The Family of Blood

"War comes to England... a year in advance."

Writer: Paul Cornell 

Format: TV

Broadcast: 2nd June 2007

Series: 3.09

Featuring: Tenth Doctor, Martha

Synopsis 

1913, and war comes to England, a year in advance, as the terrifying Family hunt and close in on the Doctor.

Verdict 

The Family of Blood is an outstanding conclusion to the quite incredible story already started in Human Nature. Together combined as one story, it's easy to see why this adventure ranks as my favourite Tenth Doctor story and one of my favourites of all time. The resolution to the brilliant cliffhanger was great with Martha proving why she's an efficient companion as she quickly took control of the ounce of lost concentration by the Family as Timothy opened up the fob watch for just a second, giving the Family a sniff of the Time Lord. The tables were turned and Martha was holding one of the Family's own at gunpoint. Joan was soon released and Martha, wonderfully pointing out that scared and a gun in hand is a risky combination, fled to try and find the watch and bring the Doctor back. After an opening episode of relative calm, despite there being a Scarecrow army, this episode was where the action kicked off. A school of teenagers against an alien race looking to harvest a Time Lord for their continued survival. A mismatch, surely? Seeing the man we know as the Doctor lead an army of children into battle was quite a shock. Now we all know the Doctor destroyed his own planet and people in ending the Time War (well, after The Day of the Doctor that's actually no longer the case) but we never actually saw him do it and we've always doubted whether that could actually be true. The battle scenes with the intruding Scarecrows were very emotional with some incredible camera work capturing the frightened looks and the boys' faces. I liked the headmaster as a character in this story and it was intriguing how daunting the situation became when the school was deprived of their headmaster from the shot of the young girl Daughter of Mine had taken over. The Family simply being named as the familiar relations was a masterstroke I felt. It's so simple but it makes them all the more creepier which is just magnificent because they're scary enough as it is, and that's without the Scarecrow army! Timothy's subtle opening of the watch, giving the Family more of a taste for the Time Lord they desired, was great and I like how when faced with Daughter of Mine, he opened it directly at her to escape but that gave them the information they wanted. They now knew everything about the Doctor was contained within the watch. They no longer needed John Smith - it was just the watch they desired. Martha and Joan accompanying Smith into safety was good and it couldn't be more heartbreakingly obvious that the former was basically third wheeling. Martha proving her credentials as a medical doctor was excellent and I love how the very idea was frowned upon in 1913. The prophecy of the looming war being mentioned was superb and I like how Timothy's vision from the last episode came full circle and saved his and Hutchinson's lives. Martha being returned the watch from Timothy opened up some astounding dialogue and emotion, it really was something incredible. Martha was pleading and begging for John Smith to turn back into the Doctor, something that would effectively kill the persona. But amazingly, and something as the viewer we just couldn't allow or contemplate, he wanted to stay human and live his life with Joan Redfern. The imagery of the potential future he'd have was astounding with the man we see as the Tenth Doctor having children, getting married (something that would come later for this incarnation and the one following) and dying. The emotion in this episode really is something else. It appeared that Martha had failed to persuade John Smith to become the Doctor again as he went to the Family's ship with the watch and was stumbling everywhere knocking switches. However, the watch was empty and the Doctor was back. David Tennant's incredible performance as John Smith was over and he was back to being the terrific Tenth Doctor. He destroyed the Family's ship and after their efforts to harvest him, we'd see the no second chances Tenth Doctor from The Christmas Invasion. He gave the Family the immortality they wanted but in a way of torment. Son of Mine was a scarecrow, Daughter of Mine trapped in every mirror, Father of Mine stuck in unbreakable chains and Mother of Mine in the middle of a dwarf star. Not the immortality they'd sought after. Just when it seemed things were settled and the ruthless Family were dealt with and John Smith was no more, the Doctor went to Joan and the short conversation was incredibly powerful. He begged her to travel with him in the TARDIS, but she flat out refused. The Doctor wasn't John Smith. She believed he was braver than a Time Lord. He chose to die. The Doctor didn't change back and was shown the door by being heartbreakingly told about the deaths he had caused. The episode though did end on a happy note with Timothy saying goodbye to the TARDIS pair and then seeing him as a War veteran, still holding the watch. A lovely end to a quite astounding double episode, one that is my favourite of this incarnation of the Doctor. 

Rating: 10/10