The Name of the Doctor Review
Review of Doctor Who 7x13: The Name of the Doctor. MAJOR SPOILERS!! DO NOT READ IF YOU HAVE NOT SEEN IT!!!
Overview
The finale to Seventh Season of Doctor Who, revealing the answer to the question of who Clara is, but the greatest question in the history of Doctor Who. Who is the Doctor?
Despite being written by Steven Moffat, the episode was not as timey wimey as it could have been and in fact had a fairly simple solution. However it was still brilliant.
Episode Summary
This was the episode that we have been waiting for since the end of season six, when Dorium warned the Doctor against travelling to the Fields of Trenzalore. While I'm sure that this episode wasn't what many people were expecting - I always assumed that we wouldn't get to Trenzalore until Matt was going to leave - it still served as a rather excellent season finale.
Since we first spotted Clara in the Asylum and then again in Victorian London, the question has been how can their be copies of her scatted around time and this episode provided a perfect solution. The concept that the Doctors tomb, contained not his body, - which while interesting to have hold of is still just the body - but a way into his personal time line was a resolution very Moffaty.
But what was really interesting was the end. All along we had assumed that we were going to discover the Doctors name. In fact, that secret - the biggest one in the Whoniverse - was kept safe, while the actual resolution - that there is more to the name "Doctor" then just a name he picked out mid-air was brilliant.
As for the appearance of John Hurt? I can't wait till November.
The Doctor
Taking the Doctor to Trenzalore - the one place he couldn't go - gave Matt a chance to deliver another stonker of a performance, even if in the end he didn't actually have much to do. His interactions with Clara and the Paternoster Gang, showed how much he cares about his friends - doing whatever he can to save them - and his interactions with River, showed that whatever the fans may say, he really did care about her and her death really hurt him.
It was also interesting to see again exactly how much he has helped and influenced the universe. This was last touched upon in "The Wedding of River Song" but this time we got to see how his influence has affected specific people rather than just the universe
As for John Hurt. Nope. No clue what's going on there. Certainly going to be interesting though.
Companion
Finally we discover what Clara's story is. There have been plenty of rumours floating around the internet about who exactly Clara is and how she came to be scattered through out time. In the end it turned out that she isn't anything special, not a living incarnation of the TARDIS or anything. She's just an ordinary girl like Rose and Martha, who chose to do whatever she could to save her friend.
I don't know if she's coming back next year, but I really hope she does.
Bad Guy
I'm not entirely sure what was up with the guys in top hats, but it was nice to see the Great Intelligence again. He certainly lived up to his name as well. The idea of defeating the Doctor by going back through his own time line, on the surface seems to be an obvious one, but nobody else - even the ones with Time Travel - had thought to do it. And it must be said that without Clara he might have won.
I'm not sure if he was beaten for good, but if he does come back, he's probably going to be mad.
Conclusion
While some people may be disappointed by this episode I still thought it was good in and of itself and it certainly sets things up for the 50th Anniversary.
Next Episode: 50 Years!!
Overview
The finale to Seventh Season of Doctor Who, revealing the answer to the question of who Clara is, but the greatest question in the history of Doctor Who. Who is the Doctor?
Despite being written by Steven Moffat, the episode was not as timey wimey as it could have been and in fact had a fairly simple solution. However it was still brilliant.
Episode Summary
This was the episode that we have been waiting for since the end of season six, when Dorium warned the Doctor against travelling to the Fields of Trenzalore. While I'm sure that this episode wasn't what many people were expecting - I always assumed that we wouldn't get to Trenzalore until Matt was going to leave - it still served as a rather excellent season finale.
Since we first spotted Clara in the Asylum and then again in Victorian London, the question has been how can their be copies of her scatted around time and this episode provided a perfect solution. The concept that the Doctors tomb, contained not his body, - which while interesting to have hold of is still just the body - but a way into his personal time line was a resolution very Moffaty.
But what was really interesting was the end. All along we had assumed that we were going to discover the Doctors name. In fact, that secret - the biggest one in the Whoniverse - was kept safe, while the actual resolution - that there is more to the name "Doctor" then just a name he picked out mid-air was brilliant.
As for the appearance of John Hurt? I can't wait till November.
The Doctor
Taking the Doctor to Trenzalore - the one place he couldn't go - gave Matt a chance to deliver another stonker of a performance, even if in the end he didn't actually have much to do. His interactions with Clara and the Paternoster Gang, showed how much he cares about his friends - doing whatever he can to save them - and his interactions with River, showed that whatever the fans may say, he really did care about her and her death really hurt him.
It was also interesting to see again exactly how much he has helped and influenced the universe. This was last touched upon in "The Wedding of River Song" but this time we got to see how his influence has affected specific people rather than just the universe
As for John Hurt. Nope. No clue what's going on there. Certainly going to be interesting though.
Companion
Finally we discover what Clara's story is. There have been plenty of rumours floating around the internet about who exactly Clara is and how she came to be scattered through out time. In the end it turned out that she isn't anything special, not a living incarnation of the TARDIS or anything. She's just an ordinary girl like Rose and Martha, who chose to do whatever she could to save her friend.
I don't know if she's coming back next year, but I really hope she does.
Bad Guy
I'm not entirely sure what was up with the guys in top hats, but it was nice to see the Great Intelligence again. He certainly lived up to his name as well. The idea of defeating the Doctor by going back through his own time line, on the surface seems to be an obvious one, but nobody else - even the ones with Time Travel - had thought to do it. And it must be said that without Clara he might have won.
I'm not sure if he was beaten for good, but if he does come back, he's probably going to be mad.
Conclusion
While some people may be disappointed by this episode I still thought it was good in and of itself and it certainly sets things up for the 50th Anniversary.
Next Episode: 50 Years!!