Doctor Who 7x03: A Town Called Mercy

[laurashapiro]

My main reaction to this week's episode is "Seen it."

"I wear a stetson now," the Doctor says to himself, as though we hadn't just seen him in a cowboy hat last year. The Doctor as hero in a Western is not new, and though I think this episode was trying to do something different with it (the Doctor morphs from "a stranger comes to town" to the new sheriff), it was still extra-tropey in a way that failed to charm me.

Again, we have the Doctor identifying overmuch with someone responsible for the deaths of thousands, and yet somehow the (new) show will never cross the line and make him pay for his crimes. He yells at Dex about how he doesn't get to decide when his debt is paid. That was probably my favorite moment in the episode. What about your debts, Doctor?

Again, we have this Lonely God nonsense, which I loved the first time and liked okay the second time and now I pretty much NEVER WANT TO HEAR IT AGAIN. Whenever the Doctor feels sorry for himself now, I want to punch him, and that's not a position I like to be in. I love the Doctor! Don't make me feel like he's an asshole!

Again, we have a companion reminding the Doctor of his moral responsibility, because the Doctor's gone off the rails. I like this trope in general, but it has to be earned. It wasn't easy for me to see why he went apeshit this time. The stakes weren't high enough, maybe? I don't know.

Again, we have a companion say that the Doctor goes off the rails when he travels alone too long. I do like it when the show acknowledges that he needs people. Are we supposed to think that the reason he went apeshit this time is because he's been alone too long? I guess I need to see that. The last time we saw the Doctor alone in the TARDIS, he was dancing cheerfully.

It was surprising how slow this episode was. It's a bit of a relief, as I'm used to struggling to catch the dialogue as it flies past, but that made it quite different in tone from the rest of the season so far. I liked the mood, but would have liked more High Noon-style dramatic tension.

All of guest performances were great. I was happy whenever they were onscreen. A shame Ben Browder was dispatched so quickly! I thought he was perfect for the role: I felt Isaac's integrity right away and liked him immediately.

Overall: needs more cowbell.