Things to dislike about "The End of Time"

[the-unknown-doctor]

Ah The end of Time.

I remeber sitting waiting, looking forward to watching the end of the 10th doctors time.

Then a few jumping time lords later I looked around and went 'what the'  What was that.  (and I have not watched it again since).

Should I go back and re watched it.  That is a big question

[Ian]

I've ranted about this story elsewhere (in the Roight now thread). On first broadcast I thought it was ok in a 'leave your brain at the door' kind of way. The only bit that loudly jarred at the time was the farewell tour which from the get go was ridiculous and indulgent. It was only when I went back a re-watched it, and so was able to look at it a bit more dispassionately and critically, that I realised what complete and utter tosh it is. As you'll have heard on the recent 'least favourites' cast, this is comfortably my vote for worst Tennant story and indeed the worst story in all of new Who. It's only redeeming feature is Wilf, all the best scenes feature him.

[Rory Pond]

Ian, I can't tell you how pleased I am that you've joined us.

*rubs hands, smiles sinisterly*

(sinisterly?)

All right, who's next? 

[Henry Gordon Jago]

Like Ian, I found it mindlessly enjoyable on initial viewing, but the only way I've been able to rewatch it is to play the Radio Free Skaro commentary along with it, so I can laugh as they pick it to pieces...

[Rory Pond]

Yay! Henry's come around also!

According to my calculations, that only leaves Starry Night on the defending side (among those who've posted on this thread previously, anyway -- there may be others out there who still cling to some outdated opinion of this trainwreck and haven't seen the light yet). Interestingly, although she came up with a solid rationale to explain the Endless Parade of Companion Goodbyes, she never provided anything like that for the rest of the meandering plot. Maybe she's been working on it all this time? 

[Henry Gordon Jago]

there may be others out there who still cling to some outdated opinion of this trainwreck and haven't seen the light yet.

I think Chip still likes it.  I won't hold it against him, though.

[Rory Pond]

I was only referring to forum posters (and now that I think about it, I believe Mr. Lister also liked it), so wasn't even thinking of Chip in this regard. But yeah, I wouldn't expect him to change his mind on any part of the Tennant run.

[the hooded man]

I tire of the negativity around this story, it was actually fast paced and enjoyable, with real moments of excitement, especially in the second half. It was also well acted and a good send off for the characters in the RTD era.

I think half of the negativity is just down to following the fan consensus,(which always leads to madness.)

Over the days it was shown it had the biggest TV audience of the week. So far from the unmitigated disaster so people would have us believe, in the eyes of the public it was a big success.

[Ian]

There are many times when personal preference differs from the public vote, which is fine. I can't speak for others, but my opinion has nothing to do with fan consensus. In fact after watching it just the once on original broadcast I was relatively neutral about it and posted to that effect on many occasions. It was only a couple of years later when
I first rewatched it that my opinion went so sharply south, and I was quite surprised when it did.

[James (DWP)]

Over the days it was shown it had the biggest TV audience of the week. So far from the unmitigated disaster so people would have us believe, in the eyes of the public it was a big success.

Don't forget the 'public at large' always tune in to the final story of any Doctor.  Also, they had to watch it (as we all did) before we could form an opinion on it.  Along with the AI, the industry does indeed take audience stats as a sign of how well an a episode is recieved - where as I feel the statistic is a more accurate reflection of the preceeding story - if someone enjoyed an episode, they're more likely to tune into the same show the following week. 

In story terms, I agree with fan concensus on this one, and I thought it was a dreadful story right from the off  - and I saw this in a pub with around 150 other Dr Who fans.  Normally, the excitement such an event creates and the free flow of alcohol negates any instant negative reactions.  Not so on this occassion. 

[Ian]

Not to mention, many might have been similar to me. I went along with the ride on the day, not being impressed but not hating it either. It was only on the rewatch I really started to dislike it. But the vast majority of viewers wouldn't have rewatched it.

[TomH1138]

. . .  this is comfortably my vote for worst Tennant story and indeed the worst story in all of new Who. It's only redeeming feature is Wilf, all the best scenes feature him.

One of us! One of us!  I completely agree on both counts.

Hooded Man, sorry that you tire of the negativity. I usually don't agree with whatever the popular consensus is; it's actually astonishing that I do, in this case. In fact, this may actually be the only time that others have come around to my way of thinking, because I hated it right off the bat while others liked it or were ambivalent to it at first. But I think it hasn't held up on repeat viewings for many audience members.

To be honest, prior to a few months ago, I probably would have said that "Love and Monsters" was the worst episode. But then I found out that the monster was designed by a kid, so how can I completely dislike that?

But I was discussing best and worst episodes with a friend in chat the other day, and we got to End of Time, and it was just like, "Ohhh, yeah. That's just the worst."

At any rate, if anyone wants to start a thread called "In defense of 'End of Time,'" I say go for it! 

[the hooded man]

Obviously this is argument I won't win so I won't spend to much time trying. I completely agree about comments regarding the public opinion, but if the story was the rail crash many make out then I doubt the public at large would of come back for more (which thankfully they did).  I am not saying it was the pinnacle of the 10th Doctor era but it was not the nadir either.   

[TomH1138]

OK, I finally discovered something nice I can say about "End of Time"!

I was chatting online with a friend about Doctor Who - I never even brought up this discussion! - and he sends me a link for this, which I had never seen before:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=3s4Czla6tXc

That was four minutes of pure joy. All those cast members from all 4 seasons singing together - the dancing Ood - the surprise cameo by the Proclaimers themselves - Tennant leading everyone in the final group march - just perfect from beginning to end!

I grinned from ear to ear. I watched it three times.

And it wouldn't have been possible if all those cast members hadn't been together for "The End of Time"! So THAT'S the good thing I have to say about the episodes now. The specials were worth producing if only so that this video could come out of it. 

[Rory Pond]

Obviously this is argument I won't win so I won't spend to much time trying. I completely agree about comments regarding the public opinion, but if the story was the rail crash many make out then I doubt the public at large would of come back for more (which thankfully they did).  I am not saying it was the pinnacle of the 10th Doctor era but it was not the nadir either.   

Well, the main reason people came back -- whatever they thought of "The End of Time" -- was to see how the new kid would do. Although he's rarely mentioned in conjunction with EoT, Matt Smith did make his debut here. So I think it's safe to say that people would have returned whether they liked Tennant's finale or not. A new Doctor does tend to draw a crowd. 

As to "winning an argument," the point of the forums is to express yourself, not necessarily to win people over to one side or another. Regardless of whether your opinion is part of the perceived "fan consensus" or not, it is more than welcome here. So if you have something to say in defense of this story, or any other, please do!