is it my fridge? are there aliens in my fridge?

[falling_voices]

Guys, if you haven't read errantcomment's glorious Bridget Jones!Sherlock story yet, don't wait another minute — it's hilarious, and stunningly believable, and has a scrumptious Molly. And, apparently, there's more coming. There are no words for how much I'm looking forward to it.

Secondly, Closing Time. ALL MY FEELINGS, in no sense of order whatsoever.

• I downright cheered at 'Amelia Pond'. 'Amy Williams' had broken my heart in The God Complex, much as I knew that it was part of the Doctor's method to break down Amy's faith in him; but this reunites her character with the fairytale again. (Petrichor! it sounds like the name of a secret spell.)

• OH RIVER. One thing I've really liked about her this season (apart from her character arc, which is getting overdone and boring) is that we've seen River stripped of her smugness and all-encompassing knowledge, so that she feels more human, easier to communicate with. We've seen her shocked and sad and miserable after the Doctor was killed in The Impossible Astronaut; shy and hesitant when she tells Amy and Rory that she's their daughter in A Good Man Goes To War; newly-born and frightened in the TARDIS in Let's Kill Hitler. And now we're seeing her terrified at the thought that she'll have to kill the Doctor. Quite apart from the focus the narrative is giving her this season, which is tedious and sloppy and repetitive and ugh Moffat deal with that please — we do have some interesting character development in those episodes.

• Craig and the Doctor's magnificent chemistry really made the heart of this episode — it's funny as hell, much like The Lodger, but there's also the story of a beautiful friendship, a beautiful relationship between these two men who are absolutely nothing alike and yet bond perfectly over a baby. They snark at each other, make fun of each other, get mistaken for a gay couple (and that was lovely, Val's hearty little 'it's good for a baby to have two daddies who love each other' — I loved that) and they love and rely on each other utterly. I'm especially thinking of this wonderful piece of dialogue:

Craig (leaving for the grocery store): Going off to buy milk, you know what to do with the baby if he cries!
The Doctor (looking suddenly panicked): No...
Craig (shouting, before slamming the door behind him): Me neither!

• the emotional climax, though very very predictable and frankly cliché, still raises a few questions. It's the second episode this season in which a father's love for his child defeats the supernatural threat that would destroy them. It's especially interesting in sight of Amy&Rory's own parenthood, which is pretty much stolen from underneath them: where they never really got to raise Melody (sorry, Moffat, the 'but they grew up with her' bit doesn't convince me at all), and now that she's become River there is not much way for them to be parents to her, the show still insists on showing us parental and filial love, and how it can defeat every obstacle in its way. It's important, I think, to this season's continuity.

• Eleven and Alfie, ohmaaaan. Matt Smith rocked the Stars Speech to hell and back, and Stormageddon, Dark Lord Of All, stole every scene. I love that the Doctor laughs genuinely at Alfie's children books, and air-kisses his baby cheeks to say goodbye, and they have actual conversations because of course the Doctor speaks baby, it wasn't just a throwaway line in A Good Man Goes To War. And when Eleven kisses the baby's fuzzy little head his nose smushes against it a little, which I find the most adorable thing in the show since Ten picked up a kitten way back in Gridlock.

• as for the Doctor's upcoming death, it was a very bittersweet episode, which is why the lightness and childishness of some sequences was so brilliant. Seeing Eleven slowly coming to grips with the knowledge that he'd be gone tomorrow was heartwrenching in a pretty fantastic way. But he steals the blue envelopes from Sophie, whom I wish we'd had more of, and Craig gives him the Stetson, oh yes. And then there's this:

The Doctor (stroking the TARDIS's door with his knuckles): One more trip, old girl.

And I didn't think I'd be crying, not for this episode, not after the We defeated the Cybermen with Love! climax — and then I did, anyway.

(Whatever happens to Eleven and his death in the finale, however Moffat intends to resolve the loose ends — and he'd better tie them up proper — I hope that his actual departure from the show, whenever it is after the 50th anniversary, will come the way Nine's did. Without bucketloads of angst and resignation. I hope he goes laughing.)

Comments

[errantcomment]

You're in France right? Yeah, I suppose he would be.
I'm looking forward to the DW Christmas special, looks like it's gonna be mental lol. In a good way.

[falling-voices.livejournal.com]

Yep. They don't even know Eddie Izzard here.

I loved the promo pics. They tell us the Doctor will be killed in the finale by an impossible astronaut, and then they show us pictures of the next episode — with the Doctor in an astronaut suit. Trollin' trolls.

[errantcomment]

My god. But he speaks French and everything.
Ikr. I like that they're all OH NOES THE DOCTOR but there he is, just chillin at Christmas.

[falling-voices.livejournal.com]

Well, I might have to amend that; they didn't know him until last summer. But he's done a show near where I live, back in July, which was amazing — entirely in French, too, which made for a pleasant sort of interaction with the audience — and now I think people are getting more aware of him. It was a brilliant show.

I AM TERRIBLY EXCITED FOR ALL THE SPECIALS. Easter too!

[errantcomment]

Wow, was his French any good? He seemed to be pretty okay at it in the show I saw.

I will actually be in England for the specials. I'm all flaily about it lol.

[falling-voices.livejournal.com]

He was pretty good, yeah. He needed to stop and ask for translations from time to time, but considering that a lot of his stand-up act relies on improvisation, the way he managed to make an entire theatre howl with laughter was rather brilliant.

Hee, lucky you. I was in an hotel room in London for LKH, it's pretty cool to get to watch it directly.

[errantcomment]

Haha when you put it like that it makes it sound like something illicit, like there are these dive-bars of pale-faced nerdlings huddled round televisions. To get in you have to knock four times...

[falling-voices.livejournal.com]

Secret nerd clubssssss. I approve. :D you need to wear fezzes and bowties or else you just don't fit in.

... which I think is my clue to go to sleep, aha.

[errantcomment]

Although more recently there's been a rise in nostalgia outfits- long scarves, suits and Chucks etc...