A change of pace following last week's tragedy, written by Richard (Four Weddings and a Funeral) Curtis. He also wrote Blackadder, but this ep lies firmly in the style of his more recent efforts. Whether this is a good or a bad thing will be up to the viewer. The Doctor's racked with guilt over last week's events, and he can't even tell Amy why because she doesn't remember. To try and distract himself, he takes her on a museum trip. But a chance observation in a Van Gogh painting leads the Doctor to suspect that the famous artist has painted a particularly nasty alien... so off the pair head in the TARDIS to have a chat with the man himself! Tony Curran plays Vincent Van Gogh, albeit with a Scottish accent. What I've heard suggests that this is a sublime performance, as Van Gogh is firmly in his bipolar phase here, alternating from severe depression to joy. The episode apparently doesn't shy away from discussing mental health, although wrapped in enough sugar that kids can swallow it. The alien problem (a beastie that only the mad can see... you'd think the Doc would qualify, but he has to build a steampunk contraption for the task) is really secondary to a study of the main characters... Vincent as we meet him here is less than a year away from the date of his suicide, the Doctor is increasingly frazzled from the tragedies of his life and Amy... well, as a gentle flirtation develops between her and the older Vincent, he perceptively points out that Amy is crying, and hasn't even noticed it... does she still remember on some level?
This is the sort of sentimental story that crops up a lot in fanfic, but here it's done very well indeed. I wouldn't like to see it every week, as Who needs the drama, conflict and rompiness that this ep lacked, but I have missed the power of RTD to bring me to the verge of tears. Who shouldn't always be about that (which it was in danger of becoming in the final days of the mighty Welshman's tenure), but it's occasionally welcome... and after last week's tragedy, we needed a life-affirming episode but also a chance for Amy to grieve, even if she's grieving for a man she doesn't remember. Vincent gives her that chance. Certainly not conventional Who, but beautifully shot (the opening cornfield was magnificent and it kept getting better). I could have done with a little more resolution of the Doctor's pain, as it was so clearly signposted... and Amy's shocked expression when the Doctor told the Krafayis that he was alone as well should have led to a discussion. But Vincent worked well as a metaphor for the pair of them. Tony Curran should be getting a lot more job offers than he is, no matter how high his profile. I did a double take when the "if you've been affected by any of the issues in this episode..." VO came on over the end credits. At first I thought "You can't do that!" but then, a split-second later, I thought "Yes, you can. And you should.". Vincent's mental state is never directly addressed during this story (they're obvious to adults but not kids), apart from the inevitable mention that he chose to end his own life. But the Doctor's final speech to Amy about there being good things and bad things in a person's life, and we should choose to remember the good, was a very positive message - even if, contrary to Amy's hopes, the good the TARDIS team added wasn't enough to stop Vincent's suicide.
That was a cracking ep, one of the best of the nu Who for me so far. It almost a oity it had to be so sci-fi and included the monster, imHo the ep would have worked without it. Although I dont think it would have been acceptable to the beeb as 'who' or for children.
I don't think we're ever likely to see a pure historical ep again. The essence of drama is conflict, after all, and RTD was pretty clear he didn't want stories where human beings were the only threats (though Planet of the Ood came close). I think Moffatt will try and follow that logic as well - he's keen on the idea of Who as a modern fairy-tale, and kids want clear monsters in such stories, without the adult concept of "sometimes people are monsters too" necessarily at the forefront. Besides, the Doctor's been built into such a character, at this point, I can't see "mere" humans giving him too much trouble. Well, Rasputin, maybe.
Magnificent episode. Really enjoyed it. Played for the perfect balance of laughs and tears. There were a few peculiar missteps like the Doctor describing the monster as evil (I know it when I see it) when actually it ended up much more grey than that. Or perhaps that was a deliberate thing... Anyway, you couldn't do it every week as it would turn into the history Channel but they should certainly have done it this once. And, this highlights for me why Who has survived the loss of David Tennant - because they hired two new main actors in who are every bit as good at actually ACTING and they have picked some cracking guest stars who can do the same.
Fantastic episode. Beautiful imagery as well, the opening shot and Amy with the sunflowers were two standouts. I choose to believe that the phone number given over the credits was actually put there by the production staff to scare kids. Apparently being attacked by giant invisible space lizards is a common enough event now to have its own hotline.
I actually didn't like this episode all that much. Fiction about non-fictional people doesn't sit well with me. The dialogue and storylines were still just . And I really didn't like the pop-music thing when they went back to the museum - ugh! I almost quit watching! Something I liked about Doctor Who is that they don't do that end-of-episode music montage the way sucky shows do.
Rasputin had to have been the Master. Where else do you think he used up all his regenerations? Also, epic beard.
Couple thoughts: -The Doctor took Amy to Arcadia? I hope they've cleaned up since it fell during the Time War. -Third Hartnell sighting this series. The first couple were neat, but I'd like to see some other regenerations represented. Unless they keep doing it as a buildup to something...
You can still visit war ruins on Earth, y'know. Besides, Daleks are practical - if they could slaughter the people without damaging the buildings then hey! instant base. By my count, it's Hartnell 3, Troughton 2, every other incarnation 1 this series. Five got a sneaky mention last week with the celery stuff.
Just been catching up on Dr Who, post-holiday and this was a wonderful ep, a real throwback to the more historical episodes of the 60's but with a modern twist. Also, unless I missed something, the first ep without a direct reference to the crack, but dealing with the fact Rory's memory may not be entirely gone. Very bittersweet ending, and continues the theme we had in Waters of Mars where certain events in time even the Doctor cannot fully change.
Having recently downloaded it, I can honestly say the episode missed a trick not playing Don McLean's Vincent (Starry, Starry Night) at the end instead of the song they went with... Even the lyrics: "And the strangers that you've met... the ragged men in ragged clothes..." - Raggedy Doctor, anyone?
I thought this episode was one of two halves. I thought the French based scenes were average, especially the whole story aqbout the monster parrot. Plus, I am baffled as to why the french and dutch sound like the welsh and scots. Anyhow, after super parrot met his end I thought the show really stepped up a notch into the realm of excellent. The scenes in the Musee d'Orsay were outstanding and I felt it was one of the highlights of the season so far. As for the missing crack, I thought that was a shame. We all want to see more of Amy's crack.
Because if they were speaking French no-one would have been able to understand them. They directly addressed that even when Van Gogh asked Amy about her Dutch accent where she sounded to him like she came from the same area as he did.