Is the Hybrid plot resolved too easily/left dangling? Perhaps. Could we have explored more of Gallifrey? Probably. But I confess I didn't care about any of that because the Doctor mentioned mind wiping Clara and my reaction went from this

to this

The ending of Donna's story RUINED Journey's End for me. The fact it was done by the Doctor was bad enough but then The End of Time made it even worse, with the text lamenting "Oh, how sad that the Doctor had to wipe Donna's memory, look how lonely he is, poor Doctor" as if HIS pain was more important than hers despite the fact that Donna lost EVERYTHING (and was then reduced to the indignity of collapsing every time the memory block might be threatened)!

Of course, Moffat immediately addressed Donna's fate with the story of his first official companion, Amy Pond: whereas Donna was forced to forget the Doctor, Amy remembered the Doctor into existence and the power of her memory saves the universe. Moffat further underlined the awfulness of Donna's fate with the storyline of River Song and her diary and the importance of memory in his stories (the Pond arc, "Run, you clever boy, and remember") and his run as executive producer (Time Heist, anyone?). But still, the fate of Donna Noble lingered... the image of the Doctor overriding Donna's wishes and mindwiping her as she begged and pleaded with him to let her die could not be so easily overcome. And so Moffat returned to the scene of the crime.

He let the Doctor excitedly explain how he would wipe Clara's memories... how he had 'done it before'... and then he made him come back into the room and face her as she ripped apart his justifications for what he'd done, for what he'd planned to do. Finally, Doctor Who stated that taking away someone's memories without their consent was a terrible thing and should never be seen as an option. And finally, the Doctor was given a taste of his own medicine... all his memories of Clara carefully edited so he knew she was there, knew they'd travelled together, but with no colour, no detail, no emotion.

Is this sad? Yes, but it's still not as bad as what happened to Donna. Forget her pulse, Clara keeps her memories and we know by now that memories are what really make you in Moffat's Who. She gets her immortality, she gets a TARDIS and she gets her very own immortal companion. For the rest of her unlife... Clara Oswald in the TARDIS.

Bravo, Moffat. Bravo.

Hopefully when people come back to this in the future, it will be rated as it deserves.

Agree that this is one of the best New Who episodes and probably one of the best Who episodes ever. Few actors could carry a whole 50 minute episode on their shoulders, which is why we're lucky to have Peter Capaldi. Just the Doctor talking to us like we ARE the Companion - we got a taste of it in Listen but this is more than taste, this is a whole feast. Moffat slowly and methodically peels back the layers until we understand this nightmarish Groundshog Day scenario for what it REALLY is. He shows that he can keep us hooked with just one character and one endless, cyclical situation. This episode is a masterpiece of concision and storytelling.

I have seen the "Missy had Danny killed" theory before, and I love it! BUT until we hear confirmation from Steven Moffat or Michelle Gomez that Missy was behind the wheel of that car, so to speak, I'm going on what we're given in the text and to all intents and purposes, Danny's death is an accident. That's why Clara reacts so badly to it after all... because it was small and 'meaningless' and didn't fit in with the story of their love in her head.

This episode is actually devastating. The Doctor being angry with Me when he's responsible for Me being there in the first place. First, he brought her back from the dead; then he refused to take her off-planet. Both those decisions, made with the best of intentions, led to Me being the Mayor of Trap Street and involving herself with the Raven. And then he yells at her for something over which she actually had no control, because in the end, it was always Clara's choice. She became so used to travelling with the Doctor that she forgot she was human... and paid for it in the most human way possible, with her life. Danny's death was a tragic accident; Clara's was the inevitable outcome. She faced it with dignity and grace.

I loved this two-parter. It gave me everything I want from Doctor Who: gripping story, intense situations and an amazing monologue from the Doctor. So many good lines:

"Until everybody does what they were always gonna have to do from the very beginning: SIT DOWN AND TALK!"

"Do you know what 'thinking' is? It's just a fancy word for changing your mind!"

"You're all the same, you screaming kids, you know that? 'Look at me, I'm unforgiveable!' Well, here's the unforeseeable: I forgive you. After all you've done... I forgive you."

Beautiful. *wipes away tears*

TREEBEARD IS MY FAVOURITE LOTR CHARACTER.

FINALLY I GET TO SAY IT.

Oh gosh, yes, Entwives. All the sadness!

Ab, V gbgnyyl trg jung lbh zrna. Beynaqb arrqf gb svaq fbzrbar yvxr Gvz Ohegba gb uryc uvz oernx bhg bs gubfr ebyrf.

Ohg gung jnfa'g rira uvf snhyg, vg jnf cbbe jevgvat! Bbu, gunaxf sbe oevatvat hc QvPncevb, tbbq rknzcyr. V erzrzore jura ur jnf whfg 'gur yngrfg grrantr urneguebo' naq ybbx ng uvz abj. Ubcrshyyl Beynaqb pna znxr n terng pbzronpx.

It bugged me for a long time why that felt so familiar. Then I was doing a review of the two episodes and how they're imbued with the love of literature and have so many literary offices and a light went on in my head and I went "OHHHHH!" XD