“Get Off My Planet”: Doctor Who Season 9 Finale Review

Did you watch it? Have you seen the Doctor Who finale yet? No? I’ll wait.

Great. It’s been a few days and spoilers are all but impossible to avoid, but you really need to get caught up on Doctor Who. The finale was chock full of twists, surprises, and tears, but I think Steven Moffat has at long last figured out how to combine character death with time travel and leave me feeling satisfied without the depression. Let me tell you why.

Spoilers abound for the last few episodes of Doctor Who’s ninth season.

Checking in with the Doctor: Series 9 Midseason Review

You need to start watching Doctor Who again.

Okay, I never stopped. But I get it. I was skeptical too. I fell in love with the show when the Ninth Doctor told Rose that he could feel the turn of the Earth. Puns and camp and coincidence are all excusable when the Tenth Doctor is basically Jesus and the recurring theme is the wonder of the world and the value of humanity. Eleven even told us, with a cold fury, “In 900 years of time and space, I’ve never met anyone who wasn’t important before.” And then somewhere along the line, the show stopped being about that. Characters changed personalities depending on who was writing the episode, coincidence got us out of trouble instead of into it, and it was hard to care when the world was ending, again, but the Doctor just had to push the reset button, again, to save the day. In Series 7 it was clear to me that when it came to Clara’s personality, none of the writers were on the same page. In rewatches of Series 8, I felt like the show was almost contemptuous of its audience, as if it couldn’t care less if I gave a damn about it. Or maybe that was just the vibe I got from Capaldi’s Doctor.

But for Series 9, things are changing. I’m seeing some glimmers of the show I loved so much. So if you’ve stayed away, let me show you what you’ve missed, and why it’s a good time to give it another chance.

Lots of spoilers for Doctor Who, Series 9, through Episode 7 and hints for later on.

Doctor Who: “Death in Heaven” Review

Well, Whovians, Season 8 has been a wild ride. While the first half of the season may have been a bit bumpy, the second half seemed to have a slightly more cohesive story, chugging forward toward the two-part season finale.  And oh what a finale it was: action, drama, and feels galore. One of the most common criticisms of Moffat’s work as Doctor Who showrunner is that he won’t give his characters lasting, meaningful consequences to their actions. This time we get some serious consequences. I can’t say much more without a spoiler warning, so here we go!

Checking in with the Doctor: Doctor Who Season 8 Midseason Review

It’s been a while since we last checked in with Doctor Who’s Season 8. We last covered the Season 8 premiere, and I had some mixed feelings about it. The next five episodes haven’t followed much of a cohesive plot. Rather, they’re one-off ideas for what might make an interesting Doctor Who episode. Steven Moffat seems to be asking a lot of questions about who the Doctor really is, and what it means to be the Doctor. We’re also finally getting some character development for the Doctor’s companion, Clara. So has Moffat produced some quality Doctor Who? Sort of.

Spoilers for the first half of Season 8 below.

Deep Breaths, Everyone: Doctor Who’s Series Eight Premiere

Welcome back, Whovians. After eight months of waiting, we’re finally treated to series eight of Doctor Who. We’ve got a new Doctor, a dinosaur, clockwork-y cyborgs, and the Paternoster gang. With the massive amounts of media hype surrounding the series (including some major script and episode leaks), does the series opener live up to its promise? Sort of.

Loads of spoilers for this episode below the cut.

“Time of the Doctor” Review

Merry Christmas, Whovians and sundry! Yesterday sure was… something, wasn’t it?

Hit the jump for spoilers.

In Brightest Day: Clara Oswald

I have written so many posts on the end of Series 7 of Doctor Who that I’m kind of surprised I missed an obvious look into the mind of Clara Oswald.

And that’s my bad. Clara, because she’s new and not yet “in love” with the Doctor, doesn’t get the same analysis that companions like Rose Tyler and Amy Pond have gotten.

So, a pox on me for not pointing out the idea that ‘The Impossible Girl’ put in my head at the end of Series 7. If you haven’t seen Series 7, there are spoilers in this, so be warned.