Doctor Who Rewatch: “The Girl Who Waited” (S6:E10)

What do we do with our waiting?

Hurry up and wait. That paradoxical statement sums up Doctor Who series 6.

The Doctor and his friends are waiting to discover the answer to the series opening mystery: Who killed the Doctor? And Amy Pond, the girl who waited, fully realizes what it means to wait and the potential consequences of traveling with the Doctor.

In the first episode, “The Impossible Astronaut,” the Doctor summons Amy, Rory, and River Song to the Utah desert, where someone in an astronaut suit emerges from a lake. The person in the suit shoots the Doctor and then shoots him again as he regenerates to ensure he’s dead. In the middle of the friends’ mourning, they meet a younger version of the Eleventh Doctor, who was also invited by his older self. Series 6 is classic Steven Moffat, big fantastical story swings that ask interesting questions but don’t always payoff or make complete sense on second thought. But it’s a blast and fun to watch.

In the opening of series 5, we heard the Doctor threatened with the phrase, “The Silence will fall.” But we don’t meet them until this series. The Silence, like the Weeping Angels and other Moffat-created villains, takes a simple commonplace idea and makes it terrifying. Resembling the figure in Edvard Munich’s painting “The Scream,” the Silence can implant suggestions in your mind when you see them, but you immediately forget that they exist the moment you look away.

The Doctor discovers they are part of a religious order that is doing everything they can to stop him. Initially, the Doctor uses the moon landing to condition everyone on Earth to kill the Silence as soon as they see them. But he soon realizes they have kidnapped Amy and Rory’s baby daughter and brainwashed her to kill the Doctor. In the midseason finale, we discover the girl’s name is Melody Pond or, translated in a different language, River Song.

It ends with the Doctor marrying River and whispering his name to her. Later, it’s revealed the Doctor faked his death at the beginning (again, it’s complicated). River still goes to jail for killing him to keep the Silence from realizing they’ve failed in their mission, which was to prevent a specific question from being asked: “Doctor who?” Oh, and the one who reveals the question, is a head in a box.

That’s Doctor Who series 6. Yes, it gets wild and complicated. No, it won’t do much good to try and describe all the twists and turns of the story written out in a brief synopsis here. Yes, you should absolutely watch this series because it’s so wild and fun.

In the middle of the series, however, we get a poignant episode dealing with waiting, but also trust, identity, misguided help, love, and deception. “The Girl Who Waited” is Amy Pond’s story.

Previous rewatch episodes

• “Father’s Day” (S1:E8)

• “The Satan Pit” (S2:E9)

• “Blink” (S3:E10)

• “Midnight” (S4:E10)

• “The Eleventh Hour” (S5:E1)

The Choice Inherent in Waiting

Amy Pond has spent most of her life waiting on the Doctor. When she was young Amelia, he told her he would be back in five minutes to fix the crack in her wall. He didn’t return for 12 years. After that first adventure, he was gone again for another two years. As a time traveler, the Doctor is not the best at gauging time. Recognizing this, he calls Amy “the girl who waited,” and says she’s waited long enough before taking her on the TARDIS as his traveling companion.

But waiting can make you bitter or make you better. In some ways, it makes Amy both. We see that amplified in this specific episode. The Amy who waits in this story develops skills and abilities that she never could’ve otherwise, but she also harbors hatred and struggles to display compassion. In the end, however, the waiting reminds her of the depth of her love.