Doctor Who: The Time of the Doctor

We've had the Name, Night and Day of the Doctor. Now we see The Time of the Doctor.The Oswalds are settling down to a nice family Christmas dinner, when the quiet is shattered. It's the Doctor, come to crash the dinner, or is that to rescue Clara from the dinner? Before they have time to sing their favorite carols, "Dalek the Halls with Boughs of Holly" and "Silence Night" (*) the Doctor and Clara are gone. Serious business, very serious business is afoot.(* Not original to me - sorry, but I had to fit those in!)[The original review stated only what showed in the TV Preview. I revised it below, after receiving my DVD.]An unimportant planet has sent the universe a scrambled message: "A bell, tolling among the stars, ringing out to all the dark corners of creation. And everybody came to see." That includes the Doctor, but not even he can decipher the message.It isn't often the Doctor asks for help, but this time he does. He is going to Tasha Lem, Mother Superious of the Papal Mainframe. We haven't actually met her before, but the Doctor has. Technically an old friend, he can annoy her mightily, and she is not a good one to annoy. And he takes Clara with him.Clara: "Doctor, why are you naked?"Doctor: "Because I'm going to church!"Nothing less than the fate of the universe is at stake, and there is a mass of foes lining up to destroy the Doctor: Daleks, Weeping Angels, Cybermen and The Silence.Or maybe they aren't all foes this time?This special has lots of action, but there's more hope and love than there is war in "Time of the Doctor", as befits a Christmas special. And many comic touches, too.Moffat has said that "Matt Smith is actually the 13th Doctor. Although everyone knows that the Doctor can only regenerate 12 times. The 12 regenerations limit is a central part of Doctor Who mythology - science fiction is all about rules, you can't just casually break them. So if the Doctor can never change again, what's Peter Capaldi doing in the Christmas Special?" How they manage this is brilliant."Everything ends, Clara. And sooner than you think."This Christmas Special aired December 25th, 2013. This is a review of the one-disc DVD/Bluray release. English subtitles are available.Bonus features include:1. "The Time of the Doctor: Behind the Lens" (45 minutes) Narrated by Matt Bolton with commentators James Buller (plays Clara's Dad), Jenna Coleman (plays Clara), Matt Smith (plays 11th Doctor), Sheila Reid (plays Clara's Grandma - and also Etta in "Vengeance on Varos"), Elizabeth Rider (plays Linda, Clara's Mom), Stephen Mofatt (showrunner), Daz Parker (stunts, plays wooden Cyberman), Orla Brady (plays Tasha Lem), Jack Hollington (plays Barnable), Danny Hargreaves (provider of chaos & mayhem) and Marcus Wilson (producer).Matt Smith says, "I'm not really a weepy guy", but rehearsals for this last show were emotional.2. "Farewell to Matt Smith" (60 minutes) This special was broadcast directly before the Christmas Special on 12/25. Alex Kingston (plays River Song) narrates. Commentators include Steven Moffat (showrunner), David Tennant (10th Doctor), Matt Smith (11th Doctor), Chris Hardwick (founder Nerdist Industries), Paul Thompkins (actor/comedian), Noelene Clark (writer), Jenna Coleman (plays Clara), Karen Gillan (plays Amy), Caroline Skinner (executive producer), Arthur Darvill (plays Rory), Alex Kingston, Jamie Orom (plays George), Beth Wills (executive producer), Stephan Pehrson (director of photography), Zachary Levi (actor) and Mark Sheppard (plays Canton Delaware).Moffat begins: "It's almost a genre mistake to call it science fiction. It doesn't look like those shows. Dr. Who's about an amazing funny heroic character. And he's accessible to people who wouldn't normally watch this kind of nonsense at all."He also comments on River Song: "When she comes through the door, you know trouble is going to follow her. Like all great women."3. "Tales from the TARDIS" (60 minutes when it aired, with commercials) A look back 50 years of Doctor Who. Commentators include Matt Smith, David Tennant, Sylvester McCoy (7th), Colin Baker (6th), Peter Davison (5th) and Tom Baker (4th), Anneke Wills (plays Polly), Carole Ann Ford (plays Susan), William Russell (plays Ian), Julie Gardner (executive producer), Freema Agyeman (plays Martha), Nicola Bryant (plays Peri), John Leeson (voice of K-9), Louise Jamison (plays Leela), Nicholas Briggs (voice of the Daleks), Karen Gillan (plays Amy) and Jenna Coleman.Tom Baker tells the humorous story of why he was overjoyed to get the role, "I was terribly out of work!", and the annoyance because after he was given the part, he couldn't tell anybody for two weeks.David Tennant on working with Nick Briggs on set: "Usually voices for things like that are added afterwards. But because the technology exists, and because everyone likes it, Nick does it live on set. Which means you play a scene with a Dalek like you can with any other member of the cast." They show clips of rehearsals and readings where Nick has his voice changer and reads the lines, changing his voice slightly to make the voices of different Daleks. Awesome to talk to a Dalek!Excerpt "Thoughts on a Clock" by Eric Ritchie JuniorAnd now it's time for one last bowLike all your other selvesEleven's hours is over nowThe clock is striking twelve'sHappy Reader

This highly anticipated Christmas episode of Doctor Who is quite enjoyably full of adventuresome stimulation for the viewer. The crisis of the day, which involves the Doctor versus the union of the doctors' adversaries trying to annihilate the Doctor's home planet isolated in protection apart from the universe by attacking Christmas, a town with a link to this hidden home world of the Doctor's.This episode is packed full of key events in the long-running Doctor Who series, but to enumerate them would ruin the profundity of their surprise. Anyone who has ever watched Doctor Who is going to be excited and pleased, albeit, maybe not it the way they were expecting.The Christmas theme is manifest in Clara's Christmas dinner with her family, the town's name and its perpetually short days. Nothing else is really Christmasy about the show, and the show pretty much mockingly denigrates the institution of the church and religion in general with its nudity-mandatory church led by the mother superius whose unconventional attitude is one where you just have to be resigned to her bizarreness.The Doctor abundantly flaunts his arrogant self-deification to an extent never before seen. He holds the would-be attackers at bay in the usual unrealistic way the show's writers have tended to do, and, then when the time comes to resolve the matter, he stays true to his policy of avoiding the wielding of weapons, and just ... [good grief -- let's just say it is hyper-hypocritical and patently absurd].Clara, the girl who has boarded the Doctor's time-machine vessel in the midst of all the warmongering in order to sufficiently cook her turkey for Christmas dinner and still have it ready on time, is pleasant. Her apparent deep yet contained love for the Doctor is shown throughout the show, and it is subtly her persistent concern for him that gets him through quite a few situations. I really like the scene near the end where she is pleading on behalf of the Doctor.I suppose I have to give them a bit of poetic licence since we knew that the Doctor was at the end of his cycle of regenerations and the show needs some way to continue for another 50 years. In this light, putting up with all of the absurdities and the suspension of disbelief is a strain but understandable (put please, I can't take much more of this, put in a bit of science fiction where there is at least some sort of scientific principle in play rather than the realisation of the hubris of the omnipotent Doctor).Matt Smith as a witty, perfectly timed, limber, smooth actor playing this show made this show enjoyable.

Arrived with the case broken such that the DVD wouldn't stay in place. I had to find a replacement to ensure my DVD wouldn't get scratched up by banging around in the broken case.With respect to the special itself, LOVED it! What a beautiful send-off for Matt Smith. His final monologue always tears me up.

The Matt smith doctor is one of the best. Great story.

But whatever happened to quality DVD / BLU-RAY cases? It's all thin plastic that won't stand the test of time.

Another one for my collection of Doctor Who stuff. I feel bad that season sets do not include specials anymore. However, this one worth every dollar.

A good ending story for the 11thdoctor. I was not sure if I would like it but watching it on my plasma tv in surround sound made for very good entertainment. I am very much looking forward to the new season.