Theory:Doctor Who television discontinuity and plot holes/The Poison Sky

You are exploring the Discontinuity Index, a place where any details or rumours about unreleased stories are forbidden.
Please discuss only those whole stories which have already been released, and obey our spoiler policy.

This page is for discussing the ways in which The Poison Sky doesn't fit well with other DWU narratives. You can also talk about the plot holes that render its own, internal narrative confusing.

Remember, this is a forum, so civil discussion is encouraged. However, please do not sign your posts. Also, keep all posts about the same continuity error under the same bullet point. You can add a new point by typing:

* This is point one.
::This is a counter-argument to point one.
:::This is a counter-argument to the counter-argument above
* This is point two.
::Explanation of point two.
::Further discussion and query of point two.

... and so on. 

• We can see the Sontaran teleport discs are on the TARDIS doors but when we see it in the background of Skorrs message one is on the front and one on the side.

A beep is heard when the teleport disks are attached to the TARDIS. This sound is heard three times, and three disks can be seen on the TARDIS on board the Sontaran Warship (just about).

• The thermal energy being released by igniting the entire planet's atmosphere should've had some negative effect as opposed to dissipating instantly; As in-story proof (not even counting real-world physics), when the effect was repeated on the Sontaran ship, it exploded violently.

The Sonataran gas was burnt up instantly on earth, so the fire could not continue burning as it had no fuel source (as in "real-world physics"). The Doctor had to recalibrate the device for Sontaran air, which may have been more flammable than the ATMOS gas, and the entire spaceship, not just the surface, was filled with this gas.

• When General Staal watches from the Sontaran spaceship, the ignition seems to start from the dark side of the Earth, although London is in clear daylight.

• Let's also note that since the poison gas was even on ground level rather than just those high in the atmosphere, igniting the atmosphere could have also meant burning all the gas on ground level.

Light a candle in a room where someone is smoking a cigarette and the smoke is attracted to the flame.

• On that same note, wouldn't burning all the gas in the atmosphere also end up burning all the oxygen too, thus suffocating the whole planet? Air consists mainly of Nitrogen, Carbon Dioxide, Water, Methane, and Oxygen. Maybe the ATMOS gas was more reactive than air. Also, the doctor quite obviously realised it was very risky as he crossed his fingers, maybe it could have.

The gas wasn't being burnt, exactly, it was being run through a chemical process by the atmospheric converter designed to create an Earthlike atmosphere on another planet. "Burning the sky" is a bit of dramatic language.

• As confirmed in DW: World War Three nuclear release codes are held by the United Nations and needs an official agreement to be able to release them so how is it that UNIT can arm them so easily?

Given the ATMOS crisis and the declaration of Defcon One, it's easy to believe an official agreement was speedily reached by the nations of the world offscreen; it was already mentioned by Mace that they were planning a nuclear strike.

• Russia is not part of the nuclear grid, despite being a major nuclear power both in real life and in-universe. (Israel goes unmentioned as well, but Israel has never officially admitted to having nuclear weapons).

• How is it that the clone Martha can download enough control onto a handheld device so quickly and with no-one noticing?

If the Sontarans can create a clone in a matter if minutes, they've devised a way for fast downloads. In any event, there's no reason at that point for anyone to doubt her identity or motives, especially as she is linked to working with the Doctor. The previous solution would be limited by units upload speed, but the software could be hosted on a server (cloud computing).

• Martha's clone doesn't express any concern for "her" fiance, Thomas Milligan as events unfold, which is understandable; less understandable is the lack of any obvious concern for his well-being by the real Martha.

Tom spent a year in an alternate timeline on the run from a renegade Time Lord; Martha knows he can look after himself. Also, just because we don't see her express concern doesn't mean it doesn't happen.

• If the TARDIS fixes itself to the spot it lands, how do the Sontarans teleport it, and how do they move it around the Sontaran Ship?

It has been quite firmly established that the TARDIS can be moved by external forces (numerous examples exist of it being carried and teleported).'

• Out of all the BILLIONS of planets in the universe, what made the Sontarans decide to convert the Earth into a cloning world?