Doctor Who 9x12 "Hell Bent"
Doctor Who 9x12 "Hell Bent". SPOILERS.
This episode felt like a 10th anniversary of New Who. If there's one thing I keep constantly complaining about Steven Moffat's era (okay, it's few), it's the fact that since season 5, we're being treated like seasons 1-4 never happened. There was very rare mention of the characters, some rules have been rewritten and even some events have been changed, the destruction of Gallifrey being the most spectacular example. It's been both big and small things, and while I understood the radical change was seen as the only way to keep the show going, I still missed that feeling I have when I watch my Doctor Who, even if actors, settings and stories are different. (The Sarah Jane Adventures feels like Doctor Who even when there's no Doctor around.) "Hell Bent" made me feel that way. It was a Twelfth Doctor era's story, a very season nine story, yet it also was my Doctor Who story. Like a hybrid.
Someone's fixing his mistakes and I'm not talking only about the screwdriver.
And how was it achived? References. The pears, four knocks (I thought it'd be too soon but no, it was fine), the Cloister Bells - I think it could be connected with some EU story but still, the Closter Bell in the TARDIS is something that ties up the whole New Who; by the way, I've always wondered why Time Lords would care so much about prophecies, them being such a scientific civilisation, but if the prophecies are some possible events computed by algorithms, it makes sense. And the biggest reference that made me shiver - "The Doctor's Theme". I never thought I'd hear it in the show again, i thought it was lost when Murray Gold came up with "I am the Doctor". And it's fine, it feels good to let each Doctor have his own theme; "The Doctor Forever" is the Tenth Doctor's theme, "I am the Doctor" is the Eleventh's theme and I love them both but "The Doctor's Theme" is and to me will always be, well, the Doctor's theme. Regardless of the regeneration. So when there's something really important about the Doctor's life, like he comes back to Gallifrey, we should hear it.
Speaking of music, I loved when the Doctor played Clara's theme. It's been pure genius to include the song this way, to let the Doctor compose Clara's theme from the lost memories.
I was a bit disappointed we didn't hear "This is Gallifrey". We've been waiting nine seasons to see the Doctor arriving on Gallifrey, and I always imagined this song to be played in that moment. I completely understand the mood was completely different - the song is full of hope and describes the planet as a lost, beautiful home, and what we saw in the episode was nothing like that but I think just few notes, turning into a more serious or sinister theme would do it. I'll come back to the topic of Gallifrey later, for now let's finish with why that episode felt so good and so mine.
I'm still waiting for an episode when Gallifrey feels a bit like home for the Doctor.
And it's the fact that the episode had something to say about the end of Donna's story. As many, I still haven't get over with the fact that Donna lost all her memories about travelling with the Doctor and all her development, and that it was done to her against her will. I think it was even more tragic event than the Tenth Doctor's regeneration (and that's a statement!), because, well, the regeneration had to happen anyway, and Donna didn't deserve at any point her better life being taken from her. On the other hand, it fits - she wouldn't leave, the Doctor wouldn't let her die - and memory loss is something we can definitaly relate to so it hurts so much. Now, at some point of "Hell Bent", it looks like we're going to get through exactly the same scenario with Clara, with the exception that there's more wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey stuff involved. The essense is the same though - the Doctor is going to wipe out Clara's memories of him so she wouldn't die. But, as opposed to "Journey's End", Clara DOES get to talk to the Doctor, and she DOES get to convince him to do something else instead - to do the 50-50 shot. Steven Moffat creates the situation when either the Doctor or Clara has to lose his/her memories about the other, and they both agree to "flip the coin". The Doctor is not more important nor more powerful, he doesn't get to decide - they're both equal. And in the end, it's Clara who keeps her memories.
I repeat - it was Steven Moffat's writing. The person who seemed to belittle the role of the companion for years, having "the (Eleventh) Doctor's epic love" be part Time Lord, never a companion River Song, reducing Clara in season 7b to a plot device, putting snarky comments in Missy's mouth and having the companions just walking around the set in too many episodes. That person co-created season 8 Clara, finally a full-dimensional character, and now has made her equal to the Doctor, without turning her into a Time Lord, his love, an immortal or whatever. That is an achivement, that is a change of heart. No Missy in the finale. Just Clara.
And he made me believe, for few seconds, that the Doctor was going to regenerate. I even thought how surprisingly well idea it would be, to regenerate the Doctor with no warning (looks like it's easy when it's not my Doctor), but then I remembered I've seen some photos from the Christmas special. I know I shouldn't need that proof to know Moffat's fake death when I see it but this time he fooled me.
Together.
Let's go back to Gallifrey now. We've waited for Gallifrey for nine seasons, and I must confess I feel a bit disappointed. The Doctor's only slept in the barn and run through some cellars, I think we deserved more. And where's Timothy Dalton? This is what happens when you're forced to do an off-screen regeneration; the next incarnation isn't believable. Rassilon's been defeated too quickly, too easy, as it's been suggested that he was the only evil Time Lord. And apparently, they just went back to our universe when no one was looking and somehow the Time War hasn't started again. I'd like to buy some explanations, with logic.
"It's me." "No, it could be me". I thought the Doctor and Ashildr were going to list all possible hybrids ;) "It also could be my metacrisis self." "I've met River Song - she fits." "What about the TARDIS? It's a ship and a police box."
And it's good to have the screwdriver back. The new model looks good but isn't it too big for a convinient tool? Well, I hope we'll forget about the glasses forever.
Run, you clever boy and remember me be a Doctor.
I missed the Doctor who cares for four seasons. The ninth was finally a breaker.
Season nine was, in my opinion, far better than the previous one, with many very good episodes, such as "The Girl Who Died", the Zygon two-parter, "Face the Raven" and "Hell Bent". There were three episodes I didn't write about here, as I didn't have much to say: "The Woman Who lived" where everything was submited to the main thread and it didn't feel like a Doctor Who episode, a failed experiment aka "Sleep no more" and "Heaven Sent", an episode with a really good idea but 15 minutes too long. Until episode 10, there wasn't enough about Clara and I'm trying to remove some parts of the Davros two-parter from my mind but in overall, it was a very valuable, thought-provoking season. For the future - less two-parters, I think. They work when the story is big enough or when they are one-parters connected by one person or element but if you just want to stretch out a 45-minute story to a 90-minute slot, it - surprising, isn't it? - doesn't work.
See you on Christmas!
This episode felt like a 10th anniversary of New Who. If there's one thing I keep constantly complaining about Steven Moffat's era (okay, it's few), it's the fact that since season 5, we're being treated like seasons 1-4 never happened. There was very rare mention of the characters, some rules have been rewritten and even some events have been changed, the destruction of Gallifrey being the most spectacular example. It's been both big and small things, and while I understood the radical change was seen as the only way to keep the show going, I still missed that feeling I have when I watch my Doctor Who, even if actors, settings and stories are different. (The Sarah Jane Adventures feels like Doctor Who even when there's no Doctor around.) "Hell Bent" made me feel that way. It was a Twelfth Doctor era's story, a very season nine story, yet it also was my Doctor Who story. Like a hybrid.
Someone's fixing his mistakes and I'm not talking only about the screwdriver.
And how was it achived? References. The pears, four knocks (I thought it'd be too soon but no, it was fine), the Cloister Bells - I think it could be connected with some EU story but still, the Closter Bell in the TARDIS is something that ties up the whole New Who; by the way, I've always wondered why Time Lords would care so much about prophecies, them being such a scientific civilisation, but if the prophecies are some possible events computed by algorithms, it makes sense. And the biggest reference that made me shiver - "The Doctor's Theme". I never thought I'd hear it in the show again, i thought it was lost when Murray Gold came up with "I am the Doctor". And it's fine, it feels good to let each Doctor have his own theme; "The Doctor Forever" is the Tenth Doctor's theme, "I am the Doctor" is the Eleventh's theme and I love them both but "The Doctor's Theme" is and to me will always be, well, the Doctor's theme. Regardless of the regeneration. So when there's something really important about the Doctor's life, like he comes back to Gallifrey, we should hear it.
Speaking of music, I loved when the Doctor played Clara's theme. It's been pure genius to include the song this way, to let the Doctor compose Clara's theme from the lost memories.
I was a bit disappointed we didn't hear "This is Gallifrey". We've been waiting nine seasons to see the Doctor arriving on Gallifrey, and I always imagined this song to be played in that moment. I completely understand the mood was completely different - the song is full of hope and describes the planet as a lost, beautiful home, and what we saw in the episode was nothing like that but I think just few notes, turning into a more serious or sinister theme would do it. I'll come back to the topic of Gallifrey later, for now let's finish with why that episode felt so good and so mine.
I'm still waiting for an episode when Gallifrey feels a bit like home for the Doctor.
And it's the fact that the episode had something to say about the end of Donna's story. As many, I still haven't get over with the fact that Donna lost all her memories about travelling with the Doctor and all her development, and that it was done to her against her will. I think it was even more tragic event than the Tenth Doctor's regeneration (and that's a statement!), because, well, the regeneration had to happen anyway, and Donna didn't deserve at any point her better life being taken from her. On the other hand, it fits - she wouldn't leave, the Doctor wouldn't let her die - and memory loss is something we can definitaly relate to so it hurts so much. Now, at some point of "Hell Bent", it looks like we're going to get through exactly the same scenario with Clara, with the exception that there's more wibbly-wobbly, timey-wimey stuff involved. The essense is the same though - the Doctor is going to wipe out Clara's memories of him so she wouldn't die. But, as opposed to "Journey's End", Clara DOES get to talk to the Doctor, and she DOES get to convince him to do something else instead - to do the 50-50 shot. Steven Moffat creates the situation when either the Doctor or Clara has to lose his/her memories about the other, and they both agree to "flip the coin". The Doctor is not more important nor more powerful, he doesn't get to decide - they're both equal. And in the end, it's Clara who keeps her memories.
I repeat - it was Steven Moffat's writing. The person who seemed to belittle the role of the companion for years, having "the (Eleventh) Doctor's epic love" be part Time Lord, never a companion River Song, reducing Clara in season 7b to a plot device, putting snarky comments in Missy's mouth and having the companions just walking around the set in too many episodes. That person co-created season 8 Clara, finally a full-dimensional character, and now has made her equal to the Doctor, without turning her into a Time Lord, his love, an immortal or whatever. That is an achivement, that is a change of heart. No Missy in the finale. Just Clara.
And he made me believe, for few seconds, that the Doctor was going to regenerate. I even thought how surprisingly well idea it would be, to regenerate the Doctor with no warning (looks like it's easy when it's not my Doctor), but then I remembered I've seen some photos from the Christmas special. I know I shouldn't need that proof to know Moffat's fake death when I see it but this time he fooled me.
Together.
Let's go back to Gallifrey now. We've waited for Gallifrey for nine seasons, and I must confess I feel a bit disappointed. The Doctor's only slept in the barn and run through some cellars, I think we deserved more. And where's Timothy Dalton? This is what happens when you're forced to do an off-screen regeneration; the next incarnation isn't believable. Rassilon's been defeated too quickly, too easy, as it's been suggested that he was the only evil Time Lord. And apparently, they just went back to our universe when no one was looking and somehow the Time War hasn't started again. I'd like to buy some explanations, with logic.
"It's me." "No, it could be me". I thought the Doctor and Ashildr were going to list all possible hybrids ;) "It also could be my metacrisis self." "I've met River Song - she fits." "What about the TARDIS? It's a ship and a police box."
And it's good to have the screwdriver back. The new model looks good but isn't it too big for a convinient tool? Well, I hope we'll forget about the glasses forever.
Run, you clever boy and remember me be a Doctor.
I missed the Doctor who cares for four seasons. The ninth was finally a breaker.
Season nine was, in my opinion, far better than the previous one, with many very good episodes, such as "The Girl Who Died", the Zygon two-parter, "Face the Raven" and "Hell Bent". There were three episodes I didn't write about here, as I didn't have much to say: "The Woman Who lived" where everything was submited to the main thread and it didn't feel like a Doctor Who episode, a failed experiment aka "Sleep no more" and "Heaven Sent", an episode with a really good idea but 15 minutes too long. Until episode 10, there wasn't enough about Clara and I'm trying to remove some parts of the Davros two-parter from my mind but in overall, it was a very valuable, thought-provoking season. For the future - less two-parters, I think. They work when the story is big enough or when they are one-parters connected by one person or element but if you just want to stretch out a 45-minute story to a 90-minute slot, it - surprising, isn't it? - doesn't work.
See you on Christmas!