The Day Of The Doctor

^^ The rest of that article has Matt Smith counted as the 13th incarnation, making the transition to Capaldi the one that goes beyond the original 12 regenerations / 13 incarnations set. They're counting Tennant's metacrisis as one regeneration and make it sound as if that's what Moffat said.

If that is true,

a) why did Matt start to regenerate when shot on the beach?
b) why did Capaldi, but no further Doctors turn up at the fall of Gallifrey?

a) That wasn't actually the Doctor, it was the shapeshifting robot. Assume that showing him start to regenerate and then having that stopped would be a more convincing death for the Silence watching.

b) No more TARDIS's were needed. Wouldn't be surprised if there is a point in Capaldi's run where he is searching for Gallifrey and has to go back to that point to help out to make it so that Gallifrey can be recovered.

a) Damnit, you're right!

b) Excellent answer as well.

Thank you for your service. I will make sure to turn to WF for all my Doctor Who needs in the future.

Talking about which, can someone summarize the Silence business?

Yes, I realize Moffat is the show-runner. But sheer logic completely contradicts him.

There will have been 12 regenerations of the Doctor as of the Christmas Special, making Capaldi the thirteenth Doctor. Period.

But I do get Moffat's point about numbering. The Doctor is the Doctor regardless of whatever tally one keeps.

I think I must be the only person who doesn't give a fuck about how many regenerations are possible or have even been done so far. I'm sure some sci-fi technobabble will explain it away and we'll move on.

That said, I still wish Eccleston would have signed on. Having him appear suddenly opening the dungeon door saying, "Why wasn't I invited to this party?" or some other quip would have been awesome!

Edited to add: Hell, he could have even played off his non interest in appearing by seeing Hurt's Doctor and going, "No thanks." and leaving, making his appearance a mere cameo.

This is taking Trekian proportions of canon wankery. So how set in stone is that number? Was it mentioned often? Once? Maybe 40 years ago or something?

As for 'no Doctors but the next one' at Galifrey... well, nobody else has been casted. It's a TV series, get a life

I actually wonder if Moffat threw the John Hurt Doctor in the mix just to fuck with everyone.

He could have easily crafted the whole story without him.

http://www.darkhorizons.com/news/29866/-doctor-who-sherlock-xmas-plans-unveiled

Also, the title will be "The Time Of The Doctor".

Well, I don't think it's meaningless nitpickery.

Of course the writers will get around it, but how they get around it will decide what direction the show goes in, so...yeah, it matters.

I heard the title was "The Twelfth Night"...being Christmas and similar to "The Eleventh Hour" made sense. But with Matt being 13, I guess your title is the more likely one.

Hmmm...always thought "Eleventh Hour" was named because Matt was 11, but I guess it's because it's his last incarnation before the end.

Then there is the Valeyard and in "The Ultimate Foe" the Master says about him, "...an amalgamation of the darker sides of the Doctor's nature, from somewhere between his twelfth and final incarnation." His final incarnation could be anything, not necessarily 13, worded like that.

I'm still inclined to think one of the improvements of Time Lord technology the sisters made to the elixer of eternal life is either more lives or like the label, eternal life. After all he's "Ancient and forever, burning at the center of time, watching the turn of the universe"

Speculation is fun.

But Matt can't actually know that, otherwise he wouldn't have thought regenerating was an option in Let's Kill Hitler or Nightmare in Silver. Nor would he have bothered to fake an aborted regeneration as part of his fake death in Series 6, or failed to take notice of Capaldi's TARDIS showing up Day of the Doctor.

But while we're on the subject, what about all those regenerations River gave up in Let's Kill Hitler to bring Smith back to life?