The War Between the Land and the Sea - new series starts Sunday 7 December 2025 on BBC1 at 20.30

[IwantToRetire]

I thought this was going to be a new SF drama and got quite excited.

But turns out to be a Dr Who spin off, so less excited.

Cant see a thread about, so adding this.

Only review I have seen has spoilers so wont post link but this is the iPlayer link.

2 episodes this sunday, 2 the following and just one Sunday after that.

https://www.bbc.co.uk/programmes/m002mt0s

Also, today I learned: the BBC's Director of Drama is called Lyndsay Salt 🤔

https://www.bbc.co.uk/newsround/articles/c75147p9wp5o

Oh ok, thanks for the info ☺️.

Confused by the last episode

I’ve just finished this but the ending has left me very confused.

Qns

how did he get gills?
what was the news his doctor had for him? Was he dying?

When he offered the aqua people land (the trench) why did salt say the humans had won?

What was accord? and what was the point of saying accord?

im going to watch again

I think accord was humans asking about getting gills, a merging of the two species to make a collaborative hybrid race. He had “a rash” on his neck after being on the run with Salt so I think the bubble snogging began his body’s adaptation towards gills. Perhaps that’s what Salt’s “you already have good gills” jibe was getting at.
IRL some people are still born with vestigial gills behind the ears.
Overall the series just showed how shit humans are at negotiations, the beach talks at the start were more informative for both sides than any of the official talks, and huge opportunities were missed for inter-species cooperation as vested interests wanted the status quo. Men With weapons would rather decimate than collaborate.
Think of the opportunities for international travel and trade if aquakind could manipulate currents to move ships without fuel, and the algae communication network seemed like amazingly advanced technology.

@Rummikub I’d advise watching ep 5 again if you feel it’s worth it, as everything is answered within it.

But it’s a failing in the production if people need to watch twice.

Once again an RTD show has left me with an image and a thought that I really don’t want my head. It was horrific.

How long before UNIT works it out?

I’m guessing (and slightly hoping) that Evolved Barclay never does - because who could live with that knowledge?

Or maybe the algae network was the sea equivalent of the mycelial network that trees use to communicate and share resources.

Russel T is a bit like the man from Atlantis

DH says he doesn’t know what will happen when his swimming trunks rot

was confused what the Dr actually did when they drugged RTs drink and he was unconscious

What did they do to him?

Only the worst thing in the world …

@Whomanityyou’re going to have to spell it out.

Yes please!

I will watch again but I’d like the insight too

i didn’t think accord was humans being given gills.

salt says ask for accord which is an ancient respect? So doesnt that mean the two species living harmoniously?

The swimming style made me think man from Atlantis!

They weaponised him.

Knowing that he would make contact with Salt, they infected him with the virus that would kill nine tenths of the Aqua population. Then just sat back and waited for it to happen.

Essentially he became the instrument of Severance. Cutting off the aqua population from their dominance over all the water on Earth.

But that would make salt patient zero and least likely to survive. They could have just released the virus into the water anywhere without Barclay.

Oh ok! I wondered if they injected him with the virus to transfer it.

Also what was the doctor calling for?

Plus, Salt was shunned by the rest of aquakind so would have been an ineffective viral vector.

V good point !

Thanks

Well I thought I was going to have to embarrass myself but saying I hadn't the faintest idea what happened towards the end. And wasn't motivated to watch it again.

This is an explanation by the Radio Times, and I think if this is what we were meant to understand what was shown on the screen did not convey that sort of detail!
https://www.radiotimes.com/tv/sci-fi/war-between-land-and-sea-ending-explained/

Its a shame with all its high production features, they couldn't get the story clearer. Should have to guess what the plot was.

What the RT describes is exactly what I understood - but I can see that offering two abstract concepts: Severance and Accord, the writer(s) made life difficult for themselves and the audience.

I’m not sure that losing the Disney money is quite the disadvantage some fans think. The last couple of seasons of Who seemed to have more focus on special effects and “The Message” than good story writing. The early stories in the RTD reboot (2005) were not short on messages but they were not rammed down the watcher’s throat with flashing neon lights at the expense of decent scriptwriting.

This latest spin off had a lot of potential but seemed to suffer in the same way - too much children’s message tv where I’d hoped for Torchwood tv. I’m also confused still about the species - Salt was Homo Amphibia living in a harmonious community with Homo Aqua. I assumed that was what was meant by Accord rather than amphibian abilities to make substantial bodily changes being imbued into humans.

I had assumed Barclay was the vector but agree with pp - Salt was outcast, not sure how exactly she made an effective patient 0 across two animal species using a third (plant) species as the transmitter, all within a couple of days.

Maybe the Torchwood team could pick it up and develop it into an ongoing series. There is a lot of potential if they can leave Disney behind and get back to centering the story.

I’m not sure that losing the Disney money is quite the disadvantage some fans think. The last couple of seasons of Who seemed to have more focus on special effects and “The Message” than good story writing. The early stories in the RTD reboot (2005) were not short on messages but they were not rammed down the watcher’s throat with flashing neon lights at the expense of decent scriptwriting.

This latest spin off had a lot of potential but seemed to suffer in the same way - too much children’s message tv where I’d hoped for Torchwood tv.

The Disney problem was/is an RTD problem. He is the reason they have bailed.

TWBTLATS was clearly meant to be an extension of the Dr Who universe, which would begat more series. It was not a standalone.

Its still a Disney money problem. Budget and timing constraints often make for better, tighter scriptwriting. RTD was also behind the 2005 reboot and a key creative in those early series which for the most part were very successful but on much tighter budgets and constraints. The original Who was made on a shoestring (and with shoestring props) and yet inspired a following still going 60 years later.

I’m not saying I would like to see a return to actors running around in carpets and cardboard sets wobbling visibly on screen but there is a mid point. I don’t think its accidental that some of the best streaming output is tighter on times, tighter on scheduling and more “normal” budgets compared to early streaming output which went a bit mad with the lack of controls. Where money is spent in the higher quality output it is increasingly on better actors and writers rather than endless whizzy effects. I’m not sure if the Disney tie up was RTD’s first big piece for a streamer but it certainly seemed to fall foul of “we have the whole supermarket, lets use all of it”.

Hmm. I think it's more "RTD has become massively self-indulgent and thinks he's untouchable". And Disney thought - nope! Because we're not making any money out of this, and can't see him changing.

They didn't even announce it as "RTD is a wonderful creative, but the industry/money/times have changed and we're going in a different direction". They just bailed. Washed their hands of him.