As it was brought up, I’ll quickly mention the 3D again. I’m not sure how the 3D was transmitted in the cinema, but I can imagine it might have lost something if they changed the transmission process for the cinema, which I guess they might have. On the television it very good. It was still a long way off from something with the depth and wonder of Avatar, but it was better than the majority of 3D films I have seen. We hd branches, suckers and eyestalks in the room with us and that made it all worth while. (Also no outside distractions from other people probably helped!)
As for the episode itself - well it did what it had to do. I often find that the anniversary specials are more about the novelty of the thing rather than producing a magnificent story.
The three Doctors was probably the best of the lot, and that was because it was structured as a normal four part story rather than a special. Although the Five Doctors was fun it was more a case of what can we squeeze in, rather than giving us an all out fantastic story.
By the time we hit the 25th anniversary we had Silver Nemesis...
This then was different. Doctor Who has changed since back in them there days, often referred to as New Who. Sometimes it is meant as a good thing and by others it is meant as bad.
This hit the mark as good, for me at least. It was a good, fun story, that paid tribute to the last 50 years, while setting up a new direction for the show. (Not quite as big as Moffatt might have been suggesting but interesting all the same.)
The start was a deliberate tribute to the opening scenes of An Unearthly Child, which was a good idea, although let down a bit by the placing of the I M Foreman sign. Not sure how I feel about Clara working at Coal Hill School, but it raised a smile. (She looks too young to be a teacher - but I seem to be thinking that about teachers in general thesae days)
Like Lenny I thought there was something not quite right with the Elizabeth scenes. I don’t really know what it was though as it seemed all right in principle, and it set up her animosity to him, but it felt off. It might have been the actress I suppose, or just the way she was written.
While watching John Hurt I could almost imagine Christopher Eccleston saying some of the lines, and from reading between the lines of interviews I get the impression that Moffatt and co were really hoping to get him in the end. They didn’t and inserted the new Doctor, and tweaking things accordingly.
All three Doctors worked brilliantly, and were what made the episode. Smith and Tennant timed their reactions perfectly, quite obviously the same man and yet totally different, while Hurt brought the gravitas. It was kind of funny to see the younger Doctor being the more mature, and how he lightened up around his future versions.
There was a lot of humour, and some timey-wimey stuff. The software in the screwdriver running over a long period of time to solve problems was good, but even better was Clara walking in and saying the door was unlocked all along.
A few things that really caught me out - in a good way, anniversary surprises. In the mini episode seeing Paul McGann was wonderful and well kept under wraps, and seeing all the Doctors in the finale was magical, although as much as I cheered to see Capaldi I think it was a mistake, it should have been up to the current Doctor, if a future incarnation turned up, then where were others after that? Are there not going to be any more?
But biggest for me was the old man, The Curator at the end. I knew who it was from the moment the booming tones were heard, and the way it was played out was perfect, from Smith’s ‘I’ve seen that face before’ through t Baker’s cryptic and intriguing comments. Some of the old faces come around again. I’m sure they do in life you see people who look similar or meet old people you knew when they were younger... Or is there more to come on the regeneration front? It does not matter so much as seeing Tom Baker on the screen in Doctor Who again. The little boy locked away deep inside of me was cheering out loud.
Like much of New Who it had its flaws, and as someone else has said with all the hype it might not have been able to live up to itself simply because nothing could match the level of anticipation. The fact that it was immensely enjoyable shows it was able to sidestep the issue.
As I have pointed out elsewhere, I think Moffatt as a show runner has been slowly getting weaker as his tenure draws on – the reasons for this could be many, but for now it is the only thing that’s stands out, but this episode proves he can still write excellent standalones, probably his greatest strength. This was not his best, but it ticked all the boxes one could have hoped for in an anniversary episode.
One of the last things it sets up is a new direction for the Doctor, something that turns everything around on itself. As stated it is not as big a change as has been mooted, but in itself it changes the core of the show. Since it began 50 years ago, the Doctor has been running away from his past, from his home. Now he is trying to fully return there. Interesting.