Story #225 - The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe (2011)

Harry -

Wow, I had almost zero recollection of this story. The only thing I remembered from "The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe" was the Doctor's running "I know!" gag as he presented the guest characters all the wondrous things he'd put together for them in the big empty house of refuge.

Sarah -

I only thing I remembered was that there was a woman with her two children. I imagine it was challenging to follow "A Christmas Carol", which I consider to be the best of the Christmas Specials.

Harry -

This one adhered to the usual formula for the specials, in that there is little to no continuity and these are stand-alone adventures. It opens with a bang, literally. Some explosive scenes on a spaceship have the Doctor running around before he is pitched into space and plummets to the Earth. That's a familiar image.

Sarah -

Moffat has given us so many father stories that it's time for a mother story, I guess. Madge and her children head off to her uncle's country estate for Christmas. The uncle seems to be missing but the caretaker welcomes the family. The Doctor knows that Madge has received a telegram that her husband has died and he turns the estate into a fun house for the children.

Harry -

Cue the "I know!" sequence. The kids seemed interested but less enthused than the Doctor. So he fires up a Christmas tree complete with a mysterious present underneath. Seeing as it's the only box under the tree, little Cyril can't resist opening it up. Inside is a transdimensional gateway to a snowy landscape (but don't say Narnia! maybe they didn't secure the rights). Cyril wanders off and so begins act two.

Sarah - 

Kids are always wandering around and getting lost.

Harry - 

With the Doctor and Lily in pursuit, Cyril finds a stone tower guarded by two living-wood creatures. The wooden king and queen were very well realized.  Watching this again, it reminded me of The Green Knight, which came along a decade later.  The first impulse is to assume they would pose a danger to Cyril, but I enjoyed their slow movements and hoped for the best.

Finding the entire house empty, Madge follows everyone into Don't-Say-Narnia. She encounters someone completely unexpected and so the Moffatty twist arrives.

Sarah - 

Madge has had enough of this situation and will save her children with the "mothership." 

Harry -

I also forgot the blink-and-you-miss-it cameo by Bill Bailey, who had a much more prominent role in Black Books, one of my all-time favourites.  Here he plays one of three crew of said mothership, which is there to deploy acid rain to disintegrate every living tree on Don't-Say-Narnia, before Madge takes control of the situation.

Sarah -

Madge absorbs the life force of the forest, allowing her to direct the top of the lighthouse as an escape pod away from the acid rain and into the time vortex. 

To get them home, the Doctor directs her to think of memories of home, allowing Madge to revisit her fond memories of Reg. The Doctor urges her to continue to show even Reg's death, revealing to Lily and Cyril what happened to their father. The Doctor steps outside while Madge starts to explain Reg's death to Lily and Cyril, but he returns to interrupt her and to tell her to come outside. There stands Reg after he had followed the bright light of the escape pod into the time vortex and came out safely along with the pod at Dorset. The family has a tearful reunion as the Doctor watches.

The family is united and the Doctor is off to Christmas with Amy and Rory, who haven't seen the Doctor in two years. 

Harry -

Nice to see the Ponds again even though they've barely been away from the Doctor's life as we continue along this marathon.

Sarah -

"The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe" is probably the least of the Christmas specials. I didn't remember much of the story but it's not a bad story. 

Harry -

It was okay.  Nothing really stood out.  Bill Bailey seemed wasted in a tiny role, like Olivia Colman.

Sarah - 

Best Line: 

Lily: I don’t understand. Is this place real? Or is it fairyland?

The Doctor: Fairyland? Oh grow up, Lily! Fairyland looks completely different.

Favorite Moment: Cyril and Lily find the Christmas surprise from the Doctor.

Lasting Image: Cyril entering the snowy landscape.

3/10

Harry -

Best Line: "I know!"

Favourite Moment: "I know!"

Lasting Image: the wooden king and queen

5/10

Our marathon continues with Story #226: Asylum of the Daleks...

Story #224 - The Wedding of River Song (2011)

Sarah -

Well, that was a lot. I don't think I've watched it since it first aired and I'm not sure I'll want to watch it again.

Harry -

I concur Sarah. *uncorks a bottle of wine and pours two glasses* Here's to getting through another season on the Sofa. I had another reason for breaking out the vino, but for the moment, Cheers old chum!

Sarah - 

Cheers, Chuck!

Harry - 

The memory plays tricks. The lasting impression I had of The Wedding of River Song was that it was a typically complex and frenetic Moffat mindbender. It was all that to be sure, but I forgot that it was all jammed into 45 minutes, rather than the three hours I had implanted in my mind. It quite literally flew by. Sure, we were still meeting new characters in this one, and revisiting many familiar ones. In the end, maybe I just wasn't invested enough for any of it to matter. This is one of my least favourite seasons of Doctor Who.

Sarah - 

It's all a whirlwind form me. So much happens that I'm still confused. 

Harry - 

However, the Doctor survived. Amy and Rory survived. Their baby survived and married the Doctor. Why not! I say Cheers again old girl!

Sarah -

I'm definitely on the side of everyone surviving. I'm also happy that this isn't River's last story.

Harry - 

Credit to Moff. He pretty much took the several dozen different story strands of this season and managed to pull them all together in the end. From the wild scenes of the season opener in Utah, to the Teselecta, to the meaning of the Silence, to Dorium's demise and Kovarian's comeuppance and all the little bits along the way. Somehow it all got wrapped up. Don't ask me to explain any of it though. More wine?

Sarah - 

Open that second bottle, Harry. Let's sit in the garden with Amy, Rory, and River and remember our times with the Doctor, who is still alive.

Harry -

The scene in the garden where everyone is sipping wine and chilling out is one of my favourites.  Everyone can finally relax.  Leave Trenzalore for another day.

Sarah - 

Best Line: Shut up! I can't let you die, without knowing you are loved. By so many, and so much. And by no one more than me.

Favorite Moment: The somewhat uncomfortable Time Lord wedding ceremony

Lasting Image: A girl and her parents enjoying some wine

5/10

Harry - 

Best Line: 

AMY: So, you and me, we should get a drink some time.

RORY: Okay.

AMY: And married.

RORY: Fine.

Favourite Moment: chilling in the garden with wine.

Lasting Image: I agree with your choice Sarah.

6/10

Our marathon continues with Story #225: The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe...

Story #223 - Closing Time (2011)

Sarah -

Well, that was fun.

Harry -

Rewatching this felt like rediscovering a forgotten gem. Maybe because it was buried deep down the schedule right before the season finale, maybe because it was a “Ponds Lite” story, maybe because it was a different kind of one-off. Whatever the reason it was nice to see this one again.

Sarah -

It’s lovely to see the Ponds but it's heartbreaking when the Doctor has to stay away from them.

Harry -

Good to see that had the Doctor never returned, the Ponds would have done well.

I also remember back when this one was first broadcast, the excitement to see a Cybermat again. Although the Cybermats of the 60s did not have biological mouths and fangs, which was new.

Sarah -

Cybermats are cool!

Matt Smith and James Corden have great chemistry. I love that the Doctor and Craig get to have another adventure and this time with a baby! Alfie, aka Stormageddon, Dark Lord of All, is adorable and an excellent addition to the team.

Harry -

From the awkward social calls to solving the Cyber-mystery, it was a neat little adventure. Meeting Stormageddon seemed to put the Doctor into an introspective mood. Thinking about his age and the passage of time, and the coming silence that is to fall. Matt Smith did "tired" very well.

Sarah - 

I appreciate that the Doctor talks to kids like adults and adults like kids. 

Harry -

So many times we've seen someone's life thrown into chaos or worse when they meet the Doctor. Craig's was certainly thrown into chaos, but he came out of it stronger for it, and with Stormy's newfound approval.

Sarah - 

Babies know what’s what. I’m glad the lads have a deeper understanding after this event. 

Harry -

The coda of the story reminds us that the Doctor's fate is about to finally collide with that of Melody Pond/River Song. The season-long story arc is about to conclude.

Best Line - "I speak baby." An iconic line for sure.

Favourite Moment - The Doctor and Craig investigating at the shoppe.

Lasting Image - Stormageddon!

8/10

Sarah -

Best Line: 

DOCTOR: See, I do come back.

CRAIG: How did you?

DOCTOR: Time machine. But even with time travel, getting glaziers on a Sunday. Tricky.

Favorite Moment: The Doctor in the toys department

Lasting Image: adorbs Stormageddon!

8/10

Our marathon continues with Story #224: The Wedding of River Song...

Story #222 - The God Complex (2011)

Harry -

This one felt like a story of two halves. There was the half I liked, and the half I didn't like.

Great opening set up with a nod to The Shining. The pre-credits sequence shows a disoriented police constable wandering the corridors of a horror hotel. The TARDIS arrives and the team encounter a group of people on edge. Are they victims, prisoners, bait? An array of photos on the walls suggests that the place is a trap. It's a puzzling and disorienting place, the atmosphere heightened by some fantastic camera work, plenty of jarring angles and anxious close ups.

Sarah -

I had completely forgotten this story, so it felt brand new. Every room contains the biggest fear of someone at the hotel, with a minotaur feeding off their faith. The most concerning room was Amy’s, which was not the Weeping Angel, but that she was waiting for the Doctor at the door of her childhood home. Amy had so much faith in the Doctor that he had to break her down to save her. Meanwhile, Rory all his faith in the Doctor and wanted to go home.

Harry -

Oh the obligatory (and foreshadowy) Weeping Angel.

We might as well pivot to the half of the story that I didn't like. That was the minotaur. After being menaced for a few scenes, the group face the big hairy thing, a cousin of the Nimon as pointed out by the Doctor. For a creature that feeds off its victims' faith, I would expect something less earthy and more elevated. A creature of light and spirit. Something shimmery, floating in the air. The minotaur looks like it would prefer to eat people's flesh. So the divergence of the creature from its modus operandi didn't work for me.

Sarah - 

As irritating as the minotaur was, Rita was brilliant! She would be a great companion, until she started saying, “Praise Him.” I quite liked her.

Harry - 

We have also seen previous instances of the Doctor forcing a friend to lose their faith in him - Sarah Jane and Ace come to mind. Seeing it happen to Amy was not all that unique.

I did love the horror hotel though, right down to the ugly carpeting. It was a great set up, but the payoff was disappointing.

David Walliams' Gibbis was an amusing addition to the aliens of the Whoniverse. Meek on the outside, conniving on the inside.

Sarah - 

Walliams irritates me, even when he is in costume.

Harry - 

At the end, the Doctor bids an emotional goodbye to Amy. For the air of permanence they gave this scene, we know it's not really goodbye. Just another weak note to the episode overall.

Sarah -

Watching "The God Complex" the first time, we thought we were saying goodbye forever…but I’m glad we have a little more time. 

Harry -

Best Line:

The Doctor: "This is a cup of tea."

Rita: "Of course, I'm British, it's how we cope with trauma. That and tutting."

Favourite Moment: entering the room with the creepy ventriloquist dummies, an all-too-brief moment

Lasting Image: the portraits on the hotel walls

5/10

Sarah - 

Best Line: 

RITA: Why is it up to you to save us? That's quite a God complex you have there.

Favorite Moment: The final moment when Amy telling Rory the Doctor saved them

Lasting Image: Amy at the door

7/10

Our marathon continues with Story # 223: Closing Time...