Monday 23 November 2009

Doctor Who, New series, new species part 23

BIG SPOILERS for US viewers who are still waiting for the 'Waters of Mars' air date - you are warned!

But we'll start off with a bit of Sarah Jane Adventures, the series has recently concluded with episodes kinda sandwiched around the finale of the main show, which made it feel slightly disjointed in place, but they were still a lot of fun - and anyway, it's the aliens we're after eh?

Mona Lisa/ The Abomination















I should hate this, but despite the wackiness of the concept, bizarre accent of the eponymous villain and comedy capers of the cast - it still worked. It was amusing to completely shatter your concept of what Mona would act like to have this cocky, amusing maniac wielding a blaster and searching for a brother she knew nothing about. There were a number of confusing parts, such as her overall goal, which remained nebulous throughout, but the plot and payoff of her going too far in trying to take over the Earth, but also her desire to simply see the outside and the resolution of binding her back in the frame did actually make sense, so I'm not entirely sure why - but a thumbs up fro me!!

The Mona Lisa was constructed of a mysterious sentient pigment derived from a meteor that fell to Earth. A painter constructed his last piece, the Abomination, from it before the act drove him mad, then da Vinci borrowed the paint for his most famous work. The pigment then came to life and took on a personality of it's own, though seemingly unaware of it's origin, it simply knew the existance of being a painting and of wanting freedom. When the Abomination and Mona Lisa were brought together there was enough power for Mona to break free and also her 'brother', though the abomination was sealed away and did not escape. The creature was able of animating and 'freeing' other works of art to arm and protect itself, this ability was ultimately used against it when Lyke and Clyde tricked it into animating a picture of K-9 who destroyed the abomination and caused Mona Lisa to lose her power and return to her frame.

SPOILER time

The Flood











Hmm, a mysterious alien race called the flood, who attack through a small, unstoppable force which involves killing people then taking over their bodies, mutilating them in the process and turning them into more powerful enemies - the Doctor Who team either have no knowledge of Halo or play it too much!! Had to get that one out of the way!! I'll leave commenting on the episode to the podcast boys (check the link in the sidebar) but the monster themselves were, I must say, incredibly well achieved. The water flowing down from their mouths was simple and yet incredibly creepy and definitively alien and their unstoppable advance through water was very effective.

The Flood is a term given to an unknown species living on Mars. The species was presumable a viral organism of some kind that lived in water and could also generate it - it is also possible that it is a type of water itself, though the fact that it was blocked by s set of filters would indicate otherwise. When coming into even the slightest contact with biological matter it can control and possess it in seconds and then use this host to create and direct more infected water where it wants. The oprganism was also very selective, only choosing humans as they could lead it to Earth, a water filled planet. The possessed humans could eject water in incredible quantities, breaking through doors, sabotaging electrical systems and more. The organism had at some point been trapped in a glacier, possible by the Ice Warriors as a way of containing it. When humans colonised Mars in 2059 they used the glacier for their water supply, unleashing the monster - the destruction of the base ended the threat and prevented the creature from inhabiting Earth.

Rakweed











More of an honourable mention for this one as I don't know whether plants count! The Balthereen aren't a new species and have actually appeared before, though it did confuse things when they revealed they are a Blathereen-Slitheen interbred race and actually evil, evil enough to kill Slitheen in order to further their own plan.
Rakweed was some kind on minroly intelligent plant that could communicate, it mutated and spread spores which infested the surrounding area and harmed humans who breathed them in. It can be killed by sound, that typical property of all plants, and if you've eaten it that makes it explode inside you. A bit odd, but a chance for Sarah Jane to fight for her son and also use a super soker filled with vinegar - plus the Blathereen had cool wrist blasters - Sci-Fi always needs more wrist blasters!!

OK, I'm done Sarah Jane's finished, Doctor Who's not back till Christmas yet surprisingly I'll be back with another Doctor Who post very soon - stay tuned for that, plus a lot of Star Wars Legacy posts!!

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