I'm baaaaack! I finally got around to rewatching the first two episodes; I'll be putting them in separate posts. The first episode of the series is The Impossible Astronaut. Ooooh. We know that the first time we met River Song, in Silence in the Library, she was dressed as an astronaut. Wait a minute - does that mean that the Silence were in the library? Dun dun DUN!
All of the companions (and by "all", I mean River Song and the Ponds) are sent an invitation in a TARDIS blue envelope to come to the USA. There, they meet the Doctor, who tells them that they're going back to 1969, and offhandedly mentions that he's 1,103 years old. Amy thinks she sees something on the hill, but when she turns away she seems to forget. Someone pulls up in a truck, and just then they notice that there is an astronaut standing in the nearby lake. The Doctor tells the companions that they are not to interfere, and he goes to talk to the astronaut, who then shoots him. As the Doctor begins to regenerate, the astronaut shoots him again, killing him. They all rush to him, and River attempts to shoot the astronaut. When she is unsuccessful, she murmurs, "of course not".
So, the Doctor is dead, and the man in the truck gives them gasoline to destroy the body. He says his name is Canton Everett Delaware III, and that while he won't see them again, they'll see him (cause of time travel!) He also has a TARDIS blue invitation, and it is numbered "4". River's invite is numbered "2", and Amy's is "3".
Devastated by the loss of their friends, the companions trudge back into the cafe where they had sat with the Doctor a few short hours earlier. They find another invitation in TARDIS blue numbered "1". Turns out it belongs to the Doctor - the 908-year-old Doctor. He has no idea who sent him the invitation, but when he is told about Canton and 1969, he plugs the information into the TARDIS and it comes up with Florida.
The TARDIS lands them in the Oval Office, where Nixon and Canton Everett Delaware III are talking about mysterious phone calls that Nixon has been receiving. They notice the Doctor, all hell breaks loose, and he convinces them that he and the companions are from Scotland Yard.
During this time, Amy suddenly sees the mysterious figure again and feels like she is going to be sick. Does anyone else know at this point that she's pregnant? I thought it was pretty obvious. She is taken to the bathroom, where she sees ANOTHER mysterious figure - the Silence. It vaporizes a woman named Joy, and Amy takes a picture of the Silence. Wait a minute, in the credits it says "The Silent". So, is one of them a Silent, and as a group they're the Silence? I'm confused.
As soon as she leaves the bathroom, she forgets. She also forgets that she needed to use the bathroom. Oh well. They discover the location of the little girl who has been calling Nixon, and they take off in the TARDIS with Canton in tow. They find an abandoned warehouse, and there are a lot of Silence lurking around in the basement! Of course, everyone forgets, because as soon as you look away, you forget. Amy tells the Doctor that she's pregnant, but just then, the astronaut shows up, and Amy shoots it in an effort to save the future Doctor's life. As she shoots, we realize that it's a little girl.
Dislikes:
1) The episode starts off with the Doctor inserting himself into various points in history, and Rory and Amy discuss that he is trying to get their attention. In fact, while they discuss it, the Doctor shows up in a Laurel and Hardy film. To paraphrase Graham Chapman, "stop, stop, too silly!" It's a cute idea, but really - no one notices that a crazy ape in a fez has just gone up and waved at the camera, then started dancing with Laurel and Hardy? No one has noticed him on set? No one has noticed him ever in watching it before? I like my clever ideas in Doctor Who to be, you know, CLEVER.
2) River tells Rory that the Doctor can't interact with his past self or it will rip a hole in the universe. Rory says that it did once before (right before the Doctor reset it all). What I'm wondering is - why is it okay for Amy and Amelia to interact - was that part of the "hole in the universe" thing? Okay, let's forget that. Why could Young Kazran interact with Old Kazran in A Christmas Carol? I think Moffat is just making shit up as he goes along, and it pisses me off to no end. If rules can be broken, then what's the point of having rules?
3) River is still correcting the Doctor. She's less patronizing about it now, but it still aggravates me. Although, it is funny when the Doctor yells, "River, did you get my scanners working yet?"
4) When Joy first sees the Silent, she thinks it's someone in a Star Trek costume. She turns away, turns back, and it's like she's seeing it for the first time. This happens again, right before it kills her. How come Amy can remember the Silent, but not Joy? Why is this the first time that anyone is noticing these creatures? It's awfully convenient, don't you think?
5) I don't find the Silence scary. I just don't. The Angels were way more terrifying. I guess the idea that you forget about them when you look away is scary, but it's not like they go around killing people. I'm not really sure why they killed Joy. I'm guessing it was Amy's fault, because she kept drawing the woman's attention to the Silent. But really, not that scary.
6) When Amy shoots at the astronaut, the Doctor says, "what are you doing?" and she says, "saving your life!" But that last part happens in slow motion. I thought it was tacky.
Likes:
1) When Canton enters the TARDIS, it is Rory who explains it all to him. I love how he just stands there and watches Canton's reaction, like he is some old hand at the TARDIS now. Yeah, Rory's cool.
2) Mark Sheppard's character is Canton. That's hilarious, as Sheppard played Badger on Firefly, and in Firefly, Jayne is the hero of Canton.
3) Amy's hair is a vast improvement over the last series, but I still don't like her.
Curiouser and Curiouser:
1) When River murmurs, "of course not", is this because she knows she's the astronaut, and cannot kill herself?
2) Interestingly, after the Doctor is burning in a boat out on the lake, Rory walks out of the lake right from the spot where the astronaut had been. Maybe RORY is the astronaut!
3) River tells Rory that "my past is his future" ... she knows that a day will come when she'll "look into that man's eyes", and he won't have any idea who she is. And she thinks that it will kill her. Wow. Could it get any more sappy? Because we already know River's fate, we KNOW that this actually happens. Hang on, I have to go hurl.
Let's think about this - tall, bald dudes wearing suits and ties and don't really talk much? Of what does that remind me?
Can't even shout
Can't even cry
The Gentlemen are coming by
Knocking on windows
Knocking on doors
They need to take seven
And they might take yours
Can't call to mom
Can't say a word
You're gonna die screamin'
But you won't be heard...
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