A really nice episode that improves on the already-quite-good first installment in pretty much every way.

Jack works a lot better once he’s integrated into the main plot - he actually fits in quite seamlessly. He’s still not quite as charming as he’s clearly meant to be, but I think it’s a big step up from last episode.

The “go to your room” bit is a lousy way to solve a cliffhanger that I nonetheless find very amusing. I’d also completely forgotten about the banana gag. Good stuff.

Jack suggests Pompeii on volcano day as a good place to visit if you’re running a con. Hmm…

Nancy continues to be an outstanding character, balancing vulnerability with authority and toughness. Her confrontation with the owner of the house works really well, though it bumps up against problematic-yet-appropriate-for-the-era topics.

We get our first mention of Villengard, the weapons manufacturer that gets occasional shout-outs to this day.

The two-parter as a whole manages to seed its major plot developments - the nanogenes and Nancy secretly being Jamie’s mother - without making it glaringly obvious - no small feat.

And, of course, we get the “everybody lives” monologue. It’s iconic for a reason.

Ryan Reynolds, Taylor Sheridan and John Krasinski Among Hitmakers Paramount Skydance Needs to Keep Happy

The Star Trek situation is touched on in the final paragraph:

Then there is Alex Kurtzman and Secret Hideout, which is in charge of the “Star Trek” TV franchise. While the company has produced a number of new “Trek” shows over the last decade, there are currently two — “Star Trek: Strange New Worlds” and “Star Trek: Starfleet Academy.” “Strange New Worlds” is currently airing its third season and has already been renewed through its fifth and final season. “Starfleet Academy” is expected to premiere in 2026 and has been renewed for Season 2.

Interestingly, there’s no mention of the fact that the Secret Hideout contract should be expiring in 2026, and therefore needs to be renegotiated (or not)…pretty much immediately.

Why not turn this into a place to collect articles about the various news stories coming out of this transition?

David Ellison, Jeff Shell & Paramount Team Queried On Trump, Tech, Layoffs, Cable, Late Night & More At Debut Press Conference

New Paramount Execs Address CBS News Independence; Ombudsman Will Be “A Transparency Vehicle, Not An Oversight Vehicle”

CBS Boss George Cheeks On The Decision To Cancel ‘The Late Show With Stephen Colbert’

There’s definitely an AI focus, as Ellison expanded on in his introductory letter:

He touched on a “thoughtful” use of AI integrated across businesses, on supercharging streaming, spending on premium, exclusive content, focusing on sports and investing in media networks “appropriately based on the future business opportunity.”

“Technology is not—and never will be—a replacement for human creativity; rather, it serves as a powerful multiplier. From virtual production stages that unleash filmmakers’ limitless imaginations, to AI‑assisted localization that brings shows to new language markets overnight, to a proprietary ad‑tech stack that maximizes yield across streaming and linear platforms, we will thoughtfully integrate these tools into every aspect of our work,” Ellison wrote.

Fair enough - none of this should diminish the fact that the $16 million “legal settlement” from the former owners of the company was pretty definitely a bribe.

And Skydance is alleged to have promised the government free advertising in the form of “PSAs,” which I don’t think they’ve confirmed or denied.

Curious about where the $2 billion figure is coming from?

Goldberg is coming over from Skydance, where she’s been since the company was founded in 2010. I don’t think she’ll be going anywhere.

As for Cheeks…I guess it’s a vote of confidence that he’s staying at all, but being in charge of linear TV in 2025 seems like a pretty thankless task.

In all honesty, if I were calling the shots, I’d probably move Trek away from CBS Studios and over to Paramount Television. It makes more sense in terms of the divisions’ mission statements, and Paramount TV is under the same leadership as Paramount Pictures, which could make it easier to coordinate a feature film with whatever’s going on on the TV side.

The downside to that is losing Cheeks, who seems to have done right by Star Trek. Instead it would be overseen by Goldberg and Matt Thunell, who was President of Television at Skydance. I have no reason to believe either of them would be bad for the franchise, but…there’s always a risk when you’re leaving the devil you know in favour of one that you don’t.

For sure - the remaining former co-CEO is George Cheeks, who will be “Chair of TV Media.”

His focus is supposed to be focused on linear TV, but Star Trek remains under his watch for now (though the article says, “the decisions are expected to be made on a case-by-case basis, with [Paramount Television co-chair Dana] Goldberg and Cheeks currently in discussions about where the different pieces would land.”

Since the deal officially closes tomorrow, and today was mostly focused on the exits, I would imagine we’re going to start seeing news about the future plans soon.

Edit: And if Cheeks sounds familiar, it may be because his name is amongst those on the wall in the recent Starfleet Academy trailer.

From a Star Trek fan’s perspective, it’s interesting that only of the three co-CEOs who’s staying with the company, and he oversees CBS Studios, which produces all Trek series.

At the same time, the new ownership has resurrected Paramount TV as a separate division. It’s supposed to be the home of streaming services, so there’s a chance they’ll decide to move the franchise over there, in which case there will be a new boss to deal with.

We’ll probably get some clarity in the near-ish future…

All right, I’ve acquired the box set, so I think we’ll try to at least finish out the season and re-evaluate at that point.

New Who just got dropped by all major streaming services here without warnin

Here, too, and I suspect globally outside the UK. I’m going to take some time to consider whether we should put this little project on hiatus - it’s not likely that anyone else will join the party when the barriers are so significant.

It’s not fair to compare anybody, anywhere to Harrison Ford, but as much as he might like to be, Jack Harkness is no Han Solo.

Shame on me for not thinking of the best, most obvious comparison.

The kid who ran away says “there was a man” and I never clocked this when I was watching this as a kid, but re-watching as an adult, it says everything without going into unnecessary graphic detail.

Yes, this was worth pointing out, so thanks for that.

In this episode he comes across as very unlikeable.

I think you really need an actor who’s an 11/10 on the charisma scale to make that work - like, RDJ as Tony Stark charisma - and Barrowman just doesn’t have that.

Welcome to the party, Steven Moffat.

The improved quality of this episode is immediately apparent. The script is tight and quippy, and the titular child is creepy as hell.

It’s tough to comment solely on a Part 1, but there’s a lot to like in this. The gag of the Doctor asking the crowd at the cabaret whether they’ve seen anything falling from the sky before realizing he’s landed in the middle of the London Blitz is great. The production quality is generally excellent - it really feels like a specific time and place.

Following on that, Nancy is an immediately compelling character - sympathetic, and very authentic-feeling to the setting. Richard Wilson is also very good as Dr. Constantine.

I can’t believe I’m saying this, but I think the weakest part of the episode by far is the subplot with Rose and Captain Jack Harkness, who we meet for the first time here. It feels incongruous with the horror vibes of the A-plot, and I don’t actually think John Barrowman (scandal noted) is as charming as the script needs him to be.

Amazing - I’ve sometimes thought about making a sticker or something for conventions, but this is better.

Yeah, I think it’s pretty uncontroversial at this point to say the Disney deal was a dud.

I don’t want to dispute this too much, because it’s obviously true, but Disney is also making the occasional thing like “Andor”, which is neither safe nor unchallenging.

But the exception proves the rule, and so on.

until now Gold has done a pretty good job.

True - I’ve already mentioned that I don’t like some of the other choices he made in this season, but he has also turned in some really good stuff by this point.

We also get his line, “An ordinary man, that’s the most important thing in creation.”

Thanks for mentioning this - it’s very much a core sentiment of the series, and is even repeated later in this episode when the Doctor gets the married couples’ backstory.

You’d think watching one (1) episode of Doctor Who per week wouldn’t be too difficult, but there are times when it’s hard to squeeze it in…

“Father’s Day” stands out to me because it’s a good episode that’s successful in spite of…just about everything about it.

The weak production values that have plagued the season are still on full display. It’s shot in a largely boring fashion, and is downright maudlin at times. I absolutely hate Murray Gold’s choices, with those string chords that suddenly turn downward, which doesn’t sound sad so much as it sounds like there’s something wrong with the audio track. The episode does everything it can to be bad.

And it fails. The story is great, and the performances are better. Shaun Dingwall nails the portayal of Pete Tyler, likeable fuckup. Camille Coduri is great as Jackie, as always. Billie Piper turns in what is easily her best performance as Rose so far. Eccleston is good as always, but since the Doctor is in a pretty dour mood for most of the episode, he doesn’t get to show a ton of range.

The creatures (apparently called “Reapers” in ancillary material) are interesting, and it’s a shame the concept has never been revisited. The episode does a lot to establish that time paradoxes can be a thing, and it’s possible to do a lot of damage with time travel, even though it’s not something the series typically worries about.

But in the end, the strength of the episode is its simplicity. Rose can’t help but save her dad, he eventually realizes who she is and learns of his own fate, and has to sacrifice himself to make things right.

I think they did something similar in the Whitaker era (which I did not participate in).

Best case, it’ll be something to keep the series’ profile up while they figure out what’s next…