Doctor Who - S5, Ep10


"Vincent and the Doctor" by Richard Curtis


or


"The Ultimate Ginger"

After visiting a Vincent Van Gogh exhibition with Amy, the Doctor notices a strange figure in one of the paintings. Identifying it immediately as something evil, the two time travellers decide to pay the artist a visit. Can the Doctor and Amy save Van Gogh from this mysterious beast before the life of one of the greatest artists of all time is cut short? And what will they do if Vincent doesn't want to be saved?

The first thing I noticed about this episode was it had more than a hint of season three's "The Shakespeare Code". Aside from the obvious historical figure theme, the episodes both deal with the nature of creativity and its often close relationship with madness. For Vincent, this is manifested by his deep depression, and I thought the episode handled this sensitive subject pretty well.

Needs more Nighy
One thing I was a little disappointed in was the underuse of Bill Nighy. His turn as museum tour guide was still wonderful - in that inimitably Bill Nighy way - but I'd much rather have seen him take a more meaty role in Doctor Who. Presumably he was brought on board by writer Richard Curtis, with whom Nighy has worked on Love Actually and other productions, but it seems a shame to use so great a talent for such a small role. 

Artists see the world differently
Another crossover with the Shakespeare episode is that in both the solution to defeating the big bad comes from the genius of the central figure. Here Van Gogh's unique perspective on the world enables him to see the Krafayis, a normally invisible space-born scavenger that has been abandoned by its pack. The monster itself is little more than a device to move the story along, though, because this episode is all about the three actors.

Of course the redheads should be paired off
Now that Rory's been erased from existence, Amy is free to start dating other people. And who better to start with than the deeply tormented Van Gogh? All joking aside, I found the relationship between Amy and Vincent quite believable despite the short time these two people spend together. There's just a delightful flirtiness between the two which I found really charming.

Moment of the episode
There's a wonderful scene where Van Gogh explains how he sees the night sky to Amy and the Doctor. As he talks colour begins to coil across the screen and soon the sky is alive with the swirling imagery of Vincent's imagination. It is one of the most beautiful sequences in a particularly gorgeous episode. Unsurprising, given the subject matter, but wonderful nonetheless.

Criminal underuse of a great actor aside, 'Vincent and the Doctor' was a joyous mix of sentimentality and fun. Great performances from the three leads made this a brilliant episode and one which will make you cry as much as it will make you laugh.

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