Hello there! I began watching 2005’s rebooted Doctor Who from the very first airing of the very first episode, at the impressionable age of nine years old. I’ve since rewatched various seasons at various times in my life, but with the arrival completion of season 11 and Jodie Whittaker I’ve decided to (perhaps belatedly) rewatch seasons 1-10, providing short reactions to each episode. I’ll make one post per season and, just a warning, full spoilers are inbound.
Season 7 is a peculiar one. It’s more like two shorter seasons which have been glued together and are definitely one cohesive season, honest. And if we’re counting the 50th Anniversary Special and the following Christmas special, which we are, then this is also Matt Smith’s final season. (I am not ready.) It’s also Amy and Rory’s final season. (I am also not ready.) So basically, this season contains almost as much heartbreak as season 4. Why is it always the seasons with three Christmases that do this to us? Strap in!
Episode Christmas: The Doctor, the Widow and the Wardrobe
I love how Madge takes this all in her stride
I’ve seen this episode a fair few times now. It’s a solid episode, with enjoyable Christmas themes and obvious parallels to the similarly named novel by C.S. Lewis. Plus, the ending is a tear-jerker. Or maybe I’m just getting soppy in my (spiritually) old age.
Fun fact, I watched this episode as Christmas Eve ticked over to Christmas day! I didn’t plan it this way, it just worked out like that.
Episode 1: Asylum of the Daleks
SHAVE. THE DALEKS. SHAVE. THE DALEKS.
For the first half of series 7, the BBC opted to craft five separate stories with a hefty budget and very separate themes, the idea being that each episode would be of almost movie quality. In practice this worked for the first three episodes, in my opinion, but it started to fall apart towards the end in terms of writing and structure. I’d be lying if I said I didn’t have fond memories of every one, though, despite their flaws.
In this episode, Amy goes through an angsty phase, the Doctor gets hired by his worst enemies to save them, and the Daleks apparently gain the ability to zombify people and turn them into undercover Daleks, which is… new… but I must say, this is their first proper appearance in a while, and it is nice to have a story dedicated to the Daleks while they’re at their fullest power. Plus, it was interesting to hear the Doctor admit that he’d tried to give up fighting the Daleks because they bring out the worst in him (which is probably why they managed to grow to such a force as they appear here).
The appearance of Clara Oswin was very much unexpected on the first viewing, as was her fate. Moffat had once again concocted a devious mystery by twisting the rules of writing in fairly unique ways, and while we’re going to get into whether this was successful or not later, I will say that it does work to avoid repeating the criticism I had last season regarding the sudden appearance of apparently lifelong friend Mels.
Episode 2: Dinosaurs on a Spaceship
M O T I O N B L U R #LadsOnASpaceship
This episode started at a thousand miles an hour and it never really stopped. It seemed that somebody (in this case, future showrunner Chibnall) was tasked with creating the most ridiculous premise possible, and what resulted was an episode that was comedic and action-packed, if a little shallow. Interestingly, the Doctor straight up kills a guy in this episode, which is a little contradictory to his character.
Episode 3: A Town Called Mercy
Pictured: Doctor Who fans meet Showrunner Moffat
This episode focused on the nature of war crimes and redemption, and made good use of the Doctor’s own past to create an emotionally charged tale of morals and vengeance. The pacing was great, the setting paid homage to Westerns, and the enmity between the doctor and the cyborg was genuinely compelling. The only gripe I have with this episode is that it could easily have been a solo Doctor episode; Amy and Rory didn’t really do anything, besides Amy talking the Doctor down from crossing a line.
Episode 4: The Power of Three
Here is the most eventful scene in the episode
Well, they can’t all be winners.
Alright, to be fair, the first two thirds of this episode were fine. It explored life from Amy and Rory’s point of view and the toll that on-and-off travelling with the Doctor took on their lives. Also, the premise of cubes appearing everywhere and the way humanity interacted with them was fairly interesting. The climax, however, was rushed and nonsensical, trying to fit explaining a transdimensional being which is basically the rapture, reversing cardiac arrest across a third of the population, and fixing the plot thread of Amy and Rory’s choice of one life or the other into a stupidly short amount of time. The patients on the spaceship got blown up (this was not acknowledged at all), and the people who suffer heart failure must have been dead for about half an hour given travel to the hospital and the ensuing events.
By the way, regarding timelines as mentioned in my season 6 post: Amy confirmed that it had been ten years since the Doctor had entered the lives, so if we’re assuming that the Ponds travelled with him for no more than a few months at most, that places this episode around 2019-2020. So does the present day series just take place ahead of real time from this moment onwards? I doubt it. Does he return to 2012 when he meets Clara, and subsequently have adventures with her while Amy and Rory are living nearby? Wouldn’t make sense for future present-day storylines. Or are we meant to believe that Amy and Rory spent the better part of the decade travelling with him? Because we sure missed a lot of stuff, then!
It’s probably not important. But it irks me!
Episode 5: The Angels Take Manhatten
This entire scene is phenomenal… except for the nonsensical Liberty Angel, anyway
An emotional farewell to Amy and Rory. For this, it’s a fantastic episode. Regarding the Angels, though, it breaks all of its own rules. There’s a few times when the Angels are clearly being looked at but manage to act anyway, and don’t even get me started on the Statue of Liberty functioning as an Angel. What, was nobody looking at it as it stomped across New York? Did nobody write about it or mention it afterwards? Moffat lets the rule of cool exceed suspension of disbelief just a little too much here. When we first met the Angels, they were eerie and legitimately thrilling, but here they’re just a plot device.
It’s a sad episode, though. I really enjoyed Amy and Rory as companions, and it’s rare that we get to see companions progress as characters as much as these two did. When we first met them, Amy was wild and a tad selfish, and Rory was bumbling and overly nervous, but they grew into sensible and compelling characters who were driven by their love for each other.
The Doctor’s reaction to it all is heartbreaking. And no point does he stop and rationalise Amy’s decision or try to accept what’s happening, he just screams and pleads through it all. I’m honestly trying to think of a time when we’ve seen him in this much open distress, and nothing is coming to mind.
Episode Christmas Again: The Snowmen
OI, HE’S MARRIED
Alright, then. The series… continues. New clothes, new TARDIS, new companion, new intro, new theme tune, but definitely still season 7, honest. Although to be fair, that new companion didn’t last very long. I think Clara’s trying to steal Rory’s record for most deaths without actually leaving the show.
This is the episode that deals with the Doctor’s grief after Rory and Amy’s departure. He goes a bit Victorian and sulks on a cloud for a bit, but ultimately the world needs saving again and he finds another impossible girl (remember when the Doctor’s companions were ordinary people?) It was a pretty good episode, with an unexpected ending, for Moffat seemed keen to become the King of Bamboozles.
Episode 6: The Bells of St John
Not the most, erm, natural start to a Doctor-Companion relationship
This episode felt like it was written by somebody who doesn’t understand the basics of technology. Suspension of disbelief is all well and good, but when it comes to uploading people to the internet and hacking their ‘stats’ like intelligence and obedience, things become somewhat strenuous. If this was an episode set in the far future, maybe I could suspend my doubts, but… no, and especially not when knowledge of the website Twitter is considered to be of the same tier of knowledge as hacking skills. (This was written in 2013.)
As an intro to Clara, it was fine, although the Doctor-Clara relationship does make him come across as slightly stalkerish, which I’m not too much of a fan of. Obviously this is due to the nature of his fresh grief regarding Amy and Rory and also Victorian Clara, with guilt and desperation associated, so it’s not exactly bad character writing, it’s just a little hard to watch at times.
Episode 7: The Rings of Akhaten
Well if this ain’t one of the most epic moments of the show
This is more like it. This is about as outer space as Doctor Who has ever gotten, and it’s one of the better second episodes for a new companion. Obviously Clara rides in to save the day (that’s what second episodes are for for new companions), but beforehand the Doctor has one of his most epic and emotional moments in the entire show, throwing all the extremes of his life at a memory-eating god.
Episode 8: Cold War
This entire episode must have been miserable to film
Blech. Not a fan of this episode. It’s all steam and endless water and pulsing red lights and guns and standoffs. Just… blech.
Episode 9: Hide
I mostly appreciated this episode for being warm and dry, compared to Cold War
I didn’t like this episode originally, but watching it back I’ve decided that it is decent… and would actually be good, if they took the monster out of it. There’s literally no need for it to be there, there’s plenty of plot without it, and attempting the resolve the plot points surrounding it turned a decent ending into a rush-job with re-used footage and bizarre pacing.
Episode 10: Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS
That is a looong way down
I like this episode for its exploration of the TARDIS interior, the likes of which we’ve never seen before on the show and has been the focus of much speculation over the years. I must admit, however, that the side characters are dull and the time paradox doesn’t really make any sense at the end. Plus, the Doctor is continued to be portrayed as obsessive over Clara’s impossibility to the point that it makes me somewhat uncomfortable, though the worst of this may have been resolved due to this episode.
Episode 11: The Crimson Horror
Why Doctor, are you blushing?
I remember hating this episode, but once you accept the absurdities for the comedic value, it’s actually quite alright. The notion of starting the episode from the Vastra and Jenny’s perspective was a breath of fresh air, and while the overall plot felt a little half-baked, it took a back seat anyway in this character focused episode. It’s still not one I’d go back and rewatch in a hurry, but it is what it is.
I dislike the way the kids learning about Clara’s time travel was done at the end, though. That has the potential to be a really interesting plot point that last throughout multiple episodes, but as it stands the method of discovery isn’t explained and the dialogue feels artificial.
Episode 12: Nightmare in Silver
The best self vs self episode in the show’s history?
I really love this episode. The setting is fantastic, the Cybermen are more threatening than they’ve been since season two, and while they skipped over the whole part about the kids entering the TARDIS and/or the Doctor’s feelings about it, they did add a new dynamic to the show for an episode.
Matt Smith did an excellent job of portraying the Cyber Control guy here. He’s so clearly two different characters that you hardly need the camera angle changes to show which one is speaking.
Episode 13: The Name of the Doctor
I don’t know how many more times I can praise Matt Smith’s acting without sounding like a broken record, but this scene is one of the best in the show.
Okay, look. This episode has enough plot holes to fill a reservoir. How did River’s data ghost get to Trenzalore? Why could the Doctor see it? How did the Great Intelligence get there, for that matter? How did Clara survive stepping into the Doctor’s time stream? How did the Doctor survive stepping into his own time stream? How did any of that bullshit even work? Time travel has always worked in dreams? What?!
But I still enjoyed the episode. It may not have made sense all the time, but it did function well as an emotional venture for the Doctor, propelled by Matt Smith’s consistently remarkable acting. That scene where Clara told him about Trenzalore was gloriously done.
Also, regarding River, I totally forgot that he considered her dead and gone by this point. That makes all of this boyfriend stuff totally less weird.
Alright. Marginally.
Mini Episode: The Night of the Doctor
It’s McGann the Man!
I’m so so happy they did this. I’ve still never seen the movie with Paul McGann in, but this mini episode alone makes me wish they would go back and give him some prequel seasons or something. I know he’s done a lot of audio dramas so I’m going to seek them out at some point.
50th Anniversary Episode: The Day of the Doctor
Ooft. Look at that delicious symmetry.
A damn-near perfect celebration of 50 years of the show, finally addressing the biggest plot point of the series with a cast of returning favourites David Tennant and Billie Piper, alongside acting legend John Hurt as the revelationary War Doctor. Hurt’s Doctor is as big of a retcon as they come, but it was handled with finesse and I’m pleased to report that most of this special episode actually makes plausible sense, despite teeming with fanservice. The dialogue between the different Doctors was a treat, the soundtrack was amazing, and I’m just so glad that this entire story exists.
Episode Extra Emotional Christmas: The Time of the Doctor
LOVE FROM GALLIFREY, BOYS
It’s Matt Smith’s final episode, and it ties up almost all of the loose ends from the previous three seasons, including the start of the cult of Silence, the cause of the exploding TARDIS (albeit offhandedly), and the danger behind revealing the Doctor’s name (despite not revealing the name itself).
Matt Smith’s departure breaks my heart, every time. But his final speech – about change being good, about being different people all throughout your life – is honestly something I hold with me to this day. I used to hate change, but this show altered my stance on it and ultimately improved the way I see life, and that’s a big part of why Doctor Who means so much to me.
Season 7 Summary
I loved the idea behind the big budget episodes of the first half of season 7, and I loved the specials at the end, and while there were a few stinkers in there this does remain one of my favourite seasons of the show. In my opinion Matt Smith just gets exponentially better throughout his run, and while Amy and Rory’s departure was tragic, it was done in a way that was as kind as possible while remaining a severe emotional tipping point for Matt Smith’s Doctor. The long-running thread of the Impossible Girl was a sufficiently interesting mystery, despite having a somewhat bumpy resolution.
While I do love the specials at the end of this season, I do considered the departure of the Ponds as the beginning of a decline for the show that’s never really recovered, in my eyes. It’s nothing against Jenna Coleman or Peter Capaldi or any of the actors that come after, but it’s the quality of the scripts and the consistency of the contextual world which seem to take an irreversible dive in quality. There’s still some shining episodes, but between them are more episodes like Cold War and the Crimson Horror which I just don’t care much about.
That being said, I’ve never rewatched Capaldi’s run, so a lot of it will be lost to my memory. And when you watch something for the first time, there’s the factor of expectation and of wanting the show to go in a particular direction that you’ve theorised about or hoped for. I’ve often found that due to this, rewatching previously disappointing seasons yields more entertainment than before. So with that in mind… onwards, to Capaldi!
Perpetually Perturbed 