The finale of Doctor Who Series 7a seeks to answer an intriguing question - what if each living soul was like a sheaf of pages waiting to be rewritten? This imagined book an epic account of each existence would be forever in flux - shifting and changing with each decision made, expanding and contracting with connection and loss, beginning and ending but not necessarily in that order. How much control would we have over what is written there? And if we do not read ahead, can our story be changed? Angels Take Manhattan, in an obvious nod to film noir, begins very fittingly, with typed words on a blank page. Sam Garner, depression era private eye, has been hired by mob boss Mr. Grayle to investigate an apartment building in Battery Park, New York City. Garner arrives at the address and immediately begins to notice that something is not right. Stepping into the waiting elevator, Garner soon finds himself standing in front of a door with his own name on it. The rooms sole occupant is a very old man who warns Garner that the Weeping Angels are coming and will send him back in time to live out his days and die trapped in this very room. Garner runs. Surrounded by hungry Angels he heads for the roof. No escape there. When the Statue of Liberty is herself a Weeping Angel feeding on temporal energy, you need a lot of cattle and hes just the next one to be led to slaughter The exploration of the ravages of time in this episode is certainly compelling with the city itself playing a central character. The use of lighting is especially well done the washed out gray and sepia tones of depression era New York create an almost claustrophobic atmosphere, standing in stark contrast to the brilliant color and brightness of modern day New York where the Doctor is reading the opening lines of a detective novel aloud. Amy is playfully annoyed and Rory, relaxing nearby, joins in the teasing when it becomes apparent that the Doctor is quite smitten with the books main character, Melody Malone. This is an unbearably sweet moment, one we seldom see in Doctor Who three old friends quietly enjoying each others company. The Doctor is soon distracted though by Amys new reading glasses and the noticeable wrinkles around her eyes and the finality that aging implies. He rips out the last page of his book because he wants to believe that if he doesnt actually see the words ending the story will go on forever. Its difficult to accept that moments and people slip away when you yourself are timeless. When considering the appeal of the Weeping Angels its interesting to note that writer Steven Moffat has created a monster in a show about the wonders of time travel that actually uses the central theme as a weapon. Rory is taken by the Weeping Angels and sent back to 1938 where he meets up with Melody Malone otherwise known as River Song. They are immediately kidnapped and hustled off to meet mob boss Grayle.
The Doctor and Amy desperately try to land in 1938 New York, but the city is surrounded by temporal distortions created by the Angels and something as large as a Tardis cant get through. River only managed to arrive using her vortex manipulator. Ego raging, the Doctor cant resist trying to land the Tardis anyway but she bounces off 1938 like a bad penny on a hard wood floor. Amy and the Doctor end up back in 2012 in a New York cemetery. When Amy asks why a graveyard the Doctor dismisses the question, muttering that it is somehow causally linked. If their decisions at any point in their own time streams dictate their presence in the graveyard does this mean the future truly cannot be changed? It must be an almost comforting thought for the Doctor as if this were true he could not be held responsible for his actions. They have always been written in stone. Amy reads a few pages forward in the book reciting a passage where the Doctor breaks something of Rivers. The Doctor is horrified at this foreknowledge and rips the book from Amys surprised hands. He frantically explains to her that she cannot read ahead if they know the future they are doomed to fulfill it. And the future is sometimes very, very bad. The Doctor finally manages to land the Tardis in 1938 by using information River provides. While Amy and Rorys relationship to the Doctor is the central tenet of this story it is Rivers character who is the driving force behind much of the action. Rory, meanwhile, has been confined to a dark cellar, where he is left with a pack of nasty little Weeping Cherubs. The use of the baby Angels is especially effective in upping the creep quotient here the last one quite literally and symbolically blows out Rorys flame. Upstairs, River is trapped in the vise like grip of a Weeping Angel. After the Doctor lands the Tardis theres an adorable scene where he does final checks before exiting he smoothes down his hair, straightens his bow tie and checks his breath. Its a lovely moment that in a very subtle way shows just how much he cares for and misses River. These seemingly throwaway character moments are actually one of the things that elevate Doctor Who over other shows of this genre. Science fiction shows often get caught up in their own special effects and techno-babble and forget that if the people in them are not believable the story falls flat on its face. The Doctor and River share a revealing chat. River is now Professor Song and has been pardoned because the man she allegedly killed doesnt exist. His information has been wiped from every database in the universe. Was this part of the Doctors plan? He is awfully good at thinking ahead and seeing all the angles. One wonders though if his faith in his own abilities sometimes blinds him to his flaws, making it a little too easy to ignore consequences he doesnt want to accept. The Doctor explains to River that he is going to have to break her wrist to free her because Amy read that part in the book. Amy guiltily suggests they peruse the chapter titles for clues. The Doctor, however, reacts with unbridled and rather childish fury upon seeing the final chapter entitled Amelias Last Farewell. River warns him not to get emotional but he refuses to listen, taking his anger out on her, screaming at River to free herself and to do it without breaking her wrist. He leaves her in the clutches of the Angel, angrily advising her to change the future as he walks away.
The parallels between the love stories (both friend and partner) in the last 3 seasons of Doctor Who are striking. You have the Doctor and Amy, where Amy waits for the Doctor. Then you have Amy and Rory, where Rory waits for Amy. Finally there is the Doctor and River, where they both seem to be waiting for each other. The push and pull that always exists in adult relationships is shown very realistically in this episode, especially when you consider that this is classified by many as a kids show. Steven Moffat definitely doesnt believe in talking down to children and should be applauded for his willingness to explore complex adult emotions. Its not like kids dont see them every day. How about helping them learn how to navigate the deeper waters? Rory shows up at Winter Quay where theres a fantastic call back to God Complex (series 6) Rory has finally found his room and it contains himself as an old man. His biggest fear is dying alone, having lived many long years without Amy. In the meantime, River has escaped and figured out how to find Rory. Once again she is the catalyst for action, in contrast with the Doctor who is out of control and useless in the face of impending loss. At first the Doctor is ecstatic because he believes that River was able to free herself without breaking her wrist and that means she has changed the future. But the truth becomes apparent when he tries to grab her hand and she shrieks in pain. I was surprised at how far the production team went when showing the broken wrist. You seldom see blood in Doctor Who, and Rivers very realistically depicted injury is all the more shocking because of it. Again I think this is Steven Moffats doing pushing the boundaries of what is OK to portray in a family show. I personally believe that in this case the injury is used effectively but not gruesomely and only adds to the power of the events that follow. When the Doctor confronts River about why she lied to him she replies with rare honesty. Its not so easy being in love with an ageless god who insists on sometimes behaving childishly and frankly it hurts. Its great to see Moffat recognizing the sacrifice required on Rivers part to keep this relationship going. In turn, the Doctor sacrifices some of his regeneration energy to mend her shattered wrist. Sacrifice is an ongoing presence in Series 7a, from Oswin giving up her life in Asylum of the Daleks to save the Doctor, to Jex committing suicide in A Town Called Mercy to save the Gunslinger, to Brian urging the Ponds to travel with the Doctor even though it means he may never see them again. Rory also sacrifices himself, deciding to leap from the roof of Winter Quay after realizing that the only way to escape from the Angels is to create a paradox that will wipe them out of existence. Since Rory has already died in his room downstairs, dying again will create a contradiction in time so powerful that the Angels and the temporal farm they have created will simply never have been. Amy gives up her own life in order to jump with him. The Doctor tries to stop them but the Ponds have finally definitively made their choice. When everyone wakes up back in the graveyard in 2012, the Doctor especially is overjoyed that all the people that he loves have escaped death one more time. Except, of course, they havent. Not that they ever could have. Death comes for us all whether the gods like it or not. So when the last surviving Weeping Angel shows up and zaps Rory back in time, and his name appears on a gravestone, it is a foregone conclusion that Amy will join him by allowing herself to also be sent back. One of the consistent criticisms of Amys character has been in the way the relationship with her daughter is portrayed. She rarely acknowledged River, often acting as if none of that trauma ever happened. While I tend to disagree with this point of view people often handle trauma by withdrawing and avoiding I will say that Moffat may have redeemed himself at least somewhat in the eyes of these critics. In the end it is her child, Melody/River, who Amy reaches out for, who she looks to for confirmation of her actions and who she entrusts to hold the hearts of her best friend . As Amy turns to tell the Doctor good-bye, it is River who is left to take her eyes off the Angel in order for it to touch her mother. Angels Take Manhattan was a complex and satisfying conclusion to the story of the Ponds. Amy and Rory were allowed to experience real emotional growth throughout the series and it was a pleasure to watch their depth of character develop over time. In the end, Doctor Who truly is a story about family, and while the monsters and explosions are an important part of this world it is the intricate character relationships that will always keep us coming back for more.