Per THIS piece in Radio Times, BBC is trimming a sequence featured in the conclusion of Robot of Sherwood - this Saturday’s installment of DOCTOR WHO.
A beheading sequence from the climax of this Saturday's episode of Doctor Who, Robot of Sherwood, has been edited out by the BBC as a mark of respect in the light of recent news events in Iraq and Syria.
The edit has been made to remove a decapitation in the climatic fight scene between Robin Hood and the Sheriff; something that could be deemed insensitive after two US journalists were killed by IS (Islamic State) militants in the past month.
I totally understand the thought behind, and even applaud, The Powers That Be’s attempts towards sensitivity in this matter. On the other hand, it feels to me that…when art becomes censored because someone has perpetrated acts like this…then the perpetrators have effectively gained the upper hand and are beginning to win? If their acts influence what we see and why, then we erode, and perhaps they're becoming more effective than we should let them be?
Just pondering aloud…not hugely dedicated to this line of thought.
Also…
BBC has issued a synopsis for Time Heist, this Season/Series’ fifth episode, which reads thusly:
The Doctor turns bank robber when he is given a task he cannot refuse – to steal from the most dangerous bank in the cosmos. With the help of a beautiful shape-shifter and cyber-augmented gamer, the Doctor and Clara must fight their way past deadly security and come face to face with the fearsome Teller: a creature of terrifying power that can detect guilt…
Also, I think I overlooked the issuance of the official synopsis for Listen, the fourth episode of S8, which transmits next week. Here it is, such as it is.
When ghosts of past and future crowd into their lives, the Doctor and Clara are thrown into an adventure that takes them to the very end of the universe.
What happens when the Doctor is alone? And what scares the grand old man of Time and Space? Listen!
Based on the work prints which are out there - the ones I didn’t watch and never, ever would think of accessing - I’d say both Listen and Time Heist are the best S8 episodes we’ve seen thus far. Listen is hugely substantive and will likely divide people rather strongly. I’m not sure I actually understand its overall storyline (some other acquaintances who haven’t seen it either attempted to explain it to me - I’m still not sure what the hell is going on), but I think it works nicely dramatically, if nothing else.
Time Heist is fast and fun, but there’s also some meat to it and it goes in some interesting directions. Both feature Capaldi’s best take on the Doctor, yet.
More tomorrow - is it Friday already?
————
Glen Oliver
“Merrick”
