Eleventh Doctor Rewatch: The Time of the Angels

I think this and the next episode may be the only episodes that I enjoy seeing River together with Eleven. Actually, my general opinion of River in episodes after this slides downhill – at least the first time I watched them. We shall see if that opinion holds after the re-watch. This episode has great pace and definitely is one of the episodes that I can see being remembered as “classic.” Really, this is a cornerstone of the season. The reveal in the cave that the statues are angels is pretty stellar, and the Doctor’s reaction to that marks a change in the Doctor from the man we have known to the man he will become over the next few years.

Fixed Points: The scene with Amy watching the video clip of the angel.

Forgettable: The moment where The Doctor shoots the gun is not a favorite of mine.

 Line of the Episode: “I had lessons form the very best. It’s a shame you were busy that day.” – River Song

Foreshadowing: Let’s just say this isn’t the last time Amelia Pond will have a close call with an angel. Also, at the beginning of the episode, The Doctor mentions that the museum is the “final resting place of the headless monks.”

Fan-Service: It is an episode about Weeping Angels. What more fan-service do you want? Also, at this point it is unclear if this is fan-service or foreshadowing or just an interesting blip, but BDU’s that River ends up wearing has an Omega patch and the part of the ship Amy watches the video of the Angel in has Omega painted over the door. There have been lots of theories over the years about Moffat doing a subtle multi-season build-up to the return of Omega. Omega is an early Time Lord who sought revenge after exile in the 10^th Anniversary special.