Season 9: Spoilers, Speculation and All Discussion In-between

[FiveByFive]

While I'm not the biggest Clara fan, I don't want the character to die.  It's okay for the companion to simply move on with their lives.  I understand and approve of giving the companions more of a storyline than in the original series but at the same time, it's OKAY for them to simply move on with their lives, their time spent with the Doctor improving them (and him) for the better.

I love the idea that this can happen but unfortunately the only person that's managed to do that in recent history was Martha Jones and that may be too "recent" for them to simply allow Clara to walk away. Of course, "trapped in another dimension with a Doctor Clone," "time locked in the past and now dead" and "can't remember anything or my brain will explode but apparently very rich" aren't terrible endings. They're not great but they're certainly not instant death.

 

It seems that with the Doctor in the new series, with the exception of Martha, companions have to be "pried" away from the Doctor or else they'd never move on. (She also had the benefit of being the one, after leaving and returning briefly, to say - she didn't want to travel with him again even for kicks.) If historical majority is any indicator, Clara will be forced away. 

 

However, whatever happens I don't want Clara to die. I felt like the character was played out after her first season but somehow she managed to stick around. I simply don't dislike her enough as a character to want her gone forever in a way where she simply will not exist anymore or have had some chance to live a life. 

Edited September 20, 2015 by FiveByFive

[crowswork]

I thought that Clara might be reunited with Danny and have a baby,,, to fulfill the far future Pink they met. 

[crowswork]

I'd love a kid companion or male one. Too young though might not work with dangerous adventures.

It tickles me that Jamie was the inspiration for Outlander's Jamie.

 

The psychic boy from the Teacher Smith ep would be good. He's just WW1 cannon fodder so the Doctor could save him. A  companion from the past might be fun.

[penguinnj]

 

Of course, "trapped in another dimension with a Doctor Clone...etc seen;t terrible endings"

This always makes me giggle because I imagine Rose as a contestant a game show who looses the big prize but gets sent home with consolation swag and the home version of the game to take back with her- thanks for playing :)

Seriously- she's ok and got a really decent ending all things considered. Martha chose to leave and follow her own path.  Donna's end is truly tragic-ugh, still hard to watch.  Yes, the weeping angels got Rory and Amy but they did live out their lives together, and according to Amy, they were very happy.  I never really understood why the doctor could't visit the, but timey whimey.   But there is a minisode called Doctor Who P.S. which has the sketches and plot for a couple of scenes that Brian would have gotten similar to the man who gives Sally Sparrow the letter from her friend in Blink.  Any and Rory adopted eventually and seemed quite happy- and Brian meets his grandson who is about the same age he is.  Rory writes his dad a letter explaining what has happened and I have to say it seems like it could have been a lot worse for the Ponds.  Not sure what will happen to Clara, but I sort of think it will be tragic just because they haven;t been particularly sad,  The Doctor gets sad, nut their individual situations aren;t so terrible.

Edited September 21, 2015 by penguinnj

[elle]

This always makes me giggle because I imagine Rose as a contestant a game show who looses the big prize but gets sent home with consolation swag and the home version of the game to take back with her- thanks for playing :)

Sad and true, this is the feeling I get from that scene.  Thanks for putting into words.

 

But there is a minisode called Doctor Who P.S. which has the sketches and plot for a couple of scenes that Brian would have gotten similar to the man who gives Sally Sparrow the letter from her friend in Blink.  Any and Rory adopted eventually and seemed quite happy- and Brian meets his grandson who is about the same age he is.  Rory writes his dad a letter explaining what has happened and I have to say it seems like it could have been a lot worse for the Ponds.  

I wish that they, tptb, used some of their money for one less shot of the squabbling robot twins (Dinosaurs on a Spaceship) and used it instead to actual film this scene.  They could have slipped it in after the Eleven had read Amy's "afterward" note to him.

[elle]

 

Trapped and alone in a terrifying Dalek city, the Doctor is at the heart of an evil Empire; no sonic, no TARDIS, nobody to help. With his greatest temptation before him, can the Doctor resist? And will there be mercy?

The synopsis for "The Witch's Familiar".   I read this and immediately thought of The Emperor's Throne Room with Luke and The Emperor taunting him.

Edited September 25, 2015 by elle

[elle]

Not spoiled yet for part 2

 

It accorded me to that if they did away with the Daleks (as if), then that would mean no BadWolf!Rose !  Or maybe Rose at all, if 9 didn't think he had destroyed Gallifrey.  And of course then there would be no 10.5.   Could tptb be so cold as to melt someone's else's super special snowflake creation?

[HauntedBathroom]

They didn't, but I'd be so happy if they did!

Edited September 27, 2015 by HauntedBathroom

[marketdoctor]

This is pure speculation for "Before the Flood" (second part of "Under the Lake.")

 

What if the ghosts aren't the dead as such, but are electromagnetic "ghosts" (e.g. "ghost signals"); they're electromagnetic reflections of life--like an after-image on a TV set or a delayed reaction on a computer screen.  That's why they can't get through a Faraday cage (nice touch), and have many other characteristics of EM signal ghosts--not complete, simpler message, etc.  It even fits the '60s outfit theme, because this was a bigger problem in '60s-era electronics.  It even fits Dr. Who, because it gives a quasi-science explanation to a "supernatural" phenomenon--though the show has walked that line before (Warewolves, vampires, even ghosts before with the Cybermen invading from the universe next door).

[truther]

Is it just me, or is there a lot less chatter about this show than in seasons past?  You look at the topics and most of them haven't had a new comment in days.  Even the episode threads show a marked drop-off in posts and views. 

[penguinnj]

 

I can't see Clara willingly giving up this life. Surely this won't end well for her.

Bringing this over from the episode thread because I wanted to get some opinions on the end game for Clara with a couple of episodes under our belts.  I think it is not looking good for her either, but I really don't want to see the doctor mope for a season like 10 did after Rose left.  Mainly because Clara is really annoying me this season and I'll probably be pretty happy to see her go.  And I will be extremely upset if 

the only reason River comes back at Christmas is to help the Doctor get over Clara.  I've been excited about seeing River and 12 together since we found out and I want them to be fantastic, not maudlin.  I'm worried about the fallout.  If she dies- and she clearly has a death wish- I need the doctor to pull himself together sooner rather than later.

[call me ishmael]

I have to say that seeing River again is one of the things i am least looking forward to.

It is hard to see Clara with a happy ending. But it is possible that the Doctor will decide that his responsibility of care is to leave her when she doesn't want to be left. Plus ther is her descendant who looks like Danny.

[penguinnj]

 

But it is possible that the Doctor will decide that his responsibility of care is to leave her when she doesn't want to be left. Plus ther is her descendant who looks like Danny.

Is there any word on which episode will be the "companion-heavy, doctor-light" one?  That should give us some clues about her fate.  I had warmed to Clara, but she is leaving me cold this season.  Would she have to be with Danny in order to get a "happy" ending?  Any word of if that actor has been in Wales?

[darkestboy]

I don't think there is one this series. The Woman Who Lived is Clara lite and so is Heaven Sent.

[catrox14]

OKay so the preview for the next episode.

I think it's Jack Harkness with the gun pointed at Kate Stewart.

[Kromm]

Rich Johnson is frequently an idiot, but he may have something here.  The part where he makes some bad guesses about The Woman Who Lived (he posted this before that aired) take the air of out part of his theory (mainly the part about the second Immortality chip being used on her), but not all of it:

 

Bleeding Cool: Mindless Speculation: Is Clara Really The Girl Who Died?

 

I'd tweak his theory. He speculates that Clara died in some off-screen as yet unrevealed adventure and The Doctor has crossed his own timestream to hang out with her again before that comes 'round again and we see it onscreen.  Thus his telling statements about the dangers of changing or fixing history: he's been facing that temptation himself.

 

But I can't help but think of another piece of synchronicity we saw besides a forced parallel between Clara needing to be saved and Ashildr. Because we already saw a parallel with Clara being turned into a Dalek.  Think about that. It seems weird that would happen doesn't it?  I think EVERYTHING is going to go back to Clara's initial storyarc and the various odd things that happened there. It's interesting for example that we're seeing UNIT Osgood soon, when she's supposed to be dead.  Why?  Because either timelines have indeed been crossed, or it's another indication that some sequence of events we saw, either back when Clara was introduced, or now, is some kind of shadow or mirror.

[HauntedBathroom]

Is there any proof that it wasn't Zygon Osgood we saw in the trailer?

[catrox14]

I was trying to figure out why Osgood was alive and well there. Assuming they don't go back in time to fix it then she has to be a Zygon. If she's not then it's an alternate timeline. 

 

I've been thinking that Clara has been dead since the ghost episode, but I can see the basis for her being dead since the beginning.  That might be why she's the specialist companion to ever companion because maybe in the Doctor's mind he's built her up to be that because he keeps going back to try and fix things? 

 

I could live with that far more than her being the actual Impossibly Annoying Most Special Companion ever.

[Llywela]

Zygon Osgood shouldn't still be able to use that form with human Osgood dead, because Zgyons need to keep the original alive in order to maintain the form. It's possible that it was Zygon Osgood who died though...

[elle]

Zygon Osgood shouldn't still be able to use that form with human Osgood dead, because Zgyons need to keep the original alive in order to maintain the form. It's possible that it was Zygon Osgood who died though...

You stated what I was thinking when I was watching the promo for next week's episode.  So, yay? hopefully, human Osgood is still alive.

 

And if it was the Zygon Osgood, is it trapped in the nethersphere or could the Cybermen use it too?

Edited October 25, 2015 by elle

[elle]

Here is the quote about the hybrid

"There was a prophecy, Doctor, on your own world. It spoke of a hybrid creature. Two great warrior races forced together to create a warrior greater than either. Is that what you ran from Doctor, your part in the coming of the hybrid?"

 

I read this and began to wonder if Ashildr really was supposed to be the hybrid.  Does the statement "on your own world" only refer to the prophecy or to the hybrid itself.  Can Ashildr be considered a hybrid if she is human with a bit of alien tech in her?  Would that make the people of "The Empty Child" hybrids as well since they were also saved by alien medical nanotech?

[penguinnj]

 

Zygon Osgood shouldn't still be able to use that form with human Osgood dead, because Zgyons need to keep the original alive in order to maintain the form.

 

Just an fyi for anyone looking forward to next weeks Zygon epie- there is a really good Zygon story in the 8th doctor audio adventures.  Not sure if it is considered "canon" but I like trying to get my ducks in a row for the next episode.

Please feel free to correct if you see errors- my Whovian knowledge definitely has some holes :)

The companion at the time- I think her name was Lucy- has an aunt who actually married a Zygon.  And she knows he is a Zygon.  He took the place of someone who was dying and lives with her fairly happily (I think they open a B&B in Scotland?)  Everything is going well until his buddies invade.  Long story short he sides against them but can't save his wife.  He takes her form when she dies, so I think Zygons can take the form of the dead, but I think you have to keep the body around- I'm pretty sure the first guy was in some kind of stasis chamber in their basement.  I have forgotten how he took on his wife's form. So, there are "good" Zygons.  Not sure what if anything that will mean for next week but just wanted to throw it out there.

Edited October 27, 2015 by penguinnj

[elle]

Pre-12 episode schedule today is the "spooky" nuWho episodes.  I was planning to complain about the unfortunate lack of any Nine episode, especially "The Empty Child/The Doctor Dances", BUT, considering the unthinking way the episodes are scheduled it probably is a good thing.   I mean, how can you have "Silence in the Library" without following it up with "Forest of the Dead"?  Too much candy corn for the programmers?

[call me ishmael]

Don't think that this is the end of Clara:

 

http://blogtorwho.blogspot.co.uk/2015/11/doctor-who-series-9-face-raven-synopsis.html

[elle]

 

The Doctor and Clara, with their old friend Rigsy, find themselves in a magical alien world, hidden on a street in the heart of London.

I'll take the bait --  They find themselves in "Diagon Alley"?!

[call me ishmael]

And From Radio Times:

 

http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2015-11-04/peter-capaldi-warns-that-claras-doctor-who-exit-will-be-a-long--and-painful--goodbye

[alias1]

In the article about who might replace Jenna Coleman, I noticed that almost all the candidates they put forth are 20 something earth girls.  Please, just no.  Even when they mentioned Rigsby, they decided that wasn't enough and maybe we needed another Amy/Rory thing.  Please, just no.  And River Song, please, just no.  The only one they mentioned that makes any sense to me is Journey Blue, if they are going to recycle previous characters.  I would like to see something entirely different. Although, I must say, I'm kind of partial to Ingrid Oliver, lol

[Rhetorica]

Time for her to go, no question. But, I did like evil Clara in the last episode. I guess the actor does have range but hasn't been allowed to use it.

[Ringthane]

And From Radio Times:

 

http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2015-11-04/peter-capaldi-warns-that-claras-doctor-who-exit-will-be-a-long--and-painful--goodbye

 

Two thoughts:

 

1) Man, Capaldi can sure rock that burgundy coat.

 

2) Clara's exit is going to be long and painful?  Does Moffat know she's been on the show for two years now?  How much more long and painful can it possibly be?

[Llywela]

2) Clara's exit is going to be long and painful?  Does Moffat know she's been on the show for two years now?  How much more long and painful can it possibly be?

Amen. And I still don't understand why every companion departure has to be 'painful'. It sends such a depressing message. Come on, show - mix it up a little! Try to remember and demonstrate that people can move on for positive reasons, as well as sad ones! Give us some variety!

[Morrigan2575]

Can someone tell me when she's going to leave? I don't know if I can keep watching.

[MeloraH]

Amen. And I still don't understand why every companion departure has to be 'painful'. It sends such a depressing message. Come on, show - mix it up a little! Try to remember and demonstrate that people can move on for positive reasons, as well as sad ones! Give us some variety!

That's why I love Martha's exit (the exit from S3 not her last appearance on the show), it was sad in the sense that she loved him and he didn't love her but not in a heart-wrenching way but in an 'ok, time to cut my losses and move on before it becomes heart-wrenching' way.

 

Also I really hope next week's episode isn't just an hour long version of Lorne's sleep monster subplot from that one S5 Angel episode because that's pretty much what it looks like it's going to be...

[Rhetorica]

Spoilers possibly. I hope some of you can expand upon what is shown.

http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2015-11-13/has-this-first-look-at-the-doctor-who-series-9-finale-confirmed-a-shocking-theory

[Kromm]

Don't think that this is the end of Clara:

 

http://blogtorwho.blogspot.co.uk/2015/11/doctor-who-series-9-face-raven-synopsis.html

Except they've said, in the clear in the media (so not even spoilery) that it is.  Capaldi even said "some things you can't come back from" in answer to if she'd ever be back.  That's not an outright "no", so it could still be a dodge, but it doesn't feel like one.

[call me ishmael]

Except they've said, in the clear in the media (so not even spoilery) that it is.  Capaldi even said "some things you can't come back from" in answer to if she'd ever be back.  That's not an outright "no", so it could still be a dodge, but it doesn't feel like one.

I was referring to something someone had said about the end of Clara in an earlier episode (i think Zygons but am not sure). Just showing that she would be around through this week at least.

[darkestboy]

First of a two part interview with Steven Moffat ....

 

http://www.radiotimes.com/news/2015-11-30/steven-moffat-on-his-early-years-overcoming-his-shyness-and-the-pressures-of-running-doctor-who-and-sherlock

 

The next part will discuss Missy, Ashildr, Clara, the new companion and when he may leave the show.

[Ringthane]

A quote from the article:

 

 

Some things you see are so bad, you think you shouldn’t write for a week in case you’re contaminated. In case it’s got into your head. The sheer rubbishness of the dialogue and awfulness of the story construction. You have to detox. But you read a Russell [T Davies] script and suddenly everything makes sense in an immaculate clean way.

 

Anyone have RTD's number?  Sounds like it's time for Moffat to read another one of those scripts...

[darkestboy]

Christmas special is called The Husbands Of River Song ....

 

http://comicbook.com/2015/12/01/doctor-who-christmas-special-titled-the-husbands-of-river-song/

 

Greg Davies and Matt Lucas are also in it.

[darkestboy]

Promo pics for The Husbands Of River Song .....

 

http://www.doctorwhotv.co.uk/the-husbands-of-river-song-promo-pics-78788.htm

[alrightokay]

I loved S9; I know not everyone did.  Despite the strange treatment of Clara (afterthought in some episodes, center of the universe in others), I thought every episode was well acted and directed, if not always well-written.  Now that the series is over, here's how I'd rank the episodes:

 

1.  Heaven Sent

2.  The Woman Who Lived

3.  Hell Bent

4.  Under the Lake

--gap--

5.  The Magician's Apprentice

6.  Before the Flood

7.  The Zygon Inversion

8.  Face the Raven

--gap--

9.  The Zygon Invasion--a lot of set up (and a missed opportunity with Rebecca Front!)

10.  Sleep No More--silly in a lot of respects, but it was still an interesting experiment; loved all the POV shots

11.  The Girl Who Lived--the Benny Hill stuff was cringe-worthy, but I liked the call-back to Ten/Pompeii.

12.  Witch's Familiar--I enjoy Missy, but the whole "sewers revolting" thing was such a lame ending

Edited December 6, 2015 by alrightokay

[penguinnj]

Promo clips for the DW Christmas Special cut from a larger promotional trailer for all the Christmas shows on the BBC

 

So very nice to see Capaldi smiling :)  I'm getting excited 

[Fat Elvis 007]

So I've been working through my feelings over the finale.

Initially, I loved the ending. The idea of giving a companion her own TARDIS and companion is a brilliant send-off, and worked so well for this particular companion, whose arc was all about becoming more and more like the Doctor. (I know not everyone was crazy about this storyline, but it was Clara's only interesting trait. I hated it in Season 8 when it meant "becoming a manipulative jerk, because this Doctor is a manipulative jerk," but it's worked better for me this season because the characters were much more likable). I also thought the memory wipe fakeout was well done and I was so relieved they didn't just redo Donna's ending like I had feared they would halfway through the episode.

In fact, I initially avoided reading the opinions of others at first because I felt so giddy about being satisfied by a Doctor Who finale for the first time in years that I didn't want to ruin that feeling. But after reading some of the comments and thinking over it further, I've had to revise my opinion.

The problem isn't anything inherent in the idea of sending Clara off with Ashildr in a TARDIS shaped like a diner--again, that's a perfect ending. The problem is that Moffat already gave us another perfect ending in "Face the Raven." Clara meeting her death because she tried and failed to be just like the Doctor was much darker and less positive than the ending we got here, but it was no worse--it was just different.

The problem is that Moffat smushed both of these endings together instead of just picking one, and instead of making either ending stronger, it made each one weaker. You can tell me that Clara is going to "eventually" choose to meet her death in that alley, but that doesn't actually mean anything. Literally, it's meaningless. Forever is a long, long time--How many years will she be out there before she gets bored and chooses to die? A thousand? A billion? Who knows? Who cares? The amount of time doesn't matter. What if Clara keeps traveling forever? Nothing in this episode made me think that would matter, since how is the universe supposed to know if she ever goes back there or not? This storyline really could have benefitted from a time limit--we should have seen some consequences from Clara being alive again immediately, with the understanding that the universe would get worse and worse until she returned to her rightful place in time. But instead, she can just live out an entire lifetime--longer, even--with no repercussions, as long as she "eventually" goes back. That's way too abstract a concept for anyone to connect to, and it undercuts the idea that death comes when we don't want it to, and you have to face it. Allowing Clara to choose exactly when she dies completely demolished that message.

If "Face the Raven" didn't exist, the ending we got would have been much better, because we wouldn't have to think about these details or compare this ending with her original. If this ending didn't exist, then we'd be left with the idea that death matters, and Clara's sacrifice would matter far more. But Moffat just couldn't bear to leave it alone, so we got both, and it ended up as a big mush.

Moffat's got great ideas but he doesn't have that instinct that good writers have that says to pick a path and stick with it. He has never met a darling that he's been willing to kill. He's never been told, "No, you absolutely CAN'T do both, you have to pick one," or if he has, then he certainly hasn't listened. That editing instinct is necessary to tell a really great story. Instead we got two halves of two distinct great stories that didn't work together at all.

Edited December 9, 2015 by Fat Elvis 007

[Cirien]

The problem isn't anything inherent in the idea of sending Clara off with Ashildr in a TARDIS shaped like a diner--again, that's a perfect ending. The problem is that Moffat already gave us another perfect ending in "Face the Raven." Clara meeting her death because she tried and failed to be just like the Doctor was much darker and less positive than the ending we got here, but it was no worse--it was just different.

The problem is that Moffat smushed both of these endings together instead of just picking one, and instead of making either ending stronger, it made each one weaker. You can tell me that Clara is going to "eventually" choose to meet her death in that alley, but that doesn't actually mean anything. Literally, it's meaningless. Forever is a long, long time--How many years will she be out there before she gets bored and chooses to die? A thousand? A billion? Who knows? Who cares? The amount of time doesn't matter. What if Clara keeps traveling forever? Nothing in this episode made me think that would matter, since how is the universe supposed to know if she ever goes back there or not? This storyline really could have benefitted from a time limit--we should have seen some consequences from Clara being alive again immediately, with the understanding that the universe would get worse and worse until she returned to her rightful place in time. But instead, she can just live out an entire lifetime--longer, even--with no repercussions, as long as she "eventually" goes back. That's way too abstract a concept for anyone to connect to, and it undercuts the idea that death comes when we don't want it to, and you have to face it. Allowing Clara to choose exactly when she dies completely demolished that message.

If "Face the Raven" didn't exist, the ending we got would have been much better, because we wouldn't have to think about these details or compare this ending with her original. If this ending didn't exist, then we'd be left with the idea that death matters, and Clara's sacrifice would matter far more. But Moffat just couldn't bear to leave it alone, so we got both, and it ended up as a big mush.

 

 

I think you'd fit right in with Afterbuzz panel re: this episode. especially the parts that I bolded. ( also completely in agreement with your entire post). They in their review of this ep, talked about the idea of death seemingly having no consequences this season, which yeah it hasn't. Yael on the panel also raised the point of what happens if she dies away on one of her adventures? (I mean if Clara *can* die?) Will the universe tear itself apart? She's a ticking time bomb for the universe itself and she knows that the universe will tear itself part if she doesn't die on Trap Street and is still going and reckless adventures, endangering all of existence itself.... and yet we're supposed to see the ending as a triumphant ending for her?? Don't think so.

 

For me this goes all the way back to last season when she was talking about Danny's death- the boring part didn't bother me....but the part where she was like "  I am owed something better?" That bothered me ( yes I know it was her grief talking, doesn't mean there still wasn't a sense of entitlement)

 

Not to mention Flatline, where the Doctor disapproved of the way she acted as the doctor and now she gets her own Tardis??? I don't get.

 

It also destroys the inevitable conclusion of her arc, which was her death. And this isn't just with Clara, but with Donna which they referenced heavily this season: Anyone who tries to too much like the Doctor- in Donna's case literally-, dies. ( again in Donna's case figuratively and in Clara's case literally). Clara died because of her hubris- She thought she could be the doctor, cheat the timeclock like the doctor and outsmart everyone like the doctor. She couldn't. Her flaw was her overconfidence in her abilities and she paid the price for. It was a huge price, but by universal standards it was a justified one. She played high stakes poker and she lost. That's a story worth telling and Moffat undercut it by having her fly around the universe in an effort at giving her agency.

 

(Also she's calling the Timelords monsters? She's literally putting the entire universe at risk so that she can have some adventures?? (okay fine the doctor did it first), I say pot,kettle,black)

 

However. I think this shows just why Clara and the Doctor weren't good for each other . She's really pushing the limits of what she can do, and seems to have not a care in the world about the risks of what she's doing...and can you imagine what it would be like if she was still with the Doctor? How they would be pushing the limits of everything? ​How they could potentially end the damn universe, with not  care in the world? It was a good thing they had to be separated, ( and frankly I would have preferred him to remember her and the Clara in the diner to be another fragment), because they really weren't good for each other. They were two addicts who instead of helping each other, enabled each other in a way that seems..slightly abusive?

 

Frankly, give Ashildr the TARDIS and then let her take Clara on one last trip, and then send her back to Trap street. That would have been better ending than the one we got

Edited December 9, 2015 by Cirien

[Ringthane]

You know, for some reason I can totally see Ashildir doing just that.

[Fat Elvis 007]

For the record, if I had to choose between the two endings for Clara it would have been getting her own diner-shaped TARDIS and companion (maybe Ashildr, but only if she were written as having learned more from some of her mistakes; if not, then Rigsy), but I just prefer happy endings, and am sick of every companion having a tragic ending. But since "Face the Raven" was already done, and done about as well as a "tragic ending" could be, they shouldn't have gone back on it.

[Cirien]

For the record, if I had to choose between the two endings for Clara it would have been getting her own diner-shaped TARDIS and companion (maybe Ashildr, but only if she were written as having learned more from some of her mistakes; if not, then Rigsy), but I just prefer happy endings, and am sick of every companion having a tragic ending. But since "Face the Raven" was already done, and done about as well as a "tragic ending" could be, they shouldn't have gone back on it.

 

Quoting you again because *cough* I'm slightly obsessed  *cough*, but honestly? There's no reason that they couldn't have done something similar for Clara that they did in "last Christmas, where she finally decided she wanted to stay on earth, and instead she travelled on Earth and taught all over.

 

That would have been an ending similar to Sarah Jane Smith- and it would have been perfect

[Fat Elvis 007]

Yeah, looking back Clara had several endings even in Season 8! And the same could be said of Amy and Rory--"The Power of Three" should have been their farewell. The drawn-out endings just take all the wind out of the story's sails. Commit, Moffat! Commit!

[John Potts]

It reminds me of Wonder Boys where Michael Douglas plays an author who's spent decades penning his Magnum Opus (which is at over 3000 pages in the film, IIRC). Wunderkind Tobey Maguire, a student in his creative writing class says, "You said writing is about making choices - it strikes me that you haven't made any at all!" You could apply that to Moffat too - kill a companion, have them leave voluntarily, have them become a God (Lonely or otherwise)... just commit to SOMETHING. And if you're worried that fanboys posting on websites will hate it, I can tell you now: some of them (possibly including this one!) will. But if you try to make everyone happy - you usually won't please anyone.

Edited December 10, 2015 by John Potts

[darkestboy]

Should've posted this here but with Series 10 now actually filming here it is ....

Matt Lucas is returning for multiple episodes.

Episode 1 is being penned by Steven Moffat and episode 2 by Frank Cottrell Boyce. Both episodes directed by Lawrence Gough.

The second block will have episodes written by Sarah Dollard and Mike Bartlett (Doctor Foster).

Stephanie Hyam is also guesting but it's not specified which episode she'll be in though.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/blogs/doctorwho/entries/6d059f23-2325-4a46-9b5e-cd0ad94b4a59

Pearl Mackie as Bill filming some creepy scenes for episode 1  .....

http://www.digitalspy.com/tv/doctor-who/news/a799032/doctor-who-series-10-pearl-mackie-shoots-spooky-nighttime-scenes-as-filming-continues/

Going by spoiler pics, Bill is a student at Bristol University, there's snow in the first episode and the Doctor is posing as a lecturer.