Eleventh Doctor: The Rewatch

So I babysit a seventh grade girl, whose best seventh grade friend happens to be a Whovian. This friend has been trying to sit my (umm…) child down and get her to watch Doctor Who for some time. The friend was failing. So I took it upon myself to right this wrong and get this girl to watch some Doctor Who. And I’ve gotten her hooked. We started with the first episode of Eleven, “The Eleventh Hour”, because it was available for free on demand. We just watched “Vincent and the Doctor” and are at a standstill because the TV doesn’t have the next two episodes (the one with Craig and the first part of the season finale). Here are my feels upon rewatching. 

Most emotionally powerful episode of Eleven

Mostly, I have beef with the characters. In general, Amy didn’t display very much character. The only episode where Amy was a good, strong character was the Van Gogh episode. There, she was full of character, sweet, seemingly excited to be there, and having fun. In all of the other episodes, she came across as just an audience member. You know how little kids take out all of their toys to show new people? That’s how the relationship between Amy and the Doctor felt before the Van Gogh episode. The Doctor was the one taking out all of his toys for really no reason except that Amy was a new person. And Amy really didn’t do anything but ooh and aah. Even when the Doctor was being a jackass.

Because the Doctor did spend a great majority of the time being a jackass, especially in the Star Whale episode, “The Beast Below”. He said he was going to take Amy home for making decisions for him; by pressing the “forget” button, Amy forgot all about the Star Whale in an effort to save the Doctor from choosing between the lives of all of England and the last Star Whale. To say the Doctor was livid would be an understatement. It’s actually the angriest I remember seeing him, and that’s including Demons Run. It seemed like a stark contrast to the newer episodes where somebody killed off a sentient alien leech and the Doctor still thought she was fab in the “The Crimson Horror”.

Rory, on the other hand, did more to affect the Doctor in four (and a half) episodes than Amy did in ten. Rory wasn’t afraid to challenge the Doctor, and as I’ve noted elsewhere on this blog, that’s what the Doctor needs. He needs someone to call him out when he’s being an ignoramus, which is why the role of companion is so crucial.

On a completely different note, I love the Doctor’s old haircut. Much more little kiddish and adorable. In the newer episodes, his hair doesn’t do much for his face. The older, messier look made him look adorable and more natural. The new haircut makes you look at the Doctor, but in a more “what the hell is up with his face?” kind of way.

And, oh my Lord of the Rings, some of those special effects were atrocious. I know it’s a couple years old at this point, but some of the CGI aliens were so fake it was insane. My eyes twitched at the sight of them. It was a mess.

Those are my general feels upon rewatching Eleven. Hopefully I’ll make some more progress, find those missing episodes, and keep coming back with more reactions. Until next time!