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WATCH ALONG | CLASSIC DOCTOR WHO | 7x18 | The Ambassadors of Death: Part 7 (Patreon)

Published:
2023-08-30 16:00:43
Imported:
2023-09
⚑ Flagged

Content

A Few Notes:

  • Please no spoilers beyond this episode unless you see that later episodes have already been released. In that case, no spoilers beyond those episodes.
  • This reaction is in a watch-along format. This means you'll need your own copy of the episode to watch alongside my reaction. This is in an effort to avoid copyright infringement.
  • If you're based in the UK (or using a UK streaming site), here are instructions for how to get your copy to sync with mine.
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  • This episode was viewed on BritBox via Amazon Prime.
  • If you want to know what’s coming up, check out the schedule here.
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*****

*Copyright Disclaimer Under Section 107 of the Copyright Act 1976, allowance is made for "fair use" for purposes such as criticism, comment, news reporting, teaching, scholarship, and research. Fair use is a use permitted by copyright statute that might otherwise be infringing. Non-profit, educational or personal use tips the balance in favor of fair use. NO COPYRIGHT INFRINGEMENT INTENDED. All rights belong to their respective owners.

Files

CW 7.18 - Patreon.mp4

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Comments

Azmat Mahmood

The Ambassadors of Death is a really good story and I really like how it continues to explore the themes of xenophobia and racism the previous story also delved into. I think it does a great job exploring what humans going out into the universe and exploring and meeting other lifeforms might mean for us and what it could expose about our own morality. The humans are the villains in this story and the aliens are the ones being abused and manipulated and it’s all because of cultural differences and the humans and aliens being unable to communicate and interact, leading to some very unfortunate misunderstandings. It’s an effective commentary on not judging things on face value and paintings things with broad strokes. I also love how this story is a twist on the structure a story like this will normally take. Usually the mystery and suspense comes from the culprit being unknown for most of the story, but that's not the case here. I think it's really interesting how obvious it is that General Carrington is behind it all throughout the story, at least to the viewers. The characters in the story on the other hand, are supposed to be oblivious to that fact. That's where I think the tension is, at least for me. I'm willing everybody to figure out it's Carrington before it's too late and to not listen to his war mongering. It's an interesting story dynamic that probably isn't to everyone's tastes, but works really well for me. I also think Carrington is a really well written character because I actually understand the reasons behind his actions and so have sympathy for him. He's just doing what he thinks is right for the world. Carrington's problem is that he cares too much and is prepared to go to any lengths to protect his world, which is admirable in some cases but it can go horribly wrong as we saw here. I also think it was pretty clear he was suffering from PTSD because of the trauma he suffered from seeing his friend get killed. I think this was got across really well by the actor playing Carrington, John Abineri. I also love how Carrington as an army general character is a parallel to the Brigadier, especially after what he did at the end of the previous story. However, instead of siding with Carrington and destroying the aliens, this time the Brigadier works with the Doctor to prevent a war and safely return the aliens back to their planet. This is a nice way for him to atone for the mistake he made last time and to regain the Doctor’s trust and respect. I love that scene where the Brigadier sees the Doctor off before he prepares to fly the rocket into space. The warm smile they share and the fact they shake hands shows them beginning to move past what happened. I think it’s really clever how this story is a more optimistic companion piece to the previous story in terms of how it explores similar themes, but the outcomes of the story are more triumphant instead of tragic. The aliens get sent back home instead of being blown up and the Brigadier works with the Doctor instead of betraying him.

Azmat Mahmood

It’s also really interesting the way the reporter becomes an actual character and gets involved with the plot after being a sort of narrator for the first few episodes. It’s a good way to give the story a sense of realism with Carrington’s insane plan to make a broadcast around the world and give the reporter an actual purpose within the story. I also really like how Carrington's big, grand plans to unite the world in a war against an alien species is contrasted with Reegan's much more mundane and parochial plans to rob a bank with the help of the Doctor and Liz. It really says a lot about the selfish and flawed nature of humans, which has been a running theme for two straight stories now. It's also quite sad because it reveals how low Carrington has had to stoop to be able to execute his plans. He's so driven and adamant that he's lost sight of who he is and has aligned himself with the worst kind of people. The fact that the story ends in a relatively lowkey manner with Carrington simply being taken away is really unique too and I think it really works because it further exposes how pathetic and in over his head he really is. I love that the Doctor recognises this and the moment he tells Carrington that he understands why he did what he did and allows Carrington to keep his dignity is actually quite moving. Carrington’s main problem was his inability to understand the ambassadors due to their unknowability and that was the key to resolving the problem. Only the Doctor took the time to actually understand them and once he made sure everyone else also does, the story has to sort of end quietly with everyone going back to normal with the acknowledgement of what a huge and unnecessary mess this whole affair had been due to one man. All in all, Carrington's a great and very unique 'villain' because he's not really a villain at all. His motivations have more depth than the typical "we want to conquer and destroy" type villains we've had in the past. I honestly think he deserves more credit than he typically gets as a character. This entire story deserves more praise actually, although it's still pretty well liked. Most people agree that this story is the weakest of a strong bunch in season 7, and I agree all things considered. However, I think it says a whole lot about this season that THIS is the worst story in it. Next week it's the big one, 'Inferno'! Almost unanimously agreed to be the best Pertwee story. Yeah, Pertwee's era peaks very early, unlike Troughton's era which saved it's best for last. Very much looking forward to that.