Le Choix d'Amelie

[gominokouhai]

That was fascinating.

We brought Rory onto the Tardis last week, and the comment I was going to make, but didn't, because:

1. time is a finite resource;
2. overenthusiastic commenters keep stealing my thunder;
3. if commenters don't, then Internet herself keeps stealing my thunder;
4. if I wait long enough purplecat will probably say exactly what I was going to say anyway;

...the comment I was going to make was going to be this: wasn't that a much more mature, sensible, realistic, not to mention a much more entertaining way to bring Mickey the Idiot on board? purplecat clearly thinks that Rory is a metaphor for Mickey, but I think it goes deeper than that: the entire series so far has been a deconstruction of RTD's era, and Rory is merely playing Mickey's role. So far he's been the disappointed also-ran who gets a chance to play with the big boys for an episode or so. Some time towards the end of June, if the pattern holds, he'll get to pick up a Stupendously Large Gun and become an outstanding badass in a single awesome moment of character development. And we, the viewers, will all be surprised.

The Moff doesn't play like that. The Moff has something different up his sleeve.

(Although I would dearly love to see Rory pick up a Stupendously Large Gun and turn into an outstanding badass. The poor bugger deserves his moment.)

Last week, Rory got to join Team Tardis, and there were complaints about the lack of chemistry between Rory and Amy. In this episode we get to laugh loudly and long at those people who thought that this was some sort of problem.

Again, everyone: this is Doctor Who we're talking about. Wait thirty years or so, and then you can write a review. Or at least wait until they've finished the arc. Then you'll have some idea about whether or not it holds up in context. Me? I'm just blogging. This isn't a review, it's a blog.

Since the beginning of the seasons, there's been a lot of talk about whether Amy loves Rory or not, based on the fact that she ran off with a man who can promise her the entirety of time and space. This week we got to see those concerns addressed. (For information, stormsearch has standing instructions, if the Doctor ever turns up, to fuck off and leave me without so much as a backwards glance; and to pick me up later if she gets the opportunity. I'd do the same for her.)

They've thought of everything that Internet thinks it came up with first, and they're doing something cleverer. And in the meantime, halfway through the season during the slow bit, they're mocking us.

This was an exercise in seeing how many Gilligan Cuts you can cram into forty minutes of television. On top of that, it was an exercise in subverting expectations. They subverted expectations and then they subverted them again and then, just when you realized that your expectations had been subverted, they went and subverted them a third time. And Simon Nye wrote the script. I must watch Men Behaving Badly again. I remember him being funny, but I don't remember him ever being quite this clever.

I loved it and I want more.

I currently have a bottle of single malt whisky riding on whether or not River Song is the Rani. Balls to that. I've got a new one for you: the Dream Lord is the Valeyard. Or, wait, I'm not even the first one to suggest that. One day I must really get around to watching The Trial of a Timelord, anyway.

So, who was the guy in the van?

Comments

[enigel]

I haven't watched nearly enough Classic Who to know who or what the Valeyard and the Rani are, so I see a Wiki trip in my future. If I can avoid falling into the TV Tropes trap, that is.

Rory as a subversion of Mickey occurred to me too, though I keep expecting something tricky to happen with that, because of Rory's "Issue Date: 1990" work badge, because he was the one noticing things like the coma patients walking around, because of his cool when faced with the TARDIS, and the fact that the Doctor seemed sort of suspicious about it. It could have been mild offense that the hooman was failing to be impressed ("Have I impressed you yet, Amy Pond?") or suspicion that Rory is not a simple hooman after all... Or I'm just speculating pointlessly, but that's half the fun. ;)

There's also the Doctor's comment in Flesh and Stone that if anything happens to Amy, he'd hold everyone of them "personally responsible, twice". Why twice? Just an eccentric Doctor-y remark, or is there more about it? *cue ominous music*

And heh, this week we did get a "Doctor in the TARDIS" and a Doctor who wasn't in the TARDIS...

[gominokouhai]

> because of Rory's "Issue Date: 1990" work badge

I'm still curious about that. Did you notice, in this one, the throwaway comment that Leadworth was the village that Time forgot? Something like that. Can't find the exact quote.

[enigel]

Yes! Two worlds. Here in the time machine, and there in the village that time forgot. Of course, it could have been just a sarcastic commentary over the lack of excitement in Leadworth, or it could have been a planted throwaway line for those of us who are going to hunt for throwaway lines, because they know we know lines might hide clues... ;)

Like River's "You. Me. Handcuffs. Must it always end like this?" - Amy handcuffed him the second time they met. (I don't like that theory, just because I want Amy to be Amy, but once the idea planted...)

[spudtater]

Dunno, but it does seem like the Moff has a thing for handcuffs. <sings>Let's play... Master and Doctor servant</sings>.

[gominokouhai]

Ooh, I hadn't heard of that one. A bit cracktastic for my liking, but that's half the fun.

[digitalraven]

No bet. The Dream Lord is the Vaelyard isn't something I'm going to argue; if anything it's more obvious than River Song == Rani.