Let's Kill Hitler (TV story): Difference between revisions

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{{title|''{{PAGENAME}}''}}  
{{title dab away}}
{{real world}}
{{real world}}
{{Infobox NewTV
{{ImageLinkTV}}
| story name      = Let's Kill Hitler
{{Infobox Story SMW
| image          = [[file:Lets-kill-hitler.jpg|250px]]
| image          = RiverRegenerates.jpg
| series          =  
| series          = [[Doctor Who television stories|''Doctor Who'' television stories]]
| number         = [[Series 6 (Doctor Who)|Series 6]]
| season number   = Series 6 (Doctor Who 2005)
| story number    = 218b
|series episode number = 8
| doctor          = [[Eleventh Doctor]]
| story number    = 219
| companions      = <ul><li>[[Amy Pond]]</li><li>[[Rory Williams]]</li><li>[[River Song]]</li></ul>
| doctor          = Eleventh Doctor  
| enemy          = <ul><li>[[River Song|Melody Pond]] (redeems herself)</li><li>[[Teselecta Antibodies]]</li></ul>
| companions      = [[Amy Pond|Amy]], [[Rory Williams|Rory]]
| setting        = {{bp|[[Leadworth]], [[England]], [[2011]]|[[Leadworth]], [[England]], c.[[1990s]]|[[Leadworth]], [[England]]|c.[[2000s]]|[[Berlin]], [[Germany]], [[1938]]|[[Sisters of the Infinite Schism]]|[[Luna University]], [[The Moon]], [[5123]]}}
| featuring      = River Song{{!}}Melody
|confidential = [[River Runs Wild]]
| featuring2      = Mels Zucker
| writer          = [[Steven Moffat]]
| featuring3      = Adolf Hitler
| featuring4      = Arthur Candy{{!}}Candy
| enemy          = [[Captain]] [[Carter (Let's Kill Hitler)|Carter]]
| setting        = [[Berlin]], [[1938]]
|confidential     = River Runs Wild (CON episode)
| writer          = Steven Moffat
| director        = [[Richard Senior]]
| director        = [[Richard Senior]]
| producer        = [[Marcus Wilson]]
| producer        = [[Marcus Wilson]]
| broadcast date  = [[27th August]] [[2011]]
| broadcast date  = 27 August 2011
| format          = 1x 50 minute episode
|network          = BBC One
| production code = 6.8
| format          = 1x50 minute episode
| previous story  = [[A Good Man Goes to War]]
| production code = 2.8
| next story      = [[Night Terrors]]
| prev            = A Good Man Goes to War (TV story)
| next           = Night Terrors (TV story)
| made prev      = Closing Time (TV story)
| made next      = The Wedding of River Song (TV story)
| clip            = The Doctor Accidentally Saves Hitler - Let's Kill Hitler - Doctor Who
| clip2          = "The Doctor? Doctor Who?" - Let's Kill Hitler - Doctor Who
| bts            = Rory Hearts Amy {{uc:exclusive dw}} Insider, Ep 8
| bts2            = Doctor Who Let's Kill Hitler Q&A
| bts3            = We're in Hitler's office - Doctor Who Confidential - BBC Three
}}
}}
'''''Let's Kill Hitler''''' was the eighth episode in the [[series 6 (Doctor Who)|sixth series]] of ''[[Doctor Who]]'' and the first episode in the Autumn half. As with ''[[A Good Man Goes to War]]'', it brought great revelations about [[River Song]].
'''''Let's Kill Hitler''''' was the eighth episode and mid-series premiere of [[Series 6 (Doctor Who 2005)|series 6]] of ''[[Doctor Who]]''.
 
It was the first episode in the autumn half of the sixth series. It was, in a sense, the second episode of a two-part story, preceded by ''[[A Good Man Goes to War (TV story)|A Good Man Goes to War]]''. Like ''A Good Man Goes to War'', it revealed much about [[River Song]]'s origins, also dealing with Amy and Rory's childhood and how they became a couple. Additionally, it explained why [[the Silence]] had been trying to kill [[the Doctor]] and it is stated that the Doctor's death at [[Lake Silencio]] is a [[fixed point in time]]. At the end of the episode and in following episodes, the Doctor is occasionally seen looking at the information he downloaded from the ''[[Teselecta]]'' on his death.
 
The episode featured the first "[[Time Lord]]-style" [[regeneration]] of a female that showed the complete change in physical appearance from old to new incarnation on-screen. Previously, such regenerations were shown with the change from an old form already completed or cut out before the physical change even began. ''Let's Kill Hitler'' also dealt with other aspects of regeneration, such as being able to rapidly heal from otherwise fatal injuries while the regenerative cycle was still in process, and a capability to donate some amount of [[regeneration energy]] to another at will.
 
This was the first televised ''Doctor Who'' story to feature the personal appearance of the tyrant dictator [[Adolf Hitler]]. However, although the title of this episode suggested the story might revolve around him, in truth he received close to five minutes of screen time and was quickly ejected from the plot. A few references to [[World War II]] and [[Nazi]]sm were present, but much of the episode focused on the first appearance of the [[Justice Department]] and the strange types of technology they utilised. Instead, the title comes from [[Mels]]' demand to be taken back in time to kill Hitler in the cornfield at the beginning.
 
In this episode, the shapeshifting robot known as the ''[[Teselecta]]'' is introduced. The ''Teselecta'' and her crew make a return in ''[[The Wedding of River Song (TV story)|The Wedding of River Song]]'' where they play an important role in the plot. Unknown until the events of ''The Wedding of River Song'', the ''Teselecta'' also appeared at the beginning of ''[[The Impossible Astronaut (TV story)|The Impossible Astronaut]]'' and played a major role there where the two episodes events were connected to each other.
 
Additionally, the episode introduces [[The Question]] which is described as "the oldest question in the universe, hidden in plain sight." While the Doctor learns of the Question from the ''[[Teselecta]]'', he does not learn what it is or its significance to him. The Question is revisited in ''[[The Wedding of River Song (TV story)|The Wedding of River Song]]'' where the Doctor learns what the Question is from [[Dorium Maldovar]] and why it means he must die and in ''[[The Time of the Doctor (TV story)|The Time of the Doctor]]'' where the true nature of the Question and its meaning are revealed.


== Synopsis ==
== Synopsis ==
In the desperate search for Melody Pond, the TARDIS crash lands in 1930s Berlin, bringing the Doctor face to face with the greatest war criminal in the Universe. And Hitler. The Doctor must teach his adversaries that time travel has responsibilities – and in so doing, learns a harsh lesson in the cruelest warfare of all.  
In the desperate search for Melody Pond, the TARDIS crash lands in Thirties Berlin, as the time-travelling drama returns for the second half of the series shown earlier in the year. The Doctor comes face to face with the greatest war criminal in the Universe. And Hitler. Old friendships are tested to their limits as the Doctor suffers the ultimate betrayal and learns a harsh lesson in the cruellest warfare of all. As precious time ebbs away, the Doctor must teach his adversaries that time travel has responsibilities. And he must succeed before an almighty price is paid.


== Plot ==
== Plot ==
[[Amy Pond|Amy]] and [[Rory Williams|Rory]] drive through a corn field with Amy giving directions badly. They stop when they [[File:DoctorMessage.png|thumb|left|Amy and Rory's way of contacting the Doctor.]]see the Doctor standing by the [[The Doctor's TARDIS|TARDIS]]. He shows them the local paper with a front-page story about the crop circle that spells out "Doctor" they have just created. He has not been answering his phone again. Rory takes the paper and spots a line in the corn field message that they did not create. A Corvette races up to them, nearly running over the Doctor, and Amy and Rory's previously unseen friend [[Melody Pond (Mels)|Mels]] steps out. She knows about the TARDIS and the Doctor because she grew up with Amy's stories about him. She has stolen the car and is about to be arrested by the police, so she points a gun at the Doctor and orders him to take her to kill Hitler.
[[File:LetsKillHitlerCropCircle.jpg|thumb|left|Amy and Rory's way of contacting the Doctor.]]
[[Rory Williams|Rory]] drives through a wheat field wildly as [[Amy Pond|Amy]] gives directions poorly. She is telling him how to trace letters by mowing down the wheat with the car that will spell out a name, trying to summon [[the Doctor]] in the loudest manner possible, so that he cannot avoid contact with them any longer by [[Prequel (Let's Kill Hitler)|dodging Amy's phone calls]]. Stopping their car, they find the Doctor standing by [[The Doctor's TARDIS|his TARDIS]] in a new green pea coat.
 
[[File:Doctor sees ridiculous Leadworth Crop Circle.jpg|thumb|left|"Seriously?"]]
He holds a newspaper with a photo of the crop circle reading "Doctor" they have just made, commenting "Seriously?" with an incredulous smirk on his face. Rory replies that the Doctor had not been answering his phone and this was the only way they could really get his attention. She asks if he has found Melody over the summer. The Doctor makes the bad news easier to deliver by asking Rory if he can give Amy a hug. Once he has permission, he embraces Amy and tells her "You know who she grows up to be, so you know I will find her." Amy notices that this is a polite way of saying he failed to track down her baby. Rory then examines the picture and notices a line in the message that ''they'' didn't make.
 
The trio suddenly learns what caused the unknown stroke in the message when they hear the high-powered engine of a sports car revving through the field and shredding a new line down the middle of their crop circle. All of them start screaming for their lives. They dodge out of the way as a Corvette almost runs them over. Out steps Amy and Rory's best friend, [[Mels Zucker|Mels]], who flirts with the Doctor and fondles the TARDIS. With police sirens prophesying her arrest for car theft, she points a gun at the Doctor and demands he take her to kill [[Adolf Hitler|Hitler]].
 
A flashback shows Mels is a childhood friend of Amy and Rory and a troublemaker at school. She gets in more trouble than anyone except boys, insults teachers, continually references the Doctor, steals [[bus]]es and points out to Amy and Rory that they're in love. Back in the present, the TARDIS flies wildly because Mels has shot the [[time rotor]]. He barks at the delinquent, "You shot it! You shot my TARDIS! You shot the console!" Mels accusingly remarks, "It's your fault!" He inquires, "How is it my fault?" She replies, "You said guns didn't work in this place. You said we're in a state of temporal grace." Angry that she fired her gun out of foolish curiosity, he snarks, "Oh, that was a clever lie, you idiot! Anyone could tell that was a clever lie!"
 
In [[1938]] [[Berlin]], a janitor watches a [[Nazi]] [[Erich Zimmerman|officer]]. In a futuristic control room, the crew discuss copying the officer as the janitor follows him. In the control room, [[Harriet (Let's Kill Hitler)|a woman]] complains that the last time they relied on the computer, it "made [[Grigori Rasputin|Rasputin]] green". She goes to "the top level", where an electronic voice politely threatens her until she adjusts a device on her wrist. She looks through a viewport, which is the eye of the janitor, actually a highly advanced ship, the ''[[Teselecta]]''. She relays colour codes to the control room. The janitor becomes the officer's double and beams him aboard with a miniaturisation ray. Learning the officer's identity as a war criminal, the crew leave him to the [[Teselecta antibody|antibodies]]. They politely threaten the officer before killing him.
 
The ''Teselecta'' enters [[Adolf Hitler]]'s office while the captain complains about the shock-absorbers malfunctioning. Hitler asks why his officer has entered without permission. The ''Teselecta'' activates "justice mode" and paralyses him with a beam of light from its mouth. However, one of the crew says they arrived too early in his timeline, just before the TARDIS crashes through a window and knocks over the ''Teselecta''.
 
The TARDIS occupants stagger out in a cloud of smoke caused by Mels' havoc. Hitler thanks the dumbfounded travellers for saving him and asks what the TARDIS is. The Doctor advances on him, saying it's a [[police box]] and "The British are coming!" The ''Teselecta'' picks itself up and a panicky Hitler fires at it. Rory punches Hitler and takes his gun.
 
The Doctor and Amy help up the ''Teselecta''. Rory shoves Hitler in the cupboard while the ''Teselecta'' goes into observation mode — "fainting". Mels staggers forward. She calls Hitler a lousy shot and collapses; she was hit by a bullet. Rory tries to help her and the Doctor tries keeping her conscious by talking to her. Mels says she wanted to [[marriage|marry]] the Doctor and he promises to ask her parents when they fix her up. Mels says they're right there, then begins to glow. The Doctor, who recognises that Mels is starting to [[regenerate]], pulls the others away from her.
 
Mels comments about regenerating once before [[Day of the Moon (TV story)|as a child in New York]] and reveals her actual name to be Melody. Amy says she named her daughter after her, but the Doctor explains, "You named your daughter after your daughter" and Mels finally regenerates with a scream.
 
The crew of the ''Teselecta'' look in bewilderment at a criminal whose crimes dwarf Hitler's: Melody Pond. Melody ends her regeneration in an incarnation that the Doctor, Amy and Rory recognise as River Song. She chatters on about her new look before going off to weigh herself.
 
The three [[time travel]]lers talk, realising that Melody is River Song right at the beginning. Melody asks who River is, but the Doctor refuses to tell her "spoilers". She pulls out a gun, "getting back to business", points it at the Doctor and pulls the trigger. The gun, emptied by the Doctor during the regeneration, clicks uselessly. A scintillating conversation ensues and Melody pulls a [[banana]] at the Doctor, who had turned the fruit bowl she had left the gun in, then Melody swings a letter opener at him but is disarmed. The Doctor asks why she didn't kill him in the field and receives the reply that they'd only just met — she's a psychopath, not rude.
 
An impatient Melody asks if killing him will take all day. The Doctor inquires if she was busy and, an explanation that [[the Silence]] tailored Melody as the Doctor's "own bespoke psychopath" later, Melody [[kiss]]es him with poisoned [[lipstick]] and jumps out a window to go shopping. The Doctor gives Amy his [[the Doctor's sonic screwdriver|sonic screwdriver]] and tells her to find Melody. Dying, he stumbles into the TARDIS.
 
[[File:Regeneration Attack.jpg|thumb|right|Melody weaponises her regeneration cycle.]]
Outside, Melody enrages soldiers into shooting her. Rory who is horrified, cries out, "No!" as his daughter is pelted by automatic gunfire. However, she is within the first fifteen hours of her regeneration; she produces a shock wave that heals her and knocks out the guards. She steals a [[motorcycle]]. Amy and Rory steal another and follow her.
 
Inside the TARDIS, the Doctor turns on the [[voice interface]] as a hologram of himself. He asks for someone he likes. In succession, it offers images of [[Rose Tyler]], [[Martha Jones]] and [[Donna Noble]], all of whom induce wails of guilt. Finally, it offers young Amelia Pond, who tells the Doctor that he will shortly be dead. The poison comes from the [[Judas tree]], and regeneration is not available. The Doctor tries to get "Amelia" to help him gather his strength. It insists it is not Amelia, but a hologram. He collapses, gasping for help, then hears Amelia the hologram say "Fish fingers and custard". He finds the strength to drag himself to the console.


In a flashback, young Amelia Pond and young Mels are talking about the Doctor when young Rory walks in because he has been abandoned in a game of hide-and-seek. Mels is a troublemaker in Amy's school. She makes rude remarks to teachers, continually references the Doctor, and steals buses. Back in the TARDIS, Mels has shot the control console and the TARDIS is spinning madly out of control.
[[File:Melody with MP40s.jpg|thumb|left|"Ladies and gentlemen: I don't have a thing to wear. Take off your clothes."]]
Elsewhere, Melody enters a restaurant and orders the patrons at gunpoint to take off their clothes. Outside, Amy and Rory wonder where she is. They see the screaming restaurant patrons run out in their undergarments and hurry in just as the ''Teselecta'', now in Amy's form, arrives.


In 1938 Berlin, a janitor watches a [[Nazi]] general. The scene cuts to a ''Star-Trek''-like interior with a captain and crew. They talk about copying the general. The scene cuts to the janitor walking into the general's office. In the futuristic room, a woman enters, complaining about skin tones, and how the last time they relied purely on the computer it "made Rasputin green". She goes to 'the top level', where an electronic voice politely threatens her. After being allowed to pass, she looks through a viewport, which is revealed to be the eye of the janitor, actually a highly-advanced machine. The woman relays colour information to the control room, and the janitor grows taller and changes into a duplicate of the Nazi general. It transports the general aboard, with a miniaturization ray He is killed by the "[[Teselecta Antibodies|antibodies]]" of the ship, known as the ''[[Teselecta]]''. It now approaches [[Adolf Hitler]], intending to punish him for his myriad war crimes, but just as the ship paralyzes him with an energy ray, a crewman realizes that they have travelled to 1938 and that it is "too early" in Hitler's time stream.
Melody is working on her ensemble when Amy — actually the ''Teselecta'' — runs in. Amy and Rory wake up where the Nazi officer did. They are threatened politely by the antibodies until a crew member gives wrist devices to ward them off. They are taken to the bridge, where they are told that their memories of these events will be erased later.


Before that is explained, the TARDIS crashes into Hitler's office, knocking the ''Teselecta'' over, and its occupants stagger out in a cloud of smoke caused by Mels shooting the TARDIS' control console. The Doctor realises whom they have saved. Hitler tries to shoot the ''Teselecta'', but his bullets do no damage and he is put in a cupboard. In his panic Hitler has shot Mels, who reveals herself to be Melody Pond and regenerates into the incarnation the Doctor and company know as [[River Song]]. The ''Teselecta'' scans the TARDIS and realizes that they are in the presence of the most infamous war criminal in the galaxy, whose crimes dwarf those of Hitler: Melody Pond.
Outside, the ''Teselecta'' asks Melody why she killed the Doctor on behalf of [[the Silence]]. Melody really doesn't know. Her past is all a blur. It captures Melody as it did Hitler. The Doctor arrives in evening clothes. He asks whom she killed. He uses a [[sonic cane]] to scan the ''Teselecta'' and learns Amy and Rory are inside it.


Melody tries to kill the Doctor several times, but he thwarts her. She kisses the Doctor and jumps out a window to go shopping for clothes after revealing that she has poisoned the Doctor with her lipstick. The Doctor, dying, orders Amy and Rory to catch Melody; this is who she will be if Kovarian keeps her. The pair watch her knock out some Nazis using her regenerative energy, steal their guns and flee on a motorbike.
Melody tries to flee but is recaptured. The Doctor demands they leave her alone and asks who they are. The ''Teselecta'' explains that as a form of justice, they visit unpunished criminals at the ends of their lives and "give them hell", agonising pain, while the [[timeline]] continues. The Doctor asks who wants him dead and Amy persuades the captain to tell him. It says [[the Silence]] are behind the plot to kill him. They are a religious cult who believe "silence will fall" when [[The Question|the oldest question in the universe]] is asked. It does not know what the question is. The ''Teselecta'' resumes torturing Melody.


Amy and Rory follow on a second motorbike, and the ''Teselecta'' on a third. The Doctor staggers into the TARDIS. Unable to reach the controls, he activates the TARDIS voice interface, which takes the form of a hologram of the Doctor himself. He asks the interface to take the form of someone he likes instead, and it cycles through the images of [[Rose Tyler]], [[Martha Jones]], and [[Donna Noble]], all of whom he rejects as they bring back memories of guilt. The interface finally settles on the young Amelia Pond. After much debate, "Amelia" says the words "Fish fingers and custard," giving the Doctor the inspiration he needs to fight the pain and confront the ''Teselecta''.
The Doctor tells Amy to save her daughter. She uses the sonic screwdriver to turn off the crew's security clearances. The antibodies attack them and they teleport to safety. Amy uses a microphone to ask the Doctor for help. The antibodies are politely threatening Rory and her again. The Doctor struggles against his painful death. He crawls towards the TARDIS, shocking Melody that he still cares. The Doctor asks for her help, using her name, River. Melody demands to know who River is.


Melody steals all the clothes from German civilians in a restaurant and works on her ensemble. Amy and Rory arrive outside the restaurant, pursued by the ''Teselecta'', now disguised as Amy. In the restaurant, Melody is trying on outfits when ''Teselecta''-Amy walks in and accuses her of killing the Doctor.
Inside the ''Teselecta'', Amy and Rory are cornered by the antibodies. They accept their doom. Suddenly, the TARDIS materialises around them. They begin to thank the Doctor. Instead, they find a shaken Melody at the console, saying she flew the TARDIS. It taught her how.


Amy and Rory awake inside the ''Teselecta'', where the antibodies attempt to kill them. They are saved by one of the crew. The Doctor arrives at the restaurant in evening clothes. The ''[[Teselecta]]'' crew explain that as a form of temporal justice, they travel to war criminals who were never punished near the end of their lives, and then "gives them hell", subjecting them to agonizing, non-lethal pain, allowing the timeline to continue as it was. Following this directive, the ship captures Melody and tortures her. The Doctor begs it to stop. Melody is frozen in place. The Doctor asks the ''Teselecta'' for information on himself and who wants him dead so badly. Amy persuades them to give the Doctor what he wants. The ''Teselecta'' informs the Doctor that [[the Silence]] are behind the plot to kill him. When the Doctor asks what the Silence are, the ''Teselecta'' explains that the Silence are not a species but a religious cult that believes "silence will fall" when the Oldest Question in the universe is asked. It does not know what that Question is.
They go to the Doctor, but he says there is no way for him to survive. He asks to speak to Melody. He asks her to find River Song, whispers something in her ear and dies. Melody asks who "River Song" is. Amy orders the ''Teselecta'' to show them. It shifts into the form of Melody's current incarnation.


The ''Teselecta'' resumes torturing Melody, until Amy uses the [[sonic screwdriver]] to turn off all of the crew's security clearance devices, causing the antibodies to attack the entire crew, forcing them to teleport away to safety. The dying Doctor begs Melody to save Amy and Rory, who are about be killed by the antibodies. The TARDIS materializes around them. Melody has flown the TARDIS, after it taught her how. The trio run to the Doctor but he says there is no way for him to survive, and he dies. After learning that ''she'' is the "beloved friend", River Song, that the Doctor kept mentioning, Melody transfers her remaining regenerations to the Doctor to revive him, giving him a new lease on li(ves) but almost killing herself once and for all in the process.
[[File:Melody_becomes_River.jpg|thumb|"Hello sweetie." Melody Pond becomes River Song.]]
Melody learns that ''she'' is River Song. Amy and Rory ask Melody what the Doctor whispered in her ear. She does not answer this, but asks her parents if the Doctor is "worth it". They don't understand her question but agree he is. Melody [[kiss]]es the Doctor and gives up all her regenerations to save him.


The Doctor, Amy, and Rory leave Melody in the [[Sisters of the Infinite Schism|best hospital]] in the universe to recover. They must let her find her own way. The Doctor claims that he downloaded some "boring information" from the ''Teselecta'': he has discovered the day of [[The Impossible Astronaut|his death]]. River/Melody applies for a degree in Archeology at the Luna University two years before the Battle of Demons Run.
Melody wakes in [[Sisters of the Infinite Schism|the greatest hospital in the universe]]. The Doctor leaves her a [[River Song's diary|TARDIS blue diary]]. They must leave her to find her own way back to them.


==Cast==
In [[5123]], Melody, now calling herself River Song, applies to study at the [[Luna University]]. When asked why she wants a degree in [[archaeology]], she says she is "looking for a good man".
*[[Eleventh Doctor|The Doctor]] - [[Matt Smith]]
*[[Amy Pond]] - [[Karen Gillan]]
*[[Rory Williams]] - [[Arthur Darvill]]
*[[Melody Pond (River Song)]] - [[Alex Kingston]]
*[[Melody Pond (Mels)]] - [[Nina Toussaint-White]]
*[[Adolf Hitler]] - [[Albert Welling]]
*[[Amy Pond|Amelia Pond]] - [[Caitlin Blackwood]]
*[[Melody Pond (Mels)|Young Mels]] - [[Maya Glace-Green]]
*[[Rory Williams|Young Rory]] - [[Ezekiel Wigglesworth]]
*[[Erich Zimmerman|Zimmerman]] - [[Philip Rham]]
*[[Carter (Let's Kill Hitler)|Carter]] - [[Richard Dillane]]
*[[Anita (Let's Kill Hitler)|Anita]] - [[Amy Cudden]]
*[[Jim (Let's Kill Hitler)|Jim]] - [[Davood Ghadami]]
*[[Harriet (Let's Kill Hitler)|Harriet]] - [[Ella Kenion]]
*[[German Officer]] - [[Mark Killeen]]
*[[Candy|Professor Candy]] - [[Paul Bentley]]
*[[Nurse (Let's Kill Hitler)|Nurse]] - [[Eva Alexander]]
*[[Female Teacher]] - [[Tor Clark]]


==Crew==
== Cast ==
* [[Eleventh Doctor|The Doctor]] - [[Matt Smith]]
* [[Amy Pond]] - [[Karen Gillan]]<ref>Gillan also plays [[Teselecta|the ''Teselecta'' that assumed the appearance of Amy]].</ref>
* [[Rory Williams|Rory]] - [[Arthur Darvill]]
* [[River Song]] - [[Alex Kingston]]<ref>Kingston also plays [[Teselecta|the ''Teselecta'' that assumed the appearance of River]].</ref>
* [[Mels Zucker|Mels]] - [[Nina Toussaint-White]]
* [[Amy Pond|Amelia Pond]] - [[Caitlin Blackwood]]
* [[Mels Zucker|Young Mels]] - [[Maya Glace-Green]]
* [[Rory Williams|Young Rory]] - [[Ezekiel Wigglesworth]]
* [[Erich Zimmerman|Zimmerman]] - [[Philip Rham]]<ref>Rham also plays [[Teselecta|the ''Teselecta'' that assumed the appearance of Zimmerman]].</ref>
* [[Carter (Let's Kill Hitler)|Carter]] - [[Richard Dillane]]
* [[Anita (Let's Kill Hitler)|Anita]] - [[Amy Cudden]]
* [[Jim (Let's Kill Hitler)|Jim]] - [[Davood Ghadami]]
* [[Harriet (Let's Kill Hitler)|Harriet]] - [[Ella Kenion]]
* [[Adolf Hitler]] - [[Albert Welling]]
* [[German officer (Let's Kill Hitler)|German officer]] - [[Mark Killeen]]
* [[Arthur Candy|Professor Candy]] - [[Paul Bentley]]
* [[Nurse (Let's Kill Hitler)|Nurse]] - [[Eva Alexander]]
* [[Mitchell (Let's Kill Hitler)|Female teacher]] - [[Tor Clark]]
 
=== Uncredited cast ===
* [[Teselecta]] workers - [[Claudio Laurini]], [[Dennis Gregory]], [[Victoria Tomas]], [[Jon Davey]], [[Richard Knott]], [[Kristian Arthur]]<ref name=":0">http://guide.doctorwhonews.net/role.php?code=5003&detail=listing&pg=dwm</ref>
* [[Teselecta]] officers - [[Rachel Bond]], [[Luke Grahame]], [[Darius Walker]]<ref name=":0" />
* Nazi janitor - [[John Jenner]]<ref name=":0" />
 
== Crew ==
{{wales crew
{{wales crew
|1stAD=Steffan Morris
|1stAD=Steffan Morris
Line 73: Line 134:
|3rdAD=Heddi-Joy Taylor-Welch
|3rdAD=Heddi-Joy Taylor-Welch
|AD=Michael Curtis
|AD=Michael Curtis
|AD2=Janine H Jones
|AD2=Jay Harley{{!}}Janine H Jones <nowiki>[Jay Harley]</nowiki>
|Runner=
|Runner=
|Runner2=
|Runner2=
Line 83: Line 144:
|LocationScout=
|LocationScout=
|AssistantLocationManager=
|AssistantLocationManager=
|LocationAssistant=Greaint Williams
|LocationAssistant=Geraint Williams
|UnitManager=Rhys Griffiths
|UnitManager=Rhys Griffiths
|AssistantUnitManager=
|AssistantUnitManager=
|ProductionManager1=Phillipa Cole
|ProductionManager=Phillipa Cole
|ProductionManager2=Claire Hildred
|ProductionManager2=Claire Hildred
|ProductionCoOrdinator=Claire Hildred
|ProductionCoOrdinator=Claire Hildred
Line 143: Line 204:
|Stunt=Stephanie Carey
|Stunt=Stephanie Carey
|Stunt2=Gary Hoptrough
|Stunt2=Gary Hoptrough
|Stunt3=Andy J Smart
|Stunt3=Andy Smart
|Stunt4=Jo McLaren
|Stunt4=Jo McLaren
|Stunt5=Gordon Seed
|Stunt5=Gordon Seed
Line 156: Line 217:
|ArtDeptProdManager=
|ArtDeptProdManager=
|AssociateDesigner=
|AssociateDesigner=
|ProductionBuyer=Ben Morris
|ProductionBuyer=Ben Morris (crew){{!}}Ben Morris
|SetDecorator=Julian Luxton
|SetDecorator=Julian Luxton
|PropsBuyer=Adrian Anscombe
|PropsBuyer=Adrian Anscombe
|PettyCashBuyer=Kate Wilson
|PettyCashBuyer=Kate Wilson (crew)
|StandbyArtDirector=Dafydd Shurmer
|StandbyArtDirector=Dafydd Shurmer
|ASupervisingArtDirector=
|ASupervisingArtDirector=
Line 186: Line 247:
|AssistantPropsMaster=
|AssistantPropsMaster=
|DressingChargehand=
|DressingChargehand=
|PropsChargehand=Rhys Jones
|PropsChargehand=Rhys Jones (props)
|PropsStoreman=
|PropsStoreman=
|DressingProps=Tom Belton
|DressingProps=Tom Belton
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|Graphics=BBC Wales Graphics
|Graphics=BBC Wales Graphics
|TitleSequence=
|TitleSequence=
|CostumeSupervisor=Vickey Salway
|CostumeSupervisor=Vicky Salway
|CrowdSupervisor=
|CrowdSupervisor=
|WardrobeSupervisor=
|WardrobeSupervisor=
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|AsstEditor=Becky Trotman
|AsstEditor=Becky Trotman
|AsstEditor2=Carmen Sanchez Roberts
|AsstEditor2=Carmen Sanchez Roberts
|VFXProducer=Beewan Athwal
|VFXEditor=Cat Gregory
|VFXEditor=Cat Gregory
|VFXCoOrdinator=
|VFXCoOrdinator=
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|RightsExecutive=
|RightsExecutive=
|FinanceManager=
|FinanceManager=
|VisualFXProducer=Beewan Athwal
|VisualFXProducer2=
|VisualFXSupervisor=
|VisualFXSupervisor2=
|Thanks=
|Thanks=
|Thanks2=
|Thanks2=
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|ProductionDesigner=Michael Pickwoad
|ProductionDesigner=Michael Pickwoad
|ProductionDesigner2=
|ProductionDesigner2=
|DOP=Stephan Pehrsson
|DOP=Tim Palmer
|LineProducer=Diana Barton
|LineProducer=Diana Barton
|AssociateProducer=Denise Paul
|AssociateProducer=Denise Paul
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|Producer2=
|Producer2=
|Director=Richard Senior
|Director=Richard Senior
|ExecutiveProd=Piers Wenger
|ExecutiveProd=Steven Moffat
|ExecutiveProd2=Beth Willis
|ExecutiveProd2=Piers Wenger
|ExecutiveProd3=Steven Moffat
|ExecutiveProd3=Beth Willis
|DedicatedTo=<!--This exact credit never actually used as of April 2010; left for future use-->
|DedicatedTo=<!--This exact credit never actually used as of April 2010; left for future use-->
|InMemoryOf=
|InMemoryOf=
|Note=
|Note=[[Jay Harley]] was credited under their [[T:ACTOR#Crediting trans people|deadname]] as [[assistant director]].
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== References ==
== Worldbuilding ==
===[[:Category:The Doctor|The Doctor]]===
* The Doctor makes a joke about female indecisiveness.
*The Doctor covertly switches a gun for a [[banana]], leading [[River Song]] to pull the banana on him. The[[ Ninth Doctor]] previously did this to [[Jack Harkness]].
*'''[[The Doctor's Rules]]'''
:*Rule 1: The Doctor lies.
:*Rule 7: Never run when you are scared.
:*Rule 27: Never knowingly be serious.
:*Rule 408: Time is ''not'' the boss of you.


===[[:Category:The Doctor's items|The Doctor's items]]===
=== Clothing ===
*The Doctor gives Amy his [[sonic screwdriver]].
* River mentions [[Jodhpur]]s.
*The Doctor has a [[sonic cane]].
===[[:Category:Companions of the Doctor|Companions]]===
*[[Rose Tyler]], [[Martha Jones]] and [[Donna Noble]] all appear as projections for the TARDIS voice interface to use, after the Doctor rejects a projection of himself and asks for "someone he likes." He rejects all three projections on the basis of increasingly strong feelings of guilt.


===[[:Category:Foods and beverages|Foods and beverages]]===
=== The Doctor ===
*[[The Doctor's TARDIS|The TARDIS's]] projection of Amelia mentions [[fish finger]]s and [[custard]].
* The Doctor covertly switches a gun for a [[banana]].
* The Doctor adds to his [[The Doctor's rules|rules]]:
:* Rule 1: The Doctor lies.
:* Rule 7: Never run when you are scared.
:* Rule 27: Never knowingly be serious.
:* Rule 408: Time is ''not'' the boss of you.


===[[:Category:Religion|Religion]]===
=== The Doctor's items ===
*[[The Silence]] are ''not'' a [[:Category:Races and species|species]], but a religious organisation of sorts.
* The Doctor gives Amy his [[the Doctor's sonic screwdriver|sonic screwdriver]].
* The Doctor uses a [[sonic cane]].
* The Doctor gives River a brand new [[River Song's diary|TARDIS-shaped diary]] to prepare her for the anachronistic meetings that are going to happen between them.


===[[:Category:TARDIS|TARDISes]]===
=== Companions of the Doctor ===
*The [[temporal grace]] in the TARDIS, which supposedly prevents weapons fire is said, by the Doctor to be a "clever lie".
* [[Rose Tyler]], [[Martha Jones]] and [[Donna Noble]] all appear as holograms of the TARDIS voice interface.
 
=== Foods and beverages ===
* [[The Doctor's TARDIS|The TARDIS']] projection of Amelia mentions [[fish finger]]s and [[custard]].
 
=== Locations ===
* River is confronted by the Teselecta at the [[Hotel Adlon]].
 
=== Religion ===
* [[The Silence]] are ''not'' a [[:Category:species|species]], but a religious organisation of sorts.
 
=== TARDIS ===
* The [[temporal grace]] in the TARDIS, which supposedly prevents weapons fire, is said by the Doctor to be a "clever lie".
* The TARDIS has [[extractor fan]]s which work, much to the Doctor's surprise.
 
=== Culture ===
* Before punching out the Nazi and taking his bike, Rory shouts 'Heil!'
* River deliberately provokes a group of Nazis by flippantly mentioning that she was on her way to a "[[gay]] [[Romany|gypsy]] [[Bar Mitzvah]] for the disabled", referencing the Nazi's targeted categories of the victims in [[Holocaust|the Holocaust]].
* Melody Pond says, "Hello, [[Benjamin Braddock|Benjamin]]!", to the Doctor. The Doctor previously claimed Scotland Yard's code name for her was [[Mrs Robinson]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Impossible Astronaut (TV story)|The Impossible Astronaut]]'') Both reference ''[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Graduate The Graduate]'', in which a younger man, Benjamin, is seduced by an older woman, Mrs Robinson.
 
=== Influences ===
 
* The layout of the ''Teselecta'''s bridge is reminiscent of that of the ''Enterprise'' and other Federation starships from the television series ''[[Star Trek]]''.
* [[Steven Moffat]] wanted to show Hitler in a comedic light and "take the mickey out of him" instead of making him "an icon of evil". He cited ''[[Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade]]'' as an influence.


== Story notes ==
== Story notes ==
*This is the first episode of the Autumn half of the series. The Spring half concluded on the [[4th June]] with ''[[A Good Man Goes to War]]''.
* A week and a day before this episode was broadcast in the US and two days before it was broadcast in the UK, the [[Torchwood (TV series)|Torchwood]] episode ''[[Immortal Sins (TV story)|Immortal Sins]]'' was broadcast. In it, a [[Brainspawn]] attempted to rewrite history by enabling the Third Reich to win the [[World War II|Second World War]].
*This is the first time in the Eleventh Doctor era that the companions of the previous two Doctors have been mentioned or seen in a proper episode since ''[[The End of Time]]''.
* This is the first episode of the autumn half of the series. The spring half concluded on [[4 June (releases)|4 June]] with ''[[A Good Man Goes to War]]''. In addition, Amy says the Doctor has had all summer to find Melody, making the in-universe present day synchronised with real time.
*The images of all the former companions are taken from publicity shots. The projections of[[Rose Tyler| Rose]] and [[Donna Noble|Donna]] shown are publicity images from [[Series 4 (Doctor Who)|Series 4]], whereas the projection of [[Martha Jones|Martha]] is from a publicity image for [[Series 3 (Doctor Who)|Series 3]].
* This is the first episode since the first episode of ''[[The Leisure Hive (TV story)|The Leisure Hive]]'' to air in August.
*The Doctor makes [[the "Doctor Who?" running joke]].
* This was [[Richard Senior]]'s television directorial debut.
*The car Mels steals is a vintage Chevrolet Corvette. This car was popular with American Astronauts during the 1960's. Tom Hanks drives a similar model in the film "''Apollo 13".''
* This is the second time that companions of the previous two Doctors have been mentioned or seen in a proper episode since ''[[The End of Time (TV story)|The End of Time]]''; Rose Tyler was previously seen (briefly) in ''[[The Lodger (TV story)|The Lodger]]''.
*The layout of the ''Tesselacta'''s bridge is deliberately reminiscent of that of the ''Enterprise'' and other Federation Starships from the television series ''Star Trek.''
* The images of all the former companions are taken from publicity shots. The projections of [[Rose Tyler|Rose]] and [[Donna Noble|Donna]] are publicity images from [[Series 4 (Doctor Who 2005)|Series 4]]. That of [[Martha Jones|Martha]] is from a publicity image for [[Series 3 (Doctor Who 2005)|Series 3]].
* The Doctor makes the "Doctor Who?" running joke.
* The car Mels steals is a Chevrolet Corvette, third generation (68-82). It is the same model of car featured in the film {{wi|Apollo 13 (film)|Apollo 13}} and the mini-series ''From the Earth to the Moon''.
* The TARDIS's voice interface tells the Doctor he will be dead in thirty-two minutes. Coincidentally in-universe, the invitation the future Doctor sent out to everyone in ''[[The Impossible Astronaut (TV story)|The Impossible Astronaut]]'', to meet at [[Lake Silencio]] for the Doctor's death, was for 4:30 pm and according to the biographical information the Doctor is shot during regeneration and killed at 5:02 pm.
* The handgun that Mels pulls out is an IMI Jericho 941.
* Harriet mentions the Teselecta having transformed into Rasputin. [[Tom Baker]] played Rasputin in the movie ''[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Nicholas_and_Alexandra Nicholas and Alexandra]'' and [[Master|the Master]] impersonates him in ''[[The Power of the Doctor (TV story)|The Power of the Doctor]].''
* In Mels' first scene in the episode, her face cannot be seen due to the sun's glare behind her. She moves her body to block the sun and her face is shown, much like the first scene of River in ''[[The Impossible Astronaut (TV story)|The Impossible Astronaut]]''.
* In the ''[[Leadworth Chronicle]]'', a story with the headline "BACK OF THE NECK" can be seen. This is a reference to the [[Probic vent|weakness]] of the [[Sontaran]]s. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Poison Sky (TV story)|The Poison Sky]]'')
* This episode introduces a new article of clothing for the Eleventh Doctor that he continues to wear for most of the remainder of Series 6 - a green, double-breasted moleskin coat with six pockets and six gold buttons.
* Arthur Candy was introduced in the short story ''[[Continuity Errors (short story)|Continuity Errors]]'', roughly fifteen years earlier. As such, this marks the first televised appearance of a character introduced elsewhere.
* Mels' regeneration marks the first time a regeneration has been shown onscreen where the person has short sleeves instead of long sleeves, proving that the body gives off [[regeneration energy]], and not just the hands and head.
* The first BBC America broadcast of the episode includes an extra scene which aired during a commercial break. It was sponsored by AT&T. As written by Steven Moffat, it is an extension of the motorcycle chase sequence with Rory and Amy. It is presented in animation/motion comic format. Lasting sixty seconds and produced by Double Barrel Motion Labs, the scene was originally promoted as intended for inclusion in the Series 6 DVD/Blu-ray releases, but as of early November 2011, this has not happened. The ad/motion comic was only seen in America.<ref>[http://www.scififx.com/2011/08/doctor-who-motion-comic/ Doctor Who Motion Comic], SciFi FX, 26 August 2011, accessed 2nd November 2011</ref><ref>[http://www.doublebarrelmotionlabs.com/doctor-who-vision/ AT&T to Help Tell Story of Doctor Who], Double Barrel Motion Labs webpage, accessed 2 November 2011</ref>
* [[Paul Bentley]] would later play High Septon on ''[[Game of Thrones]]''. [[Matt Smith]] would later play Daemon Targeryren on the prequel series ''[[House of the Dragon]]''.
* As the crew of the ''Teselecta'' witness the poisoning of the Doctor, despite record of him dying in [[2011]], [[Anita (Let's Kill Hitler)|one crewmember]] mentions an individual called "Kennedy" whose timeline was rewritten. While not stated, this is possibly a reference to [[President of the United States|US President]] [[John F. Kennedy]] or the Kennedy family in general.
* [[Steven Moffat]] wanted an episode that would draw in viewers after a twelve-week break and be tonally different from ''[[The Impossible Astronaut (TV story)|The Impossible Astronaut]].''
* [[Steven Moffat]] wanted the narrative's true focus to be on the relationship between Amy, Rory and River. In particular, the revelation that Amy and Rory's childhood friend Mels was another incarnation of Melody/River was intended to temper the darker implications of the baby's abduction, since Amy and Rory would now be shown to have played an integral role in their daughter's formative years.
* [[Steven Moffat]] originally envisaged the Anti-Bodies as humanoid robots with featureless chrome heads. However, it was eventually felt that this design hewed too closely to the look of [[Handbot|the Handbots]], so they became floating, tentacular automatons.
* The episode comprised Block Eight of season six, formally dubbed “Block Seven-A”.
* [[Jenna Coleman]] auditioned for the role of Mels. Less than a year later, she would be cast as [[Clara Oswald]].
* By casting [[Nina Toussaint-White]] as Mels, the production team definitively established that race was another characteristic which could change via the process of regeneration. Indeed, [[Steven Moffat]] had previously explored the possibility of selecting a non-white actor to portray the Eleventh Doctor.
* Filming on the set for Hitler's office was delayed because of the complexity of achieving the TARDIS crashing through the windows.
* The opening sequence in the cornfield was the last scene to be shot. It was filmed two and half months after the rest of production because there was a delay until midsummer before the crops had reached an appropriate height. It was the last scene of season six to be filmed.
* [[Steven Moffat]] enjoyed writing Mels' regeneration scene, finding comedy in her checking out her new body.
* The cast and crew felt that the costume and make-up artists did a good job with [[Albert Welling]], as he looked so much like Hitler it was a "surreal" experience.
* [[Arthur Darvill]] was pleased that Rory was more of an "action hero" in the episode.
* Before broadcast, [[Matt Smith]] stated that it was "maybe [his] favorite episode to date...it just rockets along".
* [[Matt Smith]] wanted to wear a long coat because of the cold weather.
* Vintage vehicles from the period were used. [[Arthur Darvill]] loved the motorbike, although he was not allowed to ride it as it was the job of the stuntman.
* Hitler's office was one of the biggest sets that had been built for the show. Typically it would have been filmed in a real building, but the TARDIS had to crash through the wall and thus the set had to be destroyed with an air cannon.
* The [[Large Hadron Collider]] was the inspiration for the design of the Teselecta corridors.
* One scene involving the Teselecta (disguised as a German soldier) chasing Amy and Rory on motorcycles through Berlin was cut from filming due to budget issues.
* When [[Steven Moffat]] wrote the episode, he was simultaneously overseeing ''Doctor Who'' and ''Sherlock,'' as well as co-writing ''[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Adventures_of_Tintin_(film) The Adventures of Tintin].'' As a result, he was too exhausted to rewrite this episode, so his only option was to hand the cast a first draft and hope for the best.
* The famously clumsy [[Matt Smith]] was worried about ruining his suit jacket, so he put it on a nearby table - right into a jug of grape juice.
* This was the last time [[Caitlin Blackwood]] played Amelia Pond, although [[The God Complex (TV story)|''The God Complex'']] was made first.


=== Ratings ===
=== Ratings ===
*UK Overnight: 6.2 million
* UK Overnight: 6.2 million
* UK Final: 8.1 million<ref>[http://guide.doctorwhonews.net/info.php?detail=ratings&type=date Doctor Who Ratings - UK final]</ref>


=== Myths ===
=== Myths ===
*The ''[[Daily Mirror]]'' reported that [[Rose Tyler]], [[Martha Jones]] and [[Donna Temple-Noble|Donna Noble]] will appear in this episode.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/tv/2011/08/17/billie-piper-freema-agyeman-and-catherine-tate-all-come-back-for-cameo-roles-in-doctor-who-115875-23350006/ |title=Billie Piper, Freema Agyeman and Catherine Tate all come back for cameo roles in Doctor Who |author=Mark Jefferies |date of source=17/08/2011 |website name= Daily Mirror|accessdate=28th August 2011}}</ref> ''Although an image of each was seen, they were for a TARDIS interface, rather than the characters themselves. These were stock images; the actresses did not record any new scenes.''
* The ''[[Daily Mirror]]'' reported that [[Rose Tyler]], [[Martha Jones]] and [[Donna Noble]] would appear in this episode.<ref>{{cite web|url=http://www.mirror.co.uk/celebs/tv/2011/08/17/billie-piper-freema-agyeman-and-catherine-tate-all-come-back-for-cameo-roles-in-doctor-who-115875-23350006/|title=Billie Piper, Freema Agyeman and Catherine Tate all come back for cameo roles in Doctor Who|author=Mark Jefferies|date of source=17/08/2011 |website name= Daily Mirror|accessdate=28th August 2011}}</ref> ''This was partially true. Images of all three appeared but these were avatars for a TARDIS interface, rather than the characters themselves. All images used were promotional images.''
* Some viewers speculated that when River resurrected the Doctor, he absorbed all of River Song's remaining regenerations. If this is true, as River only regenerated twice, the Doctor might now have ''twenty-two'' regenerations, instead of the standard twelve. ''This was proven incorrect by the Doctor himself in [[The Time of the Doctor]], as he confirmed he had reached the natural end of his regeneration cycle and could not change for a thirteenth time.''


=== Filming locations ===
=== Filming locations ===
*Swansea, Wales.
* Swansea, Wales.
* [[Temple of Peace]] (Hotel Adlon interior)


=== Production errors ===
=== Production errors ===
{{Discontinuity}}
{{Discontinuity}}
* When the Doctor and the TARDIS make their first appearance, they point right, towards Amy and Rory's car. However, when the camera zooms out, the Doctor and TARDIS are looking down, and not towards Amy and Rory. This also causes an error when Mels drives through the word Doctor.
* During the sequences of flashbacks explaining how River and the Doctor obtained and swapped guns right after the former's regeneration, River's uttering of the lines sound a bit more rushed, making it obvious that the original and flashback shots of the scene are two different takes.
* When Rory asks, "How can they just disappear?" two antibodies appear, but in the next shot, there are three.
* When the poisoned Doctor is in the TARDIS he has one of his arms up on the bannister; in the next shot, he has it by his side.
* When the Teselecta's shock absorbers are malfunctioning, the captain's cup falls and can be heard smashing, but when the camera zooms out, there is no evidence of this.
* Although [[Mels]] is shot by [[Adolf Hitler]], resulting in her [[regeneration]], when she stands up there is no sign of blood or a hole in her dress as the regeneration begins.


== Continuity ==
== Continuity ==
*Images of [[Rose Tyler]], [[Martha Jones]], [[Donna Temple-Noble]] are seen. ([[DW]]: ''[[Rose (TV story)|Rose]]'', ''[[The Runaway Bride]]'', ''[[Smith and Jones]]'') The Doctor feels guilty for what he did to Rose, feels even guiltier for what he did to Martha and "even more guilt" for what he did for Donna.
* The Doctor mentions "[[Saturnyn|Vampires in Venice]]". ([[TV]]: ''[[The Vampires of Venice (TV story)|The Vampires of Venice]]'')
*The Doctor mentions "[[Saturnynian|fish vampires]]". ([[DW]]: ''[[The Vampires of Venice]]'')
* The Doctor speaks about River at [[Demon's Run]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[A Good Man Goes to War (TV story)|A Good Man Goes to War]]'')
*The Doctor speaks about River at [[Demon's Run]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[A Good Man Goes to War]]'')
* The Doctor has previously suffered poisoning serious enough to necessitate regeneration. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Caves of Androzani (TV story)|The Caves of Androzani]]'') However, on that occasion, he still had regenerations to use, whereas here the Doctor has already exhausted all twelve of his regenerations ([[TV]]: ''[[The Time of the Doctor (TV story)|The Time of the Doctor]]'') due to varying circumstances. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Night of the Doctor (TV story)|The Night of the Doctor]]'', ''[[Journey's End (TV story)|Journey's End]]'')
*Rory punches two people in the face to knock them on to the ground. Rory previously did this to the Doctor. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Big Bang]]'')
* The Doctor has been searching for River for six months. ([[TV]]: ''[[A Good Man Goes to War (TV story)|A Good Man Goes to War]]'')
*River begins studying archaeology. ([[DW]]: ''[[Silence in the Library]]'')
* The Doctor once again asks Rory for permission to hug Amy. ([[TV]]: ''[[A Good Man Goes to War (TV story)|A Good Man Goes to War]]'')
*The TARDIS's projection of Amelia mentions fish fingers and custard. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Eleventh Hour]]'')
* Teenage Amy tells teenage Mels that the Doctor was a "stupid dream [she] had as a kid". The Doctor was made a dream of hers in [[TV]]: ''[[The Big Bang (TV story)|The Big Bang]]'', when the timeline was restored but was changed so the Doctor didn't exist.
*Melody mentions regenerating into the toddler form of Mels in New York. ([[DW]]: ''[[Day of the Moon]]'')
* When the ''[[Teselecta]]'' takes on the form of [[River Song]], she is wearing the same dress she wore in [[America]] and at [[Demons Run]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[Day of the Moon (TV story)|Day of the Moon]]'', ''[[A Good Man Goes to War (TV story)|A Good Man Goes to War]]'')
*The Doctor switches Melody's gun for a banana, similar to what he did to [[Jack Harkness]] in ''[[The Doctor Dances]]''.
* Rory punches two people in the jaw to knock them to the ground. Rory (as an Auton) previously did this to the Doctor when he deliberately provoked his anger to test if he really was the original Rory. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Big Bang (TV story)|The Big Bang]]'')
*River reveals she learned how to pilot the TARDIS from the TARDIS herself. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Time of Angels]]'')
* It's revealed that River is the person who "killed" the Doctor at [[Lake Silencio]] and it is a [[fixed point in time]]. This also confirms that the man River is in prison for killing ([[TV]]: ''[[The Time of Angels (TV story)|The Time of Angels]]'', ''[[Flesh and Stone (TV story)|Flesh and Stone]]'') is the Doctor.
*The Doctor tells Melody "Rule one: The Doctor lies." ([[DW]]: ''[[The Big Bang (TV story)|The Big Bang]]'') One of the first things the Doctor hears River say is "I'm always lying." ([[DW]]: ''[[Silence in the Library]]'')
* River begins studying archaeology. ([[TV]]: ''[[Silence in the Library (TV story)|Silence in the Library]]'')
*River's diary ([[DW]]: ''[[Silence in the Library]]'') makes its first chronological appearance in this episode, a gift from the Doctor himself.
* The TARDIS's projection of Amelia mentions fish fingers and custard. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Eleventh Hour (TV story)|The Eleventh Hour]]'')
*The ''Teselecta'' data console states The Doctor's TARDIS is a Type 40 Mk 3 TT Capsule.
* Melody mentions regenerating into the toddler form of Mels in New York. ([[TV]]: ''[[Day of the Moon (TV story)|Day of the Moon]]'')
*The ''Teselecta'' crew mentions something in "Kennedy"'s timeline is not a fixed point in time. While this is probably a reference to the assassination of American President John F. Kennedy (an event witnessed by the Ninth Doctor), it could be a reference to the death of his brother, Senator Robert F. Kennedy, or another event involving a member of the Kennedy clan.
* The Doctor switches Melody's gun for a banana, as he previously did to [[Jack Harkness]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Doctor Dances (TV story)|The Doctor Dances]]'')
*It is mentioned twice that River uses her "remaining" regenerations to revive the Doctor, implying that she has a fixed amount. It is unclear whether the Doctor then gained that many new regenerations or if he still has only two remaining. The transfer of future regenerations from one regeneration-capable indvidual to another [[The Ultimate Foe|has precedent]].
* River reveals she learned how to pilot the TARDIS from the TARDIS herself. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Time of Angels (TV story)|The Time of Angels]]'')
*River has previously used [[hallucinogenic lipstick|a type of lipstick]] to her advantage. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Time of Angels]]'', ''[[The Big Bang]]'') This time however, she uses a poisonous version.
* A group of soldiers aim their guns at River, echoing how it happened likewise for the Doctor several times. ([[TV]]: ''[[Aliens of London (TV story)|Aliens of London]]'', ''[[World War Three (TV story)|World War Three]]'', ''[[Dalek (TV story)|Dalek]]'', ''[[Army of Ghosts (TV story)|Army of Ghosts]]'', ''[[Victory of the Daleks (TV story)|Victory of the Daleks]]'')
*River was able to completely recover after being shot several times by German soldiers. This was due to her still being within the first 15 hours of her regeneration. The [[Tenth Doctor]] previously recovered from [[The Doctor's hand|a severed hand]] while fighting a [[Sycorax]] due to a similar circumstance. ([[DW]]: ''[[The Christmas Invasion]]'')
* The Doctor tells Melody, "Rule one: the Doctor lies." ([[TV]]: ''[[The Big Bang (TV story)|The Big Bang]]'') One of the first things the Doctor hears River say is "I'm always lying." ([[TV]]: ''[[Silence in the Library (TV story)|Silence in the Library]]'')
*When the Doctor reveals that the crew of the [[Teselector]] use a [[compression field]] to miniturise themselves into the ship, he tells them to watch what they eat, refering to the [[Slitheen]]'s [[gas exchange]]. ([[DW]]: ''[[Aliens of London]]''/''[[World War Three]]'', et al.)
* The Doctor leaves a diary by River's bedside as a gift. Here, it is seen to be brand new. By the time the Doctor first encounters it, years later from River's perspective, the diary has been used and roughed up so much that it is on the verge of falling apart. ([[TV]]: ''[[Silence in the Library (TV story)|Silence in the Library]]'')
* The ''Teselecta'' data console states the Doctor's TARDIS is a Type 40 Mk 3 TT Capsule, very similar to its official [[Time Lord]] designation. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Deadly Assassin (TV story)|The Deadly Assassin]]'')
* The [[Megara]], who appeared in ''[[The Stones of Blood (TV story)|The Stones of Blood]]'', functioned as "justice machines".
* It is mentioned twice that River uses her "remaining" regenerations to revive the Doctor, implying that she has a fixed amount. The ability to transfer regeneration energy from one regeneration-capable individual to another has been suggested before. ([[TV]]: ''[[Mawdryn Undead (TV story)|Mawdryn Undead]]'', ''[[Doctor Who (TV story)]]'', ''[[The Ultimate Foe (TV story)|The Ultimate Foe]]'')
* River has previously used [[hallucinogenic lipstick|a type of lipstick]] to her advantage. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Time of Angels (TV story)|The Time of Angels]]'', ''[[The Big Bang (TV story)|The Big Bang]]'') This time, she uses a version made from the poison of a Judas tree. [[John Hart (Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang)|Captain John Hart]] previously used a similar poisonous lip gloss that caused paralysis, and if left untreated for longer than two hours, death. John claimed that he may have even learned about the poison lip gloss from [[Jack Harkness]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang (TV story)|Kiss Kiss, Bang Bang]]'') River's parting words to The Doctor before jumping out the window were also, "Kiss, kiss!"
* River recovers completely after being shot several times by German soldiers; she is still within the first fifteen hours of her regeneration. The [[Tenth Doctor]] recovered from [[The Doctor's hand|a severed hand]] while fighting a [[Sycorax]] under similar circumstances. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Christmas Invasion (TV story)|The Christmas Invasion]]'') [[Romana II|Romana]] tried several forms after her first regeneration. ([[TV]]: ''[[Destiny of the Daleks (TV story)|Destiny of the Daleks]]'')
* When first detecting there are life forms inside the Teselecta, the Doctor wonders if it is [[Dimensionally transcendental|bigger on the inside]].
* The TARDIS has materialised before inside a smaller object containing miniaturised life forms in a compression field. ([[TV]]: ''[[Carnival of Monsters (TV story)|Carnival of Monsters]]'')
* Mels says, "See you later, Time Boy" during a flashback. [[Donna Noble]] called the Doctor, "Time Boy". ([[TV]]: ''[[Journey's End (TV story)|Journey's End]]'')
* The Doctor says, "Spoilers", when Melody asked who River was, a word frequently used by River herself later in her timeline. ([[TV]]: ''[[Silence in the Library (TV story)|Silence in the Library]]'', et al.)
* The Doctor previously said that "Time is not the boss of me." ([[TV]]: ''[[The Time of Angels (TV story)|The Time of Angels]]'')
* Amy had a picture of herself and (apparently) Mels on a table in her bedroom. ([[TV]]: ''[[Flesh and Stone (TV story)|Flesh and Stone]]'')
* Teselecta Amy tells the Doctor that [[the Silence]] is not a species. The [[Slitheen]] said a similar thing to the Doctor. ([[TV]]: ''[[World War Three (TV story)|World War Three]]'')
* The [[Fourth Doctor]] has previously asserted that [[Romana|someone]] he was leaving behind will be more than "fine." ([[TV]]: ''[[Warriors' Gate (TV story)|Warriors' Gate]]'')
* The [[Eleventh Doctor]] changes his clothing in the midst of a long and painful death. The [[Tenth Doctor]] apparently did the same thing just before regenerating, changing into an undamaged version of his brown suit, along with a new tie, before dropping off [[Wilfred Mott]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[The End of Time (TV story)|The End of Time]]'')
* While lecturing Mels, Amy asks her, "Who steals a bus?!" [[Sarah Jane Smith]] and [[Lady Christina de Souza]] have. ([[TV]]: ''[[Invasion of the Bane (TV story)|Invasion of the Bane]]'', ''[[Planet of the Dead (TV story)|Planet of the Dead]]'')
* The Doctor tells Rory to put Hitler in the cupboard. A similar exchange was once shared between [[Claire Thompson|Claire]] and [[George Thompson|George]]: "What do we do with things we don't like?" "We put them in the cupboard." ([[TV]]: ''[[Night Terrors (TV story)|Night Terrors]]'')
* When asked by the Doctor about why he never met her at Amy's wedding, Mels replies "I don't do weddings". She attends the wedding as River Song who apparently doesn't do weddings and leaves her blank diary for Amy. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Big Bang (TV story)|The Big Bang]]'')
* The [[Ninth Doctor]] had previously been shown to anticipate and effectively neutralise assassination attempts against him by [[Blon Fel-Fotch Passameer-Day Slitheen]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[Boom Town (TV story)|Boom Town]]'')
* Amy states that the sonic screwdriver can be used by "pointing and thinking". The [[Tenth Doctor]] previously indicated that the [[Vashta Nerada]] could use [[Proper Dave]]'s [[Neural relay]] by simply pointing and thinking. ([[TV]]: ''[[Forest of the Dead (TV story)|Forest of the Dead]]'')
* Melody materialises the TARDIS around her parents, causing them to appear in the console room. This has been done before to various people and objects:
::* The [[Fourth Doctor]] materialised his TARDIS around [[the Master's TARDIS]] while it was disguised as a [[police box]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[Logopolis (TV story)|Logopolis]]'')
::* The [[Fifth Doctor]] proposed doing such again to [[the Master]]'s TARDIS while it was disguised as a [[Concorde]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[Time-Flight (TV story)|Time-Flight]]'')
::* The [[Ninth Doctor]] materialised around [[Rose Tyler]] and a [[Dalek]]. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Parting of the Ways (TV story)|The Parting of the Ways]]'')
::* The [[Tenth Doctor]] may have done the same in order to save the crew of [[Bowie Base One]] before it exploded. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Waters of Mars (TV story)|The Waters of Mars]]'')
::* The Doctor would again materialise the TARDIS around Amy and Rory (along with Rory's father, [[Brian Williams (Dinosaurs on a Spaceship)|Brian]]). ([[TV]]: ''[[Dinosaurs on a Spaceship (TV story)|Dinosaurs on a Spaceship]]'')
* Because the Doctor did not answer his phone, Amy and Rory get the Doctor's attention by creating a crop circle in Leadworth that spells out his name. ([[WC]]: ''[[Prequel (Let's Kill Hitler)]]'') River Song took similar measures to contact the Doctor by defacing a cliffside on [[Planet One]] with writing that translated into, "HELLO SWEETIE ΘΣ Φ ΓΥΔϟ" (ΘΣ Theta Sigma) for not answering her calls. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Pandorica Opens (TV story)|The Pandorica Opens]]'')
* The Doctor feels guilt regarding his previous companions [[Rose Tyler]], [[Martha Jones]], and [[Donna Noble]].
* The [[Fourth Doctor]] told [[Eldrad]] that the TARDIS interior was "in a state of temporal grace", so weapons would not work inside of it. ([[TV]]: ''[[The Hand of Fear (TV story)|The Hand of Fear]]'') When asked about this seeming to not always be the case, the [[Fifth Doctor]] simply said that "nobody's perfect". ([[TV]]: ''[[Arc of Infinity (TV story)|Arc of Infinity]]'')
* The Doctor tells the TARDIS's hologram of Amelia to, "Come along, Pond." ([[TV]]: ''[[Victory of the Daleks (TV story)|Victory of the Daleks]]'', ''[[The Big Bang (TV story)|The Big Bang]]'', ''[[Death of the Doctor (TV story)|Death of the Doctor]]'', ''[[A Christmas Carol (TV story)|A Christmas Carol]]'')
* Melody believes the reason Hitler rose to power was because the Doctor didn't stop him. Unbeknownst to her, the [[Seventh Doctor]] was instrumental in Hitler's rise to power. ([[PROSE]]: ''[[Timewyrm: Exodus (novel)|Timewyrm: Exodus]]'')


== Home video releases ==
== Home video releases ==
This episode will be released on DVD and Blu-ray shortly after the airing of episode thirteen.<ref>{{cite web |url=http://doctorwhotv.co.uk/series-6-dvd-releases-15635.htm |title=Series 6 DVD Releases |date of source=February 12th, 2011 |website name=Doctor Who TV |accessdate=28th August 2011}}</ref>
[[File:Series6.2DVD.jpg|thumb|Series 6, part 2 DVD cover]]
 
=== DVD & Blu-ray releases ===
 
* ''Let's Kill Hitler'' was released in Series 6 Part Two on DVD and Blu-Ray in region 1/A on [[8 November (releases)|8 November]] [[2011 (releases)|2011]], in region 2/B on [[10 October (releases)|10 October]] 2011 and in region 4/B on [[3 November (releases)|3 November]] 2011.  
* The episode was later released in the Complete Sixth Series boxset on both DVD and Blu-ray, in region 1/A on [[22 November (releases)|22 November]] 2011, in region 2/B on [[21 November (releases)|21 November]] 2011 and in region 4/B on [[1 December (releases)|1 December]] 2011.
 
=== Digital releases ===


==Footnotes==
* In the United Kingdom, this story is available on [[BBC iPlayer]].
{{Reflist}}


==External links==
== External links ==
''to be added''
* {{locguide|letskillhitler|Let's Kill Hitler}}
{{dwrefguide|who_tv63.htm|Let's Kill Hitler}}


== Footnotes ==
{{Reflist}}
{{DWTV}}
{{DWTV}}
{{Regeneration stories}}
{{Regeneration stories}}
{{Post-regeneration stories}}
{{TitleSort}}
{{TitleSort}}
[[Category:Doctor Who (2005) television stories]]
[[Category:Series 6 (Doctor Who) stories]]
[[Category:Series 6 (Doctor Who) stories]]
[[Category:Eleventh Doctor television stories]]
[[Category:2011 television stories]]
[[Category:2011 television stories]]
[[Category:Stories set in Germany]]
[[Category:Stories set in 1938]]
[[Category:Stories set in 1938]]
[[Category:Stories set in 2011]]
[[Category:Stories set in 2011]]
[[Category:Stories set in Leadworth]]
[[Category:Stories set in Leadworth]]
[[Category:Stories set in the 52nd century]]
[[Category:Television stories set on the Moon]]
[[Category:Stories set on the Moon]]
[[Category:Stories set in the 1990s]]
[[Category:Stories set in the 1990s]]
[[Category:Stories set in the 2000s]]
[[Category:Stories set in the 2000s]]
[[Category:Silence arc]]
[[Category:Regeneration television stories]]
[[Category:Regeneration television stories]]
[[Category:Stories set in Berlin]]
[[Category:BFI-exhibited television stories]]
[[Category:Needs crew check]]
[[Category:Stories set in 5123]]
[[Category:Post-regeneration stories]]
[[es:Let's Kill Hitler]]
[[fr:Let's Kill Hitler (TV)]]
[[ro:Let's Kill Hitler]]
[[ru:Давай убьём Гитлера]]

Latest revision as of 17:51, 3 November 2024

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Let's Kill Hitler was the eighth episode and mid-series premiere of series 6 of Doctor Who.

It was the first episode in the autumn half of the sixth series. It was, in a sense, the second episode of a two-part story, preceded by A Good Man Goes to War. Like A Good Man Goes to War, it revealed much about River Song's origins, also dealing with Amy and Rory's childhood and how they became a couple. Additionally, it explained why the Silence had been trying to kill the Doctor and it is stated that the Doctor's death at Lake Silencio is a fixed point in time. At the end of the episode and in following episodes, the Doctor is occasionally seen looking at the information he downloaded from the Teselecta on his death.

The episode featured the first "Time Lord-style" regeneration of a female that showed the complete change in physical appearance from old to new incarnation on-screen. Previously, such regenerations were shown with the change from an old form already completed or cut out before the physical change even began. Let's Kill Hitler also dealt with other aspects of regeneration, such as being able to rapidly heal from otherwise fatal injuries while the regenerative cycle was still in process, and a capability to donate some amount of regeneration energy to another at will.

This was the first televised Doctor Who story to feature the personal appearance of the tyrant dictator Adolf Hitler. However, although the title of this episode suggested the story might revolve around him, in truth he received close to five minutes of screen time and was quickly ejected from the plot. A few references to World War II and Nazism were present, but much of the episode focused on the first appearance of the Justice Department and the strange types of technology they utilised. Instead, the title comes from Mels' demand to be taken back in time to kill Hitler in the cornfield at the beginning.

In this episode, the shapeshifting robot known as the Teselecta is introduced. The Teselecta and her crew make a return in The Wedding of River Song where they play an important role in the plot. Unknown until the events of The Wedding of River Song, the Teselecta also appeared at the beginning of The Impossible Astronaut and played a major role there where the two episodes events were connected to each other.

Additionally, the episode introduces The Question which is described as "the oldest question in the universe, hidden in plain sight." While the Doctor learns of the Question from the Teselecta, he does not learn what it is or its significance to him. The Question is revisited in The Wedding of River Song where the Doctor learns what the Question is from Dorium Maldovar and why it means he must die and in The Time of the Doctor where the true nature of the Question and its meaning are revealed.

Synopsis[[edit] | [edit source]]

In the desperate search for Melody Pond, the TARDIS crash lands in Thirties Berlin, as the time-travelling drama returns for the second half of the series shown earlier in the year. The Doctor comes face to face with the greatest war criminal in the Universe. And Hitler. Old friendships are tested to their limits as the Doctor suffers the ultimate betrayal and learns a harsh lesson in the cruellest warfare of all. As precious time ebbs away, the Doctor must teach his adversaries that time travel has responsibilities. And he must succeed before an almighty price is paid.

Plot[[edit] | [edit source]]

Amy and Rory's way of contacting the Doctor.

Rory drives through a wheat field wildly as Amy gives directions poorly. She is telling him how to trace letters by mowing down the wheat with the car that will spell out a name, trying to summon the Doctor in the loudest manner possible, so that he cannot avoid contact with them any longer by dodging Amy's phone calls. Stopping their car, they find the Doctor standing by his TARDIS in a new green pea coat.

"Seriously?"

He holds a newspaper with a photo of the crop circle reading "Doctor" they have just made, commenting "Seriously?" with an incredulous smirk on his face. Rory replies that the Doctor had not been answering his phone and this was the only way they could really get his attention. She asks if he has found Melody over the summer. The Doctor makes the bad news easier to deliver by asking Rory if he can give Amy a hug. Once he has permission, he embraces Amy and tells her "You know who she grows up to be, so you know I will find her." Amy notices that this is a polite way of saying he failed to track down her baby. Rory then examines the picture and notices a line in the message that they didn't make.

The trio suddenly learns what caused the unknown stroke in the message when they hear the high-powered engine of a sports car revving through the field and shredding a new line down the middle of their crop circle. All of them start screaming for their lives. They dodge out of the way as a Corvette almost runs them over. Out steps Amy and Rory's best friend, Mels, who flirts with the Doctor and fondles the TARDIS. With police sirens prophesying her arrest for car theft, she points a gun at the Doctor and demands he take her to kill Hitler.

A flashback shows Mels is a childhood friend of Amy and Rory and a troublemaker at school. She gets in more trouble than anyone except boys, insults teachers, continually references the Doctor, steals buses and points out to Amy and Rory that they're in love. Back in the present, the TARDIS flies wildly because Mels has shot the time rotor. He barks at the delinquent, "You shot it! You shot my TARDIS! You shot the console!" Mels accusingly remarks, "It's your fault!" He inquires, "How is it my fault?" She replies, "You said guns didn't work in this place. You said we're in a state of temporal grace." Angry that she fired her gun out of foolish curiosity, he snarks, "Oh, that was a clever lie, you idiot! Anyone could tell that was a clever lie!"

In 1938 Berlin, a janitor watches a Nazi officer. In a futuristic control room, the crew discuss copying the officer as the janitor follows him. In the control room, a woman complains that the last time they relied on the computer, it "made Rasputin green". She goes to "the top level", where an electronic voice politely threatens her until she adjusts a device on her wrist. She looks through a viewport, which is the eye of the janitor, actually a highly advanced ship, the Teselecta. She relays colour codes to the control room. The janitor becomes the officer's double and beams him aboard with a miniaturisation ray. Learning the officer's identity as a war criminal, the crew leave him to the antibodies. They politely threaten the officer before killing him.

The Teselecta enters Adolf Hitler's office while the captain complains about the shock-absorbers malfunctioning. Hitler asks why his officer has entered without permission. The Teselecta activates "justice mode" and paralyses him with a beam of light from its mouth. However, one of the crew says they arrived too early in his timeline, just before the TARDIS crashes through a window and knocks over the Teselecta.

The TARDIS occupants stagger out in a cloud of smoke caused by Mels' havoc. Hitler thanks the dumbfounded travellers for saving him and asks what the TARDIS is. The Doctor advances on him, saying it's a police box and "The British are coming!" The Teselecta picks itself up and a panicky Hitler fires at it. Rory punches Hitler and takes his gun.

The Doctor and Amy help up the Teselecta. Rory shoves Hitler in the cupboard while the Teselecta goes into observation mode — "fainting". Mels staggers forward. She calls Hitler a lousy shot and collapses; she was hit by a bullet. Rory tries to help her and the Doctor tries keeping her conscious by talking to her. Mels says she wanted to marry the Doctor and he promises to ask her parents when they fix her up. Mels says they're right there, then begins to glow. The Doctor, who recognises that Mels is starting to regenerate, pulls the others away from her.

Mels comments about regenerating once before as a child in New York and reveals her actual name to be Melody. Amy says she named her daughter after her, but the Doctor explains, "You named your daughter after your daughter" and Mels finally regenerates with a scream.

The crew of the Teselecta look in bewilderment at a criminal whose crimes dwarf Hitler's: Melody Pond. Melody ends her regeneration in an incarnation that the Doctor, Amy and Rory recognise as River Song. She chatters on about her new look before going off to weigh herself.

The three time travellers talk, realising that Melody is River Song right at the beginning. Melody asks who River is, but the Doctor refuses to tell her "spoilers". She pulls out a gun, "getting back to business", points it at the Doctor and pulls the trigger. The gun, emptied by the Doctor during the regeneration, clicks uselessly. A scintillating conversation ensues and Melody pulls a banana at the Doctor, who had turned the fruit bowl she had left the gun in, then Melody swings a letter opener at him but is disarmed. The Doctor asks why she didn't kill him in the field and receives the reply that they'd only just met — she's a psychopath, not rude.

An impatient Melody asks if killing him will take all day. The Doctor inquires if she was busy and, an explanation that the Silence tailored Melody as the Doctor's "own bespoke psychopath" later, Melody kisses him with poisoned lipstick and jumps out a window to go shopping. The Doctor gives Amy his sonic screwdriver and tells her to find Melody. Dying, he stumbles into the TARDIS.

Melody weaponises her regeneration cycle.

Outside, Melody enrages soldiers into shooting her. Rory who is horrified, cries out, "No!" as his daughter is pelted by automatic gunfire. However, she is within the first fifteen hours of her regeneration; she produces a shock wave that heals her and knocks out the guards. She steals a motorcycle. Amy and Rory steal another and follow her.

Inside the TARDIS, the Doctor turns on the voice interface as a hologram of himself. He asks for someone he likes. In succession, it offers images of Rose Tyler, Martha Jones and Donna Noble, all of whom induce wails of guilt. Finally, it offers young Amelia Pond, who tells the Doctor that he will shortly be dead. The poison comes from the Judas tree, and regeneration is not available. The Doctor tries to get "Amelia" to help him gather his strength. It insists it is not Amelia, but a hologram. He collapses, gasping for help, then hears Amelia the hologram say "Fish fingers and custard". He finds the strength to drag himself to the console.

"Ladies and gentlemen: I don't have a thing to wear. Take off your clothes."

Elsewhere, Melody enters a restaurant and orders the patrons at gunpoint to take off their clothes. Outside, Amy and Rory wonder where she is. They see the screaming restaurant patrons run out in their undergarments and hurry in just as the Teselecta, now in Amy's form, arrives.

Melody is working on her ensemble when Amy — actually the Teselecta — runs in. Amy and Rory wake up where the Nazi officer did. They are threatened politely by the antibodies until a crew member gives wrist devices to ward them off. They are taken to the bridge, where they are told that their memories of these events will be erased later.

Outside, the Teselecta asks Melody why she killed the Doctor on behalf of the Silence. Melody really doesn't know. Her past is all a blur. It captures Melody as it did Hitler. The Doctor arrives in evening clothes. He asks whom she killed. He uses a sonic cane to scan the Teselecta and learns Amy and Rory are inside it.

Melody tries to flee but is recaptured. The Doctor demands they leave her alone and asks who they are. The Teselecta explains that as a form of justice, they visit unpunished criminals at the ends of their lives and "give them hell", agonising pain, while the timeline continues. The Doctor asks who wants him dead and Amy persuades the captain to tell him. It says the Silence are behind the plot to kill him. They are a religious cult who believe "silence will fall" when the oldest question in the universe is asked. It does not know what the question is. The Teselecta resumes torturing Melody.

The Doctor tells Amy to save her daughter. She uses the sonic screwdriver to turn off the crew's security clearances. The antibodies attack them and they teleport to safety. Amy uses a microphone to ask the Doctor for help. The antibodies are politely threatening Rory and her again. The Doctor struggles against his painful death. He crawls towards the TARDIS, shocking Melody that he still cares. The Doctor asks for her help, using her name, River. Melody demands to know who River is.

Inside the Teselecta, Amy and Rory are cornered by the antibodies. They accept their doom. Suddenly, the TARDIS materialises around them. They begin to thank the Doctor. Instead, they find a shaken Melody at the console, saying she flew the TARDIS. It taught her how.

They go to the Doctor, but he says there is no way for him to survive. He asks to speak to Melody. He asks her to find River Song, whispers something in her ear and dies. Melody asks who "River Song" is. Amy orders the Teselecta to show them. It shifts into the form of Melody's current incarnation.

"Hello sweetie." Melody Pond becomes River Song.

Melody learns that she is River Song. Amy and Rory ask Melody what the Doctor whispered in her ear. She does not answer this, but asks her parents if the Doctor is "worth it". They don't understand her question but agree he is. Melody kisses the Doctor and gives up all her regenerations to save him.

Melody wakes in the greatest hospital in the universe. The Doctor leaves her a TARDIS blue diary. They must leave her to find her own way back to them.

In 5123, Melody, now calling herself River Song, applies to study at the Luna University. When asked why she wants a degree in archaeology, she says she is "looking for a good man".

Cast[[edit] | [edit source]]

Uncredited cast[[edit] | [edit source]]

Crew[[edit] | [edit source]]

General production staff

Script department

Camera and lighting department

Art department

Costume department

Make-up and prosthetics

Movement

Casting

General post-production staff

Special and visual effects

Sound



Not every person who worked on this adventure was credited. The absence of a credit for a position doesn't necessarily mean the job wasn't required. The information above is based solely on observations of the actual end credits of the episodes as broadcast, and does not relay information from IMDB or other sources.
          

Jay Harley was credited under their deadname as assistant director.


Worldbuilding[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • The Doctor makes a joke about female indecisiveness.

Clothing[[edit] | [edit source]]

The Doctor[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • The Doctor covertly switches a gun for a banana.
  • The Doctor adds to his rules:
  • Rule 1: The Doctor lies.
  • Rule 7: Never run when you are scared.
  • Rule 27: Never knowingly be serious.
  • Rule 408: Time is not the boss of you.

The Doctor's items[[edit] | [edit source]]

Companions of the Doctor[[edit] | [edit source]]

Foods and beverages[[edit] | [edit source]]

Locations[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • River is confronted by the Teselecta at the Hotel Adlon.

Religion[[edit] | [edit source]]

TARDIS[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • The temporal grace in the TARDIS, which supposedly prevents weapons fire, is said by the Doctor to be a "clever lie".
  • The TARDIS has extractor fans which work, much to the Doctor's surprise.

Culture[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • Before punching out the Nazi and taking his bike, Rory shouts 'Heil!'
  • River deliberately provokes a group of Nazis by flippantly mentioning that she was on her way to a "gay gypsy Bar Mitzvah for the disabled", referencing the Nazi's targeted categories of the victims in the Holocaust.
  • Melody Pond says, "Hello, Benjamin!", to the Doctor. The Doctor previously claimed Scotland Yard's code name for her was Mrs Robinson. (TV: The Impossible Astronaut) Both reference The Graduate, in which a younger man, Benjamin, is seduced by an older woman, Mrs Robinson.

Influences[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • The layout of the Teselecta's bridge is reminiscent of that of the Enterprise and other Federation starships from the television series Star Trek.
  • Steven Moffat wanted to show Hitler in a comedic light and "take the mickey out of him" instead of making him "an icon of evil". He cited Indiana Jones and the Last Crusade as an influence.

Story notes[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • A week and a day before this episode was broadcast in the US and two days before it was broadcast in the UK, the Torchwood episode Immortal Sins was broadcast. In it, a Brainspawn attempted to rewrite history by enabling the Third Reich to win the Second World War.
  • This is the first episode of the autumn half of the series. The spring half concluded on 4 June with A Good Man Goes to War. In addition, Amy says the Doctor has had all summer to find Melody, making the in-universe present day synchronised with real time.
  • This is the first episode since the first episode of The Leisure Hive to air in August.
  • This was Richard Senior's television directorial debut.
  • This is the second time that companions of the previous two Doctors have been mentioned or seen in a proper episode since The End of Time; Rose Tyler was previously seen (briefly) in The Lodger.
  • The images of all the former companions are taken from publicity shots. The projections of Rose and Donna are publicity images from Series 4. That of Martha is from a publicity image for Series 3.
  • The Doctor makes the "Doctor Who?" running joke.
  • The car Mels steals is a Chevrolet Corvette, third generation (68-82). It is the same model of car featured in the film Apollo 13 and the mini-series From the Earth to the Moon.
  • The TARDIS's voice interface tells the Doctor he will be dead in thirty-two minutes. Coincidentally in-universe, the invitation the future Doctor sent out to everyone in The Impossible Astronaut, to meet at Lake Silencio for the Doctor's death, was for 4:30 pm and according to the biographical information the Doctor is shot during regeneration and killed at 5:02 pm.
  • The handgun that Mels pulls out is an IMI Jericho 941.
  • Harriet mentions the Teselecta having transformed into Rasputin. Tom Baker played Rasputin in the movie Nicholas and Alexandra and the Master impersonates him in The Power of the Doctor.
  • In Mels' first scene in the episode, her face cannot be seen due to the sun's glare behind her. She moves her body to block the sun and her face is shown, much like the first scene of River in The Impossible Astronaut.
  • In the Leadworth Chronicle, a story with the headline "BACK OF THE NECK" can be seen. This is a reference to the weakness of the Sontarans. (TV: The Poison Sky)
  • This episode introduces a new article of clothing for the Eleventh Doctor that he continues to wear for most of the remainder of Series 6 - a green, double-breasted moleskin coat with six pockets and six gold buttons.
  • Arthur Candy was introduced in the short story Continuity Errors, roughly fifteen years earlier. As such, this marks the first televised appearance of a character introduced elsewhere.
  • Mels' regeneration marks the first time a regeneration has been shown onscreen where the person has short sleeves instead of long sleeves, proving that the body gives off regeneration energy, and not just the hands and head.
  • The first BBC America broadcast of the episode includes an extra scene which aired during a commercial break. It was sponsored by AT&T. As written by Steven Moffat, it is an extension of the motorcycle chase sequence with Rory and Amy. It is presented in animation/motion comic format. Lasting sixty seconds and produced by Double Barrel Motion Labs, the scene was originally promoted as intended for inclusion in the Series 6 DVD/Blu-ray releases, but as of early November 2011, this has not happened. The ad/motion comic was only seen in America.[5][6]
  • Paul Bentley would later play High Septon on Game of Thrones. Matt Smith would later play Daemon Targeryren on the prequel series House of the Dragon.
  • As the crew of the Teselecta witness the poisoning of the Doctor, despite record of him dying in 2011, one crewmember mentions an individual called "Kennedy" whose timeline was rewritten. While not stated, this is possibly a reference to US President John F. Kennedy or the Kennedy family in general.
  • Steven Moffat wanted an episode that would draw in viewers after a twelve-week break and be tonally different from The Impossible Astronaut.
  • Steven Moffat wanted the narrative's true focus to be on the relationship between Amy, Rory and River. In particular, the revelation that Amy and Rory's childhood friend Mels was another incarnation of Melody/River was intended to temper the darker implications of the baby's abduction, since Amy and Rory would now be shown to have played an integral role in their daughter's formative years.
  • Steven Moffat originally envisaged the Anti-Bodies as humanoid robots with featureless chrome heads. However, it was eventually felt that this design hewed too closely to the look of the Handbots, so they became floating, tentacular automatons.
  • The episode comprised Block Eight of season six, formally dubbed “Block Seven-A”.
  • Jenna Coleman auditioned for the role of Mels. Less than a year later, she would be cast as Clara Oswald.
  • By casting Nina Toussaint-White as Mels, the production team definitively established that race was another characteristic which could change via the process of regeneration. Indeed, Steven Moffat had previously explored the possibility of selecting a non-white actor to portray the Eleventh Doctor.
  • Filming on the set for Hitler's office was delayed because of the complexity of achieving the TARDIS crashing through the windows.
  • The opening sequence in the cornfield was the last scene to be shot. It was filmed two and half months after the rest of production because there was a delay until midsummer before the crops had reached an appropriate height. It was the last scene of season six to be filmed.
  • Steven Moffat enjoyed writing Mels' regeneration scene, finding comedy in her checking out her new body.
  • The cast and crew felt that the costume and make-up artists did a good job with Albert Welling, as he looked so much like Hitler it was a "surreal" experience.
  • Arthur Darvill was pleased that Rory was more of an "action hero" in the episode.
  • Before broadcast, Matt Smith stated that it was "maybe [his] favorite episode to date...it just rockets along".
  • Matt Smith wanted to wear a long coat because of the cold weather.
  • Vintage vehicles from the period were used. Arthur Darvill loved the motorbike, although he was not allowed to ride it as it was the job of the stuntman.
  • Hitler's office was one of the biggest sets that had been built for the show. Typically it would have been filmed in a real building, but the TARDIS had to crash through the wall and thus the set had to be destroyed with an air cannon.
  • The Large Hadron Collider was the inspiration for the design of the Teselecta corridors.
  • One scene involving the Teselecta (disguised as a German soldier) chasing Amy and Rory on motorcycles through Berlin was cut from filming due to budget issues.
  • When Steven Moffat wrote the episode, he was simultaneously overseeing Doctor Who and Sherlock, as well as co-writing The Adventures of Tintin. As a result, he was too exhausted to rewrite this episode, so his only option was to hand the cast a first draft and hope for the best.
  • The famously clumsy Matt Smith was worried about ruining his suit jacket, so he put it on a nearby table - right into a jug of grape juice.
  • This was the last time Caitlin Blackwood played Amelia Pond, although The God Complex was made first.

Ratings[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • UK Overnight: 6.2 million
  • UK Final: 8.1 million[7]

Myths[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • The Daily Mirror reported that Rose Tyler, Martha Jones and Donna Noble would appear in this episode.[8] This was partially true. Images of all three appeared but these were avatars for a TARDIS interface, rather than the characters themselves. All images used were promotional images.
  • Some viewers speculated that when River resurrected the Doctor, he absorbed all of River Song's remaining regenerations. If this is true, as River only regenerated twice, the Doctor might now have twenty-two regenerations, instead of the standard twelve. This was proven incorrect by the Doctor himself in The Time of the Doctor, as he confirmed he had reached the natural end of his regeneration cycle and could not change for a thirteenth time.

Filming locations[[edit] | [edit source]]

Production errors[[edit] | [edit source]]

If you'd like to talk about narrative problems with this story — like plot holes and things that seem to contradict other stories — please go to this episode's discontinuity discussion.
  • When the Doctor and the TARDIS make their first appearance, they point right, towards Amy and Rory's car. However, when the camera zooms out, the Doctor and TARDIS are looking down, and not towards Amy and Rory. This also causes an error when Mels drives through the word Doctor.
  • During the sequences of flashbacks explaining how River and the Doctor obtained and swapped guns right after the former's regeneration, River's uttering of the lines sound a bit more rushed, making it obvious that the original and flashback shots of the scene are two different takes.
  • When Rory asks, "How can they just disappear?" two antibodies appear, but in the next shot, there are three.
  • When the poisoned Doctor is in the TARDIS he has one of his arms up on the bannister; in the next shot, he has it by his side.
  • When the Teselecta's shock absorbers are malfunctioning, the captain's cup falls and can be heard smashing, but when the camera zooms out, there is no evidence of this.
  • Although Mels is shot by Adolf Hitler, resulting in her regeneration, when she stands up there is no sign of blood or a hole in her dress as the regeneration begins.

Continuity[[edit] | [edit source]]

Home video releases[[edit] | [edit source]]

Series 6, part 2 DVD cover

DVD & Blu-ray releases[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • Let's Kill Hitler was released in Series 6 Part Two on DVD and Blu-Ray in region 1/A on 8 November 2011, in region 2/B on 10 October 2011 and in region 4/B on 3 November 2011.
  • The episode was later released in the Complete Sixth Series boxset on both DVD and Blu-ray, in region 1/A on 22 November 2011, in region 2/B on 21 November 2011 and in region 4/B on 1 December 2011.

Digital releases[[edit] | [edit source]]

  • In the United Kingdom, this story is available on BBC iPlayer.

External links[[edit] | [edit source]]

Footnotes[[edit] | [edit source]]

  1. ↑ Gillan also plays the Teselecta that assumed the appearance of Amy.
  2. ↑ Kingston also plays the Teselecta that assumed the appearance of River.
  3. ↑ Rham also plays the Teselecta that assumed the appearance of Zimmerman.
  4. ↑ 4.0 4.1 4.2 http://guide.doctorwhonews.net/role.php?code=5003&detail=listing&pg=dwm
  5. ↑ Doctor Who Motion Comic, SciFi FX, 26 August 2011, accessed 2nd November 2011
  6. ↑ AT&T to Help Tell Story of Doctor Who, Double Barrel Motion Labs webpage, accessed 2 November 2011
  7. ↑ Doctor Who Ratings - UK final
  8. ↑ Mark Jefferies (17/08/2011). Billie Piper, Freema Agyeman and Catherine Tate all come back for cameo roles in Doctor Who. Daily Mirror. Retrieved on 28th August 2011.
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