Melody Pond: Difference between revisions

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{{ImageLink}}
{{Infobox Individual
{{Infobox Individual
|individual name= River Song
|image        = <gallery>
|image=[[Image:River Song.jpg|250px]]
Young melody escaping.jpg|Melody
|alias=
Mels in Hitler's office.jpg|Mels
|race=[[Human]]
River Looks Left LKH.jpg|River
|home planet=unknown
</gallery>
|home era= [[51st century]]
|alias        = [[Mels Zucker]], [[River Song]] <!-- for aliases pertaining to specific incarnations, please see those pages -->
|appearances= [[DW]]: ''[[Silence in the Library]]''/ ''[[Forest of the Dead]], ''[[Journey's End]]'' (archieval footage)
|species      = Human
|actor= [[Alex Kingston]]
|species2    = Proto-Time Lord
}}
|species3    = Data ghost
|job          = Archaeologist
|job2        = Detective
|job3        = Writer
|job4        = Assassin
|affiliation  = The Silence
|affiliation2 = Luna University
|affiliation3 = Felman Lux Corporation
|birth date  = [[52nd century]], [[Demons Run]]
|death date  = [[51st century]], [[the Library]]
|spouse      = The Doctor
|spouse2      = Ramone
|spouse3      = Hydroflax
|spouse4      = Stephen Fry (in-universe){{!}}Stephen Fry
|spouse5      = River Song's second wife{{!}}second wife
|spouse6      = Jack Harkness
|grandparent  = Tabetha Pond
|grandparent2 = Augustus Pond
|grandparent3 = Brian Williams (Dinosaurs on a Spaceship)
|grandparent4 = Rory Williams's mother{{!}}Rory's mother
|mother      = Amy Pond
|father      = Rory Williams
|adoptive brother = Anthony Williams
|sibling      = Lake (The Lady in the Lake)
|sibling2    = Rindle
|sibling3    = Tarn (The Lady in the Lake)
|sibling4    = Stream (The Lady in the Lake)
|sibling5    = Creek (The Lady in the Lake)
|sibling6    = Wadi
|sibling7    = Beck (The Lady in the Lake)
|sibling8    = Brooke (The Lady in the Lake)
|sibling9    = H-One
|sibling10    = H-Two
|sibling11    = O (The Furies)
|adopted child = Kamen Vers
|adopted child2 = Charlotte Lux
|origin      = [[Demons Run]]
|first        = Silence in the Library (TV story)
|appearances  = {{appears}}
|actor        = Alex Kingston
|other actor  = Harrison and Madison Mortimer
|other actor2 = Sydney Wade
|other actor3 = Maya Glace-Green
|other actor4 = Nina Toussaint-White
|clip        = The REAL Melody Pond - Doctor Who - A Good Man Goes to War - Series 6 - BBC
|bts          = Introducing the Pond Family - Doctor Who Confidential - Series 6 - Episode 13 - BBC Three
}}
{{MelodyPonds}}
'''Melody Pond''' was the child of [[Amy Pond]] and [[Rory Williams]]. She was a "[[Child of a TARDIS|child]] of the [[The Doctor's TARDIS|TARDIS]]", born mostly [[Human]] with some [[Time Lord]] [[DNA]]. She was transformed by [[the Silence]] into the first of several [[Proto-Time Lord]]s, and had the ability to [[Regeneration|regenerate]].


Professor '''River Song''' is a [[Human|human]] archaeologist.
Melody was named after her parents' childhood friend, '''[[Mels Zucker]]''', who was in fact secretly her second incarnation gone back in time to ensure her parents got together. Regenerating once more into her third incarnation after being shot by [[Adolf Hitler]], she became best known as [[Professor]] '''[[River Song]]''', and married the [[Time Lord]] known as [[the Doctor]] in his [[Eleventh Doctor|eleventh incarnation]].


She is assumed to have an unusually intimate relationship with the Doctor, since she is the only person known to know his real name. Unlike most classic series companions but like most new series companions, she seems to take shorter trips with the Doctor, living a more or less normal life between trips, rather than have one extended trip with the Doctor and never see him again after parting ways.
== Biography ==
=== Incarnations of Melody Pond ===
During her first incarnation, Melody was a [[Melody Pond (Prequel to The Impossible Astronaut)|little girl]], who had been kidnapped by [[Madame Kovarian]]. She harvested Melody's embryonic [[DNA]] in order to [[clone]] more children like her. This resulted in the creation of River's clones, the [[Proto-Time Lord|Proto-Time Lords]]. The clones referred to one another as siblings. The first batch consisted of seven clones named [[Lake (The Lady in the Lake)|Lake]], [[Rindle]], [[Tarn (The Lady in the Lake)|Tarn]], [[Wadi]], [[Creek (The Lady in the Lake)|Creek]], [[Stream (The Lady in the Lake)|Stream]], and [[Beck (The Lady in the Lake)|Beck]]. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Lady in the Lake (audio story)|The Lady in the Lake]]'') The second batch of clones included [[Brooke (The Lady in the Lake)|Brooke]], [[H-One]], [[H-Two]], and [[O (The Furies)|O]]. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[My Dinner with Andrew (audio story)|My Dinner with Andrew]]'', ''[[The Furies (audio story)|The Furies]]'') Like River, the clones had [[Binary vascular system|two hearts]] and the ability to regenerate; however, the exact amount of regenerations each of them had was random. ([[AUDIO]]: ''[[The Lady in the Lake (audio story)|The Lady in the Lake]]'')


==Biography==
After escaping from the Silence, Melody had made her way to [[New York City]] and developed a terminal illness, but knew she could "fix it" by [[Regeneration|regenerating]]. She was living homeless in an alley when she finally succumbed to her ailment in January [[1970]], and regenerated. ([[TV]]: ''[[Day of the Moon (TV story)|Day of the Moon]]'')


'''Professor River Song''' was an archaeologist from the [[51st century]] who is already highly familiar with [[the Doctor]] when they first meet (from his perspective). She is, in fact, a future companion of his; she travels with him off and on, and he trusts her implicitly. When her team ran into trouble during an expedition to a deserted library, it was only natural that River should try to summon the Doctor by sending him a message on his psychic paper.  But the Doctor who turns up, though recognizably River's Doctor, has not yet met her.  Though bewildered, he agrees to help River and her team.
Now under the name of [[Mels Zucker]] ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Mels at School (short story)|Mels at School]]'') and residing in [[Leadworth]], Melody grew up once more, now alongside her parents. She became Amelia and Rory's close childhood friend, ([[TV]]: ''[[Let's Kill Hitler (TV story)|Let's Kill Hitler]]'') Upon meeting the [[Eleventh Doctor]], Mels held him at gunpoint and made him take her to "kill [[Adolf Hitler|Hitler]]". There, she was caught in a crossfire between him and the ''[[Teselecta]]''. She got the Doctor to promise to marry her, and revealed her true identity to the three of them. Beginning to regenerate, Melody reflected on her last regeneration, and told her parents she was glad she had found them, before she exploded with [[regeneration energy]].


River's expedition to the planet-sized [[The Library|Library]] was financed by [[Felman Lux]] and was chartered to find out what disaster had happened there, 100 years previously, that had caused 4022 people to disappear.
Shortly after regenerating, Melody began examining her new body. Unbeknownst to her, both the Doctor and her parents were already acquainted with this new incarnation, who more commonly used the name [[River Song]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[Let's Kill Hitler (TV story)|Let's Kill Hitler]]'')


River and the Doctor appeared to be very familiar, even considering the strong bonds the Doctor forms with his companions.  She keeps a worn and battered diary whose cover looks very much like the TARDIS doors--apparently  a journal of her travels with the Doctor.  She also carries an upgraded version (in addition to the usual settings, it has "red settings" and "damper settings") of the Doctor's sonic screwdriver--a gift from the Doctor, she claims, even though he insists that he "doesn't give anyone" his sonic screwdrivers.  (She responds, "I'm not 'anyone'!" and refuses to elaborate.)
{{Proto-Time Lords}}
{{NameSort}}


As the situation in the Library deteriorates, River realizes she must prove to the Doctor that she is (or will become) someone he trusts completely.  With profuse apologies, she whispers something into his ear... his true name.  The Doctor is stunned that she would know this information, and River succeeds in winning his trust.
[[Category:Spouses of the Doctor]]
 
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River died when she chooses to sacrifice herself in order to stop the Doctor from sacrificing himself in order to save Donna and the other 4022 people trapped on the Library. As he looks on, unable to stop her, she reveals that he must have always known how she was going to die.  She pleaded with him to not try and change history, not to change one moment of what is to come for them.
[[Category:Partial Time Lords]]
 
[[Category:Fifth Doctor companions]]
After saving all the trapped people, the Doctor realizes his future self must have given her his sonic screwdriver for a reason.  Inside he finds a [[data chip]], which contains River's [[Data Ghost]].  The Doctor rushes to save her by uploading her into the virtual world contained in [[The Library]]'s data core.  CAL, the library's data core controlled by a human girl wired into its mainframe, also managed to save the data ghosts of all of River's dead archaeological team, so she would have company in the virtual world. 
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As the Doctor leaves the Library, he snaps his fingers to open and close the doors of the TARDIS, smiling when they comply, looking forward to meeting River again. ([[DW]]: [[Silence in the Library]]/[[Forest of the Dead]])
[[Category:Twelfth Doctor companions]]
 
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When [[Davros]] said to the Doctor ''"Everywhere you go there are always deaths"'' River appears in a flashback, as the Doctor has flashbacks over those who have died during his travels. ([[DW]]: [[Journeys End]])
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==Trivia==
[[Category:Cloned individuals]]
*It is possible, though unlikely, that River Song is a reference to a song from the 1973 [[Tom Sawyer]] movie soundtrack.
*At Comic-Con 2008, Steven Moffat let slip that River Song has met other incarnations of [[the Doctor]].
 
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Latest revision as of 11:56, 2 April 2024

Melody Pond was the child of Amy Pond and Rory Williams. She was a "child of the TARDIS", born mostly Human with some Time Lord DNA. She was transformed by the Silence into the first of several Proto-Time Lords, and had the ability to regenerate.

Melody was named after her parents' childhood friend, Mels Zucker, who was in fact secretly her second incarnation gone back in time to ensure her parents got together. Regenerating once more into her third incarnation after being shot by Adolf Hitler, she became best known as Professor River Song, and married the Time Lord known as the Doctor in his eleventh incarnation.

Biography[[edit] | [edit source]]

Incarnations of Melody Pond[[edit] | [edit source]]

During her first incarnation, Melody was a little girl, who had been kidnapped by Madame Kovarian. She harvested Melody's embryonic DNA in order to clone more children like her. This resulted in the creation of River's clones, the Proto-Time Lords. The clones referred to one another as siblings. The first batch consisted of seven clones named Lake, Rindle, Tarn, Wadi, Creek, Stream, and Beck. (AUDIO: The Lady in the Lake) The second batch of clones included Brooke, H-One, H-Two, and O. (AUDIO: My Dinner with Andrew, The Furies) Like River, the clones had two hearts and the ability to regenerate; however, the exact amount of regenerations each of them had was random. (AUDIO: The Lady in the Lake)

After escaping from the Silence, Melody had made her way to New York City and developed a terminal illness, but knew she could "fix it" by regenerating. She was living homeless in an alley when she finally succumbed to her ailment in January 1970, and regenerated. (TV: Day of the Moon)

Now under the name of Mels Zucker (PROSE: Mels at School) and residing in Leadworth, Melody grew up once more, now alongside her parents. She became Amelia and Rory's close childhood friend, (TV: Let's Kill Hitler) Upon meeting the Eleventh Doctor, Mels held him at gunpoint and made him take her to "kill Hitler". There, she was caught in a crossfire between him and the Teselecta. She got the Doctor to promise to marry her, and revealed her true identity to the three of them. Beginning to regenerate, Melody reflected on her last regeneration, and told her parents she was glad she had found them, before she exploded with regeneration energy.

Shortly after regenerating, Melody began examining her new body. Unbeknownst to her, both the Doctor and her parents were already acquainted with this new incarnation, who more commonly used the name River Song. (TV: Let's Kill Hitler)