Doctor Who/Recap/2010 CS A Christmas Carol: Difference between revisions

'''Kazran Sardick''': Well, you tell the Doctor. Tell him from ''me''. People ''can't''. }}

 

 

----

"[[Yet Another Christmas Carol|A CHRISTMAS CAROL... Oh!]]" }}

 

 

First, the Ghost of Christmas Past. Confronting Kazran Sardick once again, the Doctor uncovers a particularly unhappy Christmas Sardick experienced as a boy. When young Kazran's [[Abusive Parents|abusive father]] (also Michael Gambon) completed the cloud-control machine, fish could no longer roam freely through the air in schools. Kazran missed out on seeing them raid his school once, because he was sick that day, and now he could never see the schools of fish again. He felt left out and alone, and when he tried to film himself going fish-exploring one day, his father caught him and hit him, hard.

{{quote| ''"Everyone knows that everybody dies. But not every day. Not today."''}}

*** This also echoes statements made by the Ninth Doctor in "The End of the World" and "The Doctor Dances".

* [[Christmas Episode]]

* [[Dissimile]]: When trying to convince Young Kazran that he's an appropriate "babysitter":

'''Young Kazran''': No...<br />

'''The Doctor''': Good. Because that comparison would have been ''rubbish''. }}

* [[Everybody Lives]]: The first Doctor Who Christmas Special ever where no one dies on-screen! <ref> Ok, there was that one little fish, but we'll let that go... </ref>

* [[Flying Seafood Special]]: All sorts of different kinds.

* [[Freudian Excuse]]: Kazran Sardick gets two:

** Also, no matter how you cut it, the relationship between young Kazran and Abigail has a [[Mrs. Robinson]] air about it. Kazran is ''just a kid'' the first few visits, and when he suddenly grows up, Abigail gets the hots for him.

* [[Gilligan Cut]]: In-universe example from Abigail's perspective; young Kazran assures Abigail that the Doctor promises to visit every Christmas Eve. The Doctor protests that he said no such thing but Kazran slams her freeze-chamber's door shut before he can rectify the lie. Then the door instantly opens (although it's actually a year later, of course) to reveal the Doctor and Kazran cheerily greeting her in Santa hats.

* [[Hey, It's That Voice!]]: [[Katherine Jenkins]], better known for being a [[Glamorous Wartime Singer]], plays Abigail.

* [[Human Popsicle]]: Abigail and the other people in the cryogenic vault.

* [[Kick the Dog]]: Both subverted and played straight. Early on, Kazran is about to strike a small boy, but can't bring himself to do it. It's Kazran's failure to Kick that particular Dog which convinces the Doctor that [[Heel Face Turn|Kazran's redeemable.]] Kazran's father, however, [[Abusive Parents|has no hesitation]] in ''hitting his own son'' because [[Disproportionate Retribution|he was interested in an inch-long flying fish, and left the window open about six inches.]]

* [[The Last Dance]]

* [[Loss of Identity]]: In changing Kazran's past, the Doctor alters his character so much that the isomorphic controls no longer respond to him.

* [[Magic Music]]: Apparently the right kind of singing causes the ice crystals in the clouds to resonate in a special way that calms down the fish.

* [[Paranoia Fuel]]: So you're just minding your own business, ruling a planet as the Scrooge you are. Then a guy comes into your house, shows you footage of your childhood, then ''appears in said footage and changes it, rewriting your memories in the meantime''. At the same time, a guy appears when you're 8 and starts saying stuff like "[[Accidental Pervert|I'm better than your nanny]]" at an age you can probably see the [[Double Entendre]], even if the time-traveling alien doesn't. Then the guy almost kills you in your past several times, while ''you see the live feed in your present''. And there's nothing you can do about it.

* [[Promotion to Opening Titles]]: Arthur Darvill as Rory.

* [[Rousseau Was Right]]

* [[Rule of Cool]]: The Doctor riding a carriage pulled by a flying shark, wearing a Santa hat.

* [[Shaggy Dog Story]]: The Doctor's plan is to change Kazran's past and make him a better person so he'll agree to use the controls that only he can operate to save the crashing ship. In the end, it turns out that {{spoiler|changing Kazran's character that much means his father no longer gives them to him. The Doctor's plan did end up providing the solution in the form of Abigail, but it was completely by accident.}}

* [[Sherlock Scan]]: The Doctor does this in the very beginning to prove Kazran's not a complete utter jerk and dissect his relationship with his father. [[Steven Moffat]] is also in charge of [[Sherlock]].

*** The bridge of the ship even looks like the bridge of the reboot ''Enterprise''.

*** Enough that Simon (Scotty) Pegg tweeted "Doctor Who Xmas special was great. Can't remember the last time I saw that much lens flare on the bridge of a spaceship."

** Old Kazran's first call to remove the Doctor: "Bye bye, [[Buffy|bored now]]. Chuck him!"

* [[Significant Monogram]]: The Scrooge character is named '''S'''ardick, although his first name is Kazran. His father, however, was named '''E'''lliot, and was even Scrooge-ier than he is.