[GrannyM @replies]

I really enjoy reading all the comments about THoRS. I truly believe it may be one of Moffat’s finest scripts, at least so far! This and Heaven Sent will always be in my all time top 5 DW episodes. I also was not a fan of Ashildr in Hell Bent but then, I hated almost he entire episode. I’ll never believe that his memory of Clara can be completely wiped because that would mean we would never see anyone come back from the previous 3 or 4 years. When I think about the moments after the “I hate you” “No you don’t”, as they start their long night on Darillium (spelling?) I picture the first words from River as “How’s Clara?” or “Where’s Clara gone off to?” and if Missy is indeed coming back how could she never mention Clara? It just never made sense to me…but I digress 😉

I have to wonder how any future Christmas Specials could even come close to THoRS! I also wonder how Nardole can possibly be in Season 10??

I am looking forward to December after this long drought though!

[GrannyM @replies]

Missy, I haven’t watched it in awhile but I recall that she sent Nardole to find the “capsule” that the surgeon they sent for was supposed to arrive in. He seemed to be looking at a note in his hand which may have had some coordinates to the general location he would find it. I think he just assumed that the TARDIS looked like a capsule since it was near that location and when The Doctor indicated that he was the surgeon, I think he said “close enough” or something, Nardole just took him to River. Also they showed the real Surgeon walking through town right afterwards very close to the area where The Doctor and Nardole had been.

I do agree that River should have caught on quicker but I just have to think that it never crossed her mind that The Doctor would ever show up with a new regeneration. In that case, she had no reason to interpret his actions and hints of his identity as anything but this weird, unknown doctor’s eccentricities. It made her eventual realization that much more emotional.

 

[GrannyM @replies]

Greetings Whovians everywhere! I’ve been a lurker for a few years but Season 9, especially The Husbands of River Song, has driven me out of the closet 😉 I just added the forum to my start page rss feeds so maybe I’ll be more inclined to comment from now on. I’ll try.

THoRS is the first (Amazon Instant Video) stand alone episode of any show that I have ever purchased! Even though I have streaming apps with access to everything ever made, there are some things I just have to own & this episode is one of those! There are so many perfect moments in it I hardly know where to begin.

In addition to being an outstanding Christmas Special/episode it is now part of a great trilogy to watch on a chilly New England Sunday afternoon:
The Husbands of River Song/Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead

From the first moment of The Doctor admonishing his TARDIS for trying to cheer him up with “hologramatical antlers” all the way through to the best/sweetest declaration of love ever:

“When you least expect it…but always, when you need it the most…there’s a song!”

When I’m having a bad day just playing the last 20 minutes of THoRS is always a perfect pick-me-up and never fails to bring a smile & a tear. @arbutus describes the scene when River declares her love and finally becomes aware that The Doctor is actually beside her, beautifully! Then when he says “Hello Sweetie” I just melt into a happy puddle of goo 🙂

I firmly believe/wish/hope that #12 & River can/should/will have a few more adventures. I also expect him to give her a new diary.

River: I told you, it’s almost full. I worry.
Doctor: Don’t!

River: If this is our last night together…
Doctor: I didn’t say that!
River: …you always give me that smug little smile and save the day…so how long are the nights on Darillium?
Doctor: (with a smug little smile) 24 years!

I’d say that with 24 years together they can surely pop back and forth to that night any time they want to and have more adventures together. Seriously, how could the powers that be  be dumb enough to waste the chemistry that AK & PC have as these character! I hope they’re paying attention to what people are saying.

I do want to give kudos to SM…something I never thought I’d say. After watching this episode numerous times, I now believe him to be a bona-fide genius. The way he wrapped everything up and made it blend so perfectly with SitL & FotD was some of the best writing I’ve seen in all of Whostory! Actually, S9 as a whole falls under this accolade. Besides the fact that Peter Capaldi may be the most brilliant actor to play The Doctor, S9 even got me to like Clara (after hating her in S8) and I even cried at Face The Raven. There was hardly an off note in all of S9. Great writing, directing and acting all around. It was just named best reviewed series on TV for 2015 by Rotten Tomatoes.

SPOILERS for anyone who didn’t see Face The Raven or Hell Bent:
Maybe I should put this on the Hell Bent page but…
I have one comment on the whole memory wipe thing-I think The Doctor will/does still remember Clara. If not all at once then surely in bits & pieces. For one thing, I expect that it would come up in conversations with other people occasionally. It is absurd to think that in all of time & space he will never run into anyone who hasn’t seen them together! And also, HE’S A TIMELORD! If Amy can remember Rory then I will never believe that a Timelord’s memory could be so completely wiped of just one person and especially, a very important person to him! Plus I think that sadness at losing her is imprinted on his hearts, and he will eventually figure out why he’s feeling sad. Personally, I think they should have let her stay dead and let him deal with it in whatever way he could.

So that’s my .02 cents worth on that subject.

I know I’m forgetting something but I should probably stop now. Sorry this is so long. Briefly, I’m a senior citizen and full time Whovian! I love to re-watch all my favorite episodes. Even though the show wasn’t available in the US till I was an adult, I have watched every episode. When the 50th anniversary was approaching I set myself the task of re-watching Doctor Who from S1Ep1 all the way through, in order! It took me about a year and a half but I finished in time for the Day of the Doctor! I even liked the reconstructed episodes that some amazing people created from the missing ones. Jon Pertwee & David Tennant were 1 and 2 on my top 5 list but Peter Capaldi has zoomed past both of them straight to #1! Even in the worst episodes of S8, he was always amazing. Hitting all the right notes from funny to deadly serious! Thanks for bearing with me on my first post 🙂

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