The Eleventh Doctor

The Christmas special that ends the run of the Eleventh Doctor is in the can.

Next up, The Twelfth Doctor, Peter Capaldi.

So let’s look back at Matt Smith.

As a confession, I don’t hate or dislike any of The Doctors, so when I say I really liked Matt Smith Doctor I mean I liked him more than others but not as much as say, Pat Troughton or Sylvester.

Right from the go he had that quirky, eccentric “mad man in a box” that typified his Doctor. And I think was a great energetic take on the character. The guy who runs around the universe just because he wants to see it all. But a Doctor who has seen it and there’s a darkness there because of that.

He was influenced by Patrick Troughton and it shows. The goof with spine of steel.

Tom Baker, the wild eccentric who could be serious on a dime. The ball of energy that fires off in all directions. And Matt Smith has a lot of this as well and his physicality allows him to due some very quirky things. The manic energy reminds you of Tom, but with his physicality he takes it to another level.

But  does Chris Eccleston and David “No second chances” Tennant’s Doctors as well. There are some very dark moments and he goes there well.

The showdown with the organic sun in Rings of Akhaten comes to mind.

It’s a quite a speech and very well delivered with lots of pain, but righteously earned pain of a 1,000+ year old being from Gallifrey.

The Doctor fighting the cyber control in Nightmare in Silver.

And this isn’t the first chess match against evil, as The Doctor and Fenric had an ongoing match until The Doctor Defeated Fenric in WWII England.

And Electric Chess, but it wasn’t the same.

But in Nightmare, it was a tour de force for Matt Smith and his Doctor. It was the darkness made manifest. The Doctor that could have been the Time Lord Victorious or the one who shows up with the Racnoss if not stopped. The Doctor that could become The Master.

Doctor means “Warrior” in Man Goes to War.

House: “I’ve killed many Time Lords”

The Doctor: “I killed them all”

Contrasting that with the Drunk Giraffe Dance.

The story he told young Amelia when he was going to be wiped from existence.

So he combines all the best bits of Drama & Comedy on a dime. Which is what the best Doctors do well.

Still one of my favorites scenes ever.

Series 5 (2010)

• The Eleventh Hour
• The Beast Below
• Victory Of The Daleks
• The Time Of Angels
• Flesh and Stone
• The Vampires Of Venice
• Amy’s Choice
• The Hungry Earth
• Cold Blood
• Vincent and The Doctor
• The Lodger
• The Pandorica Opens
• The Big Bang

My Favorite: Vincent and The Doctor. I did an entire Blog on this one back in August.

The Doctor and Vincent have a lot in common and I have a lot in common with Vincent.

 

Series 6 (2010 – 2011)

2010 Christmas Special

• A Christmas Carol

Over the Top Dickens with an Opera Singer and a Airborn Shark!

Sir Michael Gambon as Scrooge.

Yeah, baby…

2011 Mini-Episodes

• Space
• Time

 Cute. The 11th Doctor and River just sing as characters throughout his tenure. They just work so well together.

Part 1 (Spring)

• The Impossible Astronaut
• Day Of The Moon
• The Curse Of The Black Spot
• The Doctor’s Wife
• The Rebel Flesh
• The Almost People
• A Good Man Goes To War

 Favorite: Of course it’s The Doctor’s Wife. A Brilliant episode. Well played.

But the whole shock of the Doctor dying was very blase’ to me. But then again, when Superman “died” back in the late 80’s early 90’s I said “he’s died 7 times before” big deal.

So that part of the storyline didn’t interest me at all, except how they were going to get themselves out of it. And I didn’t quite by the solution because how do you fool a fix point in time with a robot?

Part 2 (Autumn)

• Let’s Kill Hitler
• Night Terrors
• The Girl Who Waited
• The God Complex
• Closing Time
• The Wedding Of River Song

Favorite: The Girl Who Waited. Karen Gillan at her absolute best.

But Matt got to do a bromance comedy (Closing Time), be a sad lonely being who realizes how much he effects his companions  in The God Complex But then the next season comes up and he’s doing it again anyways…

2011 Mini Episode

• Death Is The Only Answer

Series 7 (2011 – 2013)

2011 Mini-Episodes

• The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe Prequel
• Good as Gold

2011 Christmas Special

• The Doctor, The Widow and The Wardrobe

 The Doctor trying to Santa, but Santa doesn’t get you nearly killed several times over though…

 

Series 7: Part 1 (2012)

• Asylum Of The Daleks
• Dinosaurs On A Spaceship
• A Town Called Mercy
• The Power Of Three
• The Angels Take Manhattan

Steven got me good with Jenna Louise Coleman being in the first episode. Much more effective than “dying” in my opinion.

Being a Dinosaur enthusiast I wasn’t that satisfied by the epidoe for that aspect but it was fun romp nonetheless.

The Angels Take Manhattan did make me cry. Again, much more effective than the Doctor cheating “death”, IMHO.

2012 Mini-Episodes

• Pond Life
• Asylum of the Daleks Prequel
• The Making of the Gunslinger
• P. S.
• The Great Detective
• Vastra Investigates

 An anoraks dream. An Ood on the Loo…Classic!

2012 Christmas Special

• The Snowmen

 I like her. But she’s dead. Oh, and that gravestone….:)

2013 Mini Episodes

• The Bells of Saint John Prequel
• The Battle Of Demon’s Run – Two Days Later
• He Said, She Said

He said, She said I thought was one of the best Prequels they’ve ever made. There was a lot of truth and a lot of mystery there.

Series 7: Part 2 (2013)

• The Bells Of Saint John
• The Rings Of Akhnaten
• Cold War
• Hide
• Journey To The Centre Of The TARDIS
• The Crimson Horror
• Nightmare In Silver
• The Name Of The Doctor

 I like all the episodes. The Bells had a nice monster idea. Rings had that wonderful speech by the Doctor.

Cold War had the Ice Warrior! Hide was a ghost story. Journey was a bit of a let down, I just didn’t buy it.

Crimson Horror is a Victorian Horror piece like you don’t see normally anymore. Not bad.

Nightmare in Silver is a great episode. Make the Cybermen that much scarier.

The Name of The Doctor: Again, who thought we’d actually get his name, for real. Not going to happen. So I tuned in to see what would. And it was an excellent episode. But when the Doctor eventually dies, in some future incarnation why would he go back to this Control room??

That was my question.

2013 Mini Episode

• Doctor Who at The Proms 2013

 Loved it.

2013 Specials

• The Day Of The Doctor (50th Anniversary Special)
• 2013 Christmas Special

Can’t wait.

Overall, a very fine tenure and with the prospect of a 50th Anniversary blowout to end all blowouts.

Here’s to The Eleventh Doctor. Wonderful Chap, all of them. 🙂