Story #212 - The Pandorica Opens / The Big Bang (2010)

Harry -

Steven Moffat brings the Eleventh Doctor's first series to a close with a fantastic two-parter. Right on the heels of "The Lodger", the Doctor, Amy and River investigate another mystery that gets teased out all the way to the part one cliffhanger.

Sarah -

I love "The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang" so much. I can’t think of any NuWho finale that is as fun as this one – and everyone lives!

Harry -

I can't remember a wilder pre-titles sequence than River escaping space prison and traversing time and space to summon the Doctor. It had almost nothing to do with the plot of the ensuring story, but it was quality River time. 

And off they go to Roman Britain.

From there, the story takes its time revealing the mystery at Stonehenge, or rather the Underhenge. Filming there must have been a blast for everyone except the anxious preservationists at English Heritage. Anyway, inside the Underhenge is the Pandorica -- a myth, a legend, a large black square that is slowly coming alive.

As the Pandorica prepares to reveal its secrets, so too does the TARDIS. It takes River back to Amy's house. There, she sees that the Roman Britain that she just left behind was peopled with centurions from a book. The whole scene, in fact, seems to have been assembled from Amy's memories.

Sarah -

Amy’s memories are fueling everything but she still can’t remember Rory. Amy staring at her ring in confusion is heartbreaking.

Harry -

I really liked the slow buildup in part one. Moff took his time peeling back the layers of mystery and yet the episode bounced along quickly. That is not easy to do.

Sarah -

"The Pandorica Opens" is a wild ride – and it’s just getting started. Vincent, Churchill and Bracewell, and Liz 10 all make appearances, but the story is focused on the core characters.

And that includes Rory, making one of the most spectacular returns in Doctor Who history! It’s not really a surprise, but it’s still surprising – if you know what I mean.

Harry -

Rory the Roman was a fantastic reveal. And then the twist: he's actually Rory the Auton. I still remember the moment of horror when his hand popped open. All hell broke loose at once, with the alliance of universal supervillians all ganging up on the Doctor, the TARDIS exploding with River inside, and Amy being shot. Moffat saved it all for the final moments.

Sarah - 

So much happens in such a short time. This is the story where Rory becomes a mythic hero, not just another Mickey. He's a full member of the team from here on out. 

Harry - 

After the Pandorica was sealed with the Doctor inside, it reopens 1,894 years later... with grown up Amy inside. And off we go again as part two gives us a Night at the Museum-style romp. This was so good. All the timey-wimey vortex manipulation that the Doctor did in order to be there for the end of the universe was classic Moffat. 

Normally these "end of the universe" dilemmas have an oversimplified, unsatisfactory resolution, but I was quite satisfied with the simple use of residue from the Pandorica to reboot everything. The Doctor even gives a nice little speech about the power of memory. Sure why not, this story was so much fun I don't dare criticize a thing.

Sarah - 

I could watch the romp over and over! It's so good to see Amelia Pond again. This is early enough in the Matt Smith era that we're not yet over the "I am the Doctor" speeches. 

And we get a wedding surprise when Raggedy Man turns up with his blue box. Amy and Rory spend their wedding night on the TARDIS, which leads to...SPOILERS!

Harry - 

Best Line - I didn't jot one down but honestly everything River says is quotable. She's amazing.

Favourite Moment - Rory revealed as an Auton, it was so mind-blowing.

Lasting Image - River zapping the Doctor's fez.

8/10

Sarah - 

Best Line: "Right then, I have questions, but number one is this. What in the name of sanity have you got on your head?"

Favorite Moment: The epic romp is more than a moment, but I love it so.

Lasting Image: River shooting the fez, for sure!

9/10

Our marathon continues with Story #213: A Christmas Carol...

Story #211 - The Lodger (2010)

Sarah -

Well, that was fun! The Lodger is a welcome moment to catch our breath between the emotions of "Vincent of the Doctor" and the oncoming storm of "The Pandorica Opens".

The Lodger is based on a Doctor Who Magazine comic story featuring the Tenth Doctor and Mickey Smith, and adapted by Gareth Roberts.

Harry -

What a lovely little stand alone tale. A little comedy, a little love story, and well teased-out mystery.

Sarah -

The story begins with the Doctor being dumped out of the TARDIS, which dematerializes with a shouting Amy inside. Nearby, at 79 Aickman Road, Craig and his friend Sophie are planning an evening of pizza, drinks, and telly when she’s called away by a distraught friend.

 

Harry -

Who among us hasn't had many nights of "Pizza Booze Telly" these past couple of pandemic years?

Sarah -

More than we want to admit. Meanwhile, the upstairs neighbor lures a series of passersby into their flat, asking for help. Sophie and Craig discuss a stain on the ceiling, which seems to be coming from upstairs, but don’t take any action.

How cute are Craig and Sophie? They both fancy each other, but neither is able to make the leap. Right on time, the Doctor turns up as Craig’s new roommate, ready to fix everyone’s problems!

Harry -

The Doctor reverses roles with Amy, having to resort to "analogue" technology to avoid alerting the alien presence that threw the TARDIS out of whack, while Amy has all of the TARDIS' technology at her disposal. She wasn't thrilled at the Doctor's repeated hints that the TARDIS might be blown out of all space and time, but at least she didn't have to run any sprints during this adventure. Another great performance by Karen Gillan.

Sarah - 

Gillan is just so good. It’s been great watching her post-Doctor Who career take off. 

Harry - 

Meanwhile, check out the Doctor lighting up the football pitch. And whipping up French cuisine. And starting to turn Sophie's head with his eccentric charm. Watch out Craig, he's stealing your girlfriend! But the Doctor wouldn't do that. He sees there's something between them and tries to help in his own way.

Sarah - 

I love the football scene and the around-the-house moments as the Doctor settles in. Matt Smith is just so exuberant in these scenes. Did you notice the van Gogh postcard on Craig’s refrigerator? That was a nice touch.

Harry - 

Perhaps mailed from Paris by one of Craig's more well-travelled friends.  

Meanwhile, the upstairs neighbour continues to lure people upstairs. I didn't have much recollection of this story so the long-drawn-out reveal was fantastic. At one point I thought it was one monster, then a different monster, and was ultimately blown away by the reveal. Not what I expected at all.

Sarah - 

That was completely unexpected. I had forgotten all the details of the alien storyline. Pity it burned through so many humans before the mystery was solved.

Harry - 

I also loved that this story was a throwback to times when the Doctor didn't wave the sonic around like a magic wand - one of my criticisms of the Moffat era. Here, he required elbow grease and his own two hands to assemble his latest alien-detector doohickey, and he played detective with the help of his cat informant.

Sarah - 

Who knew the cat would save the day. This is such an enjoyable story. Smith and Corden, who were already friends, have great chemistry. The alien menace is dealt with, Craig and Sophie finally express their feelings, and the Doctor is reunited with Amy. 

The Doctor asks Amy to write a note to his past self to direct him to the flat. While searching for a pen, she discovers the box with her engagement ring and opens the box. She’s confused and, meanwhile, a crack develops in Craig’s wall. 

Harry -

We are about to find out just what all those cracks are about.  To the Pandorica!

Sarah - 

Best Line: 

CRAIG: Has anyone ever told you that you're a bit weird?

DOCTOR: They never really stop. 

Favorite Moment: the football game

Lasting Image: The alien-detector doohickey in the Doctor’s bedroom

7/10

Harry -

Best Line: 

CRAIG: I love you!

DOCTOR: Well that's good cos I'm your new lodger.

Favourite Moment: the Doctor pops his head up from behind the sofa during Craig and Sophie's tender moment.  I had to pause the story from laughing so hard.

Lasting Image: the Doctor playing football

7/10

Our marathon continues with Story #212: The Pandorica Opens / The Big Bang...

Story #210 - Vincent and the Doctor (2010)

 

Harry -

I love Doctor Who stories that give me glowing memories, even more so when the story is better on a rewatch years later.

Sarah -

"Vincent and the Doctor" was an immediate fan favorite. I can’t think of any other story that is so beloved in fandom. It’s so compassionate in its portrayal of mental illness.

Harry -

"Vincent and the Doctor" is also an art geek's dream. Even the troubling, unresolved absence of Rory was set aside for now. I was squeeing for 45 minutes.

Sarah -

The Doctor has taken Amy to a Vincent van Gogh exhibit at the Musée d'Orsay to see her favorite artist’s work. Amy is excited to be there and asks the Doctor why he is being so nice to her. While she isn’t consciously aware of Rory’s absence, it weighs on the entire story. The Doctor seems to be trying to keep her distracted with a series of trips and she mentions visiting Arcadia and the Trojan Gardens, before the museum visit.

The Doctor, being the Doctor, is distracted by a menacing face in the window of one of Vincent’s paintings and there’s only one option – a trip to 1890 in the TARDIS to talk to Vincent van Gogh!

Harry -

Only the Doctor could deliver a line like "We need to talk to Vincent van Gogh" and the universal response is "Yes! Let's do it!"

Although it has been a long time since the true historicals of Doctor Who, I'm totally fine with the historical/alien hybrid stories because they almost always throw a well-known person into the mix. The production team created a beautiful "south of France" set in Croatia, including the village lanes and the famous café, setting the stage for our first glimpse of Vincent himself. When he barged out the door I felt the same surge of electricity this time as on the first viewing.

Sarah -

Definitely one of the best entrances in the history of Doctor Who! Before he arrives, everyone is so dismissive of Vincent – “He's drunk, he's mad and he never pays his bills.”

The whole episode looks so good. Who needs the South of France when we have Croatia – and it’s so much more affordable. The crew made it look like a movie – and a van Gogh painting.

Harry –

It was nice to see Amy establish an immediate rapport with a fellow ginger. It helped Vincent get over his initial hostility to the Doctor, gain his and Amy's trust, and bond into an invisible alien hunting team in a matter of minutes.

Sarah -

I was so charmed by Amy and Vincent’s flirting and delighted by how uncomfortable it made the Doctor.

Harry -

The plot of the story was very straightforward, which was great here because it did allow everyone to explore the realities and impacts of mental illness. Only Amy could deliver a line like "I'm sorry you're so sad" and it's not awkward but filled with empathy.

Sarah -

And Vincent sees Amy’s sadness when she’s crying without knowing why. His “It’s all right, I understand,” hit me so hard.

Harry -

I will admit, there was a lot of waterworks activity throughout while watching this story.

There were also moments of humour, as Amy kept popping around a corner and scaring the living daylights out of the Doctor. Those moments were great. Karen Gillan's performance in this episode was so good. Amy stood strong in a field of wounded characters. The Doctor was befuddled and frustrated throughout while Amy kept steering conversations in just the right direction. She and Vincent made a great team and their moments of rapport were so sweet.

Sarah -

I’m developing a whole new appreciation of Karen Gillan’s performance on this rewatch.

Harry -

The alien antagonist turns out to be a frightened, isolated creature to empathise with. The Doctor's alien-finding doohickey discovers that the monster that has been terrorizing the village is a Krafayis, a kind of roostersaurus abandoned on Earth by its pack. Left behind and unable to see, it lashes out in frightened anger. The villagers have no idea what's going on. Only Vincent had some kind of ability to see the creature as no one else could, the same way he could see and paint the movements of the stars as no one else could. His vision resulted in the painting that caught the Doctor's eye in the Musée d'Orsay and launched the story in the opening scene. In this way, writer Richard Curtis suggests that the great artists of history saw things that others did not. Not sure what to think of this proposal.

Sarah -

I have a lot of artists in my life, so I’m comfortable with the idea of artists, especially van Gogh, seeing things we can’t. If anyone in the village was going to understand the Krafayis, it’s Vincent. Like Vincent, it’s lost, misunderstood, and unable to communicate.

The Doctor's alien-finding doohickey allows him to see the Krafayis, which he realizes is blind. It’s making its way around the room and finds the trio by following their faces. Vincent holds up an easel in defense and the Krafayis impales itself on the legs. The Doctor consoles the Krafayis, who was just afraid. Vincent understands the alien, “He was frightened, and he lashed out. Like humans who lash out when they're frightened. Like the villagers who scream at me. Like the children who throw stones at me."

Harry -

Richard Curtis absolutely nailed it with this story.

Sarah - 

It was an immediate classic, beloved by all! With the exception of cranky people who don’t understand emotions.

Harry - 

I loved the scene where the trio lay in a circle gazing at the starry night sky, watching it swirl into the shapes of Vincent's famous painting.

Sarah - 

Iconic!

Harry - 

And then, the Doctor decides to ease some of Vincent's anxieties in a way that only he could, with a trip in the TARDIS.

I remember on first viewing, the scene where the Doctor brought Vincent to the Musée d'Orsay seemed over the top. It was because of the music - the sudden insertion of a modern, Coldplayesque thumper was so jarring at the time. On a rewatch it makes much more sense, imagining what it would be like for Vincent to be thrown into the early 21st century with all of its sights and sounds. He learns - courtesy of Bill Nighy's wonderful performance - that his art has left a lasting legacy to the world. No surprise it would have been overwhelming.

Sarah - 

Taking Vincent to see the future of his work always feels wrong to me, but I’ll give it a pass for the beautiful moment for Vincent. There was not one dry eye in my house. Can we take a moment to appreciate Tony Curran’s amazing performance? I believe him every moment he’s on screen.

Harry - 

Our emotions take a kicking when the Doctor and Amy return to the museum to find that their adventure had not changed the course of Vincent's life. But then they spot the dedication to Amy on the painting of sunflowers. A tiny change to the course of history that neither could find fault with.

Sarah - 

In the end the Doctor can’t rewrite history, but maybe just in one small line. 

Harry - 

Possibly my favourite Eleventh Doctor story of them all, certainly the best story of the season. A weepy joy from start to finish.

Best Line: the Doctor watching Vincent paint the church. "Is this how time normally passes? Really slowly, in the right order?"

Favourite Moment: the three friends gazing at the starry night sky.

Lasting Image: Vincent at the Musée d'Orsay

9/10

Sarah - 

Best Line: You’ve taken my quote, so here’s my second choice: “Sometimes winning, winning is no fun at all.”

Favorite Moment: Vincent at the Musée d'Orsay

Lasting Image: The three of them looking at the starry night sky

9/10

Our marathon continues with Story #211: The Lodger...

Story #209 - The Hungry Earth / Cold Blood (2010)

 

Harry -

Five seasons into New Who, and the Silurians make their first appearance.

Sarah -

After watching "The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood" I immediately wanted to watch "Doctor Who and the Silurians" -- all seven episodes!

Harry -

I always liked the premise of this ancient Earth species, but not how they were written after their debut in the Pertwee era. The Silurians gave writers the opportunity to hold a mirror up to ourselves, depicting humans as the ultimate exploiters who took an entire planet away from its earliest inhabitants. Over time though, the Silurians were turned into just another set of shambling monsters for the Doctor to defeat.

New Who, new opportunity to reset the relationship.

Unfortunately, so much of part one took an awfully long time to get going.

Sarah -

It seems like there should have been more Silurian stories between 1970 and 2010, but "Warriors of the Deep" was the only one. The Moffat years definitely made up for lost time, but we'll get to that later.

I actually liked that the story took its time, giving us a chance to get to know the characters. Mo and Ambrose and their dyslexic son Elliot, Ambrose's father, Tony, and my favorite character of all -- Dr. Nasreen Chaudhry. By the time things begin to happen, I was absolutely invested in their wellbeing.

Harry -

There's definitely more time in a two-parter to get to know everyone. Ambrose's true character came to the fore quickly enough. Anyone who can gather a cache of deadly weapons in a matter of minutes is someone to be suspicious of.

Sarah -

Right? That was unexpected.

Harry -

Nasreen is certainly fascinating because of the question: does she count as one of the Doctor's companions? She met the Doctor, entered the TARDIS and even travelled in the TARDIS. These are some of the basic criteria when it comes to companions. Granted, the TARDIS didn't actually fly, rather it plummeted down a shaft, but it did move from one place to another with the Doctor and Nasreen inside.

Sarah -

I would love to have Nasreen back for some more adventures. Maybe when Amy and Rory are busy doing normal human stuff.

Harry -

"Oh I love a big mining thing," the Doctor says early on, perhaps remembering previous adventures inside big mining things. There were several call backs to the Pertwee era here, not just with the Silurians. The gigantic drill burrowing 21 kilometres to the planet's core was reminiscent of "Inferno". It was also quaint that the entire drilling operation seemed to be operated by fewer than a half dozen people. No expensive crowd shots. Matt Smith going undercover as a cleaning lady might have taken things too far.

Sarah -

Now that you've mentioned it, I'm quite disappointed he did't go undercover as a cleaning lady.

Harry -

Amy getting pulled beneath the ground was full-on horror. It kicked off a series of incidents where once again it looked like things were spinning out of the Doctor's control. He could barely keep all the human characters in one place. Rory kept getting in his face to remind him he was screwing up. The use of the Eleventh Doctor's uptempo theme music was effective here, adding to the "race against time" mood.

Sarah -

That scene was so tense. Even knowing Amy was going to be safe, I still myself at the edge of the sofa, holding my breath. With Amy out of the scene, we get a bit more time with Rory, who still isn't sure about the Doctor. By this point in a new companion's (or companion's companion) time with the Doctor they have usually warmed up to him more than this. Rory still doesn't fully trust the Doctor and it seem reasonable after all he's experienced. I completely understand when he yells at the Doctor,“You should have tried harder.”

Harry -

Thankfully, as he suspected, Mo, Amy and Elliot have not been killed but only taken hostage. This set up a cut to another full-on horror moment. The masked surgeon creeping towards Amy with a giant needle. So simple, yet always effectively terrifying.

Sarah -

That's quite a moment. Fortunately, the Silurians are civilized and reasonable...or are they?

Harry -

Soon enough, we see that the Silurians have good and bad eggs among them. The scary surgeon turns out to be a gentle scientist who has spent centuries quietly researching life on the planet's surface. It's the military Silurians who want to start a war and destroy humanity.

Sarah - 

Silurians and humans have a lot in common, don’t they?

Harry - 

Amid the hostage taking and gun-pointing, the Doctor sees a glorious opportunity for homo sapiens and homo reptilia to negotiate a peace and share the planet. But after a promising start, it all comes undone when the Silurians learn of Ambrose's act of violence against Alaya. The Silurian military goes on a war footing and the peace talks collapse. There's nothing left to do but run.

It's very tragic, especially for Ambrose. One moment of fear condemned her to a lifetime of guilt. Hopefully Elliot grows up to be the best of humanity.

Watching this story as North Americans, can't help but think about the analogy to Indigenous peoples and imperialist settlers, and how humans got it so wrong. We can only try to be the best of humanity going forward.

After the chaotic escape from the mess left below, the story appears headed for a quiet, reflective conclusion. Then Rory dies.

I honestly forgot this happened at the end and it blew my mind. Especially as there was no magic wand solution forthcoming from the Doctor or the sonic screwdriver. Amy losing all memory of him was just awful to watch. 

Sarah - 

I’d almost forgotten the whole Rory dying story arc. It’s heartbreaking that Amy doesn’t know why the Doctor is sad about Rory’s death. We move from heartbreaking to crushing when Amy waves to herself off in the distance and thinks she sees someone else – and then forgets.

Harry - 

I can only imagine the shock and horror that fandom must have experienced between this story and the next one. I'm so eager to find out what happened, let's go to it!

Best Line:

ELLIOT: Have you met monsters before?

DOCTOR: Yeah.

ELLIOT: You scared of them?

DOCTOR: No, they're scared of me.

Favourite Moment: Malohkeh turns out to be friendly. What a relief.

Lasting Image: Restac and her warriors.

7/10

Sarah - 

Best Line: 

"Not got any celery, have you? No. No, not really the climate. Tomatoes, though. You'd do a roaring trade in those."

Favorite Moment: Amy and Rory waving to themselves

Lasting Image: The imprisoned Alaya

7/10

Our marathon continues with Story #210: Vincent and the Doctor...

Story #208 - Amy's Choice (2010)

Harry -
This is a fascinating story, one that reaches deep into Doctor Who's past for source material and invites contemporary viewers to choose which of two options they prefer.

It begins in a village setting, with the Doctor and his friends becoming embroiled in an alien invasion story like something out of the Pertwee era.

It splits into a second narrative, with the Doctor and his friends becoming increasingly suspicious of what they are experiencing, trapped in a TARDIS gone haywire like the early Hartnell era story "The Edge of Destruction".

As our friends bounce back and forth between realities, an enigmatic character appears to goad and taunt them, bringing a whole other element of mystery to the whole thing. This is definitely not your standard base under siege story... or is it?

Sarah -

I couldn’t remember anything about "Amy’s Choice" before this rewatch, so it all felt almost brand-new. I can’t imagine why I didn’t remember it, because I’m a sucker for both alternative-reality and base-under-siege stories -- not to mention it’s a cracking story.

I love Toby Jones as the Dream Lord. Well, to be fair I pretty much love Toby Jones in everything. His menacing contempt for the Doctor was perfect. It was great to watch this story fresh and get to learn the Dream Lord is the manifestation of the darker parts of the Doctor all over again.

Harry -

Big yes to Toby Jones! How many things have we seen him in, and each time he gives a standout performance by crafting a character who goes against everyone else's grain with a smile.

The first time I watched "Amy's Choice", I remember my mind racing at the possibilities. Was the Dream Lord a classic baddie in new form, like the Master or the Valeyard? Could it be the Meddling Monk, or maybe even the Celestial Toymaker?

Sarah -

I love that we have a standard list of classic era characters we want to turn up whenever there’s a mysterious character. They’re bound to turn up eventually.

Harry -
Or at least get a shout out.

Eventually, the Dream Lord was revealed to be a distillation of the Doctor's innermost jerky, condescending darkness, perhaps the worst of them all.

Sarah -
The multiple Doctor story we were never expecting!

Harry -
But long before the resolution, there is the choice. Even before the choice, there is the mystery. I loved how the tension in this story started escalating as soon as the TARDIS team began flipping back and forth between two time periods. Which was real, the initial post-dreaming scene aboard the TARDIS, or the cosy life of Upper Leadworth, complete with pregnant Amy and long-haired Rory?

Sarah -
Can we talk about Rory’s hair or is it best to let it be?

Harry -
Probably best to let it be. Who knows when it might turn up again.

Anyway, it was all a case of psychic pollen getting into the TARDIS works and temporarily infecting everyone aboard. Whew! Got to change those filters regularly. Anyway, Amy made the right choice. Didn't she?

Sarah -
She most certainly did! Let's move on to the next adventure -- I've been looking forward to the story and I do love a two-parter.

Best Quote:

DOCTOR: Oh, way-hey! You've swallowed a planet.
AMY: I'm pregnant.
DOCTOR: You're huge.
AMY: Yeah, I'm pregnant.
DOCTOR: Look at you. When worlds collide.
AMY: Doctor, I'm pregnant.
DOCTOR: Oh, look at you both. Five years later and you haven't changed a bit, apart from age and size.
AMY: Oh, it's good to see you, Doctor.
DOCTOR: Are you pregnant?

Favorite Moment: Amy and Rory reunited with the Doctor

Lasting Image: The Dream Lord in the TARDIS

6/10

Harry -
Best Quote:
AMY: Shall I run and get the manual?
DOCTOR: I threw it in a supernova.
AMY: You threw the manual in a supernova? Why?
DOCTOR: Because I disagreed with it.

Favourite Moment: The "You've swallowed a planet" exchange.

Lasting Image: our three friends napping on the bench. Love a good nap.

6/10

Our marathon continues with Story # 209: The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood...

Story #207 - The Vampires of Venice (2010)

Harry -

Sarah, do you remember all the ballyhooing whenever John Nathan-Turner convinced the BBC to let him shoot a Doctor Who story overseas? Overseas!

After they shot some of "Arc of Infinity" in Amsterdam, JNT set his sights further. He made a pitch for New Orleans, but that got shot down, so he pitched Venice, and that got shot down. Finally he convinced the powers that be to let him shoot "The Two Doctors" in Seville, and the result was a colourful romp set in Spain.

Sarah -

Lanzarote, here we come!

Harry -

Nowadays, great blocks of Doctor Who are filmed even further out and it's just part of the business. David Tennant shot in Italy. Matt Smith in Utah. Jodie Whittaker has gone as far as South Africa. It wasn't until sometime after it first aired that I learned that 'The Vampires of Venice" was shot in Croatia, in a picturesque town on the Adriatic coast. Trogir certainly has the look and feel of Venice.

La Serenissima is where the Doctor has taken Amy and Rory as a make-up/wedding present, having ruined Rory's stag do with a mega-awkward entrance that had me roaring.

Sarah -

That scene is hysterical. Matt Smith’s comedic timing is spot-on. In an attempt to save Rory and Amy’s relationship on the verge of their wedding, The Doctor brings both of them on their own adventure in 1580 Venice. What could go possibly wrong? Well, quite a bit, as one might expect.

Rory’s first trip with the Doctor is a memorable one. I love that Rory, still in his stag party shirt, doesn’t react to the TARDIS the way the Doctor expects. The look of disappointment on his face is classic.

Harry -

Unlike most guests, Rory is decidedly unimpressed with the Doctor's antics, but he's happy to join Amy for the trip.

Sarah -

We discover Venice is under quarantine, which we all relate to these days, where Rosanna Calvierri and her son run a school for young women. I liked the Hammer Horror vibe -- “Pale, creepy girls who don't like sunlight and can't be seen” -- of the school scenes.

Harry -

Ah, Rosanna Calvierri, played by the wonderful Helen McCrory who just recently passed away, so sad to hear. The school for young women is a front for some very Hammer Horror business. The girls are cut off from the outside world, while Senora Calvierri's son Francesco is caught by Amy and Rory in the act of attacking a woman in a very vampiric way. If the title of the story wasn't a giveaway, these early scenes definitely were. The TARDIS team conclude that they have discovered a vampire hive in the centre of Venice and they've got to put a stop to it.

Only, all of that was a red herring of the alien kind. Just when the Doctor thinks he's got things sorted, they begin to unravel. Amy agrees to infiltrate the school so she can investigate up close, only to be unmasked and captured. Rory then rounds on the Doctor as very few companions ever have, accusing him of goading people into risking their lives to impress him. And it turns out the vampire thing was completely wrong. The "vampires" are fugitives from the planet Saturnyne, desperate to save their race by converting humans into hybrids so that their line can continue to propagate. Whew!

Sarah - 

I love that the vampires aren't actually vampires. 

Harry - 

What started as a lighthearted romp gets pretty heavy. There's a lot to unpack here. Rory made a valid point, but ultimately it was Amy's decision to enter the villain's lair. Was it in order to help the people of Venice, or was it to impress the Doctor?

Sarah - 

I would vote for impressing the Doctor. Rory is spot-on in describing what the Doctor does to his companions. 

My favorite scene is when Calvierri and the Doctor face off. She’s definitely got his number:

Calvierri: Where are you from?

Doctor: Gallifrey.

Calvierri: You should be in a museum. Or in a mausoleum.

We also get our first mention of the Silence and more information on the crack from Calvierri: “There were cracks. Some were tiny. Some were as big as the sky. Through some we saw worlds and people, and through others we saw Silence and the end of all things. We fled to an ocean like ours, and the crack snapped shut behind us. Saturnyne was lost.”

While the Doctor understands why she is doing what she is doing, he can’t let her get away with it.

Harry - 

Was the Doctor too hung up on his vampires theory that he completely overlooked the aliens? And when it came time to thwart the Saturnyns' plot, did he not willingly commit an act of genocide, or at least contribute to the annihilation of their race? Whew!

Sarah - 

One wonders if things could have gone differently if Calvierri had remembered who Isabella was. That seems to be the moment when the Doctor decided he can carry the weight of another dead race.

Harry - 

Before we wrap up, I did want to comment on how beautiful this story looked. Trogir-as-Venice was very convincing, presented with some brilliant camera work and interesting angles.

This story was much darker than I remembered, but it was compelling both on the surface and for all the nagging character conflicts beneath.

Sarah - 

I really enjoyed this rewatch. It’s an effective story that moves along quickly. 

Best Line:

Rory! That's a relief. I thought I'd burst out of the wrong cake, again. That reminds me, there's a girl standing outside in a bikini. Could someone let her in and give her a jumper? Lucy? Lovely girl. Diabetic. Now then, Rory. We need to talk about your fiance. She tried to kiss me. Tell you what, though. You're a lucky man. She's a great kisser. Funny how you can say something in your head and it sounds fine.

Favorite Moment: Calvierri and the Doctor face off

Lasting Image: Guido in Rory’s stag party shirt

7/10

Harry -

Best Line:

RORY: What happened, between you and Amy? You said she kissed you.

DOCTOR: Now? You want to do this now?

RORY: I have a right to know. I'm getting married in four hundred and thirty years.

DOCTOR: She was frightened. I was frightened. But we survived, you know, and the relief of it, and so she kissed me.

RORY: And you kissed her back.

DOCTOR: No. I kissed her mouth.

Favourite Moment: Rory's stag party.

Lasting Image: Calvierri exposed as a Saturnyn.

8/10

Our marathon continues with Story #208: Amy's Choice...

Story #206 - The Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone (2010)

Sarah -

I love it when a story turns out to be as good as I remembered!

Harry -

I love it even more when the story turns out better than I remembered!

My overarching memory of the Weeping Angels as a Who monster is that they blew everyone away when they were first introduced in "Blink", then brought diminishing returns to each subsequent appearance. An unfortunate case of overuse. By the time they showed up on the Class season finale I practically yawned.

However, the Angels were fantastic here, in many ways. While they were mysterious and terrifying in "Blink", here we see the Angels upping their villainy by being diabolical, murderous and arrogant. Watching the first Angel attempt to take possession of Amy was scary as hell. The way they violently picked off the military clerics one by one, then used cleric Bob's voicebox to taunt and frighten the Doctor and friends had me seething at them. I don't often seethe at a Who villain. Moffat got me again.

Sarah -

I think the Angels are way scarier in this story than they were in "Blink". In that story, the Doctor describes the Angels as “the only psychopaths in the universe to kill you nicely.” There’s nothing nice about the deaths this time around. They’re utterly terrifying and horribly cruel.

Harry -

For sure, back then the Doctor didn't seem to realize how monstrous the Angels could be. Either that or they have made an attitude adjustment for the worse. In my notes I kept writing the word "morbid" whenever the Angels used cleric Bob's voice to taunt the Doctor. That really got under my skin.

Sarah -

I didn’t realize before now that this was the first story filmed in series five. It’s even more impressive how Matt Smith hit the ground running in this story. And Karen Gillan, OMG, could she be any more spectacular?

And then we have the return of River. I remember how surprised I was when she returned after we saw her die. But more than surprised, I was delighted to have her back.

Harry -

What a return! River got her own mini-episode to kick off this story and it was spectacular. Her laser pistol matched her Louboutins perfectly.

Sarah -

Coordinating your accessories is essential!

Harry -

She was still very much a mysterious character in these days, and continued to tease the Doctor. I loved when he got schooled on the TARDIS parking brake.

Sarah -

I love that moment. Wait until he finds out about the drinks cabinet!

Harry -

Amy looked on in bemusement, wondering aloud if River was the Doctor's wife.

Sarah -

SPOILERS, Mom! Oh, wait, spoilers, Sarah! I expect I’ll find myself watching the timeline from River’s perspective this time around. It will be a whole new story.

Harry -

It is wild when you realize how many spoilers River is holding back. I'd have exploded!

The pregnant pause that followed Amy's question felt long enough to make this a three-part story, but after the fun and games River donned the clerics' military garb and everyone got to work. The task of tracking the solo Weeping Angel that was aboard the crashed ship that everyone followed was straightforward at first. It was when Moffat began to throw twists at everyone that the story really took off.

Right away, Amy was terrorized by the first Angel that used its own image held in her eyes to break loose. Wild stuff. Then the business with killing off the clerics. Finally the terror builds to the frightening realization that all the statues on this planet are "hibernating" Angels.

Sarah -

The realization that the native Aplans had two heads and the statues only have one is chilling. The humans are in the middle of a nest of Angels when the Doctor realizes that the prisoner Angel intentionally crashed the Byzantium to restore the other angels with the ship’s radiation.

I was seriously ready to hide behind the sofa at this point.

Harry -

As if that weren't enough, in part two Moffat dials up some more terror by letting us the viewers see the Angels moving. In Blink, Moffat had established a bond between his characters and the audience that so long as any of us looked at an Angel it would not move. To see them turning and reaching out broke that bond and brought with it a feeling of helplessness that I can't really compare with any other viewing experience.

Sarah -

I love, and dread, those moments in horror stories when you suddenly discover that you don’t know as much as you thought. The rules have been tossed out the window and I found myself completely confused and terrified.

Harry -

A slow-moving chase scene ensues as the Angels close in on the Doctor and friends. It was agonizing to watch Amy struggle through the increasingly weird settings of the ship, eyes pressed shut, as one-by-one the people around her began to disappear. When it seems that Amy's done for and the Doctor is unable to save her, the Angels suddenly turn and run. The far greater menace of the "crack in time" put the Angels to flight.

In the nick of time, it's River who saves Amy by teleporting her to safety.

Song 1

Doctor 0

Sarah - 

In retrospect, it’s emotionally overwhelming to see River rescue Amy -- and no one else knows about their relationship. That really blew me away this time around. Karen Gillan’s performance is amazing in this episode. The clerics being picked off one by one is terrifying, but the dust coming out of her eyes is the most frightening thing in this story. 

Harry - 

I really loved the chaos at the end, with the Doctor barely keeping it together, the Angels plummeting into the crack, and River and Amy safely reunited. What a hell of a story!

Sarah - 

It’s so, so good!

Harry - 

So this crack in time is having a huge impact on the season arc. It is capable of erasing people and events from existence, and the Doctor remains baffled. I'm keen to learn more, let's get off this planet and see where our friends are headed next.

Oh, it's back to Amy's place, and it's a very important date…

Sarah - 

“Oh, did I forget to mention that I’m getting married in the morning?” The first time I watched, I started yelling at my television when Amy way trying to get it on with the Doctor. This time, I knew not to panic.

Harry - 

Best Line:

DOCTOR: Lovely species, the Aplans. We should visit them some time.

AMY: I thought they were all dead?

DOCTOR: So is Virginia Woolf. I'm on her bowling team.

Favourite Moment: River's mini-episode at the opening.

Lasting Image: The Angels moving before our eyes.

7/10

Sarah - 

Best Line: 

DOCTOR: Parked us? We haven't landed.

RIVER: Of course we've landed. I just landed her.

DOCTOR: But, it didn't make the noise.

RIVER: What noise?

DOCTOR: You know, the (wheezing).

RIVER: It's not supposed to make that noise. You leave the brakes on.

Favorite Moment: River’s entrance to the TARDIS.

Lasting Image: Amy rubbing dust out of her eye. 

8/10

Our marathon continues with Story #207: The Vampires of Venice...

Story #205 - Victory of the Daleks (2010)

 

Harry -

Well here we are, arrived at perhaps the first truly divisive story of the Moffat era. Let's get the big debate out of the way. Dorabella: is it a funny name or not?

Sarah -

It’s unexpectedly funny, considering that it was a memory planted by the Daleks. Where do you come down on this pressing issue?

Harry -

It's the kind of name that gets shortened immediately, so the child would probably grow up as either a Dora or a Bella, which is not so bad. But it would not be on my top 10 baby names list.

Apparently there was a bit of fuss over the Daleks in this story too, particularly the New Paradigm Daleks.

Sarah -

A fuss in Doctor Who fandom? Say it isn’t so!

Harry -

Big and brassy, these New Paradigms are a throwback to the colourful Daleks of the Peter Cushing movies. I imagine Steven Moffat had fond memories of those films and gave writer Mark Gatiss the green light to create a version for the New Who era. Watching them emerge from the progenitor chamber was like something at an auto show -- here's the new model for Season Five, in five spectacular colours! I know some people associated with this blog rushed out to buy the entire set.

Sarah -

I’m shocked, shocked! Nah, just kidding, I remember quite well your obsession with the New Paradigm Daleks. They certainly are shiny and festive, which feels a bit surplus to requirements when it comes to taking over the universe, or whatnot.

Harry -

The BBC marketing department must have loved these Daleks, but apparently fanhood at large did not.

Sarah -

I’m a bit of an agnostic when it comes to the NPDs in general, but I’m not a big fan of them in this story. It’s a promising story that gets waylaid by the big reveal of the NPDs. There are way too many long and lingering shots of the Daleks as they emerge from the chamber and assemble to face the Doctor.

Harry -

But the colours. There's a red one!

Sarah -

As much as I love shiny red things, It’s a whole lot of fanwanking, even if much of the fanbase was too busy being angry to notice.

Harry -

Fair enough. There's a strong throwback vibe to the story that goes beyond the paint jobs of the Daleks. For this story, Gatiss also adapted the premise of "The Power of the Daleks" -- where a small group of Daleks insinuate themselves among a group of humans and pretend to be willing servitors, while scheming to regroup and mass produce themselves anew. The "I am your soldier" line is an almost identical quote from the 1960s story.

Sarah -

I love the throwback to Power of the Daleks, which has been gloriously animated since this episode first aired. Victory of the Daleks is about as Mark Gatiss as Doctor Who can be; he does love the celebrity historial. The Eleventh Doctor’s reaction to the Daleks is exactly the same as the Second and Ninth Doctors when everyone else thinks they’re harmless -- and I’m totally here for that. I love the look of Ironside Daleks and the To Victory propaganda poster, which I was so excited to buy at Chicago TARDIS in 2010. It still hangs in my kitchen.

Harry -

Another win for the BBC marketing department!

Sarah -

Take all my money!

Harry -

Setting aside all the Dalek hooplah, there is indeed a huge celebrity involved in this story, and it's Winston Churchill -- or rather the idealized Winston Churchill to whom British pop culture and favourable historians have given enduring life. While the actual Churchill has become a problematic hero in modern times, here he is portrayed in almost comic book terms. Big, bombastic and heroic. The Winston Churchill we'd love to embrace I think.

Sarah -

In the end all humans are problematic, why should historical figures be any different? He was the big, bombastic, heroic figure that led Britain through the war, with all the biases of his gender, race, and class that we now abhor. Ian McNeice’s performance certainly plays to the wartime hero angle of his persona.

Harry -

Who couldn't relate to Amy's excitement at meeting the hero of World War Two? He's got a war to win and he will seize every advantage, including Bracewell's Ironsides much to the Doctor's dismay. Which is where the Doctor's fantastic, Troughtonesque and Ecclestonesque tirades come into play.

Sarah -

One of my favorite aspects of the story was the Ironside Daleks using Churchill to get the Doctor to London so they could get the Doctor to testify that they were, in fact, Daleks. Even if they were inferior to the NPDs. Now, that’s what I call playing the long game.

Harry -

The story skips along at such a pace that the conflict between the Doctor and Churchill is barely given any space. I wonder if this story might have been better off as a two-parter. Back in the day, "The Power of the Daleks" was an all-out six parter which allowed for the Doctor's suspicions to be more fully fleshed out.

Sarah -

I can’t help but think it would be a stronger story if it were a two-parter or if some of the NPD screen time was given to the Doctor-Churchill conflict. Even the inter-Dalek conflict and extermination of the “inferior” Daleks feels rushed after all the time spent showing us the shiny new Daleks.

Harry -

At least we got that one great scene where the Doctor goes apeshit on one Dalek before everything kicks into gear. Cue the space-bubble spitfires for a rousing outer space dogfight!

Sarah -

I did roll my eyes a bit, but it made as much sense as anything else and how else were they going to get rid of the Daleks?

Harry -

Gatiss must have loved scripting all that RAF banter. After the Dalek ship is given a proper thrashing (hurrah!), we arrive at the final crisis. The Daleks reveal that Bracewell is a bomb. As in "The Beast Below" the Doctor tries and fails to save the day. It falls upon Amy to talk Bracewell into deactivating himself, convincing the machine that it is human and incapable of mass murder.

Pond 2

Doctor 0

Sarah - 

Good decision to keep Pond around!

Harry - 

The one thing that really didn't make sense was that once Bracewell's trigger was deactivated, the Doctor and Amy let the robot pack up and leave the Cabinet War Rooms, presumably to head to a life undercover, or perhaps to Scotland to seek out the mythical Dorabella. Presumably that means an inactive Dalek robot is still out there wandering the British Isles. Certainly a better fate than blowing one's self up. Maybe he got into Morris dancing, or Scottish independence. Who knows, eh!

Sarah - 

Bill Paterson is so lovely as Bracewell that I don’t even mind the Doctor and Amy giving him another chance at life. What does worry me is Amy not remembering the Daleks and that crack in the wall. 

As an aside, If you’ve not been, I recommend a visit to the Cabinet War Rooms next time you’re in London. The way things are going pandemic-wise, that will probably sometime around 2030. 

Harry - 

Best Line: after the Daleks call the Doctor's jammy dodger bluff: "I was promised tea!"

Favourite Moment: the New Paradigm Daleks reveal.

Lasting Image: those colourful Daleks!  I'm looking at one as I type this.

7/10

Sarah - 

Best Line:

Amy: "What, so you mean I've got to stay safe down here in the middle of the London Blitz?"

Doctor: "Safe as it gets around me."

Favorite Moment: the Doctor in the elevator with Churchill, waving the cigar smoke away.

Lasting Image: the poster! I’m looking at it as I type this. 

7/10

Our marathon continues with Story #206: The Time of Angels / Flesh and Stone...

Story #204 - The Beast Below (2010)

Harry -

I think, Sarah, when we started our marathon rewatch of Doctor Who in its televised entirety, we aimed all our focus on the classic era and left the Matt Smith era alone for these past ten years.

Having watched his first two stories, I wish we hadn't done that. They have both been so good!

Sarah -

I like that we have a bit of distance on the Matt Smith era, it's helping me bring a fresh perspective. But I have to disagree on "The Beast Below". It didn't hold up for me and I have a feeling it could end of being the low point of the series. Turns out Steven Moffat agrees with me. In an interview for the 50th anniversary he was asked for his favorite and least favorite episodes so far:"The Beast Below…it was quite a mess…it was all over the place…” 

I have to agree.

Harry -

You came armed with a link! Feeling outgunned here, but I will say what I liked about the story. Amy wastes no time showing she's got the chops to be a great companion. She successfully investigates on her own, she shows empathy where the Doctor is prepared to give none, and she follows his earlier advice to keep her eyes open for details, which leads her to resolve the story's main mystery.

Sarah -

Sorry, I didn't mean to get all librarian. I remembered Moffat's comment from 2013 and was almost surprised to find the reference.

Harry -

Moffat's Scottish roots provided for some lighter moments of dialogue between Amy and the Doctor.

The Orwellian society aboard Starship UK offered an irresistible dilemma for the Doctor to wade into, despite all his high and mighty talk of never interfering. The entire story was dripping with allegory. The smilers were very unsettling, and downright horrifying when they stood up to attack; a good example of Moffat turning something unexpected into an object of terror.

Where did it go south for you, Sarah?

Sarah -

Almost from the beginning. The story feels very thin, but maybe that's ok. Amy gets to have her first adventure in the future, where she's more than 1,000 years old, and does all the resourceful things a companion gets to do. The Doctor is ready to send her home, but realizes that she sees the things he misses, so Amy gets to stay in the TARDIS.

Harry -

Moffat's look at a future UK society was a bit uneven. He predicts, and this one is a surer bet with each passing year, that the Scots will choose their own course and strike out on their own. He's bang-on about the impulse that most people have to look away and pretend they see nothing when someone is in distress.

Sarah - 

It does feel prescient, doesn’ it? Brexit in Space!

Harry - 

I wasn't sure about Liz 10 though. Not the character herself, because she was well performed by Sophie Okonedo. It's the notion that even a thousand years from now, the English will still be clinging to their monarchy, and an increasingly impotent one at that. The shadowy figures behind the scenes (future bureaucrats?) are the ones who know all the secrets and keep things running.

Sarah - 

I wish Okonedo was given more to do, but one doesn’t expect much from the monarchy, so it might be appropriate.

Harry - 

So we get to the big moral horror of the story. The Doctor has been teasing it by playing around with glasses of water, then we get a big clue when he and Amy get shot down a conduit into a stinking, slime-filled chamber. Once the requisite characters are assembled down below, the beast upon whose back the UK is travelling is acknowledged. The great secret of Starship UK is revealed and it's not pleasant. A starwhale, the last of its kind, has been harnessed and for some stupid reason is being tortured as it conveys the UK through space. The Doctor wants to lobotomize the beast so it will continue on while brain-dead. It's up to Amy to observe that the creature has only friendly intentions and there's no need to torture or destroy its mind.

Pond 1

Doctor 0

Funny that Moffat would pan this story, after spending a lifetime dreaming what he would do and the stories he would tell as Doctor Who's showrunner.

Sarah - 

Imagine finally getting the job you wanted since you were eight-year-old -- I wouldn’t know what to do with myself!

Harry -

Very true.

Sarah -

Maybe I should have given this another watch, but I didn’t and I don’t feel like I have much more to say. I’m ready to find out what’s up with Winston Churchill. Shall we? 

Harry - 

Our first Matt Smith historical, let us go forward together!

Sarah -

Best Line: 

"Oh, I'm way worse than Scottish."

Favorite Moment: Amy discovering she’s 1306 years old. 

Lasting Image: The Smilers are so creepy.

6/10

Harry -

Best Line:

"You look human."

"You look Time Lord."

Favourite Moment: Amy out-thinking the Doctor and saving the starwhale.

Lasting Image: Smilers for sure.

7/10

Our marathon continues with Story #205: Victory of the Daleks...