Doctor Who Series 6: A Look Back
With “The Wedding of River Song,” series 6 of Doctor Who comes to a close, and the major mystery of River Song is addressed. I’ll start by saying that I enjoyed the season a lot, but at the same time I felt a bit of a let down. Part of this was that, while overall good, it wasn’t as good as Series 5 (which was almost as good as Series 4, the best series to date of new Doctor Who). And part of it was that, while the season had several very good episodes -- “The Girl Who Waited,” “The Doctor’s Wife,” “A Good Man Goes to War,” “The God Complex” -- the overall arc of the season wasn’t as compelling and the conclusion certainly not as satisfying or clever as that of last year. Moreover, at least one key question that was raised by the Doctor himself at the end of Series 5 -- what caused the Tardis to explode -- was ignored.
Part of the issue with the arc is that it feels unfinished or rushed. Some parts of it really don’t feel like they fit together the way the pieces of a Moffat story like “Blink” did or the way that Moffat pulled everything together last year in “The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang.” which finished things in a way that was clever and tied together lots of what had happened during the season. There is some of that in “The Wedding of River Song,” but the whole episode felt like it needed more time to effectively cap off the season. Perhaps if it were a two-part episode, or even a somewhat longer episode (like “Journey’s End” in Series 4), perhaps we could have had an answer to why the Tardis exploded or even why the Doctor was dressed in a tuxedo and what he said to River to make her change her mind at the end of “Let’s Kill Hitler.”
I’m coming to the conclusion that Moffat is a great writer but not yet up to Russell Davies’ level as an editor. Davies agonized over what to cut from each episode -- both from his own scripts and from those by other other writers -- and almost always wound up with episodes that felt right -- not rushed and not padded. Several episodes in the Moffat years -- this year especially, though there was some of it last year -- felt like more was needed, and the way to accomplish that would have been to edit the episode just a bit differently.
Part of my reaction may also be that I wasn’t sure what to make of the Silence as adversaries. They made for a creepy season opener, but the problem with them is the whole concept gets wobbly when you look at it too closely. They’ve been directing us throughout history? Really? Not only does that undermine any accomplishments of the human race, but it also has implications for all the Doctor’s previous activity on earth. Were they controlling UNIT throughout the third Doctor’s time? And what happens when you kill them? If humanity if fighting back, killing them, and then forgetting them, wouldn’t we be tripping over Silence bodies everywhere? This is a case where less would have been more -- the Silence as a threat in one area, at one point of history, rather than worldwide, throughout history.
Overall, though, I enjoyed the season. Matt Smith is a superb Doctor, different from but every bit as good as David Tennant. Amy is a good companion, and the big pleasant surprise of the season was how much Rory grew and what a great job Arthur Darvill is doing with the role. And I loved seeing more of River and hope that she returns for more episodes in Series 7. Damn, it’s going to be a long wait for Series 7.
Part of the issue with the arc is that it feels unfinished or rushed. Some parts of it really don’t feel like they fit together the way the pieces of a Moffat story like “Blink” did or the way that Moffat pulled everything together last year in “The Pandorica Opens/The Big Bang.” which finished things in a way that was clever and tied together lots of what had happened during the season. There is some of that in “The Wedding of River Song,” but the whole episode felt like it needed more time to effectively cap off the season. Perhaps if it were a two-part episode, or even a somewhat longer episode (like “Journey’s End” in Series 4), perhaps we could have had an answer to why the Tardis exploded or even why the Doctor was dressed in a tuxedo and what he said to River to make her change her mind at the end of “Let’s Kill Hitler.”
I’m coming to the conclusion that Moffat is a great writer but not yet up to Russell Davies’ level as an editor. Davies agonized over what to cut from each episode -- both from his own scripts and from those by other other writers -- and almost always wound up with episodes that felt right -- not rushed and not padded. Several episodes in the Moffat years -- this year especially, though there was some of it last year -- felt like more was needed, and the way to accomplish that would have been to edit the episode just a bit differently.
Part of my reaction may also be that I wasn’t sure what to make of the Silence as adversaries. They made for a creepy season opener, but the problem with them is the whole concept gets wobbly when you look at it too closely. They’ve been directing us throughout history? Really? Not only does that undermine any accomplishments of the human race, but it also has implications for all the Doctor’s previous activity on earth. Were they controlling UNIT throughout the third Doctor’s time? And what happens when you kill them? If humanity if fighting back, killing them, and then forgetting them, wouldn’t we be tripping over Silence bodies everywhere? This is a case where less would have been more -- the Silence as a threat in one area, at one point of history, rather than worldwide, throughout history.
Overall, though, I enjoyed the season. Matt Smith is a superb Doctor, different from but every bit as good as David Tennant. Amy is a good companion, and the big pleasant surprise of the season was how much Rory grew and what a great job Arthur Darvill is doing with the role. And I loved seeing more of River and hope that she returns for more episodes in Series 7. Damn, it’s going to be a long wait for Series 7.
posted by Jim Mann at 4:06 PM
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