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G'day. I'm Adam Collings. Coming to you on location from Adelaide
Welcome to Stories.
Today I'm talking about the Doctor Who 50th Anniversary Special - The Day of the Doctor.
Normally I don't do spoilers, but in this case, anybody
remotely interested is likely to have seen it.
So I'm gonna go into details.
If you haven't seen Day of the Doctor, stop now and go watch it.
Seriously.
I came into this episode with some pretty high expectations
The 50th anniversary of one of your favourite shows is a big deal.
I didn't envy Stephen Moffat trying to come up with a script that could possibly do the event justice.
I think he did a great job.
The episode honours the past, but ultimately it's about the future
I think that's what it needed to be.
I loved the way it started with the classic titles from the William Hartnell era.
and all the easter eggs like the Foreman scrap yard
and the name I Chesterton on the school sign.
I'm sure there were lots more that went over the top of my head.
The story itself was fitting for the occasion
By telling the story of the time war, it has effectively bridged the gap between the classic era of Doctor Who and the modern era
It explains the reasons the Doctor became the person he's been ever since Christopher Ecclestone took on the role
In a sense, this was the War Doctor's story
The 10th and 11th Doctors were there to help him make his decision
The dilemma faced by U.N.I.T nicely tied in thematically with the Doctor's own struggle
For the last seven seasons the time war and the destruction of Gallifrey
has been something that's defined the character
As 11 says
"You were The Doctor on the day it was impossible to get it right."
When the 10th and 11th doctors arrive to help the War Doctor push the button
so he doesn't have to face that moment alone
it's very moving.
and yet we feel Clara;s discomfort
The Doctor never betrays his promise
he always finds another way
This story does what I think some of the best Doctor Who stories do
It says "All right, this is it.
there is no hope
we're gonna have to live with it."
As viewers we come to accept this
And then sometimes, The Doctor gets this gleam in his eye
and he says "Actually, there is another way".
And so Stephen Moffat does the unthinkable
He re-writes this iconic moment in the history of our show
All this was nicely fore-shadowed
the idea of using the Gallifreyan paintings as a solution to the problem
and the idea of using the sonic screwdrivers, putting it to work over centuries
nicely fore-shadows the way they finally implement the plan
This now is when it really starts to feel like a 50th anniversary special.
when The Doctor says "I've been working on this for a long time
all of my lives"
and then all of the classic doctors appear in their TARDISes to help
and then the surprising appearance of Peter Capaldi's 12th doctor
that was so fitting
a Time Lord has 13 lives
and all of them were there - including the future one
helping to save Gallifrey
Seriously, this is awesome!
One of Stephen Moffat's strengths as a writer
is taking serious issues of a dark nature
and melding them seamlessly with great moments of humour
I honestly don't know how he does it but it's brilliant
This episode had some really hilarious moments
The chemistry between the 10th and 11th doctors was predictably brilliant.
specifically The Doctor's dialogue.
John Hurt's War Doctor fit in nicely with them as well.
The way these three mock each other in a friendly kind of way
is absurdly fun
given that they're all the same person.
The appearance of Tom Baker at the end was a wonderful touch.
Given the age of the classic Doctor actors
it would have been difficult for them to make a believable appearance
However, by having Tom Baker play a future regeneration of The Doctor
who's revisiting a favourite old face
Moffat found a way to make it work.
As promised, this episode changes everything for The Doctor
no longer is he just wandering around the galaxy looking for a bit of fun
Finally after all this time after all these lives
he has a mission. He has a goal.
And he seems delighted about it
Let's not forget though, just how dangerous the Time Lords have become
In his final adventure, the 10th Doctor was horrified at the thought of Gallifrey being released from the time lock
If The Doctor does manage to recover the planet from the painting
he's gonna have a hard job ahead of him
trying to help his people come back to a better way of life
but with all his past experiences he may just be up to the task
This episode helped me to celebrate the past
but it also made me excited about the future
I'm looking forward to seeing where all this is going
Bring on the Christmas special
Thanks for watching. If you'd like to connect with me
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including my monthly email newsletter
Catch you next time.