"What sort of a man doesn't carry a trowel? Put it on your Christmas list."
Companions: The 11th Doctor, Amy Pond and Rory Williams.
Air Date: 8th September 2012.
In 2367, the Indian Space Agency is on high alert as an unidentified spaceship hurtles towards the Earth. The Eleventh Doctor assembles a team to investigate, including the legendary Queen Nefertiti, a big game hunter named Riddell, Amy, Rory... and Rory's father, Brian. Materialising aboard the mystery ship, they're surprised to find it populated by dinosaurs. With time running out before the ship is blasted out of the sky, the Doctor must confront a vicious criminal named Solomon, as the lives of his companions and the dinosaurs hang in the balance.
Dinosaurs are a good staple of time travel stories and even better when put out of place, such as on board a starship. Add some strange comical robots, Rory's odd father, an Egyptian queen, a 19th century big game hunter and an insidious space pirate villain who quite frankly has no redeeming qualities, and you have quite a fun adventure for a Saturday night tea time. A perfect bit of modern Doctor Who.
We learn that the Silurians, with all their technology, had the ability to construct and pilot spaceships - something never previously mentioned or considered really. So, it makes me wonder how many more Silurian ships may still be out there or did they find a new home? Could there be Silurian colonies out in deep space on jungle worlds filled with dinosaurs? That could go a way to explain why we never see Silurians on Earth in the future despite repeated pointers that in the future both species cohabit.
I love the addition of Mark Williams, a star of the Harry Potter movies, as Rory's somewhat odd father Brian. The modern series, far more than classic, tends to give cameos to household name actors and actresses. When watching a classic story you would be surprised to well known names from the 70's and 80's mainly making the occasional appearance. New Who and their appearance is too commonplace to bother mentioning most of the time. However, Mark Williams stands out nicely and his talents really brighten the fun of the episode.
The role of the pirate trader Soloman is likewise played by a name from the Harry Potter movies, David Bradley. He would also go on to play William Hartnell in the 50th anniversary program An Adventure In Time and Space. In Dinosaurs on a Spaceship he plays a very unlikeable villain. Even the evil deeds of villains such as Daleks and Cybermen, you never feel a sense of actual dislike or unpleasantness about them. The deeds expressed by Soloman make him a very dark and unpleasant personality. I guess more for the adults watching than something to be picked up by the younger viewers.
So, if I like this adventure why do I only give it a basic 3 stars? It does what it says on the tine. It's fun but it doesn't raise the excitement level or give true squee moments. It doesn't push an ongoing plot forward or anything like that. Dinosaurs on a Spaceship, while good, is a modern example of what I expect a modern Doctor Who adventure to be.
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