- 6 minutes ago
Some call it Doctor Who's greatest episode ever. It's hard to believe that Heaven Sent is now TEN years old, but it's also the perfect time to reflect on the episode, why it's so beloved, and how the powerful ordeal the Twelfth Doctor is forced through makes for one of the most richly unique Doctor Who stories ever.
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00:00It is the 10th anniversary of the airing of one of the greatest episodes of the Peter
00:06Capaldi era for sure, Heaven Sent. How has it been 10 years already? Honestly at this
00:12point time is meaningless because sometimes it feels like it was even longer than 10 years
00:17ago and then other times it doesn't feel like it's been that long at all. It's very wibbly
00:21wobbly timey wimey. So I want to start with memories of when the episode aired and I would
00:25love to give you this really lovely story about how I remember the day it aired like
00:30it was yesterday and I can give you all the details of what happened. If I'm being truthful
00:35with you, I don't remember if I even watched this episode on its air date or not. I think
00:41like a lot of fans, especially ones perhaps around my age, at this point in the modern
00:47era I had kind of dropped off of Doctor Who for a while and I think part of that comes
00:51down to the fact that I was around 17 at the time and you know most of my friends had
00:56well and truly grown out of Doctor Who by this point and I was still clinging in there but
01:00I do feel like at 17 when you're in college maybe watching Doctor Who on a Saturday evening
01:06wasn't your priority. But also more than that I think, and again especially because of my
01:11age and I think a lot of people my age found this as well, is that we were the generation
01:16of kids that grew up watching the modern era, the revival era from the beginning and the
01:23majority of that up until then was a much younger bubbly Doctor. You know obviously there was
01:29Christopher Eccleston at the beginning but we kind of grew up surrounded by David Tennant
01:34and Matt Smith as the Doctor. That's what we kind of knew as the Doctor, we didn't know
01:37classic Who and so I think when Matt Smith regenerated into Peter Capaldi there was a shift
01:44in the personality of the Doctor that was far greater from Matt Smith to Peter Capaldi than
01:51from David Tennant to Matt Smith. And it just wasn't what we were used to and although it
01:55was a step more towards the classic era of the show in Peter Capaldi's performance I think
02:00for perhaps people my age at the time it just didn't feel the same to us and it didn't sit
02:06well with us this change, this shift in tone of the Doctor. And the early series of Peter
02:11Capaldi were very dark so it just kind of felt like it wasn't the same show anymore.
02:15So I'd love to give you this lovely story of, I remember the day I watched it but I don't
02:20remember if I watched it on the day of airing. I obviously did watch it, if I'm being totally
02:24honest I think when I did watch it I didn't fully appreciate what this episode was doing
02:31and how significant this episode was. Not just in terms of exploration of the Doctor and
02:36what the storyline is, but also just in terms of being a different approach to a Doctor Who
02:41episode than anything we'd seen before. I just don't think I fully appreciated that at
02:45the time. It's only more recently, as I've got older, as perhaps my job has more focused
02:50around that sort of thing, that I've watched that episode again and kind of gone actually
02:55yeah, I did not get the significance of this episode at the time but now I see why it's so
03:01hyped because it really is a brilliant episode. Before I do go any further I do want to just
03:06mention of course it is Black Friday weekend and we do have a link on the channel which you can
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03:19quite handy for our non-UK viewers when the war between the land and the sea drops on Disney Plus
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03:30some money. Yeah? Helps you out! Helps us out as a channel, everybody's happy! Except for maybe
03:38the Doctor in this episode. So it's always very interesting to kind of hear where certain
03:43inspiration comes when writing an episode. And the thing that I find really interesting about
03:47this particular episode is that it was actually inspired by some criticism of the earlier Moffat
03:54series. More specifically there was a lot of criticism for the fact that particularly with Amy
03:59and Rory and the fact that they had lost their daughter, their baby had been kidnapped, there didn't
04:04really seem to be much exploration of the personal impact that that had, the emotional impact that
04:11that had on Amy and Rory. You know the kind of nature of the show at the time basically said
04:16that by the
04:16next episode they had to be fine with it, kind of got over it, and let's get on with the
04:21next
04:21adventure. And there was criticism that there was an exploration of the deeper meaning and the deeper
04:26impact of these very, very traumatic events that were happening to these people. And so Stephen Moffat
04:32basically was determined to prove that they could write deeper, more sophisticated episodes and
04:37especially with regards to exploration of grief and loss. And that is what inspired him to write
04:44this particular episode. Which is very interesting and kind of reassuring to know that at least at
04:50that point the writers were taking on board the comments and criticism and critique that were
04:55coming from the viewers and the fans. I think obviously there comes a time where the writer has
05:00to do what they think is best for the show and they generally do know what is best for the
05:04show.
05:05But I think it is also important they listen to their audience because sometimes their audience,
05:10well most of the time the audience is the most important, are the most important people.
05:15And if you don't listen to your audience you kind of end up creating something that nobody's very
05:19interested in because you're just falling into the same traps and not not listening to the things
05:24they want to see or the the issues that they are having with what is currently happening. So
05:29it's very very good that Moffat took that criticism and ran with it and went right let's do something
05:36about this. So of course Moffat has had this criticism he's then got this idea that he is going to
05:42explore grief in the Doctor by killing off Clara. What's great about this as well is that he didn't
05:48wait until the final episode of the series to kill off the companion. By doing it earlier in the series
05:55it meant that we had time to explore this grief and loss much more complexly, I think complexly is a
06:03word, much more in depth without just rushing through it because we haven't got time anymore. By doing it
06:09kind of the third episode from the end you had two episodes to really explore what this meant to the
06:14Doctor and go into some real, go to some dark places. So yeah I'm glad that he listened to that
06:21criticism and that's what leads us into this episode where the Doctor as we see is trying to
06:28deal with that grief, trying to deal with that loss, trying to accept that Clara is gone because
06:33obviously we see right from the beginning of the episode that he still talks to her like she's there
06:37and kind of it's a really really deep exploration of the different stages of grief. And as I say when
06:44I first watched this episode, whenever that might have been, I don't think I fully grasped that at the
06:49time. I think when I first watched it I basically thought this is not like Doctor Who, this is
06:54different, I don't like change, where's all the action and monsters, where's the companion, obviously
07:00she'd been killed, but it just it wasn't like any Doctor Who episode we'd seen before and I think I
07:05didn't fully appreciate what it actually was. And then as I said earlier when I've re-watched it since
07:11I've really appreciated it. Not just from a story standpoint but also from a performance standpoint,
07:17from a directing standpoint, from a writing standpoint I think, for Peter Capaldi to have
07:23carried this entire episode single-handedly and it never feel boring, never feel too repetitive and
07:32for an episode that's literally based around a time loop that's very impressive. And then you've got
07:37the directing from Rachel Talalay which is, I mean it's just, it's different from most Doctor Who episodes
07:43but it's also very stylistic, it's dramatic, all these things that you would take for granted in
07:50any other episode, in this episode are heightened by the fact that you've removed so many elements
07:55of what you would usually rely on when making a Doctor Who episode. So you know from an in-universe
08:01perspective the Doctor has had all the things that he uses to hide behind stripped away. He's not got a
08:07TARDIS, he's not got a sonic screwdriver, he's not got a companion there. All the things he would usually
08:12use to mask his fears, to hide behind, to use to kind of give himself confidence are stripped away
08:22so that he is left with nothing. Which you know is the point of the confession dial that he's trapped
08:27in, is to kind of reduce him down to the point where he is so scared that he confesses all
08:32of his sins,
08:32confesses everything he knows. But then if you also look at that from a production point of view you've
08:37also removed those elements from a production standpoint as well. You've not got the TARDIS,
08:42which means we don't have any scenes we can bulk the plot out with with regards to using the TARDIS
08:47somehow to save the day or those scenes you usually bookend an episode where we're in the TARDIS to
08:52start with and we're in the TARDIS at the end. Likewise you don't have a companion there so you
08:56don't have any scenes you can bulk out where the Doctor and the companion are having a little
09:00conversation here or there or and then even beyond that, yes there is the veil but there's no
09:06predominant alien or monster that is really driving the narrative and so you don't have
09:12lots of room for massive set pieces or the things that usually would bulk out a Doctor Who episode.
09:19And as I say this episode still manages to not ever feel too repetitive or boring or
09:23or any of those things despite the limitations put on it. That's literally the point of this episode,
09:29to strip away all those things and to look at the bare bones of what the Doctor is facing.
09:35Now you knew it was only a matter of time before I came to it but another thing that really
09:39drives
09:39this episode and I honestly it wouldn't be as powerful without is Murraygold's music. Now I know
09:45I go on about Murraygold all the time and you're probably sick of hearing me talk about him but
09:49this episode in particular is such a strong example of how powerful his music can be. With a lot of
10:00it being about reflection and obviously a lot of repetitiveness going on it's so important that the
10:06emotion is right and the music is just perfect throughout. It just drives everything forward. It
10:13drives moments of motivation for the Doctor, it drives moments of reflection for the Doctor and of course
10:19you then do have that that powerful climax at the end that gives a little bit of hope for not
10:25just the Doctor but the audience as well. Obviously the Doctor can't hear the music but it drives the
10:29emotional narrative of the episode so well without it having to rely on the Doctor's dialogue or you
10:36know that is a very important part as well and as I say Peter Capaldi absolutely carries this episode
10:42single-handedly but the music really drives the emotional narrative of this episode. So then we have this
10:48element of the episode which I like to call the Mind Palace element of the episode which is in the
10:53TARDIS
10:54which kind of breaks up the repetitive use of the castle setting. I really feel like you can tell
11:00from this episode in particular that this was written by the same person who was writing the Sherlock
11:05series at the same time because there are so many similarities especially with this Mind Palace
11:10idea. You can see if you didn't know that Moffat wrote for Sherlock Holmes this episode would make you go
11:15you should write for Sherlock Holmes because there is a lot of that kind of mystery solving going on
11:21and then yes the Mind Palace that kind of freezing time around yourself going into your own mind
11:25and finding a solution in the moment. Yes it is a bit of reusing ideas from other projects but that
11:32that's not an issue. In some regards that might not work but in this instance it definitely works
11:36because the Doctor is almost like Sherlock Holmes in a way and it does make sense that he would have
11:41this
11:42inner conversation going on and again it's an exploration of grief so even without any consideration
11:47of him being really smart and clever and using his mind to solve problems, if you just look at it
11:53as an examination of grief he's using that voice of that person he's lost in his mind to motivate him
12:00and help him move forward and deal with that. And what I really like about these scenes in the TARDIS
12:04is
12:05actually that you don't see Clara's face I like that she's shrouded because it's it's important that
12:11he knows she's gone but that doesn't mean that she's gone from his mind from his memory so I think
12:18the
12:18the imagery of her having her back to him the whole time worked really really well and she didn't speak
12:24to him because she's no longer there as a voice but she is there as this constant constant kind of
12:32metaphorical voice in his head so I think those scenes worked really really well if I'm being
12:36honest I think the moment where Clara actually becomes visible and comes towards him and starts
12:40talking to him I think that bit was unnecessary I don't think we needed that I think it worked quite
12:44well just not seeing her it kind of helped to highlight the fact that she really was gone
12:49obviously the following episode then brought her back and changed all of that up but I think in this
12:55episode it actually worked better with her being shrouded and not not being there I understand why
13:02they did it and it doesn't harm the episode in any way I just personally I actually don't think that
13:06bit was necessary but you know it's a great episode if I was going to do an ups and downs
13:11for this episode
13:11I think we would struggle for downs so hence why we haven't done it it'd be a pretty boring video
13:17the only other strong memory I have of watching this episode and something that comes to mind every single
13:23time I watch it is is the flies around the veil I it makes me feel horrible I'm not I
13:30don't enjoy
13:30flies I don't think anyone really likes flies but the fact that they're so the noise they make what
13:36they imply the fact that it's from the doctor's memory of a rotting corpse and that just makes it
13:41all the worse I don't enjoy the flies and there were scenes where I mean I don't know whether they
13:46were real or CGI I'm assuming they weren't real the fact that they were so close to him and he's
13:51breathing his mouth's open I'm thinking close your mouth the flies the flies oh no so I didn't like
13:57that bit but not from a point of view of that's a bad part of the episode that's a good
14:01thing in the
14:02episode that made me feel uncomfortable so let's flip it now let's look at the things I really did
14:06enjoy if if I had to pick a favorite moment in this episode I think it would be probably similar
14:10to
14:10most people's it has to be that the climax of the episode where he begins to figure out what he's
14:16got to do he finds the wall he recalls the story and we get into the the time loop of
14:23him slowly
14:23breaking his way through the wall and the thing I really like about this moment or this sequence
14:28is the fact that the story is told gets fuller and fuller as he gets further and further into the
14:35wall
14:36as the time gets more as more and more time is allowed because he's getting further and further
14:42away from the veil and just those few seconds each time I think that's really powerful and I think
14:47of all the elements in that loop sequence that is the most important part that's the part that tells
14:52you that time is progressing apart from the very obvious I've traveled this far in the future I've
14:57traveled this far in the future you know that bit's kind of very expositiony whereas the storytelling
15:03I think is the most important part of telling us that time is slowly progressing because the story
15:09is literally being told second by second each time and that's I think the most powerful part of it
15:15that it takes him that long to save a few lines of a of a story so yeah that that
15:22is my favorite part
15:22of the episode it's hard to pick just a single thing because it is a overall a very very good
15:28one so
15:28yeah that moment Murray Gold's music and a standout performance from Peter Capaldi just a strong
15:35episode that stands up even now 10 years later some episodes you watch and you go yeah that hasn't
15:40aged so well this episode is still such a strong episode and I think part of that is almost the
15:49simplicity of it in as much as you're not relying much on anything other than performance um and you
15:57know there's not nothing major in terms of set pieces or anything like that so I think that is part
16:03of
16:03it but also the fact that it's such a a deep examination of something that almost everyone
16:09has experienced and I think that is a real contributing factor as to why it's such a strong
16:14episode as well I'd love to hear your thoughts in this episode um with some reflection of the last 10
16:20years whether you think it still stands up today your memories of watching it when it first aired if you
16:25can remember if you weren't like me and had kind of dropped off a little bit and of course we
16:29do have
16:29if you'll remember a video on the channel that goes into even further exploration of this episode as
16:35an examination of the stages of grief it was a really interesting deep dive that I would highly
16:40recommend you checking out if you haven't watched that video so that is now linked on the screen and
16:45go check that out in the meantime I've been Ellie for Who Culture and in the words of Riversong herself
16:51goodbye sweeties
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