Doctor Who: The Day of the Doctor: Saturday, BBC1
Paul
Whitelaw
Months of speculation and brouhaha –
whohaha? - climaxed last weekend with the grand unveiling of Doctor
Who's 50th anniversary special. Did it deliver?
Simulcast to a record-breaking 94 countries around the world, and
with a domestic audience of over 10 million viewers, it was always
going to struggle against such overwhelming expectations.
But never mind the hype. What's more
important is that it triumphed as both an entertaining celebration of
Doctor Who's legacy and a significant addition to its ongoing
lore. That's quite an achievement. It wasn't perfect, of course: the
first half suffered from flabby pacing, the shape-shifting Zygon and
Elizabeth I sub-plot - although amusing - felt like padding, and
Billie Piper's cameo was superfluous.
But it came together beautifully once
the three Doctors – Matt Smith, David Tennant and battle-scarred
“War Doctor” John Hurt - joined forces, and current companion
Clara was at last given something important to do rather rather than
act as a mere plot device
Writer Steven Moffat wisely focused
on telling a witty, clever and inventive yarn rather than falling
back on sentimental self-indulgence. Despite the self-mocking gags
and affectionate nods – using the original opening titles was a
lovely touch, as was the climactic tribute to every former Doctor –
the special was primarily concerned with pushing things forward.
Like Moffat's celebrated season five
finale, The Big Bang, it told an epic story on a relatively
intimate scale. Impressively realised scenes of the hitherto
off-screen war between the Time Lords and Daleks mingled with
emotionally charged moments in which the Doctors wrestled with their
decision to commit genocide in order to save the universe. What other
show could effortlessly blend such weighty themes with gags about
Derren Brown and screwdriver envy?
A seminal event in he Doctor's life,
the Time War has underpinned the show since it returned in 2005:
guilt, remorse, self-loathing and loneliness have been key components
of the character for the last eight Earth years.
So it was incredibly bold of Moffat
to reboot the series, without in any way contradicting established
continuity, by allowing the Doctor a life-affirming reprieve: no
longer the destroyer of the Time Lords, he instead became their
saviour by gathering the combined genius of his thirteen
incarnations to freeze his home planet in suspended animation (simply
writing this synopsis reminds me of why I love Doctor Who).
His quest to find Gallifrey will
presumably drive Peter Capaldi's eagerly anticipated tenure in the
TARDIS: I know I wasn't alone in being thrilled by the unexpected
glimpse of his eyes in The Day of the Doctor.
While it's frustrating that stubborn
party pooper Christopher Eccleston declined to take part, the
sparkling chemistry between the three Doctors easily compensated for
his absence. Hurt exuded husky pathos and wry disdain, Tennant
slipped back into the role as if he'd never been away, and Smith
proved once again that he's the most naturally charismatic Doctor
since the great Tom Baker, whose touching cameo as – well, who,
exactly? - fondly embraced the past while prodding our hero towards
his future.
Was the episode impenetrable to those
expecting a straightforward birthday bash? Possibly. But Doctor
Who, confident in its position as one of the world's biggest and
best TV shows, can afford to baffle casual viewers from time to time.
This was a special occasion, a glorious blow-out, a heartfelt gift to
millions of fans from a brilliant writer who loves and understands
the show completely.
As shape-shifting alien Noddy Holder
once sang: here's to the future, we've only just begun.
No comments:
Post a Comment