The Time of the Doctor (2013)

[thenimf]

If he was planning something, no matter what it was, then he wasn't lying about having a plan - but he was lying when he said he didn't really have a plan.

You're obsessing over syntax and not taking in the possibility that 'having a plan' can have different levels of meaning.

And vice-versa. And if he figured out a way to get around the truth field, then why did he need to stay there all those years?

Because everyone would've still blown up that village. Because he was still on his last regeneration up until seconds before his reset.

And why write a truth field that's that unreliable - it makes the entire plot pointless if it's really the sometimes-you-can-lie "truth" field.

Moffat just dropped the ball there, which is fine, he's human.

Again, no one actually lied in the truth field. I don't understand why you won't acknowledge anything beyond literal interpretations of the script.... especially considering that this is an over-acted Fantasy/Scifi kids show

[Ian-S]

Could I ask what may seem a silly question, if the Timelords had enough confirmation to give him a new regeneration cycle, why did they then close the 'doorway' and not come through, I thought the whole idea of sending the Doctor Who? message through the crack was to confirm it was the correct reality so they could come back...?

Not a lame arse plot device to explain away the regeration limit... the River Song giving him her regenerations theory floating about was a far more plausible idea.

[thenimf]

Could I ask what may seem a silly question, if the Timelords had enough confirmation to give him a new regeneration cycle, why did they then close the 'doorway' and not come through, I thought the whole idea of sending the Doctor Who? message through the crack was to confirm it was the correct reality so they could come back...?

Not a lame arse plot device to explain away the regeration limit... the River Song giving him her regenerations theory floating about was a far more plausible idea.

It's the same reason Tasha Lem randomly zapped Clara with green sparks that looked like the time-tunnel corpse in "The Name of the Doctor".

Trenzalore is not over We haven't seen our last 'crack in the wall' story.

[Ian-S]

Need to go back and rewatch time if the doctor then me thinks lol

[Quizziard]

Could I ask what may seem a silly question, if the Timelords had enough confirmation to give him a new regeneration cycle, why did they then close the 'doorway' and not come through, I thought the whole idea of sending the Doctor Who? message through the crack was to confirm it was the correct reality so they could come back...?

Not a lame arse plot device to explain away the regeration limit... the River Song giving him her regenerations theory floating about was a far more plausible idea.

Maybe they've spent long enough in their pocket universe to determine they need to stop the Time War, and that with an army of Daleks on the metaphorical doorstep of their return route, this won't happen.

[Coco Pops]

I did like how the Daleks got around the fact Clara had wiped all the information about the Doctor from them, from the start of the last series by raiding the mind of Tasha Lem

[cosmichobo]

What I thought, for what it's worth...

Very unsatisfying ending to ultimately my least favourite Doctor... and the horrid realisation that no matter what potential Capaldi may offer to the show, with Moffat continuing at the reigns, it may continue to be a bumpy ride...

The episode started with potential. Yes, we had needless nudity jokes, Christmas dinner (ok, I get it - it's a Christmas special... but it's also the end of a Doctor's era...), and then a nice little OMG moment - the planet is what?! Gallifrey?!

And it all went fairly pear shaped after that. We had lots of one line explanations for Moffat's reckless story telling... Several ultimately pointless cameos of favourite bad guys... a quite decent new bad-ass-tress... though ultimately as noted probably, she tended to feel like another River Song somehow... And after that, it just falls into the realm of "Well, this could have been a huge epic story but instead we'll give you the CliffsNotes".

One may have spent half of his regen story in bed... but at least he had a great story going on around him for his departure. Time of the Doctor isn't a story I see myself re-watching a billion times like Caves, nor Logopolis, nor - any of the other regen stories.

PS Amy's little cameo... At first I just felt that it belittled Clara as the new companion... but ultimately I think I liked it... 10's farewell tour was too much... but it was well handled...

PPS The Master was offered a new regen cycle in The 5 Docs - he did not receive it.

[Morgania]

Uh, what now? Which number is he? How did the Time Lords change that? Will there be more regenerations now? It was all so wibbly- wobbly timey-wimey.

[Quizziard]

They've reset the count, if I understood it. So twelve more. But, does that make him 14 or nu-one?

[Admiral Mappalazarou]

It was makes him the titular Twelve Doctor, the Thirteenth incarnation and the Fourteenth overall regeneration (counting John Hurt at the Ninth incarnation, and also because Ten used two regenerations for vanity's sake).

[iiradned]

Deleted scene

http://www.bbcamerica.com/doctor-who...or-hug-it-out/

[Coco Pops]

What happened to all the regenerations River gave him to save his life?

Tasha Lem could fly the TARDIS. Only the Doctor and River could fly the TARDIS...... hmmmmmmmm.

Is she River Song?

[Quizziard]

He's allowed to have more than one friend?

Having watched it a second time, I don't think it's quite as bad. Perhaps having lower expectations helps? And the "Raggedy Man, goodbye" bit actually had some emotion the second time round. Definitely worth 1/10 more for the second viewing, maybe even 2. And, weirdly, I can't work out why.

[The Flyattractor]

Uh, what now? Which number is he? How did the Time Lords change that? Will there be more regenerations now? It was all so wibbly- wobbly timey-wimey.

I would say its less a case of Timey-wimey then it is Moffaty-woffaty.

[Sealurk]

Now that I've had a few days to deal with the turkey poisoning and diabetic coma that Christmas brings with it (and enjoy my whole two days off work), I can actually post properly about Time of the Doctor.

I've watched it several times now. Bits work, much of it doesn't. It was fun, it was funny, it didn't always make a hell of a lot of sense and there were some things that were wrapped up too easily and too quickly, but all in all it was enjoyable though curiously hollow-feeling and rushed.

I hope the Doctor's new regenerative cycle has consequences beyond our favourite Time Lord getting a whole new set of lives. He's exhausted his natural regenerations - might there be problems with now using gifted regenerations, especially considering that the Doctor himself says they're dealing with some serious science?

Tasha Lem being able to pilot the TARDIS annoyed me, to be honest. I was expecting a River cameo for that (actually I was expecting Tasha to turn out to be River in some fashion, especially given how she was written and acted).

Learning more about the Silents, the Church (did like the lines "Keeping you safe in this life and the next" and the "The papal mainframe apologises for your death. The relevant afterlife has been notified") and how everything fits together was a bonus, though I think these are things that would have benefited from a regular episode dedicated to them.

The revelation that the Silents were genetically engineered as confessor priests is both brilliant and dull. It doesn't make all that much sense to me - and has the Doctor quietly perfected countermeasures to their memory-proofing?

However, the big thing is of course the regeneration, and I have mixed feelings. I suspected the Doctor would in some fashion use the regeneration to achieve something (in this case taking down Daleks), so I'm happy about that. Eleven's reset and the idea the new cycle takes longer to kick in and settle down were nice touches, as it wouldn't have felt right saying goodbye to the Eleventh Doctor while he looks radically different to how we've known him, though the actual transition was, for me, far too fast. I await the fan-edits in which Smith morphs into Capaldi over a few seconds, glowing all the time. Hell, Hurt got a half-decent regeneration in which he nearly turns into Ecclestone, and he had one episode!

Eleven's/Smith's pre-regeneration goodbye was, for me, lump-in-the-throat, 'something in my eye' territory, largely because Eleven is without a doubt my Doctor. I know others didn't like it but for me the whole speech was effective and poignant while generally staying on the right side of sentimental, however the final line "I will always remember when the Doctor was me" pretty much did for me.

Hard to say from only a minute or so of screen time but Capaldi might be a pretty damn good Doctor. Hope he gets some slightly better material than Smith was at times lumbered with - some slightly less kid-friendly fare would be very welcome now.

Not brilliant, not awful, but definitely a bit sad saying goodbye to my favourite incarnation yet. Genuinely feels like the end of an era for me, though I now have high hopes for Capaldi.