New Who: "The Big Bang"

[lizbee]

Fact: That defied every single one of the expectations I claimed not to have, and broke every bit of speculation I put forward.

Additional fact: HOMG IT WAS AWESOME.

Further additional fact: I'm glad that Rory is no longer an Auton, because it would have inevitably led to sex toy jokes, which would have been in very poor taste.

When the Doctor was like, "YOU'LL HAVE YOUR PARENTS BACK!" I was SO VERY AFRAID that suddenly Amy would be, you know, normal. BUT NO! She still spent a childhood being dragged to psychiatrists, believing in her imaginary friend. Only now he is friends with all of Ledworth, SO THERE. And she and Rory ran away on their wedding night! At last, a married couple in the TARDIS who are not Barbara and Ian, which I know has been one of the longstanding dreams of fans of crowded TARDISes. (Although it tends to be cited as a way of avoiding companion/doctor subtext? Which, not from where I was sitting.)

(Also: I saw people going, "I don't want the season to end with Amy and Rory getting married, because then Amy will leave. Because it is a well-known fact that, following marriage, one ceases to have a life of one's own, or interests, and one simply sits at home knitting baby clothes in preparation for the inevitable happy event. I swear to God, fandom, Moff may say stupid and sexist things in interviews, but when it comes to misogyny, you could give lessons.)

I ... honestly feel a little drained. I often feel that way after DW finales, but with RTD's finales, it was a case of sensory overstimulation, whereas here, it was more of an emotional rollercoaster. (Although, may I say that I am really impressed with how Murray Gold's score has been used this whole season, what with being generally not intrusive or annoying? Thank you.) There was a very nice balance of lulz, plot, emotion, character, Scary Fossil Dalek, badassery, timey-wimey shenanigans and canonical Doctor/TARDIS.

Let's talk about Matt Smith. When he was first cast, I was like, "Whatevs, another young, skinny white dude with stupid hair." And I was pretty Smith-neutral until the clip from "Vampires of Venice" appeared, when it became apparent he wasn't just going to be Ten Mark II.

By now, he is so very much the Doctor that I can't imagine anyone else in the role. He is totally convincing as an old man in a young man's body, and it's not just the costume, but the way he sits and speaks when he's tired. His realisation that, no, he hadn't escaped, he was just going to die very slowly, was utterly heartbreaking, so it was a real victory when he turned up at Amy's wedding and danced like a nerd.

(How much did I love that he was dancing with the children? SO MUCH. You might say, "Oh yes, that's the Eleventh Doctor, only children won't judge his dancing," but I'm pretty sure that, back in Gallifrey, when they held the annual Hootenanny of Rassilon, the first Doctor embarrassed and appalled his children, his friends and his brother by nerd-dancing with the Time Tots.)

OH HAI, YOU KNOW WHAT I ENJOYED? How it's the end of the season, and none of the female characters got screwed over by the narrative. Previous efforts:

2005: Rose saves the day via possession by TARDIS, loses memory of it
2006: Blah blah, trapped in other universe as long-term consequence of pissing off Queen Victoria while the Doctor gets off scot free with a single emo tear of manpain
2007: Martha realises that the Doctor will never love humanity as much as he loves his genocidal, family-torturing ex-boyfriend, leaves
2008: Donna saves the day via possession by Time Lord brain, gets mind-wiped

It's funny, because Mofftiem is not that different from the RTD era -- not like, say, contrasting Graham Williams with Jon Nathan-Turner, or even JNT's early years against the later, Cartmel-dominant Seventh Doctor era -- but it only takes a few small tweaks for the things I found distressing and offensive about the RTD era to fall away. My only complaints about Mofftiem are the lesser visibility of people of colour (on the other hand, fewer evil or dead PoC), and the general straightness of it all (on the other hand, no dead lesbians. Actually, I think RTD only killed one lesbian, but factor in Torchwood and it seems like more).

You know when I started laughing out loud? 04:10, where the AU features Richard Dawkins as a cult leader.

OH YEAH, I ALMOST FORGOT: MULTI-SEASON ARC! What is the Silence? I'm going to take a wild guess and say it's probably not faerie dementia in this case.

"Legs. Good. Bowtie. Cool. ...I can buy a fez." And so Matt Smith's request for a hat goes unanswered once more. Also, I like the callback to the regeneration.

LET'S TALK ABOUT RIVER SONG, GUYS. She stared down a Dalek and made it beg for mercy. Granted, it was a weakened fossil Dalek (note to self: AVOID FOSSILS AT ALL COSTS SOME OF THEM ARE DALEKS), but still!

It's funny how this two-parter didn't feel like a Dalek Story at all. But that's okay; Dalek Stories have probably been done enough lately, and sometimes all you need is a single Dalek hanging around being creepy. And fossilised. DO NOT WANT. It's as bad as that pond Dalek!

But yes, River Song stared down a Dalek. And shot a fez. And, working quietly in the background, helped Amy to bring the Doctor back. How is it that she wound up in the 21st century with the others? Because she seemed to need the vortex manipulator back in order to return to her own time. Unless, perhaps, she was originally from this time, and somehow skipped forward a few millennia? Someone should write that fic. Not me, I seem to have my B5 fic mojo back this week. But someone.

NEXT: The Sarah Jane Adventures in a few months. And after that, an escaped Egyptian goddess. On the Orient Express. In space. Anything that sounds that much like a parody of "Voyage of the Damned" is either going to be amazing, or an absolute atrocity. After today, I'm willing to cautiously put my money on the former.

Comments

[arch]

I'm pretty sure that, back in Gallifrey, when they held the annual Hootenanny of Rassilon, the first Doctor embarrassed and appalled his children, his friends and his brother by nerd-dancing with the Time Tots

I would read that fic SO HARD. Actually I would read any fic about any Doctor at any Hootenanny of Rassilon.

This episode was incredible. This series was incredible. I am so excited for next year.

[lizbee]

This episode was incredible. This series was incredible. I am so excited for next year.

Me too! I think this is the first time in a few years where the finale hasn't let me hating the series, the fandom and myself to some degree!

[violetisblue]

All that stuff up there, that you just said! And, er, uh, squee! Flail!

Just to make it the funnier my public TV station as I type this was running an ad trying to get me all excited for reruns of S4. LOLOL yeah I don't even, go away now Nasal Mockney Pinstripe Sociopath Boy.

[lizbee]

Yeah, the Sci-Fi Channel was like, AND HOW, DOCTOR WHO! STARRING DAVID TENNANT AND-- and then we switched over to The Colbert Report.

[violetisblue]

Were there any Doctors between "Survival" and "The Eleventh Hour"? I swear I don't remember any such thing, it must be that pesky time-crack.

[lizbee]

There are apocryphal stories, but they linger on only as urban legends on long-abandoned blogs. Martha Jones and her husband could tell you a few things, but they talked it over with their boss, and Sir Alistair said that some things were best left in the never-was.

[lyssie.livejournal.com]

*dances about with glee* IT WAS SO AWESOME.

[nostalgia]

RIVEEEEEERRRRR

I was just scared of losing Amy, but now we can has OT3.

[jonquil]

With River? We can has OT4 because she is *just that cool*.

[raven]

when they held the annual Hootenanny of Rassilon, the first Doctor embarrassed and appalled his children, his friends and his brother by nerd-dancing with the Time Tots

This makes me so happy.

[calapine]

It's funny, because Mofftiem is not that different from the RTD era ... but it only takes a few small tweaks for the things I found distressing and offensive about the RTD era to fall away.

So much this. It's the difference between "I only take the best" and "I choose my friends well."

[ellen_fremedon]

This times a thousand. Yes.

[fannishnonsense]

I think we've proved that you can't actually die of Awesome. Because we all certainly would have ODed after that. <3

[fly_to_dawn]

I'm pretty sure that, back in Gallifrey, when they held the annual Hootenanny of Rassilon, the first Doctor embarrassed and appalled his children, his friends and his brother by nerd-dancing with the Time Tots.

LORD HIGH PRESIDENT OF THE DANCE FLOOR.

[lizbee]

[jaythenerdkid]

And here I was about to post that. :D

In other news, I have been unable to stop squeeing about River ever since the episode finished. SHE SHOT A DALEK. SHE SHOT A GODDAMN DALEK. IN THE EYESTALK. A DALEK. SHE KILLED. A DALEK.

Ahem. Sorry.

[weaver]

SHE MADE IT BEG FOR MERCY. I AM SO HOT FOR RIVER SONG NGL.

[jaythenerdkid]

YOU ARE NOT ALONE. YOU ARE SO NOT ALONE.

[lydaclunas]

I MUST STEAL THIS. As soon as I saw the nerd-dancing I knew I'd need a GIF of it.

[aligoestonz.livejournal.com]

That was my favourite bit of the whole episode :-)

[ellen_fremedon]

OH YEAH, I ALMOST FORGOT: MULTI-SEASON ARC!

I am so excited to find out where Moff is headed with all of this. I am not used to being confident that my showrunners have a plan! It is a strange and tingly feeling, this 'trust', but I think I could learn to like it.

[weaver]

THIS. THIS THIS THIS ALL OF THIS OH MY GOD. :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D :D

[ess_jay]

SPACE FLORIDA!!!

[ess_jay]

(completely unrelated but:
you know there is a giant octopus at the aquarium at the moment, right?!)

[lizbee]

IT HAS NOT ESCAPED MY NOTICE, NO.

I BELIEVE WE SHOULD VISIT THAT GIANT OCTOPUS.

AND MAKE IT OUR FRIEND.

[ess_jay]

I can dig that!

[trouble]

I feel like I'm watching a show that likes women. Not just individual women, but women. That it's okay for women to be awesome.

Also, Mr. Pond pleases me deeply. They're her Boys, and they both bloody well know it.

[azarsuerte]

but I'm pretty sure that, back in Gallifrey, when they held the annual Hootenanny of Rassilon, the first Doctor embarrassed and appalled his children, his friends and his brother by nerd-dancing with the Time Tots.

OMG, I so want to see that fic now!!!

[infiniteviking]

It's as bad as that pond Dalek!

SO THAT'S WHAT THAT DUCK POND WILL BE FOR */shot*

*brb agreeing with absolutely everything you said*

[lilacsigil]

GIANT YES TO ALL OF YOUR POST! I did not have trust, not at all, until the TARDIS came back. And then I bounced around in my seat a lot and declared everlasting love. I'm so, so happy right now.

[copracat]

How is it that she wound up in the 21st century with the others?

When Amy asks River what happens to them after the Big Bang 2, River says, 'We all wake up where we ought to be.' River clearly out to be at Amy's wedding! This is my theory and I'm sticking to it.

[myniamh]

How is it that she wound up in the 21st century with the others?

Because that was where the tardis took her, when she looked through Amy's stuff, before it blew up.

[kerravonsen]

I saw people going, "I don't want the season to end with Amy and Rory getting married, because then Amy will leave.
And I was afraid that it wouldn't end with Amy and Rory getting married, because I'd had casting spoilers indicating that Amy wasn't going to leave, and, well, after "The Pandorica Opens" I was sure that Rory was going to stay dead, and I wanted Rory to be alive and happily married to Amy, and I didn't care whether that meant that they were in the TARDIS or not. The fact that they are (a) alive (b) married and (c) in the TARDIS is more than I dreamed I would get. YAY!

[jesuswasbatman]

I think the assumptions about what would happen if Amy and Rory got married weren't down to fannish misogyny but a hangover from the way marriage got treated in the RTD era.

[fyrdrakken]

Classic Who, too -- marriage was what a female Companion was doing post-TARDIS (unless she was resuming her career or treating a leper colony or joining a space con artist) and pretty much signaled the end of adventuring.

[firefly124]

OH HAI, YOU KNOW WHAT I ENJOYED? How it's the end of the season, and none of the female characters got screwed over by the narrative.

Yes, this!

LET'S TALK ABOUT RIVER SONG, GUYS. She stared down a Dalek and made it beg for mercy. Granted, it was a weakened fossil Dalek (note to self: AVOID FOSSILS AT ALL COSTS SOME OF THEM ARE DALEKS), but still!

Absolutely! I'm so glad it looks like we're going to see more of her.

[lydaclunas]

As I was reading the entry/comments, David pops in.

"What up with you?" he asks.

"What? Nothing's up."

"You just looked really happy."

"Oh! I reading and going to talk about the Doctor Who finale!"

"Oh yeah! I'm just glad they didn't leave it as a cliffhanger."

So apparently my glee for the episode is written all over my face when I even start thinking about it. BECAUSE IT WAS JUST THAT AWESOME.

[lydaclunas]

There are like a thousand typos in this. That's the last time I try to compose comments before coffee.

[jonquil]

Amy throws the fez over the stairs and River blasts it to Kingdom Come. Awesome.

[snorkackcatcher]

an escaped Egyptian goddess. On the Orient Express. In space

And 'Your Majesty'. Liz Ten again? LET US HOPE SO. Also, does 'Egyptian goddess' => Osirians?

Great finale to a great season. Also nice to see that most people seem to have liked it as much as I did!

[daricemoore]

Osirians! Oh, please oh please...

[onomatopoetry]

I couldn't agree more. Two days and several rewatches, this was undoubtedly the best finale (which is, admittedly, not that hard) and every time I read less than ecstatic reviews I want to punch people.

Fez! Actually!scary!Dalek, Dancing! Happy endings! Funny quotes!

Happiness abounds, really. Christmas yet?

[herewiss13.livejournal.com]

Finally watched it on BBC America. Very nice indeed. But I could help thinking that the writer must have been _soooooo_ proud of himself for the cleverness of "something borrowed, something blue, etc." :-)