The best of the vanished marvels
So it's late and it's a work night, but I won't be able to sleep if I don't take a moment to flail my arms and/or typing fingers in delight at Neil Gaiman's episode of Doctor Who.
I was somewhat worried going in that nothing could live up to my hopes for my favorite author writing an episode of my favorite show, but Neil delivered on the trust that I and the rest of fandom put in him. I adored "The Doctor's Wife." Not only was it as witty and deliciously creepy as I'd expected from Neil, it was also full of fanservice and deeply moving.
The TARDIS has been the Doctor's true love for centuries, the one and only being he cannot live without, and it was beautiful and tragic that he finally got to speak with her with in words and hold her in his arms for such a short time. They barely even had time to talk because they were in the midst of solving a crisis, but that's really the only way the Doctor and his old girl would have it. My eyes got misty when the Doctor was saying goodbye to the humanoid incarnation of Sexy the TARDIS.
I squeed so hard at many, many things in this episode: confirmation that Time Lords can sometimes switch sexes during regeneration, the TARDIS incarnate being every bit as non-linear, quirky, brilliant, and caring as she ought to be, canon references to the Doctor stealing the TARDIS and new canon that she stole him as well, Rory being the pretty one to the TARDIS, and especially the previous control room with the coral (I'm fond of the current TARDIS control room, but the room with the coral struts is my TARDIS just as Nine is my Doctor). While squee is the wrong word, I found it extremely satisfying to see more discussion of the Doctor's ongoing issues regarding being the last of his species. Moffat has pushed those issues to the side since he took over, and while in many ways that's a good thing, I'm glad when there is acknowledgment that a new regeneration hasn't totally taken away his loneliness or guilt. I loved seeing the TARDIS mourn at the graveyard of her lost sister ships just as the Doctor mourns for his kind. The one bit of continuity I was hoping for but didn't get was a reference to Bad Wolf, the previous time the TARDIS has been briefly incarnated as a human. Ah well. Sexy the TARDIS's eagerness to bite the Doctor suggested hat there's something of the wolf about her yet.
The funny thing is that earlier today I spent a long drive listening for the first time to the Big Finish audio "Zagreus." SPOILER ALERT for the rest of this paragraph--it features the TARDIS interacting with others through a holographic representation of the Brigadier. Unfortunately, the ship had been infected with anti-time and thus was effectively possessed and evil for much of the audio. Brig!Evil!TARDIS was pissed off at the Doctor for some actions that sacrificed the TARDIS to save the universe and for the attention he payed to companions instead of the ship. Having that fresh in my brain made it especially wonderful to see the TARDIS speaking directly as herself, not possessed. Also on the subject of the Big Finish audios, if I ever become even one tenth of the woman Charley Pollard is, I will be amazing indeed. I love her so much.
Back on the subject of "The Doctor's Wife," the ever-growing tally of Rory's deaths and "deaths" gained another one with the vision House gave Amy of Rory's corpse. *facepalm* So we're not ending with Rory the Norwegian Blue Parrot, let me state my love for the psychic passkey both as a general concept and for the specific words chosen. Also, how cute was it that the Doctor and/or the TARDIS had decided to give Amy and Rory bunkbeds in their previous bedroom? VERY CUTE.
In summary, ♥ ♥! (Two hearts like a Time Lord, of course.)
I was somewhat worried going in that nothing could live up to my hopes for my favorite author writing an episode of my favorite show, but Neil delivered on the trust that I and the rest of fandom put in him. I adored "The Doctor's Wife." Not only was it as witty and deliciously creepy as I'd expected from Neil, it was also full of fanservice and deeply moving.
The TARDIS has been the Doctor's true love for centuries, the one and only being he cannot live without, and it was beautiful and tragic that he finally got to speak with her with in words and hold her in his arms for such a short time. They barely even had time to talk because they were in the midst of solving a crisis, but that's really the only way the Doctor and his old girl would have it. My eyes got misty when the Doctor was saying goodbye to the humanoid incarnation of Sexy the TARDIS.
I squeed so hard at many, many things in this episode: confirmation that Time Lords can sometimes switch sexes during regeneration, the TARDIS incarnate being every bit as non-linear, quirky, brilliant, and caring as she ought to be, canon references to the Doctor stealing the TARDIS and new canon that she stole him as well, Rory being the pretty one to the TARDIS, and especially the previous control room with the coral (I'm fond of the current TARDIS control room, but the room with the coral struts is my TARDIS just as Nine is my Doctor). While squee is the wrong word, I found it extremely satisfying to see more discussion of the Doctor's ongoing issues regarding being the last of his species. Moffat has pushed those issues to the side since he took over, and while in many ways that's a good thing, I'm glad when there is acknowledgment that a new regeneration hasn't totally taken away his loneliness or guilt. I loved seeing the TARDIS mourn at the graveyard of her lost sister ships just as the Doctor mourns for his kind. The one bit of continuity I was hoping for but didn't get was a reference to Bad Wolf, the previous time the TARDIS has been briefly incarnated as a human. Ah well. Sexy the TARDIS's eagerness to bite the Doctor suggested hat there's something of the wolf about her yet.
The funny thing is that earlier today I spent a long drive listening for the first time to the Big Finish audio "Zagreus." SPOILER ALERT for the rest of this paragraph--it features the TARDIS interacting with others through a holographic representation of the Brigadier. Unfortunately, the ship had been infected with anti-time and thus was effectively possessed and evil for much of the audio. Brig!Evil!TARDIS was pissed off at the Doctor for some actions that sacrificed the TARDIS to save the universe and for the attention he payed to companions instead of the ship. Having that fresh in my brain made it especially wonderful to see the TARDIS speaking directly as herself, not possessed. Also on the subject of the Big Finish audios, if I ever become even one tenth of the woman Charley Pollard is, I will be amazing indeed. I love her so much.
Back on the subject of "The Doctor's Wife," the ever-growing tally of Rory's deaths and "deaths" gained another one with the vision House gave Amy of Rory's corpse. *facepalm* So we're not ending with Rory the Norwegian Blue Parrot, let me state my love for the psychic passkey both as a general concept and for the specific words chosen. Also, how cute was it that the Doctor and/or the TARDIS had decided to give Amy and Rory bunkbeds in their previous bedroom? VERY CUTE.
In summary, ♥ ♥! (Two hearts like a Time Lord, of course.)