"There are soldiers all over the house. And I'm in my pants."
It's close. Very close. This is the penultimate outing for
the Ponds, an episode which takes the time to fully examine both characters,
and how the Doctor has affected their lives, until they leave the show next
week. I have no idea what's going to happen, being joyfully unspoiled, but I
couldn't help but notice the ominous hints: the Doctor admits to Brian that
some of his companions have dies, and it's eventually Brian who changes the
Ponds' minds and gets them to choose travelling over real life, adding,
ominously "Just bring them back safe." Oh dear. That lovely night-time
conversation between the Doctor and Amy gives off similar ominous vibes.
They're doomed, right?
We get a proper examination of their dual lives, pulling at
the Ponds in two directions. That, rather than the gimmickry of the plot, is
what the episode is about. The central device, of a very slow invasion, is
hardly original, and nor is the concept of loads of mysterious McGuffins
suddenly appearing, but then it isn't supposed to be. Indeed, the script even
goes so far as to point this out, as Brian rattles off a list of all the usual
tropes. It doesn't matter. Let the plot just go ahead and be
Quatermass- this is about the Ponds.
Although, admittedly, the tension-filled moment where the Doctor opens the box,
only to find nothing, is rather too obviously straight out of
Kinda. And it's a bloody huge
coincidence that, of only seven wormholes on the whole planet, one of them
should just so happen to be in the hospital where Rory works.
It's nice to see UNIT, too, of course, and it's especially
nice that they've been reformed to be much cuddlier, losing the Orwellian
overtones of recent years and becoming infused with scientific values of which
the Doctor approves. Kate Stewart, Head of Scientific Research, is a great
character, very Doctorish, and making her the Brig's daughter is not only good
shorthand but also a sign that we, the viewers, are allowed to be invested in
her as a character. She'll probably be back; they cast a Redgrave, after all. Also,
the Tower of London being their not-very-secret base
is well cool.
It's a good Doctor episode, too. Matt Smith gets, and
delivers, such magnificent speeches, and the sequence of him doing household
chores (and keepy-uppy) is fab. I'm also enjoying these fun little
mini-adventures, this time involving Zygons, Henry VIII, and God knows what
else.
The villains are a bit blah, very casually sketched,
although admitted the Doctor gets a great speech out of the situation. And the
Doctor saves the day with little more than the most casual application of
handwavium. But that's sort of appropriate. It's not really about the plot.
I'm nervous about next week. Very nervous…
