Inside Television with Alan Sepinwall

Season finale review: 'Doctor Who' - 'The Wedding of River Song': All at once

The Doctor confronts the Silence with a little help from his friends

By Alan Sepinwall Saturday, Oct 1, 2011 10:00 PM

The Doctor (Matt Smith) in the "Doctor Who" season finale.

Credit: BBC

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A review of the "Doctor Who" season finale coming up just as soon as I go out with you for texting and scones...

"Did you really think when your time came, you'd really have to do more than just ask? You've decided that the universe is better off without you, but the universe doesn't agree." -River

Steven Moffat laid out such a complicated story arc for himself this season that "The Wedding of River Song" had an awful lot to live up to. It had to explain how the Doctor wouldn't die at Lake Silencio - since, great as Matt Smith is, no one has any intention of having the series end with him - had to tell us more about the Silence and the Question, provide the kind of emotional resolution to the Amy/River/Melody story that "Let's Kill Hitler" didn't have time to, and more. Again, that's a ton to fit into a season-ending two-parter, let along a single hour.

And I thought Moffat did a good but not great job of it.

The parts of the episode that were actually about resolution - from around the wedding onward - were quite excellent. The explanation for how the Doctor survived without violating a fixed point in spacetime was one that had been speculated on around here, but still played well. River and the Doctor got married as we all kind of assumed they would at some point from the moment she was introduced in "Silence in the Library," but the moment had the appropriate level of gravity. (And River's speech about the universe wanting to save the Doctor helped rebut the recent Doctor-as-bastard meme the Doctor and the show were pushing the last few episodes.) Amy got a kind of revenge against the woman who stole her daughter - and made it clear how much the loss hurts her, even as she and Rory have moved on from it - and I flat-out loved the beginning of the epilogue, with River appearing to Amy right after the events of "Flesh and Stone," and the two of them trying to forge a weird mother/daughter relationship out of sequence in the same way River is married to the Doctor for much longer than I imagine he's married to her.

So all of that was very satisfying, payoff-wise. But I think I could have done without another complicated alternate reality consuming so much of the finale's running time, especially since the episode's overall structure was so similar to "The Big Bang." I know Moffat has repeated himself a lot in various ways during his time as both "Doctor Who" writer and showrunner, but this felt particularly slavish, even there were fun little details on the margins, plus another fine example of Rory being Amy Pond's unwavering protector in every corner of reality, even ones where they don't realize they're married.

The final scenes suggested an interesting new direction for the next season (which we may not see for nearly a year). Moffat already scaled back the degree to which Earth was aware of aliens from the Davies era, and now he's proposing the Doctor taking a more covert approach to the galaxy in general. I'm assuming Amy and Rory will be back in some capacity, and it'll be interesting to see the show reconcile that with the Doctor's feelings at the end of "The God Complex" - at the very least, I hope that if they're back full-time, we're done with the Weekly Rory Williams Death Hour - and also with his desire to have adventures on the down-low, while contemplating the oldest question in the universe (and in this show):

Doctor who?

What did everybody else think? And if the next season does, in fact, take a year to arrive (other than the Christmas special), how are you going to fill the gap?

Alan Sepinwall
Sr. Editor, What's Alan Watching

Alan Sepinwall has been reviewing television since the mid-'90s, first for Tony Soprano's hometown paper, The Star-Ledger, and now for HitFix. His new book, "The Revolution Was Televised," about the last 15 years of TV drama, is for sale at Amazon. He can be reached at sepinwall@hitfix.com

Related Searches: Doctor Who, Matt Smith, Alex Kingston, Steven Moffat, Karen Gillan, Arthur Darvill, Alan Sepinwall

Next 112 Comments

Delta1212

Not my favorite episode of Doctor Who, but I still enjoyed it. The Doctor waving his cowboy hat from out of his "own" eye cracked me up, and I like "Doctor Who?" as the oldest question in the universe simply because, in the Doctor Who universe, it is the oldest question. It's asked in the title before the first episode even began.

The alternate timeline does sort of repeat the other reality motif he apparently likes to use in finales, but once I got past that, I quite liked most of the stuff he did with it. Charles Dickens plugging the Christmas special on TV got a chuckle out of me, and who wouldn't like Winston Ceasar?

I never had much of a problem with Amy and Rory's lack of reaction to the loss of their baby, but I don't watch this show for the tight human drama. I watch because I think it's fun. That said, I did think Amy's monologue about being robbed of her child was well done and it made me think of this blog.
October 1, 2011 at 10:16PM EST Reply to Comment
- Boricua in Texas I actually thought that the question turned out to be a weak point. It was just too obvious and too meta for my taste.
  October 2, 2011 at 8:22PM EST
Dan

It was a very satisfying episode in terms of resolution and the pace of the action. I still felt it was more of a Davies ending in that the build up of the previous episodes was bigger than the finale episode. I felt last year's season finale was the only one to break that mold.

As mentioned, I like the fact that Moffet gave us a better sense of Amy's loss of seeing River grow up. The episode did leave lots of great gaps for die-hard fans to speculate on (If the Doctor said "look in my eye") what were the whispers in the "Silence in the Library" episode and "Let's Kill Hitler"? Can we now definitively map River's timestream relative to the Doctor given her admission of lies? Will we see more of River, Amy and Rory and in what times and order?

My only pet peeves from this episode, the cheesy bit about the River calling to the universe and it reaching back to the Doctor to say they will help. We saw this on an earthly level under Tenant and Martha Jones. I do hope that the Doctor now has both the knowledge he needs companions to keep him in check and that while he's the only Time Lord he doesn't have to be the bigger than the Universe/Time character he became under Tennant and was trying to overcome under Matt Smith.

Just don't know what to do after Christmas if we have to wait a whole year.
October 1, 2011 at 10:17PM EST Reply to Comment
There was a danger in this becoming one of the horrible RTD finales. The thing about all the people wanting to save the doctor reminded me too much of the master story.

Thankfully, moffat is better than that.

Loved the call out to the brigadier and nick courtneys passing.

We apparently will see the doctor companion less in time for the xmas episode, perhaps written by charles dickens.

And i presume nerds across the pond have spent tonight writing fan fic about amy bond in her suit and blazing machine guns.

Hopefully, the latest soft reboot for the doctor will see more science foction and less fairy tales and nursery rhymes.
October 1, 2011 at 10:21PM EST Reply to Comment
Scott

Is next season the last for Matt Smith? The creators foreshadowed this by proclaiming "the Fall of the Eleventh". It sounds like the end of the previous Doctor when it was stated that his "song was ending". Look forward to the next series in the fall of 2012.
October 1, 2011 at 10:23PM EST Reply to Comment
- Kevin I would think so, but nothing is set in stone. I doubt they want to go through that four movies nonsense again. I'd say he's got an outside shot at a fourth season, but it really does seem like S7 will be his last. Which will be so heartbreaking.
  October 2, 2011 at 12:14AM EST
- The Noble Robot I remember the old days when a guy got fired, or just up and quit, instead of a year-long farewell tour.
  
  Tennant's big drama at the end I can forgive a little bit because it was also RTD's goodbye, and the first true "passing of the torch" for the new series. It was silly, but they earned it.
  
  But when Smith's time does come, I really hope they don't make a huge deal of out it within the show itself.
  October 2, 2011 at 10:02AM EST
- nic919 I don't think Matt Smith is tired of this job yet based on his interviews, so Moffat has put "the fall" in there, but he may not necessarily use it for the end of the 2012-2013 season. This will run into the 50th anniversary of Doctor Who so I doubt they will want to push out a doctor that has done so well. I also think that Smith will do at least as many seasons as Tennant, which was 4 seasons plus specials. The long time gap because of the 2012 Olympics will also give him time to get other projects, which was one of the driving forces for Tennant to want to leave.
  October 2, 2011 at 11:27AM EST
Tracey

I share your ambivalence about this episode. As a stand-alone, I think it would have been a good one. All of time collapsing on itself because of a paradox, Winston Churchill as Holy Roman Emperor in modern Britain talking about downloads... wild stuff. But as a resolution to all the build-up this season? I dunno... The problem with these big complicated story arcs in SF is that the fans come up with all kinds of wild ideas, and it's hard for the real ending not to be a let-down. I'm not sure how much was Moffat's fault and how much was fan wonk, but there were enough red herrings floating around this year to cater a bar mitzvah. And as I said before, comparing DW to bad anime, it did feel like they just sort of narrated the answers instead of having them develop properly.

So the Doctor pulled an Elvis, faked his own death to avoid the burdens of fame... OK. And the big question was "Doctor who?" Really? I heard a lot of fans suggesting that this was the question, but it just seemed too dumb. And unlike the revelation that River Song = Melody Pond = Amy's daughter, this one continued to feel kind of dumb after it was revealed.

I did like that they brought back Dorium -- I liked that character -- but I kept waiting for him to say "Meka leka hi, meka hiney ho."

I did love the scene at the end, where River and Amy are meeting up out-of-sequence, building an odd sort of mother-daughter relationship.
October 1, 2011 at 10:27PM EST Reply to Comment
- Delta1212 With regard to the question being Doctor Who? I look at the Whoniverse as being a bit like the universe created for Zaphod Beeblebrox in whichever Hitchiker's Guide novel that was. He was put in another universe where looking upon the totality of existence didn't make him go insane, because he was looking at it in a universe that really was specifically designed for him.
  
  Likewise, the Doctor Who universe is very much like the real universe but it's not. It's the universe of the show Doctor Who. And in the universe of the show Doctor Who, 'Doctor Who?' is the oldest question.
  
  Logically, it doesn't make sense, but on a sort of meta level it's perfect, and I enjoy that sort of thing.
  October 1, 2011 at 10:34PM EST
- It also makes sense to ask "doctor who" in the shows 50th anniversary season.
  
  I hope all the people in the robot/ship survives the doctors death and viking funeral.
  October 1, 2011 at 10:43PM EST
- Tracey But "Doctor who?" was never a question. They started throwing that line in now and then in the reboot (2005-), but just as a joke. And "who is he" never seemed to be a great universal mystery. The Time Lords certainly knew who he was, and the more advanced races.
  October 2, 2011 at 7:15AM EST
- What do you mean it was never a question. It was asked as a question in the very first episode.
  October 4, 2011 at 1:14PM EST
- KW "Doctor Who?" as a question was being used back in the 1960s. It's so long ago now I can't remember if it was the Hartnell or Troughton era it was first introduced - but certainly long before 2005!
  April 24, 2012 at 9:22PM EST
Clifton

I could be wrong, but since the Doctor did not offer River his name (yet!), then they are not, in fact, married (yet!).
October 1, 2011 at 10:51PM EST Reply to Comment
- Kevin Unless he told her his name near the end of Let's Kill Hitler...
  October 2, 2011 at 12:15AM EST
Clifton

I could be wrong, but since the Doctor did *not* give River his name (yet!), that would mean that they are, in fact, *not* married (yet!).
October 1, 2011 at 10:53PM EST Reply to Comment
- Clifton Double post, sorry!
  October 1, 2011 at 10:54PM EST
- Brian F. I think that River already knows the Doctor's name... It would make sense that his name was written on his crib and when she was placed in it as a baby that she learned it. And when she pointed his name out (in high Galifreyan) on it, she told him who she was and how she was able to whisper it to him in the Library...
  October 1, 2011 at 11:14PM EST
- Mary Brian, I am so glad you answered that! It was bothering me...
  October 2, 2011 at 12:03AM EST
- bryan rasmussen He whispered his name to her when they got married.
  October 3, 2011 at 1:25AM EST
- bryan rasmussen He whispered his name to her when they got married.
  October 3, 2011 at 1:25AM EST
- consideract We don't know that revealing his name has anything to do with his marriage. The Doctor , as Tennant, did not actually say that. We were led to think that is what he meant, but he did. Ot say that. Also, @Bryan Rasmussen, the Doctor did not whisper his name to River. He just said that out loud, but actually simply told her to look into his eye.
  October 3, 2011 at 8:23AM EST
ContinentalOp

I may have missed it (I probably did), but why exactly did the Doctor and River get married? Apart from love and plot, that is.
October 1, 2011 at 10:53PM EST Reply to Comment
- Swearin It seemed like only by being married could he tell her his name (or make it appear to the Ponds that he did). Either that or only by being married could he be allowed to tell her his real secret. I might be reaching...
  October 2, 2011 at 12:18AM EST
- Tom M This is gonna sound terribly cynical and un-romantic, but I can't think of another way to phrase it. I think he married her because it was what she needed to hear. He wanted to break out of the fixed moment in time they were all stuck in (and which he definitely blamed her for), and the only way to accomplish that was for them to touch long enough to break the cycle. She seemed committed to staying in that moment in time for as long as necessary until she got what she wanted (a commitment or admission of feeling from him), and so he gave it to her.
  
  For the record, I didn't feel that cynically about it while watching it, but it's hard to articulate the emotion behind my reasoning in words...and who knows, I may well have read the moment wrong, just my opinion.
  October 2, 2011 at 1:00AM EST
- ECG Tom M, I was thinking the same thing -- that he married her because it was what she needed -- but for different reasons. I don't think that River was determined to stay in that moment until she got either a commitment or admission of feeling from the Doctor. I think she was determined to stay in the moment because she was desperately hanging on to him and refused to even consider the possibility that he really did have to die. She wasn't waiting for a commitment or admission of feeling; she was waiting (and working feverishly) for some other answer that didn't involve the Doctor's death.
  
  So this is what I thought before we learned what the Doctor really whispered to her: By marrying River and telling her his name, the Doctor gave her what she needed, a reminder of how much he loved and trusted her, and that reminder gave her the strength to let go, trust him, and let him do what needed doing.
  
  Of course, the fact that he didn't really tell her his name but instead revealed that he wouldn't actually die at Lake Silencio changes things. Now it pretty much looks like the wedding just let the Doctor to get close enough to River to tell her that. But I like to think that the very fact that he chose a wedding as the best way to get close to her keeps some of my initial interpretation alive.
  October 2, 2011 at 2:05AM EST
- ContinentalOp @TOM M The Doctor definitely seemed more displeased with River than I can ever remember him being; not frustrated or irritated, but genuinely displeased. I don't really think you're reaching with what you call a more cynical point of view (and it may not even be cynical; I do wish that if it isn't, it were articulated more in the episode).
  
  Of course, it may even be gratifying in that perhaps he's just not happy that he's not being trusted since, after all, he absolutely had a plan. And that I'm perfectly okay with, especially with the general attraction between the Doctor and River that the series has been pushing for a while (compared to the Doctor's general insistence that Amy and Rory belong together, come hell or high water).
  
  Hopefully this makes *some* sense...
  October 2, 2011 at 2:10AM EST
- Tracey It seemed to me that it was the only way to get her attention and focus long enough to tell her what his own plan was! And it gave him the opportunity to whisper something to her, where his enemies wouldn't hear it. Yes, that's a cynical view of it.
  October 2, 2011 at 7:20AM EST
- The_Corsair I would side with those who sense the Doctor is a bit cool on River. While she's willing to let the whole universe go to pot for him, he certainly hasn't reached that point yet. I don't think that she does know his name yet as he doesn't trust her enough yet. As to whether their marriage is final or not without that knowledge, who knows, but I'm sure it will be mentioned. I would wager that the rest of their tenure together will be the Doctor getting to the point where he loves her as much as she loves him and that will be the point at which she goes off to the library.
  October 2, 2011 at 10:51AM EST
Valde

One question still remains unanswered. When the Master died and was cremated on the funeral pire, a woman's laugh was heard as a hand reached out and took the ring from his finger. I don't believe we've been told who that woman was (River, the one who stole River as a baby??) or what she intended to do with the ring. I was kind of hoping it would be addressed in this season's finale.
October 1, 2011 at 10:56PM EST Reply to Comment
- Loony I think it was explained in The End of Time. we learned that the Master had some secret cult following that took the river and resurrected him.
  October 1, 2011 at 11:01PM EST
- Loony opps meant the cult took the Master's *ring (not river)
  October 1, 2011 at 11:02PM EST
- Mrshock13 Loony is right. At the beginning of tenant's 2 part episode where he regenerates, we do see the woman with the
  Masters ring. Go back and watch it, we do see her, but she is eventually killed by the masters former wife/companion
  October 1, 2011 at 11:18PM EST
Loony

I don't understand why The Doctor HAD to marry River.
Back inside the pyramid, he was perfectly ready to touch her to fix time. Did he marry her bc he loves her...or to invoke some sort of Gallifreyan marital privilege before telling her his secret plan? or both?
October 1, 2011 at 10:56PM EST Reply to Comment
- Scott Rosenberg The thing to keep in mind is that the Libary two-parter and various comments in other eps make it very clear that the pair have a long history of many meetings, only a few of which are shown on screen. At this point in the timeline, we know that the Doctor has experienced almost all of these meetings, while River is still very young and extremely enamored. While it is bad form to have characters act based on a genesis we as the audience have mostly not witnessed, I don't think the marriage is unreasonable.
  October 1, 2011 at 11:11PM EST
- Mrshock13 The marriage also served a dual purpose in this episode. Willing to die, but needing river to do it, the doctor needed river to touch him to fix time. However, being enamored by him, river couldn't bare to be the one to kill the doctor. As such, marrying her helped to alleviate that emotion river had, as she would know she married the man she loves, but in the end had to do what was right.
  
  October 1, 2011 at 11:17PM EST
- Loony hey scott,
  i agree that marriage is not unreasonable. i was wondering about why the doctor chose that particular moment to marry her...it seemed important that he make River officially his family before he told her of his plan. Like back in "Let's kill Hitler" when the crew of the Teselecta gave Amy special privileges to ask questions and know certain things because she was Melody's family....just curious
  October 1, 2011 at 11:23PM EST
- maxmike Hey! This is a man who ran off to marry Marilyn Monroe on the spur of the moment! Besides, how many men out there right now wouldn't marry River Song right now with even less exposure to her charms than the Doctor has had?
  October 2, 2011 at 1:38AM EST
- Tracey @Loony: Ah... interesting point. He is, after all, using the mouth of the Tesselecta. Maybe he has to have family privilege to be able to tell her that he is, in fact the Tesselecta!
  October 2, 2011 at 7:24AM EST
Scott Rosenberg

I mostly agree with your assessment, save that the theme redundancy with the previous finale didn't bother me that much. The show had a bunch of fun meta moments in the beginning, lots of little novel ideas scattered in the middle, and a clever enough ending, but the body of it was too much fluff and not enough resolution. The Silence are still all over in full force, we still don't know anything about the species whose adherents we've seen, and since it's been teased since the first episode of last season, I feel like it was time to put that story to bed.
October 1, 2011 at 11:00PM EST Reply to Comment
Eric33

These long, complicated, mysterious story arcs never can have completely satisfying resolutions. Not only is there never runtime to resolve all the tantalizing mysteries dropped over so many prior stories, it always turns out the writers haven't actually connected every single thread they've left hanging, even if they've led viewers to expect otherwise (Exhibit A, though perhaps an extreme example: the rebooted Battlestar Galactica series). And so with DW series 6.

I thought Moffat did a credible job dealing with the biggest questions in this finale, and I enjoyed the episode overall, but still came away a bit let down why he completely dropped the storyline of why and how little River (we now know) was in the spacesuit ringing up Richard Nixon in 1969, why she was afraid the spaceman would "eat" her, and then later hanging about the spooky orphanage, all back in the series premiere. Am I the only one who assumed we'd get at least a cursory explanation at the conclusion to the arc? It seemed so central to the big story, the way it was presented. Instead, I wonder if all that girl-in-a-spacesuit hoo-ha was either something Moffat couldn't write his way out of, or never intended to.

That said, Moffat has left some even bigger questions from LAST season hanging -- cracks in the universe, entire worlds fleeing from the Silence, who took over and blew up the Tardis, etc. One hopes he's keeping at least some of that alive for future storylines, but it's probably best to focus on enjoying the stories in the here and now. With this cast there is always an abundance of playful and often touching nuance to savor. Hope they're all back for at least parts of next season.
October 1, 2011 at 11:00PM EST Reply to Comment
- Mrshock13 Those points you bring up were answered last season. Te cracks were created from the tarsus exploding at all points of time. The silence blew up the tardis, based on what we learned this season as a way to take out the doctor in response to silence falling once the first question was answered
  October 1, 2011 at 11:10PM EST
- Mrshock13 I apologize for the plethora of spelling errors...touch screen keyboards are not really my friend...
  October 1, 2011 at 11:11PM EST
- Cw I think Mrshock13 nailed it. At the very least, with the tardis explosion, the silence were behind it.
  October 1, 2011 at 11:25PM EST
- Dr who confidential (rip) had a "history of river song" feature that seemingly explains her backstory and some of the holes.
  
  October 1, 2011 at 11:58PM EST
- Kazi Eric33 "why and how little River (we now know) was in the spacesuit ringing up Richard Nixon in 1969, why she was afraid the spaceman would "eat" her, and then later hanging about the spooky orphanage"
  Well the space suit was designed for be able to control River, so they probably put her in it as a young age to try and perfect it before they needed her to kill the Doctor. However it was not 100% as she kept breaking free of it, and then they would make adjustments and shove her back in it. Though she could not remember the Silence she could remember constantly finding herself back in the suit. And well she was raised (in part) at the orphanage. That's why she was there.
  October 1, 2011 at 11:58PM EST
- Eric33 MRSHOCK13 is right about the cracks last season, and yeah it's plausible that the Silence we met were the Tardis hijackers of the Pandorica events, although I'll point out that last season the storyline was pointed at fleeing and fighting a "Silence" that was destroying reality -- and now this season we learn that the Silence who kidnapped Melody Pond did it all to PREVENT reality from collapsing, per their religious beliefs. Hmmm.
  
  KAZI, it would seem your interpretation of River's timeline is spot on - see the excellent timeline piece from DW confidential that is linked to further down in the comments. (I wish we Americans got the DW confidential episodes on BBC America instead of relying on snippets that may or may not be posted on YouTube, but of course now it's moot as the BBC has cancelled DWC). I hope we get the DWC eps on the eventual full Series 6 DVD release, US version.
  October 2, 2011 at 7:57AM EST
- Cw @Eric33...the silence (based on what we've been told) are dedicated to ensuring that the Question is not answered. I think you're misperceiving the motive. I don't think it matters to them how they go about accomplishing that goal i.e. Destroying the universe to silence the doctor as seen last season or killing him directly this season (and as a side effect preventing time from collapsing). Also, the silence are directly linked to the destruction of the Tardis through the phrase "silence will fall.". The same phrase we heard a voice say in the Tardis just before it exploded. Also, consider who was piloting the Tardis at that moment: River. Seems plausible she unknowinly did it...more Silence brainwashing. Not saying that's definite, but based on what we've learned this season, it's plausible.
  October 2, 2011 at 11:12AM EST
- Eric33 @CW: Aha, that does make sense. I hadn't considered the Silence to be quite that extreme but of course they are. Interesting thought about River's possible unwitting role. I do appreciate that Moffat doesn't spell every single detail out in answering the major questions, that would make for tedious television..instead he lets the intelligent fan community put together the pieces afterward, like y'all have helped me do :-)
  October 2, 2011 at 12:36PM EST
- Scott Rosenberg ERIC - It's more complicated than you're thinking. River song could not have been the child in the suit, as she regenerated into that form as a fully grown woman. The child in the suit was either the first iteration of Melody Pond, or an iteration somewhere between Melody and Mels. If that contradicts the story (I honestly don't remember), it's an error of writing. If not, there's far more than what we're looking at.
  October 2, 2011 at 3:16PM EST
- Delta1212 The little girl in the space suit was shown regenerating in the second episode of the season. She became Mels (presumably), who grew up and regenerated into River.
  
  They're all still River, though, even if they aren't "River" in the same way the Doctor is still technically the same character after he regenerates.
  October 2, 2011 at 4:10PM EST
andrea_nattress

I have been reading everyone's comments, and I agree with most of them but all in all I think that the bigger picture is this, THE DOCTOR'S ALIVE!!!! Yeah. I don't like watching these types of shows because they cut them off to soon. I love the fact that he didn't give up or how I was going on all week about him basically "committing suicide!". Everyone kept telling my that Moffat couldn't kill him off because they have a contract with the current Doctor for the next year or two and, me just being me, started thinking that there are actually many different ways to kill off a character and still have them appear in later episodes. One of my crazy theories was that they would let him die and, people kept missing this part, since it is actually the young River that killed him, they would reverse the sequence. If you think about it, it was the only thing that would make any sense. The first time we see her was at the Library and it is basically when she dies, so it would only make sense that, even if it isn't the first time she meets him, that when she kills him, it shows from the other perspective. Not his life moving forward but reversing. Do you see what I am getting at? They start the next season from her point-of-view and living out her life and the sequence in her life where she helped out and we didn't even know it, although they would have to bring back the tenth doctor and be has probably changed to much, so scratch that, back to the drawing board. Actually this comment has probably gone on for far to long so I guess I will have to end it at that. One last thing before I go, and this may be redundant, but:
HE'S ALIVE!!
October 1, 2011 at 11:55PM EST Reply to Comment
- Given the bbc's budget issues, the last thing they would do now is get rid of dr who, since its a huge cash cow.
  
  I do agree this will likely be the last season for moffat and matt smith.
  October 2, 2011 at 12:01AM EST
teetee7

Did you catch the "I hate rats" Indiana Jones spoof? :-)
October 2, 2011 at 12:00AM EST Reply to Comment
- Eric33 That was a great scene. The Viking dude falling into a hidden pit and being devoured by creepy-crawlies was also classic Indiana Jones. Fun.
  October 2, 2011 at 8:03AM EST
I. S.

There is another level of reality at work here, but it could hurt your head if you think about it. Silence will fall when the show attempts to answer its central mystery. The Silence are the ultimate villains because they represent the END OF THE SHOW. The moment you stop watching, you forget about it. They personify the ephemeral nature of television. No wonder they have sardonic comments to make about the character arc of Rory Williams!
October 2, 2011 at 12:12AM EST Reply to Comment
- swearin I thought that was pretty funny; they basically called out Rory on being the perpetual Red Shirt of the show.
  October 2, 2011 at 1:00AM EST
Yeeahhh

RORY $%#ING WILLIAMS
October 2, 2011 at 12:24AM EST Reply to Comment
Swearin

- "And River's speech about the universe wanting to save the Doctor helped rebut the recent Doctor-as-bastard meme the Doctor and the show were pushing the last few episodes" -

It's apt that the episode before this was called "The God Complex" because there's a theme that I've seen in other works about a belief system or a legend becoming greater than the actual person or thing they were built around. Most notably I recall the Dune series (SPOILERS FOLLOW!):

Paul Atreides was just a young nobleman at the beginning of his life but through uniting the tribal Fremen he became their Messiah, after which a brutal crusade burned across the galaxy by his own followers, a crusade he did not personally start. By the end of Dune Messiah and the start of Children of Dune, Paul's reign as Emperor had become godlike in the eyes of the universe, but while thousands revered him, the rest of the universe despised him. The "religion" of Muad'ib (Paul's holy name) had also become corrupted by the priesthood. Eventually, Paul went into exile and the universe believed him gone, but later on he helps his own son to destroy his legend and shatter the belief system he had been the center of.

(END SPOILER)

I think what The Doctor did was pretty similar: while many saw him as the Ultimate Villain and as River pointed out to him, many saw him as the Ultimate Hero, the Doctor realised his legend had grown too big and too many people were so invested in him and his adventurers that they had gone to extremes to destroy him or support him - I mean, what better proof can he have of his effect on mere mortals than the little girl from Gamma Forest spending her life becoming a soldier JUST to meet him? Or having Amy Pond (albeit unwillingly) sacrifice years of watching her daughter grow up, or having said daughter one day BREAK TIME ITSELF just to keep her beloved Doctor alive? The Doctor might be the smartest person in the universe but he's far from perfect, and he realized he couldn't be a god, no matter how much the universe wanted him to be one.

So having everyone assume he is dead and taking himself out of the equation, essentially, is the best thing he could do. Besides which, when he makes his triumphant return upon those Fields of Whatever-they're-called, the impact will be much bigger on friend and foe alike. I'm very interested to see next season where the Question gets answered (and I assume the Silence will continue to be the main antagonists leading to it), but if the Doctor believes the prophecy, then he once again knows when and where his death is going to occur, right?

One thing that bothered me is they never showed or explained how little Melody got from Florida to NYC, became Mels, then moved to Leadworth all as a 7 year old girl.

Jeez, we gotta wait a year for next season?
October 2, 2011 at 12:58AM EST Reply to Comment
Becca

I liked the alternate universe, but only because it was such FUN. Area 52 pyramid! That's just great.

I also agree with your assessment that the payoff section was pretty good, at least on an emotional level. Loved the Doctor and River's wedding, loved FINALLY getting Amy to show emotions re: the loss of baby Melody, loved the Ponds as family unit.

That said, one thing I've always liked about Moffatt is that he is very clever with timey-whimey plots with lots of pieces that eventually come together like a puzzle, but in this case I didn't find the plot satisfying on that level. I suppose it all made as much sense as anything else, but it didn't feel like all the pieces added up in the same way they did in The Big Bang or Blink.

And I really, really don't like the ultimate question being "Doctor who?" It's cheesy and makes the Doctor seems cosmically important in a way I don't like.

That said, overall, I did enjoy it, for the character interactions (I really love basically every iterations of Eleven/Rive/Amy/Roro), the fun world, and the snappy pacing that kept me engaged.
October 2, 2011 at 1:15AM EST Reply to Comment
- belinda Yeah, that's sort of how I feel about this season as a whole - it's still sort of clever, but it also felt too obvious - like the puzzle pieces scattered throughout the season were too apparent as puzzle pieces (whereas they seemed more discrete and better placed in S5), so the end result still came together, but it all feels a bit underwhelming, and I wasn't really surprised by how things went down at all. I don't know. It's good, but not great. S5 (or previous Moffat scripts in S1-4) felt more clever and elegantly constructed somehow.
  
  I think in the first post for this half season, I joked that the question would be Doctor WHO?....so yeah, it's really cheesy that that, in fact, was the question hidden in plain sight.
  October 3, 2011 at 12:11AM EST
- bryan rasmussen I don't like it either, but I think the cheesiness may be essential to Moffat's concept of the show, that is is a children's show with a lot of things that adults would consider cheesy.
  October 3, 2011 at 3:01AM EST
- Becca Belinda: that the "puzzle pieces scattered throughout the season were too apparent as puzzle pieces" is exactly right, I think. This season really felt more like Lost and all the Lost clones, hitting you over the head with the fact that there was a mystery waiting to be solved. And while that makes for a fun ride, as we saw (IMO, at least) with Lost and many other shows like it, that normally DOESN'T lead to a satisfactory conclusion.
  October 3, 2011 at 11:48AM EST
Ed

Another finale, another easy way out for Moffat in the last seconds. This should have been a great episode, but it was merely a good finale. Davies isn't the most popular guy, but I'll take his endings any day. The whole world thinking 'Doctor' at the same time was more satisfying than a quick fix to get the Doctor out of death for the second year in a row.
October 2, 2011 at 1:16AM EST Reply to Comment
sadforRiver

So I just watched the episode again, and the "wedding" scene is leaving a bad taste in my mouth. He said earlier that he doesn't want to marry her. He seems genuinely ashamed and angry with her, even declaring "You embarrass me!" Then during the ceremony, he barks "Do as your told." And she just takes it! maybe I am reading too much into these scenes....
October 2, 2011 at 1:36AM EST Reply to Comment
- swearin Thing is, the Doctor didn't truly mean any of the things he said. Much like when he kicked Amy & Rory to the curb two episodes ago, he does things as a gut-reaction to what he's feeling at any given time - which is what makes him more human-like than he'll ever admit. In this case, he BELIEVES he is a screwed-up, silly old man who has caused too much harm to too many people across the universe, not the least of which being his own companions. Forget the fact that he's plotting to fake it anyway, the Doctor wanted to die in order to a) keep time intact and undo the alternate timeline and b) to have the universe accept his death once the proper timeline was restored.
  
  So in the heat of the moment, when he tells River he doesn't want to marry her, when he shouts at her and insults her as she tries to help him, it's because he's wallowing in self-loathing and pushing people away is his defense mechanism.
  
  If he could have touched River long enough and restored the timeline, he would've "died" and nobody would've been the wiser. But that would also mean River, Amy & Rory would carry on in agony believing the Doctor was truly dead along with everyone else. I think knowing that, and hearing about how SO many people in the universe loved him, is what convinced him to give River the wedding they both wanted, but also to let her in on his secret faking-death-plot (which he knew she would eventually tell the Ponds about). So now he can roam the galaxy again doing good, and only a select handful of people know he's not really dead.
  October 2, 2011 at 2:48PM EST
- Izzy I love the episode but I too was having trouble understanding why the Doctor marries River until I read Swearin’s re: the Doctor’s death is going to leave River, Amy and Rory in agony, and then it hit me – the Doctor is hurting too. But he is behaving just like a human male, suffering in silence! I wasn’t bother with all those was pulling and pushing things the Doctor said to River, he was trying to get her to kill him afterall. And I think we can safely say that Doctor loves River; he did used what he thought was his dying last breathe to tell her even though it was not the same River he loves, and it must had been some declaration for River to gives up all her future regeneration for a future together.
  I took it for granted that River and Doctor belong together and ignore/not realising that by faking his own death he is giving up River, the woman he loves, to save Time for the universe. But then River has to tell him no one loves him more than her and she would suffers (too) if he’s gone from her life. So what’s a man to do but to marry the woman he loves! Has to be the most romantic scene ever! I love it.
  
  October 3, 2011 at 4:51AM EST
ECG

I agree, "good but not great." I'll have to watch it again -- I always do -- but after the first viewing it wasn't quite as emotionally satisfying as I hoped it would be. "The Big Bang" was definitely better.

One question I'm not sure was answered, but maybe someone else picked up on this and can fill me in: At the beginning of "The Impossible Astronaut" -- which is where this episode picks up -- the Doctor said he was about 1100 years old, but the timeline over this season seems to have been just a few months.

Did the Doctor just lie? (Rule 1!) If so, why? To make sure they knew that when he appeared afterward, it was an earlier version of himself? But then why not say "910" -- why advance his age two hundred years? Or am I wrong about the timeline of this season? Craig does have a baby when he visits, so from Craig's point of view it's probably only been a year or so between the Doctor's visits, but that doesn't mean it's been a year from the Doctor's perspective. Could there have been a couple hundred years between episodes that we just didn't see? Maybe there was a line explaining this somewhere that I missed?

OK, one more question: As I was writing the first question, I started trying to figure out the timeline of events from Amy and Rory's perspective, since that's usually the most linear. It gave me a headache and made me more confused than ever.

So, after the 1100-year-old (or so we're told) Doctor's death in "The Impossible Astronaut," Amy and Rory had all the adventures of this season with the 909-year-old Doctor. Then he leaves them at the end of "The God Complex," he picks up the TARDIS-blue envelopes at the end of "Closing Time," and the invitations are delivered in this episode. So they receive the invitations *after* all of their adventures of this season. But we see them receive the invitations in "The Impossible Astronaut," *before* all of their adventures this season. Now I feel like Amy and Rory are trapped in a season 6 loop.

The timey-wimey stuff, it's killing me.
October 2, 2011 at 2:36AM EST Reply to Comment
- Eric33 Oh yeah, it's a timey-wimey loop, all right. I still can't figure out when this series jumped back into the past after the events of The Impossible Astronaut two-parter, and I have a feeling I never will. But we'd better get used to people meeting up out of sequence, at least if the Ponds and River Song show up any next season (which I hope they do) -- now we have River and Amy comparing "where and when are you" notes!
  
  However, it would make sense to me that if the Doctor who "dies" at Lake Silencio is indeed two hundred years older than the younger Doctor, those two hundred years probably elapsed after he dropped of Amy and Rory for a new life at their new house, and before he showed up at Craig's doorstep. In the finale he did reference a long goodbye tour and running from his destiny for a long time.
  October 2, 2011 at 7:28AM EST
- Tracey I assumed he had a couple hundred years of adventures between God Complex and Closing Time. And maybe some of those adventures were with River. :^)
  October 2, 2011 at 7:36AM EST
- swearin You're forgetting that when the Doctor says he is 1100 years old, he's 2 inches tall inside of a robot that can shapeshift into anyone of any age or appearance. So in this case, he probably grabbed the microphone and followed Rule #1.
  October 2, 2011 at 2:54PM EST
- Anon. And why does he invite himself to his death? Does that make sense if he knew he was in the Teselecta? I'm way confused...
  October 2, 2011 at 6:40PM EST
- JBVO Remember at the beginning of the season when Amy and Rory were passing time waiting for the Doctor to get back? He kept showing up. I remember he was on an old movie that they were watching but they weren't looking at the time. I'm guessing all that was done in his pre-death tour. It takes A LOT of time to do all the stuff he's doing, apparently.
  October 4, 2011 at 11:49AM EST
- Elena most of the people here seem to think the gap in his age is between episodes "God Complex" and "Closing Time" but I always had a feeling the age gap was between "When A Good Man Goes To War" and "Let's Kill Hitler", cause he's been looking for Amy's daughter, right? any pro's/con's for my idea?
  February 8, 2012 at 7:31AM EST
Loony

Clip from the last Doctor Who Confidential on River Song's timeline.
http://doctorwhotv.co.uk/river-song-her-story-series-4-6-26644.htm
October 2, 2011 at 2:51AM EST Reply to Comment
- Tracey Thanks for the link! It doesn't tell us anything we didn't already know, but it helps to connect the dots.
  October 2, 2011 at 4:35PM EST
Qitkat

I guess I didn't watch the same show the rest of ya'll did.

I thought it was ^&$%*#ing brilliant.

I came here first to see what others thought, what a let-down.
I didn't understand it all and will want to watch again, but the last several minutes I had tears in my eyes. It was a remarkable episode that tied together so many elements. I'm just not one of those fans who needs everything explained or everything to make perfect sense. I watch Doctor Who to take me somewhere no other show will. And this one delivered.

Best of the Best, for me.
October 2, 2011 at 3:30AM EST Reply to Comment
- Greg I'm with Qitkat. This episode was hugely enjoyable, and a very satisfying finale. Granted, I have an unusual history with the show in that I'm still catching up with the bulk of it, but--for whatever reason--I didn't see the Doctor's survival method coming (I was thinking Flesh), and I loved time itself being unstuck & the little details used for that (Don't feed the pterodactyls.) This was, aside from "The Girl Who Waited," my favorite episode of the season.
  October 2, 2011 at 6:00AM EST
- Tracey I don't need everything explained, but when you spend an entire season (including an extended break in the middle) dangling hints of bigger things, only to end with, "Oh, yeah, he faked his own death" (which pretty much EVERYBODY assumed from the beginning, though not the exact method)... yeah, I found that a bit disappointing. Loved the time collapse stuff, though. That was a lot of fun. I liked it better on second viewing because I wasn't expecting big revelations.
  October 2, 2011 at 8:41AM EST
- ed Agreed with Tracey here. It's weird to say 'I didn't see the survival method coming' when you basically did...just a fake death either way. Moffat's obviously talented, but he shouldn't have to rely on a cheap deus ex machina ending to get out of the corner he boxed himself into. Perhaps he should keep it more simple next season. The greatest writer ever on Who, Robert Holmes, didn't need overly intricate plotting.
  October 2, 2011 at 9:13AM EST
- Cw Also thought the finale was great. You're not alone!
  October 2, 2011 at 11:32AM EST
michael_jimeno

The Question - Doctor Who?

The answer is probably his real name, what ever it is. I have a theory.

The Doctor has always claimed to be a 'Time Lord' by race, yet he has mentioned that he was chosen to enter the Time Institute. The Time Lords all seamed to have chosen names for themselves (The Doctor, The Master, etc.). Maybe they do this to protect who they really are.

What if at the Time Institue they brought in different species form around the universe, and in order for them to properly become Time Lords they have to Transform them into a new species. This transformation would then give them the power to regenerate.

Let's say that the Time Lords pick the best and brightest infants around the universe to become Time Lords. Then the answer of the question 'Doctor Who?' is his birth name.

This would be an answer that must never be given. If it were given then one of the Doctor's enemies could go to his birth and kill him, therefore nullifying all the good he had ever done.
October 2, 2011 at 4:42AM EST Reply to Comment
- Tanya That makes sense. So the Silence in the Libarary is the Doctor's name because when the Doctor's name is said it is thought that Silence will fall. Or were The Silence in the Library with the Vashta Narada? Or does Moffatt just love the word silence?
  October 3, 2011 at 11:22AM EST
- webdiva Nope, doesn't make sense, not really: can you see anyone as snooty as Cardinal Borusa inviting any non-Gallifreyan to become a time lord?? Oh, hell no - that wouldn't do. And no, they don't all take different names, or we wouldn't know Borusa's name or Romana's either, for that matter. And we know the Doctor stole (OK, 'borrowed' - whatever) the tardis in the first place, so it must mean that there are other protocols/rules for time lords traveling under normal circumstances, i.e., with permission, rules that we know nothing about. Now those rules are moot because Gallifrey and the other time lords are gone, but the rules *were* there for most of the Doctor's life -- and it doesn't sound like most time lords who existed had 'cover' names, only those who stole a tardis and ran, like The Master and The Rani. And The Doctor. All of which makes the reason for nobody knowing the Doctor's name pretty obvious: so nobody responsible from Gallifrey could track him and take the tardis back. Of course, on Gallifrey, everybody knew who he really is as a bunch of them went to school with him; but he hasn't been *that* guy for so many centuries that even they called him 'Doctor' right up to the end (and the Master still does; why is *his* real name not a cosmic issue, eh? Think about it -- he doesn't want to be trailed, either).
  
  As for the wedding ... meh. It didn't make me feel all that it should have, given that I was still expecting a double to be used (BTW, if the Doc was in the robot body when he married, is he really married? i.e., can he marry by proxy? Not that it's a cosmic question). Plus, we all know he's not going to spend any significant time with his new wife, if only because their timelines are going in opposite directions and if indeed they really are married, so how cruel to River is *that*? Notice he hasn't asked her to travel with him. From her point of view, next time she sees him, he won't know he's married her and will know her a little less about her. Sounds like cruel and unusual punishment to me: it's not like they get to live and travel together as husband and wife, now is it? And you call that a marriage??? Pfeh!!
  
  As for the 'joke': Aw, geez, the 'Doctor Who??' joke has been around far longer than *that* -- at least since Jon Pertwee, from what I recall. As for that being the big question ... meh. Double meh, in fact. Pretty lame bit from Moffat.
  
  As for the rest: so they used a doppelganger of sorts after all, just not the 'ganger I was expecting (which still raises the other question: where IS that 'flesh' one?? How did I/we lose track of it? And where, for that matter, is Romana??? Presumably, being in E-space during the time war would have spared her ... but it would mean there's still one more Time Lord waltzing around out there. Moffat, are you paying attention?
  October 4, 2011 at 11:14AM EST
consideract

Well, Doctor Who? is hiding in plain sight, true enough, as has been pointed out previously here for that matter. The pending reservations I have are about this being the oldest question, the first question. That seems a bit much. But since this is Universe 2.0 rebooted in the Davies era by the Doctor himself, well, it seems perhaps too obvious *how* that could be the oldest and first question. I kind of hope that isn't it, or at least not the all of it. But otherwise, as a self-reflective meta question about the show itself, meh.

What could be intriguing is an arc about identity, following from the arcs already part of this whole new series (Davies and Moffat). We first meet this Doctor as a harder, haunted man (Eccelston), learning to live again with Rose, later in his next incarnation (Tennant) finding love with Rose (if only fully realized in a parallel universe), and now the Doctor (as Smith) has married River. So, I do think the question, who is this man, could be a nice arc.

I just hesitate about this oldest question in the universe being too constructed, too artificial, too self-involved for that matter. There is no way that is a real first and oldest question of any universe (except that this Doctor did reboot this universe, with an assist I suppose from his mother-in-law!). But even within the reboot frame, without some future philosophical leap-frogging and dot-connecting, it is a boring (silly?) question *as connected to* the beginnings of a full and vital universe. I hope I am wrong.
October 2, 2011 at 11:27AM EST Reply to Comment
- consideract I suppose they never say the first question of the universe, do they? They could just mean the oldest question for anyone meeting the Doctor, or the oldest question for the Doctor himself personally. Who is this man? Who am I?
  
  That raises more questions of course, about how answering that is so terrifying to the Silence. Now, to put that out of mind for a year or so...
  October 2, 2011 at 11:42AM EST
- Mitch Although they do heavily imply that the question is "Doctor Who?" they don't actually say that is the question. Even at the end, they could easily play it off as being part of the dialog, not the question itself.
  
  I suspected the question of "Doctor Who" a while ago but shrugged it off as not making any sense given the clues they gave us.
  October 2, 2011 at 2:12PM EST
hizzoner

Alan,

How about the shout out to Brigadier General Leftwich Stewart, who was one of his closest friends during the Tom Baker years. The actor portraying him died this year, and to see the emotion on Matt Smith's face when he learned of the Brigadier's death was poignant....
October 2, 2011 at 1:05PM EST Reply to Comment
- malcolm rockhead I was wondering if the show was going to mention the fact that the actor who played the Brigadier died. I know they had mentioned the Brigadier a couple of times during Tennant's run as The Doctor, but I definitely agree that not only was it a nice tribute to the actor, but Matt Smith did a wonderful job of showing the genuine emotion of The Doctor when he finds out.
  October 2, 2011 at 2:46PM EST
- Tracey Yeah, that was a very classy touch, and Smith played it brilliantly.
  October 2, 2011 at 4:32PM EST
- webdiva Um, it's Bridgaadier LETHBRIDGE-Stewart, folks, and yes, that was one of the bits I really, really liked. At least the Doc got to see Sarah Jane one more time; but why he never found time to revisit Lethbridge-Stewart, even for a few brief moments, is something that will irk me for a long time. Makes the Doc look pretty cavalier about the few people who were his really close friends.
  October 4, 2011 at 11:20AM EST
Mitch

Someone help me understand something. Why did the Doctor have to marry River? Was it just so that they would have to kiss (touch) or was there some emotional underlying reason that I don't get? Other than that. Not a bad season closer.
October 2, 2011 at 2:08PM EST Reply to Comment
- ECG There's some discussion of this in an earlier comment.
  October 2, 2011 at 4:01PM EST
- Hera Before the episode the official story outline hinted that the Doctor is willing to die and gives up the woman he loves, but then he found out that said woman loves him too. So they got married. The end.
  October 3, 2011 at 5:00AM EST
- webdiva No, they *didn't* have to, and in some ways it's pretty cruel -- see *my* earlier comment. The next time he meets an earlier River, she won't know they're married, just as he didn't know during the Tennant years.
  
  And I'm with Alan: it was sort of okay, but nowhere near as good as I was hoping for. I'm underwhelmed. Which will actually make waiting for the next season easier: I care less than I did during the Eccleston/Tennant years, and that's Moffat's doing. Then again, maybe it's because I'm still underwhelmed by Matt Smith. Or both.
  October 4, 2011 at 11:28AM EST
Tidmore

I'll be filling the gap with much weeping and longing for The Doctor to reappear on my screen. Also might try to rewatch from Eccelston and get the wife on board this time.
October 3, 2011 at 10:32AM EST Reply to Comment
Larry

I hope some people are still reading this to spell out how the Doctor avoided death. Was the Doctor aboard the Teselecta at the lake? Or was he in the Teselecta at the wedding? ...or both? If River kissed the Teselecta at the wedding that wouldn't have caused time to restore to that fixed point, would it? If it was the Teselecta at the lake, did the crew die when she killed the Doctor? The Doctor's energy regeneration glow was still going on the second go-around I think. I just am confused how he pulled it off, but he did it. Thanks for the help.
October 3, 2011 at 10:35AM EST Reply to Comment
- Anon As far as I can tell:
  
  a) The Doctor has been in the Teselecta ever since he met them in the bar, masquerading as a former envoy of the Silence. So that includes the entire Alternate world timeline, as well as Lake Silencio in the Regular world timeline.
  
  b) Technically speaking, his deception didn't violate the fixed point because it ALWAYS consisted of River shooting the Doctor-shaped Teselecta -- it's just that (as the Doctor intended), the rest of the world always assumed that the fixed point was the real Doctor dying.
  
  c) The Doctor specifically states that, while he was inside the Teselecta, he wasn't harmed by the others burning his 'body', so I think it's safe to say the crew's fine.
  
  d) Seeing as how the Teselecta is a time-travelling shape-shifting robot, I'm pretty sure it can fake a little regeneration glow ;)
  October 3, 2011 at 12:57PM EST
- Larry Thanks Anon! This helped a lot. I did remember he mentioned about not being harmed by the others burning his 'body' but didn't put it together. Knowing all this stuff now, I should go back and rewatch the episode. Thanks again!
  October 3, 2011 at 1:18PM EST
- Eric33 The Teselecta has a mother ship that did an emergency beam-up of the crew in Let's Kill Hitler, so we can assume they'd have done the same at Lake Silencio.
  October 3, 2011 at 4:25PM EST
- AG Look behind the Doctor after he tell River his name is Lou Kinmi'i. Behind him is the Tardis with the door open, so he's got time to get in and get out of there before the Teselecta gets shot.
  October 3, 2011 at 9:17PM EST
- webdiva Actually, he *needs* the Teselecta to be shot so that everyone thinks he's dead, so that point about the Tardis door is irrelevant. More likely the Teselecta and him in it got transported while the rowboat was burning around them in the middle of the lake, those flames clearly not being anywhere near hot enough to damage a sturdy robot-ship that travels in space and time. Besides, as the boat burned, it slowly sank (burning holes in the sides, right? filling with water, at that point?), so they could have even waited until the flames were bright enough but the rest of the boat was sinking to transport it. Perfect ruse.
  
  The better question: if he's 1100-something when he gets 'shot' but 900-something when he last sees Amy, Rory, and his ex-roomie Craig, where is he for 200-some years in between? Why, chasing down little baby Melody Pond long enough to raise her for a few years in the Tardis (that IS her cradle, remember) before she gets snatched back by Madame Eyepatch and possibly do some other traveling, too. Perhaps that's when he and out-of-order River meet the mysterious Bob the Fish, etc.
  October 4, 2011 at 11:39AM EST
Jack

I would like his real name to be Gallifreyan for "John Smith".
October 4, 2011 at 10:15PM EST Reply to Comment

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Season finale review: 'Doctor Who' - 'The Wedding of River Song': All at once

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'Doctor Who' - 'The Wedding of River Song': All at once

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'Doctor Who' - 'The Wedding of River Song': All at once

Comments

Option 1

Option 2

Option 3

Boricua in Texas I actually thought that the question turned out to be a weak point. It was just too obvious and too meta for my taste.

Scott Is next season the last for Matt Smith? The creators foreshadowed this by proclaiming "the Fall of the Eleventh". It sounds like the end of the previous Doctor when it was stated that his "song was ending". Look forward to the next series in the fall of 2012.

Kevin I would think so, but nothing is set in stone. I doubt they want to go through that four movies nonsense again. I'd say he's got an outside shot at a fourth season, but it really does seem like S7 will be his last. Which will be so heartbreaking.

It also makes sense to ask "doctor who" in the shows 50th anniversary season.I hope all the people in the robot/ship survives the doctors death and viking funeral.

Tracey But "Doctor who?" was never a question. They started throwing that line in now and then in the reboot (2005-), but just as a joke. And "who is he" never seemed to be a great universal mystery. The Time Lords certainly knew who he was, and the more advanced races.

What do you mean it was never a question. It was asked as a question in the very first episode.

KW "Doctor Who?" as a question was being used back in the 1960s. It's so long ago now I can't remember if it was the Hartnell or Troughton era it was first introduced - but certainly long before 2005!

Clifton I could be wrong, but since the Doctor did not offer River his name (yet!), then they are not, in fact, married (yet!).

Kevin Unless he told her his name near the end of Let's Kill Hitler...

Clifton I could be wrong, but since the Doctor did *not* give River his name (yet!), that would mean that they are, in fact, *not* married (yet!).

Clifton Double post, sorry!

Mary Brian, I am so glad you answered that! It was bothering me...

bryan rasmussen He whispered his name to her when they got married.

bryan rasmussen He whispered his name to her when they got married.

ContinentalOp I may have missed it (I probably did), but why exactly did the Doctor and River get married? Apart from love and plot, that is.

Swearin It seemed like only by being married could he tell her his name (or make it appear to the Ponds that he did). Either that or only by being married could he be allowed to tell her his real secret. I might be reaching...

Tracey It seemed to me that it was the only way to get her attention and focus long enough to tell her what his own plan was! And it gave him the opportunity to whisper something to her, where his enemies wouldn't hear it. Yes, that's a cynical view of it.

Loony I think it was explained in The End of Time. we learned that the Master had some secret cult following that took the river and resurrected him.

Loony opps meant the cult took the Master's *ring (not river)

Mrshock13 Loony is right. At the beginning of tenant's 2 part episode where he regenerates, we do see the woman with the Masters ring. Go back and watch it, we do see her, but she is eventually killed by the masters former wife/companion

Loony I don't understand why The Doctor HAD to marry River.Back inside the pyramid, he was perfectly ready to touch her to fix time. Did he marry her bc he loves her...or to invoke some sort of Gallifreyan marital privilege before telling her his secret plan? or both?

maxmike Hey! This is a man who ran off to marry Marilyn Monroe on the spur of the moment! Besides, how many men out there right now wouldn't marry River Song right now with even less exposure to her charms than the Doctor has had?

Tracey @Loony: Ah... interesting point. He is, after all, using the mouth of the Tesselecta. Maybe he has to have family privilege to be able to tell her that he is, in fact the Tesselecta!

Mrshock13 I apologize for the plethora of spelling errors...touch screen keyboards are not really my friend...

Cw I think Mrshock13 nailed it. At the very least, with the tardis explosion, the silence were behind it.

Dr who confidential (rip) had a "history of river song" feature that seemingly explains her backstory and some of the holes.

Given the bbc's budget issues, the last thing they would do now is get rid of dr who, since its a huge cash cow.I do agree this will likely be the last season for moffat and matt smith.

teetee7 Did you catch the "I hate rats" Indiana Jones spoof? :-)

Eric33 That was a great scene. The Viking dude falling into a hidden pit and being devoured by creepy-crawlies was also classic Indiana Jones. Fun.

swearin I thought that was pretty funny; they basically called out Rory on being the perpetual Red Shirt of the show.

Yeeahhh RORY $%#ING WILLIAMS

bryan rasmussen I don't like it either, but I think the cheesiness may be essential to Moffat's concept of the show, that is is a children's show with a lot of things that adults would consider cheesy.

Tracey I assumed he had a couple hundred years of adventures between God Complex and Closing Time. And maybe some of those adventures were with River. :^)

swearin You're forgetting that when the Doctor says he is 1100 years old, he's 2 inches tall inside of a robot that can shapeshift into anyone of any age or appearance. So in this case, he probably grabbed the microphone and followed Rule #1.

Anon. And why does he invite himself to his death? Does that make sense if he knew he was in the Teselecta? I'm way confused...

Loony Clip from the last Doctor Who Confidential on River Song's timeline.http://doctorwhotv.co.uk/river-song-her-story-series-4-6-26644.htm

Tracey Thanks for the link! It doesn't tell us anything we didn't already know, but it helps to connect the dots.

Cw Also thought the finale was great. You're not alone!

Tanya That makes sense. So the Silence in the Libarary is the Doctor's name because when the Doctor's name is said it is thought that Silence will fall. Or were The Silence in the Library with the Vashta Narada? Or does Moffatt just love the word silence?

hizzoner Alan,How about the shout out to Brigadier General Leftwich Stewart, who was one of his closest friends during the Tom Baker years. The actor portraying him died this year, and to see the emotion on Matt Smith's face when he learned of the Brigadier's death was poignant....

Tracey Yeah, that was a very classy touch, and Smith played it brilliantly.

Mitch Someone help me understand something. Why did the Doctor have to marry River? Was it just so that they would have to kiss (touch) or was there some emotional underlying reason that I don't get? Other than that. Not a bad season closer.

ECG There's some discussion of this in an earlier comment.

Hera Before the episode the official story outline hinted that the Doctor is willing to die and gives up the woman he loves, but then he found out that said woman loves him too. So they got married. The end.

Tidmore I'll be filling the gap with much weeping and longing for The Doctor to reappear on my screen. Also might try to rewatch from Eccelston and get the wife on board this time.

Larry Thanks Anon! This helped a lot. I did remember he mentioned about not being harmed by the others burning his 'body' but didn't put it together. Knowing all this stuff now, I should go back and rewatch the episode. Thanks again!

Eric33 The Teselecta has a mother ship that did an emergency beam-up of the crew in Let's Kill Hitler, so we can assume they'd have done the same at Lake Silencio.

AG Look behind the Doctor after he tell River his name is Lou Kinmi'i. Behind him is the Tardis with the door open, so he's got time to get in and get out of there before the Teselecta gets shot.

Jack I would like his real name to be Gallifreyan for "John Smith".

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Doctor Who is updated

Scott

Is next season the last for Matt Smith? The creators foreshadowed this by proclaiming "the Fall of the Eleventh". It sounds like the end of the previous Doctor when it was stated that his "song was ending". Look forward to the next series in the fall of 2012.

It also makes sense to ask "doctor who" in the shows 50th anniversary season.

I hope all the people in the robot/ship survives the doctors death and viking funeral.

Clifton

I could be wrong, but since the Doctor did not offer River his name (yet!), then they are not, in fact, married (yet!).

Clifton

I could be wrong, but since the Doctor did not give River his name (yet!), that would mean that they are, in fact, not married (yet!).

ContinentalOp

I may have missed it (I probably did), but why exactly did the Doctor and River get married? Apart from love and plot, that is.

Mrshock13 Loony is right. At the beginning of tenant's 2 part episode where he regenerates, we do see the woman with the
Masters ring. Go back and watch it, we do see her, but she is eventually killed by the masters former wife/companion

Loony

I don't understand why The Doctor HAD to marry River.
Back inside the pyramid, he was perfectly ready to touch her to fix time. Did he marry her bc he loves her...or to invoke some sort of Gallifreyan marital privilege before telling her his secret plan? or both?

Given the bbc's budget issues, the last thing they would do now is get rid of dr who, since its a huge cash cow.

I do agree this will likely be the last season for moffat and matt smith.

teetee7

Did you catch the "I hate rats" Indiana Jones spoof? :-)

Yeeahhh

RORY $%#ING WILLIAMS

Loony

Clip from the last Doctor Who Confidential on River Song's timeline.
http://doctorwhotv.co.uk/river-song-her-story-series-4-6-26644.htm

hizzoner

Alan,

How about the shout out to Brigadier General Leftwich Stewart, who was one of his closest friends during the Tom Baker years. The actor portraying him died this year, and to see the emotion on Matt Smith's face when he learned of the Brigadier's death was poignant....

Mitch

Someone help me understand something. Why did the Doctor have to marry River? Was it just so that they would have to kiss (touch) or was there some emotional underlying reason that I don't get? Other than that. Not a bad season closer.

Tidmore

I'll be filling the gap with much weeping and longing for The Doctor to reappear on my screen. Also might try to rewatch from Eccelston and get the wife on board this time.

Jack

I would like his real name to be Gallifreyan for "John Smith".

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