Head writer and executive producer Stephan Moffat has outdone himself this time around, this season of the long running BBC cult favorite one of its very best. Things get off to a solid start with the two-parter “The Impossible Astronaut” and “Day of the Moon” in which a new alien menace is revealed in the form of The Silence and the series’ main storyline is shaped. For the next four episodes, Moffat moves away from the main story and presents four episodes that are largely self-contained. “The Curse of the Black Spot” finds the TARDIS in the 17th century on board a pirate ship whose crew is being terrorized by a Siren-like creature. Written by Neil Gaiman, “The Doctor’s Wife” finds the spirit of the TARDIS made flesh through a rather strange set of circumstances; longtime Dr. Who fans will likely love the undeniable charm of this episode. With the fourth and fifth episode two-parter “The Rebel Flesh” and “The Almost People” the series’ main storyline is still MIA for the most part with unhappy doppelgangers running amuck in an isolated acid factory. While I found myself wanting to get back to the main storyline, it’s impossible to deny that this cliffhanger ending for the first part made for excellent television.
“A Good Man Goes to War” finds the series returning to the main storyline. This one finds the Doctor calling in favors from across the galaxy to mount a rescue effort, and River reveals a secret. Set a few months later, “Let’s Kill Hitler” kicks off the second half of series six with The Doctor joined by Amy, Rory and their longtime friend Mels (Nina Toussaint-White) who insists they take the TARDIS back to 1938 Berlin and assassinate Hitler. From there, things shift back to four more largely standalone episodes. In “Night Terrors,” the Doctor lends a hand to an eight-year-old boy who has become so terrified by nightmares that he can no longer sleep. In one of my favorite episodes, The Girl Who Waited” finds Amy trapped between time streams, cut off from The Doctor and Rory, who eventually encounter a future—and altogether different—version of their friend. “The God Complex” has everyone trapped in a very strange hotel. James Corden returns as Craig to assist The Doctor again in the run-of-the-mill “Closing Time”.
The main storyline returns to the spotlight in the series finale, “The Wedding of River Song” facing his fate, as River Song’s decision makes things all the more difficult. While series six does have moments of weakness, Stephan Moffat and crew do a fine job of wrapping up some lingering questions from previous seasons. It also seems as though after two series, Matt Smith is comfortable as the Doctor and is beginning to add his own characteristics to the character.
The disc comes with a nice slate of special features: Along with 13 episodes and the 2010 Christmas episode, there’s five audio commentaries with a rotating lineup of both cast members and creative staff: “The Impossible Astronaut,” “The Doctor’s Wife” (featuring writer Neil Gaiman), “The Rebel Flesh,” “A Good Man Goes to War” and “The Wedding of River Song.” Sadly, stars Matt Smith and Karen Gillan are nowhere to be found in the commentaries, and Stephen Moffat only shows up on the very last one (“The Wedding of River Song”), but each of the commentaries manages to be amusing and informative regardless of who is participating.
The best special features on the set are probably the collection of thirteen “Doctor Who Confidential” documentaries which run over two and a half hours in total. The documentaries (which are comprised of behind-the-scenes footage, interviews and more) give a clear picture of how the episodes come together, with each “Confidential” focusing on a different aspect of the production. A “Confidential” installment is also included for “A Christmas Carol,” which runs nearly an hour.
Several short films and sketches have also been included: “Comic Relief Sketches,” “Series Six Episode Prequels,” “Night and the Doctor Shorts” and an “Up All Night Short” give little bits of character information and show the cast having fun. Trailers for Series Six, Part One and Series Six, Part Two are included, as is a look at the various alien and creature designs (“Monster Files”) and a “Confidential” episode that goes behind the scenes of the “Night” shorts (“The Nights’ Tale”).
