S7E5: Angels Take Manhattan (SPOILERS)

A very sad episode indeed. I voted "Good" because although it was heart-wrenching and emotional I knew that they were gonna die/leave so I knew what was coming. Nonetheless, I was on the edge of tears.

Rory and Amy. I'm glad they're together. It's sad to see them go, though, but I think this was just the right time for them to leave. Three years is long enough for companions, more than long enough in fact. However, I will surely miss taking the mick out of Amy and adoring Rory's badd-ass-ness.

The Weeping Angels were not very scary at all. People always say they're "scared to death" of the Weeping Angels but they've never really scared me to be honest. They're awesome, they're fun, but not scary. They're also boring now, too, and it was clear that they were only in the episode as a plot device rather than being the ACTUAL plot. Which is fine by me because this is rightfully all about Rory and Amy's departure.

The roof scene almost caused cardiac arrest for these two hearts quite a few times. Rory kept losing his balance and stumbling, I nearly died with him... I was freaked out, too, cos I wasn't keen on the idea of them committing suicide. Thankfully that wasn't the case, thankfully they woke up in the graveyard... But it annoyed me that the Doctor was only screaming "AMY!" over the edge and not Rory... Um, hello, Rory's the bad-ass here. Not her.

Thankfully they woke up in the graveyard though, but as soon as they did I knew what was coming... If only Rory hadn't looked at that flaming gravestone! Grrrrr. I guess the Angel would have caught them one time or another though. It had to happen. *Sobs*

The ending with "the last page" was sad. That's what got me teary. But once again it was all about Amy and no Rory. That really irks me. Ah well, I guess the male companion is always going to be the disregarded one.

My only real qualms with this are that I have no idea why the Angels were even in New York in the first place, no one seems to have thought of Brian in all of this..., the Doctor just left that one Angel in the graveyard to carry on ruining innocent lives, and finally the Statue of Liberty should not have been a Weeping Angel - it's not made of stone, it's made of copper. I know all the statues in the city had been given life by the Weeping Angels but the whole point in Weeping Angels is that they turn to STONE when you're looking at them... Not copper.

All in all, a very good, action-packed and emotional episode. 7/10 I'd say.

kcooper76 wrote:

I also really loved the look of this episode. This particular director might be my favorite they've had on the series (Same one as the premiere and a couple other episodes, including The Girl Who Waited)

Another brilliant thing was that there was NO silliness to be found. Been a long time since we had an episode like that. I'm going to go ahead and vote 'fantastic'.... because I want this kind of tone in every episode of the show.

Very much agreed.

Hurran needs to direct at least a couple of episodes a series.

Wish we could get this type of story and drama all the time.

Easily my fav ep of this series so far.

Cruel Angel wrote:

kcooper76 wrote:

I also really loved the look of this episode. This particular director might be my favorite they've had on the series (Same one as the premiere and a couple other episodes, including The Girl Who Waited)

Another brilliant thing was that there was NO silliness to be found. Been a long time since we had an episode like that. I'm going to go ahead and vote 'fantastic'.... because I want this kind of tone in every episode of the show.

Very much agreed.

Hurran needs to direct at least a couple of episodes a series.

Wish we could get this type of story and drama all the time.

Easily my fav ep of this series so far.

Agreed!! Dagnabbit...I want a Rory figure...STAT!!!

DAMMIT, RORY! WHY DID YOU HAVE TO GO BACK TO LOOK AT THAT GRAVESTONE?

Well, we called it.

So, this episode takes place before Silence in the Library/Forest of the Dead for River. So, will it be her last episode?

I kind of hope it'll be the last episode for the Angels. I think they were better handled than their appearance in The Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone, but it'll never top the first time you saw Blink.

Still, bye Amy and Rory... I'll miss you guys. So glad that Amy was that committed to Amy and showing that she died Amelia Williams rather than them taking the last name Pond.

Glad Amy and Rory are gone.... I hope the next companion(s) will not make it a soap opera in space.

I'm debating with myself. I'm not sure I'll let my little niece watch it. I think it might put her off The Doctor altogether. She adores Amy & Rory, and seeing their gravestone would be traumatic for her, of that I am certain.

It seemed like a little bit much just for the Ponds to leave the series. Can't they just leave with a goodbye or something?

Could the Angels always warp people through time and space?

I actually prefer them both sacrificing themselves in order to wipe out the Angels rather than what actually happened to them. (Even though there was a fire escape on the other side of the rooftop...) The twist ending seemed more like a cheap shot in fact.

I was also bothered by how reluctant the Doctor was to help them, going on about fixed points and not changing the future. After all, his death was a fixed point but he found a way to get out of it.

Sigh, poor, poor Rory...

davro wrote:

Glad Amy and Rory are gone.... I hope the next companion(s) will not make it a soap opera in space.

You and me both!! And I hope the Doctor loses that kissy business...so freakin' kissy lately!!

I really liked the episode, but it was kind of just a rewrite of Blink. I thought the 9/11 tie in was a nice touch.

Gallifreys Loss wrote:

I really liked the episode, but it was kind of just a rewrite of Blink. I thought the 9/11 tie in was a nice touch.

It was a "rewrite of Blink" in the same way Asylum of the Daleks was a rewrite of Dalek.

Well that was a Great episode and soooo Depressing wow. I turned the TV off for about 5 mins to compose a little then turned it back on and Great more sadness.

I Will never go to New York Ever Again !!!!!!!!!!!

Now we get to go through Withdraw until Christmas

Am I the only one glad that we now know why everyone is forgetting the doctor? People can stop complaining about it now.

I just realized something. Amy and Rory got sent back in time, but why did they decide to stay in New York instead of going back to England? Yeah, this is because they had to since they saw they were buried in New York.

We also don't know when they died, only that they presumably die of old age and were gone by 2012. Their tombstone looks far too clean to have just sat there for a very long time. They didn't have any kids and they have no relations (they're all back in England, wondering where the heck they've disappeared to), so who'd be keeping their grave clean?

Another bit of tombstone trivia: Rory's middle name is "Arthur." Arthur Darvill's middle name is Arthur. (He's really named Thomas Arthur Darvill.)

I have to watch that again....I am so confused, I must have missed something. If the Doctor finds out you have died, he can never go back in time to visit you? Since when? I can understand him not being able to remove them from their timeline.....but why can he not visit them at least.

Ronpur wrote:

I have to watch that again....I am so confused, I must have missed something. If the Doctor finds out you have died, he can never go back in time to visit you? Since when? I can understand him not being able to remove them from their timeline.....but why can he not visit them at least.

He couldn't go back to New York around that time. That was where they lived.

Rocco wrote:

Ronpur wrote:

I have to watch that again....I am so confused, I must have missed something. If the Doctor finds out you have died, he can never go back in time to visit you? Since when? I can understand him not being able to remove them from their timeline.....but why can he not visit them at least.

He couldn't go back to New York around that time. That was where they lived.

But the Angels in 1938 were gone. He should have no problem going back there now. It would be like reading a history of WW2 and reading when Churchill died. He could never visit him again.

Ronpur wrote:

Rocco wrote:

Ronpur wrote:

I have to watch that again....I am so confused, I must have missed something. If the Doctor finds out you have died, he can never go back in time to visit you? Since when? I can understand him not being able to remove them from their timeline.....but why can he not visit them at least.

He couldn't go back to New York around that time. That was where they lived.

But the Angels in 1938 were gone. He should have no problem going back there now. It would be like reading a history of WW2 and reading when Churchill died. He could never visit him again.

It wasn't an angel problem. At the beginning he described going into New York as like landing a plane in a blizzard. I forgot what they described it as but after the paradox it became even worse so that he couldn't land there again.

Ronpur wrote:

Rocco wrote:

Ronpur wrote:

I have to watch that again....I am so confused, I must have missed something. If the Doctor finds out you have died, he can never go back in time to visit you? Since when? I can understand him not being able to remove them from their timeline.....but why can he not visit them at least.

He couldn't go back to New York around that time. That was where they lived.

But the Angels in 1938 were gone. He should have no problem going back there now. It would be like reading a history of WW2 and reading when Churchill died. He could never visit him again.

Valid point.

Also, how come the Angels were able to take Amy while the Doctor and River were watching?

D84 wrote:

Ronpur wrote:

Rocco wrote:

Ronpur wrote:

I have to watch that again....I am so confused, I must have missed something. If the Doctor finds out you have died, he can never go back in time to visit you? Since when? I can understand him not being able to remove them from their timeline.....but why can he not visit them at least.

He couldn't go back to New York around that time. That was where they lived.

But the Angels in 1938 were gone. He should have no problem going back there now. It would be like reading a history of WW2 and reading when Churchill died. He could never visit him again.

Valid point.

Also, how come the Angels were able to take Amy while the Doctor and River were watching?

River and The Doctor were looking at Amy.

Rocco wrote:

It wasn't an angel problem. At the beginning he described going into New York as like landing a plane in a blizzard. I forgot what they described it as but after the paradox it became even worse so that he couldn't land there again.

That's your answer, Ronpur. The Tardis can no longer land there after messing with time the way it did. They couldn't travel to another location to be picked up by the Tardis, either...since Amy's entry at the end stated they never see him again.

Yes, that problem was because of the time distortion caused by the angels. That is why he needed River to light the way for him. With those angels gone, what would be the problem. Unless they were totally wrong and Amy and Rory jumping did not erase them with the paradox. And the angels survived. And if the angels did survive, that would explain where the angel came from in the graveyard. So...the Doctor has just left a hive of angels in NYC.

Ronpur wrote:

Yes, that problem was because of the time distortion caused by the angels. That is why he needed River to light the way for him. With those angels gone, what would be the problem. Unless they were totally wrong and Amy and Rory jumping did not erase them with the paradox. And the angels survived. And if the angels did survive, that would explain where the angel came from in the graveyard. So...the Doctor has just left a hive of angels in NYC.

But they didn't say it was because of the angels. The angels were there because of the time distortion.

Ronpur wrote:

And the angels survived. And if the angels did survive, that would explain where the angel came from in the graveyard. So...the Doctor has just left a hive of angels in NYC.

He does say that lone Angel is a survivor from it...it's left over and weak, and probably died shortly after they left.

Rocco wrote:

Ronpur wrote:

Yes, that problem was because of the time distortion caused by the angels. That is why he needed River to light the way for him. With those angels gone, what would be the problem. Unless they were totally wrong and Amy and Rory jumping did not erase them with the paradox. And the angels survived. And if the angels did survive, that would explain where the angel came from in the graveyard. So...the Doctor has just left a hive of angels in NYC.

But they didn't say it was because of the angels. The angels were there because of the time distortion.

I must have missed that, I thought the angels were causing the distortion.