Arr, matey. There be spoilers ahead. Proceed with caution.
This week’s episode of Doctor Who takes us on a pirate adventure. When I heard there were going to be pirates in this one, I immediately started making references to Paul & Storm’s “Captain’s Wife’s Lament” in my head. (Warning: that link has a bit of foul, piratey language in it)
This episode brought us pirates and curses and a siren out for blood. Of course the Doctor and his companions end up right in the middle of it all.
“Ever look in the mirror and think you’re seeing a whole other world. Well this time it’s not an illusion.” – the Doctor
The story: There is a siren attacking the pirate ship. We eventually see that she is not really attacking the crew, but is actually a doctor looking after the sick and injured. She travels from another dimension using reflections. The reflections act as portals between the two worlds.
This episode is a lot more fun than the previous two. True there’s still danger, but we also get some of the playful fun back in this one as well. The Doctor having a contest of whose ship is better and joking with the captain of the pirate ship brings us back to a lighter version of the Doctor that we were missing for most of the two part premiere.
Of course there were some serious moments as well. For one, my heart nearly stopped when Amy was trying to resuscitate Rory. Note to the writers – you’re not allowed to even joke about killing him again for the rest of the season!
Another serious note comes with the secrets Amy and the Doctor are keeping from each other. For Amy, she is keeping the knowledge of the Doctor’s future death. When the Doctor says “We’ve all got to go sometime,” you can see the look on her face and the weight this knowledge has placed on her. As for the Doctor, he is keeping his own secret about Amy’s unusual pregnancy.
Our recurring theme for this season seems to be the one-eyed lady that Amy keeps seeing. First we see her in the orphanage during “Day of the Moon” and now on the ship in this one. She seems to be trying to communicate with Amy, but any concrete explanations will most likely be saved until either the midseason cliffhanger or the finale.