As the Doctor (Peter Capaldi) and Clara (Jenna Coleman) continue their adventures, she has to juggle being with him and turning up for dates with Danny Pink (Samuel Anderson). The Doctor's setting up to get to a secret location and he won't let her see where it is. When she leaves, he pinpoints East London, specifically Clara's school, Coal Hill. He arrives at their staff meeting and is introduced as John Smith, the replacement caretaker, the other one has been taken ill, hypnotized by the Doctor to think he's ill. Clara is shocked to see him and later goes back to ask what he's doing here. Well, saving the planet of course. from the Skovoz Blitzer. Really that was just a plot point, as the real underlying crux of this ep was the Doctor meeting Clara's boyfriend and getting it hopelessly wrong. Cos he thinks she's going out with Adrian (Edward Harrison) er, Adrian who was the Eleventh Doctor's reincarnation if ever there was one. So naturally he would approve of her seeing him. You know bow tie 'n' all, and the Matt Smith hair - well - almost!
He dislikes Danny from the outset as he's just a soldier and calls him a PE teacher too, not a Maths teacher. Cue lots of references to PE, such as swimming certificates and the offside rule (probably a reference to the episode The Lodger, where the Eleventh Doctor played footie and since the episode was co-written by Gareth Roberts, who also wrote The Lodger and well just to prove his point, Danny does a somersault at the end just to save Clara. Of course before all that, we get the pupils knowing there's something going on between the two and the Doctor going round the school planting devices so he can reel in the Blitzer and send it into the future. Even climbing the ladder to her classroom to tell her that she's got Jane Austen's year of when she wrote Pride and Prejudice wrong, He read the book and the bio and it's int he back. As well as cleaning off, "Ozzie loves Squaddie" from the window, but being oblivious to what it means. (Oswald loves Danny - which she comes out and admits here, though perhaps she wasn't meant to.)
The Skovoz Blitzer, however has blasted a policeman to smithereens and is on the move to the school. That's why the doctor is ready for it. Of course Danny messes it up for him cos the devices he plants in the drain (well he didn't find that one) the plants etc, he removes and ends up in the hall just as the Blitzer makes it appearance. With Danny being there to ensure he sees it being drawn into the vortex created by the Doctor with some very quick thinking. With Clara having to be there too. Thus Danny knowing that Clara already knows the Doctor from before and that he's not a caretaker. She tells him he's an alien, but she isn't, she's still from Blackpool and so hasn't lied to him.
The Doctor shows him the TARDIS and that he's got three days now to prepare for the Blitzer and has to come up with another plan to destroy it. It's for time travel and that's whats he also does. Giving Danny and Clara the chance to have a heart to heart in terms of her not being honest with him and how she loves him. Thought here wasn't much said from Danny or the Doctor when Clara blurts out in the school, that she loves him! No reaction at all! Anyway she says she does love The Doctor but not like that. Suppose the other comical moment was when Danny thinks he's her father and the Doctor replies he's not cos they're of similar ages!
Anyway as the Doctor builds a new contraption along the lines of the Ghostbusters backpack! He's interrupted by the "disruptive influence," Courtney (Ellis George) and she spies the TARDIS and he shows her inside. Will he be hypnotizing her to forget what she's seen. He's like that too, that she's disruptive like him, so he shakes her hand, but wants her to get lost now. So Blitzer returns early than calculated and on Parents Evening of all nights and the Doctor isn't ready but he uses Clara as a diversion giving her the Sonic to ensure it stays away from the hall. Danny following to help her. Thus the Doctor tries to get the backpack onto his back and to send the Blitzer into space, but he's not ready. Instead the Blitzer commands itself onto self destruct mode. So Danny becomes a decoy, somersaults over it and the Doctor has a chance to abort it from self destructing and to follow his order and shutdown.
Clara giving Danny the invisible watch earlier, so he can come inside the TRADIS, did she really think the Doctor wouldn't be aware of his presence. Causing Danny to reveal himself when he tells Clara they should take a quick trip somewhere, like the frozen Thames and will be back in time for the Blitzer. That's when Danny reveals himself saying he already knew of Danny' presence, that's why he wanted Clara to leave with him. But then there was that whole scene with Danny thinking that his being a Time Lord was some sort of reference to aristocracy and how he served under such men. Calling the Doctor, "Sir" and following his orders, "Sir." Such animosity in that scene, cos as Danny says, he realizes the Doctor doesn't think he's good enough for her. But he will try to be.
Danny telling Clara she has to be honest with him since she's so eager to go with the Doctor everywhere. She did what he wanted without even being afraid and she replies she trusts him. "He's never let me down" ever. But he needs her to tell him as he wants to be there to help her.
Oh and that policeman, well he ended up, you know where, heaven, the promised land, the afterlife. But Missy was a little busy so couldn't talk with him, so had Seb (Chris Addison) deal with him. A little busy for what we wonder and also how long this teasing will drag out.
This was an average sort of an ep, I didn't find it that engrossing aside the funny moments and banter between the Doctor and Clara, like her coming up with the Blitzer being a play they're rehearsing for the Summer feat, this episode wasn't that exciting. Just enough character driven moments, but even that bordered on the edge of repetition with Danny mentioning honesty and Clara having to be honest with him a few too many times. Why does Clara need someone to protect her and be there for her all of a sudden, when she managed fine all this time. It just doesn't seem right. Also why do we have to have romance in the show. We had Amy and Rory I know, but they were made for each other. It just seems Clara has been given this dating storyline cos she no longer feels for he Doctor in the same way she did for the Eleventh Doctor. As long as we get some other reason behind it, other than the two of them just going off into the sunset and getting married, I'll put up with it.
Some funny lines here, like having to clean up spillages and puddles. As well as having lived with a family of otters before. "I lived among otters once for a month." Now if that wasn't a direct reference to Benedict Cumberbatch, well in my mind it was! Ha. Also that music was also bordering on Sherlock when the Doctor was sneaking round the school and planting the devices. I said 'bordering' okay! Clara also mentioning that his name is Pink and we met the future Orson Pink, even looking like him, which the Doctor replies he didn't look like him. As well as his telling Clara she's washed and Clara sitting in front of her three mirrors, saying she can't continue doing this, then saying she can.
Looks like we're not going to be moving away from Matt Smith anytime soon with the number of references to the Eleventh Doctor! Shall just weep in the corner then!!
But the Doctor does recall him and River and having a fight. The Doctor mentioning the Fish People from The Underwater Menace.
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