Human Nature

[dc]

Unexpectedly, one of the highlights of the weekend was Doctor Who. At last, eight episodes in, an episode that felt like Who, and which I was inclined to watch again. I was beginning to think the whole series would be a dud. Martha is still irritating and poorly characterised. When Matron said she thought she knew a lot more about concussion than Martha, I had to remind myself that Martha is supposed to be a medical student (not that a medical student would necessarily know a lot about concussion...). I repeat, never met a medical student remotely like Martha.

Mostly, though, this was good. Interesting continuity references (pictures of McGann, Hartnell, McCoy, Baker and Davison, I think, plus the slightly superfluous musical reference to “Remembrance of the Daleks”), with the namechecks of Sydney (Newman) and Verity (Lambert) as Mr. Smith’s parents. One or two slightly false touches: Matron talking about another war; that, surely, is an expression which would fit the period between the two World Wars, but not before the First. I would have thought it more accurate if she had talked about going to war.

Also, I may be wrong, but I am pretty sure machine guns (cutting-edge military technology) were not generally available for use by schoolboys. Would the disparity between well-armed troops and assegai-wielding tribesmen from the Dark Continent have really been so hard for the audience to grasp if they had been shooting rifles?

I am unsure about life in an English village, but is (was) it usual for them to have annual dances in November?

Still, a good one. I hope they do not blow it in part two.