The End of an Era

Christmas Day used to revolve around a near crapulent family gathered in front of the TV at 3pm to hear what platitudes about the Commonwealth the Queen would come out with but, every year since 2005, my family gathers around the TV in the early evening to catch the latest adventure of Doctor Who. This year was special – a regeneration episode with two Doctors for the price of one which was rather fitting as it was very much an end of an era for the show.

I enjoyed the episode and found David Bradley’s First Doctor to be almost spookily like William Hartnell. Really it was an episode where nothing much in particular happened but this was just as well. Matt Smith’s last episode spent so long trying to tie up loose ends that we didn’t have a particularly great chance to enjoy Matt’s Doctor for one last time. With Twice Upon a Time we not only got to enjoy saying farewell to Peter Capaldi but had an excellent character led story with two of the best character actors out there. Mark Gatiss’s Captain was a nice touch as well. I had predicted that he would turn out to be a Lethbridge-Stewart but I thought it was going to be the Brigadier. The fact that it was actually his grandfather was both less fanboyish and added a nice little bit of background to the Brigadier’s story.

As it is Peter Capaldi’s last episode it is worth looking back over his tenure as the Doctor. Given the nature of the show there will always be some episodes that are better than others but the one thing that has remained exceptional throughout was his performance. The subtleties  of his acting are worth watching again but keep an eye out for his face: William Hartnell’s approach to television was that it was small and the acting should be kept small and around the face. Television is now large and expansive but Capaldi can do more with his eyes in a single frame than many actors could do with an entire script. If Hartnell was making the most of a small screen then Capaldi is making the most of high definition detail. It is well documented that everyone’s favourite Doctor should be their first so mine is, and always will be, Jon Pertwee. Peter Capaldi, though, runs him a very close second.

Even aside from Capaldi’s performances, there are very few episodes during his tenure that I wouldn’t happily watch again. In fact the only one I still feel was a bit of a stinker was Kill The Moon, and even then I think it would have only taken a few storyline tweaks to turn it into something exceptional. Capaldi, for me, has really captured the quintessential characteristics of what the Doctor is to me: a grumpy but kind old soul trying, in whatever way possible, to make the universe a better place. Of course this is also showrunner Steven Moffat’s last show so it is worth assessing his run.

The Moffat era of Doctor Who is a very long one. He has written for every series since its return in 2005 and has been the showrunner and lead writer since 2010 for a whole 6 series along with a smattering of specials along the way. That is a very long time to keep up a high pressure job and an astonishing period to keep thinking up new ideas. I started writing this blog at the same time that he took over the show and I am really running out of things to write about (an end to my era?) To keep up the high standard for so long is remarkable and I feel that his period in charge will in the long term be hailed as a golden era. There have been ups and downs, of course, and I think the time around the 50th anniversary episode (and hence the 7th series) was affected both by his workload and unsympathetic scheduling by the BBC but the fact that the anniversary was a triumph and that successive series have gone from strength to strength are a mark of what a great writer he is. I hope he enjoys going back to being a mere fan and I am looking forward to his new take on the Dracula story.

So that leaves us to look forward to the next series. Like many fans, I think my reaction to Jodie Whittaker’s casting went from initial shock, to apprehension, through acceptance and on to really, really looking forward to her in the role. This was partly reinforced by watching the Shada DVD that I got for Christmas: what struck me with that is how good Romana, the female Time Lord, was – she just needed that little edge to the character: that indefinable “Doctorishness”.  We didn’t really see that much of Jodie last night but I suspect that the next series, with Chris Chibnall in charge, will be the great rollercoaster that Doctor Who has always been. Doctor Who is all about change but, given the Thirteenth Doctor’s reaction to her new appearance, Jodie is just what the Doctor ordered.