Mind of Migg

Goodbye Tennant, hello Smith!

David Tennant was my Doctor. Sure, Christopher Eccleston paved the way for the reboot, but I saw most of season 2 before season 1. So I was all about Tennant. I was skeptical heading into series 5 that things would never be the same.

Then Matt Smith made me smile after a tragic regeneration scene to finish the 2009 specials. I tried to stifle the smile, not wanting to appear a traitor to Tennant. It nearly worked, except that the series 5 teaser trailer blew me away. I found myself excited for Doctor Who all over again.

The season premiere episode did a great job of defining the new quirks of the Doctor and companion as well as paying homage to the previous Doctors. It was a strong episode and had the Steven Moffatt flair for adventure that I was hoping to see in the new season. It’s hard to describe how I felt about this season – it was familar, but different. Actually, I guess that wasn’t so hard.

Moffatt appears to go more for entertainment value, less for dramatic epicness the way Russell T Davies did. I love both approaches so it’s hard to choose a favorite, but I do miss some of the moments where Tennant’s Doctor would stand up and save the universe with a wink and a nod. Smith’s Doctor prefers to point out he’s brilliant in smaller doses and is much less cheeky about his actions while saving the universe. Still, he has that Doctor charm.

My favorite episodes, in no particular order:

• The Eleventh Hour – Great intro to the new Doctor and new companion.
• Amy’s Choice – The Doctor holds a mirror up to his darkest side.
• The Hungry Earth – Excellent characters and lots of suspense and adventure.
• Cold Blood – A strong finish becomes tragic with a crazy surprise ending.
• Vincent and the Doctor – One of the most touching episodes of Who I’ve seen. I dare you to not choke up a little at the end.
• The Pandorica Opens – All kinds of epic. Sets up a great finish to the first season of the Matt Smith/Steven Moffatt era.

Of course, there’s things I didn’t like about this season. Sometimes it felt like the ‘science’ aspect of the ‘science-fiction’ was sacrificed in the name of entertainment. A few of the episodes felt a little to rushed, or problems too easily solved, like in “The Beast Below”, “Victory of the Daleks”, and “The Lodger”. And don’t get me started on the finale.

I think paradox’s are fun when used sparingly but I felt the paradox used to get the Doctor out of the Pandorica was a huge cheat. For all the setup of the outstanding previous episode, I was let down by the finale. Strange too, that I had no problem accepting that one word, connected by a psychic link can defeat the Master, but when Amy uses her memory to bring the Doctor back I was disappointed. Maybe the entertainment over science? Maybe the low key epicness? Maybe I’m not fully connected to these characters yet? Maybe a lack of execution? I can’t decided so I’m going to go with all of the above.

Make no mistake, despite my criticisms I loved this season. It has a strangely nostalgic feel. The way so many shots were framed and just the overall vibe of the show feels like a throwback to the older seasons. I’m excited that the mystery of “the silence” wasn’t solved this season and along with the mystery of River Song, will unfold over the course of next season. It’s nice to have a sense of continuity with all these new characters. And one more thing…bow ties are cool!