#SaveTheDay

I have never been more excited about what's coming on Doctor Who before this special.  After seeing it, I'm now even more excited.

That's going to need some context, isn't it?  This isn't going to be a complete review of everything I loved about the special, simply because there's too damn much to say here, and I'm still digesting all of it.  What I am going to focus on are the main thematics at work...

(Needless to say there are some pretty hefty spoilers about the special from the word go if you haven't seen it yet.  To all those who have, an additional warning that at the end of this I'm going to reveal something that may blow your mind!)




Let's get my one negative about this special out the way first; I'm a little confused about the fact Moffat didn't have anything to explain how the Doctor and Clara got out of what happened at the end of The Name of the Doctor.  Jumping into the Doctor's timestream like that isn't something you can handwave away so easily.  This is a problem I also had with Day of the Moon; a strong cliffhanger needs a good resolution.  I hope the Christmas Special deals with that point.  The one other little disappointment is towards the end, at the regeneration; seriously Eccleston, five minutes in costume posing post-regeneration, you couldn't have given us that much?  Ah well, this is nitpick territory, onto awesomeness!

First off, as a celebration of the show's history, this delivers magnificently.  The opening minutes have the original title sequence, a tribute to the very first shot, Coal Hill School with the Head Governor I. Chesterton, and more.  There's a priceless gag about the UNIT dating controversy halfway though.  The clips used at the end were such a treat.  And of course those cameos.  However, all these were just icing on the cake, they were nice references to all the fans, but none of them got in the way of the story.  The returning elements that were more integral to the story were there for good reason.  Plus, the best thing is that many of the revelations made in here can make you look back at the past in all new ways.

With The Name of the Doctor, the revelation of an unknown incarnation was fascinating, especially given who was playing him.  Now I had my doubts about it, since asking us to accept this whole new past Doctor out of nowhere is a lot to buy, even with the excellent intro he got earlier this month.

But that was for naught though; through a mixture of excellent scripting, giving us lots of quieter moments alone with him, and John Hurt's performance, The War Doctor fitted in like he was always there.  The idea of a Doctor who's whole existence is beaten, weathered by the Time War, who would be prepared to make that fateful decision... but in the end finds that other way, is magnificently portrayed on screen.  I can see future lists of "best Doctor" getting very confused by this.

(But that doesn't compare to what's coming to blow your mind!)

That's the theme that runs through this whole special; hope.  It's more than just celebrating the past, it's all about securing a bold, better future.  The last few years, the Time War has defined the Doctor, the darkest chapter of his life, and the glimpse we get of it here doesn't disappoint in the slightest.  The final big push by the Daleks and the Fall of Arcadia are not just incredible scenes for Doctor Who, they are just plain amazing scenes period.  Nick Hurran delivers in spades here, pulling off on a BBC budget a mini-action spectacular (with old-school model and minature shots that had me squeeing in FX fan delight) with far better direction than many a big blockbuster I've seen recently.  It's dark and nightmarish, but in the end, the Doctor(s) find a way to save the darkest day in his/their history!

The best thing about this is how well it all links together.  Everything needed for Gallifrey's salvation is set up throughout the episode.  The Gallifreyan pictures the Zygons use are fully explained and demonstrated so we understand what the Doctor(s) are doing at the end.  The real purpose the Moment has in bringing the Doctor's together is set up in the line "It developed a conscience" (probably the real reason it was never used as a weapon).  The plan with all the Doctors coming together is exactly the same as the plan with the sonic screwdrivers in the cell taken to the next level.  This is ingenious plotting, and it reminds me of why we were excited by Moffat taking over to begin with.

(Just a couple more paragraphs...)

This plan is just one way we can look back at old Who in a new light.  Moffat promised a new paradigm for the series, and we got one, far better than the Daleks' paradigm.  This plan spanning all the Doctor's lives make you think about a lot of the series, like could this link in to the original reason why the Doctor left in the first place?  What about the things the TARDIS said in The Doctor's Wife, like "I've always taken you to where you needed to be?   Also, the Doctor knew exactly where in the Omega archive to find The Moment; a nod to "The Other" perhaps?

But I think it's safe to say what bit of returning Who lore most are going to be talking about... (and where the mindblow enters the frame...)

Many will be wondering how this is possible  While the dialogue suggests this might be his ultimate future, there're are many more explanations.  Specifically, two points from Logopolis, Tom's last episode, could link in (Mindblow incoming).  One, the regeneration there involved a weird "future projection" of the Doctor called The Watcher, so it could be that the curator is a "past projection".  This sort of thing happened with Cho-Je and K'npano in Planet of the Spiders.  The other point (here it is!); what's the very last thing the Fourth Doctor says?  It's at 3:17 into this video...

"It's the end.  But The Moment has been prepared for..."

Now that's writing at it's best; taking up all these loose ends and tying them up beautifully.  Speaking of which, it doesn't look like the show will be resting on its laurels any time soon, with the Christmas special, Matt's departure.  It seems that one big plot line will be coming to a head in there, and I really hope they go with the title I heard rumoured; Twelfth Night.

So what of beyond?  Well, the reveal of "all thirteen" drove everyone I saw it with last night nuts...

Also, the show has an all new mission, a bold search.  The Doctor can now stop running from his past, and start boldly heading to his future.  But there can be many consequences to this future.  Not least of which is the fact that if Gallifrey still exists, that means someone else still does, someone we last saw being locked away with the rest of the world...

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Now there's a future storyline for you!