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Curse of Clyde Langer and Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith are the best episode of the show for me. Most emotionally taxing for me especially as someone who has a very loving family dynamic.
I think Russel initially wanted the mandatory DNA testing thing in 73 YARDS but realised that if he put it in then Ruby would find out who her mother was too early. I think it would have been cool if Roger DID proclaim the DNA testing policy in episode 4, leading to Ruby having an inner conflict over solving her greatest mystery and saving millions of lives.
73 Yards seems like it was an idea RTD had in a dream and quickly scribbled down when he woke up. And like a dream, the more you try to think about it the more it slips away from you.
I think another reason as to why The Curse of Clyde Langar is stronger than 73 Yards is that we've spent a much longer period of time with the SJA cast. By this point, the show had spent four prior seasons establishing why this support network meant so much to Clyde and why people like Sarah-Jane, Rani and Carla were so important to him, especially after we learn what happened with Clyde's Dad in series 2. I will say though that I do really like 73 Yards, and to me, The Curse of Clyde Langar being better isn't a sign of how bad 73 Yards is, but of how good SJA was, and just how well-developed those characters really were.
Y’know what I really liked about this one? It just felt like a nightmare. Like Turn Left, it was just about a situation that kept worse and worse and worse. The ending was a bit… I don’t wanna say ‘rushed’ but it did leave some unanswered questions. I did like what we learnt about Ruby, though. If I remember correctly, she apparently didn’t try to fly from the UK in case it killed The Woman.
I didn't personally see Roger ap Gwilliam as an attempt at political satire by RTD in the style of Years & Years. To me, this is RTD writing a modern fairy-tale, where our protagonist has to leave the small town and slay a dragon, or take down an evil tyrant. In classic fairytales and folklore stories, the villain would often be a member of the ruling class, like the Sheriff of Nottingham and Prince John in Robin Hood. The modern equivalent of that in RTD's eyes is a senior politician, specifically the Prime Minister. I didn't personally see this as an attempt by RTD to make some kind of biting and relevant political commentary, but as a way of adapting classical fairy-tale tropes and giving them a modern-day equivalent. But that's just me.
Exactly this, the Roger ap Gwilliam character almost seems to be deliberately constructed so as not to map onto any real world political figure, and if RTD leaned into political satire too heavily it would distract from his main function in the episode
It's worth noting that the rules around how people react to the woman aren't actually entirely consistent. The big one being with Roger cause the guy decides to resign his job even tho it has nothing to do with Ruby specifically (and how did Ruby even know that he would resign and not just hate her alone). Sure there's the running away aspect but even that's not consistent cause while Carla does leave for a bit she ultimately keeps her house in the long run and Kate doesn't resign from UNIT.
I can see why people don’t like it but I personally loved it because it thought it was like an Twilight Zone episode mixed with The Wicker Man as an Doctor Light story. Plus this episode was released on my birthday so I might be a bit biased TBH
33:35 I've known and plenty of 40 year-olds who look much younger than their years. Hell, my girlfriend was even asked for ID when she went to buy booze on her 40th birthday!
If people don't have kids, they tend to still look very youthful in their 40s. Either having time or money helps (good diet, proper skincare, enough sleep etc). Beyoncé is 42. Alesha Dixon is 45. As someone in their 40s, I thought Ruby looked about right. It only seems to be younger people who question this. It's all relative. My teenage daughter calls 25-year-olds "old people".
My headcanon after the episode ended is that the Doctor and Ruby go to the pub, meet everyone (who are actually alright in this main timeline) and have a good time before a new adventure.
I find it odd that you say that Ruby's speech at the end is "nonsense" when I think it's the most important quote of the episode. The way she talks about how she has hope drives the point home that she's learned to live with her fear of abandonment. And I think the point at the end about the monster ending up being her is that her fear is basically self-fulfilling and, in essence, irrational (not really there and self-created). I do agree that the episode would have been better if the show actually did some legwork to drive these themes home about Ruby (if only to make these interpretations more obvious) but I do enjoy the fact that it's so abstract that you're required to create your own interpretation that works for you. It's Doctor Who does David Lynch, and I think that's why this episode's legacy will be so good.
The point of the Marty subplot was to establish that Roger ap Gwilliam was awful on an interpersonal level and not just a political one, so that there was no sympathy when he was driven mad. Obviously desiring to fire a nuke is pretty evil in itself, but it is also fairly abstract. The Marty subplot was to get you to understand he was evil on an emotional level, not just an intellectual one. The line 'a boy's name' was to associate the tendency to police gender norms with evil. It was RTDs way of signaling his politics and was intended for people who broadly agree with his politics, such as yourself, to feel a degree of vindication.
@@booradley8895 That's a perfectly reasonable perspective. I'm not trying to redeem anything, I'm not saying the moral messaging in the episode was good or consistent, just trying to explain why the subplot and the line were there, and it's just my best guess as to RTD's intent. I'm not trying to justify or handwave domestic abuse, or failing to intervene in situations like that.
@@SeanJacksonTutorials Unredeemable for Ruby's character. She literally at any point in time could walk away and be 73 yards away for her plan to work. Instead she let Marty down big time and that is just awful.
Perfect review 👏🏻 The more you think about it, the less it makes sense. I guess it’s just a character piece for Ruby with no lasting consequences. RTD has got too much of an ego & has just forgotten to get out the red pen this season. Unfortunately he’s not turned things around & cemented the show needs a hiatus with fresh blood taking over.
"I had to make sure I was right." For me is the line in Ruby's explanation to Marti that does actually make sense. Sure, the Doctor said that Roger Ap Gwilliam would bring the world to the brink of nuclear annihilation, and it's implied (And later confirmed) that the Doctor has already stopped him in a previous, unseen adventure. But this is an alternate timeline, which as Kate says to Ruby, is "suspended along your event", so the Doctor's foreknowledge is no longer absolute in this situation, and he is no longer around to stop Roger; it's all down to Ruby and she has to get this call right. Ruby has seen what the woman did to the people closest to her; using her to destroy Roger's life is an absolute last resort. Even though Roger is an abuser, even though he's clearly a warmonger wrapping himself up in patriotism, there is still the question of "Knowing this power that I have, do I have the right to use it?" And that changes when Ruby is told that Roger is buying a nuclear arsenal from Pakistan and finally has the opportunity to enact what he talked about; the fact that Roger is preparing this before he even takes power shows that it was ultimately more than just populist rhetoric. Ruby couldn't destroy Roger simply based on the fact that he tries to start a nuclear war in another timeline, she had to be absolutely sure he was going to do it in THIS timeline. Unfortunately, this leads to the huge moral dilemma (which the story glosses over the implications of and instead uses for shock value) that Ruby effectively sacrifices Marti to be abused by Roger in order to keep her cover long enough to discover undeniable proof that Roger is taking steps to start a nuclear war; she abandons Marti to try and save the world. (This would have been slightly more understandable if the episode presented exposing Roger's behaviour as being very risky and unlikely to stop him, that nobody would believe them, the press are on Roger's side and no allegations ever stick to him, etc.) Furthermore, the second part of that line: "I think I'll only get one chance" is in the context of Ruby and the other volunteers being told that they'll no longer have access to Roger now that he's PM, so Ruby thinks with the security around Roger that she will never get another opportunity to get within 73 yards of him. The other thought I had was, if Ruby is wrong and Roger actually has no real intention of building and deploying a nuclear arsenal, then Ruby feels it wouldn't be justified to destroy a nasty, manipulative and cruel politician if he wasn't actually a threat to the world and life on earth; and once the woman is unleashed, there's no going back; the victim stays affected forever and becomes basically a cowardly shell of their former self. I think you can draw a parallel to Genesis of the Daleks where the Doctor hesitates and wonders if he has the right to destroy the Daleks in their infancy before they've had the chance to go on their genocidal rampage. Also completely agree on the supposedly more "moderate" replacement, Iris Cabriola, Roger's deputy PM, being presented as a good thing as being deeply questionable. She was willing to go along with the Albion party and likely knew exactly or at the very least strongly suspected what Roger wanted to do. She promises to turn the party into "A more lenient and listening government" (Sounds very Keir Starmer-esque) but who's to say this isn't just rhetoric and that Ruby has just given someone even less qualified access to a bunch of nukes from Pakistan?
From that stare and how he watched the finale before finishing the 73 Yards review, I fear he’s going to be more merciless and cold hearted to Empire of Death. I believe he likes a lot of Legend of Ruby Sunday but almost despises Empire of Death. I don’t think Empire is as bad as he as many believe, but I know it’s not going to be a positive review when it comes.
I didn't even understand this episode, it felt undefined with barely any cause-and-effect storytelling at all. Things just felt like they were happening, and it felt like at times we weren't even given any time to process it. The abandonment thing was something I hadn't ever picked up on before this, I thought it rushed through its plot way too fast, and that Roger Ap Gwilliam was completely wasted. If THAT'S the Minister of War we heard about in Before the Flood, which it very much might be due to it being mentioned between Harold Saxon and the Moon Bat Incident in the list of incidents brought up by O'Donnell in that episode. I felt cheated out of a thrilling political story, cheated out of a Welsh folk horror, was made extremely uncomfortable by the way the pubgoers objectively bullied Ruby, and felt like nothing had been explained to me properly at all in the episode. It became one of those episodes I was embarrassed to have watched with my family because of how bad an example of Doctor Who it felt to me. Maybe it's my fault that I'm not that perceptive, but I feel like this episode didn't even do the bare minimum when explaining some aspects of the story. Again, all the character arcs happen off-screen and that sucks. The domestic violence subtext is so forced and pointless, and nothing felt like it even mattered by the end. I hate this episode. An awful script. I agree wholeheartedly, the acting and direction are what's holding this episode together. Sorry for the long rant. I just really felt cheated by this episode. I guess I need a higher IQ to understand it.
Ruby only getting one chance was because after Roger’s first encounter with the apparition, he will forever avoid Ruby, thus denying her the opportunity to try again. The encounter had to happen at the right moment, so that the associations would be right. Victims of the apparitions flee Ruby, and also things associated with the circumstances in which the encounter took place. Like the guy in Wales forsaking his favorite pub. She could have had Roger encounter the apparition in a context associated with Marti, and he would have left Marti alone from that point on. But he would have continued his political career (or could have-it’s possible that he would have also associated that meeting with his campaign and dropped out, but Ruby wanted a sure thing). By staging the encounter at Roger’s moment of triumph, she ensured that the association would be with that triumph and with the position of PM. He would step down and never attempt to be PM again, which was what Ruby was after. But to do this she had to refrain from using the apparition earlier to save Marti. That was what she was apologizing for. She *could* have stopped Roger from hurting Marti, but chose not to, in order to use her one opportunity to forever remove Roger from the office of PM. Also, I’m not sure that Roger was necessarily a single issue politician. Rather, we only get to see that one portion of the interview so that we know that yup this is the guy that the Doctor was talking about, and he really is the sort to start a nuclear war. He probably had positions on many other issues, but they weren’t necessary to the plot of this episode (I say “this episode” here deliberately. In light of the finale, it would have been nice to get a general list of issues, and stick genetic testing in there).
The issue with the whole "sure thing" part is that the episode never really talks about how different people are affected in different ways or how the environment can affect the outcome so it just comes across as inconsistent.
16:08 The cards aren't just there to show the passage of time, they also show how Ruby gets more and more isolated: every year there are less cards, until there's only one at 40 (perhaps her own card?).
Loved this review. It echoed many of my same thoughts, but also pointed out a few things I didn't consider (the birthday card stockpipe). And your ending genuinely made me laugh.
I'm at the bit where you're talking about the pub scene. I thought that was the point: the episode is about Ruby doing everything she can to be accepted, but nobody accepting her. The pub-goers are a bunch of horrible one-dimensional caricatures, because they are manifestations of Ruby's fears.
But they’re not horrible one-dimensional caricatures. That was the whole point of the scene. They were just ordinary people who were taking the piss out of Ruby because of the stereotypes about them.
Either interpretation still works though. Mr. Tardis said the scene was a "waste of time", but it establishes all the supernatural rules and Mad Jack. Although the pub goers don't believe in the lore, they're clearly basing their jokes off of traditional Welsh folklore they have heard before.
@@ihateunicorns867 I agree, I don't think it was to set up a negative stereotype. Especially for the instance when Ruby's mother makes a comment like "But Welsh people!", she's just sticking up for her in a sense and was trying to build reassurance as parents would do. As for the pub people, people like that just exist and the writer certainly didn't want to name every Welsh person to behave like this. The people in the pub are clearly some sort of common group ( I was going to say friend group but I change my mind on wording ), who know each other and have a pint but then go about their business when they leave the pub to carry on with their lives.
I always assumed you were meant to feel sympathetic for Ruby in that scene and get the impression she’s is completely alone. The first time I watched and the woman asked “how can you pay with your phone?” I was thinking the Doctor had brought them to the 1970s or something.
For me it’s a pile of disconnected scenes that don’t go together at all, and Russell couldn’t decide what he wanted to say. An episode full of insubstantial nonsense I'm not sure there is much point in deconstructing it considering Russell seems to have put very little thought in when writing it. The pub scenes remind me of the x-files episode Roadrunner with a bus ridding death cult only that episode is Scully getting standard in the Utah desert and trying to find a way of escaping from the isolationist committee that she wanted help from, except in 73 Yards Russell got bored and decided to do something else with rest of the episode.
@22:44 Lucy Saxon was mystifying because her abuse was just barely shown over, if I remember correctly, at best, *two* episodes. Her turn seemed almost sudden. I think this might actually show that RTD is simply bad at depicting abuse in general, at least in his work on Doctor Who.
I mean, did you see the original version or the US tv cut? Because the original has a scene of Lucy walking away with a black eye that was cut for the US version. Also there's a year time jump between Sound of Drums and Last of the Time Lords. It's safe to say that we're supposed to infer that the Master got worse when he no longer had to hide his intentions.
You are never allowed on the pitch in football stadiums, it’s a very strict rule in pretty much every professional stadium, professional teams train away from the stadium for this exact reason.
See, I've filmed adverts and done loads of productions in football stadiums and on pitches before and it's been absolutely fine (unless the grass is being watered or cut) so it just seemed so odd to me.
@@Tillyard86 I've been to Old Trafford and the Etihad in Manchester and other stadiums in the North. Might be different in London and/or Wales. Seems a strange venue for a political rally anyway if they can't go on the pitch. A lot of empty space which won't look good on camera.
@@MrTARDIS there might be a few specific situations or stadiums that let you go on it for some reason. But in general, you are not. Think about it logically, you want the pitch to be in the best condition possible for the players so there is no chance of them slipping or tripping on it. How do you ensure it stays in good condition, you don't let people walk on it? Now I guess your point is that Ruby was only one person so what harm could she do, but if you let one person on, you set a precedence and everyone will expect to be allowed on.
As someone who went in completely blind there was no indication they were in present day so the phone payment might wouldn’t have worked if they were in the not so distant past.
"Compared to Russell's political commentary in Years and Years it's a night and day difference." Years and Years is overtly a political commentary, 73 Yards is not designed to be or trying to be. I actually feel like the Roger ap Gwilliam character is deliberately constructed so as to not map onto any real world political figure, hence his single issue campaigning about nuclear weapons. His function in the episode is purely for Ruby to find meaning from her trauma by using the literal manifestation of her fear of abandonment to take him down.
I’ve really appreciated all of your coverage of 73 Yards and this video is no different! I really didn’t like the episode either and that frustrates me because I think it has so much potential and I’m a huge nerd about folklore, especially to do with fae, so I was excited by the concept. The “you need to have a high IQ” response to the episode has been maddening! For best companion performance - Billie is definitely amazing in Father’s Day but she’s also brilliant in Doomsday. I don’t like seeing Rose in distress because she’s my favourite character ever but Billie’s just really good at it 😭
I think the episode really falls apart with Roger AP Gwilliam. He's our kind of main villain but the story doesn't want him to be according to the fact that the Woman is the main villain, and Roger's only villain trait is that we're told he is evil. He has one policy and doesn't do anything obviously evil, outside of abusing Marti. We're just told not to like him. And if we already accept he is evil, why add MARTI? I literally spent the whole of 73 Yards waiting for Marti to be relevant. And that wouldn't be so bad if Marti's only significant effect on the plot is that she makes Ruby look bad. It makes Ruby someone who waits for someone to be abused when she KNOWS the abuser is abusive from before they even meet. She has NO positive effect on the plot This episode feels like someone impersonating Russell's 2008 writing badly
I had many of the same reservations as you, most particularly, the "The Welsh are just dicks" segment in the pub, but I came out liking the episode more than disliking it on balance. Millie shone, and for the first time in the season I really wanted to see more of her as the companion. It was OK overall.
The only episode of the season I'd genuinely say is one I'll consider an all time great one. Not everything needs explaining and I disagree with almost every single critique made, especially about the pub scene and the way Roger gets handled. (Ruby definitely sort of remembers 73 Yards, she recalls it in the finale)
Oh my GOD. I needed this video. I don't always agree with you but this I am 100% with you. I so needed the validation of mine and my friend's reactions. So great work.
okay the DNA testing and the end age up gags got legit laughs out of me But yeah, my feelings on the ep are pretty similar. It feels like it wants to be all these things but it didn't put in the leg work to get there. I dislike Dot and Bubble for similar reasons (besides some very personal pet peeves I have) and I also found the discourse around that episode insufferable and obnoxious with how condescending many were, but IIRC you're at least somewhat more positive on that episode so I guess we'll see what you have to say.
The number of times I’ve seen people call this episode a masterpiece, is just insane. This episode is plain weird and it’s a shame because this had potential to be a horror story rooted in Welsh folklore, but it does no such thing really.
With everything the episode left mysterious, my biggest question was what Ruby did for a living to have so much money saved away, being able to pay for the drink, the room for a few days, the train home, the flat, then she said she bought the worlds most expensive camera 🤣
60 years. The show goes through Earth for 60 years. And yet nothing happened? No random villains or monsters try to take over the world? No invasion by Daleks? You could argue 14 is bopping around protecting Earth (except that one time with Sukteh I guess).
From your description it sounds like the plot of the episode is rather derivative of the story in Stephen King's "The Dead Zone" In which the protagonist knows that an upcoming politician is going to bring about nuclear genocide, so they stop said politician from reaching office. Granted, that is an oversimplified version of events, but I wouldn't be surprised if RTD drew some inspiration from King's book there.
I'm pretty sure you’re supposed to feel that way about the people in the pub; it helps make Ruby feel even more alone and enables the audience to sympathise more with her situation. I was more confused by what any of it meant. Firstly, I thought the “pay with your phone?” thing meant it wasn’t present day and the Doctor had brought them to the 1970s or something, then the whole joke with the guy at the door had me wondering if the fairy circle really wasn’t anything at all, but then why did the Doctor disappear? The ending suggests the fairy circle was important, so did the people in the pub get it wrong?
"I don't need to understand what the woman said to Ruby's friends and family to make them abandon her." Could not disagree with you more here. What RTD did was character assassination of Carla and Kate. We're supposed to just accept that Ruby's mother flat-out disowned and shunned her daughter for the rest of her life with no explanation whatsoever. Then we see Carla in later episodes and we're supposed to just carry on with their happy, healthy relationship because none of that actually happened? Bulls**t. It DID happen, and it DEMANDS an explanation... maybe not in the episode itself, but we needed an explanation before the end of the season, and we didn't get one. And that is simply infuriating and unacceptable.
Honestly one of the theories for this episode I like and admit it’s mostly copium, Is that everything Ruby goes through was in her head, the woman showed her what would happen if the fairy circle was stepped on, and it was presented to her like a dream which is why it deals with her fear of abandonment, and Roger as her subconscious takes it after the doctor mentioned him and is also why he memory of it is kind of there and kind of isn’t, like how dreams work, can also work as copium for why there aren’t a lot details on certain things
Nah, think you need to raise your standards. If anything Mr. TARDIS is overly generous to a piece of appalling drivel with more holes than a collander full of hydrochloric acid.
Now that the series is over, I can safely say that I only enjoy RTD's episodes because he is so good at playing with emotions. Otherwise, nothing else makes any sense (well, except maybe "Dot and Bubble"). This is probably the episode that either makes or breaks new fans, and personally, I thought that the episode was simply too bleak for my tastes. Meanwhile, my sister (my family are all avid Doctor Who fans) had a sleepover with her friends (most of them newcomers to the show) at the same time as the broadcast. The first thing that they texted back to me once the episode was over? "I don't get it." Frankly, if I were showrunner, then that opinion is NOT what I'd want new viewers to get out of what could be their first episode. It is pitiful, and I'd wholeheartedly recommend Big Finish's "Static" instead, which has a similar vibe without sacrificing the plot. ALSO: I recommend Nicholas Briggs, the showrunner of Big Finish, to replace RTD.
Here's another good pick for showrunner: Rich Collins, who created "The Ten Doctors", a REALLY awesome webcomic that, while now only available via the Wayback Machine, is still one of THE best Doctor Who stories ever written. I fully recommend downloading it.
Personally I think they should get a showrunner that’s outside the Fitzroy club clique. Especially now that people who’ve grown up with the revival are now in the industry
The episode should have ended with Ruby getting shot on the pitch. I was waiting for that to happen, then as she is dying she sees Gwilliam talk to the woman and run away. Then her "reward" for doing something good would be that she gets zapped back in time and she stops the Doctor from breaking the fairy circle, without a needless loop with Ruby somehow becoming the woman or somehow not. Speaking of which, how did she know it would have scared Gwilliam away from politics, and not just make him fire her, since the whole time all the woman did was scare everyone momentarily but then turn them against her? Also it would have made more sense if the woman was always facing away from Ruby. And that those who saw her face were then scared away and/or brainwashed into hating Ruby. Because at the end of the episode, the woman is getting closer and closer to Ruby, but at that point is turned away from her for some reason.
So...what, was this some sort of time loop situation? Also, the way they show her "older" awfully reminded me of how in Bluey, the grandmothers wear glasses to show that they are older. Guess one of the costume designers recently watched Bluey or something?
About her fear of abandonment: I keep seeing people bringing that up, but frankly and in all seriousness, where do they actually get it from that she even has those? When were they ever stated? All we ever saw was how much she loved her adopted family and it feels like they projected that issue upon her and therefore on the episode itself. Even if it were so, what does it say about the character, what is the lesson to be learned here? By the end, all of it is reversed and the story and character development is moot anyway. (And ain't that an eighth of a season wasted?) Another thing is the supposed dream-like nature of the story. But... I'm sorry, I'm not picking that up at all. The direction and the camera work might be top-notch and it's a good production as a whole, but in mood and tone it never in any moment resembles (for example) a Lynch movie. What it *does* look like is a piece of TV that emulates a horror movie. I don't know, when I read points like these by people who praise the episodes it feels like they're talking about a mirage and an idea of an episode that actually never happened. Is this the Doctor Who equivalent to The Dress? Is this episode blue and black, or white and gold? One wonders!
Great video! Personally, however, I think I'd struggle to think of 73 things wrong with this gem of an episode. 730 things? Easy 😎I truly think it's up there with some of the best of RTD, Doctor Who, television!!
It makes Ruby look pretty bad when she wouldn't take down Roger for being abusive, as it was only once she knew he wanted nucluer war that he was worth taking down. It really does seem that Ruby didn't care about Marti’s abuse at all, which is awful for a companion. If Roger wasn't wanting nukes, I guess Ruby would have just let him continue to abuse Marti. Aside from that, I enjoyed Ruby in the season but this is such a low moment for her.
Nothing actually is in place to punish him for abuse by the end. Other people who saw the Woman left Ruby, but are still normal aside from not liking Ruby. He could go back to try abuse Marti more. Or he can go after more people to abuse. All he lost was the ability to start nuclear war at that moment. But he can campaign again surely, still be a politician, and still abuse!!!
If everyone who saw the woman went as mad as Roger appeared in his initial TV interview, then surely there would be a larger investigation into what makes people appear mad. So I can only assume he went normal again, to everyone but Ruby that is. But if not, why is he impacted different? Or is Ruby going around making a lot of people unable to function around anyone now? Her mother seemed functional anyway.
The direction and acting were all great though. I’d love the director to return, just with a better written script (maybe RTD needs to share writing out, or get someone to review his scripts better).
Love this episode because it has some many interpretations, like a great song that everybody has their own personal take. And yet, when you work out what's actually going on... it's genius. Pure syfy genius.
I emjoyed it the first tome I watched it. Ive rewatched twice and it gets significantly worse when you go in knowing nothing matters, there is no payoff and no explanation. Yeah not everything needs to be explained, but some things do.
I loved this review, partially also because Council Of Geeks' review was in every way the opposite. I'd LOVE to see you react to that review, and/or her reacting to your review. Maybe that's something you could consider? I'm mixed on the episode, I loved it but disliked it, so seeing two polar opposite reviews has been really interesting to me But I'd love to see your take on what CoG said about the ep
When I first saw this with my family, we loved it. We thought it was as great as great Russell hyped it up to be. Even on a second rewatch, I still enjoyed it. However, it wasn’t until I read the discord server and your opinions on your livestream that I noticed problems to I should’ve noticed but somehow missed such as the domestic implications with Marty (how I missed something like that, I’m not sure. Maybe I was so invested in the mystery and performances, I overlooked it), Ruby’s convoluted and hyper situational plan etc. I did noticed issues like the episodes portrayal of welsh people which was… yeah. Still, Millie Gibson is amazing (I hope she gets a nomination for this performance), it looks brilliant, the music is great, it has interesting ideas even though it really needed a second look at. I’m sorry it wasn’t as great as you and others were expecting it to be but I with how many I know personally and online seem to speak so highly of it, it might be one of those episodes where you’ll either love it or hate it.
This episode is definitely the new Midnight in terms of fan reception, and whilst I enjoyed the viewing experience, the ending left a lot to be desired. Roger ap Gwilliam was not enough of a threat for me and the deliberate ambiguity came across as pretentious rather than satisfying. It could have done with 10 more minutes or at least a better revisit in the finale. It gets a 6/10 for me, but it’s definitely one of those episodes a lot of fans will direct a torrent of hate at you if you don’t like it 😂
As someone who lives in a tourist town, I get the pay with your phone thing. We get, especially Americans, surprised we have the internet, surprised we have credit cards. I felt that scene and it was great emotionally. Go to a town in rural southland and ask if they have internet they'd entire mess with you about ghosts and nonsense, but not the ignoring the missing person stuff. Alot of this season is like that, rationally it doesn't work but emotionally it does, like the whole finally is fantastic emotionally but what is the plot? This whole season is, don't think about it just feel it. Which works for me. What I don't understand the most is, if Roger is Mad Jack, why does he exist if Dr doesn't step in the fairy circle? like if stopping her from repeating events stops her releasing mad jack then, someone else did later? or it was always unrelated she was wrong and there was no mad jack at all?
My idea for that question is that the part of Gwilliam interview we see in _"Empire of Death"_ is actually the alternative version of Ruby's alternative timeline: in the first timeline, Gwilliam was obsessed with the idea of using the nuclear bomb. In the new timeline, the one in which the Doctor doesn't disappear, that warmongering attitude remained blocked inside the fairy circle, and Gwilliam ends up to be interested in controlling the population via DNA and surveillance rather than in nuclear bombs and conflicts.
It's gratifying to see someone else that wasn't taken in by the superficial gloss of this episode. I also felt that a lot of what it tried to do or portray wasn't earned. And the ending killed whatever grace I might have given it.
I enjoyed this episode, almost entirely for its creepy atmosphere. But I do think all your criticisms are very valid. Especially the implied domestic violence
I liked other episodes like Rogue and Dot and Bubble more than this one, but I still really liked it overall. I just wished they cut or changed some scenes so they could have more of a focus on other plotlines. Like shortening the pub scene, and either removing marti's character, or having more of a focus on her, so that plotline made more sense. There's a lot of stuff in the episode, so by cutting the less important parts, we could have had more of a focus on Roger ap Gwilliam, or the ending scenes with old Ruby
Interesting review as ever. This was a favourite of mine, Millie Gibson acted so brilliantly in my opinion. I'm delighted your review wasn't a puff piece or a hateful one. Well balanced.
Practically everything you said I was thinking too. I loved the feeling the episode invoked, that dread and isolation we feel for Ruby, the acting was superb, but the story seemed meandering. I don't think the people who shit on your opinion are really listening to what you say. It was not the worst episode, it just is disappointing for the hype it was given and the loss potential it had to be a GREAT episode.
12:24 the pub scene looked so good in the trailers but was a let down. Also she asks to pay with her phone (contactless) which is still a new thing, not everywhere does this. I live in a large town south east England and shops here do not always have contactless machines. If she said card (implying that they don’t have a chip and pin machine) would work with their sudden reaction but her phone no! Edit, this would have worked maybe later on in a 10-12 ep series. We don’t know her enough. Likewise we never see her band mates or friends of ever again. We needed to see them.
Some things I want to say before they leave me from lack of Sleep: 1: Having a character being assulted, too soon RTD you have 3 Actors who are charged with SA under your time and also this fills like the Master to Lucy in Last of the Timelords. 2: 40 Year Old Ruby with Long Hair and Glasses, I have had Glasses for 22-23/23-24 Years, 40 YO Tuby should have been more different. 3: Most Story Beats are Clear and ever must explained, the one I am going on about is something I have seen done poor in many places bar one. The twist of Old Ruby being should have being brought up more earlier not a last minute. I am going to light spoilers for this story I love but this is a massive point I saw resently for the 9th time in June: - *This story is made by a TH-camr known as Mark Edward Fischbach aka Markiplier for his 10 Years on TH-camr 2 Years ago and he told a Very Beautiful Interactive Mutliverse story and he has ADHD* In Space with Markiplier has you (The Captain) Trying to solve a Warp Core Problem and you can't got to to Warp Core. Thoughtout this time your Crew starts have seeds of Doubt for you, Especially your Head Engineer - Markiplier. And the end of Part 1 and Random Points in Part 2 You see Markiplier Doubt us and and some points Age. It's then revealed that were in a Paradox caused by Mark in the Past who is a old man, who we see briefly in the first Video we watch. We see how Mark comes to be how he is thoughtout and apologized for everything. And when it comes to end it *Massive Spoilers now* You can choose to be Stuck in a Time Loop Forever or End it. And it's so Beautiful. Also the Old age Make Up on a TH-camr in is 30's in a Old Man is incredible. And you can watch it Free on TH-cam, it's one of the Last TH-cam Original Projects and normally you do pay, But Markiplier did make us pay. Though, I helped fund this and make it look so good! 4: Best RTD story...Nar it's Midnight!!!
This was actually my favourite of the season, although I absolutely hear all your points and think that they’re valid. The unpredictability and the unansweredness of the story just tickled my brain. I will say however, it really felt like that Clyde Langer ep of SJA and I agree that that was a better, more heart wrenching story
33:57 This part is just really weird to me. I guess they didn't want to have their lead actress covered in makeup for most of the episode, especially a relatively inexperienced one at the time. But this kind of makeup that convincingly ages up actors while still allowing them to express themselves is something BBC Dramas tend to do really well.
“ If you don’t like the show don’t watch it. It’s not made for you. “ I was told that about not liking Series 11 and 12 and some of flux before so maybe
@@BH-98 I’m literally repeating what I was told when he said how I didn’t like Jodie’s era I was called sexist, which doesn’t make sense he didn’t like the eps of Ncuiti era so does that mean he’s racist by that logic
My problem with 73 Yards is that it feels like RTD is having his cake and eating it too. Yes, its premise is folklore and the unknown but the ending then offers an explanation (of a kind). I think it would have been braver to end the episode by snapping back to the opening scene. Also if this had been a double bill, more time could have been devoted to Roger's character. The first episode could be pure Wicker Man and then the second episode a political thriller.
I remember seeing all the press photos from this production block and people talking about the fake shop front. The BBC isn't allowed to advertise. But it's mad seeing all the brand logos all over the place throughout the episode. But the worst one is at 22:37 where you can see a KFC logo in a gap between the two posters. Couldn't the art department move the posters or something!
All I take from this is that id love to see you review all of Sarah Jane Adventures
Curse of Clyde Langer and Temptation of Sarah Jane Smith are the best episode of the show for me. Most emotionally taxing for me especially as someone who has a very loving family dynamic.
I think Russel initially wanted the mandatory DNA testing thing in 73 YARDS but realised that if he put it in then Ruby would find out who her mother was too early. I think it would have been cool if Roger DID proclaim the DNA testing policy in episode 4, leading to Ruby having an inner conflict over solving her greatest mystery and saving millions of lives.
Damn, he really should've done that.
Bets were hedged.
It was something the doctor remembered since the doctor was there protesting against ap gwilliams
I honestly wouldn't be surprised if originally there was a line about DNA testing in 73 Yards that got cut for time.
@@Wilson.647.whovian Exactly!!!
73 Yards seems like it was an idea RTD had in a dream and quickly scribbled down when he woke up. And like a dream, the more you try to think about it the more it slips away from you.
The Doctor referring to Gwilliam as the "worst prime minister" is something interesting considering one of the former prime ministers was the Master!
I think another reason as to why The Curse of Clyde Langar is stronger than 73 Yards is that we've spent a much longer period of time with the SJA cast. By this point, the show had spent four prior seasons establishing why this support network meant so much to Clyde and why people like Sarah-Jane, Rani and Carla were so important to him, especially after we learn what happened with Clyde's Dad in series 2. I will say though that I do really like 73 Yards, and to me, The Curse of Clyde Langar being better isn't a sign of how bad 73 Yards is, but of how good SJA was, and just how well-developed those characters really were.
Even on first watch, me and my sister immediately noticed the similarities to Curse of Clyde Langer
Y’know what I really liked about this one? It just felt like a nightmare. Like Turn Left, it was just about a situation that kept worse and worse and worse. The ending was a bit… I don’t wanna say ‘rushed’ but it did leave some unanswered questions. I did like what we learnt about Ruby, though. If I remember correctly, she apparently didn’t try to fly from the UK in case it killed The Woman.
I didn't personally see Roger ap Gwilliam as an attempt at political satire by RTD in the style of Years & Years. To me, this is RTD writing a modern fairy-tale, where our protagonist has to leave the small town and slay a dragon, or take down an evil tyrant. In classic fairytales and folklore stories, the villain would often be a member of the ruling class, like the Sheriff of Nottingham and Prince John in Robin Hood. The modern equivalent of that in RTD's eyes is a senior politician, specifically the Prime Minister. I didn't personally see this as an attempt by RTD to make some kind of biting and relevant political commentary, but as a way of adapting classical fairy-tale tropes and giving them a modern-day equivalent. But that's just me.
Yeah this is my guess, there’s no real political narrative with Roger
Exactly this, the Roger ap Gwilliam character almost seems to be deliberately constructed so as not to map onto any real world political figure, and if RTD leaned into political satire too heavily it would distract from his main function in the episode
There's a lot of Welsh folklore references... ruler of Britain and such. The Triads. Yup triads again... Devils cord, S. Triad. RTD is on fire.
Was 73 Yards actually the fourth episode when RTD2 gave that quote?
My thoughts exactly, that interview was on 12 Feb 2023 so it's very possible that the fourth episode at that time was not 73 Yards.
It's worth noting that the rules around how people react to the woman aren't actually entirely consistent. The big one being with Roger cause the guy decides to resign his job even tho it has nothing to do with Ruby specifically (and how did Ruby even know that he would resign and not just hate her alone). Sure there's the running away aspect but even that's not consistent cause while Carla does leave for a bit she ultimately keeps her house in the long run and Kate doesn't resign from UNIT.
I can see why people don’t like it but I personally loved it because it thought it was like an Twilight Zone episode mixed with The Wicker Man as an Doctor Light story. Plus this episode was released on my birthday so I might be a bit biased TBH
wait it was released on your birthday no way same
Birthday episode bias do be strong because I enjoy Asylum of the Daleks probably only because of that.
@@mikiwibu asylum of the daleks was pretty good imo but yeah I get what you mean
@@mikiwibuI had The Woman who Falled to Earth on mine, I didn't like it much then or now.
33:35 I've known and plenty of 40 year-olds who look much younger than their years. Hell, my girlfriend was even asked for ID when she went to buy booze on her 40th birthday!
If people don't have kids, they tend to still look very youthful in their 40s. Either having time or money helps (good diet, proper skincare, enough sleep etc). Beyoncé is 42. Alesha Dixon is 45. As someone in their 40s, I thought Ruby looked about right. It only seems to be younger people who question this. It's all relative. My teenage daughter calls 25-year-olds "old people".
My headcanon after the episode ended is that the Doctor and Ruby go to the pub, meet everyone (who are actually alright in this main timeline) and have a good time before a new adventure.
I find it odd that you say that Ruby's speech at the end is "nonsense" when I think it's the most important quote of the episode. The way she talks about how she has hope drives the point home that she's learned to live with her fear of abandonment. And I think the point at the end about the monster ending up being her is that her fear is basically self-fulfilling and, in essence, irrational (not really there and self-created).
I do agree that the episode would have been better if the show actually did some legwork to drive these themes home about Ruby (if only to make these interpretations more obvious) but I do enjoy the fact that it's so abstract that you're required to create your own interpretation that works for you. It's Doctor Who does David Lynch, and I think that's why this episode's legacy will be so good.
The point of the Marty subplot was to establish that Roger ap Gwilliam was awful on an interpersonal level and not just a political one, so that there was no sympathy when he was driven mad. Obviously desiring to fire a nuke is pretty evil in itself, but it is also fairly abstract. The Marty subplot was to get you to understand he was evil on an emotional level, not just an intellectual one. The line 'a boy's name' was to associate the tendency to police gender norms with evil. It was RTDs way of signaling his politics and was intended for people who broadly agree with his politics, such as yourself, to feel a degree of vindication.
Ruby allowed Marty to be abused and did nothing. There is nothing about that situation that is redeemable.
@@booradley8895 That's a perfectly reasonable perspective. I'm not trying to redeem anything, I'm not saying the moral messaging in the episode was good or consistent, just trying to explain why the subplot and the line were there, and it's just my best guess as to RTD's intent. I'm not trying to justify or handwave domestic abuse, or failing to intervene in situations like that.
@@SeanJacksonTutorials Unredeemable for Ruby's character. She literally at any point in time could walk away and be 73 yards away for her plan to work. Instead she let Marty down big time and that is just awful.
@@booradley8895 Oh I see, yeah, it is pretty hard to excuse.
She literally let her be abused she could’ve stopped it with the woman at any time and just didn’t
Show: Can I pay with my phone?
Viewers: What year is it?
Glad that wasn't just me, I thought she'd arrived in the 1980s
Perfect review 👏🏻 The more you think about it, the less it makes sense. I guess it’s just a character piece for Ruby with no lasting consequences. RTD has got too much of an ego & has just forgotten to get out the red pen this season. Unfortunately he’s not turned things around & cemented the show needs a hiatus with fresh blood taking over.
"I had to make sure I was right." For me is the line in Ruby's explanation to Marti that does actually make sense. Sure, the Doctor said that Roger Ap Gwilliam would bring the world to the brink of nuclear annihilation, and it's implied (And later confirmed) that the Doctor has already stopped him in a previous, unseen adventure. But this is an alternate timeline, which as Kate says to Ruby, is "suspended along your event", so the Doctor's foreknowledge is no longer absolute in this situation, and he is no longer around to stop Roger; it's all down to Ruby and she has to get this call right. Ruby has seen what the woman did to the people closest to her; using her to destroy Roger's life is an absolute last resort. Even though Roger is an abuser, even though he's clearly a warmonger wrapping himself up in patriotism, there is still the question of "Knowing this power that I have, do I have the right to use it?" And that changes when Ruby is told that Roger is buying a nuclear arsenal from Pakistan and finally has the opportunity to enact what he talked about; the fact that Roger is preparing this before he even takes power shows that it was ultimately more than just populist rhetoric. Ruby couldn't destroy Roger simply based on the fact that he tries to start a nuclear war in another timeline, she had to be absolutely sure he was going to do it in THIS timeline. Unfortunately, this leads to the huge moral dilemma (which the story glosses over the implications of and instead uses for shock value) that Ruby effectively sacrifices Marti to be abused by Roger in order to keep her cover long enough to discover undeniable proof that Roger is taking steps to start a nuclear war; she abandons Marti to try and save the world. (This would have been slightly more understandable if the episode presented exposing Roger's behaviour as being very risky and unlikely to stop him, that nobody would believe them, the press are on Roger's side and no allegations ever stick to him, etc.)
Furthermore, the second part of that line: "I think I'll only get one chance" is in the context of Ruby and the other volunteers being told that they'll no longer have access to Roger now that he's PM, so Ruby thinks with the security around Roger that she will never get another opportunity to get within 73 yards of him. The other thought I had was, if Ruby is wrong and Roger actually has no real intention of building and deploying a nuclear arsenal, then Ruby feels it wouldn't be justified to destroy a nasty, manipulative and cruel politician if he wasn't actually a threat to the world and life on earth; and once the woman is unleashed, there's no going back; the victim stays affected forever and becomes basically a cowardly shell of their former self. I think you can draw a parallel to Genesis of the Daleks where the Doctor hesitates and wonders if he has the right to destroy the Daleks in their infancy before they've had the chance to go on their genocidal rampage.
Also completely agree on the supposedly more "moderate" replacement, Iris Cabriola, Roger's deputy PM, being presented as a good thing as being deeply questionable. She was willing to go along with the Albion party and likely knew exactly or at the very least strongly suspected what Roger wanted to do. She promises to turn the party into "A more lenient and listening government" (Sounds very Keir Starmer-esque) but who's to say this isn't just rhetoric and that Ruby has just given someone even less qualified access to a bunch of nukes from Pakistan?
I like 73 Yards
That stare after the "mandatory DNA testing" tho. 😐
From that stare and how he watched the finale before finishing the 73 Yards review, I fear he’s going to be more merciless and cold hearted to Empire of Death. I believe he likes a lot of Legend of Ruby Sunday but almost despises Empire of Death. I don’t think Empire is as bad as he as many believe, but I know it’s not going to be a positive review when it comes.
@@bladersmosh He wasn't that happy with LoRS as he just complained about them bringing Sutekh back after 50 years to be something new fans won't get
I didn't even understand this episode, it felt undefined with barely any cause-and-effect storytelling at all. Things just felt like they were happening, and it felt like at times we weren't even given any time to process it. The abandonment thing was something I hadn't ever picked up on before this, I thought it rushed through its plot way too fast, and that Roger Ap Gwilliam was completely wasted. If THAT'S the Minister of War we heard about in Before the Flood, which it very much might be due to it being mentioned between Harold Saxon and the Moon Bat Incident in the list of incidents brought up by O'Donnell in that episode. I felt cheated out of a thrilling political story, cheated out of a Welsh folk horror, was made extremely uncomfortable by the way the pubgoers objectively bullied Ruby, and felt like nothing had been explained to me properly at all in the episode. It became one of those episodes I was embarrassed to have watched with my family because of how bad an example of Doctor Who it felt to me. Maybe it's my fault that I'm not that perceptive, but I feel like this episode didn't even do the bare minimum when explaining some aspects of the story. Again, all the character arcs happen off-screen and that sucks. The domestic violence subtext is so forced and pointless, and nothing felt like it even mattered by the end. I hate this episode. An awful script. I agree wholeheartedly, the acting and direction are what's holding this episode together.
Sorry for the long rant. I just really felt cheated by this episode. I guess I need a higher IQ to understand it.
Ruby only getting one chance was because after Roger’s first encounter with the apparition, he will forever avoid Ruby, thus denying her the opportunity to try again. The encounter had to happen at the right moment, so that the associations would be right. Victims of the apparitions flee Ruby, and also things associated with the circumstances in which the encounter took place. Like the guy in Wales forsaking his favorite pub. She could have had Roger encounter the apparition in a context associated with Marti, and he would have left Marti alone from that point on. But he would have continued his political career (or could have-it’s possible that he would have also associated that meeting with his campaign and dropped out, but Ruby wanted a sure thing). By staging the encounter at Roger’s moment of triumph, she ensured that the association would be with that triumph and with the position of PM. He would step down and never attempt to be PM again, which was what Ruby was after. But to do this she had to refrain from using the apparition earlier to save Marti. That was what she was apologizing for. She *could* have stopped Roger from hurting Marti, but chose not to, in order to use her one opportunity to forever remove Roger from the office of PM.
Also, I’m not sure that Roger was necessarily a single issue politician. Rather, we only get to see that one portion of the interview so that we know that yup this is the guy that the Doctor was talking about, and he really is the sort to start a nuclear war. He probably had positions on many other issues, but they weren’t necessary to the plot of this episode (I say “this episode” here deliberately. In light of the finale, it would have been nice to get a general list of issues, and stick genetic testing in there).
The issue with the whole "sure thing" part is that the episode never really talks about how different people are affected in different ways or how the environment can affect the outcome so it just comes across as inconsistent.
16:08 The cards aren't just there to show the passage of time, they also show how Ruby gets more and more isolated: every year there are less cards, until there's only one at 40 (perhaps her own card?).
Ohh I didn’t notice that
Loved this review. It echoed many of my same thoughts, but also pointed out a few things I didn't consider (the birthday card stockpipe). And your ending genuinely made me laugh.
I'm at the bit where you're talking about the pub scene. I thought that was the point: the episode is about Ruby doing everything she can to be accepted, but nobody accepting her. The pub-goers are a bunch of horrible one-dimensional caricatures, because they are manifestations of Ruby's fears.
But they’re not horrible one-dimensional caricatures. That was the whole point of the scene. They were just ordinary people who were taking the piss out of Ruby because of the stereotypes about them.
@@Creek932 I'm not sure the episode was meant to be taken that literally.
Either interpretation still works though. Mr. Tardis said the scene was a "waste of time", but it establishes all the supernatural rules and Mad Jack. Although the pub goers don't believe in the lore, they're clearly basing their jokes off of traditional Welsh folklore they have heard before.
@@ihateunicorns867 I agree, I don't think it was to set up a negative stereotype. Especially for the instance when Ruby's mother makes a comment like "But Welsh people!", she's just sticking up for her in a sense and was trying to build reassurance as parents would do.
As for the pub people, people like that just exist and the writer certainly didn't want to name every Welsh person to behave like this. The people in the pub are clearly some sort of common group ( I was going to say friend group but I change my mind on wording ), who know each other and have a pint but then go about their business when they leave the pub to carry on with their lives.
I always assumed you were meant to feel sympathetic for Ruby in that scene and get the impression she’s is completely alone.
The first time I watched and the woman asked “how can you pay with your phone?” I was thinking the Doctor had brought them to the 1970s or something.
For me it’s a pile of disconnected scenes that don’t go together at all, and Russell couldn’t decide what he wanted to say. An episode full of insubstantial nonsense I'm not sure there is much point in deconstructing it considering Russell seems to have put very little thought in when writing it. The pub scenes remind me of the x-files episode Roadrunner with a bus ridding death cult only that episode is Scully getting standard in the Utah desert and trying to find a way of escaping from the isolationist committee that she wanted help from, except in 73 Yards Russell got bored and decided to do something else with rest of the episode.
@37:27 I literally laughed out loud. A hilarious callback and jab. 😂
@22:44 Lucy Saxon was mystifying because her abuse was just barely shown over, if I remember correctly, at best, *two* episodes. Her turn seemed almost sudden. I think this might actually show that RTD is simply bad at depicting abuse in general, at least in his work on Doctor Who.
It was barely shown but her lack of dialogue in last of the time lords speaks volumes to how miserable she felt
I mean, did you see the original version or the US tv cut? Because the original has a scene of Lucy walking away with a black eye that was cut for the US version. Also there's a year time jump between Sound of Drums and Last of the Time Lords. It's safe to say that we're supposed to infer that the Master got worse when he no longer had to hide his intentions.
@@bookswithike3256 I remember that.
You are never allowed on the pitch in football stadiums, it’s a very strict rule in pretty much every professional stadium, professional teams train away from the stadium for this exact reason.
See, I've filmed adverts and done loads of productions in football stadiums and on pitches before and it's been absolutely fine (unless the grass is being watered or cut) so it just seemed so odd to me.
@@MrTARDIS not in professional stadiums during the season, they are really stretch about it, even the players aren’t allowed on outside of matches.
@@Tillyard86 I've been to Old Trafford and the Etihad in Manchester and other stadiums in the North. Might be different in London and/or Wales.
Seems a strange venue for a political rally anyway if they can't go on the pitch. A lot of empty space which won't look good on camera.
@@MrTARDIS there might be a few specific situations or stadiums that let you go on it for some reason. But in general, you are not.
Think about it logically, you want the pitch to be in the best condition possible for the players so there is no chance of them slipping or tripping on it. How do you ensure it stays in good condition, you don't let people walk on it?
Now I guess your point is that Ruby was only one person so what harm could she do, but if you let one person on, you set a precedence and everyone will expect to be allowed on.
As someone who went in completely blind there was no indication they were in present day so the phone payment might wouldn’t have worked if they were in the not so distant past.
"Compared to Russell's political commentary in Years and Years it's a night and day difference."
Years and Years is overtly a political commentary, 73 Yards is not designed to be or trying to be. I actually feel like the Roger ap Gwilliam character is deliberately constructed so as to not map onto any real world political figure, hence his single issue campaigning about nuclear weapons. His function in the episode is purely for Ruby to find meaning from her trauma by using the literal manifestation of her fear of abandonment to take him down.
I’ve really appreciated all of your coverage of 73 Yards and this video is no different! I really didn’t like the episode either and that frustrates me because I think it has so much potential and I’m a huge nerd about folklore, especially to do with fae, so I was excited by the concept. The “you need to have a high IQ” response to the episode has been maddening!
For best companion performance - Billie is definitely amazing in Father’s Day but she’s also brilliant in Doomsday. I don’t like seeing Rose in distress because she’s my favourite character ever but Billie’s just really good at it 😭
29:59 I’m sorry, how would you react?
I think the episode really falls apart with Roger AP Gwilliam. He's our kind of main villain but the story doesn't want him to be according to the fact that the Woman is the main villain, and Roger's only villain trait is that we're told he is evil. He has one policy and doesn't do anything obviously evil, outside of abusing Marti. We're just told not to like him. And if we already accept he is evil, why add MARTI?
I literally spent the whole of 73 Yards waiting for Marti to be relevant. And that wouldn't be so bad if Marti's only significant effect on the plot is that she makes Ruby look bad. It makes Ruby someone who waits for someone to be abused when she KNOWS the abuser is abusive from before they even meet. She has NO positive effect on the plot
This episode feels like someone impersonating Russell's 2008 writing badly
The ending made me laugh with you in the glasses heheheh
I had many of the same reservations as you, most particularly, the "The Welsh are just dicks" segment in the pub, but I came out liking the episode more than disliking it on balance. Millie shone, and for the first time in the season I really wanted to see more of her as the companion. It was OK overall.
The only episode of the season I'd genuinely say is one I'll consider an all time great one. Not everything needs explaining and I disagree with almost every single critique made, especially about the pub scene and the way Roger gets handled.
(Ruby definitely sort of remembers 73 Yards, she recalls it in the finale)
It’s okay to be completely wrong
wait.... didnt viv rook die within sound of drums?
Vivian Rook was also the evil PM from Russell's other show Years and Years - kinda lazy to reuse a name but there's your answer
I liked it (In thick American southern accent).
I found your channel a couple of days ago and been binging. Love the channel 😄😊
Oh my GOD. I needed this video. I don't always agree with you but this I am 100% with you. I so needed the validation of mine and my friend's reactions. So great work.
73 yards between the war of land and sea I can't wait for Martha Jones spinoff
okay the DNA testing and the end age up gags got legit laughs out of me
But yeah, my feelings on the ep are pretty similar. It feels like it wants to be all these things but it didn't put in the leg work to get there. I dislike Dot and Bubble for similar reasons (besides some very personal pet peeves I have) and I also found the discourse around that episode insufferable and obnoxious with how condescending many were, but IIRC you're at least somewhat more positive on that episode so I guess we'll see what you have to say.
The number of times I’ve seen people call this episode a masterpiece, is just insane. This episode is plain weird and it’s a shame because this had potential to be a horror story rooted in Welsh folklore, but it does no such thing really.
With everything the episode left mysterious, my biggest question was what Ruby did for a living to have so much money saved away, being able to pay for the drink, the room for a few days, the train home, the flat, then she said she bought the worlds most expensive camera 🤣
60 years. The show goes through Earth for 60 years. And yet nothing happened? No random villains or monsters try to take over the world? No invasion by Daleks? You could argue 14 is bopping around protecting Earth (except that one time with Sukteh I guess).
It's RTD-canon that kind of thing happens all the time, but they all forget.
A crack in time swallowed it all up. We will explain later.
From your description it sounds like the plot of the episode is rather derivative of the story in Stephen King's "The Dead Zone" In which the protagonist knows that an upcoming politician is going to bring about nuclear genocide, so they stop said politician from reaching office. Granted, that is an oversimplified version of events, but I wouldn't be surprised if RTD drew some inspiration from King's book there.
I'm pretty sure you’re supposed to feel that way about the people in the pub; it helps make Ruby feel even more alone and enables the audience to sympathise more with her situation.
I was more confused by what any of it meant. Firstly, I thought the “pay with your phone?” thing meant it wasn’t present day and the Doctor had brought them to the 1970s or something, then the whole joke with the guy at the door had me wondering if the fairy circle really wasn’t anything at all, but then why did the Doctor disappear? The ending suggests the fairy circle was important, so did the people in the pub get it wrong?
this is the best episode of this season no question
If RTD thought we’d associate this with Turn Left…yeah, no.
"I don't need to understand what the woman said to Ruby's friends and family to make them abandon her."
Could not disagree with you more here. What RTD did was character assassination of Carla and Kate. We're supposed to just accept that Ruby's mother flat-out disowned and shunned her daughter for the rest of her life with no explanation whatsoever. Then we see Carla in later episodes and we're supposed to just carry on with their happy, healthy relationship because none of that actually happened?
Bulls**t. It DID happen, and it DEMANDS an explanation... maybe not in the episode itself, but we needed an explanation before the end of the season, and we didn't get one. And that is simply infuriating and unacceptable.
Honestly one of the theories for this episode I like and admit it’s mostly copium, Is that everything Ruby goes through was in her head, the woman showed her what would happen if the fairy circle was stepped on, and it was presented to her like a dream which is why it deals with her fear of abandonment, and Roger as her subconscious takes it after the doctor mentioned him and is also why he memory of it is kind of there and kind of isn’t, like how dreams work, can also work as copium for why there aren’t a lot details on certain things
20:00 It seems that wouldn't be the case for American Politicians....
I thought it was fantastic, but I can see why some wouldn't like it.
Also, not gonna lie, this is probably one of your weakest videos snd critiques.
Nah, think you need to raise your standards. If anything Mr. TARDIS is overly generous to a piece of appalling drivel with more holes than a collander full of hydrochloric acid.
It's my favourite episode of the season because it's the only episode the new doctor doesn't cry in.
Now that the series is over, I can safely say that I only enjoy RTD's episodes because he is so good at playing with emotions. Otherwise, nothing else makes any sense (well, except maybe "Dot and Bubble"). This is probably the episode that either makes or breaks new fans, and personally, I thought that the episode was simply too bleak for my tastes.
Meanwhile, my sister (my family are all avid Doctor Who fans) had a sleepover with her friends (most of them newcomers to the show) at the same time as the broadcast. The first thing that they texted back to me once the episode was over? "I don't get it."
Frankly, if I were showrunner, then that opinion is NOT what I'd want new viewers to get out of what could be their first episode. It is pitiful, and I'd wholeheartedly recommend Big Finish's "Static" instead, which has a similar vibe without sacrificing the plot.
ALSO: I recommend Nicholas Briggs, the showrunner of Big Finish, to replace RTD.
Briggs as showrunner is so perfect that it’s likely never happening. Big Finish is a great antidote to bad Doctor Who TV.
Here's another good pick for showrunner: Rich Collins, who created "The Ten Doctors", a REALLY awesome webcomic that, while now only available via the Wayback Machine, is still one of THE best Doctor Who stories ever written. I fully recommend downloading it.
Personally I think they should get a showrunner that’s outside the Fitzroy club clique. Especially now that people who’ve grown up with the revival are now in the industry
@@pcb1175 where can I apply? 😂😂
RTD is definitely the king of hyperbole. I thought that was a rather self-important remark seeing many would argue Moffatt's Boom was best.
The episode should have ended with Ruby getting shot on the pitch. I was waiting for that to happen, then as she is dying she sees Gwilliam talk to the woman and run away. Then her "reward" for doing something good would be that she gets zapped back in time and she stops the Doctor from breaking the fairy circle, without a needless loop with Ruby somehow becoming the woman or somehow not.
Speaking of which, how did she know it would have scared Gwilliam away from politics, and not just make him fire her, since the whole time all the woman did was scare everyone momentarily but then turn them against her?
Also it would have made more sense if the woman was always facing away from Ruby. And that those who saw her face were then scared away and/or brainwashed into hating Ruby. Because at the end of the episode, the woman is getting closer and closer to Ruby, but at that point is turned away from her for some reason.
a classic that will keep us talking for years
So...what, was this some sort of time loop situation? Also, the way they show her "older" awfully reminded me of how in Bluey, the grandmothers wear glasses to show that they are older. Guess one of the costume designers recently watched Bluey or something?
About her fear of abandonment: I keep seeing people bringing that up, but frankly and in all seriousness, where do they actually get it from that she even has those? When were they ever stated? All we ever saw was how much she loved her adopted family and it feels like they projected that issue upon her and therefore on the episode itself. Even if it were so, what does it say about the character, what is the lesson to be learned here? By the end, all of it is reversed and the story and character development is moot anyway. (And ain't that an eighth of a season wasted?) Another thing is the supposed dream-like nature of the story. But... I'm sorry, I'm not picking that up at all. The direction and the camera work might be top-notch and it's a good production as a whole, but in mood and tone it never in any moment resembles (for example) a Lynch movie. What it *does* look like is a piece of TV that emulates a horror movie. I don't know, when I read points like these by people who praise the episodes it feels like they're talking about a mirage and an idea of an episode that actually never happened. Is this the Doctor Who equivalent to The Dress? Is this episode blue and black, or white and gold? One wonders!
Great video! Personally, however, I think I'd struggle to think of 73 things wrong with this gem of an episode. 730 things? Easy 😎I truly think it's up there with some of the best of RTD, Doctor Who, television!!
It makes Ruby look pretty bad when she wouldn't take down Roger for being abusive, as it was only once she knew he wanted nucluer war that he was worth taking down. It really does seem that Ruby didn't care about Marti’s abuse at all, which is awful for a companion. If Roger wasn't wanting nukes, I guess Ruby would have just let him continue to abuse Marti. Aside from that, I enjoyed Ruby in the season but this is such a low moment for her.
Nothing actually is in place to punish him for abuse by the end. Other people who saw the Woman left Ruby, but are still normal aside from not liking Ruby. He could go back to try abuse Marti more. Or he can go after more people to abuse. All he lost was the ability to start nuclear war at that moment. But he can campaign again surely, still be a politician, and still abuse!!!
If everyone who saw the woman went as mad as Roger appeared in his initial TV interview, then surely there would be a larger investigation into what makes people appear mad. So I can only assume he went normal again, to everyone but Ruby that is. But if not, why is he impacted different? Or is Ruby going around making a lot of people unable to function around anyone now? Her mother seemed functional anyway.
The direction and acting were all great though. I’d love the director to return, just with a better written script (maybe RTD needs to share writing out, or get someone to review his scripts better).
Love this episode because it has some many interpretations, like a great song that everybody has their own personal take. And yet, when you work out what's actually going on... it's genius. Pure syfy genius.
i liked this one but i liked boom and dot and bubble way more imo
I emjoyed it the first tome I watched it. Ive rewatched twice and it gets significantly worse when you go in knowing nothing matters, there is no payoff and no explanation. Yeah not everything needs to be explained, but some things do.
Best companion performance for me Sophie Aldred in Ghost Light by a mile.
Thank-you for articulating a lot of what i felt about this episode.
The Curse of Clyde Langer makes me cry every single god damn time and I love it
I loved this review, partially also because Council Of Geeks' review was in every way the opposite.
I'd LOVE to see you react to that review, and/or her reacting to your review.
Maybe that's something you could consider? I'm mixed on the episode, I loved it but disliked it, so seeing two polar opposite reviews has been really interesting to me
But I'd love to see your take on what CoG said about the ep
When I first saw this with my family, we loved it. We thought it was as great as great Russell hyped it up to be. Even on a second rewatch, I still enjoyed it. However, it wasn’t until I read the discord server and your opinions on your livestream that I noticed problems to I should’ve noticed but somehow missed such as the domestic implications with Marty (how I missed something like that, I’m not sure. Maybe I was so invested in the mystery and performances, I overlooked it), Ruby’s convoluted and hyper situational plan etc. I did noticed issues like the episodes portrayal of welsh people which was… yeah.
Still, Millie Gibson is amazing (I hope she gets a nomination for this performance), it looks brilliant, the music is great, it has interesting ideas even though it really needed a second look at.
I’m sorry it wasn’t as great as you and others were expecting it to be but I with how many I know personally and online seem to speak so highly of it, it might be one of those episodes where you’ll either love it or hate it.
I like it when they give science fiction a break and go with a noir approach.
this is easily my fav ep of the season
i enjoy the dark farity tale feel
This episode is definitely the new Midnight in terms of fan reception, and whilst I enjoyed the viewing experience, the ending left a lot to be desired. Roger ap Gwilliam was not enough of a threat for me and the deliberate ambiguity came across as pretentious rather than satisfying. It could have done with 10 more minutes or at least a better revisit in the finale. It gets a 6/10 for me, but it’s definitely one of those episodes a lot of fans will direct a torrent of hate at you if you don’t like it 😂
The review is spot on!
It’s like RTD got lazy. Every other character who needed to “age”, they made the effort to show it. Agreed. A wig? Wig only?
I wasn't even paying attention when the Doctor was talking about Ap in the beginning. Wasn't particularly well signposted.
As someone who lives in a tourist town, I get the pay with your phone thing. We get, especially Americans, surprised we have the internet, surprised we have credit cards. I felt that scene and it was great emotionally. Go to a town in rural southland and ask if they have internet they'd entire mess with you about ghosts and nonsense, but not the ignoring the missing person stuff.
Alot of this season is like that, rationally it doesn't work but emotionally it does, like the whole finally is fantastic emotionally but what is the plot? This whole season is, don't think about it just feel it. Which works for me.
What I don't understand the most is, if Roger is Mad Jack, why does he exist if Dr doesn't step in the fairy circle? like if stopping her from repeating events stops her releasing mad jack then, someone else did later? or it was always unrelated she was wrong and there was no mad jack at all?
My idea for that question is that the part of Gwilliam interview we see in _"Empire of Death"_ is actually the alternative version of Ruby's alternative timeline: in the first timeline, Gwilliam was obsessed with the idea of using the nuclear bomb.
In the new timeline, the one in which the Doctor doesn't disappear, that warmongering attitude remained blocked inside the fairy circle, and Gwilliam ends up to be interested in controlling the population via DNA and surveillance rather than in nuclear bombs and conflicts.
It's gratifying to see someone else that wasn't taken in by the superficial gloss of this episode. I also felt that a lot of what it tried to do or portray wasn't earned. And the ending killed whatever grace I might have given it.
Best episode in the series (closely followed by boom) I also think it's probably the best thing rtd has done. Loved it
I enjoyed this episode, almost entirely for its creepy atmosphere. But I do think all your criticisms are very valid. Especially the implied domestic violence
Conversely, I think this episode is a masterpiece.
Good analysis though.
It’s okay to be wrong
Yeah... I'm going to need an explanation as to why you don't like It Follows.
I liked other episodes like Rogue and Dot and Bubble more than this one, but I still really liked it overall. I just wished they cut or changed some scenes so they could have more of a focus on other plotlines. Like shortening the pub scene, and either removing marti's character, or having more of a focus on her, so that plotline made more sense. There's a lot of stuff in the episode, so by cutting the less important parts, we could have had more of a focus on Roger ap Gwilliam, or the ending scenes with old Ruby
Interesting review as ever. This was a favourite of mine, Millie Gibson acted so brilliantly in my opinion. I'm delighted your review wasn't a puff piece or a hateful one. Well balanced.
I’d love to see Will look over the SJA like he did with Class !
William, William, William... Have you not learned anything from doing these reviews for all these years? You're not supposed to THINK about Doctor Who
Practically everything you said I was thinking too. I loved the feeling the episode invoked, that dread and isolation we feel for Ruby, the acting was superb, but the story seemed meandering. I don't think the people who shit on your opinion are really listening to what you say. It was not the worst episode, it just is disappointing for the hype it was given and the loss potential it had to be a GREAT episode.
12:24 the pub scene looked so good in the trailers but was a let down. Also she asks to pay with her phone (contactless) which is still a new thing, not everywhere does this. I live in a large town south east England and shops here do not always have contactless machines. If she said card (implying that they don’t have a chip and pin machine) would work with their sudden reaction but her phone no!
Edit, this would have worked maybe later on in a 10-12 ep series. We don’t know her enough. Likewise we never see her band mates or friends of ever again. We needed to see them.
Some things I want to say before they leave me from lack of Sleep:
1: Having a character being assulted, too soon RTD you have 3 Actors who are charged with SA under your time and also this fills like the Master to Lucy in Last of the Timelords.
2: 40 Year Old Ruby with Long Hair and Glasses, I have had Glasses for 22-23/23-24 Years, 40 YO Tuby should have been more different.
3: Most Story Beats are Clear and ever must explained, the one I am going on about is something I have seen done poor in many places bar one. The twist of Old Ruby being should have being brought up more earlier not a last minute. I am going to light spoilers for this story I love but this is a massive point I saw resently for the 9th time in June: - *This story is made by a TH-camr known as Mark Edward Fischbach aka Markiplier for his 10 Years on TH-camr 2 Years ago and he told a Very Beautiful Interactive Mutliverse story and he has ADHD*
In Space with Markiplier has you (The Captain) Trying to solve a Warp Core Problem and you can't got to to Warp Core. Thoughtout this time your Crew starts have seeds of Doubt for you, Especially your Head Engineer - Markiplier. And the end of Part 1 and Random Points in Part 2 You see Markiplier Doubt us and and some points Age. It's then revealed that were in a Paradox caused by Mark in the Past who is a old man, who we see briefly in the first Video we watch. We see how Mark comes to be how he is thoughtout and apologized for everything. And when it comes to end it *Massive Spoilers now* You can choose to be Stuck in a Time Loop Forever or End it. And it's so Beautiful. Also the Old age Make Up on a TH-camr in is 30's in a Old Man is incredible. And you can watch it Free on TH-cam, it's one of the Last TH-cam Original Projects and normally you do pay, But Markiplier did make us pay. Though, I helped fund this and make it look so good!
4: Best RTD story...Nar it's Midnight!!!
Bit of tonal nightmare then
This was actually my favourite of the season, although I absolutely hear all your points and think that they’re valid. The unpredictability and the unansweredness of the story just tickled my brain. I will say however, it really felt like that Clyde Langer ep of SJA and I agree that that was a better, more heart wrenching story
Lmfao
This is better than the episode.
Fantastic review. Ironically you delivered a better ending than the episode did.
33:57 This part is just really weird to me. I guess they didn't want to have their lead actress covered in makeup for most of the episode, especially a relatively inexperienced one at the time. But this kind of makeup that convincingly ages up actors while still allowing them to express themselves is something BBC Dramas tend to do really well.
“ If you don’t like the show don’t watch it. It’s not made for you. “
I was told that about not liking Series 11 and 12 and some of flux before so maybe
It’s a very reductive argument to make to someone.
@@BH-98 why? Dont like it don’t watch it, dont make content on it and dont make money from it.
@@BH-98 I was told that by all the Jodie fans during it and being called sexist etc so maybe Mrtardis is racist and sexist for not liking this
@@Thedocwills you’re not making any sense
@@BH-98 I’m literally repeating what I was told when he said how I didn’t like Jodie’s era I was called sexist, which doesn’t make sense he didn’t like the eps of Ncuiti era so does that mean he’s racist by that logic
My problem with 73 Yards is that it feels like RTD is having his cake and eating it too. Yes, its premise is folklore and the unknown but the ending then offers an explanation (of a kind). I think it would have been braver to end the episode by snapping back to the opening scene. Also if this had been a double bill, more time could have been devoted to Roger's character. The first episode could be pure Wicker Man and then the second episode a political thriller.
Tardiness forgiven Mr Tardis!
This was the episode I was looking forward to the most.
And it’s my least favourite episode since the 60th revival
I remember seeing all the press photos from this production block and people talking about the fake shop front. The BBC isn't allowed to advertise. But it's mad seeing all the brand logos all over the place throughout the episode. But the worst one is at 22:37 where you can see a KFC logo in a gap between the two posters. Couldn't the art department move the posters or something!