At the National Television Awards where  Karen Gillan won an award for Best Female Drama Matt Smith said to the Radio Times that he has a year left doing Doctor Who. This is a bit of a surprise but we all knew that he couldn’t go on forever. Also the 50th anniversary is coming up and I assume something very big will happen for that.

Source

It only took about a year for me to become a full-fledged Doctor Who fanatic, so when I heard there was a new downloadable game coming to consoles featuring the Eleventh Doctor and River Song I was pretty excited. Then, I learned it is only coming to Playstation and that stupid Vita, followed by PC at a later date and my XBox-owning self became a little disappointed.

Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock, which is the first game in a planned trilogy, pits the good Doctor and River Song against a whole gallery of enemies, both old and new, in 2D platforming action. Check out the trailer:

I’m a bit perplexed by the trailer. I’m not sure what the “right” way to do a Doctor Who video game is, but the 2D side-scrolling, platforming option seems to be an odd choice. The Doctor and his companions have always done more than their fair share of running during their adventures, so I’d imagine any Doctor Who game would probably need to feature quite a bit of that – but still. The trailer certainly makes the game look exciting and this marriage of “retro” side-scrolling adventure and Doctor Who may turn out to be a great combination.

It will be interesting to see how this game plays and if Supermassive Games is able to successfuly capture that spirit of Doctor Who in a side-scroller. Despite my hesitations, I am looking forward to trying this game out because after all, it is The Doctor. However, being that it is only going to be on Playstation, this means I am going to have to show up at my girlfriend’s house with a case of beer and some Doritos and make convince her let me have a go at the game in her basement as I wear my Doctor Who t-shirt and a fez while haphazardly pointing my sonic screwdriver toy at her dog. I hope she makes me cupcakes – and yes, she knows how lucky she is.

Doctor Who: The Eternity Clock will be available on the Playstation Network for the PS3 and Vita this March, available soon after on the PC.

Tonight in the U.K. was the press screening for this year’s Doctor Who Christmas special. While there showrunner Steven Moffat let loose some details regarding Amy and Rory, played by Karen Gillen and Arthur Darvil,  for the next series of Doctor Who. He said that the couple would be joining the Doctor in the Tardis again, but their story would come to a heartbreaking end. He wouldn’t say how or when in the next series it would happen, but it would happen in the next series and their story will be done. One last thing Moffat said was that the Doctor would be joined by a new companion, but they had yet to be cast.

When asked if he would be sad about Gillen leaving the show Matt Smith had this to say:

Yes, absolutely…and Arthur. We’ve had the most incredible journey and we took over the show and we really had to sort of hold hands and help each other through it in many ways. So, yeah, it’s very disappointing. But, you know, one has to sort of remember that this show is about change and regeneration and that’s what galvanises it and pushes it forward and it’s about looking forward always

In other news the Christmas special is fast approaching and this preview clip has just hit the web:

Source: DoctorWhoNews.net

When I first heard about this short story, my first reaction was to curse under my breath. Why hadn’t I come up with it first?

But my second reaction was to buy it.

Poirot and the Doctor teams an actor playing Poirot on stage and a Tom Baker cosplayer in London for a Doctor Who convention together to solve a mystery.

The story was fun and bittersweet, the writing was clever, and it certainly left me wanting more. There were different places I might have taken the story, but author Christopher Ruz knows where it’s going and takes you there. It’s humourous at times and ends bittersweet and I’d recommend it to fans of good writing and Doctor Who.

I read the story and felt quite compelled to pass on my knowledge of it. It’s been published by the author and I know how tough it can be to get other people talking about your stuff, but this story truly deserves it.

It’s less than a dollar for Kindle, what have you got to lose? (It doesn’t seem to be available for Nook or Smashwords yet.)

(And while you’re at it, don’t forget to check out my books.)

Tonight at the annual Children in Need telethon in the UK the world was shown the trailer for this year’s Doctor Who special. Titled “The Doctor, The Widow, and the Wardrobe” it has been confirmed by the BBC that the special will air on Christmas Day. There was also a special video that was produced just for the telethon. Look below to see both the trailer and this special video.

Somehow, over at Bleeding Cool they (or someone they know, or someone else entirely) got ahold of this video of the cast and crew of Doctor Who. This was a wrap video they made for the end of the Russel T. Davies era.

I’ve never felt more nostalgic for the 10th Doctor than watching this video.

This is nothing but an adorable distraction, but a worthwhile one that will put a smile on your face.

And here’s another one called The Ballad of Russel and Julie…

Over the weekend, we were given the final installment of Doctor Who – Season 6. It closed where it opened, with the death of the Doctor in Utah, and it came to an emotional final conclusion, answering questions we’d all been scratching our heads about since the season opener.

It was apparent this episode was going to have to cover a lot of ground to tie up all the loose ends and unanswered questions dropped throughout this season and it answers most of them in a surprising fashion. Showrunner Steven Moffat has been very good at doing the unexpected on this show, and if he does something that’s even half-expected he does it in a completely new, off the wall sort of way. Taking a page out of Vonnegut’s book of telling stories involving time travel, Steven Moffat has really excelled at telling stories completely out of order in a jumbled mess of timey-wimey stuff, but completely understandable to an audience watching for rising levels of drama.

It’s honestly absurd how complicated yet simple it all really is.

This episode is no exception and he takes the beginning as the end in all sorts of different directions, but never straying from the one thread of story that takes you to the next logical step.

I guess this is all a roundabout way of saying that I really loved this episode of the show. I didn’t feel cheated by the ending whatsoever and I feel it leaves enough unresolved issues to keep me on the hook for another season. Yes, the Silence is still out there. Did anything that happened in that aborted timeline stick?

And this is setting up a next season that can be even darker than previous seasons. The Doctor seems to have committed to letting the whole of time and space (or at least his companions) think he’s dead. He’s going off the map to find himself and he seems at least a touch bittersweet and possibly angry about the way things played out.

Matt Smith has completely worked his way into my heart as the title character. Any lingering love I had for the previous two regenerations has been matched equally by my love for Matt Smith. He’s an incredible actor and always fun to watch (I suppose in the same way the last two were.) In this episode, though, he seemed to age a hundred years right before our eyes. It was remarkable.

Also, I hope this episode doesn’t signal the end of Amy and Rory’s time on the show. They’re fantastic additions and I’ve absolutely adored having them as the companions.

Do I think this was the best season finale we’ve had since the relaunch of the show? No. I still think the David Tennant’s season finale where Rose is left in the alternate dimension might still be the best… (Though Christopher Eccleston’s finale was very good, too…) This was good… Who knows. Only time will tell if I feel differently about it in the future, perhaps I’m still to close to it.

Bottom line is: If you’re not watching Doctor Who, you’re doing it wrong. This season was great.

In honor of tomorrow night’s new episode of Doctor Who, Ripple Junction has teamed with us to giveaway three officially licensed Doctor Who shirts.

Entering is as simple as can be!

Go like Ripple Junction’s facebook page and send an email to editor (at) bigshinyrobot.com with the subject line “FEZZES ARE COOL” before Monday, August 29th to tell us you’ve done it.

AND: For an extra chance to win, you can go to our facebook page and invite all of your friends to like us. Or you can ask your followers on twitter to follow us @BigShinyRobot. Just be sure to mention in your email that you’ve done it.

The contest closes on Monday, August 29th, so be sure to get your entries in!

If you simply can’t wait to see if you’ve won and want to buy a T-Shirt now, you can visit the Ripple Junction website. Doctor Who isn’t the only license they have. You can get Futurama shirts, The Big Lebowski, Firefly, and dozens of others.

At San Diego Comic-Con Big Shiny Robot! had the chance to interview the cast of Torchwood. Last week we put up our interview with John Barrowman. The day before yesterday we posted our interview with Bill Pullman.  Yesterday, we had interviews with Mekhi Phifer and Alexa Havins. Today it’s Gwen Cooper herself, Eve Myles.

Eve has been on every episode of Torchwood and joined the team in the first episode of the show.

Without further ado, here’s our all-too brief interview, but it does give some very tantalizing hints to the dilemma that might end this season.

Q: When are you going to blow up that building.

A: We had one go at that. It was 3 in the morning and there were rains, winds, it was awful. They were all shaking cause we had one chance at it and it all comes to me. And we had one take. And it’s soon. Very soon. It’s one of those moments where you go, “Yes!”

And to be honest, we couldn’t do Miracle Day on BBC. It’s production value. We’ve got two helicopters. To do the best we could and have all the toys we needed. But there’s the quiet moments, moments of 3 or 4 pages of dialogue that will blow your mind. You don’t need all that stuff all the time, but that’s what makes us a psychological thriller, not an action show.

Q: How is Gwen approaching her father dying?

A: This is the the decision. This is the dillema. This is the great challenge. Does she see the bigger picture? Or stick with the smaller picture? It’s a brilliant struggle. I was very pleased to have those challenges. It’s so difficult for her. Like Jack with Children in Earth with the grandson. You have to make a decision and it’s always going to be the wrong one.

At San Diego Comic-Con Big Shiny Robot! had the chance to interview the cast of Torchwood. Last week we put up our interview with John Barrowman. Yesterday we posted our interview with Bill Pullman.  Today, we have interviews with Mekhi Phifer and Alexa Havins.  They play Esther and Rex, the newest recruits to Torchwood.

First up is Mekhi Phifer:

When I first read the episode I didn’t know where they were going.  He’s dead already in the first two seconds.  Maybe this was the future and flashbacks, I didn’t know where they were going with it.  It was a lot of fun reading, actually.  I was dealing with a character who was dealing with a lot of pain and rough around the edges.

He wants to figure out what this miracle is, but if he solves it, does he die?

Q: You play a very strong personality on a show full of really strong personalties, how did you amp things up for that?

A: You have to be really strong to get these guys to even respect him.  After a while they become more of a team.  To tell you the truth, it’s a lot of fun, being sarcastic.  I think of them as not that intelligent, I just think of them as having a connection to the miracle.  He comes to find out they’re very useful.  the great thing is the unpredictability of it.  You’re on the edge of your seat.  You don’t know when they’ll come together finally.

Q: Is Rex going to notice Esther?

A: Spoiler.  Maybe, maybe not?  He looks at her like a sister.  And she’s sensationalizing it anyway.  She’s very useful, but she’s in the office and he’s in the field.  In her mind, it’s like she wants to hang out with her older brother when she’s underage.  And then she’s thrust into this world and it beats her up a little bit and then… and then…  I can’t say anymore.

Q: Will the woman whose neck you broke come back as a villain?  Is she going to be a menace for you?  Can she function?

A: Maybe?

Well, she can’t die.  The best they can do is give her a neck brace or something.  I don’t know if that would heal or not.  I don’t know how that works.  Even my character, my body is still functioning, I never flatlined.  Throughout the series I am healing, as fast as you can heal with a hole through your whole body.

And then we have Alexa Havins:

Q: Are you worried about them killing your character?

A: It’s shocking and makes shows interesting for it not to be safe. Coming into it, you know it’s an option. It’s fighting and fighting to the death and I just had so much fun. Everyone is saying, “Oh no, you don’t want to be the next Ianto.” But everyone is pulling for him.

Q: Is there a sexy side to Esther?

A: She has her eye on Rex. She’s starry eyed and she just wants him, he’s just so blind to her feelings. It’s sexy and STARZ.

Q: Will we be seeing Esther’s sister?

A: We meet her in the next episode. By introducing the family members you can connect and make people understand what’s at stake. One of my favorite’s is Gwen’s with her daughter. It makes the world even more dangerous when you have loved ones in harms way.

My character wonders how to come across it all as a know-it-all, but it’s written so well where it’s very endearing.

Q: Are there dark intense moments coming up?

A: Definitely. She’s got some stunts and fight scenes and it’s raw and brutal. She’s not trained like them and it’s scrappy. A chick fight. Hair-pulling, screaming.

Q: What about working with Bill Pullman?

A: Esther doesn’t share a minute of screen time with Bill Pullman. He’s where he’s at and we’re around the world, not to give too much away.

And then tomorrow we’ll get an interview with Eve Myles, Gwen Cooper herself.