"Midnight"
Series: 4
Doctor: David Tennant
Companion: Donna Noble (Catherine Tate)
Writer: Russell T Davies
Friday, November 22, 2013
Thursday, November 21, 2013
New Who Countdown: Number 3
"Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead"
Series: 4
Doctor: David Tennant
Companions: Donna Noble (Catherine Tate), River Song (Alex Kingston)
Writer: Steven Moffat
I said it earlier in the week, but series four was an all-around strong season. There may even be a series four episode left on my countdown (as River Song would say, "Spoilers."). "Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead" is so high on my list for a number of reasons.
1. River Song's debut on the series. She is very charismatic and even a little heartbreaking as a woman from the Doctor's future. I am sure Steven Moffat had some sort of idea how important she would become to the Eleventh Doctor, but her importance should not be discounted in the only episodes she appears with David Tennant. They work wonderfully as a team and when the clasp hands and run, it just feels right. However, her realization that the Doctor knew the entire time he was to be with her in the future, how she was going to die, was astonishingly sad and, in some ways, it cheapens the relationship that they have later on in the run. Her voice over epilogue is fantastic.
2. Vashta Nerada - a horrifying new enemy that you cannot possibly beat. You can only try to outrun them.
3.
Series: 4
Doctor: David Tennant
Companions: Donna Noble (Catherine Tate), River Song (Alex Kingston)
Writer: Steven Moffat
I said it earlier in the week, but series four was an all-around strong season. There may even be a series four episode left on my countdown (as River Song would say, "Spoilers."). "Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead" is so high on my list for a number of reasons.
1. River Song's debut on the series. She is very charismatic and even a little heartbreaking as a woman from the Doctor's future. I am sure Steven Moffat had some sort of idea how important she would become to the Eleventh Doctor, but her importance should not be discounted in the only episodes she appears with David Tennant. They work wonderfully as a team and when the clasp hands and run, it just feels right. However, her realization that the Doctor knew the entire time he was to be with her in the future, how she was going to die, was astonishingly sad and, in some ways, it cheapens the relationship that they have later on in the run. Her voice over epilogue is fantastic.
2. Vashta Nerada - a horrifying new enemy that you cannot possibly beat. You can only try to outrun them.
3.
Wednesday, November 20, 2013
New Who Countdown: Number 1
"The Impossible Astronaut"/"Day of the Moon"
Series: 6
Doctor: Matt Smith
Companions: The Ponds (Karen Gillan, Arthur Darvill), River Song (Alex Kingston), Canton Everett Delaware III (Mark Sheppard)
Writer: Steven Moffat
Series: 6
Doctor: Matt Smith
Companions: The Ponds (Karen Gillan, Arthur Darvill), River Song (Alex Kingston), Canton Everett Delaware III (Mark Sheppard)
Writer: Steven Moffat
New Who Countdown: Number 4
"The Empty Child"/"The Doctor Dances"
I honestly don't really know what to write about the episode. It's hard to put my finger on exactly why it is so good. It could be the writing, it could be the comic relief from Captain Jack, it may be the excellent guest stars (Florence Hoath as Nancy and Richard Wilson as Dr Constantine), or possibly the horror of this unnamed child.
Favorite quote from the story is, "It's mauve and dangerous."
Series: 1
Doctor: Christopher Eccleston
Companions: Rose Tyler (Billie Piper), Captain Jack Harkness (John Barrowman)
Writer: Steven Moffat
Sadly, this is the only one of the ninth doctor stories to make my top ten. I do really adore Christopher Eccleston as the Doctor, however, the writing and production is just not on par with later Tennant and Smith episodes. Steven Moffat's first episodes writing for the Doctor Who reboot has it all: a creepy horror undertone, a love triangle, a mystery, tenderness, and, as the Doctor proclaims at the end, "Everybody lives!"
Captain Jack Harkness makes his debut in this two parter as well. Jack is a 51st Century man living in World War II London, and he rescues Rose Tyler from an air raid while the Doctor is off investigating bizarre phone calls and radio signals.
This two parter is wonderful. We finally see the Doctor growing close to Rose and even getting a little jealous at the attention given to her by Captain Jack. This is when the relationship and those pesky little flutters of love really start to blossom. The episode title "The Empty Child" refers to the child that haunts London streets permanently wearing a gas mask and crying out for his "mummy". And "The Doctor Dances" is not only a reference to Rose's persistent calls to the Doctor to dance, but also about the gleeful nature of the Doctor because everybody lives.
This two parter is wonderful. We finally see the Doctor growing close to Rose and even getting a little jealous at the attention given to her by Captain Jack. This is when the relationship and those pesky little flutters of love really start to blossom. The episode title "The Empty Child" refers to the child that haunts London streets permanently wearing a gas mask and crying out for his "mummy". And "The Doctor Dances" is not only a reference to Rose's persistent calls to the Doctor to dance, but also about the gleeful nature of the Doctor because everybody lives.
I honestly don't really know what to write about the episode. It's hard to put my finger on exactly why it is so good. It could be the writing, it could be the comic relief from Captain Jack, it may be the excellent guest stars (Florence Hoath as Nancy and Richard Wilson as Dr Constantine), or possibly the horror of this unnamed child.
Favorite quote from the story is, "It's mauve and dangerous."
Tuesday, November 19, 2013
New Who Countdown: Number 5
"Human Nature"/"Family of Blood"
Series: 3
Doctor: David Tennant
Companion: Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman)
Writer: Paul Cornell
Martha and the Doctor are in dire trouble as a ruthless, formless alien family (the aptly named Family of Blood) with their army of scarecrows comes to terrorize a boys military school where the Doctor, believing he is human and forgetting all about his Time Lordiness, has escaped to. Not only do the episodes beg the question, "What happens to the world if the Doctor forgets who he is, even if intentional?" but it also goes further than many Doctor Who episodes by acknowledging race, gender, and class differences.
This story shows Martha at her most tolerable. When she's not pining for the Doctor, she is very clever, resilient, resourceful, and brave, and as the glue holding the Doctor together in this story, she finally gets the writing and character she deserves. She has a mostly okay personality in series three, but these are the episodes when she shines - it's up to her, not the Doctor, to save the day. While the Doctor is away, and John Smith is at play, Martha becomes the heroine we always knew she could be after seeing her first kick butt in "Smith & Jones". Unlike Rose, who we all loved for her heart, naivety, and youth, Martha is a match in wit for anyone, even the Doctor.
The guest stars in this two parter are fantastic as well. We know two of them as Game of Thrones actors now (Harry Lloyd and Thomas Sangster), but this is before, and they are both still wonderful. And Jessica Hynes (nee Stevenson) who made us hate her and love her as the nurse at the school whom John Smith falls in love with.
But the real gem of this two parter is David Tennant. It is admittedly hard for a Whovian as myself to watch the Doctor be anything but his regular amazing self, but David Tennant plays the part of John Smith with so much humility, curiosity, wonder, and sadness that it actually persuaded me that he could be amazing in anything, as anyone. (I was mistaken later in life, and came to the realization that much of it depends on a good script, but that's not the point.) Because of his brilliance (and, of course, the writing of Paul Cornell), one of David Tennant's best moments in Doctor Who comes not as the Time Lord Doctor, but as a simple human high school history teacher.
Series: 3
Doctor: David Tennant
Companion: Martha Jones (Freema Agyeman)
Writer: Paul Cornell
Martha and the Doctor are in dire trouble as a ruthless, formless alien family (the aptly named Family of Blood) with their army of scarecrows comes to terrorize a boys military school where the Doctor, believing he is human and forgetting all about his Time Lordiness, has escaped to. Not only do the episodes beg the question, "What happens to the world if the Doctor forgets who he is, even if intentional?" but it also goes further than many Doctor Who episodes by acknowledging race, gender, and class differences.
This story shows Martha at her most tolerable. When she's not pining for the Doctor, she is very clever, resilient, resourceful, and brave, and as the glue holding the Doctor together in this story, she finally gets the writing and character she deserves. She has a mostly okay personality in series three, but these are the episodes when she shines - it's up to her, not the Doctor, to save the day. While the Doctor is away, and John Smith is at play, Martha becomes the heroine we always knew she could be after seeing her first kick butt in "Smith & Jones". Unlike Rose, who we all loved for her heart, naivety, and youth, Martha is a match in wit for anyone, even the Doctor.
The guest stars in this two parter are fantastic as well. We know two of them as Game of Thrones actors now (Harry Lloyd and Thomas Sangster), but this is before, and they are both still wonderful. And Jessica Hynes (nee Stevenson) who made us hate her and love her as the nurse at the school whom John Smith falls in love with.
But the real gem of this two parter is David Tennant. It is admittedly hard for a Whovian as myself to watch the Doctor be anything but his regular amazing self, but David Tennant plays the part of John Smith with so much humility, curiosity, wonder, and sadness that it actually persuaded me that he could be amazing in anything, as anyone. (I was mistaken later in life, and came to the realization that much of it depends on a good script, but that's not the point.) Because of his brilliance (and, of course, the writing of Paul Cornell), one of David Tennant's best moments in Doctor Who comes not as the Time Lord Doctor, but as a simple human high school history teacher.
Monday, November 18, 2013
New Who Countdown: Number 6
"Vincent & the Doctor"
The episode doesn't quite follow many of the conventional trademarks of a regular Doctor Who
episode, but it is fantastically written and wonderfully acted. Tony Curran is brilliant as Vincent Van Gogh in his sadness and mania and genius. The episode is tender and horribly upsetting as Amy hopes to change the future by teaching Vincent Van Gogh to be happy in his own life, but it shows that not even the Doctor can change human nature.
Series: 5
Doctor: Matt Smith
Companion: Amy Pond (Karen Gillan)
Writer: Richard Curtis
The sole episode written by romantic comedy genius Richard Curtis is superb in its humanity. The Doctor and Amy visit the Musee D'Orsay to see the wondrous works of Vincent Van Gogh and discover an alien monster depicted in one of his artworks. So, the Doctor and Amy go on an adventure with one of the greatest modern painters to discover why this monster is visible to Van Gogh. What follows is a very Doctor Who look at the life and art of an extraordinary man tormented by his gift and by his own demons.
The episode doesn't quite follow many of the conventional trademarks of a regular Doctor Who episode, but it is fantastically written and wonderfully acted. Tony Curran is brilliant as Vincent Van Gogh in his sadness and mania and genius. The episode is tender and horribly upsetting as Amy hopes to change the future by teaching Vincent Van Gogh to be happy in his own life, but it shows that not even the Doctor can change human nature.
I would say that there is no more upsetting an episode than "Vincent & The Doctor". No matter how many times I watch it, I still break in to sobs. It is very rarely that I feel moved enough by the dialogue of even Doctor Who to cry and feel genuine sadness, but this is one of those moments that just breaks your heart. And it does it multiple times. Bill Nighy as the museum curator giving a speech about just why Vincent Van Gogh makes us feel the way we do through his art.
The Doctor in his infinite wisdom delivers one of his greatest nuggets (courtesy of Richard Curtis).
The Doctor in his infinite wisdom delivers one of his greatest nuggets (courtesy of Richard Curtis).
- The Doctor: The way I see it, every life is a pile of good things and bad things. The good things don’t always soften the bad things, but vice versa the bad things don’t always spoil the good things and make them unimportant. And we definitely added to his pile of good things.
Sunday, November 17, 2013
New Who Countdown: Number 7
"A Good Man Goes to War"
Seies: 6
Doctor: Matt Smith
Companion: The Ponds, River Song
Writer: Steven Moffat
The episode starts with series of wonderful shots as the Doctor calls in all his favors from across the universe to save Amy and Melody. Silurians, Cybermen, Strax (the Sontaran nurse), Dorium Maldovar, and the Judoon are all present to run Madame Kovarian and the Anglican Clerics, along with the Headless Monks out of Demons Run. Yes, I realized that it sounds like I'm writing gibberish, and my spell check is about to throw a hissy fit, but these are all fantastic beings, people, and religious orders are show up in "A Good Man Goes to War". I love when the cast of characters is a mishmash because it demonstrates just how ridiculous the world of Doctor Who can be.
Matt Smith is fantastic in this episode. Matt Smith as the Doctor shows more bravado and anger in "A Good Man Goes to War" than he had in any of the previous episodes, and we really get to see the many flaws of the Doctor. This is a true turning point for Amy, Rory, and the Doctor as their friendship is put to the test. As River says near the beginning of the episode, "This is the Battle of Demon's Run. The Doctor's darkest hour. He'll rise higher than ever before and then fall so much further." Matt Smith's performance is powerful. There's such a range of emotions - vengefulness, willfulness, tenderness, love, hate, and quite a bit of hubris. One of my favorite quotes from the entire Matt Smith run as the Doctor is here:
Madame Kovorian: The anger of a good man is not a problem. Good men have too many rules.
The Doctor, menacingly: Good men don't need rules. Today is not the day to find out why I have so many.
This is where we finally understand River Song's motivations and backstory, and perhaps, why she's imprisoned. And also why she's so damed complicated. Alex Kingston as River Song is possibly my favorite character. She's witty, she's smart, she's badass, and she's so, so human. (See "The Angels Take Manhattan" for a few more of River's best moments.) And at Demon's Run, it's all about her. Even if she doesn't turn up until the very end.
Of course, River Song's poem is fantastic.
Demons run when a good man goes to war. Night will fall and drown the sun, When a good man goes to war. Friendship dies and true love lies, Night will fall and the dark will rise, When a good man goes to war. Demons run, but count the cost. The battle's won but the child is lost.
Seies: 6
Doctor: Matt Smith
Companion: The Ponds, River Song
Writer: Steven Moffat
The episode starts with series of wonderful shots as the Doctor calls in all his favors from across the universe to save Amy and Melody. Silurians, Cybermen, Strax (the Sontaran nurse), Dorium Maldovar, and the Judoon are all present to run Madame Kovarian and the Anglican Clerics, along with the Headless Monks out of Demons Run. Yes, I realized that it sounds like I'm writing gibberish, and my spell check is about to throw a hissy fit, but these are all fantastic beings, people, and religious orders are show up in "A Good Man Goes to War". I love when the cast of characters is a mishmash because it demonstrates just how ridiculous the world of Doctor Who can be.
Matt Smith is fantastic in this episode. Matt Smith as the Doctor shows more bravado and anger in "A Good Man Goes to War" than he had in any of the previous episodes, and we really get to see the many flaws of the Doctor. This is a true turning point for Amy, Rory, and the Doctor as their friendship is put to the test. As River says near the beginning of the episode, "This is the Battle of Demon's Run. The Doctor's darkest hour. He'll rise higher than ever before and then fall so much further." Matt Smith's performance is powerful. There's such a range of emotions - vengefulness, willfulness, tenderness, love, hate, and quite a bit of hubris. One of my favorite quotes from the entire Matt Smith run as the Doctor is here:
Madame Kovorian: The anger of a good man is not a problem. Good men have too many rules.
The Doctor, menacingly: Good men don't need rules. Today is not the day to find out why I have so many.
This is where we finally understand River Song's motivations and backstory, and perhaps, why she's imprisoned. And also why she's so damed complicated. Alex Kingston as River Song is possibly my favorite character. She's witty, she's smart, she's badass, and she's so, so human. (See "The Angels Take Manhattan" for a few more of River's best moments.) And at Demon's Run, it's all about her. Even if she doesn't turn up until the very end.
Of course, River Song's poem is fantastic.
Saturday, November 16, 2013
New Who Countdown: Number 8
Pretty big spoilers abound, you have been warned.
"The End of Time"
Series: Specials (between Season 4 and Season 5)
Doctor: David Tennant
Companion: Wilfred Mott
Writer: Russell T Davies
In Tennant's last episode as the Doctor (until, of course, "Day of the Doctor"), he is heartbreaking. Knowing a prophecy that you are going to die and the omen that precedes it can be a hell of a shadow to live under. A quick list of things I love about this episode:
-Bernard Cribbin's performance as Wilfred Mott (Donna's grandfather) is fantastic. He is a perfect companion to the Doctor at his (kind-of) end. He is wise, yet full of hope and spectacularly joyful.
-New aliens: Vinvocci!
-Time Lords! The sexiest of the Time Lords -- Timothy Dalton as Lord President Rassilon, and the return of the Master as conniving as ever.
-And, of course, the cameos by so many of the pertinent characters and the no less important guest stars
"The End of Time" is long and filled with some fluff that may not be so important in the long run, but I feel like the brevity is just right. Fans were losing the Doctor that had really regenerated the series (pun absolutely intended) and made it so accessible - not only to sci-fi nerds and Brits, but to anyone who just needs an altruistic hero. And David Tennant is perfect. He is scared because he understands and knows what's coming, but he faces the end bravely, until throws a mini temper tantrum, but it's short lived and he knows that life will go on, just in a different form.
Doctor Who: The 10th Doctor Saves Wilfred - "I... by Cremacious
"The End of Time"
Series: Specials (between Season 4 and Season 5)
Doctor: David Tennant
Companion: Wilfred Mott
Writer: Russell T Davies
In Tennant's last episode as the Doctor (until, of course, "Day of the Doctor"), he is heartbreaking. Knowing a prophecy that you are going to die and the omen that precedes it can be a hell of a shadow to live under. A quick list of things I love about this episode:
-Bernard Cribbin's performance as Wilfred Mott (Donna's grandfather) is fantastic. He is a perfect companion to the Doctor at his (kind-of) end. He is wise, yet full of hope and spectacularly joyful.
-New aliens: Vinvocci!
-Time Lords! The sexiest of the Time Lords -- Timothy Dalton as Lord President Rassilon, and the return of the Master as conniving as ever.
-And, of course, the cameos by so many of the pertinent characters and the no less important guest stars
"The End of Time" is long and filled with some fluff that may not be so important in the long run, but I feel like the brevity is just right. Fans were losing the Doctor that had really regenerated the series (pun absolutely intended) and made it so accessible - not only to sci-fi nerds and Brits, but to anyone who just needs an altruistic hero. And David Tennant is perfect. He is scared because he understands and knows what's coming, but he faces the end bravely, until throws a mini temper tantrum, but it's short lived and he knows that life will go on, just in a different form.
Doctor Who: The 10th Doctor Saves Wilfred - "I... by Cremacious
Friday, November 15, 2013
New Who Countdown: Number 9
"Turn Left"
Series: 4
Doctor: David Tennant
Companion: Donna Noble (Catherine Tate)
Writer: Russell T Davies
David Tennant has very little screen time in the penultimate episode leading up to the final two-parter with Donna. I suppose this episode would be considered a "Doctor-lite" episode, but Catherine Tate shows just why Donna Noble is so fantastic as a companion to the Doctor and as a stand alone character of her own. It demonstrates how much she's grown while remaining true to herself. Plus, I love all the throwbacks to the previous episodes in seasons three and four. Billie Piper's veneers aside, "Turn Left" is a gem from an all-around great season of Doctor Who.
The rather simplistic idea that our lives are governed by the smallest of choices really makes Donna come into her own and leads into the final episodes and the meaning behind the Ood referring to Donna and the Doctor as "Doctor Donna". Have you ever had a decision to make that could have completely changed the way your life turned out? And then think how that one choice impacted the lives of others? I can, and it's truly traumatizing to think of what would have happened if I had not stopped to talk to the recruiters from American University at the attendance-mandatory college fair and instead passed them by like I had passed by so many of the other schools that day. "Turn Left" dramatizes how Donna's simple decision had a ripple effect the universe over, and hints at just why she's so important.
Series: 4
Doctor: David Tennant
Companion: Donna Noble (Catherine Tate)
Writer: Russell T Davies
David Tennant has very little screen time in the penultimate episode leading up to the final two-parter with Donna. I suppose this episode would be considered a "Doctor-lite" episode, but Catherine Tate shows just why Donna Noble is so fantastic as a companion to the Doctor and as a stand alone character of her own. It demonstrates how much she's grown while remaining true to herself. Plus, I love all the throwbacks to the previous episodes in seasons three and four. Billie Piper's veneers aside, "Turn Left" is a gem from an all-around great season of Doctor Who.
The rather simplistic idea that our lives are governed by the smallest of choices really makes Donna come into her own and leads into the final episodes and the meaning behind the Ood referring to Donna and the Doctor as "Doctor Donna". Have you ever had a decision to make that could have completely changed the way your life turned out? And then think how that one choice impacted the lives of others? I can, and it's truly traumatizing to think of what would have happened if I had not stopped to talk to the recruiters from American University at the attendance-mandatory college fair and instead passed them by like I had passed by so many of the other schools that day. "Turn Left" dramatizes how Donna's simple decision had a ripple effect the universe over, and hints at just why she's so important.
Thursday, November 14, 2013
New Who Countdown: Number 10
"The Rings of Akhaten"
Series: Seven
The Doctor: Matt Smith
Companion: Clara Oswald (Jenna-Louise Coleman)
Writer: Neil Cross
As "The Rings of Akhaten" is from the second half of the seventh season, this is the newest episode on my list. I think this episode is fantastical in the setting even though it was filmed entirely in a studio. It has many things that make it silly: many different alien life forms, a vampiric demi-god, old religions, terrible green screen shots, but it's the heart behind it that makes this episode wonderful even if the writers are trying to shove it down your throat. Clara's origin story and the Doctor's speech to Akhaten are moments that in any other TV show you would groan from the smell of the cheese, but it's these kind of moments that make the Doctor and his friends so wonderful.
As I've noted in a previous post, I love the music in this episode. It's so very important, and it gives the perfect backdrop to the Doctor's speech, "...I saw the birth of the universe and I watched as time ran out, moment by moment until nothing remained. No time, no space, just me. I walked in universes where the laws of physics were devised by the mind of a mad man. I watched universes freeze and creations burn, I have seen things you wouldn't believe, I have lost things you will never understand..." The Doctor realizes that even all his history and experiences do not amount to the potential of the days not yet lived or the time taken from someone by death.
Series: Seven
The Doctor: Matt Smith
Companion: Clara Oswald (Jenna-Louise Coleman)
Writer: Neil Cross
As "The Rings of Akhaten" is from the second half of the seventh season, this is the newest episode on my list. I think this episode is fantastical in the setting even though it was filmed entirely in a studio. It has many things that make it silly: many different alien life forms, a vampiric demi-god, old religions, terrible green screen shots, but it's the heart behind it that makes this episode wonderful even if the writers are trying to shove it down your throat. Clara's origin story and the Doctor's speech to Akhaten are moments that in any other TV show you would groan from the smell of the cheese, but it's these kind of moments that make the Doctor and his friends so wonderful.
As I've noted in a previous post, I love the music in this episode. It's so very important, and it gives the perfect backdrop to the Doctor's speech, "...I saw the birth of the universe and I watched as time ran out, moment by moment until nothing remained. No time, no space, just me. I walked in universes where the laws of physics were devised by the mind of a mad man. I watched universes freeze and creations burn, I have seen things you wouldn't believe, I have lost things you will never understand..." The Doctor realizes that even all his history and experiences do not amount to the potential of the days not yet lived or the time taken from someone by death.
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