After I posted my review last week, I found out quite a few people and especially fans disliked "Into the Dalek". I didn't bother with details, because I'm a lot more lazy than one may think, but it seems that it was on the grounds of lack of originality. As I mentioned myself in that review, the Doctor seeing a "good Dalek" only to realize he shares the intensity of pure hatred they also display, is indeed nothing ground-breaking for New Who.
But still, "Into the Dalek" was well-written, well-acted and it had something to say. "Robot of Sherwood", on the other hand, not so much.
The Doctor, once again, asks Clara what she wants to do, where she wants him to take her. Clara hesitantly suggests that she has always wanted to meet Robin Hood. The Doctor laughs it off, insisting that Robin Hood is merely a legend, but she convinces him to take her to England at the end of the 12th Century.
As they step outside the TARDIS, wouldn't you know it, Robin! Lord of Locksley and Earl of Huntington, just happens to be there and prepares to steal to magic blue box. The Doctor is naturally suspicious and after a very cheesy and surprisingly endearing sword-and-spoon fight with Locksley, he spends most of the episode trying to prove that Robin, the Merry Men and even the Sheriff of Nottingham are all fake. His work becomes easier when he realizes that the Sheriff's guards are, indeed, alien robots.
"Robot of Sherwood" serves as your standard, light-hearted "filler" episode. This isn't inherently bad, but this particular episode feels sloppy, poorly-put-together and a little too loud in all the wrong places.
Unlike "Into the Dalek", "Robot of Sherwood" is tonally in stark contrast to both the first two episodes and to what we expect Series 8 to be in general. It's a bit jarring at first; a lot of slapstick, a lot of overacting, a distinct lack of nuance in the portrayal of everyone including the Doctor and overall just too silly.
There is foundation for this type of episode, of course. It follows Doctor Who tradition of the "faux-historical" (or fantasy-historical) template and "fun" is a core component of the show. The problem is that a lot of it doesn't work. It's really not as funny or heart-warming as it may had been intended and so much of the story feels ultimately inconsequential.
I was being facetious earlier when I said that "Robot of Sherwood" has nothing to say. There is actually a point to be made, one that relies on the necessity of legends, old and new, for mankind to look up to and persevere in their lives. There is a clear effort to draw parallels between the Doctor and Robin Hood, how they are both the same kind of legend that makes people look to the future with hope and become heroes themselves.
The writers want to hammer this point across so much, that they end up simply going through the motions: The Doctor hates Robin and Robin hates the Doctor in a pissing-match-type of way. The Doctor is determined to prove that Robin's not real. The absurdity of the Doctor finding out about the alien robots and exclaiming that he finally found something real is appreciated, but ultimately falls flat.
They go so far ahead with it that in the end, they mirror Robin and the Doctor's story and before the TARDIS departs, Robin tells the Doctor "I'm as real as you are".
The episode made me frustrated, because of all these efforts to get its point across. Not only is it heavy-handed in its final delivery, but it feels forced throughout the run of the entire episode. The similarities between the Doctor and Robin Hood, both as legends and particularly as characters, are non-existent. They could, potentially, juxtapose the two and focus on the importance of their respective "legend" despite the differences, but they didn't do that (or at least, they failed to do that).
Instead, it's the Doctor being silly and Robin Hood having absolutely no on-screen presence. Let me tell you something: in 2006, BBC premiered a show based on the legend of Robin Hood. It was mostly teen-oriented, with a bit of action, decent sets for its budget, great music and the most beautiful pair of eyes I've seen on Marian. It wasn't that memorable of a show, but I liked it well-enough (still better than the Ridley Scott movie).
The thing is, when Jonas Armstrong's scrawny ass commands more respect as a hero than you, you may be tragically miscast. Or your character is terribly-written. Either way, it doesn't work.
The cringe-worthy moments were many and came to a head at the climax of the episode, when Robin, Clara and the Doctor get into a weird bow-and-arrow threesome and fire a golden arrow to the departing spaceship to give it a push so that leaves Earth's atmosphere before blowing up and devastating England. See, the ship operates on gold, and the Cyborg Sheriff is so anxious to take over the world, he launches the ship before the engine has been fully repaired using that gold.
It was very silly, required a little too much in terms of suspension of disbelief and even in regards to the show's internal logic. I'm still trying to figure out how that one golden arrow lodged in just the right place for the ship to process it and how a single golden arrow was, conveniently, adequate for the ship to hit overdrive.
No. Sorry, but no.
I'd be somewhat less annoyed if they didn't do that ridiculous bow trick, too. Do the teamwork thing sure, but don't rush it. Take your time with it, use synergy. How about this for a different solution: Robin gets to fire the arrow on his own and set it in its course. Clara helps him keep steady from behind, since his arm was hurt. Then, the Doctor uses the Sonic Screwdriver/Magic-Wand-That-Only-Doesn't-Do-Wood-But-I-Am-Sure-Does-Gold(TM) to give the arrow that final boost and force needed to reach and penetrate the ship.
It's simple, see? I promise you, nobody would think less of your interpretation of Robin Hood than they already do.
Incidentally, I think the whole "alien robots" thing was a bad idea in general. "Doctor Who" has lost the factual-historical-episode-template and we could have kind of had that with this episode. Robin Hood may be a legend, but the politics and the overall framework of events of the era could be approached differently and ultimately lead to the same conclusion regarding legends and heroes.
The alien robots distracted even further from an already flimsy concept that was rushed and underwhelming in execution. Add insult to injury, the Doctor as usual takes a hell of a risk changing history by allowing Robin to not only know that he's a legend in the future, but also lets him walk inside an alien ship and potentially leaves behind remnants of technologically advanced robots.
And how else could the episode end but with Clara turning to the Doctor before they take off and very predictably say "Admit it, you like him". Oh, the banter in this episode is truly sublime!
All series have their bad episodes and, while your mileage may very well vary, this is one episode of Series 8 that I have no intention of revisiting any time soon.
But still, "Into the Dalek" was well-written, well-acted and it had something to say. "Robot of Sherwood", on the other hand, not so much.
The Doctor, once again, asks Clara what she wants to do, where she wants him to take her. Clara hesitantly suggests that she has always wanted to meet Robin Hood. The Doctor laughs it off, insisting that Robin Hood is merely a legend, but she convinces him to take her to England at the end of the 12th Century.
As they step outside the TARDIS, wouldn't you know it, Robin! Lord of Locksley and Earl of Huntington, just happens to be there and prepares to steal to magic blue box. The Doctor is naturally suspicious and after a very cheesy and surprisingly endearing sword-and-spoon fight with Locksley, he spends most of the episode trying to prove that Robin, the Merry Men and even the Sheriff of Nottingham are all fake. His work becomes easier when he realizes that the Sheriff's guards are, indeed, alien robots.
"Robot of Sherwood" serves as your standard, light-hearted "filler" episode. This isn't inherently bad, but this particular episode feels sloppy, poorly-put-together and a little too loud in all the wrong places.
Unlike "Into the Dalek", "Robot of Sherwood" is tonally in stark contrast to both the first two episodes and to what we expect Series 8 to be in general. It's a bit jarring at first; a lot of slapstick, a lot of overacting, a distinct lack of nuance in the portrayal of everyone including the Doctor and overall just too silly.
There is foundation for this type of episode, of course. It follows Doctor Who tradition of the "faux-historical" (or fantasy-historical) template and "fun" is a core component of the show. The problem is that a lot of it doesn't work. It's really not as funny or heart-warming as it may had been intended and so much of the story feels ultimately inconsequential.
I was being facetious earlier when I said that "Robot of Sherwood" has nothing to say. There is actually a point to be made, one that relies on the necessity of legends, old and new, for mankind to look up to and persevere in their lives. There is a clear effort to draw parallels between the Doctor and Robin Hood, how they are both the same kind of legend that makes people look to the future with hope and become heroes themselves.
The writers want to hammer this point across so much, that they end up simply going through the motions: The Doctor hates Robin and Robin hates the Doctor in a pissing-match-type of way. The Doctor is determined to prove that Robin's not real. The absurdity of the Doctor finding out about the alien robots and exclaiming that he finally found something real is appreciated, but ultimately falls flat.
They go so far ahead with it that in the end, they mirror Robin and the Doctor's story and before the TARDIS departs, Robin tells the Doctor "I'm as real as you are".
The episode made me frustrated, because of all these efforts to get its point across. Not only is it heavy-handed in its final delivery, but it feels forced throughout the run of the entire episode. The similarities between the Doctor and Robin Hood, both as legends and particularly as characters, are non-existent. They could, potentially, juxtapose the two and focus on the importance of their respective "legend" despite the differences, but they didn't do that (or at least, they failed to do that).
Instead, it's the Doctor being silly and Robin Hood having absolutely no on-screen presence. Let me tell you something: in 2006, BBC premiered a show based on the legend of Robin Hood. It was mostly teen-oriented, with a bit of action, decent sets for its budget, great music and the most beautiful pair of eyes I've seen on Marian. It wasn't that memorable of a show, but I liked it well-enough (still better than the Ridley Scott movie).
The thing is, when Jonas Armstrong's scrawny ass commands more respect as a hero than you, you may be tragically miscast. Or your character is terribly-written. Either way, it doesn't work.
The cringe-worthy moments were many and came to a head at the climax of the episode, when Robin, Clara and the Doctor get into a weird bow-and-arrow threesome and fire a golden arrow to the departing spaceship to give it a push so that leaves Earth's atmosphere before blowing up and devastating England. See, the ship operates on gold, and the Cyborg Sheriff is so anxious to take over the world, he launches the ship before the engine has been fully repaired using that gold.
It was very silly, required a little too much in terms of suspension of disbelief and even in regards to the show's internal logic. I'm still trying to figure out how that one golden arrow lodged in just the right place for the ship to process it and how a single golden arrow was, conveniently, adequate for the ship to hit overdrive.
No. Sorry, but no.
I'd be somewhat less annoyed if they didn't do that ridiculous bow trick, too. Do the teamwork thing sure, but don't rush it. Take your time with it, use synergy. How about this for a different solution: Robin gets to fire the arrow on his own and set it in its course. Clara helps him keep steady from behind, since his arm was hurt. Then, the Doctor uses the Sonic Screwdriver/Magic-Wand-That-Only-Doesn't-Do-Wood-But-I-Am-Sure-Does-Gold(TM) to give the arrow that final boost and force needed to reach and penetrate the ship.
It's simple, see? I promise you, nobody would think less of your interpretation of Robin Hood than they already do.
Incidentally, I think the whole "alien robots" thing was a bad idea in general. "Doctor Who" has lost the factual-historical-episode-template and we could have kind of had that with this episode. Robin Hood may be a legend, but the politics and the overall framework of events of the era could be approached differently and ultimately lead to the same conclusion regarding legends and heroes.
The alien robots distracted even further from an already flimsy concept that was rushed and underwhelming in execution. Add insult to injury, the Doctor as usual takes a hell of a risk changing history by allowing Robin to not only know that he's a legend in the future, but also lets him walk inside an alien ship and potentially leaves behind remnants of technologically advanced robots.
And how else could the episode end but with Clara turning to the Doctor before they take off and very predictably say "Admit it, you like him". Oh, the banter in this episode is truly sublime!
All series have their bad episodes and, while your mileage may very well vary, this is one episode of Series 8 that I have no intention of revisiting any time soon.
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