Written by Steven Moffat
Directed by Peter Hoar
“This was exactly you. All this, all of it. You make them so afraid. When you began, all those years ago, sailing off to see the universe, did you ever think you’d become this? The man who can turn an army around at the mention of his name? Doctor…the word for healer, and wise man, throughout the universe. We get that word from you, you know. But if you carry on the way you are, what might that word come to mean? To the people of the Gamma Forests, the word ‘doctor’ means ‘mighty warrior’. How far you’ve come…and now they’ve taken a child. The child of your best friends…and they’re going to turn her into a weapon, just to bring you down. And all this, my love…in fear of you.”
Yeah…yeah…SPOILERS…
A Good Man Goes to War…and the results are quite surprising.
Many people have claimed that the Steven Moffat era has concentrated too much on the coolness of its labyrinthine plots and story arcs. They compare it to the spectacle & emotional heart of the Russell T. Davies era, sometimes unfavourably. Where is the heart and soul of THIS era, many of them cry.
Well…if it’s heart and soul you’re after, try watching Steven Moffat’s TAKE on the Davies-style finale…and the consequences of such spectacle.
A Good Man Goes to War is the natural follow-through from the god-like bearing of the 9th & 10th Doctors, still dealing with the aftermath of the Time War and its terrible legacy. The 11th Doctor era is awash in that personal legacy: a Doctor whose reputation makes armies run (just as River predicted back in Forest of the Dead). But what happens when that image of the terrifying, dark legend overshadows that of the healer? The traveler? The wise old man who arrives out of nowhere and makes everything better? The Doctor was always going to become a victim of his own success…and now, he is paying for it.
In this case, Amy is our stand in. From her point of view, the Doctor isn’t famous…and he certainly isn’t dark. He’s the klutzy, ridiculously-dressed, ridiculously-coiffed mad man with a box…falling out of the sky like a deranged Father Christmas. He brings wonder and excitement to the world…a role most fans have always seen him to be. But to the rest of the universe, the Doctor is a terrifying force of nature…to the extent that an army has to be convinced with a pep talk that the Doctor ISN’T a goblin or a devil…though they suspect he is so much more.
A universe afraid of the Doctor. The point which the series has taken us to…the point which a post-Time War Doctor has arrived at…without thinking of the consequences.
Steven Moffat has taken us to this point with extreme dexterity — as an audience, we’ve been so caught up with the triumphant Doctor image, given life by David Tennant & Russell Davies. A triumph that Moffat himself helped seed throughout that era. However, now the rug is being pulled out from underneath us. The Doctor now strides across the universe like a giant…and much of the universe isn’t happy with this state of affairs. These consequences are the core of the episode…and THIS is where the heart-and-soul is to be found.
There are all sorts of other reasons to love this mid-season finale…but this is the best reason. It’s a turning point in the Doctor’s life — in his relationship with the universe — and now he’s going to have to deal with it. The once-unknown traveler, now the creature of legend…but is that a GOOD thing? A conundrum that will take the series in an interesting new direction…and demonstrates that Moffat has been playing a longer game than any of us might have realized.
Aside from this major turn of events, what other enjoyment is there to be found here…
The revelation of River’s true identity — we SHOULD have seen it coming…there were more than enough clues…but it remains a shocking revelation, in spite of the truck-loads of evidence leading us to this point…
The comedy factor in this episode exceeds all others by a factor of a thousand! A Sontaran nurse! The begging of an old, fat, blue man! Silurian lesbians! Literally headless monks…tied up at the top with a knot! The Doctor speaking baby!
The emotional moments are quite visceral — never mind the comedy. The Doctor’s anger could melt steel…especially his frightening comment about good men and rules. Counter-pointed by the revelation of his cot, and all the emotions & memories that come bubbling to the surface. There are enough tears, laughs, screams, shrieks and shout-out’s to keep an entire season busy…and here we get it all in a single episode. Steven Moffat unplugged!
Best fist-pump moment: the cameo by Curse of the Black Spot’s Captain Avery & son!
Go Rory! The apex of his growth as a character is reached, as he embraces his identity as the Last Centurion…and becomes the sweet, wonderful, brave, courageous hero we always knew him to be. The most amazing moment in this episode for Rory is seeing him with a futuristic gun in one hand, and his sword in the other, defending his wife and child…
- The conclusion is sudden, surprising, visceral — it feels like a solid end, not simply a wait-until-autumn moment. There is catharsis AND anticipation from everything that happens. There is nothing that feels artificial about where we leave off — Moffat’s instincts are spot on about ending the season. Leave your audience (1) satisfied, and (2) wanting more…
The revelation of the episode title to open the second half of the season: “Let’s Kill Hitler” — the most outrageous and hilarious title in Doctor Who history! Steven Moffat is clearly trying to out-Tarantino Tarantino…and succeeding. The final burst-out-laughing moment in an episode full of such moments…in between all those OTHER moments when you are crying, shouting, and staring in disbelief!
A Good Man Goes to War…and the audience is dragged along for the ride to end all rides. As for the critics…well, let’s just say that if I did have to sum this up in terms of a comparison with the Davies era, I’d have to surmise that A Good Man Goes to War is Journey’s End done properly.
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