Well, its finally over. The 2nd episode of the Second Life series A Tear in Time Part 1 & 2 concluded with many questions left unanswered, a look at the future and a farewell to our lovely Doctors. So let's begin the review from the creator himself.
Part 1
Part 1 opened throwing us into the story, with our Real Life fan Doctor, Julian Bane reading a book inside his own TARDIS. When the cloister bell rings, and he opens the scanner we learn a wormhole transports him from his universe to the one of a Twine.
With our SL Doctor at the controls of his wonderful TARDIS, which is a cross between a classic console and the new series Tennant, he witnesses the arrival of our american friend onto the floor. Before you can say "whats going on" the banter begins.
The movments of this episode, in terms of how it was filmed and the movements of the characters around the console are a bit jiggery and we have alot of still shots of just which character is talking, but apart from that this episode looked good. Granted there were alot of faults with the cutting and editing of the show, but its all a learning curve. The reviews of YouTube were overall 80% positive for part 1 and 85% for part 2, but the main concern was how it looked and moved. A mistake, we won't make again.
DWSL has said in the past, a cross between LOST and Doctor Who would become more apparent as the episodes unfolded, and A Tear in Time was a prime example of what's to come. We have the smoke monster from the TV show come into the TARDIS via another wormhole to scan each of our Time Lords. It makes a swift departure back via the wormhole leaving all 3, and the audience confused. And boom! The episode ends on that cliff hanger. So, what did we think?
Ryan Gargett, Doctor No. 3 and Excec producer of the show was an excellent vocal Doctor along with Julian Bane. Working with both was a delight and something we are aiming to repeat in the future. Ryan has expressed what the audience feel, which I've mentioned above and it's all true, but like I said before, a learning curve for myself in terms of editing and shooting.
Part 2 opened up right where Part 1 left off. But then we're thrown yet another mystery. A woman, who knows the Doctor, appears telling him of A Tear in Time. We'll confirm now that this character will appear in the near future and her questions will be answered.
She warns the SL Doctor of a Tear in Time he must find and repair before the Sound of the End. Yes, this is a prelude of what's to come. Stopping an imposter from leaving his prison is yes, another prelude. The Doctor is on his final incarnation, the stakes are higher then before. The End is Coming for him. She tells him to "follow the numbers" which, we don't actually know yet, but during a flashback to The Angel we learn the numbers are 4 8 15 16 23 42, again, another LOST tie in.
Ryan suggests we land on a planet near where Julian was heading, to allow his TARDIS to land so they can both leave. Earth is the obvious planet and the plan begins.
With the cutting and audio of this episode much better then the previous, I favourate this part out of both. Julian's farewell was quite sweet and I loved filming that part. Ryan tells our SL Doctor of the numbers, which opens yet ANOTHER question of how he knows? As the episode closes, he's looking at his scanner after being told them, when they appear on the screen. SL Doctor looks confused and angry and departs from Earth to an unknown destination. When the TARDIS de-mats, we have a close up of behind it, where we see a future version of the SL Doctor lying on the floor, in the same clothes, laying in blood and not moving. Another mystery we need to solve before we close the show for good.
This story/episode also features the first "Next Time" trailer for Xmas 2010...A Forbidden Reality. Well, check it out. I'm excited for you to see it and that episode is a vast improvment on our previous, The Angel, Time Clash and A Tear in Time Part 1 & 2. The episode was written by Ryan Gargett while filming The Angel and filming of it began a few months ago.
All in all, as the writer, director and creator of A Tear in Time Part 1 & 2...I'd give myself a good 7/10 for visual and effort. Nothing is perfect, but this was good enough for a second episode.
So what future visions did we get from this episode?
Who/what are the wormholes?
Why did Julian's Doctor get dragged from his world, to Twines?
Why did Ryan's Doctor land and not get dragged by a wormhole to?
What is the smoke mosnter doing in the TARDIS?
What was it looking for?
Who is the woman?
How does she know the Doctor?
What do the numbers mean?
Why are they linked to the SL Doctor's regeneration?
Why did they appear on the screen before departure of Earth?
What does the dead Doctor's body mean?
When/how does he die?
When will we get some answers? You'll get a hint next year..but the main answers lie within a chamber. Watch on....
