Doctor Perseus Reviews: "The Husbands of River Song" *SPOILERS* · 11:46pm Dec 25th, 2015
In this year's Doctor Who Christmas special, the Doctor once again crosses paths with River Song. As the Doctor attempts to make River recognize him, the duo face off against the vicious King Hydroflax and the Doctor finds himself facing a moment he's been long avoiding...
Hope everyone's having a merry Christmas, a happy Hanukkah, a kick-ass Kwanzaa, a Festivus for the rest of us, and/or just a great holiday season all-around. And, with Christmas, comes the new Doctor Who Christmas special. So how did this year's festive tale turn out? I really liked it.
It's always great to see Peter Capaldi back in the TARDIS. It's hard to believe that this was his first full episode without the beloved/despised Clara Oswald by his side (as you all know, I fall into the former camp). Though, thanks to her (in my opinion) thoroughly satisfying departure in the previous episode, I was ready to move on alongside the Doctor (easier for him since he was forced to forget a bit about Clara). But enough about the companions of old, let's talk about the now. Peter Capaldi was just fantastic in this episode and made me laugh again and again. The moment where he got to be the one to react to the TARDIS being bigger on the inside was a definite highlight. It was nice to get a mostly ("mostly" being the key word) lighthearted episode after the emotional trilogy we got at the end of Series 9. But he wasn't alone in this episode.
It's also hard to believe that it's been well over two full years since Alex Kingston last graced our screens as the beloved/despised River Song (I'm beginning to notice a pattern here). Being someone who really liked River, I was happy to see her return. Originally, I was satisfied with the thought of not seeing her again after The Name of the Doctor due to it being a satisfying conclusion to her story. But, after seeing this, I'm glad that we were able to get one last adventure with her. The chemistry between River and the Doctor was hilarious in this episode. It's amazing how smoothly River was able to slip her way back into the show. She's one of those characters who, when they return, it never feels like they've ever been gone. Initially, I was sort of irked by how River didn't recognize the Doctor at first. But I think it makes sense as it was pointed out that River was aware of the twelve regeneration limit but was not aware of the events that took place in The Time of the Doctor. It does speak volumes for the Doctor's true love for River that he still deeply cares and respects her after all this time (since, due to this being River's first, and obviously last, encounter with the Twelfth Doctor, the Doctor hasn't seen River for well over 900 years, not counting the billions of years he spent repeating events in Heaven Sent). The moment where River recognized the Doctor and the Doctor said, "Hello, sweetie", was a really beautiful moment. But there's another moment that tops it.
Before I go over the rest of the episode, I have to talk about the ending. Only a Doctor Who episode can make me go from laughing one minute to openly crying the next. During the scene where the Doctor and River stood on the balcony and first observed the Singing Towers together, I literally wept. Doctor Who hasn't made me cry like this since the Eleventh Doctor's regeneration. I think this pretty much confirmed that this would be River's last episode. It's clear that she's never met the Twelfth Doctor before which means that, beyond this point, the Doctor and thus us will never see her again. Granted, they could always pull a memory loss bit in the future if they wanted to bring her back for an anniversary special or something. But I think this episode acted as a satisfying and beautiful farewell to the character. The Name of the Doctor gave us a satisfying end for River but this episode gave us a satisfying goodbye for River. I love that the Doctor and River will get to spend the next 24 years together on Darillium before going their separate ways, the Doctor towards Series 10 and River towards the Library.
The rest of the episode was just loads of fun. King Hydroflax was a wonderfully hammy villain and it was satisfying seeing him get his comeuppance. His robotic body, meanwhile, proved to be a very threatening obstacle for the Doctor and River. Nardole was a pretty one-note character but at least he wasn't annoying. River's third husband (whose name I've forgotten) was alright. I did like how much he obviously cared for River. But the Doctor obviously beats his love for River by light years. The practical effects were really good in this episode and I liked seeing all of the different aliens on the ship. The effects used when the alien tore his head open were also very well done.
The music in this episode was fantastic. I can't wait to get the soundtrack so I can listen to the song played when the Doctor and River saw the Singing Towers together. Murray Gold, you've done it again. Seeing the sonic sunglasses again was nice. It looks like they haven't been completely removed from the series. But it was also great seeing the new sonic screwdriver in action. Finding out that River has stolen the TARDIS before without the Doctor knowing was an interesting tidbit as was the fact that River is now 200 years old. Makes sense given her odd DNA. And I love how River has hidden some alcohol in one of the TARDIS's roundels. Though it does beg the question of when she managed to put it there since the roundels were only added in Series 9. I guess we can just assume that she stole the TARDIS from the Twelfth Doctor at one point but they never crossed paths at the time. I also liked the usage of time travel at the end with the Doctor giving the diamond to the guy he encountered in order to have a restaurant built there, which he went on to jump forward to twice in order to make and attend a reservation there. I also liked how River knew the ship's fate due to her having dug up the remains of the passengers four hundred years in the future. I'm guessing the restaurant was either gone at that point (given that it was built on the land where the crash happened) or the future archaeologists just dug around it. I may be putting too much thought into this.
Overall, I really liked The Husbands of River Song. Peter Capaldi and Alex Kingston were marvelous together, the comedy was great, and it all culminated with a beautiful ending to both the story and our time with River Song. I give The Husbands of River Song a 9/10.
But, alas, the true Doctor Who hiatus has begun. I absolutely cannot wait to see who the next companion will be and what waits in store for us and the Doctor in Series 10. But, until then, I hope you all have a wonderful holiday season and a fantastic new year!
What did the rest of you think of The Husbands of River Song?
Is there a away to catch it online or do i have to wait till tomorrow for it to be live streamed again?
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Here's a place where you can find links: Videobull
Though, quick warning, there are pop ups to deal with when getting to the videos. I've managed to get past most of them with ad block and there's no immediate threat of getting viruses or malware as long as you don't click on anything in the pop ups and x out of them quickly.
Ramone. I always remember the Hispanics as I am one.
I also really liked this episode and thought it a perfect swan song for River Song. Though I admit I was not as moved during their last season because I was struggling to remember if the Towers of Darilium were the thing brought up in the Library episode. I don't tend to rewatch Doctor Who episodes. But still, I enjoyed very much the chemistry between River and Twelve. Certainly, this is one of the best of the Doctor Who Christmas specials.
Merry Christmas! And Happy New Year!
Wait…this review was posted 2 full hours before the episode aired for me, how did you have the chance to watch it and write this review that quickly?
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I watched it online. It airs in England several hours before airing in America due to the time zones.
Finally saw it in a proper atmosphere today. I have to say. I hate this episode, I hate River Song and I hate how the last moments made me feel. I hate the music and the stupid singing Towers. I hate the face the Doctor makes when he realized that there was no more running from Rivers fate but I... I hate how we'll never see her again... But you know what I hate the most... I hate myself for watching Silence in the Library immediately afterwards.
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