who is river song?

bret_owen99 wrote:

what if rory is the "great man" river song kills?

I don't get why he would be, unless it turns out she's really Amy. And Rory's been bumped off three times already! Let the poor guy live in peace!

Apparently, River Song is in prison for this murder, though it doesn't seem to be a maximum security prison. Thus, we can assume that she did not kill a world leader.

I write off the Doctor, as that might not seem to be a highly punishable crime, and River did say she killed a "man," not a Time Lord. (Unless she just meant "man" as a male. But still.) And if she killed the Doctor, why didn't Father Octavian have a big start when she introduced them?

Rory is a time traveler and his murder would be difficult to try if he was out of his own time. Evidence for that not happening is simply in that River Song is serving time in the 51st Century.

River Song did say "yes" when the Doctor asked her if she was married or if she marries him. I'm guessing her would-be husband/lover is the man she killed, or possibly her father.

Like I've noticed, Doctor Who rarely tends to do what we think it will, so I guess we won't know until about this time next year.

amagon wrote:

Hmmm, since TARDISes are grown, and with Compassion from the stories actually being a humanoid one.... The idea of what would The TARDIS sound like if it spoke, sounds FANTASTIC!

Is it okay to resurrect an old thread? I wanted to jump in here with a "me too".

I also think River is a manifestation of the Tardis. I got the idea while watching "Forest of the Dead." During her death scene, River says: "All the time we've been together, you knew I was coming here. The last time I saw you, the real you, the future you, I mean - you turned up on my doorstep, with a new haircut and a suit. You took me to Darillium to see the singing towers. Oh, what a night that was! The towers sang, and you cried." Very intimate and heartfelt, but I wondered if the bit about River's doorstep might be meant literally. It struck me as the kind of off-hand hint Moffat likes to throw in. Rather like Eleven kissing Amy on the forehead in "Flesh and Stone": a sudden, unusually intimate moment coupled with a seemingly innoccuous physical clue (11's jacket being on then off, which turned out not to be a continuity error).

In the same scene, River continues: "You'll see me again. You've got all of that to come. You and me, time and space. You watch us run!" Don't the last ten words pretty much sum up the story of the Doctor and the Tardis? And the more I thought about it, the more the TARDIS theory fit with River's manner toward the doctor. She treats him with a blend of maternal exasperation and flirtatious intimacy which doesn't always seem appropriate for either a mother, daughter, wife or future incarnation. She also seems utterly confident about her place in his life, as though whatever bonds them is unquestionable and unique. If I recall correctly, Tardises are grown around a sentient core. They are activated through the "Rassilon Imprimatur", which is some kind of process/ceremony which mentally and physically bonds one Tardis and one Timelord in an unbreakable symbiotic partnership. Sounds rather like Pernese dragon imprinting -- or a traditional Catholic wedding.

The Timelord/Tardis bond is long established, but the modern series seems to be taking it to a whole new level. For example, in The Eleventh Hour, Eleven says "What have you got for me this time?" when he re-enters the Tardis after regeneration. On seeing the new decor, he exclaims "Oh, you sexy thing!" In "School Reunion" Sarah Jane asks Rose, "Does he still stroke bits of the TARDIS?" and Rose replies, "Yeah! Yeah! He does! I'm like, "do you two wanna be alone?" The modern Who's relationship with the Tardis is definitely more visceral, not to say carnal, than it was in past decades.

Once I started wondering if she was the Tardis, many of River's mysteries fell into place. Lines like, "It's a wonder I ever let you out!" and her critique of his driving skills made sense in this context. It explains why she can fly the Tardis, and knows the control panel better than the Doctor, it explains why she can write fluent Gallifreyan, and it explains why she would know his name.

And, of course, River's diary looks like a Tardis. Actually, this is such an obvious clue that I suspect a red herring... eh, maybe River really is the Doctor's daughter/mother/final incarnation/the Master/Rose/Donna/Susan/Romana/the Face of Bo/whoever.


Cheers,
Elizabeth

This has to be the wildest theory I have ever read, and I absolutely love it!!! Well thought out and makes total sense! But, because of that, I doubt if it is true. And you can always bring back old threads. Welcome aboard!

In the comments for this article, someone pointed out that River Song must be very closely tied to the Silence, due to her first episode being called Silence in the Library.