What if... (poss spoilers)

[Mitty]

... they regenerate 11 into 12 at the end of the 50th Anniversary, rather than in the Xmas special? What if the Xmas Special will actually feature Capaldi, and it's currently all under wraps?

Someone I follow on twitter suggested this.

Two things point to this:

a) Matt Smith shaved his head to shoot a film. Yes of course he can wear a wig, but it seems strange that they didn't film the Xmas special str8 after The 50th. The only reason not to is that at that stage they didn't yet have a 12th Doctor for the regeneration scene, and they certainly don't need him at the same time. Tennant filmed his part of the Ecclestone regen scene months later as he hadn't been cast yet when Ecclestone Regenerated.

b) Matt Smith filmed a video with him holding up cards and thanking the fans, from where he was shooting the film. It seemed very final, like he truly planned not to return.

Unless somebody knows for a fact that Smith is yet to or currently filming the xmas special?

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

That would suck, IMO. The 50th should be about the franchise as a whole, and not about the Eleventh Doctor. The Christmas Special, on the other hand, SHOULD focus on being Eleven's final story, and as such get the full attention that it deserves. For all its fault, at the very least End of Time was a regeneration story about the Tenth Doctor, and it showcased everything (and everyone, lol) that marked his era. Do the same honor for Eleven - honestly, he's been a very good Doctor, and deserves a proper final story, and not one thats during the 50th.

 

[Starkers]

I'm with the Emperor on this. I'll be exceedingly dissapointed if the 50th is the last time we see Eleven, he deserves his own swansong.

That said Allyn Gibson postulated the same thing a week or two back so the idea's out there. I can't imagine it though, not when Moffat clearly said Smith would be in the christmas special and the regeneration would be then. He could lie of course, but that would generate a lot of bad will, besides unless they're planning to film the entire crimbo special indoors it'll leak...

I do wonder if we might get more of Capaldi than the average post regeneration few seconds. I'm torn on this, on the one hand it would be interesting if the regen happened fifteen minutes from the end and a confused, dischevelled 12th Doctor had to resolve the situation, but on the other hand I really want the episode to mainly be about Eleven.

 

[Samurai8472]

Matt Smith, now recovered from a knee op, spoke to reporters from ITV's morning show Daybreak last night and he confirmed Christmas Special filming is this Sunday and he'll be wearing a wig, as his hair is now even SHORTER than it originally was for filming his movie "How to Catch a Monster"

 

[diankra]

The problem is that we always get leaked location shots, so the absence of Matt would surely be obvious. However, I wouldn't entirely rule out the regeneration happening in mid-story, so the Christmas special can end on the up-note of the new Doctor saving the day, not the down-note of the regeneration.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

Matt Smith, now recovered from a knee op, spoke to reporters from ITV's morning show Daybreak last night and he confirmed Christmas Special filming is this Sunday and he'll be wearing a wig, as his hair is now even SHORTER than it originally was for filming his movie "How to Catch a Monster"

Won't be the first time an actor has had to wear a wig when they played the Doctor. Hopefully, unlike McGann, we won't hear for years and years how uncomfortable Matt Smith found his wig.

 

[The Wormhole]

BBC said in their official press release that the Christmas special will be Matt Smith's finale, therefore it has to be due to BBC's policy of not lying to the audience.

 

[Sindatur]

Matt Smith, now recovered from a knee op, spoke to reporters from ITV's morning show Daybreak last night and he confirmed Christmas Special filming is this Sunday and he'll be wearing a wig, as his hair is now even SHORTER than it originally was for filming his movie "How to Catch a Monster"

Won't be the first time an actor has had to wear a wig when they played the Doctor. Hopefully, unlike McGann, we won't hear for years and years how uncomfortable Matt Smith found his wig.

Heh, at least he didn't have to wear a curly blonde wig and a costume that was 2x too large for him in his first scene (Ala Sylvester McCoy)

 

[Starkers]

The problem is that we always get leaked location shots, so the absence of Matt would surely be obvious. However, I wouldn't entirely rule out the regeneration happening in mid-story, so the Christmas special can end on the up-note of the new Doctor saving the day, not the down-note of the regeneration.

It might also preclude Capaldi spending most of his first proper episode out of sorts. I would feel Smith had been slightly cheated though...

 

[Captaindemotion]

I'm too lazy to link it but the DW Facebook page is saying that Matt, cast and crew attended the read-through for the Xmas special today. So that's that.

 

[Mitty]

Ah, good to hear I was wrong. On one hand I do think a surprise regeneration would be exciting, but (and I know this sounds ridiculous) I would also feel cheated that we didn't get a proper goodbye to Matt. Just say Tennant HAD regenerated in "Journeys End", it would have had fare less impact then the final sequence of "End of Time" had. I know people don't like parts of that but for the final "Reward" sequence is for me one of the most amazing things ever on TV.

 

[Emperor-Tiberius]

Yeah, the last 30 minutes or so of End of Time are well worth watching that story alone.

As much as I would love to get an extended Peter Capaldi appearence in the Xmas special, I really rather the story serves as the cap to Matt Smith's tenure. Capaldi will have, hopefully, plenty of time to develop his own characterization for the Doctor during series 8, so lets just enjoy the Eleventh Doctor at full force one last time - that is, when it is to be.

That all said, does anyone think there should at least be an Amy-Rory cameo? I know this borders on the End Of Time cliche, so I'm not insistent or anything... just a thought.

 

[BruntFCA]

That all said, does anyone think there should at least be an Amy-Rory cameo? I know this borders on the End Of Time cliche, so I'm not insistent or anything... just a thought.

I hope not, they had a great send off and they should leave well enough alone.

 

[The Wormhole]

That all said, does anyone think there should at least be an Amy-Rory cameo? I know this borders on the End Of Time cliche, so I'm not insistent or anything... just a thought.

I'll be surprised if there isn't.

 

[Professor Zoom]

If Amy appears she'll also have to be wigged. If they want her to look as she did. Because, ya know, the Doctor can't ever see them again or Oh My God! Paradox! All of New York, Gone!

I'm sure they'll be there, but after that send off, I couldn't care less about them. Blech.

 

[Mitty]

I still don't get why, if River can "send" Amy the book she wrote, that the Doctor can't go back and visit, and just not take them with him. There would only be a paradox if they stepped into the TARDIS and it took them away and didn't bring them back. Anyway, yeah an Amy and Rory appearance of some description (even if it's a flashback to something we hadn't previously seen) would be nice.

At the very least 11's reward won't be as long as ten's, because he didn't have as many companions... though if you count River, Strax, Jenny and Vastra, and maybe Churchill and Dorian, that adds a few more.

I actually personally hope that the regeneration itself is quite quick this time round, eg "Oh no Clara, I'm shot, stand back!"

 

[Starkers]

I think Amy and Rory will be in it, but only insofar as Tegan, Nyssa and co were in Androzani.

 

[Tom]

What would be interesting is 12 was in the episode in some way beyond the regeneration scene. Maybe he is a is this mysterious person that helps 11 (a little like the watcher but not some weird white dude lol). He helps Clara perhaps with the (unconscious) injured 11 (getting them out of danger back to the Tardis) , then the man leaves. 11 regenerates and Clara finds out the man helping her was the Doctor all along!

 

[Starkers]

That would be cooler if we didn't know Capaldi was going to be 12 though.

 

[Allyn Gibson]

That would be cooler if we didn't know Capaldi was going to be 12 though.

I dunno. I know many people who watched "Asylum of the Daleks," knew Jenna-Louise Coleman was going to be the next companion, and didn't make the connection between Oswin and JLC. Of course, the difference is that 1) Peter Capaldi is better known than JLC was, 2) JLC wasn't introduced to fandom in a highly watched American Idol results show like Capaldi was, and 3) the BBC would promote the Christmas special as the end of one Doctor and the start of the next, all of which would negate the surprise potential.

I am partial to the idea floated above that the regeneration should happen mid-episode (I'm guessing somewhere between the 40 and 60 percent mark) so that the episode can end on a note of triumph rather than tragedy. However, Downton Abbey ended its Christmas special last year with Matthew Crawley bleeding out, so maybe the British public tolerates downer endings on Christmas Day.