The Cloister Bell

After several disappointments this season, Steven Moffat finally proved why he is my favorite Doctor Who storyteller. Although Russell Davies is great at the epic story, Moffat weaves tales full of twists and turns and surprises, as evidenced by the two part season ender: Pandorica/Big Bang.

Beginning with the reveal that the Doctor is perceived as the most dangerous creature in the Universe, through all of the back and forth time travel, the story came together in a delightful way, which also shed light on the hints and clues sprinkled throughout the season.

Watching the entire season again after the spoilers have been revealed in these episodes, adds a whole new dimension to the viewing pleasure. Even the 11th Hour, which I originally found disappointing, now looks a lot better, right down to the ringing of the Cloister Bell when the Tardis engines threaten to overheat.

Big Bang really made sense, in a Doctor Who kind of way, with the Universe disappearing and all. The only thing I found a bit hard to believe was the Doctor’s return at the end because Amy remembered him. I mean, he was supposed to be in the Void between Universes. But then again, it wasn’t all that far fetched when you consider how Martha Jones brought the Doctor back to his youthful form, by spending a year asking people around the world to invoke the Doctor’s name in The Last of the Time Lords.

As for the rewind, did you notice what happened in the forest with the Angels? It was the rewind Doctor who was there, telling Amy to remember !! Fantastic !

Meanwhile Matt Smith has moved way up my list of favorite Doctors. David Tennant, of course, will always be No. 1, but I love Smith’s timing in delivering his lines. “I wear a fez now. Fez’s are cool.” Even Rory impressed me with his comedic delivery: “Well, I died and turned into a Roman. It’s very distracting.”

The series this season has also been very obvious in it’s homage to the earlier Doctors. While David Tennant was subtle with his Tom Baker “Well…” and long coat, as was Peter Davison with his unsuccessful attempt to play Patrick Troughton’s recorder, Matt Smith was a bit more obvious, flashing William Hartnell’s library card, and taking dips in the Tardis’ swimming pool.

The Tardis, itself is beginning to show more structure. One can only hope to once again see the Cloister which first made an appearance in Tom Baker’s Logopolis, and was last seen in the Paul McGann film.

Tennant, meanwhile heard the warning of the Cloister Bell in about 3 or 4 episodes, including the Children in Need espisode, Time Crash, where he and Peter Davison join forces to fix the Tardis.

With Doctor Who ringing a satisfying note in the final episodes of Series 5, it promises to be long wait until Series 6. Thankfully there are a lot of old shows to catch up on.

The Moral of the Story is: If you have a Cloister Bell ringtone, you have been watching way too much Doctor Who.