If you like Doctor Who and haven’t seen or heard the following video (though I highly doubt assumption B if assumption A is true), then you need to drop everything and watch the video below, now.
This present was given to fandom by Steven Moffat early on Thursday morning, and I was spoiled on one small but key part of it. Shame, really, as that’s a big part of the impact. I did, however, show the video to Erin and watch her smile, so I lived vicariously on her surprise.
Spoilers follow, so don’t read any further unless you’ve watched the above video.
Back now? Good.
The feeling I get upon watching this treat is gratitude. Yes, gratitude. I think of the work Steven Moffat had to do in order to keep this a secret until the very last minute. I’m grateful to Paul McGann for agreeing to do this, and I’m grateful to Moffat for giving McGann’s eighth Doctor a proper send-off, and leading us into the Time War in intriguing ways.
There is every possibility that we still won’t see the Time War come November 23, when the 75-minute special, The Day of the Doctor debuts, but that’s okay. Honestly, I wonder if this is the best way to fill out the Time War, with little snippets that feed us, and allow the imagination to do the rest.
Speaking of The Day of the Doctor, a two-minute snippet of the episode debuted as part of the BBC’s Children in Need charity special:
It looks like it’s going to be a grand old time. And for more of a taste, here’s the trailer: