Doctor Who

[Young Bard]

One tiny flaw. Wouldn't the final wall have 'reset' along with everything else? Or did it not because it was somehow separate to the rest of the death trap?

 

But apart from that, I enjoyed the story, I enjoyed the episode.

 

Though I really hope he didn't have an appointment he was in a rush for.

[Haelbarde]

One tiny flaw. Wouldn't the final wall have 'reset' along with everything else? Or did it not because it was somehow separate to the rest of the death trap?

 

But apart from that, I enjoyed the story, I enjoyed the episode.

 

Though I really hope he didn't have an appointment he was in a rush for.

I had noted that too... Though while you're at it - the skulls should surely have reset, rather than accumulate. Though you could argue that that's separate from the castle itself. 

 

But I guess, since when has Dr Who been overly serious about internal logic..

[Aonar]

I had noted that too... Though while you're at it - the skulls should surely have reset, rather than accumulate. Though you could argue that that's separate from the castle itself. 

 

But I guess, since when has Dr Who been overly serious about internal logic..

 

 

 

It made sense to me that the skulls and wall didn't reset; neither of them were actually a part of the castle. The skulls were part of Twelve's body, and the diamond wall was the dial's "door," where the pocket dimension inside of it interfaced with the rest of reality.

 

The main question I was left with was: what the heck was going on with the confession dial? Obviously, Twelve knew what it was from the first episode of season nine; so did Missy, most likely. (It was Time Lord tech, after all.) So what was the point? Why lie to Clara? (I know he didn't lie exactly; everything said about it was true, just not the whole truth.) Why give the dial to Missy? Did he even give the dial to Missy, or did she bring it from Gallifrey? I'm really hoping most of the confusion here gets cleared up next episode.

 

Edited November 29, 2015 by Ookla the Incorrigible

[Kobold King]

...Wow.

 

 

This episode was something truly special. The Doctor, trapped in a terrifying environment, stalked by a horrifying creature from his childhood nightmares, with no hope of escape...

 

Let me take this one thing at a time.

 

First, the opening monologue. That was great. I was unimpressed by the Veil in the trailers, but hearing its origin from the Doctor's nightmares flipped my opinion around 180 degrees. Suddenly it became an avatar of death, decay, and all those disturbing images we all have stuffed away in our subconscious minds, unpleasant leftovers from our childhood days. Like finding something rotten in the back of your fridge, except in the form of raw, visceral imagery from the days when you thought there was a monster behind every swaying curtain.

 

I became truly scared of the Veil in this episode, and not just of the Veil but of the castle itself. The scene where the Doctor was digging, barricading the door against the creature and nervously watching through the window as it stalked away, made me think of my own nightmares. Of being trapped in a cramped, confusing environment with a nameless terrible thing right behind me.

 

That's what this episode was. More than Listen, more than Midnight, more than Blink, this was the episode about being trapped in a nightmare.

 

The nightmare continued, but the Doctor handled the situation with the brilliance and quick thinking we've come to expect from him. I adored the thought sequences of the Doctor on board the TARDIS, cycling through his options as he imagined himself recounting to a companion the brilliant way in which he survived. It was a nice callback to this season's opening, in which the Doctor explained the concept of survival to young Davros and Missy put her old friend's survival skills in perspective.

 

(Side note: if the Doctor thinks that fast, does Missy do so as well? If the Doctor imagines himself telling the fantastic story of his survival to a companion, does the Master imagine himself monologuing his dastardly deeds to a tied-up Doctor as he comes up with them on the fly?)

 

The highlight of the episode was the climax, the point at which I was genuinely uncertain how the Doctor would do as the chalkboard commanded and win. It just seemed so hopeless. The Doctor failed. The Doctor died. And all he managed to do with his final breath, burning his flesh into nothingness to power a machine, was to set himself up for another painful iteration of the cycle.

 

But it pays off. The Doctor, in a feat of stupendous epicness not seen since Rory became the Last Centurion, punched his way to Gallifrey over the course of two billion storming years. Can we think about that number for a minute? The Doctor spent more time running that hellish gauntlet and punching his way through a wall of solid diamond than multicellular life has existed on Earth. Civilizations could rise, fall, go extinct, and re-evolve in that time. Stars could flare into being and die in that time. And he spends it, without even realizing it until the end of each cycle, punching his way home.

 

Sniff. Sniff.

 

Sorry. The pure badchullery of this deed made me shed a few tears.

 

 

So there we have it. Perhaps Capaldi's best performance yet, in an episode that showcases the Doctor's wit and resourcefulness like never before. The Hype Train pulled into station, delivered its cargo as epicly as we could have imagined, and is even now speeding along the rails of awesomeness to its next destination: GALLIFREY!

 

Stay tuned!

 

[Mestiv]

That last episode was great indeed. 

 

I've figured that it was all Time Lord castle, because when seen from above it looked a bit like their writing. Also, there were a couple of seconds showing Doctor drawing a map with rooms, that reminded me of their symbols even more.

 

The Veil was terrifying. I jumped a little multiple times as I was watching the episode on my phone in a bus Something chasing you without any rest, always moving closer is like an ultimate nightmare. No matter what you do, it's getting closer.

 

Now, can someone explain to me what's up with Doctors last lines about the Hybrid not being half-dalek etc.?

So is the Doctor a Hybrid? If yes, then a Hybrid of Time Lord and what? 

[Aonar]

That last episode was great indeed. 

 

Now, can someone explain to me what's up with Doctors last lines about the Hybrid not being half-dalek etc.?

So is the Doctor a Hybrid? If yes, then a Hybrid of Time Lord and what? 

 

I've seen a lot of theories on that one online. Everything from Moffat canonizing a throwaway line from the tv-movie about the Doctor's parentage, to the line being a red herring where the ambiguous syntax means it's actually Ashildr who's the Hybrid.

 

My personal favourite though is that it's a callback to some of the themes explored back in season eight. ("Am I a good man?" "You are a good Dalek.") The idea that the Hybrid isn't a literal creature, but more of a figurative amalgamation; a Time Lord who's worldview and personality has been so warped, so fundamentally defined by his experiences, his conflicts with evil (Daleks, Cybermen et al) that he's not really a just a Time Lord any more.

Edited December 4, 2015 by Aonar Faileas

[Meandbooks]

I have no words. That was...wow.

 

Well, actually I do.

 

I figured out that it was him dying over and over again before the reveal, but the "punching through diamond" bit caught me completely by suprise and man, it was epic. And the Veil was probably the scariest monster there's been in a while. My sister and I kept jumping every time it appeared.

 

It's not my favorite, though - I still adore the Zygon Invasion. But that just goes to show how good the season's been - the only really shaky episode for me was Sleep No More.

 

Anyway, what are we thinking about the Doctor deciding he's conquering Gallifrey? My optimistic idea is that he's going to do what I've always said he'd have to do once he brought Gallifrey back - get rid of the corrupt government of The End of Time and fix things. The Hybrid prophecy would refer to him overthrowing their old government. I really hope that's what he does, but they're probably going to play the "is he turning evil" card instead.

 

Or more likely, they'll do something completely out of the blue that nobody saw coming.

[+Slowswift]

 

...but they're probably going to play the "is he turning evil" card instead...

 

Well, I hope not. They already sort of did that with Season 8.

Edited December 5, 2015 by Ookla the Ineffable

[ThirdGen]

Steven Moffat has turned me into Harry Dunne.

 

"Just when I thought you couldn't get any dumber, you do something like this...

...and totally redeem yourself!"

[+Slowswift]

OH. MY. SWEET. GALLIFREY.

 

Moffat, what gave you any right to play with my emotions like that?!

...

 

At least we get to see River again.

 

EDIT:

Okay, had some time to collect my thoughts.

1. The diner. The one that River, Amy, and Rory were at in Season 6.
2. THE DOCTOR PLAYING CLARA'S THEME ON GUITAR.
3. Me. Clever twist of words there, ​Moffat.  ​I still don't like you.
4. The other TARDIS.
5. Just... agh. That ending. I am cry.
6. Moffat, I hope you fall into an event horizon. I hope you accidently detonate a warp star. I hope you piss off the Cloister Wraiths.
7. The General. Huh.
8. GALLFIREY IS BACK! Even if it's a desert at the moment. Curse the Time War and its desertification effects.
9. SCREW YOU,  MOFFAT.
10. Honestly I think I need more time to process that all. What the heck.

 

EDIT again: Oh yeah. New sonic screwdriver. Awesome.

 

EDIT, one more time. Hopefully.

 

 

When [Peter Capaldi] does eventually decide to leave the role, he will be incredibly difficult to replace. If Moffat has any sense, he’ll depart the series with him and leave that job to someone else.

 

I CERTAINLY HOPE SO.

Edited December 6, 2015 by Slowswift

[RippleGylf]

I CERTAINLY HOPE SO.

 

I do kinda wish Moffat would leave. Since he's started running the show, I feel like we've had better individual episodes, (with some notable exceptions) but less character development. It was the character development that really got me hooked into Doctor Who. Sure, Nine has some very odd episodes, but they had character, which is why we loved Nine. Ten also had some questionable episodes from time to time *cough* Love and Monsters *cough* but he was my favorite Doctor due to his mix of being dark and light at the same time. Blink showed that Moffat can write a very thrilling episode, and remains one of my favorites. However, the kind of episodes he writes need to be more sporadic. Blink was a very refreshing change of pace, but we just can't have 5 Blinks in a row and call it good. With Moffat, we've lost that wonderful character development that Nine and Ten had. Eleven and Twelve are wonderful too, (disclaimer: I haven't watched Season 9 yet) but they seem to lack some of that development. Ten did have a transition from light to dark, but it felt odd. Twelve in Season 8 didn't have much character at all, aside from insulting, using a Scottish accent, and just being darker, but looking at Season 9, it seems like he's had a total personality switch to match the wants of the fans. I wanted Twelve to be dark and different from Eleven. Sunglasses and guitar-playing don't fit the personality he had before. I may be entirely wrong, and it may have been pulled off well, but I just don't see how it could.

[Quiver]

I wish Moffat would resign as show runner, but I still want him to write episodes. He can do great one offs, as you say, but he hasn't managed to do a good season story since season five.

[Kobold King]

So. Hell Bent. Things happened. I have thoughts, here and there. Open the spoiler box if you want to hear them.

 

Nice episode. I loved the Doctor deposing Rassilon, loved the Matrix and the Cloister Wraiths, and overall enjoyed the whole segment set on Gallifrey. That was neat.

 

My big beef with the episode was how much importance was stacked on Clara. I mean, the Doctor's lost a lot of people. A lot of people. Are we supposed to believe that Clara's death hit him so much harder than any other companion's departure? That Clara's death is the single most important thing that's never happened to him? That he's willing to risk all of time and space for her but not for anyone else?

 

Why wasn't he showing this reckless abandon when Rose was lost in the other dimension? Or when Donna was going to lose her memories? Or when Amy and Rory were sent back in time? Or when Adric died, for that matter? I get that a companion's departure is tragic for him, but Clara's death is shown to hit him so much harder than the departures of companions he had much closer relationships with. And frankly, it's insulting to the memory of every companion who's met a tragic end before Clara and every one who will have a tragic end after her.

 

But enough ranting. Mainly, I just really can't stand Clara as a companion. I think she's set herself up as the Doctor's equal when she's nothing but a smug, arrogant little brat with no wisdom about the universe and no realization that she needs wisdom. Death was a more fitting conclusion to her superiority complex than stealing a TARDIS and being made out like a second Doctor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anyway, here's a theory I saw on TV Tropes that bears repeating here.

 

 

Isn't it pretty obvious that the General is Romana? Let's look at what we know about the guy.

 

He knows the Doctor quite well. In *Day of the Doctor* we hear him say "All twelve of them... my worst nightmare." The way he says it bespeaks personal familiarity.

 

When the Doctor proposes his mad plan to stick Gallifrey in a bubble universe, frozen in time, he shows great trust; he looks horrified, but he nods and says "Do it, Doctor." This puts his previous comment in a different light; it's not adversarial so much as it is a friendly, even teasing remark. Imagine if Amy or River Song had said it. It would seem less afraid and more snarky than anything else.

 

What Time Lord do we know who traveled with the Doctor and tended to be snarky and superior towards him?

 

I was mostly convinced by this theory already when *Hell Bent* aired. The General regenerates into a woman and even remarks about a female body being her usual form. Not only that, but the closed captions refer to him/her only as "General" or "Female General." Even Ohila, who I can't specifically remember being named in an episode, is referred to by name in the episode, and the captions come right out and call the Lord President "Rassilon" even before he's called such by name. Why wouldn't they name the General, who plays such a major role in the episode, unless Moffat is planning a surprising reveal about her identity somewhere down the line?

 

To me, the General shows too much snarky familiarity and trust towards the Doctor to be anyone but a figure from his past. And what figure from his past is he likely to be but Romana?

[Dunkum]

So. Hell Bent. Things happened. I have thoughts, here and there. Open the spoiler box if you want to hear them.

 

Nice episode. I loved the Doctor deposing Rassilon, loved the Matrix and the Cloister Wraiths, and overall enjoyed the whole segment set on Gallifrey. That was neat.

 

My big beef with the episode was how much importance was stacked on Clara. I mean, the Doctor's lost a lot of people. A lot of people. Are we supposed to believe that Clara's death hit him so much harder than any other companion's departure? That Clara's death is the single most important thing that's never happened to him? That he's willing to risk all of time and space for her but not for anyone else?

 

Why wasn't he showing this reckless abandon when Rose was lost in the other dimension? Or when Donna was going to lose her memories? Or when Amy and Rory were sent back in time? Or when Adric died, for that matter? I get that a companion's departure is tragic for him, but Clara's death is shown to hit him so much harder than the departures of companions he had much closer relationships with. And frankly, it's insulting to the memory of every companion who's met a tragic end before Clara and every one who will have a tragic end after her.

 

But enough ranting. Mainly, I just really can't stand Clara as a companion. I think she's set herself up as the Doctor's equal when she's nothing but a smug, arrogant little brat with no wisdom about the universe and no realization that she needs wisdom. Death was a more fitting conclusion to her superiority complex than stealing a TARDIS and being made out like a second Doctor.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Anyway, here's a theory I saw on TV Tropes that bears repeating here.

 

 

Isn't it pretty obvious that the General is Romana? Let's look at what we know about the guy.

 

He knows the Doctor quite well. In *Day of the Doctor* we hear him say "All twelve of them... my worst nightmare." The way he says it bespeaks personal familiarity.

 

When the Doctor proposes his mad plan to stick Gallifrey in a bubble universe, frozen in time, he shows great trust; he looks horrified, but he nods and says "Do it, Doctor." This puts his previous comment in a different light; it's not adversarial so much as it is a friendly, even teasing remark. Imagine if Amy or River Song had said it. It would seem less afraid and more snarky than anything else.

 

What Time Lord do we know who traveled with the Doctor and tended to be snarky and superior towards him?

 

I was mostly convinced by this theory already when *Hell Bent* aired. The General regenerates into a woman and even remarks about a female body being her usual form. Not only that, but the closed captions refer to him/her only as "General" or "Female General." Even Ohila, who I can't specifically remember being named in an episode, is referred to by name in the episode, and the captions come right out and call the Lord President "Rassilon" even before he's called such by name. Why wouldn't they name the General, who plays such a major role in the episode, unless Moffat is planning a surprising reveal about her identity somewhere down the line?

 

To me, the General shows too much snarky familiarity and trust towards the Doctor to be anyone but a figure from his past. And what figure from his past is he likely to be but Romana?

putting in spoiler tags for good measure:

I had similar thoughts regarding his reaction to the doctor taking clara's death overly hard as compared to any of his other companions. there are arguments that could be made, I suppose about why he would react differently (new regeneration, different reaction; last straw sort of thing, i.e. he is worn out from losing so many others, etc) but ultimately I doubt they really hold up that well.

as far as clara herself, I had no problem with her except that she keeps seeming to stick around when she shouldn't. last year's christmas episode was set up as a fitting departure point until literaly the very last scene, and her presence in this episode bothered me as well. basically, I have a problem with resurrecting characters from the dead. it can be done right, either with substantial buildup or a well designed setting, but I don't really think this qualifies.

as to who the general is, I'm inclined to agree that it could very well be someone from his past, for roughly the same reasons you give. I'm not familiar with a lot of the older episodes, but I would note that there is at least one other female timelord who was prominent: his granddaughter. Romana seems more likely, but that, paradoxically, makes me think it will actually be susan, since it would be more surprising.

[Kaymyth]

Spoilers ahoy!

 

Well, Susan isn't a Time Lord.  She is Gallifreyan, yes, but she never undertook the schooling necessary to become one of the Time Lord elite (possibly they left Gallifrey before she was old enough to try?)

 

I'd love it if it were Romana.  Though if that's where they're going, Moffat had better have an explanation as to how she came back from E-Space.

[ThirdGen]

What season 9 was actually about:

 

The show getting to have one more season with Jenna Coleman unexpectedly.  After all, Last Christmas was supposed to end with "Whoops, The Doctor met Clara late in her timeline and now it's fixed that they can't have adventures."

[Young Bard]

I agree with the sentiment about the Doctor going overboard about Clara. To be honest, he's been doing it the whole series.

 

Regarding the General - I hadn't actually made the connection, though it does seem a lot more obvious now that it's been pointed out to me. After consideration, you're probably right.

[Mestiv]

As other's stopped using spoiler tags, I'll go without them too.

 

1. General as Romana - I don't know and I don't much care as I haven't seen the original Who. Would be definitely fun to have a Time Lord companion! But it doesn't have to be Romana.

 

2. Me and Calara having their own TARDIS. I might be fine with that, but I don't like open plots like that. I'm still mad, that we had Jenny (Doctor's daughter) fly off into space to have her own adventures and never see her again. Here we have two characters flying off into space in a TARDIS and I have very strong feeling that we won't hear from them even again :/ Also, where's Captain Jack? He should be recurring character just like Osgood and that UNIT Leader are now. I miss Jack :< which brings me to my next point

 

3. They traveled to the "end of the universe"... My first thought: Cool, they'll meet with Ten, Jack, Martha and doctor Yana. After all "Utopia" was supposedly taking place at the end of the universe too :/ But well, I think Hell Bent was still closer to the end.

 

4. Clara stealing TARDIS with Me... Now, that Gallifrey is back in game I don't really see what would stop Time Lords from just snapping their fingers and bringing Clara and the stolen TARDIS back to them. From what I've read Gallifreyans had ways of imprisoning or summoning Doctor against his will, if that's still true, Clara is totally at their mercy even having a TARDIS.

 

5. New sonic screwdriver - cool

 

6. Rassilon giving up and letting himself be banished from Gallifrey just like that... WHAT?! The super megalomaniac that was about to end the universe and has that magic gauntlet is politely leaving because he's told to? For me that's very out of character for him.

 

7. I agree that Clara should stay dead and that Doctor's reaction to her dying, even despite that she died quite peacefully, was strange. I really don't see why he would behave that way, compared to other times when Doctor lost his companions. He had time to say goodbye to her, she accepted the fact that she's going to die... He of all people should know that death is a natural part of human life etc. 

 

 

Aaaand that's all for now. Will write more if I remember anything... Now please, give me a companion that's not in any way special. No paradox girls or impossible girls. I want someone very much possible, just like Rose, Martha and Dona were.

[+Slowswift]

I just wanna know what in sweet Gallifrey's name happened to Sam Swift.

[ThirdGen]

I just wanna know what in sweet Gallifrey's name happened to Sam Swift.

 

'E used to be tied up on the gallows... now 'e's a loose end!

[Dunkum]

Spoilers ahoy!

 

Well, Susan isn't a Time Lord.  She is Gallifreyan, yes, but she never undertook the schooling necessary to become one of the Time Lord elite (possibly they left Gallifrey before she was old enough to try?)

 

I'd love it if it were Romana.  Though if that's where they're going, Moffat had better have an explanation as to how she came back from E-Space.

huh, didn't know that.

[Kaymyth]

huh, didn't know that.

 

Yeah.  All Time Lords are Gallifreyan, but not all Gallifreyans are Time Lords.  They're sort of a social/educational elite.

[Dunkum]

Yeah.  All Time Lords are Gallifreyan, but not all Gallifreyans are Time Lords.  They're sort of a social/educational elite.

makes sense. guess I sort of assumed his granddaughter would be among them.

[Mestiv]

Yeah.  All Time Lords are Gallifreyan, but not all Gallifreyans are Time Lords.  They're sort of a social/educational elite.

 

But do all Gallifreyans regenerate or is it reserved for Time Lords only?

[Quiver]

I just wanna know what in sweet Gallifrey's name happened to Sam Swift.

 

Didn't the Doctor say that Sam probably wouldn't live as long as Me, since the chip would have been burned out or something? I admit, for a second at the end I was thinking "Wow, never found anyone else you wanted to make immortal?", but then remembered that.

 

Also, I agree with Mestiv. Bring Back Captain Jack!