@ Children In Need

Another pointless but not utterly bad 2 minutes well spent. Although Children in Need was not having a striptease in mind when they asked Doctor Whoto do something.

Lucky him that my TV remote does not have a red button; not as if...

Oh, and for the trailer. Last year's had a flying shark in it and you just can't beat that, but still, 'the Doctor, The Widow and the Waredrobe looks like fun. Just have a look at his explanations.

Cheating Time...

Let's face it, there seems to have been a curse on Doctor Who's finales. Or am I the only one who doesn't have any of them on their 'Recommendable Doctor Who Episodes' list? Maybe not. And having twice of them a season would not have been exactly my idea of a solution; but the same person who invented double-finale-seasons, is apparently the one to break the spell. Even though admittedly solving the problem by writing a Doctor Who parody will hopefully not become the standard solution of how to deal with the usually hopelessly self-important and overrated finales. 

I dare to say, that The Wedding of River Song is the first finale which I consider to be entertaining, because that's what parodies are. Of course, this comes at a cost due to which some (especially older) fans may be less fond of, namely, to achieve this Moffat breaks maybe every single of Doctor Who's unwritten Golden Rules:

First of all, you and I know that the Doctor will never die, at least not before completing his 12th regeneration. So, when we saw the Doctor's death in 'The Impossinle Astronaut' for the first time, most of us knew it could not be real. So the only remaining question was which paradoxical set-up was Moffat going to use to save the Doctor. Of course, using a Teselcta-Doctor-double is not the cleverest twist the Big Moff could have come up with, after all it triggers more questions than answers, but if we think about the finale as a parody, it may just do.

Then, there is the date. So, the whoniverse was supposed to end on April 11th 2o11 at 5:o2 pm. If it had been true, wouldn't it have been more effective to air episode 13 on April 11th? This way it seemed like one of those newspaper articles announcing that yesterday the world/time/universe ended. With a whimper not a bang, that's why we need a note.

Furthermore, I don't remember a season during which people, DIY-journalists, or according to Steven Moffat even worse, grown-ups, would not have been complaining about Doctor Who's far too complex storyline. And no doubt, bearing this in mind, the Big Moff wrote the most complex story-arch in Who's up-to-date-history, which gives, as a side effect, the running gang, What is bigger on the inside? a new answer: Steven Moffat's brain. He is the only one who can keep that finale and River's story in there. At the same time.

Talking about running gangs. Wasn't, back in the old days, the shows title supposed to be one? Well, now, almost 25 years after its 25 year anniversary we learn it's not a running gag, it is the question of the universe, which should be never asked nor answered.

And last but not least, if you had asked an old whovian whether the Doctor is ever going to change his martial status, the answer would have been a definite 'no'. Well, we could argue that the 'wedding' (lovely low-budget-bowties-are-cool-ceremony BTW) took place in an alternative universe which never happened, for what the wedding actually did never take place. But, of course that would be too easy. Because with Gallifrey being used to govern alternative-universes, they certainly made sure that their wedding-ceremonies are binding ones, no matter when and in which universe they happen to be conducted. So, I guess the 'I-do' is binding. And I know, there was never an actual I-do... but maybe that is what the kiss in Gallifreyan terms is supposed to be.

Oh, and we didn't really expected to see River in a white dress, did we? Then again we don't know much about time-lord-ish weddings in the first place...

But there is more to the episode than its immense fun factor. This was the first time since 2oo5 that the finale did not mean the end of an era, and Moffat kept his promise, we got answers. River is the Doctor's wife, and she is also in prison for killing him, without having actually killed him. Sort of. At least that seems to be how River's storyline is set in Moffat's mind. But come on, isn't it ironical that the Mill, the Champions of Law and Order, doesn't care about River committing a 'fake' murder, however, she still has to suffer its real effects? Although without the Teselecta the whole situation couldn't have happened in the first place. Is Moffat hinting at the universal police being as corrupt as the Russian government? And what about time itself? If everyone in the world believe a lie, does it become the truth? Ok, maybe things start to become too philosophical...

Anyway. Let's move on to the parts which were even less  answered. Like almost everything about season 5. Or most crucially what or who made the TARDIS explode causing Big Bang number 2? The Silence? And if yes, shouldn't we have come across that voice declaring 'Silence will Fall' from the TARDIS console by now? Maybe we'll find out next season. Even though personally I think that season 7's quest is more a 'when no living creature could speak falsely, or fail to answer, a question will be asked. A question that must never, ever be answered. Silence will fall when the question is asked...' -thing. So who knows, Moffat may manage to tackle both.

How Much Can You Cramm Into a Single Episode?

Moffat is usually not keen on revealing the finale's plot, but this season is some sort of an exception. This year he promised to fill those less than 45 minutes with answers, after all we all know what is going to happen, the only thing we don't know is how. Due to this maybe the most interesting question is 'what exactly is going to be answered?'

Let's start with the obvious, we know Moffat has to save the Doctor somehow; that's why it might be fair to assume that's what the biggest part of the story will be about. However, there is more, and no, I'm not referring to the colour of River's wedding-dress (if there should be one in the first place).

Like, will we get an explanation why the TARDIS exploded in season 5? Was it because of the Silence controlling it? Or is it something else hacking its really complicated system?

Then, do we get a reason for the astronautish-like footsteps in front of Amelia's house? Or does Moffat save these things for season 7? After all he can't cramp it into a single episode, can he? Well, it's just a day till we find out.

'The Lodger' Part 2

I hope Moffat makes Craig a once-per-season companion. I wouldn't be the one complaining.

Anyway.One of the first things you notice about 'Closing Time', is no, not the Doctor's coat, but that Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill are still in the credits. For a reason, as we find out several minutes and a near-death experience of Bitey the cybermat later. But never mind the two (ex-)'companions', because this time the Doctor has a new 'partner': good old Craig trying to spend a few days without Sophie but Stormageddon/Alfie the baby, alone, without anybody's help, least of all the Doctor's who turns up to say hello, or rather good-bye, however, things do not go exactly according to plan. So, instead of visiting the Alignment of Exedor the Doctor lives an average parent's life for a few days dividing one's time between working in a job (inclusive name badge!), playing the super-hero for one's own and optionally friend's offspring, babysitting, chasing Cybermats and fighting Cybermen and doing the cleaning at home in between.

Something a few fans may complain about is that again, love saved the day. Even though I hope that this is not becoming a re-occurring mantra, the idea of fighting Cybermen with love, literally, is not that cheesy as one might expect. But talking about cheese; I bet Doctor Who merchandise could make a fortune of Bitey, the cybermat. I'd get one for myself, if they didn't need batteries in real life.

But after about 4o minutes the Doctor's, as Moffat wants us to believe, last romp ends and although this episode does really not deserve it, the last scene is again beating the actual story: Doctor River Song is recruited to kill her love, the Doctor. But who does really think this is the season Moffat's contract for Doctor Who ends? Plus, we know there is a Christmas Special on its way (which hopefully does not have the very xmasy title 'The Ultimate Death of the Doctor', or something along that.) I for my part am just curious how Moffat does sort this timey-wimey fix-point-y mess out in 45 minutes only.

The Doctor's Choice

You should never ever begin with the end, but let's make an exception. Mostly because it did not make my eyes water, although I have the feeling that it wanted to. To be honest I'm a bit disappointed by that because in 'School Reunion' I was not too familiar with Sarah Jane's and the Doctor's common past, nevertheless I did not need to to feel the sadness when he said goodbye to her. And now, in spite of knowing all of Amy's and the Doctor's story, that certain sad feeling wasn't there. The reason for this might be that 'The God Complex's ending feels too much as being part of the plan. It seems the Doctor always intended to drop the Ponds there, not this soon, but he prepared the house and Rory's dream car for them, knowing where and when to find them, when needed. Moreover, with two episodes left, it appears unrealistic to believe that this was really the actual end.

Anyway. There is more to write about than the last minutes of yesterday's story; namely the Minotaur. I've seldom come across a better researched Who-story, and one which also uses the additional background information this sophisticatedly. The way Toby Whithouse turns the Minotaur's story into the Doctor's is a picture book exapmle of how to write good drama. Also the Doctor saving Amy by sacrificing her faith in him was genuinely touching. After all, he does need her all the same. Moreover, I'm glad that we did not see the Doctor's room, because it gives us something to speculate about.

What I'm less sure about are a few other loose ends. E.g. what was that fuss about the goldfish? I have the feeling it was never meant to be there. Or is it secretly called Jim? And why didn't Amy tell the Doctor before he left her that she knew about lake Silencio?
Well, maybe it's just Moffat being really clever and trying to confuse us with a few hints regarding the finale. Even though I'm not too sure about that. IMHO whatever happened in the 8Os hotel has not much influence on season 6's closing episodes.

What was in the Doctor's Room?

Well, this is hopefully not THE Question of the universe which could make Silence fall, still, it's a pretty interesting one, even if, admittedly, it may never be (finally and officially) answered. Nevertheless, we do have hints.

First of all, we know that whatever is kept in one's room is resembling their basic fears. Now, as far as the Doctor is concerned, stakes might be high, that going by his record his basic fear is either loneliness or being responsible for something bad or both. Then again, being familiar with how much series love dramatic situations, it may be not too unreasonable to assume that by rescuing Amy (i.e. telling her all the reasons why she should leave him) he made his own fears come true. Moreover this is backed by the fact that he appears to have encountered his worst nightmare many a time, for when looking at it he has an almost 'oh that's the one' look on his face.

Because of these reasons it is possible that door 11 led him into an empty TARDIS, one without Amy and Rory. After all, this is one of the images which can cover both, responsibility and loneliness; responsibility for whatever he had done so that he ended up on his own again, which is usually the stuff Doctor Who finales are made off. Only that this time he used a shortcut. He knows being responsible for something else than their house and Rory's dream car could be much worse.

Maybe, if we get really lucky, one day Moffat will maybe provide us with a definite answer (on his deathbed is a likely option), but till then, only he knows for sure.

Who Facts - The Minotaur

Moffat wants us to spend tomorrow's evening watching 'The God Complex' and one of the characters featuring it is a Minotaur, a creature some of us should be familiar with from... was it history, English or something in between? Anyway. There are a few things about him which may be interesting regarding the episode.

Something most of us do not have difficulties to associate the Minotaur with is his home, the labyrinth in which he was kept, a house with open doors, rooms and endless corridors. So, why does this remind me of the trailer? Furthermore every 9th year, or depending on your source, every year, he demanded a sacrifice, 14 youth, which was the reason for his death.

But there is more. He had a name, Asterion, "the ruler of the stars". This ties in with something the story The House of Asterion deals with. There he compares his home to the universe, thinking that maybe he is its creator and just forgot about it. Additionally, he has a somewhat odd notion to death. To him killing people is a favour he pays to them. As for his own, the story describes his end as the following 'The Minotaur scarcely defended himself.' which may be an intentional or unintentional reference to the opening minutes of 'The Impossible Astronaut', but maybe I'm reading too much into it. Nevertheless, the chances of the Minotaur surviving the next episode are not too high...

Well, it should not be too difficult to write a good episode with such a mythological background. I would be disappointed if Toby Whithouse didn't make use of it.

The Greatest Love Story Gone Timey-Wimey

If Shakespeare had added time-travel to his Romeo & Juliet he could not have written it better than Tom MacRae wrote his 'The Girl Who Waited'.*

Maybe I am repeating myself, but I have seldom seen a comparable emotional episode which was as 'comfortably' cheesy-less as this one. However, I have to admit, that even if this episode is the creation of a genius, am I the only one thinking that Amy asking 'where is she' is not the last scene in the actual script? How can the now-Amy remember that anyway?

But apart from that, thumbs up, after all who can't be in love Amy's and Rory's very own episode?

There are many greatly written moments to chose from, but maybe the most notable thing about this story is how MacRae uses the way the companions see the Doctor as a plot device, something until know only the Big Moff was famous for.

E.g. 'Still, anything beats a fez, eh?' is not only a witty statement, or marks the first time future-Amy laughs in 36 years, but it creates a bond between her and Rory. It brings back all those other memories she and 'her Rory' shared a long time ago, and this may be the moment she starts to give the two of them a second chance.

Another remarkable scene of this kind is Rory's 'You're turning me into you.' which may certainly not be the bit most viewers are going to remember. According to the rules of old-'Who' the companion is not there to criticise the Doctor, even though I know that this also occurred back then. However, in this episode it is the point the story stops belonging to the Doctor and starts being that of Amy and Rory, even though I personally can't imagine the Doctor doing something else in that situation than handing the responsibility of making that choice to Rory. Usually we have the Doctor playing this part, choosing between possibilities and feeling sorry for the outcome because of the situation not offering a perfect solution.

Nevertheless, MacRae develops this idea further, into something we are not unfamiliar with. 'Sometimes knowing your own future is what enables you to change it.' And this is what Amy does, she takes her future into her own hands, even if it means to cease to exist. Well, knowing what happened in 'The Impossible Astronaut' there is obviously more to it than that...

The scene most people do remember, and are never going to forget, is when Amy makes her choice. 'Three Words: "What about Rory?"'. This and begging her husband to keep that door shut, no matter what was my 'Who' moment of this season (up to know), because it is there for only one reason: showing how much she loves him. This Juliet is willing to commit suicide because she knows that after that her Romeo will be able to live happily ever after with the version of the Juliet he should have grown old. Although a part of herself is fighting this idea, in the end she loves him more than herself, what makes her willing to pay the highest price only pure love can pay.

And although I did not have tears in my eyes, I think Shakespeare himself could not have plotted it better than this.
________
*I'm one of those people whose teacher made them read Romeo & Juliet, twice, and I did not really enjoy it. Up to the balcony scene it was ok, but after that I felt like wasting my time...

Moffat's AssignmentX Interview

This is a shortish AssignmentX interview with the Big Moff. Actually, there is not much we would not already know about, expect of two rather interesting statements, and here they are.

On the chances of producing more episodes in the USA:

"If we’ve got a story for it. I mean, that’s all it’s about. It is story-driven, so if we’ve got a really great idea set in America, we’ll do it."

On how much the Doctor changes after each regeneration:

"I think fundamentally it’s the same man. It’s the same man for a very long time, in very different ways."

Moffat on HitFix

Here is another Steven Moffat interview done in August (I know, I am lagging behind a bit), and this time it's HitFix who is doing the enquiry. Here are a few interesting bits, but it's not a mistake to read the whole thing.

On what did Matt Smith do so that Moffat cast him as the Doctor:

"The same performance you see on the show now. I still have it on my laptop. It's the same performance he gives now. He was just brilliant. He was by far the best."

On why the Doctor is able to cross his own timeline and doing other wibbly-wobbly-timey-wimey stuff, he, according to canon, should not be able to do:

"The fact that he says it's a rule doesn't mean he's going to stick to it. "

On writing challengingly complex story archs for a series which is meant for children:

"And if there's something that maybe makes them say, "I didn't quite understand that, Dad, what happened?" and they have a conversation about it, can someone tell me what's wrong with that? "

On his busy schedule for doing Sherlock and Doctor Who at the same time:

""Manageable" is the wrong word. It's "survivable.""

The Big Moff's Sexy Beast Interview

This is a 3-pages long interview Sexy Beast did with The Big Moff in August. And although it is not brand new anymore, there are some interesting topics which are covered. And BTW, you can take the answer to the third question, which is about Doctor Who's budget, as the reason of why the Doctor won't die at lake Silencio.

But there are also a number of other things they talk about. To give you a short overview, her are a few Moffat quotes which should tease you into reading all of it. It's worth it.


On River's story arch:

"The great thing about the River Song conundrum is that every time you get an answer, it makes you ask another question."

On leaving Doctor Who:

"It would be really hard to feel that the Doctor isn’t mine anymore…"

On why the Doctor is always leaving his companions (inclusive Rose) behind:

"In one of the upcoming episodes, he sits in this room and says, “I can’t keep doing this to them.”"

On the art of writing (for) Doctor Who:

"It’s an exercise…in clever exploitation of limitations."

The Scariest Place in the Universe...

'Night Terrors' is the stuff usually Moffat episodes are made off. But only on the surface. It has the the basic fears of children as main topic: night, darkness, monsters (weather in the cupboard or under the bed is not that important), with the only difference that Moffat writes better scripts.

What I really loved about it was the old fashioned creepiness, and come on, you can't do much wrong when setting a story into a giant dolls house occupied by giant, snobbish dolls living on posh wooden food, can you? Yes you can. Am I the only one thinking the solution of letting George's dad save the day was a bit off the track. I'm not saying that parental love is not powerful, but Mark Gatiss could have backed things up more. This way it felt a bit as if he had recycled a few things from other episodes: The relationship between the parents and the child who does not feel to be accepted is clearly inspired by Moffat's very own 'The Empty Child', while George having the power of letting his fears become real has 'Fear Her' written all over it. And then there was the Doctor who is trying to act human-like and fails which was an homage to last year's 'The Lodger' (not to mention the perception filter). Even though I have to admit, that listening to the Doctor mentioning some of the Gallifreyan good-night stories belongs to its best scenes.

To sum up, the story did not turn me into a big Gatiss fan, but neither against him. Some of the dialogues were top, most of them were a rather stupid, but all in all, it could have been worse. Maybe we are just too Moffat-spoilt...

Let's Kill The Doctor

I guess that was the original title of the recent episode, but it would have been too obvious. After all, Moffat's latest masterpiece was not really about Hitler; who spent most of it in a cupboard.

Actually,
'Let's Kill Hitler' is nothing else but a demonstration of what you can do when you are the one and only headwriter of Doctor Who. Nevertheless, this does not save it from coming pretty close to parodying our beloved series, but let's start with something different first.

It's only fair to admit it has its moments and in addition also the certainly most unforgettable quote of this season: 'I was on my way to this gay gypsy bar mitzvah for the disabled when I suddenly thought, ‘Gosh, the Third Reich’s a bit rubbish, I think I’ll kill The Führer.'

But back to those 'moments'. The prequel is certainly one of the most imaginative one we had this season, come on, you can't open a season much more spectacular than letting the Doctor's companions search for him via crop-circles. Not to mention Mel ruining the effect with a sports car... and with the trio, sry, quartet ending up involuntarily saving Hitler from being tortured to death and beyond by the Teselecta, the champions of justice. And that's when things start to be a bit ridiculous. But only a bit, because it gets compensated by Hitler being locked up in the cupboard, the magnificent quote I just mentioned in the foregoing paragraph and Mel proposing to the Doctor just before she dies.... and regenerates. What brings me to the next point on my imaginary list of random things.

Good, Melody is Mel who is River, only that she doesn't know yet. Or throughout the plot of this episode. And while most of us can live with the unrealistic fact that this is the first time the Doctor learns about his companion's childhood friend's existence (her not doing weddings is not a real excuse) the one really amazing thing about this is that nobody, not even Rory or Amy are too surprised by their daughter's let's say timelady qualities. Come on, when did they exactly catch up on their daughter being less human and more timelord, or on regenerations, to start with. And isn't particularly Rory's behaviour a bit odd?

Another thing which is odd is the Tescelecta. Although we don't know much about River Song, going by their records the fact that she is the one who killed the Doctor seems to maker her a bigger criminal than Hitler himself. Isn't that a tiny bit exaggerated? Or am I just failing to switch off my real-life history lessons?

But the biggest issue is certainly the 'Goodness, is killing you going to take all day?'-part. In fact I'm getting used to the Doctor dying about every third episode.
So she does successfully poison him and he dies a rather painful death, but not before finding out that he is not supposed to die then and there, as on the top of it the 22nd April at Lake Silencio seems to be a fix-point in time. And just after the Doctor takes his last breath River decides to save him, by using up all her regenerations left. So goodbye Berlin in WW2 and hello Utah, although, mark my words: the Doctor won't die there either. Even if Moffat has to (re-)reboot the whoniverse to change that silly fix-point. In fact, changing a fix-point in time may turn out to be pretty handy, Moffat could use it to claim that a few things which happened in the last seasons were changed by that. Not as if Moffat really needed to give us explanations.

All in all, this week Moffat proved again to be the master of timey-wimey stuff, especially timey-wimey love stories. And although he promised us answered, it seems there is at least one question remaining open to speculation: just who let Hitler out of the cupboard?

Interview Round-Up Volume 2

This is a Moffat interview by SFX with the eye-caching title 'The Acceptance Interview You Never Read' It does not mention anything new, especially as we've already seen the mid-season final, but it's nice to read how Moffat sees the Whoniverse and the Doctor, like 'his superpower is just that he’s a really good improviser'. Furthermore, it's also lovely that Moffat thinks that Sherlock Holmes is more alien than the Doctor, which is more than just a bit ironic when you think about it.

Then, I guess ATM there are not many Doctor Who blogs which manage not to mention Fright Night. So fulfilling my pleasant duties, here is a Collider interview with David Tennant on guess which topic... He talks about how it was to do a remake of something attracting people who already learnt to love the original (as if he would not have already some experience with that) and other stuff. And here is a 2nd one, this time by Shock Till You Drop (erm, right) and he is answering more or less the same questions but also talks a bit about Doctor Who.

Interview Round-Up

Somehow I forgot to include this into my previous post, so here is a Matt Smith interview by Digital Journal, for the US, and he is talking about season 6 and he also mentions the upcoming episode, 'Let's Kill Hitler', shortly.

Then the 21st century remake of Fright Night had it's premier and this is a short interview with David Tennant on the whatever-coloured carpet.