Doctor Who Series 6, Episode 12 Review: Closing Time
- doctorbrick
- Jan 20
- 3 min read
Updated: Jan 27
What did you think of this episode?
Sonic!
Good!
Bumpy-wumpy!
Exterminate!
There is a saying in football that you should never go back, does that apply to Doctor Who as well? Do things ever work out better second time around? Will David Moyes take Everton higher than he did before? They are winning 3-0 at Spurs as I type this so who knows, but I very much doubt it all the same.
I mentioned in my last review about the show re-treading old ground, but this one felt like a re-treading of The Lodger. I am The Lodger's biggest fan, but as you will see in this review, I wasn't as much of a fan of Closing Time.
"Oh, you’ve redecorated! I don’t like it."
Let's get the elephant out of the room first, no I am not talking about Roberts or Corden, I am talking about the series 6 story arc. It will forever baffle me how with all this build up, a two parter opening, a mid-series cliffhanger, and all the rest besides, that it was all wrapped up in a massive rush through one standalone episode. Why was the finale not two parts? Make it make sense to me!
Closing Time was already on a downer for me for that reason alone. All we really got was being told that River was the astronaut, I am not sure if this was meant to be a surprise or not, but we all knew it was River didn't we. Imagine if after all this build up we had been thrown a massive curveball and it was actually Amy/Rory/Craig/anyone but River. That would of been so much more exciting.
I always say take my comments with a pinch of salt, because could I fuck write the show as well as anyone who has done, nor could I run it, Doctor Who would be gone before you knew it if I was showrunner!
I will still say that there wasn't much to be said in this episode that wasn't already said in The Lodger. Craig and the Doctor are good mates, the Doctor stumbles into his life to investigate something, the Doctor tries doing normal things and eventually love saves the day. It is identical to be honest.
I know a show the age of Doctor Who will tell similar stories, of course it will, but these were a series apart and it just felt a bit off to me.
"Stop crying. You’ve got a lot to look forward to, you know. A normal human life on Earth. Mortgage repayments. The nine-to-five. A persistent, nagging sense of spiritual emptiness. Save the tears for later, boy-o. Oh, that was crabby. No, that was old. But I am old, Stormy. I am so old. So near the end."
Everything moves way too quick in this series. There must be a name for the paradox of this series - can you be confused by the amount of stuff going on, yet know exactly how every twist is going to play out?
This episode has the re-treading of The Lodger along with the Doctor feeling sad he is going to die, River being revealed as the astronaut, Cybermen, Cybermats, a baby, Amy and Rory carrying on with a more normal life...
This is meant to be one of the more light and breezy episodes I am sure as well. It is an alright episode, the Cybermen aren't any threat, the shop scenes are a bit cringe, and love saving the day is becoming a bit tiresome, but it is nice to see Eleven and Craig though.
In other news, Spurs have got two goals back...
RATING: Bumpy-wumpy!
BEST LINE: "You’re here for a reason, aren’t you? You’ve noticed something and you’re investigating. And because it’s you it’s gonna be dangerous and alien."
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