2012 has been a big enough year for Doctor Who. We've had the departure of the Ponds, the dawn of a new companion, the return of River Song, prequels, and much more.
The Ponds
We first heard the news that Amy and Rory would be leaving late last year. There was massive speculation as to how they would leave until it was announced that their final story would feature the Weeping Angels. At that point, most of the rumors turned to them being displaced back in time. The rumors turned out to be true, but with the twist of them jumping off a building first. I think no amount of rumors or time could have prepared us for the ending. If you didn't cry, you're not human.
The New Companion
The rumors of the new companion started out around January with rumors that Sofia Myles would play the new companion. Moffat was apparently trying to mislead us, as it turned out the new companion was to be played by Jenna-Louise Coleman. After that, there were no official announcements about her, only filming reports that seemed to indicate her name was Clara. The next we heard of her was her appearance in Asylum of the Daleks, which turned out to be the best-kept secret in all of Doctor Who since David Tennant's appearance in Series 7.2. After that, rumors were flying left and right about her character Oswin Oswald and whether she was the same character that would appear at Christmas. There were also rumors of Clara being a ghost, based on filming reports of the Doctor saying he's going to find Clara at the funeral scene and reports that Clara would die in the Christmas Special. When at long last the Christmas Special came, it raised more questions than it answered. Instead of us asking why there were two women who looked so much alike at different points in time, we're now asking why there are three and why they all have the same name. Not only that, but we're also asking why two of them died and whether she's going to die in every episode (as some fans have speculated).
River Song
River Song's appearance in The Angels Take Manhattan was a nice addition to the episode. The Ponds' last episode really wouldn't have worked without their daughter present. The episode wouldn't have been as heartbreaking if she wasn't there losing her parents. Also, I liked the touch of the same monster being present when Amy met River for the first and last times. Then there was the part where River had been pardoned. You could see the look on the Doctor's face when he heard this and realized that she was now free to roam the universe and would eventually find her way to the Library.
Prequels
2012 marked the return of the prequels. We started out with the excellent five-part Pond Life in August, written by Chris Chibnall. It's arguably the best television short story Doctor Who has ever attempted. Prequel to Asylum of the Daleks provided essential backstory to the episode, unlike Prequel to A Town Called Mercy and most of the prequels from Series 6, which either were unnecessary scenes or contained information already in the episode. The Great Detective and Vastra Investigates serve to set the tone of the characters in The Snowmen, with the Doctor being retired and Vastra, Jenny, & Strax assisting Scotland Yard.
Monday, December 31, 2012
Saturday, December 29, 2012
The Snowmen Review
The Snowmen may just be my favorite Christmas Special yet, although The End of Time gives it a real run for its money.
The meeting of Clara and the Doctor was very innocent, much more so than most other companions' first meetings with the Doctor. After their initial conversation about the snowman outside the bar, Clara could have easily just gone back inside and not ever seen the Doctor again. Most people would have thought nothing of a conversation like the one she had with the Doctor, but not her. Her curiosity was too strong to be put down by the simple conversation they had. She wasn't content not knowing how that snowman got there and what this mysterious man's name was. It really speaks volumes about her curiosity and strong will.
The new TARDIS interior is awesome. It's circular again like Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant's TARDIS, only it's cylindrical instead of domed. Also, they've taken the long-standing up-and-downy thingy and replaced it with a spinny thingy. I'm not sure what I think of the spinning movement, but I'm willing to let them try it out and see how awesome or not awesome it is. There ought to be some special function of the TARDIS that causes the writing on the central column to light up with the same greenish light that's coming up from around the bottom. I'm don't know what that function would be, other than that it's some new function we haven't seen yet. There's more hexagons on the new interior, which always remind me of the classic series interior, except those were circles.
The new opening credits amazed and delighted me. I was afraid that they would be too much classic series and not enough new series. Thankfully, they still had the TARDIS flying around, which is the main thing that separates classic from new intros (except Sylvester McCoy's intro). The music has many elements from the classic series, borrowing from many different Doctors. Also, who can forget Matt Smith's face embedded in the nebula? I like how his face was part of the nebula, rather than a completely separate element from the background like in the classic series. I cannot wait to see how the opening credits look next November with several different Doctor's faces (although they may only do Matt Smith's, as he's the primary Doctor) and the names of a dozen different actors and actresses flying through there.
All of the actors and actresses did a spot-on job. All their roles were very believable, nothing was boring or old, and there was just the right amount of humor. I only wish we had seen more of Dr. Simeon and Capt. Latimer. I was kinda looking forward to seeing what role Captain Latimer played in the episode, and was rather disappointed that we didn't see much of him or Doctor Simeon. The main focus of the episode seemed to be on the Doctor and Clara, which it should be seeing as they're the main characters, but there should be just a little bit more attention paid to the other characters, as well.
The meeting of Clara and the Doctor was very innocent, much more so than most other companions' first meetings with the Doctor. After their initial conversation about the snowman outside the bar, Clara could have easily just gone back inside and not ever seen the Doctor again. Most people would have thought nothing of a conversation like the one she had with the Doctor, but not her. Her curiosity was too strong to be put down by the simple conversation they had. She wasn't content not knowing how that snowman got there and what this mysterious man's name was. It really speaks volumes about her curiosity and strong will.
The new TARDIS interior is awesome. It's circular again like Christopher Eccleston and David Tennant's TARDIS, only it's cylindrical instead of domed. Also, they've taken the long-standing up-and-downy thingy and replaced it with a spinny thingy. I'm not sure what I think of the spinning movement, but I'm willing to let them try it out and see how awesome or not awesome it is. There ought to be some special function of the TARDIS that causes the writing on the central column to light up with the same greenish light that's coming up from around the bottom. I'm don't know what that function would be, other than that it's some new function we haven't seen yet. There's more hexagons on the new interior, which always remind me of the classic series interior, except those were circles.
The new opening credits amazed and delighted me. I was afraid that they would be too much classic series and not enough new series. Thankfully, they still had the TARDIS flying around, which is the main thing that separates classic from new intros (except Sylvester McCoy's intro). The music has many elements from the classic series, borrowing from many different Doctors. Also, who can forget Matt Smith's face embedded in the nebula? I like how his face was part of the nebula, rather than a completely separate element from the background like in the classic series. I cannot wait to see how the opening credits look next November with several different Doctor's faces (although they may only do Matt Smith's, as he's the primary Doctor) and the names of a dozen different actors and actresses flying through there.
All of the actors and actresses did a spot-on job. All their roles were very believable, nothing was boring or old, and there was just the right amount of humor. I only wish we had seen more of Dr. Simeon and Capt. Latimer. I was kinda looking forward to seeing what role Captain Latimer played in the episode, and was rather disappointed that we didn't see much of him or Doctor Simeon. The main focus of the episode seemed to be on the Doctor and Clara, which it should be seeing as they're the main characters, but there should be just a little bit more attention paid to the other characters, as well.
Friday, December 28, 2012
BBC One "Love 2013" Trailer
Trailer for new BBC One episodes next year, featuring some new footage of Matt & Jenna.
Matt and Jenna Inteview Each Other
Short little video from the BBC. Find out something interesting about Jenna!
Thursday, December 27, 2012
Ultimate Jenna Theory - Revision 1
This is basically a theory that's been floating around on the internet for a while, but is now confirmed by The Snowmen.
What we know:
In the theory, Clara is somehow splintered through time, like Scaroth in the Tom Baker episode, City of Death (available on Netflix if you want to reference it). Scaroth was splintered in time due to an accident on a spaceship. What's unclear is if Clara was splintered sometime during her lifetime, or if all of her incarnations were born separately. Neither of her incarnations that we've seen so far appear to be aware of the others, unlike Scaroth, who would slip into unconsciousness and wake up in another splinter of himself. Also if she was splintered during her lifetime, where/when is the original and have we met her already/will we ever?
<speculation>
I like the theory that Clara is Captain Jack's daughter. Perhaps some of the time energy that caused him to be a fixed point in time and space went into her, and she's slightly less fixed. Any time she dies, another version of her crops up somewhere else in history. Time then proceeds to rewrite so that new version has its own life and memories. Both her and Jack can be killed, but they won't stay dead for long. Jack comes back as his own self in his own body, but due to the time energy being more diluted in Clara, she comes back at a random point in human history with a new past.
This might also be the work of the White Guardian. He appeared to have influence in The End of Time, transporting the Doctor's mom in and out of the time lock so she could save his life. The White Guardian needs the Doctor to survive until a certain point in his future, so he intervened to save the Doctor there. The White Guardian created Oswin to save the Doctor at the Asylum. When the Doctor became a recluse after the events of The Angels Take Manhattan, the White Guardian needed the Doctor to keep going as he was before, so he created a different version of Oswin to motivate the Doctor to continue to travel the universe. He knew the Doctor would notice the similarities and go off to find another version of her. The White Guardian basically used Clara to keep the Doctor on track to a certain point in his future.
The previous theory also integrates nicely with the whole thing with The Question. Perhaps the thing that the Doctor's name unleashes is only bad in the eyes of the Silence and the Doctor and is actually needed by the universe. Alternately, maybe it is something terrible and evil and Clara was created by the Black Guardian instead of the White. The Black Guardian would want the Doctor to unleash whatever terrible thing his name unleashes.
</speculation>
Whatever the explanation, we're probably not going to get much further information until episode 7 airs in April. We might get a tiny glimmer of information in any new trailers they release, but those probably won't come out until February at the earliest, more likely March.
What we know:
- Oswin and Clara have the same physical appearance and voice
- They are around the same age
- They both had the same last words, said to the Doctor, "run you clever boy, and remember"
- They both (seemingly) had the same name, Clara Oswin Oswald
- They both died shortly after meeting the Doctor
- Christmas Special Clara and spring series Clara are both governesses (filming spoiler confirmed by multiple blogs)
In the theory, Clara is somehow splintered through time, like Scaroth in the Tom Baker episode, City of Death (available on Netflix if you want to reference it). Scaroth was splintered in time due to an accident on a spaceship. What's unclear is if Clara was splintered sometime during her lifetime, or if all of her incarnations were born separately. Neither of her incarnations that we've seen so far appear to be aware of the others, unlike Scaroth, who would slip into unconsciousness and wake up in another splinter of himself. Also if she was splintered during her lifetime, where/when is the original and have we met her already/will we ever?
<speculation>
I like the theory that Clara is Captain Jack's daughter. Perhaps some of the time energy that caused him to be a fixed point in time and space went into her, and she's slightly less fixed. Any time she dies, another version of her crops up somewhere else in history. Time then proceeds to rewrite so that new version has its own life and memories. Both her and Jack can be killed, but they won't stay dead for long. Jack comes back as his own self in his own body, but due to the time energy being more diluted in Clara, she comes back at a random point in human history with a new past.
This might also be the work of the White Guardian. He appeared to have influence in The End of Time, transporting the Doctor's mom in and out of the time lock so she could save his life. The White Guardian needs the Doctor to survive until a certain point in his future, so he intervened to save the Doctor there. The White Guardian created Oswin to save the Doctor at the Asylum. When the Doctor became a recluse after the events of The Angels Take Manhattan, the White Guardian needed the Doctor to keep going as he was before, so he created a different version of Oswin to motivate the Doctor to continue to travel the universe. He knew the Doctor would notice the similarities and go off to find another version of her. The White Guardian basically used Clara to keep the Doctor on track to a certain point in his future.
The previous theory also integrates nicely with the whole thing with The Question. Perhaps the thing that the Doctor's name unleashes is only bad in the eyes of the Silence and the Doctor and is actually needed by the universe. Alternately, maybe it is something terrible and evil and Clara was created by the Black Guardian instead of the White. The Black Guardian would want the Doctor to unleash whatever terrible thing his name unleashes.
</speculation>
Whatever the explanation, we're probably not going to get much further information until episode 7 airs in April. We might get a tiny glimmer of information in any new trailers they release, but those probably won't come out until February at the earliest, more likely March.
Wednesday, December 26, 2012
Doctor Who Magazine Issue 456
Issue number 456 of Doctor Who Magazine is due to be released on January 10th at £4.75 (or £4.50, my sources are conflicting).
The Snowmen is Available on iTunes
For some reason it's only showing up on my iPhone and not my Mac or iPod touch, so it's really weird.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/tv-season/doctor-who-the-snowmen/id583644226
https://itunes.apple.com/us/tv-season/doctor-who-the-snowmen/id583644226
Tuesday, December 25, 2012
Monday, December 24, 2012
Air Times for The Snowmen
The following is a list of air times for The Snowmen across the globe.
December 25th
December 25th
- 5:15pm on BBC One (UK)
- 9:00pm on BBC America (USA)
- 9:00pm on Space (Canada)
Clara Meets the Doctor
The following video clip of Clara meeting the Doctor for the first time was aired on BBC Breakfast this morning.
Clara Meets the Doctor by WhyRuntotheTARDIS
Clara Meets the Doctor by WhyRuntotheTARDIS
Jenna-Louise Coleman on BBC Breakfast
Jenna-Louise Coleman made an appearance on BBC Breakfast this morning, talking about her role as the companion. She made a hint that there may be more than one Clara on Series 7, referencing "the Clara we meet in the Christmas Special". This may lend credence to the Scaroth theory that Clara is somehow splintered through time and there's different versions of her at different points in history.
Matt and Jenna Introduce The Snowmen
The BBC has released the usual introduction for the episode online.
Countdown to Christmas - The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe Review
The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe is perhaps the more Christmasy of the Matt Smith Christmas Specials. It has all the elements of a Christmas story: life, family togetherness, goodwill, love, and even a winter wonderland. The sentient Christmas tree forest whispering to itself has a rather magical feel to it, the sort of feel any good Christmas story should produce.
There's a very interesting parallel in the story. I've never read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, so I'm not sure how much of it comes from there, but both the Arwells and the forest are evacuating from things falling from the sky. Madge, Lily, and Cyril and evacuating the city to escape from the bombing, and the forest is evacuating the planet to escape from the acid rain. I'm not sure if this is supposed to have any meaning, but it is a very nice bit of subtlety.
The episode also contains a very nice reference to the classic series. The three people in the harvester were from the planet Androzani Major, while the events of The Caves of Androzani took place on the planet Androzani Minor. These two planets constitute a dual planet system, where they orbit each other around their mutual center of mass while simultaneously orbiting around their sun (much like the Earth and the Moon). It is never actually stated what planet The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe takes place on, but the trees there are Androzani trees, suggesting they were imported for harvesting from Androzani Major/Minor.
There's a very interesting parallel in the story. I've never read The Lion, the Witch, and the Wardrobe, so I'm not sure how much of it comes from there, but both the Arwells and the forest are evacuating from things falling from the sky. Madge, Lily, and Cyril and evacuating the city to escape from the bombing, and the forest is evacuating the planet to escape from the acid rain. I'm not sure if this is supposed to have any meaning, but it is a very nice bit of subtlety.
The episode also contains a very nice reference to the classic series. The three people in the harvester were from the planet Androzani Major, while the events of The Caves of Androzani took place on the planet Androzani Minor. These two planets constitute a dual planet system, where they orbit each other around their mutual center of mass while simultaneously orbiting around their sun (much like the Earth and the Moon). It is never actually stated what planet The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe takes place on, but the trees there are Androzani trees, suggesting they were imported for harvesting from Androzani Major/Minor.
Sunday, December 23, 2012
Teaser Clip from The Snowmen
For Day 23 of the Adventure Calendar, the BBC has released another teaser clip from The Snowmen.
Countdown to Christmas - A Christmas Carol Review
A Christmas Carol marks the beginning of the Steven Moffat Christmas Specials. I don't like his Christmas Specials as much as Davies' due to the fact that he bases them off existing Christmas tales. For most shows, that would have the effect of creating a very Christmasy story, but with Doctor Who, that doesn't really happen. The stories are too sci-fi to retain most of their Christmasy feel. I also feel that Doctor Who is a strong enough show to not have to steal plots from other writers.
Putting aside the discrimination and moving on to the actual merits of the show, A Christmas Carol is a very good romp that puts aside all the story arcs and continuity and just lets you enjoy the show. We had just gotten off a very arc-intensive season, and before going into another season with an even more complex story arc, we get to sit back and relax with this episode. There's no mention of any of the events of the previous season, no hints of the next, no story arcs or continuity whatsoever. The viewer doesn't have to worry about that they can just enjoy the episode without having to think about it.
I feel like having Abigail turn out to be terminally ill was a brilliant idea by Steven Moffat. The Doctor is lead to believe that his efforts have failed and that Kazran still grew up to be a bitter old man, when he was actually saving the love of his life. The Doctor becomes ever more desperate trying to save Amy and Rory, while Kazran continually dismisses them. It is only when he realizes how much like his father he is that Kazran agrees to let Abigail die so that the starliner can land safely. It kind of shows how powerful the force of love is, and that it can prevail over even the Christmas spirit. It's only his fear of himself that allows Kazran to overcome his love and save the people on the starliner.
Putting aside the discrimination and moving on to the actual merits of the show, A Christmas Carol is a very good romp that puts aside all the story arcs and continuity and just lets you enjoy the show. We had just gotten off a very arc-intensive season, and before going into another season with an even more complex story arc, we get to sit back and relax with this episode. There's no mention of any of the events of the previous season, no hints of the next, no story arcs or continuity whatsoever. The viewer doesn't have to worry about that they can just enjoy the episode without having to think about it.
I feel like having Abigail turn out to be terminally ill was a brilliant idea by Steven Moffat. The Doctor is lead to believe that his efforts have failed and that Kazran still grew up to be a bitter old man, when he was actually saving the love of his life. The Doctor becomes ever more desperate trying to save Amy and Rory, while Kazran continually dismisses them. It is only when he realizes how much like his father he is that Kazran agrees to let Abigail die so that the starliner can land safely. It kind of shows how powerful the force of love is, and that it can prevail over even the Christmas spirit. It's only his fear of himself that allows Kazran to overcome his love and save the people on the starliner.
Saturday, December 22, 2012
Clip From The Graham Norton Show
There was a clip from The Snowmen on The Graham Norton Show the other night.
The Snowmen Doctor Who Clip by doctorwho-tv
The Snowmen Doctor Who Clip by doctorwho-tv
BBC America Sneak Peak of The Snowmen
BBC America has released a sneak peak of The Snowmen, including interviews with the cast and Steven Moffat.
New Preview Clip From The Snowmen
For Day 22 of the Adventure Calendar, the BBC has released another clip from The Snowmen.
Countdown to Christmas - The End of Time Review
The End of Time is one of my top four Doctor Who stories of all time. It has it all: the Master, the Time Lords, the Time War, Daleks, Torchwood, the Ood, regeneration, Gallifrey, Wilf, Donna, Sylvia, Rose, Jackie, Martha, Mickey, Captain Jack, a possible explanation for the Series 5 story arc, and even Midshipman Alonso Frame. It's about as epic as it gets.
The story couldn't possibly get any more epic. It starts out with an epic enough villain, the Master. In the final seconds of part one, and even more epic part is revealed: the involvement of the Time Lords. After over four and half years of wondering, we finally get to find out how the Time War ended and why the Doctor was the only Time Lord to survive. It was hinted as far back as The Sound of Drums that the Doctor was the one who ended the war, but now we find that out for sure. We finally learn why the war ended the way it did, and of course it doesn't get any more epic than saving every other lifeform in the multiverse. And then, to top off all that epicness, we get to peak at all the companions so far in the new series.
The Doctor knows from the beginning that the Master is important in the destruction of time that the Ood foresaw. His first thought is to find the Master and keep close to him whatever happens. This isn't just because he knows that the events of the episode center around the Master. The Doctor has already become the last Time Lord three times, and he doesn't want it to happen a fourth time, he wants to protect the Master. He may or may not have homosexual feelings for the Master, he just hates the feeling of becoming the last member of his species. Despite his attempts to save the Master, in the end, he is let down. He even thinks he's saved himself from his fate, but he's let down from that as well. He's more let down in this episode than he ever has been in his entire life.
The story couldn't possibly get any more epic. It starts out with an epic enough villain, the Master. In the final seconds of part one, and even more epic part is revealed: the involvement of the Time Lords. After over four and half years of wondering, we finally get to find out how the Time War ended and why the Doctor was the only Time Lord to survive. It was hinted as far back as The Sound of Drums that the Doctor was the one who ended the war, but now we find that out for sure. We finally learn why the war ended the way it did, and of course it doesn't get any more epic than saving every other lifeform in the multiverse. And then, to top off all that epicness, we get to peak at all the companions so far in the new series.
The Doctor knows from the beginning that the Master is important in the destruction of time that the Ood foresaw. His first thought is to find the Master and keep close to him whatever happens. This isn't just because he knows that the events of the episode center around the Master. The Doctor has already become the last Time Lord three times, and he doesn't want it to happen a fourth time, he wants to protect the Master. He may or may not have homosexual feelings for the Master, he just hates the feeling of becoming the last member of his species. Despite his attempts to save the Master, in the end, he is let down. He even thinks he's saved himself from his fate, but he's let down from that as well. He's more let down in this episode than he ever has been in his entire life.
Friday, December 21, 2012
Songtaran Carols
For Day 21 of the Adventure Calendar, Strax has some Sontaran-themed Christmas carols for us.
Countdown to Christmas - The Next Doctor Review
The Next Doctor is perhaps the most Christmasy Doctor Who Special, being the only one where it actually snows on Earth. I also feel that it has more Christmas spirityness than the other David Tennant Christmas Specials, which I think is due to the fact that the very first opening scene is a Christmas Eve celebration in a town market, and it gets you in the mood for the rest of the episode. The fact that it's snowing throughout the episode helps remind you that it is actually Christmas, which can be very easy to forget in some of the other David Tennant Specials.
This is one of the only Doctor Who episodes with an element of mysteriousness in it. You immediately meet this man who calls himself the Doctor, and while you want him to be the next regeneration of the Doctor and you want this to be how future Doctors are introduced now, deep down in your heart you just know he isn't the Doctor. So the entire episode you're left wondering why this man thinks he's the Doctor, until it's finally explained. It's one of the few instances in Doctor Who where something grabs your attention and you're left wondering about it the rest of the episode until the Doctor figures it out.
This episode, despite being penned by Russell T. Davies, marks the beginning of the Series 5 story arc. The Cybermen and Cyberking were all erased from history and no human appeared to be aware of them afterwards. The Daleks of Season 4 were also erased, which could make that the start of the Series 5 story arc. The problem is that they were not erased immediately as evidenced by their mention in the later episode, Planet of the Dead. So Davies participated in Moffat's storyline without so much as a whisper about it until the end of Flesh and Stone. This again illustrates Davies' strength for taking long-term story arcs and embedding them very subtly into episodes.
This is one of the only Doctor Who episodes with an element of mysteriousness in it. You immediately meet this man who calls himself the Doctor, and while you want him to be the next regeneration of the Doctor and you want this to be how future Doctors are introduced now, deep down in your heart you just know he isn't the Doctor. So the entire episode you're left wondering why this man thinks he's the Doctor, until it's finally explained. It's one of the few instances in Doctor Who where something grabs your attention and you're left wondering about it the rest of the episode until the Doctor figures it out.
This episode, despite being penned by Russell T. Davies, marks the beginning of the Series 5 story arc. The Cybermen and Cyberking were all erased from history and no human appeared to be aware of them afterwards. The Daleks of Season 4 were also erased, which could make that the start of the Series 5 story arc. The problem is that they were not erased immediately as evidenced by their mention in the later episode, Planet of the Dead. So Davies participated in Moffat's storyline without so much as a whisper about it until the end of Flesh and Stone. This again illustrates Davies' strength for taking long-term story arcs and embedding them very subtly into episodes.
Thursday, December 20, 2012
iTunes Season for The Snowmen Now Available
Obviously, it would be amazing if the actual episode were available for purchase. Right now, it's just The Great Detective in there. You can just purchase that for free right now, but the Purchase Season button is greyed out, and if you download just the free episode now, when the Purchase Season button becomes available, it will throw an error message. iTunes won't let you buy an entire season (or at least what it refers to as a season) if you've already purchased at least one element in it.
So basically, don't get overexcited, this probably just means that us iTunes users won't have to wait three days to get the episode like we did last year. Last year the Christmas Special wasn't on iTunes until the 27th or 28th.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/tv-season/doctor-who-the-snowmen/id583644226
So basically, don't get overexcited, this probably just means that us iTunes users won't have to wait three days to get the episode like we did last year. Last year the Christmas Special wasn't on iTunes until the 27th or 28th.
https://itunes.apple.com/us/tv-season/doctor-who-the-snowmen/id583644226
Countdown to Christmas - Voyage of the Damned Review
Voyage of the Damned is an interesting sequel to Last of the Time Lords and Time Crash. It serves to bridge the gap between Martha and Donna, and at that it does a very good job.
The Doctor has just lost the Master and is once again alone in the universe as a Time Lord. Not only that, but he has just said goodbye to both Martha and Captain Jack. He's also just had a run-in with his past self, and I think at this point he really doesn't want to be alone. He sees the cruise ship with the happy people and the Christmas celebration, and he decides to just indulge himself and be happy for once. The Doctor meets Astrid Peth, and in desperate need of a companion, immediately invites her to go traveling with him. He just wants a friend, and he sees her and doesn't give it a second thought.
Voyage of the Damned is very different to any other new series Doctor Who episode. The companion, along with all of the other characters except Wilf and the Queen are aliens. No human has a significant role in the episode for the first time since Romana's era. Unfortunately, time periods and species can be a very gray area in the classic series, so it can be hard to tell which of her episodes was the last not to feature humans. So the story tries something out that hasn't been tried in Doctor Who since the early 1980s, and it does it quite well. At almost any other time in the new series it would have been very hard to to this and not have it be rather cheesy, because it would have entailed getting rid of the companion. The writers saw an opportunity to have an almost entirely human-free episode, and they took it. Russell T. Davies could have chosen to make it entirely human free, but instead chose to use his true genius for subtle long-term story arcs to introduce Wilf without really introducing him, then leave us all wondering in the very next episode. Also without the ever-present need to up ratings (which I really despise and thankfully is not very present in Doctor Who), he could have removed the part where the Titanic almost crashes into Buckingham Palace. So in the end, Voyage of the Damned is a very good storyline that hadn't been tried in a while with a bit of genius added in.
The Doctor has just lost the Master and is once again alone in the universe as a Time Lord. Not only that, but he has just said goodbye to both Martha and Captain Jack. He's also just had a run-in with his past self, and I think at this point he really doesn't want to be alone. He sees the cruise ship with the happy people and the Christmas celebration, and he decides to just indulge himself and be happy for once. The Doctor meets Astrid Peth, and in desperate need of a companion, immediately invites her to go traveling with him. He just wants a friend, and he sees her and doesn't give it a second thought.
Voyage of the Damned is very different to any other new series Doctor Who episode. The companion, along with all of the other characters except Wilf and the Queen are aliens. No human has a significant role in the episode for the first time since Romana's era. Unfortunately, time periods and species can be a very gray area in the classic series, so it can be hard to tell which of her episodes was the last not to feature humans. So the story tries something out that hasn't been tried in Doctor Who since the early 1980s, and it does it quite well. At almost any other time in the new series it would have been very hard to to this and not have it be rather cheesy, because it would have entailed getting rid of the companion. The writers saw an opportunity to have an almost entirely human-free episode, and they took it. Russell T. Davies could have chosen to make it entirely human free, but instead chose to use his true genius for subtle long-term story arcs to introduce Wilf without really introducing him, then leave us all wondering in the very next episode. Also without the ever-present need to up ratings (which I really despise and thankfully is not very present in Doctor Who), he could have removed the part where the Titanic almost crashes into Buckingham Palace. So in the end, Voyage of the Damned is a very good storyline that hadn't been tried in a while with a bit of genius added in.
Wednesday, December 19, 2012
Countdown to Christmas - The Runaway Bride Review
This is one of my top-two favorite Christmas Specials, and here's why.
Mainly, I just like any episode where none of the characters have ever met the Doctor before and have no idea what he's capable of. Donna has just met the Doctor, and after learning he's an alien, just blows him off as some weird Martian before learning who he truly is.
There's a lot of character development with Donna in this episode. She starts out as some snobby Londoner with a limited world-view, before evolving into someone who sees the universe for what it really is. Donna goes from someone obsessed with tabloid news, celebrities, and whatever the latest fad is (at least that's how Lance describes her) to someone who wants to go out and do good in the universe (as evidenced in Partners in Crime). The Doctor shows her a better way of living, and I think Lance's comments about the Racnoss Empress showing him the universe helped, too.
We also get to see once again how kind and caring the Doctor is. Rather than whine and grovel the whole time about Rose, he puts all those emotions aside to help Donna. The Doctor lives in the moment and in that moment, he set aside his own feelings to help this complete stranger get married and save her life. This shows how selfless the Doctor is, always willing to put himself aside to help others, no matter who they are. The episode highlights the Doctor's fundamental philosophy that it is always better to help another person because you can always help yourself another day.
I also like the little details as well. Things such as the fact that the Battle of Canary Wharf was two months ago, which puts that episode sometime in October 2007. That, and the robot Santas (pilot fish drones) that only ever appeared in Christmas Specials and not in any other episodes.
Mainly, I just like any episode where none of the characters have ever met the Doctor before and have no idea what he's capable of. Donna has just met the Doctor, and after learning he's an alien, just blows him off as some weird Martian before learning who he truly is.
There's a lot of character development with Donna in this episode. She starts out as some snobby Londoner with a limited world-view, before evolving into someone who sees the universe for what it really is. Donna goes from someone obsessed with tabloid news, celebrities, and whatever the latest fad is (at least that's how Lance describes her) to someone who wants to go out and do good in the universe (as evidenced in Partners in Crime). The Doctor shows her a better way of living, and I think Lance's comments about the Racnoss Empress showing him the universe helped, too.
We also get to see once again how kind and caring the Doctor is. Rather than whine and grovel the whole time about Rose, he puts all those emotions aside to help Donna. The Doctor lives in the moment and in that moment, he set aside his own feelings to help this complete stranger get married and save her life. This shows how selfless the Doctor is, always willing to put himself aside to help others, no matter who they are. The episode highlights the Doctor's fundamental philosophy that it is always better to help another person because you can always help yourself another day.
I also like the little details as well. Things such as the fact that the Battle of Canary Wharf was two months ago, which puts that episode sometime in October 2007. That, and the robot Santas (pilot fish drones) that only ever appeared in Christmas Specials and not in any other episodes.
Tuesday, December 18, 2012
Clip Featuring the Doctor and Strax
BBC One aired a short clip featuring the Doctor and Strax with the "grenade" line.
Matt Smith Interviews Jenna-Louise Coleman
For Day 18 of the Christmas Special, Matt Smith does a brief interview of Jenna-Louise Coleman. He appears to be using a water bottle as a microphone.
New Picture of the New TARDIS Interior
The BBC has released a very revealing photo of the new TARDIS interior. The new set is going to premiere in next week's episode and continue throughout 2013.
Countdown to Christmas - The Christmas Invasion Review
The Why Run to the TARDIS Countdown to Christmas begins with the review of The Christmas Invasion.
The story serves as a good introduction to the tenth Doctor. We get to discover his personality just as he discovers it himself. We also get to see for the first time in the new series the reaction of characters to regeneration. Rose thinks the new Doctor abandoned her, not quite understanding the stress of regeneration. When he finally stands up to the Sycorax, all the characters are relieved, seeing that the Doctor has not abandoned them after all.
The storyline was a first-rate Doctor Who one. With the alien ship over London, all of humanity hanging in the balance, the royal family at stake, and a scary-looking new alien species, it has all the hallmarks of a good Doctor Who story. The characters were top-notch, too. Their personalities were believable, Harriet Jones was behaving as we would expect in office, and the Sycorax were just a ruthless enemy.
The story also introduces a new bit of Time Lord biology, that being that Time Lords can heal themselves after regeneration. That was a good touch, and also features into the storylines of the next three seasons.
Overall, this is my third-favorite Christmas story.
The story serves as a good introduction to the tenth Doctor. We get to discover his personality just as he discovers it himself. We also get to see for the first time in the new series the reaction of characters to regeneration. Rose thinks the new Doctor abandoned her, not quite understanding the stress of regeneration. When he finally stands up to the Sycorax, all the characters are relieved, seeing that the Doctor has not abandoned them after all.
The storyline was a first-rate Doctor Who one. With the alien ship over London, all of humanity hanging in the balance, the royal family at stake, and a scary-looking new alien species, it has all the hallmarks of a good Doctor Who story. The characters were top-notch, too. Their personalities were believable, Harriet Jones was behaving as we would expect in office, and the Sycorax were just a ruthless enemy.
The story also introduces a new bit of Time Lord biology, that being that Time Lords can heal themselves after regeneration. That was a good touch, and also features into the storylines of the next three seasons.
Overall, this is my third-favorite Christmas story.
Saturday, December 15, 2012
BBC America Trailer for The Snowmen
BBC America released its own trailer for the Christmas Special yesterday. It features some brand new footage of Clara and the Doctor, as well as new insight into the mysterious villain.
Houdini and the Space Cuckoos
The BBC has released part 1 of a story by Joseph Lidster entitled, Houdini and the Space Cuckoos. It's a Doctor Who short story based on requests earlier this year on what historical characters fans would like to see meet the Doctor. Apparently Harry Houdini topped the list, so the BBC responded with this story.
http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/tv/isite-downloads/doctorwho/masks_and_makes/stories/christmas-2012/Houdini-and-The-Space-Cuckoos-Part-One.pdf
http://downloads.bbc.co.uk/tv/isite-downloads/doctorwho/masks_and_makes/stories/christmas-2012/Houdini-and-The-Space-Cuckoos-Part-One.pdf
Thursday, December 13, 2012
New Credit Sequence
According to Den of Geek's review, there's going to be a brand-new credit sequence starting Christmas. Apparently, it's going to be more similar to the classic series opening credits, which seems to suggest less TARDIS-flying-through-the-time-vortex and possibly the Doctor's face in the middle of the whole thing.
Wednesday, December 12, 2012
2013 Details in Doctor Who Magazine
The new issue of Doctor Who Magazine reveals that Series 7, Part 2 will not air until April, along with some other exciting clues
- Episode 7: "A proper urban thriller, starring a man in a frock coat and a bow tie and quiff from space!"
- Episode 8: "Set on an alien planet, an 'epic, overwhelming, boiling, red-orange planet'. The brief was: 'You know how the Doctor always promises amazing, awesome wonders to his companions, then gets them stuck down a tunnel being attacked my mutant slugs. Let’s deliver some awesome and amazing!'"
- Episode 9: "Mark Gatiss is about to explode fanboy hearts. This is a cracker of an episode, in the grand tradition."
- Episode 10: "Spooky and clever and even a little bit romantic."
- Episode 11: "Journey to the Center of the TARDIS! Will do what it says on the tin."
- Episode 12: "A title to die for. Tread carefully, there are some dreadful things in there!"
- Episode 13: "Gaiman’s new spine-chiller. You already know there are Cybermen – what you don’t know is there is something else. A Cyber-something else. They are disgusting."
- Episode 14: "'One that will thrill you a bit, and worry you more. Yes, I think you’ll be just a tiny bit worried where we might be going with this one. I’d say more, but then you’d be less worried, and frankly, what’s the point in that?' Vastra, Jenny and Strax return."
- 50th Anniversary: "'A love letter to the fans, and an absolute romp and a thrill to the casual viewer.'"
- The 50th Anniversary is set to begin filming in April
Second Trailer for the Christmas Special
For Day 12 of the Adventure Calendar, the BBC has released a second (by my count) trailer for The Snowmen! There's some new footage, including some that shows Clara being particularly feisty.
Tuesday, December 11, 2012
Dan Starkey on Strax and the Christmas Special
For Day 11 of the Adventure Calendar, we have a video of Dan Starkey, talking about his character, Commander Strax.
Second Glimpse of New TARDIS Interior
Doctor Who Magazine has offered a second glimpse of the new TARDIS interior set to premiere this Christmas.
The original photo is here:
Here is a version of the images sewn together, courtesy of Combom.
The original photo is here:
Here is a version of the images sewn together, courtesy of Combom.
Monday, December 10, 2012
Richard E. Grant on The Snowmen
In this new video for Day 10 of the Adventure Calendar, Richard E. Grant talks about The Snowmen. He seems to suggest that this is going to be a rather scary episode.
Sunday, December 9, 2012
TV & Satellite Week Article on The Snowmen
TV & Satellite Week magazine has a special feature on this year's Christmas Special. The article offers some insight into Jenna's character, as well as hinting that Matt Smith might not hang around long after the 50th.
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Steven Moffat on Day of the Daleks
For Day 9 of the Adventure Calendar, there's a new interview with Steven Moffat out. In it, he talks about the Daleks' return in Day of the Daleks, and how that story influenced him as a writer.
Saturday, December 8, 2012
Interview with the Cast of The Snowmen
For Day 8 of the Adventure Calendar, we a have a new inteview with Steven Moffat and the cast of the Christmas Special: Matt Smith, Jenna-Louise Coleman, Richard E. Grant, & Tom Ward.
STEVEN MOFFAT is Doctor Who’s lead writer and executive producer. This is the third Christmas Special he’s written for the Doctor, but this year’s looks to be very different to the previous two…
Q: What can we expect from the Christmas Special?
Steven Moffat: The Christmas episode is Doctor Who only more so and this year we're going for more epic. The Doctor, when we meet him, isn't in a good place. A bit like when we first encountered William Hartnell as the Doctor in 1963 - or indeed Christopher Eccleston in 2005 - this a cold and withdrawn Time Lord, wanting no part of the world around him. It's going to take a lot of Christmas spirit to get him back out of those TARDIS doors.
Q: Are there any new monsters?
SM: Well, there are Snowmen. You've probably guessed that from the title. But that's not all. Dear me, no! But monsters should always be a bit surprising, so that's all I'm saying.
Q: How do you find writing the Christmas Special as opposed to a regular episode? Does it differ at all?
SM: You're very aware of the time of year, and the noisy, sugared-up, slightly tipsy household. Sometimes we play along with something a bit frothier. Though this year, we might just give them a fright!
Q: Last time we saw the Doctor he said goodbye to the Ponds… Will we see a different side to him in this episode?
SM: The Doctor is almost defined by his friendships. When they end, and the TARDIS is silent again, he's a very different man. He's lost a lot of people in the time we've known him, and this Christmas he's decided he's finally had enough...
Q: This episode welcomes Jenna-Louise Coleman - what can you tell us about her character?
SM: It's going to quite a journey of discovery with Jenna and her character - and it doesn't start here, it starts on Christmas Day. For now, enough to say, that the Doctor in his darkest hour, long ago in a
Victorian winter, meets the exactly the right person. Or does he?
MATT SMITH is back as the Doctor in The Snowmen, but things have changed for the Time Lord… So what’s in store for him now?
Q: What can we expect from the Christmas Special?
Matt Smith: Lots of snow and a rather good villain! [But the Doctor] is slightly removed and not at his best…
Q: But after he meets a feisty young governess, Clara, played by Jenna-Louise Coleman, do we see a change in the Doctor?
MS: You get to see a different side to him. Clara is a very different to Amy Pond. That is the great thing about this show - reinvention, it keeps me as an actor on my toes!
Q: So, can we expect to see a period of grieving following the loss of the Ponds?
MS: Grieving has its place, but it is important to show that and then propel back into adventure!
And that is exactly what this Christmas Special does!
JENNA-LOUISE COLEMAN, who plays Clara in The Snowmen, made a surprise appearance in Asylum of the Daleks, so fans have already met the new companion… Or have they? We caught up with Jenna-Louise and tried to get some answers!
Q: What we can expect from your character, Clara?
Jenna-Louise Coleman: She is from the Victorian era and [she’s] a mysterious one… Very down to earth, but feisty and curious, too, with numerous jobs…
Q: Okay… We’ve been told we first glimpse Clara in the ‘Rose and Crown’ pub where she’s a barmaid, but after meeting the Doctor she soon sets about following him…
J-LC: He has the answers to her questions. She isn’t intimidated by the Doctor… she finds him amazing and ridiculous. But she is on her own mission and lives by her own means - she is very resourceful.
Q: You started filming Doctor Who earlier this year… How have you found the job so far?
J-LC: Every day is really surprising. For the last two years I have mainly been doing period dramas, so to be thrown in to this world with loads of CGI is very different. Whole new sets are built in the space of a couple of weeks. For this episode we had snow machines and it does make you feel like a big kid!
RICHARD E GRANT played the Doctor in the 2003 online animated series Scream of the Shalka and in a 1999 Comic Relief spoof, but now returns to Doctor Who in a more villainous role…
Q: What can you tell us about your character, Doctor Simeon?
Richard E Grant: I have been told that on pain of death I am not allowed to reveal anything about my role in the Christmas Special, other than that this character has never been in Doctor Who before… I have had two 'brushes' with the Who phenomenon before, playing the Doctor in the cartoon digital version and the Comic Relief spoof some years ago, before the franchise was re-booted with Christopher Eccleston.
Q: How did you enjoy playing the villain?
REG: When you're born with a ten foot long face, you don't get hero roles, but I'm not complaining as I have hugely enjoyed the wide variety of parts I've got to play.
Q: You share a lot of scenes with Matt Smith… how was that?
REG: I have really admired Matt from when I first saw him in a play called That Face at the Royal Court Theatre some years ago and have keenly followed his career progress. He is the perfect fit for Doctor Who. His interpretation is very kinetic and fast talking.
Q: And will you be watching The Snowmen?
REG: I love Christmas and everything about it. I will be at home and watching TV after lunch, hoping I can stay awake after the feast!
TOM WARD is best known for his role in Silent Witness but relished the part of Captain Latimer in The Snowmen…
Q: What can we can expect from your character?
Tom Ward: He hasn’t been used to dealing with his children… he wants to love them, but he is an old naval captain that has struggled to build a relationship.
Q: What drew you to the role?
TW: It was one of the best scripts I had read in read in long time and the thought of doing a period sci-fi was really fun.
Q: And we understand you weren’t the only one pleased to be working on the show…
TW: My children are very excited that I’m in Doctor Who and I’m glad they have something that they can finally watch! My oldest child is 10, so this will give him bragging rights at school and hopefully me a little bit of school gate currency!
Q: And will you be watching on Christmas Day?
TW: We have just moved into the country, so it will be the family round and the fire blazing. I don’t normally like to watch myself on TV, but this time I think I will make an exception…
NEW TARDIS INTERIOR!!!
It has been officially confirmed that the TARDIS will be sporting a brand-spanking-new interior starting this Christmas. The following image has been released depicting what appears to be the top of the central column.
Along with the following press release:
Along with the following press release:
The BBC’s Doctor Who has revealed a sneak peak at a brand new TARDIS that will debut in this year’s Christmas special, The Snowmen. The second TARDIS for Matt Smith it will be the first TARDIS for new companion Clara (Jenna-Louise Coleman), who makes her entrance on Christmas Day at 5:15pm on BBC ONE. The new set was designed by Michael Pickwoad, the show’s production designer, and will be home to the Doctor and Clara as they travel through space and time when the adventure continues in spring 2013 with eight epic episodes.
5 New Images From The Snowmen!
The BBC has released five new images from the Christmas Special. They seem to suggest that the living snow is manufactured, rather than some alien occurrence in space.
Friday, December 7, 2012
Jenna-Louise Coleman: Becoming the Companion, Part 2
For Day 7 of the Adventure Calendar, the BBC has released part two of the interview with Jenna-Louise Coleman (for Part 1, see here). In it, she talks about how much fun it is filming Doctor Who and what her plans are for Christmas.
Thursday, December 6, 2012
Doctor Who Magazine Issue 455
The 2012 Christmas edition of Doctor Who Magazine is out on the thirteenth. The 100-page issue features three exclusive art cards, an interview with Jenna-Louise Coleman, and a preview of The Snowmen.
The cover also features a new picture of Matt and Jenna.
The cover also features a new picture of Matt and Jenna.
Tuesday, December 4, 2012
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