Dr Who 23/4/11: The Impossible Spaceman

[House of Usher]

the way they shot the diner did look like they weren't in Kansas anymore - mind you continuity wise you'd probably rather just shoot it all without a massive relocation going on. My guess would be real-yank diner at 3am when its shut.

You've not been to Cardiff, have you?  


I just googled it - should have done in the first place - it was indeed Eddie's Diner in Cardiff Bay.

[Matt Timson]

Does that mean when they were in the diner and she was going through her Tardis notebook there was less information in it than it had contained previously in episodes where she appears as her older self?

I would imagine so, yes.

[House of Usher]

I would imagine so, yes.

Cool, that'll do me. I suppose I know where I am with this programme now.

[Dandontdare]

Did she really die in the library episode?   Sheesh, I've got a memory like a... what are those little orange fish called again?

Okay, forget I spoke, move along, nothing to see here....

[Matt Timson]

I would imagine so, yes.

Cool, that'll do me. I suppose I know where I am with this programme now.

I'd also guess that, at some point, The Doctor will give River that little Tardis notebook.

[House of Usher]

That'll be cute. I presume [spoiler]it will have entirely blank pages and she'll have to fill them in as she goes[/spoiler]!

[Keef Monkey]

She didn't actually say she would die on the day he first met her did she? I'm sure she just said that when she finally encountered him and he didn't know who she was it would kill her, I didn't think she was talking literally, just an emo-death.

I enjoyed this, but have to admit I didn't follow it much. I was eating at the time mind you, it might have demanded more concentration than I was giving it. I liked that lawyer dude from BSG appeared, he's a good egg.

As far as viewing figures go, usually I know about it weeks before it's on but this time round I had no idea and had to catch it on iplayer. They maybe weren't pimping it out as much as usual.

[Matt Timson]

Did she really die in the library episode?   Sheesh, I've got a memory like a... what are those little orange fish called again?

Okay, forget I spoke, move along, nothing to see here....

To be honest, that's what was confusing me at first.  It was only when I remembered that she'd died that it made any sense.  

I'm sure that there will be the occasional overlap as well, though.  For example, it's reasonably logical to assume that this River Song hasn't had the encounter with the Angels yet- but there's also no real reason why this version of River can't be one that exists after that episode either- that being the nature of time travel and all (which is obviously why they compare diaries).

Hmmm... so actually, with that said, there's no real reason why every version of the Doctor that River meets must know her a little less than the last.  In fact, this very episode contradicts this, given that she meets with a Doctor that is 200 years older than the one she met previously (previously actually being later on for River).  No, wait- did I just prove the original premise there?!?

Nggghhh.  Either way, It's a lot easier from the Doctor's point of view, because we just learn things about River at the same time he does.

I think my brain just melted.

[Emperor]

On a bit of a tangent from the timey whimey stuff but the BBC has the over nights in and it averaged 6.5 million. 1.5 down from Matt Smith opener last time. Given it was a sunny day, such a sunny day (Thunderstorms aside) doesn't sound too bad, though wasn't it sunny last year for the opener?

Some people suggested it was down to the Beeb moving it forward 45 minutes to shore up their sagging Saturday evening schedules, but it was actually only down about 1% on the audience share, which suggests either everyone was out doing more interesting things or that more people are time-shifting their viewing (which seems a suitable way to watch it ). What will be interesting is seeing how many people watched it later on iPlayer.

[JamesC]

Do they have any way of knowing if people record it? I make sure I record it on my V+ box if I'm out on a Saturday night. I don't like to rely on iPlayer as I've had bad experiences with it.

[Bat King]

I think River Song may have a fully written diary - she rummages through it checking if things have happened yet for both of them.  I think the notes are too brief for her to know enough about her future.  So I doubt she knows she really dies on the day the Doctor first meets her.

River, unlike the Doctor, would clearly utilise those 'Spoilers' (love the way she says it).  So, this explains why she 'remembers' what hasn't happened to her yet.  Details might be vague but she knows enough to follow where she is in his timeline.

And I bet she steals it from the Doctor when she first meets him.  They do keep score of one-up-time-travellership after all, has to start somewhere.  Her switching a blank blue book for the completed one (no one ever writing it) is a perfect River Song 'Spoiler' type Paradox.

[House of Usher]

Yes, that's another possibility - River Song has had the same, filled-in notebook all along, and at some point in her past and the Doctor's future, she obtains the book fully written in with vital information concerning all their future adventures together. I can imagine this making for some quite good spin-off novels from the series.

[Goaty]

Great episode! No-one notices the opening of Doctor Who episode? oh Steven Moffat is so clever! Think the opening gives out the big clue?

[spoiler]As when the episode start, it was In the 16th century, with Doctor under the lady painter's dress, and did took part in a World War II breakout from a POW camp, and appears in film of Laurel and Hardy, make me wonder where the future Doctor's TARDIS were, maybe he lost it, and appears in past and lived it on the running???
[/spoiler]

it was good episode by the way, but is it only one episode that not featured Aliens? Cant remember if see any aliens in this episode!

[House of Usher]

it was good episode by the way, but is it only one episode that not featured Aliens? Cant remember if see any aliens in this episode!

Haha! Nice. [spoiler]I see what you did there.[/spoiler] 

[Bat King]

Great episode! No-one notices the opening of Doctor Who episode? oh Steven Moffat is so clever! Think the opening gives out the big clue?

[spoiler]As when the episode start, it was In the 16th century, with Doctor under the lady painter's dress, and did took part in a World War II breakout from a POW camp, and appears in film of Laurel and Hardy, make me wonder where the future Doctor's TARDIS were, maybe he lost it, and appears in past and lived it on the running???
[/spoiler]

it was good episode by the way, but is it only one episode that not featured Aliens? Cant remember if see any aliens in this episode!

Only problem with your idea, plausible as it is... [spoiler]He is 200 years older not roughly 400 years older.[/spoiler]