It'd be pretty epic if you could support me on patreon: www.patreon.com/harbowholmes

I think a big part of why Amy does not question traveling and why she does not take danger seriously is how she met the doctor. She was a child and a magical man fell into her yard. Of course she instantly wants to hang out with her imaginary friend, and as a child, the magical adult is supposed to keep her safe. Epitomized with her "what is the point of you" statement after Rory's first death, the doctor is the magic man that came on a call to protect her from the crack in her wall.

I enjoyed this series, but the RTD scripts felt like all your best family and cousins were coming over for Christmas. Moffat scripts felt more like hanging late night with friends on a Wednesday night. Both great, but very different in weight and connections.

Rory: *exists* The Universe: "He's too dangerous to be left alive!"

Series 5 didn’t have the best episodes, but it was beautiful and it encapsulates the fairytale vibe that even if Moffat didn’t want, it was just amazing . Some episodes did fall flat but the characters were very well written and I like how he’s able to link everything together. Matt smith really made the role his own in one episode.

"The Series 5 tier list is not so different from the Series 1 tier list." An average difference of a full grade is statistically a huge difference.

"On the whole Series 5 is a stunning series" - Harbo Wholmes You heard it here first folks!

I will just always love series 5. It holds a special place in my heart and always will. 11 is MY Doctor and this era came along at a point in my life where I really needed it. Maybe I am blinded by nostalgia or life trauma but I don't care. If that makes me bias then I am bias. It is my fave series and 11 is my fave Doctor. That's the long and short of it.

03:12 Had to laugh at that, to be fair, Chibnall literally told her not to study so he would basically make her his "Tabula rasa Doctor", if she had studied previous Doctors she would have called his B.S. out all the time. Quite interesting to see Moffat top and bottom the selection, shows how much dimensions Moffat has.

The awful Amy part makes sense to me because Karen Gillian said that she was also dissatisfied with her acting in Season 5.

3:23 - I don’t agree! I feel like Ten wasn’t the kind for those grand speeches, he’d most likely technobabble, communicate with his companions in an effort to buy time and then do something with a bit of gadgety stuff and escape. I feel like Eleven definitely suited these speeches more! :) my opinion

Having been a child in 1963 and seen all the doctors I too originally rejected Matt Smith but I went back to him and can say wholeheartedly that he IS the doctor and I watch his Christmas specials every year.

I can appreciate your own experience off people leaving the show with this series but I saw the opposite. Maybe it was just because of the new HD look but so many people at school only jumped onboard with the Matt Smith era, so I don't think a "reset" of tone bothered them much because they got in a bunch of new fans.

I can't really agree that Amy's lack of doubt over travelling with the Doctor in series 5 is a problem. The whole premise of Amy's character, as you point out, is that she wants to run away with him because she isn't ready to grow up, so of course she's throwing herself into it without a care. That's the point. Series 6 Amy is a much more well rounded adult who's fully committed to Rory after what they went through in series 5, and it's no coincidence that it's series 6 that introduces Amy having second thoughts about being a companion, leading to her being drawn more and more away from the Doctor in series 7 until she finally leaves him forever. This is a differently structured arc for a companion than RTD's usual formula of giving them an early moment of doubt, but there's no reason why that formula should have to be followed for every companion. In fact I think it's great, even necessary, for the show to mix it up for companion character arcs if it wants to change and evolve. Amy's series 5 character arc is just part of her larger arc across her time on the show, so I don't think series 5 is at fault for just not being up to that part of her arc yet.

Series 5 to me was Moffat's more consistent series before it began to go wild in consistency with Series 6 and 7 going all over the place. What I enjoy about series 5 is the atmosphere and energy it oozes as it is so unlike what came before yet familiar. For me it was a needed breath of fresh air and I respect it for doing thay while also making itself apparent (at the time) that the show can survive without Tennant and RTD. What series 5 also had me discover is I like overarching storylines that are more apparent and have an influence in the plot such as the cracks and the Silence. Along with that I adore Murray Golds music from series 5 - 7, I own the soundtracks of Matts era and I always find them to be a bop.

I suppose the other benefit of returning monsters for a new era means that you don't need to develop villains while trying to develop new doctor and new companions

Also, as a side note, when Moffat took over we lost a lot of the behind the scenes stuff from the DVD box sets. RTD series' had commentaries on EVERY episode (sometimes two commentaries) plus separate commentaries on the Doctor Who site. Maybe it was budgetary reasons but we were lucky to get 3 commentaries for the entire season of Moffat's Who. The box sets gradually became more sparse for extras and I stopped buying them before Capaldi took over. Still haven't picked his run up.

Agree, it’s a good series made up of mostly average episodes. I’m 100% a Moffat fan, but never had any issues with the criticisms for this series. It’s been a great run of reviews, looking forward to Series 6.

One point that baffles me is that the Moffat era is more geared towards kids than Davies 1 Hellooooo? Farting aliens? Killer quiz shows? Living fat?

It’s important to note that by the time Amy becomes the companion she’s spent most of her life dreaming about the day the doctor would come back for her. I think having her second guess the decision or even decide to leave would have been weird since this is literally what she’s always wanted.

I disagree BUT watching your series 5 reviews was waaaay more entertaining for me! I've never actually met or encountered many fans who don't like series 5 so it's always a fascinating perspective to hear! I can't argue with your criticisms as they are true, but for some reason it really works for me, more than series 1 or 2 does for me, I think series 3 and 4 are better than series 5 but overall all I think series 5 is moffats best and most consistent season (I do think series 10 is better than series 5 but I think it looses casual audiences whereas I think anyone can watch series 5 which is better for the show itself) Can't wait to see what series 6 reviews will be like! ;D

I'm Hoping Matt Smith reprises his role as the eleventh doctor in the realm of big finish

The big issue with the current Doctors Who series is the constant companion falling in love with the Doctor angle. The classic who focused more on storyline and did not deal with that

I hadn't enjoyed the Moffat era much on my first viewing, but I found it far more enjoyable on a recent rewatch with my daughter, who's just now old enough to follow it. I just think Davies and Tenant were a tough act for anyone to follow.

Matt's tenure as the Doctor is odd to me because I don't like the overarching plots of any of his seasons, but I think they each have some great individual episodes housed within them. I have no nostalgia for series 5 and thus have never been part of the "series 5 is one of the best" crowd. That said, I think it does a solid job of setting up Matt as the Doctor and establishing several running threads for his incarnation. I'll be curious to see your coverage of series 6, as it's another series marked by some very high highs and some truly bizarre lows.

I wonder if I’m still gonna be alive by the time you get around to reviewing Peter Capaldi’s episodes.

I love Matt Smith great doctor was funny aswel.

I think that the whole ‘Companion keeps throwing out one liners’ thing they did with Amy worked better with Donna because it was in her character to be a bit defiant in the way that when she was captured in Fires of Pompeii, she didn’t scream for help but kept insulting her captors and threatening them instead of them threatening her. I think if Amy was there instead (Which she was but as a companion not one of the sisters) would have said things like “Oh I don’t want that knife in me. Looks painful”

Yeah, I think having an ongoing story throughout an entire season is a great idea, and really adds to the idea of the end of season threat actually being larger than life (more so than just the Master turning up at the end out of the blue to mess with people). The issue for me mainly arises in how this format means EVERY episode is important to the overall story - meaning that lack lustre episodes are harder to ignore overall. In the more episodic seasons led by RTJ, if an episode was a dud, more often than not you can skip it in a season rewatch, as an odd episode wouldn't really be that important to the general arcs. For example, season 2 isn't really that good overall - but because I can watch The Girl in the Fireplace, School Reunion and The Impossible Planet (1+2) as contained adventures, that isn't really an issue, as the way they flow together doesn't matter too much from story to story. Because season 5 is so intertwined with itself from episode to episode, returning to the better episodes isn't nearly as satisfying as the previous seasons, as it feels like this season revels in constantly reminding me of its shortcomings at every turn (The weird Liz 10 stuff, The Silurians, Amy and her choices) ; because every corner has to be remembered to get out of the maze that is Moffat's style of writing. Having all the episodes interconnect also derails the momentum of some episodes in my opinion, because of their need to fit in with the others - Vampires of Venice has a good 5 minute interlude of the Doctor and the fishlady setting up 'the end of all things', and Rory being eaten by the Crack really comes out of nowhere and is then brushed off, because it has to be (not that the episode his death is in had much going for it anyway - but it still doesn't really fit in with the rest of the episode, and it's annoying that to fully comprehend season 5 you have to sit through the rest of those episodes). There are a handful of standout moments in the season for me - the angel forest, Rory's death, Vincent in the Gallery, the Doctor being taken into the Pandorica - but I find it harder to appreciate them as moments because the way they all join together in the end is rather muddled, which isn't an issue I can say I had with 10 or 9's seasons (as questionable as some of those finales may have been). Outside of this, I feel like a lot of the episodes have pacing issues - mostly in how they wrap up at the last minute almost every time - the Angel's get vacuumed up by a crack, the bomb that the daleks planted is unarmed by the power of love, and the Dream lord is literally brushed off the Doctor's shoulder and blown out the window, damn man.

Great video! I do like the larger thematic arcs in Series 5 tho. Every episode deals with the power of belief and the mind in some way, culminating in the belief of the Doctor. I really love that idea, because it makes the whole series feel really cohesive.

I have been binging your serious reviews and as someone whose first doctor was smith and my first series was 5 I would just like to say sir. I agree with you on almost everything. I still think Vincent and the doctor deserves one letter grade higher.

Honestly although series 5 onwards being all in HD and cinematic looking was cool I really think the standard definition of RTS’s gave it an interesting edge, it made it feel real and gave it an edge that other sci-fi shows don’t have that I really appreciated

I’m watching the series for the first time now. Series 5 is decent, I just finished it a few days ago. So far 9th doctor is my favorite

I have problems with the Moffat era myself, however your critique of Amy seems to boil down to "She's not an audience surrogate like the RTD era companions were." It's like you pointed out, she's not the audience surrogate... Rory is. I do agree with the idea she should have been a one season companion, though, and that way Rory could be the rock that doesn't change while Amy realizes she needs to grow up.

Matt Smith's whole time was pretty fantastic.

Answer to your question: Yeah, it's one of the best doctor who series ever made.

I've binged S1-S5 of Harbo's DW retrospective over the course of two weeks. What do I do now!?

I think that Amy was try to combine Rose and Dona, which is absolutely bad combination. Both have good qualities (one more), but they combination doesn't make them better.

I find it ironic when people complain about "I am the Doctor" considering Series 3 and 4 had "The Doctor Forever" in almost every episode. Also, do note most the time you hear those overused versions "The Doctor Forever" or "I am the Doctor", it's not Murray Gold's conscious decision. Often times, directors will track in music they think fits or music they like. Tracking-in music also saves time and money as it gives Gold time to focus on other compositions and they can record less music with the orchestra. Now, that said, 11's era was filled with a TON of variations of "I am the Doctor" which Murray Gold wrote (which in my opinion kept the theme fresh as these variations often only occurred once); however, I think most the hostility towards this theme comes from the iconic string setting "I am the Doctor" track getting edited and tracked-in to almost every episode of 11's run.

I just want to make it clear that the problems I have with you criticism of the Moffat era is essentially that you’re “forcing” it. It’s obvious that you’re actively seeking out and inventing issues that don’t actually exist within the writing in order to justify your personal preferences and biases, and it comes off as deeply transparent and childish.

I personally loved season 5

Ur whole review is justified don’t worry at least for me (who does prefer the rtd era over Moffat I still love the Moffat era) I agree w most if not all ur points! Moffat’s story telling is a little worse or less consistent than rtd was but that’s not saying Moffat is a bad writer just a different one w different strengths & weaknesses. I always love ur reviews their honest even if that puts you in hot water w ppl who think every episode In their favorite era is perfect.

All that stuff about easing the audience in to the new showrunner and doctor by providing a familiar structure? Bravo! There's one of the ways Chibnall failed 😅 the guy expects us to see the new doctor, showrunner, episode structure, episode length, companions, number of companions, AND composer and expected us to still see it as doctor who. Literally the only thing slightly familiar was the tardis. For me that was the only indication whatsoever that it was doctor who. I'm mean dude, put your own spin on it but don't push us straight into the deepened without armbands.

ABSOLUTELY A SUCCESS ! Since I don´t get to watch Doctor Who on t.v.as I live abroad, it was the first series of the re-boot collection that I bought on DVD. I was IMMEDIATELY HOOKED and only stopped watching the modern doctors when that bloody awful "Flux" came out.

Am I weird for loving vampires of Venice?

I agree with you on everything. RTD is an absolute legend !!

I grew up with the RTD era. While I think that Series 5 was (and still is) very good, I still hate to this day how they changed *everything*. It felt like an entirely different TV show to me. I remember being ready to sit down and watch the new Doctor, and was immediately thrown off by the new title sequence and music. It just felt wrong to me. It all threw me right off. Obviously I still watched the show, but the fact that it just felt like everything of RTD's era had been stripped, and it feeling like an entirely new show, just left such a bitter taste in my mouth at the time

I want to watch Series 5 after surfer with The Flux.

is it bad that i relate to amy and would do the same snarky comments in a serious situation because comedy is my coping mechanism

Idk I loved the finale, thought it was a really cool timey whimey episode

Unrelated to this video, but is a Torchwood: Children of Earth review in your plans?

I’m watching on doctor who Christmas special a day until Christmas and I’m watching the next doctor and thought imagine if an episode like this happened but the doctor actually did meet the next doctor. It would be kinda cool

This has always been my favourite as well as others I think every episode except victory of the Daleks is fantastic.

I always thought the cracks in time came from the crash in the 11th hour

Great Video man :D - G

I have very important question. Probably now I understand why watching seasons 1-4 in original sound is far more enjoable than 5-7. Did they changed in some way sound recording? Started to use more sophisticated sentence structure? Or the whole problem is with Matt accent? Sometimes I need to watch big parts of episodes with subtitles on. It's very taxing and exausting. It SHOULDN'T be this way. I watch yt near only in english. It's not the problem with quality of writing, because watching it with lektor (post soviet country thing, idk if other countries than Poland still do it) first time and while rewatching is way more enjoyable. (I had no problem watching season 1-4 in english, but without "one more episode syndrome" of course - but I don't do it pretty often anyway) I first spotted it in season 11 with Jodie accent. Like bs script was way more acceptable with lektor.

I disagree with you about Amy. Also cracking jokes when you're scared is not uncommon

Hey man I might not completely agree with everything you’ve said about series 5 but I can see every point you are making and can totally understand it, keep doing what you’re doing :) some criticism is always needed not everything is perfect

I thought the idea behind the Silence blowing up the TARDIS was that they didn't realise that doing so would destroy the entire universe. Maybe that's just me...

I have to admit I enjoy 11th Doctor era the most despite the contrivance. Probably just enjoy the tone more than the structure.

Will you review death of the doctor

Personally Amy is my favorite companion though that could be because I'm a big fan of Karen Gillan because of Ruby Roundhouse and Nebula

Series 5 is like a really good album. Whilst series 6 might have stronger individual stories, there’s something so cathartic about how well 5’s episodes flow from one to the next

Series 5 i shay i dont pay naysayers of (any) current who much mind. Let it breathe, come back to it and see if opinions change. Time mellows out episodes.

Wheres the Torchwood Children of Earth review Harbo?!?!

i hope the series 6 review is good, i love that series

Why am i not subscribed yet ? Oh... i am now !

I agree with your sentiments about Amy pond But if you do look at it from a different perspective you could also see it as a form of Stockholm Syndrome waiting forBecause she is alone and the only person she has any real true connection to in all senses of her being is the doctor he was only there for such a short time but it already is like a father figureWhich makes it weird and creepy and for more reasons than are said here But there's also the clear romanticized versions it's very similar to the Christmas Carol store where Amy is the person in the Kryotube The doctor is young young teenage scrooge the only thing is is that is that the love is only comes from depression who has locked up and feels alone and if if you think about it it's a brilliant way of making someone tracked but not by the person there's a person who's come to save them but was too late becoming They're the face of what what keeps them locked away because because a crack does not do that Justice a giant floating eyeball does not do that Justice a human face does that Justice or or the face of time Lord

The Buckaroo Banzai era.

Had to stop watching as soon as you said Amy was unlikable because even in season 5 i thought she was the best companion so far (and I'm almost caught up on the series and still think her and Rory outrank all the others for me) so clearly there was no point in me continuing the video.

see season 13 an you will be grateful for season 5

This is the one i started with

My problem with this series is that it doesn't feel as exciting or engaging as the previous ones. I found it hard to believe that the characters were facing some kind of threat or danger most of the time. And when it felt like they were in real trouble, the resolution was too fast or too weird to be satisfying. I hated specially when "the power of love" saved the day. I just started watching the show for the first time a few months ago, starting with the 9th Doctor. I instantly loved him and the tone of the show. It was never boring. Series 2-4 had good and meh episodes, but overall they felt as exciting and entertaining as the first one, Series 3 and 4 more even. But this one was kind of boring... Maybe I'm being too harsh, but that's how I feel. However, I liked Matt Smith as the Doctor. I believe his portrayal of the character... It is the writing (and Amy Pond) that doesn't work for me.

To me Russel T Davies era has the most replay value.

Great review, I enjoyed it and enjoyed series 5. The main bit I disliked is at the end of angel 2 parter with Amy trying to screw the doctor ywt was meant to marry Rory the next day. Didn't make Amy look good at all. As 11th doctor is the same person why did 10th doctor get so upset at regenerating as his memories etc would still be there. The crack in time we don't get full answer till time of the doctor. Blowing the tardis up without the doctor inside, in time of the doctor they do explain they thought he was inside it or something

By 5 minutes we've already alreadu hit the the crux of the 'problem' - you, personally, just don't like Amy. Which is fine, she's not my favorite companion, either. But that doesn't mean the show is bad.

Tbf i would have loved more time with the doctor and rory looking for amy in good man goes to war

For me Matt Smith doesn’t hit his stride until series 6, up until then I struggled to connect with him. Series 5 it felt too similar to the Tennant era, which I suspect is partly down to the fact that the first series draft was written with Tennant in mind, they didn’t quite switch it enough, which left me with a feeling in too many episodes that David Tennant could have done this (and better). And the arc, especially the conclusion felt almost like it was written to say "look, isn’t the new Doctor awesome! He’s so great that the only way to beat is for all the villains to team up against him." Having every villain show up in a episode may seem cool on paper, but in practice it is underwhelming and screams of a writer not fully confident with his own material. Could have just made it a Nestene/Auton story, that’s all I’m saying. And it’s made worse by them repeating the trick for his final episode. This is not to hate on Matt Smith too much. I think he does fine with the material he’s given, and really makes the role his own in his next two seasons. I just don’t think it’s quite there in series 5. Series 5 is mediocre. I don’t care for the arc, the leads aren’t quite there yet (I like them much better in 6 and 7), and I can only think of one or two episodes that I would happily go back and rewatch (as opposed to other seasons where I can only think of one or two that I wouldn’t bother with). The only redeeming thing is Rory, he’s the best thing about this series, and I was so glad when he was promoted to full companion status for the next season.

Is he saying Davis instead of Davies?

Reminder Rory is the only person who can give permission to and I quote "Kick the doctor's Ass"

Honestly my favourite season of new who

I thoroughly agree about The Lodger! Despite my dislike of James Corden

Ohh you gonna praise Series 7? I see, let see if you can change my mind about that. Cause I have huge distaste for Series 7

One could argue that one scene in Vincent and the Doctor makes it the best series out there

Pmsl Amy in the beast below makes the decision at the end

Series 5 was fairly good, few episodes were meh but still solid

The show explains why the Silence would want to destroy the TARDIS. They're idiots. It's a bootstrap paradox. They wanted to stop the Doctor speaking his name into the crack on Trenzalore and bringing back the Time Lords. They blew up the TARDIS to stop the Doctor ever coming to Trenzalore, and inadvertently created the cracks by blowing up the TARDIS. When that fails, it brings forth series 6's storyline, where they decide to kill the Doctor instead. Which is what they should have done in the first place, really.

Yes

I've warmed up to Smith as the Doctor in his absence, but I still maintain that Series 5 is wildly inconsistent between it's highs and lows, coming out below average as a whole. I've never liked Amy, and she's only gotten worse as time has gone on. And Rory basically got snuffed the entire season. Smith is a good Doctor, but you live and die by the quality of the stories, and Season 5 just doesn't have that consistent level of quality. And it's only downhill for Smith from here...

Seeing you put 12 as your favorite new who doctor makes me so excited for when you get to Capaldi's episodes. Great video, and I honestly have always felt like S5-7 were the weakest of New Who.. until Chibnall showed up that is...

I thought the whole point of S tier is that is so perfect it’s like 11/10. Because I wouldn’t classify a B as 7/10

Amy Pond is one of my two favourite companions. She clicked immediately.

After the titles for the previous Series reviews I was kind expecting something like “How Series 5 is a good series despite my criticisms XD” It’s gonna become a running gag isn’t it?

Some people called the eleventh doctor the Morden seventh doctor

As soon as you said "I don't really rate it", I liked

"Don't talk to me about 2000 years because that is nothing compared to what I'm giving up" I hate Amy so much and hated her twice as much the second she started saying that line. 2000 years, no pleasures, not even sleep. His injuries wouldn't even heal. But boo hoo I refuse to adopt children so breaking your heart hurts me more than 2000 years and this current divorce could have put you through. Boo hoo my feelings matter more than yours... I could keep mocking how childish that line is but I think everyone gets it by now And I know its not season 5 but I wanted to jump on the Amy hate with the quote that put the final nail in her coffin for me

I want to Matt Smith as the mcu's version doc ock with an American accent cause Alfred Molina can't play the character forever

I said it before and I’ll say it again, the moving angels make sense! They’re not sure if she can see them so move towards her but hold their angel form just in case

Hell yeah it's a success. One of the best series of the revival!

Controversial option, I don't like the moffet era. I also hate Clara. I don't like the current era either. I'm not going to pretend the Davis era was perfect, but t it was my Doctor who.