keeping tabs on it until the time is right. Who knows??
And who can forget the Eye Patch Lady? Yes, we saw her again. This is clearly part of the whole Amy’s preggers/Amy’s not preggers paradox. Well, considering the plausible theory that the Eye Patch Lady is in fact some kind of futuristic midwife, then it makes sense that in one world Amy’s pregnant, being comforted and taken care of by said EPL; and in another world, she’s not. But she sure is being haunted by EPL in any case.
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So, where does this leave us? What can we expect Saturday? If you’re in the US, and you don’t want to miss out, I’ll have some links to watch it with a Live Feed, and some downloading, streaming options as BBC America isn’t going to show it until June. Memorial Day break. Bummer.
Think I’ve covered everything …..till next time.