A Good Man Goes to War
Encyclopedia
"A Good Man Goes to War" is the seventh episode of the sixth series
of the British science fiction
television series Doctor Who
, and was first broadcast on BBC One
on 4 June 2011. It is the first episode of a two-part story, which is continued in "Let's Kill Hitler
".
, which contains a security protocol the monks need. Dorium tells them that he knows what they are up to, as he hears a lot of rumours around the area. He asks them, "All this, to imprison one child? Oh, I know what you're up to, I hear everything in this place. I even hear rumours about whose child you've taken. Are you mad? You know the stories about the Doctor? The things that man has done? God help us if you make him angry!"
(Arthur Darvill
) have discovered that Amy
(Karen Gillan
), Rory's wife and the Doctor's companion, has been abducted from them and her place taken by an avatar made from "the Flesh" ("The Almost People
"), through which Amy has been experiencing events as if she were physically present. The Doctor has come to learn that the real Amy is being held on a secret asteroid base called "Demon's Run", and collects several old debtors from across time and space, including Sontaran
Commander Strax (Dan Starkey
), Silurian
Madame Vastra (Neve McIntosh
) and her human companion Jenny (Catrin Stewart), and the black market trader Dorium Maldovar (Simon Fisher-Becker
), to lay an assault on the base. Rory, after collecting information on the base's location from a Cyberman
fleet, attempts to recruit River Song
(Alex Kingston
) from her Stormcage prison cell, but she refuses, saying she cannot be with the Doctor at this time as this battle is when he will discover her identity. Aboard the base, Madame Kovarian (Frances Barber
), who has been watching over Amy during her pregnancy and taken her child, Melody, from her, prepares her human troops to fight the Doctor alongside the Order of the Headless Monks who reside at Demon's Run; the monks are literally headless and incapable of being fooled or intimidated. Human soldier Lorna Bucket (Christina Chong), who had met the Doctor as a young girl in the Gamma forests, attempts to befriend Amy and gives her a cloth good luck token with Melody's name on it in her language. Amy warns Bucket of the Doctor's fury if she fights against him.
Assisted by additional Silurian and Judoon
forces, the Doctor and his allies launch a surprise attack and secure the base. The Doctor and Rory free Amy and retake Melody before Madame Kovarian can escape with her. As the Doctor celebrates, considering this his greatest achievement, Vastra and Dorium discover that Kovarian has been scanning Melody and has found that the child has both human and Time Lord DNA
. The Doctor surmises that Melody was likely conceived on Amy and Rory's wedding night aboard the TARDIS, the baby's DNA influenced by the time vortex. The rest of the Doctor's allies regroup, and Amy and Rory tend to their daughter using an ancient wooden cot that the Doctor claims was his own. Kovarian, well away from the base, contacts the Doctor, explaining that they will be using Melody as a weapon in the war against him. She takes delight in telling him he has fallen into another trap, and that "fooling [the Doctor] once was a joy, twice in the same way is a privilege." The Doctor races to the hangar to warn his friends. Meanwhile, Bucket has arrived and warns the group of Kovarian's trap, but they are too late as the TARDIS is blocked by a force field and they are attacked by the Headless Monks. Several Silurians and Dorium are killed immediately, while Strax and Bucket are fatally wounded in the battle. At the same time, Kovarian, appearing through a hatch opening in midair near where Amy and Melody are hiding, tells the baby to wake up. The baby dissolves into the Flesh liquid, leaving Amy horrified and in shock.
The Doctor arrives too late to help his wounded allies, and helps Rory to console Amy. River appears, and the Doctor berates her for not helping. She tries to explain that she could not, and tells the Doctor how these recent events were partially his fault, having been brought about by those that feared his reputation. The Doctor, angry and emotional, demands to know who she is. River shows the Doctor the cot, and The Doctor recognises River's identity. Elated, he goes off on his own in the TARDIS to rescue Melody, asking River to return everyone to their proper time period. Amy demands that River explain what the Doctor learned, and she shows them the cot. Initially Amy believes River is referring to the Gallifreyan symbols engraved on it, but they cannot be read by humans even with the aid of the TARDIS translation systems. Instead, River shows them Bucket's cloth prayer leaf with Melody's name, still in the cot. Amy tells River that she knows her daughter's name; River tells her that the people of the Gamma Forest don't have a word for Pond, as the only water in the forest is the river. As Amy and Rory stare at the prayer leaf, the writing is translated into English, revealing the child's name: River Song. River then reveals the truth, "It's me. I'm Melody. I'm your daughter."
" / "The Big Bang
" and "A Christmas Carol". Amy also tells Melody of Rory's nickname of "the Last Centurion", derived from his two thousand-year vigil over the Pandorica in "The Big Bang".
Dorium previously appeared in the opening to "The Pandorica Opens
", selling River Song a vortex manipulator; she is wearing the same or superficially identical one at the end of this episode. Henry and Toby Avery", from "The Curse of the Black Spot
", appear briefly to secure Madame Kovarian's ship; Henry Avery was also repeatedly mentioned in the First Doctor
serial, The Smugglers
. The space-worthy Spitfires modified by Professor Edwin Bracewell and piloted by "Danny Boy" as shown in "Victory of the Daleks
" are shown to disable the base's communication array.
Fat One and Thin One refer to the Doctor sending the Atraxi away from a planet before calling them back "for a scolding", an incident that took place in "The Eleventh Hour
". The Headless Monks were previously mentioned in "The Time of Angels
", added to that episode's script to help explain the Delirium Archive's monastic look. Bucket refers to her unit as "the Clerics", the unit which was introduced in "The Time of Angels". This episode introduced additional units in the same military organisation, the Church.
Surprised by the Doctor's possession of an infant's very old cot, Amy asks the Doctor if he has or ever had children; she had previously asked him in "The Beast Below
" if he had children. The Doctor states that he does not have children, echoing his statements in "Father's Day
", "Fear Her
", and "The Doctor's Daughter
". The Doctor's daughter Jenny
was "born" fully-grown, never using an infant's cot, and her regeneration is unknown to the Doctor who assumes she is dead. Amy saw a photograph of his granddaughter, Susan Foreman
, and other female companions in "Meanwhile in the TARDIS 2", although she is not told their individual identities.
The Doctor tells Madame Vastra that Amy was worried her child would have a "time head", referring to the conversation he had with her at the end of "Day of the Moon".
Shortly after the revelation that Melody has some Time Lord DNA, the Doctor has a brief flashback of the girl in the spacesuit from "Day of the Moon
" in which River states that "I'd say that she's human," and "She must be incredibly strong."
"The only water in the forest is the river," the phrase River uses to explain why the people of the Gamma Forest translate Pond to River, was first said to Rory by Idris in "The Doctor's Wife
".
When the Doctor greets "Melody Pond", Rory corrects him, "Melody Williams", which Amy immediately over-rules. The Doctor had likewise congratulated the newly-wed "Mr Pond" in "The Big Bang
"; which Rory momentarily corrected before acknowledging his de facto status as Mr Pond. Amy's justification for Melody bearing her surname is that Melody Pond is a superhero, and Melody Williams is a geography teacher; ironically, adult Melody Pond (as River Song), is an archeology professor.
River Song explains the impact the Doctor has left by his travels. Cultures with whom he has interacted throughout the universe have incorporated the word "Doctor" into their languages to mean "healer" and "wise man" – except some worlds, such as the Gamma Forests, where it means "mighty warrior".
The Doctor's cot in which Melody's living flesh doppelgänger rests features a mobile
of stars and planets, like the mobile which Amy finds in the mysterious child's room in "Day of the Moon
".
The set used for the chamber Amy was kept in was the same used as the Oval Office
in "The Impossible Astronaut
"/"Day of the Moon
". Baby Melody Pond was played by twins, a common practice used in filming so that one twin can rest while the other is on set.
appears as the Sontaran
Commander Strax. He previously played Commander Skorr in "The Sontaran Stratagem
" / "The Poison Sky
" (2008) and Commander Jask in The End of Time
(2010). Neve McIntosh
appears as a lesbian
Silurian
Warrior Vastra. She previously played the sisters Alaya and Restac in "The Hungry Earth
" / "Cold Blood
" (2010).
Steven Moffat said he planned writing in a cameo
for John Barrowman
to reprise his role as Jack Harkness
, but Barrowman was busy filming Torchwood: Miracle Day and was unavailable.
and BBC HD
and in the United States on BBC America
on 11 June 2011. UK overnight figures showed that the episode was watched by 5.5 million viewers, a rise of a half a million from the previous week and coming in sixth place for the night. Final consolidated ratings showed that the episode was watched by 7.57 million viewers with an audience share of 31%. It achieved an Appreciation Index
of 88, the joint highest for the series at time of broadcast.
rated the episode a 9.0/10, stating that the episode was an "epic" one that "opened with a grandstanding, wonderfully OTT pre-credits tease and didn't really let up from there."
Gavin Fuller of The Telegraph said that the episode was good but lacked significant background motivation into the villains. Fuller also notes that the revelation of River Song being Amy's grown up child "is perhaps a narrative strand that would sit uncomfortably with a series where loss has often been brushed off as soon as the next couple of episodes". However, he did have praise for the performance of Matt Smith, commenting that "the last few weeks have seen Matt Smith's Doctor in a welcome generally more serious vein, which he kept up here, with leavening at the right moments where his alien lack of comfort with human emotions, although used to comic effect, rang very true, as did his awkwardness when discovering the truth about River".
Dan Martin of The Guardian was less favourable, stating that that the producers "promised us a cliffhanger, and now we're left the whole summer long to contemplate whether our favourite show can really have just dropped the ball. Oh there was plenty to love about this mid-season finale, and even more to pick over. But as an hour of drama it was all over the place". Because the episode was so fast-paced with little being explained, he did not feel any emotional connection to the Anglican marines or Lorna Bucket. Unlike Fuller, Martin was not favorable to Matt Smith's Doctor, stating that "the non-event of the battle means that the Doctor never really gets to show this dark side we've been hearing so much about" and that Smith's predecessor, David Tennant
, "got angrier most weeks." Martin did have praise for the final reveal of the episode, stating that although it had been "hidden in plain view from the very beginning as soon as it's revealed Amy has called the baby Melody", he was unable to make the connection and was suitably surprised. Martin later rated it the second-to-worst episode of the series, though the finale
was not included in the list.
The two new characters introduced in the episode (a Silurian
19th century crimefighter named Madame Vastra and her assistant Jenny) have proven quite popular among fans, with numerous forums and SFX Magazine calling for the BBC to commission a spin-off series. Steven Moffat
stated in an interview that he did not have time to work on a spin-off but was open to the possibility of the characters returning.
Doctor Who (series 6)
The sixth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who was shown in two parts. The first seven episodes were broadcast from April to June 2011 and the final six episodes from August to October. Matt Smith, Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill continued their roles as The Doctor, Amy...
of the British science fiction
Science fiction
Science fiction is a genre of fiction dealing with imaginary but more or less plausible content such as future settings, futuristic science and technology, space travel, aliens, and paranormal abilities...
television series Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
, and was first broadcast on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
on 4 June 2011. It is the first episode of a two-part story, which is continued in "Let's Kill Hitler
Let's Kill Hitler
"Let's Kill Hitler" is the eighth episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and was first broadcast on BBC One, Space and BBC America on 27 August 2011. It is the second episode of a two-part story, continuing stories from "A Good Man Goes to War"...
".
Prequel
On 28 May 2011, immediately following the broadcast of "The Almost People", the BBC released a prequel to "A Good Man Goes to War". The prequel had Dorium talking to two Headless Monks. He gives them the brain of a JudoonJudoon
The Judoon are a fictional extraterrestrial species of mercenary police from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spin-offs. They first appeared in the episode Smith and Jones in 2007....
, which contains a security protocol the monks need. Dorium tells them that he knows what they are up to, as he hears a lot of rumours around the area. He asks them, "All this, to imprison one child? Oh, I know what you're up to, I hear everything in this place. I even hear rumours about whose child you've taken. Are you mad? You know the stories about the Doctor? The things that man has done? God help us if you make him angry!"
Synopsis
The Doctor (Matt Smith) and RoryRory Williams
Rory Williams is a fictional character portrayed by Arthur Darvill in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Having been introduced at the start of the 5th series, Rory joins the Eleventh Doctor as a companion in the middle of Series 5...
(Arthur Darvill
Arthur Darvill
Thomas Arthur Darvill is an English actor, known professionally as Arthur Darvill. He is noted for his work in the plays Terre Haute and Swimming with Sharks , but is probably best known for his role as the Eleventh Doctor's Companion Rory Williams in the television series Doctor Who.-Early and...
) have discovered that Amy
Amy Pond
Amelia Jessica 'Amy' Pond is a fictional character portrayed by Karen Gillan in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
(Karen Gillan
Karen Gillan
Karen Sheila Gillan is a Scottish actress and former model who is best known for her current portrayal of Amy Pond in the British science fiction series Doctor Who.-Early life:...
), Rory's wife and the Doctor's companion, has been abducted from them and her place taken by an avatar made from "the Flesh" ("The Almost People
The Almost People
"The Almost People" is the sixth episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and was first broadcast on BBC One on 28 May 2011...
"), through which Amy has been experiencing events as if she were physically present. The Doctor has come to learn that the real Amy is being held on a secret asteroid base called "Demon's Run", and collects several old debtors from across time and space, including Sontaran
Sontaran
The Sontarans are a fictional extraterrestrial race of humanoids from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and also seen in spin-off series The Sarah Jane Adventures. They were created by writer Robert Holmes.-Culture:...
Commander Strax (Dan Starkey
Dan Starkey
Dan Starkey is a British actor.Dan studied at University of Cambridge before training at the Bristol Old Vic .-Theatre credits:*The 39 Steps UK national tour* The Fitzrovia Radio Hour-Filmography:...
), Silurian
Silurian (Doctor Who)
The Silurians are a fictional race of reptile-like humanoids in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The species first appeared in Doctor Who in the 1970 serial Doctor Who and the Silurians...
Madame Vastra (Neve McIntosh
Neve McIntosh
-Early life:Born in Paisley, Neve McIntosh grew up in Edinburgh, where she attended Boroughmuir High School. She moved to Glasgow to attend the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, after which she was in repertory companies at Perth and at The Little Theatre on the Isle of Mull.-Theatre:She...
) and her human companion Jenny (Catrin Stewart), and the black market trader Dorium Maldovar (Simon Fisher-Becker
Simon Fisher-Becker
Simon Fisher-Becker is a British stage, television and film actor, specialising in comedy and character parts. His more notable roles include The Fat Friar in the Harry Potter film Harry Potter and the Philosopher's Stone, and Dorium Maldovar in series 5 and 6 of Doctor Who.-Background:He was...
), to lay an assault on the base. Rory, after collecting information on the base's location from a Cyberman
Cyberman
The Cybermen are a fictional race of cyborgs who are amongst the most persistent enemies of the Doctor in the British science fiction television series, Doctor Who. Cybermen were originally a wholly organic species of humanoids originating on Earth's twin planet Mondas that began to implant more...
fleet, attempts to recruit River Song
River Song (Doctor Who)
River Song is a fictional character played primarily by Alex Kingston in the British science-fiction series Doctor Who. River Song was introduced to the series as an experienced future companion of series protagonist the Doctor, an alien Time Lord who travels through time in his TARDIS...
(Alex Kingston
Alex Kingston
Alexandra Elizabeth "Alex" Kingston is an English actress. She is most widely known for her roles as Dr. Elizabeth Corday on the NBC medical drama ER and as River Song in Doctor Who.-Early life and education:...
) from her Stormcage prison cell, but she refuses, saying she cannot be with the Doctor at this time as this battle is when he will discover her identity. Aboard the base, Madame Kovarian (Frances Barber
Frances Barber
Frances Barber is an Olivier Award-nominated English actress with a long and distinguished stage career. She has also appeared in numerous television productions...
), who has been watching over Amy during her pregnancy and taken her child, Melody, from her, prepares her human troops to fight the Doctor alongside the Order of the Headless Monks who reside at Demon's Run; the monks are literally headless and incapable of being fooled or intimidated. Human soldier Lorna Bucket (Christina Chong), who had met the Doctor as a young girl in the Gamma forests, attempts to befriend Amy and gives her a cloth good luck token with Melody's name on it in her language. Amy warns Bucket of the Doctor's fury if she fights against him.
Assisted by additional Silurian and Judoon
Judoon
The Judoon are a fictional extraterrestrial species of mercenary police from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spin-offs. They first appeared in the episode Smith and Jones in 2007....
forces, the Doctor and his allies launch a surprise attack and secure the base. The Doctor and Rory free Amy and retake Melody before Madame Kovarian can escape with her. As the Doctor celebrates, considering this his greatest achievement, Vastra and Dorium discover that Kovarian has been scanning Melody and has found that the child has both human and Time Lord DNA
DNA
Deoxyribonucleic acid is a nucleic acid that contains the genetic instructions used in the development and functioning of all known living organisms . The DNA segments that carry this genetic information are called genes, but other DNA sequences have structural purposes, or are involved in...
. The Doctor surmises that Melody was likely conceived on Amy and Rory's wedding night aboard the TARDIS, the baby's DNA influenced by the time vortex. The rest of the Doctor's allies regroup, and Amy and Rory tend to their daughter using an ancient wooden cot that the Doctor claims was his own. Kovarian, well away from the base, contacts the Doctor, explaining that they will be using Melody as a weapon in the war against him. She takes delight in telling him he has fallen into another trap, and that "fooling [the Doctor] once was a joy, twice in the same way is a privilege." The Doctor races to the hangar to warn his friends. Meanwhile, Bucket has arrived and warns the group of Kovarian's trap, but they are too late as the TARDIS is blocked by a force field and they are attacked by the Headless Monks. Several Silurians and Dorium are killed immediately, while Strax and Bucket are fatally wounded in the battle. At the same time, Kovarian, appearing through a hatch opening in midair near where Amy and Melody are hiding, tells the baby to wake up. The baby dissolves into the Flesh liquid, leaving Amy horrified and in shock.
The Doctor arrives too late to help his wounded allies, and helps Rory to console Amy. River appears, and the Doctor berates her for not helping. She tries to explain that she could not, and tells the Doctor how these recent events were partially his fault, having been brought about by those that feared his reputation. The Doctor, angry and emotional, demands to know who she is. River shows the Doctor the cot, and The Doctor recognises River's identity. Elated, he goes off on his own in the TARDIS to rescue Melody, asking River to return everyone to their proper time period. Amy demands that River explain what the Doctor learned, and she shows them the cot. Initially Amy believes River is referring to the Gallifreyan symbols engraved on it, but they cannot be read by humans even with the aid of the TARDIS translation systems. Instead, River shows them Bucket's cloth prayer leaf with Melody's name, still in the cot. Amy tells River that she knows her daughter's name; River tells her that the people of the Gamma Forest don't have a word for Pond, as the only water in the forest is the river. As Amy and Rory stare at the prayer leaf, the writing is translated into English, revealing the child's name: River Song. River then reveals the truth, "It's me. I'm Melody. I'm your daughter."
Continuity
Rory wears the armour of a Roman centurion, as in "The Pandorica OpensThe Pandorica Opens
"The Pandorica Opens" is the twelfth episode, and first in a two-part story, in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, broadcast on 19 June 2010. The Doctor's friends send him a warning; he deals with a message on a cliff, a mysterious box and a love story that...
" / "The Big Bang
The Big Bang (Doctor Who)
"The Big Bang" is the 13th and final episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is the second part of a two-part season finale started with "The Pandorica Opens", at the end of which The Doctor is trapped, the TARDIS destroyed, and Amy Pond has been shot...
" and "A Christmas Carol". Amy also tells Melody of Rory's nickname of "the Last Centurion", derived from his two thousand-year vigil over the Pandorica in "The Big Bang".
Dorium previously appeared in the opening to "The Pandorica Opens
The Pandorica Opens
"The Pandorica Opens" is the twelfth episode, and first in a two-part story, in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, broadcast on 19 June 2010. The Doctor's friends send him a warning; he deals with a message on a cliff, a mysterious box and a love story that...
", selling River Song a vortex manipulator; she is wearing the same or superficially identical one at the end of this episode. Henry and Toby Avery", from "The Curse of the Black Spot
The Curse of the Black Spot
"The Curse of the Black Spot" is the third episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by Stephen Thompson, and directed by Jeremy Webb, the episode was first broadcast on 7 May 2011 on BBC One in the United Kingdom and on BBC America in the...
", appear briefly to secure Madame Kovarian's ship; Henry Avery was also repeatedly mentioned in the First Doctor
First Doctor
The First Doctor is the initial incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by the actor William Hartnell from 1963 to 1966. Hartnell reprised the role in the tenth anniversary story The Three Doctors in 1973 - albeit in a...
serial, The Smugglers
The Smugglers
The Smugglers is a serial in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast in four weekly parts from 10 September to 1 October 1966.-Plot:...
. The space-worthy Spitfires modified by Professor Edwin Bracewell and piloted by "Danny Boy" as shown in "Victory of the Daleks
Victory of the Daleks
"Victory of the Daleks" is the third episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is written by Mark Gatiss and first broadcast on BBC One on 17 April 2010....
" are shown to disable the base's communication array.
Fat One and Thin One refer to the Doctor sending the Atraxi away from a planet before calling them back "for a scolding", an incident that took place in "The Eleventh Hour
The Eleventh Hour (Doctor Who)
"The Eleventh Hour" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on BBC One and BBC HD on 3 April 2010....
". The Headless Monks were previously mentioned in "The Time of Angels
The Time of Angels
"The Time of Angels" is the fourth episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, first broadcast on 24 April 2010 on BBC One. It is the first episode of a two-part story written by showrunner Steven Moffat and directed by Adam Smith; the second episode was...
", added to that episode's script to help explain the Delirium Archive's monastic look. Bucket refers to her unit as "the Clerics", the unit which was introduced in "The Time of Angels". This episode introduced additional units in the same military organisation, the Church.
Surprised by the Doctor's possession of an infant's very old cot, Amy asks the Doctor if he has or ever had children; she had previously asked him in "The Beast Below
The Beast Below
"The Beast Below" is the second episode of the fifth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was written by showrunner Steven Moffat and broadcast on BBC One and BBC HD on 10 April 2010....
" if he had children. The Doctor states that he does not have children, echoing his statements in "Father's Day
Father's Day (Doctor Who)
"Father's Day" is the eighth episode in series one of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The episode was first broadcast on 14 May 2005...
", "Fear Her
Fear Her
"Fear Her" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was first broadcast on 24 June 2006.The episode takes part on the day of the opening ceremony of the 2012 Summer Olympics in London, almost exclusively on a fictitious cul-de-sac named after the British athlete...
", and "The Doctor's Daughter
The Doctor's Daughter
"The Doctor's Daughter" is the sixth episode of the fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was broadcast on BBC One on 10 May 2008.- Synopsis :...
". The Doctor's daughter Jenny
Jenny (Doctor Who)
Jenny, portrayed by Georgia Moffett, is a fictional character in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. She first appeared in the episode "The Doctor's Daughter", originally broadcast 10 May 2008...
was "born" fully-grown, never using an infant's cot, and her regeneration is unknown to the Doctor who assumes she is dead. Amy saw a photograph of his granddaughter, Susan Foreman
Susan Foreman
Susan Foreman is a fictional character in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The granddaughter and original companion of the First Doctor, she was played by actress Carole Ann Ford from 1963 to 1964, in the show's first season and the first two stories of the second season...
, and other female companions in "Meanwhile in the TARDIS 2", although she is not told their individual identities.
The Doctor tells Madame Vastra that Amy was worried her child would have a "time head", referring to the conversation he had with her at the end of "Day of the Moon".
Shortly after the revelation that Melody has some Time Lord DNA, the Doctor has a brief flashback of the girl in the spacesuit from "Day of the Moon
Day of the Moon
"Day of the Moon" is the second episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by show runner Steven Moffat, and directed by Toby Haynes, the episode was first broadcast on 30 April 2011 on BBC One in the United Kingdom and on BBC America in the...
" in which River states that "I'd say that she's human," and "She must be incredibly strong."
"The only water in the forest is the river," the phrase River uses to explain why the people of the Gamma Forest translate Pond to River, was first said to Rory by Idris in "The Doctor's Wife
The Doctor's Wife (Doctor Who)
"The Doctor's Wife" is the fourth episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was broadcast on 14 May 2011 in the United Kingdom, as well as in the United States...
".
When the Doctor greets "Melody Pond", Rory corrects him, "Melody Williams", which Amy immediately over-rules. The Doctor had likewise congratulated the newly-wed "Mr Pond" in "The Big Bang
The Big Bang (Doctor Who)
"The Big Bang" is the 13th and final episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is the second part of a two-part season finale started with "The Pandorica Opens", at the end of which The Doctor is trapped, the TARDIS destroyed, and Amy Pond has been shot...
"; which Rory momentarily corrected before acknowledging his de facto status as Mr Pond. Amy's justification for Melody bearing her surname is that Melody Pond is a superhero, and Melody Williams is a geography teacher; ironically, adult Melody Pond (as River Song), is an archeology professor.
River Song explains the impact the Doctor has left by his travels. Cultures with whom he has interacted throughout the universe have incorporated the word "Doctor" into their languages to mean "healer" and "wise man" – except some worlds, such as the Gamma Forests, where it means "mighty warrior".
The Doctor's cot in which Melody's living flesh doppelgänger rests features a mobile
Mobile (sculpture)
A mobile is a type of kinetic sculpture constructed to take advantage of the principle of equilibrium. It consists of a number of rods, from which weighted objects or further rods hang. The objects hanging from the rods balance each other, so that the rods remain more or less horizontal...
of stars and planets, like the mobile which Amy finds in the mysterious child's room in "Day of the Moon
Day of the Moon
"Day of the Moon" is the second episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by show runner Steven Moffat, and directed by Toby Haynes, the episode was first broadcast on 30 April 2011 on BBC One in the United Kingdom and on BBC America in the...
".
Production
The seventh episode of series six was the 777th episode of Doctor Who, but there are no seven puns as the production team did not realise this until after shooting.The set used for the chamber Amy was kept in was the same used as the Oval Office
Oval Office
The Oval Office, located in the West Wing of the White House, is the official office of the President of the United States.The room features three large south-facing windows behind the president's desk, and a fireplace at the north end...
in "The Impossible Astronaut
The Impossible Astronaut
"The Impossible Astronaut" is the first episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by show runner Steven Moffat, and directed by Toby Haynes, the episode was first broadcast on 23 April 2011 in the United Kingdom, as well as the United States...
"/"Day of the Moon
Day of the Moon
"Day of the Moon" is the second episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. Written by show runner Steven Moffat, and directed by Toby Haynes, the episode was first broadcast on 30 April 2011 on BBC One in the United Kingdom and on BBC America in the...
". Baby Melody Pond was played by twins, a common practice used in filming so that one twin can rest while the other is on set.
Cast notes
Dan StarkeyDan Starkey
Dan Starkey is a British actor.Dan studied at University of Cambridge before training at the Bristol Old Vic .-Theatre credits:*The 39 Steps UK national tour* The Fitzrovia Radio Hour-Filmography:...
appears as the Sontaran
Sontaran
The Sontarans are a fictional extraterrestrial race of humanoids from the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and also seen in spin-off series The Sarah Jane Adventures. They were created by writer Robert Holmes.-Culture:...
Commander Strax. He previously played Commander Skorr in "The Sontaran Stratagem
The Sontaran Stratagem
"The Sontaran Stratagem" is the fourth episode of the fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was broadcast on BBC One on 26 April 2008...
" / "The Poison Sky
The Poison Sky
"The Poison Sky" is the fifth episode of the fourth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was broadcast on BBC One on 3 May 2008. The episode features both former companion Martha Jones and the alien Sontarans...
" (2008) and Commander Jask in The End of Time
The End of Time
The End of Time: The Next Revolution in Our Understanding of the Universe, also sold with the alternate subtitle The Next Revolution in Physics, is a 1999 science book in which the author Julian Barbour argues that time exists merely as an illusion.-Auto-biography:The book begins by describing how...
(2010). Neve McIntosh
Neve McIntosh
-Early life:Born in Paisley, Neve McIntosh grew up in Edinburgh, where she attended Boroughmuir High School. She moved to Glasgow to attend the Royal Scottish Academy of Music and Drama, after which she was in repertory companies at Perth and at The Little Theatre on the Isle of Mull.-Theatre:She...
appears as a lesbian
Lesbian
Lesbian is a term most widely used in the English language to describe sexual and romantic desire between females. The word may be used as a noun, to refer to women who identify themselves or who are characterized by others as having the primary attribute of female homosexuality, or as an...
Silurian
Silurian (Doctor Who)
The Silurians are a fictional race of reptile-like humanoids in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The species first appeared in Doctor Who in the 1970 serial Doctor Who and the Silurians...
Warrior Vastra. She previously played the sisters Alaya and Restac in "The Hungry Earth
The Hungry Earth
"The Hungry Earth" is the eighth episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 22 May 2010 on BBC One. It was written by Chris Chibnall, who had previously written for Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood...
" / "Cold Blood
Cold Blood (Doctor Who)
"Cold Blood" is the ninth episode in the fifth series of British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was broadcast on Saturday 29 May 2010...
" (2010).
Steven Moffat said he planned writing in a cameo
Cameo appearance
A cameo role or cameo appearance is a brief appearance of a known person in a work of the performing arts, such as plays, films, video games and television...
for John Barrowman
John Barrowman
John Scot Barrowman is a Scottish-American singer, actor, dancer, musical theatre performer and media personality. Born in Glasgow yet growing up in Illinois after his family emigrated to the United States when he was eight years old, Barrowman was encouraged to further his love for music and...
to reprise his role as Jack Harkness
Jack Harkness
Captain Jack Harkness is a fictional character played by John Barrowman in Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. He first appeared in the 2005 Doctor Who episode "The Empty Child" and reappeared in the remaining episodes of the 2005 series as a companion of the ninth incarnation of the...
, but Barrowman was busy filming Torchwood: Miracle Day and was unavailable.
Broadcast and reception
"A Good Man Goes to War" was first broadcast in the United Kingdom on 4 June 2011 on BBC OneBBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
and BBC HD
BBC HD
BBC HD is a high-definition television network provided by the BBC. The service was initially run as a trial from 15 May 2006 until becoming a full service on 1 December 2007...
and in the United States on BBC America
BBC America
BBC America is an American television network, owned and operated by BBC Worldwide, and available on both cable and satellite.-History:The channel launched on March 29, 1998, broadcasting comedy, drama and lifestyle programs from BBC Television and other British television broadcasters like ITV and...
on 11 June 2011. UK overnight figures showed that the episode was watched by 5.5 million viewers, a rise of a half a million from the previous week and coming in sixth place for the night. Final consolidated ratings showed that the episode was watched by 7.57 million viewers with an audience share of 31%. It achieved an Appreciation Index
Appreciation Index
The Audience Appreciation Index is a score out of 100 which is used as an indicator of the public's appreciation for a television or radio programme, or broadcast service, in the United Kingdom. Until 2002, the AI of a programme was calculated by BARB, the organisation that compiles television...
of 88, the joint highest for the series at time of broadcast.
Critical reception
Matt Risley of IGNIGN
IGN is an entertainment website that focuses on video games, films, music and other media. IGN's main website comprises several specialty sites or "channels", each occupying a subdomain and covering a specific area of entertainment...
rated the episode a 9.0/10, stating that the episode was an "epic" one that "opened with a grandstanding, wonderfully OTT pre-credits tease and didn't really let up from there."
Gavin Fuller of The Telegraph said that the episode was good but lacked significant background motivation into the villains. Fuller also notes that the revelation of River Song being Amy's grown up child "is perhaps a narrative strand that would sit uncomfortably with a series where loss has often been brushed off as soon as the next couple of episodes". However, he did have praise for the performance of Matt Smith, commenting that "the last few weeks have seen Matt Smith's Doctor in a welcome generally more serious vein, which he kept up here, with leavening at the right moments where his alien lack of comfort with human emotions, although used to comic effect, rang very true, as did his awkwardness when discovering the truth about River".
Dan Martin of The Guardian was less favourable, stating that that the producers "promised us a cliffhanger, and now we're left the whole summer long to contemplate whether our favourite show can really have just dropped the ball. Oh there was plenty to love about this mid-season finale, and even more to pick over. But as an hour of drama it was all over the place". Because the episode was so fast-paced with little being explained, he did not feel any emotional connection to the Anglican marines or Lorna Bucket. Unlike Fuller, Martin was not favorable to Matt Smith's Doctor, stating that "the non-event of the battle means that the Doctor never really gets to show this dark side we've been hearing so much about" and that Smith's predecessor, David Tennant
David Tennant
David Tennant is a Scottish actor. In addition to his work in theatre, including a widely praised Hamlet, Tennant is best known for his role as the tenth incarnation of the Doctor in Doctor Who, along with the title role in the 2005 TV serial Casanova and as Barty Crouch, Jr...
, "got angrier most weeks." Martin did have praise for the final reveal of the episode, stating that although it had been "hidden in plain view from the very beginning as soon as it's revealed Amy has called the baby Melody", he was unable to make the connection and was suitably surprised. Martin later rated it the second-to-worst episode of the series, though the finale
The Wedding of River Song
"The Wedding of River Song" is the thirteenth and final episode of the sixth series of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, and was first broadcast on BBC One, BBC America and Space on 1 October 2011.-Plot:...
was not included in the list.
The two new characters introduced in the episode (a Silurian
Silurian (Doctor Who)
The Silurians are a fictional race of reptile-like humanoids in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. The species first appeared in Doctor Who in the 1970 serial Doctor Who and the Silurians...
19th century crimefighter named Madame Vastra and her assistant Jenny) have proven quite popular among fans, with numerous forums and SFX Magazine calling for the BBC to commission a spin-off series. Steven Moffat
Steven Moffat
Steven Moffat is a Scottish television writer and producer.Moffat's first television work was the teen drama series Press Gang. His first sitcom, Joking Apart, was inspired by the breakdown of his first marriage; conversely, his later sitcom Coupling was based upon the development of his...
stated in an interview that he did not have time to work on a spin-off but was open to the possibility of the characters returning.