Monday, 6 January 2020

DW 12-02: Spyfall, part 2

A guide to classic Who references in new Who.


Doctor Who Series 12, episode 2 in which the Master attempts to take over the world (again).



May contain spoilers for 
"Spyfall, part 2"



References

[OLD] - Things that first appeared in the classic series (or the film).

The following are also covered:
[NEW] - Things that first appeared in the new series.
[REAL] - Real things with significance to previous Who episodes.


Previously on Doctor Who...


The Doctor
  • [OLD] The main character of Doctor Who, classic series and new. Born on Gallifrey, she is a Time Lord. Due to Time Lords' ability to regenerate this is the Thirteen Doctor and the first time she's been female.


Sonic Screwdriver


  • [OLD] The Doctor's favourite tool: the sonic screwdriver. First shown to be used by the Second Doctor in "Fury of the Deep" (Doctor Who (1963) season 5), it has been used almost constantly since. She built her current version in "The Woman Who Fell to Earth" (Doctor Who (2015) series 11). It can usually read everything.

THE MASTER
  • [OLD]  An enemy snd childhood friend of the Doctor, first introducted in the classic series. Like The Doctor and other Time Lords the Master can regenerate. She was last seen died, murdered by a past version of himself for deciding to stand with the Doctor in "The Doctor Falls" (Doctor Who (2005) series 10). Because both the Doctor and the Master use time travel these Master has previously met the Doctor prior to those events, however it is unclear when this occurs in the Master's timeline.


TISSUE COMPRESSION ELIMINATOR
  • [OLD]  On-again off-again weapon of choice of the Master, which kills people by compressing thier tissue (and thus shrinking them.
DOUBLE HEARTBEAT
  • [NEW]  The 4 beat sound of the twin Gallifreyan heart, appearing in the Doctor Who theme's bassline, and referred to as "the Sound of Drums" which had driven the Master mad (first appearing in "Utopia" (Doctor Who (2005) series 3) and explained as having been placed there by the Gallifrey High Council when the Master looked into the Untempered Schism as a child.


The TARDIS
  • [OLD] The Doctor's time and space travel vehicle.  It stands for Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space.  Like a lot of the Doctor's race's technology, it is "bigger on the inside."  The Doctor stole her second-hand TARDIS when fleeing her homeworld.  It is an older model ("Type 40") and unreliable, often ending up in the wrong location, and being unable to blend into its environment (a feature TARDISes should have). As a Time Lord the Master also has one. Well, a couple really.

This episode...
Artron Energy
  • [OLD] Radiation associate with time travel.  Coordinator Engin stated that the Fourth Doctor must have a lot of stored artron energy to survive the near fatal attacks in the matrix in "The Deadly Assassin" (Doctor Who (1963) season 14).  The Fifth Doctor claimed there was a connection between artron energy and the TARDIS ("Four to Doomsday" (Doctor Who (1963) season 19)).  Rose's artron energy revived the dalek in "Dalek" (Doctor Who (2005) series 1) and Mickey's opened the Genesis Ark in "Doomsday" (Doctor Who Series 2). It was mentioned in "Rosa" (Doctor Who (2005) series 11).

Jodrell Bank
  • [REAL] A real world radio telescope located in Britain. It is mentioned in "The Tenth Planet" (Doctor Who (1969) season 4), "The Poison Sky" (Doctor Who (2005) series 4) and "The Eleventh Hour" (Doctor Who (2005) series 5). A model of a Jodrell Bank observatory was used in "Logopolis" as the location of the Pharos Project. The Fourth Doctor was pushed from the observatory by the Master and fell to his death (regenerating into the Fifth Doctor with the help of the Watcher.

The Timeless Child
  • [NEW] A secret buried in the Doctor's head and seen by the Remnants on Desolation in "The Ghost Monument" (Doctor Who (2005) series 11).
REMNANT: Afraid of your own newness. We see deeper, though, further back. The Timeless Child.
DOCTOR: What did you just say?
REMNANT: She doesn't know.
DOCTOR: What are you talking about? What can you see?
REMNANT: We see what's hidden even from yourself, the outcast, abandoned and unknown.

~ DUG.


The Time Crash blog was created to help New Who fans understand Classic Who references - and to know if something isn't a reference but a new idea.  If there's a reference I missed or a subject that you feel needs more explaining, please comment.

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