@L.
I know what irony is, if that’s what you were trying to get across in your post then you failed.

Matt Smith put in a wonderful performance this week. I mean, he’s ALWAYS wonderful, but he knocked it up an extra notch this week.

it was brilliant, beautiful and touching

I hope they manage to get Gaiman on bord again soon.

*Board, nor bord!

I couldnt help but feel this episode was nothing short of pure brilliance, although I would have liked it to be two parter so that the relationship between Idris and the Doctor could have been much more developed

Saying that though, I though Amy and Rory were much more underused in this episode, although I liked how the focus was not on them much for a change

And Gaiman most certaintly didn’t dissapoint me

The TARDIS – The greatest ship in the universe – and out of it

I’ll say more now that others have spoken. This episode was for Classic Series fans. If you’re a Revived Series fan and you enjoyed it, that’s great but for me, it was all about the fact the Tardis spoke to the Doctor for the first time in over 900 years, the emotion the Doctor showed was because of that, but if you’re a Revived Series fan, although you know the history, your connection was the Tardis is about 6 years old and so it failed to have an impact on me.

I had a ton of other thoughts about what was wrong and why it was so disappointing, but maybe later.

@JC

Really?

Because ive only seen a couple of the Classic episodes and much prefer the Revived series

But anyway, from what ive seen your opinion is not at all a minority but is held by quite a few others

Although I though the whole dead timelords being used to trick others idea should have been more explored – when the doctor said he was angry the emotion just want there – and weve seen him angry before

I enjoyed the episode and wonder if a lot of what’s been covered tonight is to educate the viewers about TARDIS stuff we need to know for the future?

@JC
Well that’s an interesting take; I’ve been a fan since way before the show came back, so it worked a treat for me, obviously I can have no idea if it would have worked less well if I hadn’t been!

I think the idea that the ship comes ‘alive’ is enough of a great idea for most fans new or old though, it just resonates a little more perhaps if you’ve been with the show longer.

Nice dialogue and fantastic performances, but the main premise stunk too much of fan-fiction. I like the TARDIS to be… well, the TARDIS! Don’t tell the audience what it’s thinking! Cos there goes the beauty of its mystery and wonder.

And the conclusion was a bit too obvious for me. Sorry, that was a bit of a disappointment – and I’m a big fan of all Moffat has a hand in.

Saying all that, the plot with Amy and Rory running through the TARDIS was brilliant, I thought.

I actually think it increases its mystery and wonder, the idea that there is this sentient consciousness in there, helping The Doctor, and that the Tardis in some way chose the Doctor to steal it.

Well, it could just be me. I mean, it was cool the Tardis got to talk to the Doctor for the first time, but I think the fact that the emotional conversation between the Tardis and the Doctor happened too late. For 95% of the episode, they spoke as if she was just another person and only at the end, did they have a true heart to heart, so I agree that the relationship between the Tardis and the Doctor could have been more fully explored, but perhaps as others have said, that’ll come later and throughout the series.

I might have been disappointed, but I wasn’t blind to interesting aspects, like who Idris was before the Tardis matrix was put inside her and how she lasted so long before dying, who Aunty and Uncle were and why the House protected them to the point of butchering Time Lords, why was it Time Lords specifically, what was the relationship between Aunty, Uncle and the girl who used to be Idris, why did the House live off Tardises, why hadn’t he trapped the Doctor before, where did the Ood servant come from, is the House truly gone and is it all it appeared and so on and so forth.

Episode specifically though, I was underwhelmed. It was full of potentially amazing aspects and yet none of them were used to their full potential. I’d heard fan theories that more interesting than what we saw in this episode, though admittedly, it may be a case of “The Lodger” syndrome, where things are more significant than they appear.

@TWWL
It was always established that the TARDIS was conscious though. And wasn’t it once said that the TARDIS, too, chooses its owner? That it must agree to who it takes through time and space (but not verbally)?

I respect that you liked the episode; as I said, the dialogue was great, and the cast were great, especially the TARDIS team. I dunno… it just didn’t feel right to me. And trust me, it hurts to say that. Like everyone on here, I love Doctor Who.

Did anyone else think, visually, this was a beautiful episode? Just the TARDIS among all the junk? It looked amazing.

Suranne Jones was excellent, though I kept thinking that the role was, possibly, written for Helena Bonham Carter.

Matt Smith gets more extraordinary with each episode. He seems to be channeling various past Doctors and yet still makes the role his own.

@PRB
I agree, based on appearance and acting wise, it was very well made. For me, the problems were all in the story

@JC there was no relationship between them, they were all marooned outside the universe, that is how they all got there. Idris hadn’t necessarily been there long, she certainly didn’t fit in all that well the Auntie and Uncle! The Ood had no significance other than being yet another lifeform marooned there, just being psychic and suggestible as an Ood detached from the Ood consciousness would be it was the most connected to House.

It was Timelords specifically because… they.. have… TARDIS’s and House fed on the Artron energy, so Timelords by necessity!

He hadn’t trapped the Doctor before because a TARDIS can presumably keep him going for a loooooong time, they do have a LOT of power after all so he hadn’t needed to and he finally got round to needing the last TARDIS in the universe!

As for House being truly gone I would imagine that kind of information is better NOT being revealed to allow for potential future stories, why give everything away if you don’t have to?

These things aren’t hard to pick up from simply watching the episode, not everything needs to be spoonfed.

Oh and for the record I thought this was an excellent episode!

I absolutely loved this and I really enjoyed seeing the ‘old’ TARDIS control room. As a fan of the revived series, I think I missed a few references to the classic series, but I really did enjoy it.

@RJW
And that rudeness is why I try not to comment. Don’t worry, it won’t be happening again

But before I go for now, I just wanted to say I don’t need anything “spoon fed” as you rudely put it.