PART 2 of 2
Written by Paul Cornell
Directed by Charles Palmer
“The Time Lord has such adventures…but he could never have a life like that.”
“Yet I could.”
This is a work of indescribable beauty. It’s the best episode of the revived Doctor Who by far…and it’s become, what I believe, to be the best episode of Doctor Who’s entire 44 year history to date. The friend I was watching with was trying hard not to cry as we came to the end of the episode…and I realized (after the fact), that I was holding my breath throughout the final ten minutes!
It’s an anti-war episode, without being preachy or soap-box-ish. It centres on John Smith’s inability to use a gun…and Nurse Redfern’s remonstration that Smith – never mind the Doctor – knows it’s wrong for boys to become killers. It says sometimes you need to fight…but violence isn’t necessarily the solution…and that people always have a choice. It presents characters as real, three-dimensional people who don’t need to make speeches or provide info-dumps. By being themselves, the audience gets all the motivational explanation it needs.
It’s about dealing with the consequences of your actions. It’s about John Smith choosing to die, even though he’s terrified and wants to live. It’s about the Doctor not measuring up to the human John Smith, but willing to live with what’s been done…and it’s about not being able to plan ahead for everything. It’s about the Doctor being unable to stop the death that seems to follow him, even when he arrives somewhere on a whim. As for The Family, they certainly don’t think twice…and they pay the ultimate price.
“He never raised his voice, that was the worst thing. The fury of the Time Lord, and then we discovered why. Why this Doctor, who had fought with gods and demons, why he’d run away from us and hidden. He was being kind.”
It’s about the terrible power and rage of the Time Lords…and it takes the Doctor to dark places that he hasn’t visited in a long time. This is where nearly two seasons of development have been leading…and it’s a terribly frightening-yet-fitting fate that the Doctor unleashes upon The Family. It’s a powerful, triumphant punishment…and a bone-chilling retribution.
It’s about unrequited love in all its forms: unspoken, embarrassed crushes…sickening, twisted familial affection…gentle, powerful, wholesome love between two kindred souls…and the resulting heartbreak that can arise from even the most committed relationship.
“He was braver than you in the end, that ordinary man. You chose to change…he chose to die.”
It’s about David Tennant – a man I consider to be the finest Doctor in over two decades. As far as I’m concerned, he’s on par with the powerful, cultural impact of the Jon Pertwee/Tom Baker/Peter Davison triumvirate. But this man shares another commonality with the magnificent Davison: he can ACT. His performance in The Family of Blood is astonishing AND magnificent – it makes your gut twist and your heart break watching his journey through the episode…from his terrifying performance as John Smith, to this thunderous, god-like return as the Doctor. Breathtaking is simply inadequate as praise…and there aren’t enough BAFTA awards for what he does in this episode.
I’m going to stop here, because any other words I can think of aren’t adequate in any shape or form. The Family of Blood isn’t simply outstanding Doctor Who…it’s television at its most sublime, supreme & majestic. This is a lyrical, operatic masterpiece – something Charles Dickens or Margaret Atwood would give their souls to write…but Paul Cornell beat them to it.
A glittering jewel, which should be eternally cherished…and if it didn’t emotionally affect you in the slightest…what’s wrong with you!?!
10+
