but the stars really do exist
So, this is pretty off the cuff and jumbled up, but I really felt the need to share my thoughts on "The Big Bang" and the season in general. Warning: There is word vomit under the cut.
Season 5 is without a doubt my favorite season of the modern series. All of the elements: Matt/Eleven, Karen/Amy, Steven Moffat's introduction to them, the through line that carried over the course of the season, the gorgeous cinematography and colors, the direction, the guest stars, everything; they all came together to form this perfect amalgamation that transformed the show from something that I watched when I had the time to a "Oh my god, I need the episodes NOW!" kind of show. S5 gave us some truly stellar episodes (The Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone, Vincent and the Doctor) that will most likely go down as some of the best in the history of DW. It also gave us some episodes that were a bit underwhelming (Victory of the Daleks, The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood), and while they may have missed their mark, they never gave the appearance of filler; they still felt as if they were striving to say something or try something new and exciting, and you can't fault them for that. I also loved the serialized aspect of the season. It just gave so much more weight to every individual episode, and it made me feel more involved and invested as a viewer, especially when you have to keep your eyes open at all times for any potential hints that might be peppered here and there. And when it all culminates in a killer finale, it's just the best thing in the world.
So, I found this episode to be so satisfying on every level. It brought a reasonable (I won't quite say logical because come on, this is Doctor Who we're talking about here) resolution to the business with the cracks, it dealt with time travel in a way that was both funny and plausible, and it gave us this nice little setup for both the Christmas special and the next season. Team TARDIS and an Egyptian goddess loose on the Orient Express... in space? Finding out just who River Song is? Why do Christmas and next year have to be so far away?!
It was so delightful to see both young Amelia and adult Amy on the screen together. Sometimes you hear of casting news of two interesting actors playing the same character at different ages and think, "It's a shame that they won't have any scenes together." Not so here, because Doctor Who can do that sort of thing and totally get away with it. God, Amelia's stunned look when the Pandorica opens and Amy's inside and says to her, "This is where it gets complicated": BEST EVER.
River's showdown with the Dalek was amazing in every respect. I've been waiting so long for someone to just stare down one of those tin can creatures and say, "I don't have time for this shit, you're going down, fucker!" And it makes so much sense that River would be the one to do it. River Song, you are too awesome for any universe or timeline.
The Doctor in a fez, the Doctor in a fez! And Amy and River respectively chucking it and blowing it to pieces! I hope this is going to be a regular thing, decking him out in clothes and accessories that all of the other characters find ridiculous. I vote for a fake handlebar mustache next! Oh, and just because:
Wow, that is not a good look. Wearing a fez makes you look like you're wearing a super-sized yogurt bowl on your head.
I really like Rory and think that he has some of the best traits you could ask for in a companion (smart, loyal, willing to question the Doctor rather than going along with everything he says), but something about his relationship with Amy doesn't quite sit right with me. It feels unbalanced; she obviously loves him, but not nearly to the degree that he loves her. And with the Doctor being a continuing presence in their lives, the scales don't look as though they're going to tip in the right direction anytime soon. I mean, Amy tried to snog the Doctor twice on her and Rory's wedding day. Why isn't Rory more alarmed by this? Or has he simply accepted that the Doctor's at the top of her "People I'm Allowed to Do If I Ever Get the Chance" list and that she usually gets her way? And on a more selfish and superficial level, I'm concerned that Rory being a full-fledged companion is going to mean a dramatic decrease in Eleven/Amy hugs and forehead kisses. What can I say, all of those little moments made the season for me.
That being said, the whole wedding scene was lovely. I wonder if we'll be seeing more of Amy's parents from now on. We haven't really had a companion who has a relatively normal family or a mother who doesn't constantly nag her daughter. And ohhhhh, the TARDIS being the "something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue." There's just something so beautiful about the way Moffat took that old adage and made it about this box that encompasses so much, not only for Amy but for us as viewers and fans of the show. I wouldn't be surprised if Moffat had that idea in his back pocket for a long time and was saving it for just this moment, this very sublime moment.
I think that what I loved most of all was the way Amy brought the Doctor back from the wrong side of the cracks. Those ubiquitous cracks stole those dearest to her, erasing them from her memories and thus altering her life in the most dramatic of ways. But then Amy, with some help from the Doctor and River, was able to manipulate the cracks herself by conjuring up deep hidden memories of her Raggedy Doctor and bring him over from the "nether space" where he was trapped to where he belonged. THAT'S RIGHT, AMY POND IS SMART AND TENACIOUS AND BRILLIANT AND MADE THOSE CRACKS HER BITCH. AMY ♥♥♥
The scene where the Doctor carried Amelia to her bed and talked to her while she slept was so gorgeously executed. There is such a special and unique love between them that can never die, that cannot ever be erased, and it just brimmed from Matt Smith's eyes in a way that was utterly heartbreaking. And when he talked about being a daft old man, you believe him because the sadness and tiredness both on his face and in his body was just so palpable. Critics who have doubted whether he was a worthy successor to David Tennant should good and well shush now. His work throughout the whole season has been so fine-tuned and exemplary and I'm just so grateful that Moffat and the other producers saw something special in him and wanted to share his talents with the rest of us. Matt Smith, you and the Eleventh Doctor are my Doctor, and I can't wait to see what adventures lie ahead.
Other stray bits that I liked:
I really need to clear out my icons and start from scratch. I'm getting tired of the ones I've got, and I imagine those of you who have had me on your flists for awhile have tired of them, too.
Season 5 is without a doubt my favorite season of the modern series. All of the elements: Matt/Eleven, Karen/Amy, Steven Moffat's introduction to them, the through line that carried over the course of the season, the gorgeous cinematography and colors, the direction, the guest stars, everything; they all came together to form this perfect amalgamation that transformed the show from something that I watched when I had the time to a "Oh my god, I need the episodes NOW!" kind of show. S5 gave us some truly stellar episodes (The Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone, Vincent and the Doctor) that will most likely go down as some of the best in the history of DW. It also gave us some episodes that were a bit underwhelming (Victory of the Daleks, The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood), and while they may have missed their mark, they never gave the appearance of filler; they still felt as if they were striving to say something or try something new and exciting, and you can't fault them for that. I also loved the serialized aspect of the season. It just gave so much more weight to every individual episode, and it made me feel more involved and invested as a viewer, especially when you have to keep your eyes open at all times for any potential hints that might be peppered here and there. And when it all culminates in a killer finale, it's just the best thing in the world.
So, I found this episode to be so satisfying on every level. It brought a reasonable (I won't quite say logical because come on, this is Doctor Who we're talking about here) resolution to the business with the cracks, it dealt with time travel in a way that was both funny and plausible, and it gave us this nice little setup for both the Christmas special and the next season. Team TARDIS and an Egyptian goddess loose on the Orient Express... in space? Finding out just who River Song is? Why do Christmas and next year have to be so far away?!
It was so delightful to see both young Amelia and adult Amy on the screen together. Sometimes you hear of casting news of two interesting actors playing the same character at different ages and think, "It's a shame that they won't have any scenes together." Not so here, because Doctor Who can do that sort of thing and totally get away with it. God, Amelia's stunned look when the Pandorica opens and Amy's inside and says to her, "This is where it gets complicated": BEST EVER.
River's showdown with the Dalek was amazing in every respect. I've been waiting so long for someone to just stare down one of those tin can creatures and say, "I don't have time for this shit, you're going down, fucker!" And it makes so much sense that River would be the one to do it. River Song, you are too awesome for any universe or timeline.
The Doctor in a fez, the Doctor in a fez! And Amy and River respectively chucking it and blowing it to pieces! I hope this is going to be a regular thing, decking him out in clothes and accessories that all of the other characters find ridiculous. I vote for a fake handlebar mustache next! Oh, and just because:
Wow, that is not a good look. Wearing a fez makes you look like you're wearing a super-sized yogurt bowl on your head.
I really like Rory and think that he has some of the best traits you could ask for in a companion (smart, loyal, willing to question the Doctor rather than going along with everything he says), but something about his relationship with Amy doesn't quite sit right with me. It feels unbalanced; she obviously loves him, but not nearly to the degree that he loves her. And with the Doctor being a continuing presence in their lives, the scales don't look as though they're going to tip in the right direction anytime soon. I mean, Amy tried to snog the Doctor twice on her and Rory's wedding day. Why isn't Rory more alarmed by this? Or has he simply accepted that the Doctor's at the top of her "People I'm Allowed to Do If I Ever Get the Chance" list and that she usually gets her way? And on a more selfish and superficial level, I'm concerned that Rory being a full-fledged companion is going to mean a dramatic decrease in Eleven/Amy hugs and forehead kisses. What can I say, all of those little moments made the season for me.
That being said, the whole wedding scene was lovely. I wonder if we'll be seeing more of Amy's parents from now on. We haven't really had a companion who has a relatively normal family or a mother who doesn't constantly nag her daughter. And ohhhhh, the TARDIS being the "something old, something new, something borrowed, something blue." There's just something so beautiful about the way Moffat took that old adage and made it about this box that encompasses so much, not only for Amy but for us as viewers and fans of the show. I wouldn't be surprised if Moffat had that idea in his back pocket for a long time and was saving it for just this moment, this very sublime moment.
I think that what I loved most of all was the way Amy brought the Doctor back from the wrong side of the cracks. Those ubiquitous cracks stole those dearest to her, erasing them from her memories and thus altering her life in the most dramatic of ways. But then Amy, with some help from the Doctor and River, was able to manipulate the cracks herself by conjuring up deep hidden memories of her Raggedy Doctor and bring him over from the "nether space" where he was trapped to where he belonged. THAT'S RIGHT, AMY POND IS SMART AND TENACIOUS AND BRILLIANT AND MADE THOSE CRACKS HER BITCH. AMY ♥♥♥
The scene where the Doctor carried Amelia to her bed and talked to her while she slept was so gorgeously executed. There is such a special and unique love between them that can never die, that cannot ever be erased, and it just brimmed from Matt Smith's eyes in a way that was utterly heartbreaking. And when he talked about being a daft old man, you believe him because the sadness and tiredness both on his face and in his body was just so palpable. Critics who have doubted whether he was a worthy successor to David Tennant should good and well shush now. His work throughout the whole season has been so fine-tuned and exemplary and I'm just so grateful that Moffat and the other producers saw something special in him and wanted to share his talents with the rest of us. Matt Smith, you and the Eleventh Doctor are my Doctor, and I can't wait to see what adventures lie ahead.
Other stray bits that I liked:
- "Come along, Ponds!"
- "Bowtie: cool." [pause] "I can buy a fez."
- "Gotcha."
- Amy looked adorable in her Space Florida outfit. I want to know more about this adventure, specifically if the Doctor insisted on wearing his bowtie and suspenders in the water.
- The Doctor dancing! Like a drunk giraffe!
- Amy wearing red shoes with her wedding dress. Girl knows how to work it.
I really need to clear out my icons and start from scratch. I'm getting tired of the ones I've got, and I imagine those of you who have had me on your flists for awhile have tired of them, too.