Who Reviews Twice Upon a Time by Jeffrey Zyra

Written by Steven Moffat

“Doctor, I let you go.”

The 2017 Christmas Special is here and it is a historical one that will be remembered more for the debut of Jodie Whittaker than for Peter Capaldi leaving Doctor Who along with Steven Moffat.  This year’s special is also a little bit more special as it also stars David Bradley as the First Doctor, taking the reins from the late William Hartnell, to join forces in a rare multi Doctor story.  Needless to say, this story has a full complement of characters.  Oh, did I mention that Bill returns in this story too?  Yes, she pops back also as Peter Capaldi is joined once again by Pearl Mackie. 

The story takes place right after the closing moments of “The Doctor Falls” when the two Time Lords meet up at the closing moments of “The Tenth Planet”. So that is two stories closing moments that have a part in “Twice Upon a Time” and one is the story of the first regeneration as we see the First Doctor doubting if he wants to regenerate. Sort of what the current Doctor is going through except he is thinking of ending the cycle and just die and end the line of The Doctor. 

So that is where the story starts to take place when we see the two Doctors talking together and all of a sudden time stops.  Nothing is moving at the Antarctic at all well except for a British Captain from 1914 during the First World War.  It is during this exchange with The Captain that the story starts to pick up as the three men who are now inside the TARDIS are captured by the glass looking aliens called The Testimony.  The Testimony are from the future and come and collect a vital part of the human when they die and now they want The Captain to be brought back to when he dies to ensure the timeline to be where it should be.  As you can imagine this doesn’t set well with The Doctors and of course the plan to stop it along with Bill who just happened to appear from nowhere on the Testimonies ship.   As we soon discover once The Doctor arrives on an unnamed planet to ask for the help of Rusty Dalek the Testimonies have not committed anything evil in fact from the invention of Dr. Helen Cray of New Earth they take the memories from those who have passed away and put them in an avatar to speak with their loved ones in which we find out that Bill is one of those avatars. 

Which takes us to the conclusion in which The Doctor changes the rules again and The Captain is saved.  It turns out The Doctor lands the TARDIS a few hours after The Captain left and returns him right at the moment of the 1914 Christmas Truce where both sides stopped fighting on Christmas Day - something that has never happened again in any war and is one of the true miracles of Christmas.  This actually happened and there are many books on the subject and also a movie so if you have the time you should check out and learn about what happened on December 25th 1914. 

“Twice Upon a Time” wasn’t all that bad of a story.  I had my reservations about it as the current string of regeneration stories in the newer Doctor Who have had a bad track record. Stories like “The Time of the Doctor” and “The End of Time” were cluttered with lots of characters and stories that didn’t make all that much sense at all.  Though the farewell in “The End of Time” is one of my favorites I can’t say all that much for the actual story. But thankfully with Peter Capaldi’s last story we are given a story that is very enjoyable and makes sense. What we have are two characters at a crossroads on whether they want to go on.  Both Doctors are questioning the regeneration process and it takes one last adventure and to help a soldier, who happens to be Brigadier Lethbridge - Stewart’s relative to shake them from their doubt. Everything else in the story was frosting on the cake as it was mainly a story about their own mortality.

I really liked the pairing of the First and Twelve Doctors but Steven Moffat didn’t really capture the essence of the First Doctor.  He didn’t write him all that well and at times I was shaking my head at what he was saying.  I know the 1960’s was a different time but the First Doctor wasn’t as sexist as he was portrayed in “Twice Upon a Time”.  In fact he never mentions to his female companions to clean the ship and stuff like that but instead he is seen as a grandfather type to Susan and Vicki.  If there was a low point of “Twice Upon a Time” it had to be the way Steven Moffat characterized the First Doctor. 

I did like having Bill being an avatar of her memories. It made the farewell scenes all that much better as we didn’t have The Doctor traveling back to see his former companions or hallucinate seeing Amy or anything like that.  It made perfect sense and was the right thing to do seeing his old companions as memory avatars.  It was also good to see Jenna Coleman return as Clara and have him get his memories of her back. With her and Nardole return was a nice touch and very a touching farewell as they help persuade The Doctor to keep on living. 

I really enjoyed Peter Capaldi as The Doctor.  Like most I was sad to see him go and was glad he got a good send off.  I really liked the speech he gave before he regenerated.  It was like a lecture for the next incarnation on how to act as The Doctor and what it means to be The Doctor.  It also wasn’t mushy and sappy and you didn’t have crying Doctor saying goodbye.  His last words were like he was letting the part he enjoyed and handing it off to Jodie Whittaker.  It just seemed to me like a passing of the torch type of moment and a pretty simple goodbye.

We also get our first glimpse of Jodie Whittaker and it appears we are recycling another cliffhanger as we have seen something similar before when Matt Smith took over from David Tennant.  It would have been better if they came up with something else but I’m guessing we’ll find out in time when the show returns in the Fall.  So in the words of the new Doctor this story was brilliant and a very good send off for Peter Capaldi and one of the better Christmas Specials and Regeneration stories in the new series.

Grade B+

Who Reviews The Girl Who Died by Jeffrey Zyra

Written by Steve Mathieson

And Steven Moffat

“I am The Doctor and I save people. And if anyone happens to be listening and you’ve got any kind of problem with that.  To hell with you!”

The Girl Who Died had a lot of buzz going in mainly to see who Maisie Williams would be playing.  Back in the summer was the Doctor Who Series 9 trailer and at the end Maisie Williams said this to Peter Capaldi’s 12th Doctor, ‘What took you so long old man?”  Now that made the interwebs abuzz with speculation that she was playing Romana, The Rani, Susan and Jenny.  I myself was hoping for the Terrible Zodin as some thought it was a younger Missy.  Guess what?  You’re all wrong as she is playing an original character.  Leave it to Steven Moffat to prop up an episode that in all fairness is not that good.

For a story that is the first part of a two part story that was mainly focusing on Maisie William’s character Ashildr and not a story that continues into the next part. For the most part we had a solution to the whole space Viking thing and the focus was on Ashildr as she is now an immortal.  You see The Doctor takes the medical kit from the Mire’s space helmet.  She’s an immortal and this is the buildup for the next part of the story which the trailer shows is in another time.  This is the big reveal which probably made a bunch of fans disappointed that she wasn’t what they had hoped.  Too bad and I applaud them for doing something different than doing the obvious what the fans would like.  I actually had this predicted as I figured Moffat was pulling our chains to get fans talking about this story.

For the most part I did not like the story but did not overall hate it as we still have another part to go.  After two stories that were dark and serious it made sense to have a light hearted story in the tradition of The Romans and The Gunfighters.  But I found the story to be too silly.   I don’t mind Doctor Who doing comedy but this story just seemed to be too silly.  Right from the start when Odin appeared in the sky I was like, oh dear, we are in for a super silly one.  Most of the premise didn’t really make sense as we have an alien race capturing men and taking them for testosterone.  We have Clara actually almost convincing the Mire to leave when Ashildr starts a war with them.  Then we have the rest of the story watching The Doctor looking defeated as he thinks the village will get slaughtered.  Thank goodness that baby was able to tell him how to defeat the Mire if in a non-direct way.  Electric eels really, had to laugh at that one as I’m not sure that has ever been done before or if people actually fish them.   Have to say the way the Mire was defeated was a tad clever using the eels and such and then using Ashildr to project an image from the helmet to make them think there was a dragon.  But then using a cellphone video and then threatening to upload it to a galactic type of YouTube.  It seemed kind of meh to me and not really inspiring.

I really liked the part where The Doctor was sulking about the death of Ashildr.  Lamenting on all the death he has to endure while saving everyone else especially since he was responsible for the death of Ashildr since he wired her up to the helmet.  Peter Capaldi did a really good job with this performance as you could really see the pain in his face as he was explaining it to Clara.  Then he turns around and explains why he has the face that he does and delivers that great speech before he goes off to save Ashildr.  That was great and really saved this story from being a total clunker.

Now back to the face.  Was it necessary?  Did they have to explain why The Doctor looks like Caecilius from the David Tennant story The Fires of Pompeii?  They didn’t explain it back in 1984 or 1985 when Colin Baker had the same face as Maxil from the Peter Davison story Arc of Infinity and Colin Baker was Peter Davison’s successor.  Just another example of Steven Moffat pandering to the fans or as is most of the case proving that he is smarter than everyone and can do what he wants and make it seem clever.  It doesn’t really matter why he has that face it was mainly the fans complaining about why he had the same face as Caecilius.  It didn’t really matter to most fans as we have already experienced that happening in the 80’s and it didn’t really bother us.

While The Girl Who Died might have been highly anticipated it did not hit the mark with me as I thought it was too silly but it did have some good moments and I liked seeing the nods to the Troughton era like the diary and the funny run that Capaldi did.  But none the less I did not wholly care for it and I am hoping the next part will be better.

Grade C+

Who Reviews The Time of the Doctor by Jeffrey Zyra

“We all change.  When you think about it we are all different people all through our lives and that’s ok, that’s good, you gotta keep moving so long as you remember all the people that you used to be.  I will not forget one line of this not one day, I swear, I will always remember when The Doctor was me.”

Matt Smith’s time as The Doctor has finally come to an end in a story that takes place yet again on Trenzalore.  The Doctor’s greatest battle to defend the people of Christmas from all his greatest enemies all in orbit around the planet waiting to see if he says his name to allow the Time Lords to return.  The Time of The Doctor is 2013’s Christmas Special and it is a bitter sweet affair as we say goodbye to Matt Smith as he regenerates and we say hello to Peter Capaldi.

The Time of The Doctor is a mixed bag.  On a whole I did enjoy it but there were a couple of things that got me scratching my head wondering why Steven Moffat felt he needed to add these situations into the story. For one why did they find it necessary to have The Doctor walking around naked?  Even when The Doctor used the holographic clothes and then went to meet Clara’s parents for Christmas dinner he was clearly naked and it just made for a really stupid moment.  It just seemed so juvenile and doesn’t need to be in a science fiction show.  I know the show needs to be light hearted at times but that was just too immature.  What’s next fart jokes? Umm well that’s been done already so, moving on.

I’m also tired of every woman who The Doctor befriends or knows wants to sleep with him.  This is getting old and is a tired gimmick that has run its course.  Hopefully in Peter Capaldi we don’t see this anymore and we can get back to storytelling and leave the soap opera stuff to Eastenders and Coronation Street.  It was funny how they incorporated Matt Smith having to shave his head for a movie he filmed.  He shaved his head and had to wear a wig because he was bored.  They could have left that bit out but it was quite a surprise when he took the wig off.  

In true Doctor Who form he sacrifices his life to defend the innocent.  The people of Christmas are the benefactor of The Doctor protecting them and he ends up protecting them until he is an old man living out his final moments.  In fact this deed will end up killing him as he cannot regenerate anymore.  I like how this was resolved as the Time Lords bestowed upon him another regeneration cycle.  It was simple and not complicated and that is exactly how it should have been.  Something uncomplicated as just giving The Doctor a new life cycle with no drama and reviving an old man at the end of his life. We know the Time Lords can do that as they offered The Master the same thing as a reward in The Five Doctors. It was just a perfect way to do it and the show will go on without a hitch.

I really enjoyed watching The Doctor who stayed for Christmas as it was a story and something you would expect The Doctor to do.  It was interesting to see how he changed through the time that Clara came back to see him and what he did in the meantime by fixing the children’s toys and telling them stories of his adventures.  It was also sad to watch as this was a man who is used to exploring and he is stuck in one place defending everyone and he is doing it and you can see him get old in front of you and you can’t help but feel sorry for him. This part of the story I really liked and it felt cheapened by the stupidity of the opening minutes.

I liked how everything was resolved from his era.  What he saw in the hotel room from The God Complex, who blew up his TARDIS and the meaning of the crack.  For the diehard fan of the show this was good and put an ending to storylines but the casual viewer might be confused and lost.  Oh well if they were expecting a light hearted Christmas tale then the jokes on them.  Its Matt Smith’s regeneration story they should have known what they would be getting themselves into it’s not as if the interviews and news articles did not make mention of storylines coming to an end plus it is his farewell and those stories are never lighthearted to begin with.  Plus the resolution to the storylines was quick and they did not add precedence to the overall story so there shouldn’t have been much confusion from the casual fan.

I did like how The Doctor used his regeneration energy to destroy the Daleks.  If it can destroy the inside of the TARDIS I guess it can destroy the Daleks.  This takes us to Matt Smith’s farewell scene the whole reason for this year’s Christmas special.  This is one of the best and emotional swan songs in many years of regeneration stories.  Steven Moffat is really good at writing emotional speeches and this one is one of his best.  It was sad watching him talking to Clara with the Long Song from The Rings of Akhaten playing and then Amy Pond makes an appearance as he has visions of his past that makes the moment even more emotional.  It really hit home when he took off the bow tie and looked at it and dropping it to the TARDIS floor as it symbolized that his life is over and that the bow ties are cool man is now forever gone. I really liked how they handled this and it was such a powerful scene and quite fitting for Matt Smith.  It was even more shocking and emotional was how fast he became the next Doctor as we get a quick glimpse of Peter Capaldi to the shock of Clara whose facial expression are priceless and Jenna Coleman did an excellent job in this scene.

So the Matt Smith era is over and in life all good things come to an end but in Doctor Who they do end but with good things yet to come.  So like Amy Pond said “Raggedy Man… Goodnight.”

8 out of 10

©BBC Doctor Who 1963

Who Reviews Dark Water by Jeffrey Zyra

By Steven Moffat

“Upload the mind. Upgrade the body.”

The series 8 Finale is here and part one Dark Water was the one that would reveal who Missy is.  Oh boy and did it.  I’m still getting my mind around it.  Even though who she ended up as was one of the three I had guessed it would be I just didn’t think Steven Moffat would go in that direction.  But he did and now we know who Missy is and that sets up a whole lot of speculation until we see Death in Heaven this Saturday.

Dark Water starts out with Clara talking to Danny on the phone and she starts to explain things to Danny and more or less tells him that she loves him.  This results in Danny Pink getting hit by a car and killed.  Yep Danny Pink is dead and it is because he did not look when crossing the road as that revelation in their relationship startled him into making that mistake.  With Danny now dead Clara tries to blackmail The Doctor into going back in time and to save Danny.  This does not work as The Doctor tricked Clara.  He decides to forgive her and decides to help her by trying to find Danny in the afterlife.  

What they end up finding when they arrive is much more than they expected. They find lots of dead bodies in Dark Water which shows through non organic material to reveal a skeleton.  These end up being Cybermen and there are tons of them all asleep in their tombs.  Also in this Nethersphere is Danny Pink or so we think as he is actually in a Matrix type device. It appears that the soul of the dead are trapped in this device and then sent to the body of a Cyberman.  This tips The Doctor off that Missy is in fact a Time Lord or to be precise a certain Time Lord enemy of The Doctor.  Missy turns out to be short for Mistress and tells The Doctor that she can’t keep calling herself The Master anymore.  So the big reveal is that Missy is in fact The Master.  If you had that prediction congratulations but I don’t believe you if you did say it as most everyone said that she would be The Rani. 

I don’t know if I’m ok with what happened to The Master.  After watching Dark Water it took me a while to wrap my head around what just happened.  There was quite a bit going on in the first part of the finale that I had to watch it again for fear of missing something.  But the thing that sticks out is that The Master is now female.  I guess I’m ok with it as it was a good twist and the reaction conveyed by Peter Capaldi made it that more believable and really sold the whole reveal for me.  I guess it was pretty ballsy for Steven Moffat to do this as he could have just made Missy The Rani or had her be an evil Romana.  Still it was mind blowing when it happened even though I did have a slight inkling that it would be the evil renegade Time Lord.  Like I said before it will be interesting to read the speculation to why The Master is now Missy and Twitter will be in overload until Death in Heaven.

Dark Water was actually as the first part of the title describes dark.  This story was pretty dark and grim.  It starts off with Danny getting killed and Clara going through the denial of mourning her lost lover and then there is all that business in the Nethersphere.   It was pretty dark and creepy especially when the skeletons started to move in their tombs as the heads moved to watch The Doctor and Clara walk by.  That was indeed spooky and pretty awesome also.  Even though you knew beforehand that the skeletons are Cybermen it still was scary to see and was just pretty cool to see. 

This story will also be pretty controversial.  It deals with dead people and what happens when they die and where they go.  But what will really get people angry is the three words that was discovered that the dead souls were saying.  “Don’t cremate me” will hit hard for some people and also creep a lot of people out.  It will be hard for people who have recently lost someone and had a funeral in which there was a cremation.   I haven’t lost anyone close to me for a few years and it creeped me out.  I mean really creeped me out.  I know this is science fiction and not real but it really started me thinking what if.  It was a controversial scene and I give Steven Moffat and the BBC for doing it as they will most likely catch some slack. 

I really enjoyed Dark Water and I’m really excited for its conclusion Death in Heaven.  Dark Water answered some questions like what Danny did wrong as a soldier and that was a pretty dark reveal.  It made the Cybermen scary again, well at least for 45 minutes, and I just loved the nods to the classic Cybermen stories of the Troughton era with the tombs and of course St. Pauls Cathedral.  I liked the evil streak in Clara and wondered if she would really throw the keys into the lava and was surprised when it was revealed that The Doctor had tricked her.  I loved the darkness of this story and loved the tone it sets for the finale.  I’m really intrigued by the Missy reveal and really liked the chances they have taken this series especially with a female Master.  It is still a Steven Moffat story so with all that was right in Dark Water could be destroyed and be a major let down when Death in Heaven airs.  I just hope Steven Moffat doesn’t blow it and gives us something exciting to talk about until Christmas.

Grade A

Who Reviews Time Heist by Jeffrey Zyra

By Steven Moffat and

Steve Thompson

“Shut up. Everybody shut up. Shut up. Shut up. Shutitty up,up, up!”

I was never a fan of movies that were centered on robbing banks like the Ocean 11 movies.  Well, I take that back I did enjoy both versions of The Italian Job but never the less I was never a big fan of that type of movie.  So when I saw the trailer for Time Heist I had reservations about it.  But then I saw who co-wrote it with Steven Moffat and my mind was set at ease a little bit.   I did like Steve Thompson’s previous work on Who and Sherlock so there’s a chance I will enjoy Time Heist.

I have to say that Time Heist was a pretty clever Doctor Who story.  Very entertaining and had me thinking even though I guessed that The Doctor was The Architect pretty early on in the story.  If anything the ease of figuring that out was the only downer of the story for me.  What I really liked was that they did something different.  By having The Doctor rob a bank and he doesn’t know why he must do it.  The whole thing was one big mystery as to what must be stolen from the bank of Karabraxos.  What they end up finding was something that was more precious than any amount of treasure in the universe. 

How they end up getting to that point of the story was pretty good also.  We have The Doctor, Clara, Psi and Saibra walking around the bank trying not to get detected by using their skills to break into the most dangerous bank in the universe.  What makes it the most dangerous is the creature known as the Teller.  The Teller can detect guilt and your plans for robbing the bank by eating your memories.  When he gets through with you your mind is gone and you are a mindless heap.  What was clever was that the four robbers had their memories wiped so they would not know the plan thus having no guilt and not being detected by The Teller.  But when they received more instructions it got harder for them to keep their guilt away from The Teller and the chase was on.  Have to admit it was pretty intense watching them running away from The Teller as there was no escape once he gets you in his mental grips.

What I found to be clever was the resolution of how everything fitted like a puzzle piece.  What I figured early one and wanted to see how The Doctor got everything in place for the big heist.  I liked how they showed The Doctor working it out using his smarts and coming to a solution.  No waving of the sonic screwdriver around and zapping things to save the day but using his brains to come up with the solution and making things right.  Just like what he used to do in classic Doctor Who.   It was good to see the Doctor set things up with Ms. Delphox by playing on her regret for things she might have done which she eventually does on her death bed as she regrets keeping The Teller’s companion locked up in a vault.   It seems fitting the thing The Doctor would break into a bank for would not be riches or treasures but for saving an alien race being held against its will. 

Keely Hawes gives a good performance as Ms. Delphox and her clones and well I’ve always liked Keely Hawes from her time on Spooks so I’m a little bit biased when it comes to her.   Peter Capaldi gives a really good performance and he is really cementing his Doctor in place now.  I’m really enjoying his portrayal as it grows on me more and more.  His sarcastic wit and dark undertones and brutal honesty make him a Doctor that is far different from what we have seen so far.  I’m really enjoying it and also his chemistry with Jenna Coleman works really well especially when they bounce off each other for the funny bits about Clara getting all dressed up to go on a date.

Time Heist will not go down as one of the greatest stories as it does have the filler label stuck to it but it was a very entertaining story that was fun to watch and did have some moments to make you jump.  I was thoroughly entertained for 50 minutes watching Time Heist and will definitely be giving it a rewatch from time to time. 

Grade B +

Who Reviews The Angels Take Manhattan by DJ Forrest

Doctor Who: Series 7

Writer: Steven Moffat

Director: Nick Hurran

Broadcast: 29 September 2012

The Angels Take Manhattan is the final travelling companion story with Amy and Rory Williams, and what a finale it was.  There were also plenty of red herrings throughout the episode to throw you. 

The opening sequence of the episode began with Sting singing one of my favourite songs, ‘An Englishman in New York’ which set the scene perfectly in my opinion. 

It began in Manhattan, New York; the Doctor, Amy and Rory were having a picnic in the park.  The Doctor was engrossed in a crime novel of the 1930’s and refused to read further ahead to avoid spoilers.  When Amy persisted, he tore out the last few pages from the book. 

When Rory goes off in search of coffee, he is followed by a stone Weeping Angel cherub who sends him back to 1930’s New York where he meets River Song, who in typical 1930’s crime writing style is dressed like many detectives of that era, and if you hadn’t guessed it already, River Song is Melody Malone. 

Back at the picnic in present day, Amy is reading the novel, wearing a round pair of spectacles which I wonder if these were hers or the Doctor’s.  There’s a really great scene of the pair sitting back to back that reminds me of a couple of really great friends rather than a static Doctor and companion.

Amy discovers that Rory is written into the novel and wants to read further ahead to find out why he’s in the 1930’s.  The Doctor insists she doesn’t as this would mean that anything she reads will be destined to happen.  Instead he will take her in the TARDIS to the 1930’s to the exact time the story is set and rescue Rory. 

Rory is captured along with River Song by a collector of fine art, a Mr. Grayle.  Rory is thrown into a cellar where he meets even more Weeping Angel cherubs (who completely creeped me out) who send him to a strange hotel called the Winter Quay apartment building, while River is grabbed by the wrists of a weakened Weeping Angel, who is unable to transport her back in time.  Using her Vortex Manipulator River is able to send a beacon signal in order for the Doctor to find her and Rory.  She breaks her wrist in order to free herself from the clutches of the stone statue. 

When Amy realises who the crime detective is in the story, she uses the table of contents to locate Rory.  The Doctor is saddened when he discovers the last chapter in the novel is entitled “Amelia’s Last Farewell” and doesn’t want to help River escape, feeling that the future would be sealed as far as his companions were concerned.  But when he discovers that River broke her own wrist to free herself, fixes her using his own regeneration energy.  As Amy discovers an empty basement, the Doctor relies on River Song’s VM to detect Rory’s signature at a creepy looking hotel with many windows.  I have to admit at this point, I really did think this was the end for the pair.  There seemed little to no escape from any of the Weeping Angels, who appeared on every level and on every landing and around every other door. 

The Doctor realised that the apartment building was a battery farm, where people right through history had been transported to in order for the Angels to feed off their time energy. 

As the Doctor and crew arrived at the apartment building, Rory found himself drawn to an apartment bearing his name on the door.  Entering he found an elderly version of himself in the bed.  As the Doctor arrived in the room, he knew then that Rory’s fate was sealed.  There was nothing he could do to change that.

Outside of the building in the gloom and the rain, came a thunderous boom, which reminded me of the T-Rex stomping across the complex in Jurassic Park.  Then I realised what it was and have to admit I burst out laughing, but if you are anything like me, the last time I saw the Statue of Liberty stride across the city was in Ghostbusters, and that time she was a true heroine.  This time, she was the worst possible nightmare, Weeping Angel style. 

With Angels everywhere in the apartment building and no chance of any of them reaching the TARDIS for safety, Rory and Amy escape to the roof, where they discover they’re not even safe there.  The booming sound of footsteps across the city has ceased.  Behind them is the Statue of Liberty. 

Rory considers his options, Amy refuses to leave him.  Rory surmises that if he were to throw himself off the roof it would create a paradox and destroy the building, destroying the battery farm.  Amy jumps off the roof with him.  Again I felt that this could have been another ending, if Rory’s plan had failed, but as much as Doctor Who is scary, that idea wouldn’t have left the cutting room floor.

The Doctor, with River, Rory and Amy find themselves near the TARDIS in a graveyard in present day 2012, in New York.  Rory’s crazy plan had worked.  While the Doctor makes plans to take everyone home, Rory is drawn to a grave stone with his name on it, but before he can do anything about it, a rogue Weeping Angel sends him back 50 years into the past. This was one of those ‘Aaargh.’ moments.  Amy is horrified.  She refuses to leave Rory and allows the same Angel to touch her so she can rejoin her husband and live out her days with him.  The Doctor is distraught and so am I.  His two companions are gone and this time their fate is sealed.  He can never get them back. 

River Song ever the warrior reminds the Doctor that there is nothing he can do to bring them back, but that Amy would have been the person to publish the Melody Malone stories in the past.  Realising this, the Doctor races back to the park to recover the torn pages.  He finds a passage written by Amy for the Doctor.  It’s a real tear jerker of a passage so hankies at the ready.  At the end of the letter to the Doctor, Amy asks the Doctor to visit her younger self and take her on amazing journeys in the TARDIS which rounds off the life and loves of Amy Pond.

The Angels Take Manhattan for me had so many red herrings I did wonder when I’d be put out of my misery, from the first instance where Rory disappears in the Park, to losing him again in the basement, to his fate sealed in Winter’s Quay, then the jump from the same said building.  How many times could a man die in one episode???

It was inevitable from that respect that Rory if any, would be the one to leave the show that day.  Odd as it may be, I found I wasn’t ready to let go of Amy Pond.  I liked her quirky humour, her Scottish accent, her red hair.  I wasn’t ready to say goodbye and when she left I felt this hollow feeling inside of me.  Like that moment when Dumbledore died in the Harry Potter novel.  I was NOT expecting that.

It is not often you gel with a good couple of companions, and when they are on the screen you feel an excitement and look forward to the countless journey’s they will take with the mad man in the blue box.  But as with any of the Who companions, all good things must come to an end.  Goodbye Rory and Amy Williams, I shall indeed miss you!

Who Reviews Listen by Jeffrey Zyra

Written by Steven Moffat

“What’s that in the mirror, and the corner of your eye? What’s the footstep following, but never passing by?”

We have all had nightmares.  Waking up in the middle of the night in a fright and being scared for no apparent reason as our subconscious has a little fun at our own expense.  We have all been there. But what is the cause?  Is it an invisible creature under the bed waiting to get us? Those of us with kids have to deal with the inevitable nightmare in the middle of the night that wakes us in a startled state.  But what happens when a Time Lord has a nightmare?  What happens when he thinks he is not alone?  We found out after watching “Listen” or did we.

I have to say after seeing the trailer for “Listen” that I was really looking forward to watching this story.  I like the darker and scarier stories like “Midnight”, “Blink” and “Hide”.  I enjoyed when the Classic Series would be scary and send you behind the sofa.   Doctor Who is good for bringing the scares and should do so more often.  So I was delighted to see a story that was scary and intense in Series 8 of Doctor Who.   “Listen” did not disappoint.  It was scary and intense and a tad bit controversial if you believe what the fans on Twitter are saying.  

Right from the beginning we are thrown in to it with The Doctor apparently talking to someone in the TARDIS but we cannot see the creature or person but we know it is there as there was a response to The Doctor’s question of what does it do and written on the chalk board was listen.  But we were also given some doubt about the creature as Clara said it looked like The Doctor’s handwriting.  I liked that as it kept me thinking if this was real or part of The Doctor’s subconscious playing tricks on him.  

I really liked the scene with Clara and Rupert Pink.  We see Clara trying to comfort Rupert that there is nothing to be afraid of and that he was just having a nightmare.  She even went as far as going under his bed to prove there was nothing there.  What she did not count on was something being on top of his bed.  This scene was pretty scary and intense.  Made even scarier when the object was under the blanket and was staring at them and The Doctor was not sure if it was actually there or not or was a kid playing a trick on Rupert.  Clara is really developing into a pretty good character something they did not do much of in the last series.

We get to know Danny Pink a little bit better in “Listen”.  We find out he was the boy Rupert that they visited in the past and that he still kept a hold of the army guy into the future when we meet one of his future ancestors Orson who is the last man in the universe.  Danny’s character gets some development as we learn more about him with his date with Clara which does not go well.  This filler was fine as it did have some bearing on the story and is the distraction that sets The Doctor and Clara down his time stream. 

Now for the big revelation which probably will cause some controversy with the fans.  We find out that Clara started the whole thing when the TARDIS went back to Gallifrey when The Doctor was a child.  It appears The Doctor sleeps in a barn and not with the other kids because he cries in his sleep and doesn’t want anyone to know.  Clara hides under the bed when she hears someone coming and realizes they did not go back into Danny’s past but The Doctor’s.  It was chilling to see that when the child Doctor gets out of the bed and Clara grabs his leg and that look of terror in her eyes when it dawns on her that it was her fault for the nightmares.   She also calmed him down by talking to him and we get a glimpse that this is the same barn the War Doctor went to in order to use The Moment.  It will be seen that Clara had more to do with the development of The Doctor at a younger age and that could be seen controversial with the fans especially the hardcore Classic fans but really isn’t as it would appear as a dream to him. Well that is my opinion anyway.

The thing is was there ever a creature at all in the story or was this all in The Doctor’s head all along? When Clara returns to the TARDIS and proclaims what if there was nothing but The Doctor being afraid of the dark.  Well was it? Was it all a wild goose chase? Which kind of leaves you thinking what did happen in this story and how could the thing on the bed in Rupert’s room be explained if this was just an investigation into The Doctor’s nightmare.  Plus all that stuff in Orson’s ship making the banging noises. Was there something outside or was it just The Doctor’s imagination getting the best of him?  “Listen” does pose a lot of questions and it leaves you deciding what happens.  Lots of room for speculation and I am sure social network will be discussing “Listen” for a while now and that the arguments will be plenty. 

“Listen” is a scary story and that was a great thing with me.  It also raised a lot of questions and made my brain work overtime to come up with a solution that is plausible.  People are going to complain that there was not a monster but sometimes that is ok as you do not need a creature to scare you sometimes you just need basic things that happen in everyday life.   “Listen” gives us more insight into The Doctor’s early life and even though people will not like Clara’s involvement, it did work. At least for me it did.  The only problem that I did have with “Listen” is that Steven Moffat did not give us an ending that was not filled with endless speculation.  But hey he got what he wanted. He has the fans talking about it like crazy.

Grade B +

Beyond The TARDIS Sherlock: His Last Vow by Jeffrey Zyra

Written by Steven Moffat

Charles Augustus Magnussen is a blackmailer. A blackmailer who owns a news corporation and he uses what he knows to get what he wants.  Right now it is to get an inquiry off his back.  Sherlock Holmes has been asked to get some letters back from him by Lady Smallwood who he has complete power over.  Holmes and Watson look into stopping Magnussen by going as far as fabricating a love affair with his personal assistant to gain entry.  This works all too well and unfortunately for Holmes he gets shot by someone who wants Magnussen dead.  The thing is Sherlock knows who shoots him and it is someone dear to him and Watson.

I really liked “His Last Vow”.  It was like the Sherlock of old for the most part back to the mystery and all the twists and turns that the show is known for.  There were quite a few twists that really surprised me as I did not see those coming especially the one about Mary.  It turns out Mary used to be an operative that has killed lots of people for her country or some other country.  This was quite a surprise and an excellent development going on in the show.  What was surprising was that the clues about her were all there from the beginning and I obviously missed them.  I really enjoyed how Sherlock got Mary to reveal who she really was. That was pretty clever even though you knew John would be the one sitting in the chair.  It was pretty clever using elements from “The Empty House” to bring this about.

Charles Augustus Magnussen was one of the creepiest, repulsive and downright nasty characters that Steven Moffat has created for Sherlock based on a Conan Doyle character.   Charles Augustus Magnussen is a nasty piece of work and was a good adversary for Sherlock.  Lars Mikkelsen played him pretty well and one of the best performances in the show’s three series.  When he met his end I had a feeling of good he deserved what he got. Sort of the feeling when I watched The Master Blackmailer in the Jeremy Brett Sherlock Holmes series.

“His Last Vow” was written perfectly by Steven Moffat and it was definitely the best of the three stories from Series Three.   It had everything we expect and the twists were really surprising. The fact they had Mary shoot Sherlock really surprised me.  In fact that whole sequence when he deduces how to save him from the gunshot until Watson shows up was really good.  I’m really liking the scenes in the mind palace as it adds a new element to the show instead of him just standing there thinking.  It is a strange sequence but I enjoyed it.  But tying Magnussen and Mary together made the story that more intriguing as Magnussen had info on Mary and was going to use it against her.  I also liked how Steven Moffat used elements from the original story with Sherlock going out with Janine and then proposing to her.  That happened in the original story as Holmes tricked a maid that he loved her to get close to the Master Blackmailer same as he did with Janine so it was good to see Steven Moffat using that part of the original story. 

I was a bit surprised at the ending as I never expected Sherlock to shoot Magnussen dead with a shot to the head.  That really surprised me just as much as the fact that all the info was stored in Magnussen’s head.  But what really was a surprise was the true ending the apparent return of James Moriarty from the dead.  Or is he?  Steven Moffat is good at the cliffhangers to get everyone talking and this one is another good one.  Seeing Moriarty’s face on the video screens in Piccadilly Circus saying “Did you miss me” was pretty good and surely one I wasn’t expecting. Well we will have a long wait to find out and the speculation is going to be good and asinine. “The Last Vow” was a great story to finish up a good series three.

Grade A

Beyond The TARDIS Sherlock: The Empty Hearse by Jeffrey Zyra

Written by Mark Gatiss

Well it has been two years since Sherlock jumped off that building and has been thought to be dead by the person he associates with and that includes his best friend John Watson.  Now that he has returned from the dead and being away from London for two years to shut down Moriarty’s network Sherlock has returned.  In two years things have changed and people have gotten on with their lives and how will they react to Sherlock returning to their lives.  Well it has indeed been a long time since Sherlock has been on television and The Empty Hearse has been one of the most anticipated stories for a long time.  Did the resolution to how Sherlock faked his death satisfactory and what about the story itself which fans have waited two years for did it stand up to all the hoopla surrounding it?

Well yes and no. The Empty Hearse didn’t have the feel of a typical Sherlock episode.  It just didn’t seem like the mystery was all there.  Sherlock comes back to stop a terrorist attack and he just seems to stumble into finding it out.  After he reconciles with John the pair seem to hunt for a subway car that is missing and could be a bomb.  What they discover is that it is a bomb and that Sherlock does not know how to disarm it.  But what this scenario really does is get Watson to admit he isn’t really mad at Sherlock any more.  What seemed to be a letdown is that the bomb was disabled by an off switch.   This part of the story just wasn’t as good as the previous six stories.  It just seemed to be anticlimactic and was pretty much a throw away sequence which only accomplished the reconciliation of the two friends and hopefully things will be more like Sherlock of old in the mystery department.

What I did like was seeing all the theories of how Sherlock could have faked his death.  My favorite one was with the mask of Sherlock on Moriarty and Sherlock bungee cord diving into the window and kissing Molly goodbye.  What has me wondering is did we actually see how he did it?  It did seem to be hinted at that we would not know even when he told Anderson.  Even still this was a pretty clever way that they did it and it keeps you guessing.  I’m sure the way it happened was how he told it to Anderson and how many spotted the Doctor Who reference when Sherlock activated the plan.  The code word was Lazarus the same character Mark Gatiss played in The Lazarus Experiment.  I wonder how many of the fans deduced how he did it and got it correct.

I did like how Sherlock revealed to Watson he was back and not dead.  It was pretty clever seeing him disguise himself as a waiter and then making the reveal.  But you did have to feel for Watson because it was at the point that he was going to propose to Mary.  What was funny was how long Watson kept it together before he started punching Sherlock. I think I would have punched him the minute he revealed himself.  Also like the two other attacks Watson did to Sherlock at two different restaurants with my favorite being the head butt. This part of the story was good seeing how the two friends were getting along without each other.  We see Sherlock spending the day with Molly investigating crimes and we see Watson being incredibly bored at his practice.  I liked this part of the story and would not mind if the story took on this for the most part of the story with the conclusion being Sherlock and Mary saving Watson at the bonfire.  Then they could be wondering who did it and that could have been a good set up for the rest of the series.

After being away for two years it was really good to see Sherlock again.  The Empty Hearse gave us a glimpse of Sherlock that we have not seen before actually showing emotion and being pleasant to those he works with.  The fact he gave Molly a kiss is something and the fact he realized he missed his chance with her is something we have not seen and we see more of this when he is talking with Mycroft later on while playing deductions.  We see a resolution to what happened two years ago and now the gang is back together again.  The Empty Hearse was entertaining if somewhat not up to standards in the mystery department but that does not really detract from what was the main focal point of the episode which was the reconciliation of the old friends and how much they need each other more than they are willing to let on.  The Empty Hearse was a triumphant return for Sherlock and hopefully the mystery will be more prominent in the next two stories.

Grade B +

Who Reviews Day of the Doctor by Jeffrey Zyra

Written by Steven Moffat

“Gallifrey Falls No More.”

It is finally here.  Doctor Who’s 50^th Anniversary special has finally aired and we finally get to see what John Hurt’s Doctor is all about.  All the speculation and hypothesis that have been going on since “The Name of The Doctor” have been at a fever pitch and the debates and discussions have heated up on social media over the course of the summer and fall can now end.  We have our answers at last. “The Day of The Doctor” has happened and we have all seen it but was it what we expected? Was it worthy of the hype?  Will it go down in anniversary fame as “The Three Doctors” and “The Five Doctors” before it or did it crash and burn and disappoint like the 25^th anniversary story “The Silver Nemesis” and nothing for the 30^th and 40^th?   Well it sure did not disappoint as “The Day of The Doctor” turned out to be my favorite anniversary story ever.

I usually write my reviews right after I watch the episode.  Except if it is a two part story then I wait till the whole story airs and review it at one time.  “The Day of The Doctor” was the exception as I’m writing this after I have watched it for a second time.  After watching it there was a lot of discussion with my friends at the party and I knew that I would need some time to recover from the euphoria of watching it.   I was pretty jazzed up and really excited for what I had just seen and my emotions were all over the place that it would be better to write this later when I was thinking normally.  Or in my case as normal as I think most of the time, well, some of the time I guess. 

I really enjoyed the overall story for “The Day of The Doctor.”  It was really good and pretty interesting and kept me on the edge of my seat.   What made it so enticing was trying to predict what would happen next.  What would the three Doctors come up with to first stop the Zygons and then what would the two Doctors do to stop the War Doctor from destroying Gallifrey?  The solutions Steven Moffat came up with was pretty good and it showed us a part of the story from The War Doctor’s eyes as he was learning who he becomes and what his actions do to his future incarnations. 

Seeing Joanna Page as Queen Elizabeth wasn’t as bad as I was expecting.  I deduced that they would be tying up the loose end that was mentioned in “The End of Time” and why she hated him in “The Shakespeare Code”.  It was just funny to see what led to all of that in the 10^th Doctor’s era.  Finding out that it was a mistake just made it pretty funny and at least now we know.  Joanna Page was pretty good also even if I’m not familiar with her as I never watched Gavin and Stacy.  But she did pretty well and was pretty funny as Elizabeth the First.

I really liked the interaction between David Tennant and Matt Smith.  The chemistry was really good and in typical Doctor action they tried to one up the other.  It was good seeing the two Doctors picking on each other and it was really good to see the tradition made famous by Patrick Troughton and Jon Pertwee continue on in the new series.  That was always a highlight of past multi Doctor stories and seeing the two compare sonic screwdrivers was pretty funny and classic.

I enjoyed seeing the Zygons back.  First time we have seen them on TV since the Tom Baker story “The Terror of the Zygons” back in 1975.  At first when I heard they were going to be in “The Day of The Doctor” I thought they would only have a token appearance.  Glad my theory was wrong as it was good to see them have a part in the story and are important to the final solution in a small way.    I really liked how they were used and seeing them again after so many years was itself a treat as they have been constantly being near the top of favorite villains fan polls for a long time and they do have a pretty good fan following so it was good to see them return.  Plus the Zygons are David Tennant’s favorite creatures so maybe that factored into it but I doubt it. 

The Time War scenes were spectacular.  For a long time I’ve been wondering and speculating about this period in the Doctor’s time line and now we get to see a small part of it.  Even though it was the end of the war it was good to see the Daleks who are also celebrating a 50^th Anniversary this year.   What we see is a Doctor who is tired and sick of the war who leaves a message for both participants.   It is interesting to see The Doctor grab a weapon that would destroy his planet.  It is very unlike The Doctor to resort to this type of solution.   This where the story really gets good as the Moment is a weapon that has a conscious.  Played perfectly by Billie Piper the weapon acted like a ghost of Christmas future showing The Doctor what his consequences would do to him.  I really liked this part of the story as it gave us a new dimension to watch when they were battling the Zygons.  All this led to the Three Doctor’s going back to the time where the War Doctor presses the button on the Moment which will result in the destruction of Gallifrey.   This was a pretty powerful scene as we see Clara really comes into her own.  She is the one who convinces The Doctor’s or more specifically the 11^th Doctor.  She was able to make them change their minds and come up with a new solution.  It was a solution where The Doctor is not a mass murderer but a saver.  The Doctor saves Gallifrey instead of destroying it by putting it in a pocket universe.

Now I don’t believe this is a reset switch as we have seen Gallifrey before trying to break free from that pocket dimension. If you remember we see a Gallifrey with Time Lords still alive trying to come back and destroying Earth in the process back in “The End of Time.”  Now if Gallifrey had been destroyed by the Doctor’s then that moment would not have happened.   Steven Moffat gave a way for The Doctor to remember them and to search for the Time Lords to bring his planet back to the new series but in their proper space and time. 

John Hurt was really good as The Doctor.  He gave us a sense of experience and to a point was the straight guy to the comedic styles of David Tennant and Matt Smith’s Doctors.  It kind of reminded me of William Hartnell a little bit from “The Three Doctor” but just a little.  John Hurt had really good chemistry with David Tennant and Matt Smith that you wish they had longer together.  His performance was magnificent and it made me wishing we had a series for his Doctor.    I really ended up liking The War Doctor as he had a certain aspect to him that just made him likeable.  Probably the hurt on his face and in his eyes of what he has seen during the war.  Plus he did have that Doctor quirkiness and personality to go with all that and it was something different.

Now for the fanboy moments. There were a lot of them that just made me emotional and happy to be a Doctor Who fan. Now I have been a Doctor who fan since 1981 and for most of my life I have watched the show and I love it.  Now I had a feeling the Classic Doctor’s would not be in the show.  Realistically they are a lot older and well that would be too much for one story.  But what they did when they went to save Gallifrey by using old clips of the older Doctor’s was such a classy move and I totally loved it.  All The Doctors uniting at the end to save Gallifrey including the new Doctor Peter Capaldi for a brief cameo.  That sequence of events was really amazing and awesome and the fanboy in me screamed with delight.  It made this older Doctor Who fan happy. 

What really got me though was the inclusion of Tom Baker.  Seeing him as the curator and talking to Matt Smith as the 4^th Doctor really made the Anniversary Special for me.  It was such a special moment seeing the oldest and longest serving Doctor, who at the time of the 20^th declined to be in The Five Doctors, in the show again.  It was a great moment and he sure has not lost any of that charm that has made him the best Doctor ever.  I was grinning with delight and was extremely happy that Tom Baker was in it. To me it felt like a nod to the fans of both series and it was just a special moment that we will be able to watch forever.

Then there was the end when Matt Smith goes out of the TARDIS and stands with his former selves.  That was truly spectacular even if the other Doctors faces were paintings. I just loved that moment and it was a great way to end a wonderful anniversary special.  Steven Moffat delivered an amazing story that will go down as his masterpiece.  “The Day of The Doctor” was a wonderful story for the 50^th and one that was worth the wait of a year for.

Grade A+

Who Reviews The Night of the Doctor by Jeffrey Zyra

Written by Steven Moffat

"4 minutes? That's ages. What if I get bored? I need a television, a couple of books. Anyone for Chess? Bring me knitting!"

Holy Cow!!! OMG!!! Or what other expletive you may use when something surprises the hell out of you.   Well The Night of The Doctor did just that. It surprised the hell out of me to the point that I could not believe what I was seeing and had to rewind the video I was watching to see it again immediately.  What a lovely surprise and what a way to get the 50th Anniversary of Doctor Who started.

The Night of The Doctor had a really big surprise. Paul McGann was The Doctor in it!!!!!  How many of you teared up, cried, fist pumped the air or jumped out of your seat for joy when you saw the 8th Doctor appear on the screen.  I mean there was Paul McGann on the screen as The Doctor again.  It was freaking amazing seeing him there.  It was like watching your favorite sports team winning the championship that’s how I felt and I sure did fist punch the air in excitement.  It was such a mind blowing moment that it just got me really excited for next weekend and the 50th Anniversary special.

Now that I’m over the love fest for Paul McGann returning what about the overall story for The Night of The Doctor?  Well I loved it.  I really did.   The Night of The Doctor gave us so much in the 7 minutes that it made me want more.  I wanted to know more about that era with the 8th Doctor and why he has avoided The Time War.  It seemed so interesting seeing him all ragged and with stubble on his face as if he’s been through some tough times.  I liked the mystery it has opened for the 8th Doctor’s era and hopefully someday we’ll find out.

What The Night of The Doctor did so well was explain what was happening during the Time War.  From Cass we discover that the Time Lords are no better than the Daleks. That both races are destroying the universe in their petty war and have no concern over the other races.  We see this from the fear that Cass has of the Time Lords when she discovers that The Doctor is a Time Lord.  She would rather die than go off and be saved by The Doctor in his TARDIS.  In fact she was happy with the thought of The Doctor dying with her as it made her day that she was taking out a Time Lord.

The Sisterhood of Karn makes a return to Doctor Who in The Night of The Doctor.  They were last seen in the Tom Baker story The Brain of Morbius where we discover that they have an Elixir of Life that has the power to prolong your life or sometime help heal a Time Lord with his regeneration. Well the Sisters have been busy and have made up a whole bunch of Elixir’s that can make a Time Lord become any type of person he dreams of being.  This time they bring him back from the dead for four minutes pleading to him to help in ending the Time War.  They offer him a choice to be whatever he wants to be and he chooses warrior.  This seems to be very unlike The Doctor becoming a warrior that it opens up a lot of speculation as to what the John Hurt War Doctor is like.  I liked this aspect of the Sisterhood blackmailing him into helping them as they knew he would choose life but what was surprising was the warrior bit. I guess it explains all the stuff we do know about The Time War from the series already and it does in a way make sense.

The Night of The Doctor was more than I was expecting from Steven Moffat. In truth I was expecting something silly and stupid from which you cringe while watching.  Well like most of the Doctor Who prequels that have been well mediocre as of late.  Well this one made up for all of that.  It gave us Paul McGann and it also made mention of his Big Finish Adventures companions it was a very telling story of a choice that a man has to make whether it be one he agrees with or not.  It was a story that whets our appetite for the 50th Anniversary and now I truly cannot wait to see it.

Grade A