Doctor Who: Father's Day - REVIEW - The Trip of a Lifetime

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On the most important day of Rose Tyler's life, it's important to come well prepared with lots of tissues because this gets heavy. Let's talk about 'Father's Day'.
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#DoctorWho #TheTripOfALifetime

[@MrTARDIS]

"Who's that, Rose? That's your daddy".

[@elliot5569]

9 doctor is a father figure bit odd when it get romantic between 10th and Rose.

[@nightowl8477]

Fun fact! This was the first episode of the revival Catherine Tate tuned into! She turned it off, thinking it was still set in the 80s - _"How cheap is that??"_ Only later did she realise it was only that one story hahaha.

[@lewiskazinsky7334]

The Reapers were such a cool idea that evolved so drastically from script to screen. Between them, the Gelth and the Nestene, Series One really felt like a universe without the Time Lords.

[@tTaseric]

Didn't Chris say this was an episode really close to him due to the situation with his own father at the time?

[@john_o]

It's especially sad seeing as how while Chris wasn't initially a huge fan of Doctor Who himself, his dad was a massive sci-fi nerd who was a huge fan of the classic series, but by the time the revived series came out and his son was playing the Doctor himself, he was suffering from dementia and could no longer recognise his own son, not as The Doctor nor when he was in front of him.

[@natsmith303]

"Who told you you weren't important?" is such a great line and immensely fitting for not only the Doctor in general but the working class Doctor in specific.

[@TBowenMedia]

I've always loved this episode but your analysis here really made me appreciate just what a beautiful, multi-layered piece of writing this is. Great job on this review and the Trip of a Lifetime marathon.

[@Kian30398]

As someone who's father...wasn't present during their childhood I very much so put myself in Rose's shoes and wanted to speak to him before he made the (in my case) decision to not be in my life and just find out why. So when she got to be with him when he died I did(and still do in some rewatches) cry. What a wonderful episode and your analysis adds to it. Another wonderful review Mr TARDIS.

[@RyanDishon]

D’you know I’ve never thought about the 9/Rose relationship in a father/daughter way before. That’s actually rly interesting and makes a lot of sense.

[@samuelbarber6177]

The only thing I dislike about the Reapers is that they haven’t appeared since. They could be their own season arc.

[@hugoalynstephens9166]

I agree. I would love to see them return.

[@eoj8371]

my one single nitpick of this episode is how Jackie doesn’t run over to Pete or react that much, but that is something I’ve only noticed on rewatches and would ultimately take away from the final few scenes

[@k.stewart007]

It's something that's bugged me recently too. On 1st watch I wasn't nor never been in a serious relationship. Once I was married with a baby I just couldn't imagine being so blaze about my husband's impending death. Even if it was to save the world. I like to think that maybe jacky just didn't fully understand what Pete was about to do. I mean she did have a bit of a head fuck day. Maybe not actually fully believing what was going on.

[@eoj8371]

@@k.stewart007 True - but then also in the final scene when she’s recounting the changed version of history, she says it as if she wasn’t there? Perhaps her entire memory of it was erased

[@k.stewart007]

@@eoj8371 yeah I get that. I does seem like everything apart from Pete's death and Rose holding his hand never happened. But before Pete's death that was reality. To us the audience and Rose pete was already dead. It wasn't a surprise at all. But to jacky him telling her he has to die to fix everything would have been a complete bolt out of the blue. For me it was like she was saying goodbye to her 90 year old grandmother who she knew had been dying for ages and already come to terms with it. I get as well that a long drawn out emotional goodbye could have caused timing issues for the eppisode. So personally I would have made it seem a bit more like jacky didn't quite realise the gravity of the situation. Or maybe just skip their goodbye all together. Maybe pete just tells her he loves her and says his "you got to survive because youve got to bring her up" then runs off. Without telling that's hes shuffling off. Doesn't really discredit the eppisode in any way though. Still a brilliant eppisode and it is more about Rose and pete and not about pete and jacky's relationship. Just my little rambling gripe really.

[@keirjarvie6998]

Darn it MrTardis! You should’ve warned me to bring hankies for this review! All kidding aside, Father’s Day really is a phenomenal episode and it does make me tear up whenever I think about it. Looking forward to Empty Child/Doctor Dances!

[@aidanwoodhead3532]

Hearing you describe the nuances and details of this wonderfully beautiful episode had me in tears at various stages, keep up the good work Will, can't wait for next week's installment.👍

[@GeeksAssemble]

The car circling around the church like vultures

[@TimonicFusion]

A truly gorgeous episode. One of the finest in the entire show to my mind. Love it to pieces and never fails to bring me to tears. Eccleston and Piper are phenomenal, as is Cornell’s writing.

[@DalekTheSupreme]

The way you describe the conclusion of Rose's arc drove me to tears. Also, little kid Rose looks like my little cousin

[@TellyArchive]

This is my favourite episode of series 1 not going to lie

[@ravenmusic6392]

Oohhhhh this is cool, I remember finding your channel like 7-8 years ago and watching the original series one reviews. Great you’re revisiting them, Father’s Day is absolutely one of the best modern who episodes character wise.

[@adamfreddo5703]

It's also a base under siege story to if you think about it.

[@mikiwibu]

This doesn’t really add or discuss anything to the wonderful analysis and review you’ve done here, but I feel like I should share a nice story as to why this story feels so special to me. Not only is it just genuinely stellar drama, and one of the best episodes of the revived series, achieving the title of my 7th favorite story since 2005, but it has its own interesting personal tie. 1975, my dad would’ve been a young kid, and obviously didn’t have nearly as many TV channels back then. His family would receive TV broadcast schedules for the week in the mail, and one show that repeatedly occurred was Doctor Who. So one day he changed the channel to watch it, and was hooked when he saw Tom Baker in Genesis of the Daleks. He was far from a hard core or even consistent fan but he’d stay to watch re-runs that came here to America whenever he’d run across them. So around 31 years later, he finds out that the show came back and caught it on re-runs on Syfy. So in summer 2006, my mother stuck at home towards the end of her third trimester, sees an unfamiliar show in the DVR. And so she watched Father’s Day, technically making that, my first ever episode of Doctor Who.

[@hugoalynstephens9166]

Got very teary eyed by the end there.

[@Alia-bc3rc]

I love when you mentioned how you chose the Mickey got dumped into the bin when you mentioned 'her boyfriend'. Probably not intended, but just as hilarious.

[@liftlash98]

In around 2 years, as much time would have passed since the airing of this episode than between 2005 and when the episode was set.

[@elliotcrossan6290]

One of the most brilliant and emotional episodes in Doctor Who history! I'm surprised that you saw the Doctor as being the selfish one in this story though. It's Rose who nearly destroyed the planet for selfish, if entirely understandable reasons. And the scene where the Doctor tells off baby Rose is *hilarious* 😂

[@VideoGameVillians]

Fantastic review, reminds me a lot of your older reviews when I started following you, although I think this was even better done.

[@loftus4453]

Great job on these episode by episode reviews! I really like your pros and cons when you cover them for each episode. I hope you review all the seasons! Got a sub from me!

[@k.stewart007]

My 1st eppisode. Was only watching to vet it to see if it was suitable for my daughter to watch. I was hooked straight away. Still one of my favourite stories. I often wonder if jacky actually fully understood what pete was saying to her when he told her he had to die and was off to do just that. I just never felt her reaction fitted with what he had just told her. Yes she was a bit upset but considering her husband and farther of her child was about to die. To save the world. I just feel like she would have or least should have protested a little more.

[@pious83]

I get that the Reapers were like a "natural" substitute to the Time Lords. But if they were around at this point, what would they have done?

[@cyberemperor1435]

I dunno about the father figure thing as she did kiss that doctor at the end and talks about “dancing” to him as well

[@darynvoss7883]

Such a beautiful story. Pete: "It's my job for it to be my fault." Can't imagine the Doctor saying that...

[@SegaNintendoGuy64]

Next Time: The start of the Steven Moffat stories on the revived series, Starting with the one that will scare us and fear that it will make us one of them, Prepare to look for your Mummy on The Empty Child & The Doctor Dances.

[@bladersmosh]

Next week, Moffat makes his grand debut in the series (not counting his comic relief special).

[@nightowl8477]

I find it interesting how quick Nine is to give up his life this story. To give up his agency, and perhaps even his responsibility. Throughout this series, Nine is confronted with the decision that made him: destroying Gallifrey to save the universe. The decision resurfaces in World War Three, as Nine is forced to kill Rose in order to save the world. He elects to do so, surviving by utter chance. Again, we see the same sacrifice in Dalek; killing Rose to save the world. And again, the Doctor elects to do so. And again, Rose survives. He refuses to make another of these decisions, and allows the threat to continue: _"I already killed her once. I can't do it again."_ Cut to this story, and Nine is - for the fifth time now - faced with the same dilemma. Kill a Tyler to save the world. This time, Pete. But he refuses. He opts out, leaving it to Rose. Someone he's chosen and manipulated to be his equal. She makes the right decision, with help from her dad, and the Doctor wins. Not needing to get his own hands dirty for once. This point in Nine's arc evokes a line yet to come: _"And I got worse, I got clever. Manipulated people into taking their own [lives]."_ The Ninth Doctor will not be faced with another of these impossible choices until The Parting of the Ways. Only now, the decision isn't a smaller parallel to the end of the Time War; it _is_ the end of the Time War. One to one. Destroying Earth to save the universe. And like then, he's alone. Rose sent away, and everyone else dead. No one to do it for him. But he's not the man we met in Rose anymore. He's learnt that all life is precious. Whether it's one or one million, to take even a single life is unjustifiable. Everybody must live. Even a Slitheen deserves a chance. It's a pretty perfect arc, with some heavy commentary on certain events of the time. I personally feel Father's Day marks the most interesting point in his arc, even if it isn't as dramatic as its counterparts.

[@Ben-vf5gk]

"Never had a life like that" the moment he stops the big picture rhetoric he's been throwing around since Rose

[@NitroIndigo]

This episode made me cry, and my dad's still alive.

[@SuperSweetBoy]

I can’t watch this episode without thinking of your Animaniacs edit of “don’t touch the baby”. Haven’t seen this episode in years, really need to rewatch all of Eccleston’s run beyond select single episodes (*cough*) Dalek (*cough*).

[@SegaNintendoGuy64]

When I saw this episode first time near the end of Father's Day I actually cried when before and after Pete died.

[@EmotionalVortex]

Easily my favourite episode of series one. Would love to see the Reapers in future episodes

[@jvblhc]

This was one of those episodes that crept up on me. It's now a top favorite.

[@Gallifrey1991]

Probably the best episode of series 1

[@joshua21247]

I’m early, I havent watched this video yet but your channel is really good so I bet this is great as well!

[@omegafd6992]

the best episode of doctor who, perfect in every way.

[@JayExci]

that's so true babe

[@henryg4377]

I wasn't expecting to see YOU here Jay Exci!

[@scix8794]

Oh god the next one's a banger

[@IsaacWhittakerDakin]

"Jackie Tyler do as I say, GO AND CHECK THE DOORS!"

[@jamesa.fitzpatrick1566]

The reapers were an afterthought. The head of drama said "this story needs monsters".

[@pundahandz7403]

It took me until Father's Day to notice the Slitheen in the intro is from SJA. Sneaky.

[@AlchemistOfNirnroot]

Jealousy doesn't seem like the right word.

[@mathieuleader8601]

the reapers where originally going to be little human grim reaper creatures instead of winged dinosaurs

[@SegaNintendoGuy64]

Awww that would have been so damn cool.

[@ItsButterBean1020]

Yeah it took me a while to catch that adultery reference when I was younger

[@darynvoss7883]

I believe Pete :)

[@andrewbowman4611]

While I respect your reading of the scene, I've never come to the conclusion that the Doctor's expression was one of "I hope you've learned your lesson". It's always struck me as more sympathetic than that, as shown earlier in the conversation overhead by Pete. I've always read it as "sorry, but I couldn't stop it" rather than "see, I told you so." In fact, I'd go so far as to say that any unsympathetic reaction from the Doctor would actually diminish his character, in my view.

[@CouncilofGeeks]

I know that this is a really beloved episode. And I wouldn’t take that from anybody. But I really don’t care for this. Didn’t when I first saw it, and a rewatch didn’t do much to help it. It means well, but the solution is so obvious from the beginning that it robs it of a lot of its meaning, and the reapers are a really terrible concept that I’m glad was never picked up again (this did NOT need a monster).

[@MrTARDIS]

I agree it didn't need a monster. But I'd argue it's less about how obvious the ending solution is and more about whether or not Pete+Rose will make the necessary sacrifice as well as how far the Doctor will go to prevent his friend from going through more pain.

[@CouncilofGeeks]

@@MrTARDIS of course Pete & Rose will. How is that a question? There’s literally no other solution to the situation. And that’s my point. The emotional question is undercut by the logistical build of the story.

[@matthewbolitho-jones]

I like Father's Day

[@herbivarsawus4359]

Would it have been breaking the rules to track down the hit-and-run driver and kick the living **** out of him?

[@nightowl8477]

As least he pulled over in the alternate timeline Rose created. He hit, but didn't run in this version...for some reason. Not sure why.

[@ptcarbonproductions2013]

The driver deserves his own story to be told. He was about to make one of the biggest mistakes of his life, when suddenly he was sucked into some weird time loop, reliving this moment over and over again. Who knows what he went through.

[@SegaNintendoGuy64]

I think the Reapers 'I think their called' have the coolest designs I've seen in the revived series.

[@TellyArchive]

Hate to be that guy but I couldn’t resist, but *first*, sorry..

[@deebeedaydreamer]

The one where the weird Langoleers dragons *almost * ruin a great gut-punching story.

[@Dray1]

They really should've GOT IN THE DAMN CHURCH!

[@maldaror7097]

Do love the drama of this episode but Rose really screwed up, maybe more than Adam did just one episode ago. Justice for Adam.

[@nevem5010]

🌟

[@henryg4377]

Jackie should have been played by a younger actress in this episode.

[@joebrookscomedy]

😗😗😗

[@ms.carriage6867]

awful episode really. given how badly the doctor reacted to what adam did and rose gets a pass for doing something just as bad never sat right

[@MrTARDIS]

The Doctor spent half this story making it explicitly clear how angry he was at Rose...

[@ms.carriage6867]

@@MrTARDIS and she was allowed to stay and adam was just a stupid ape not worth keeping around. The constant doctor romance with the companion was one of the big draw backs of the reboot

[@SoundsSarcastic234]

@@ms.carriage6867 Rose’s actions were an understandable emotional impulse while Adam’s, going purely by what we see on screen, was a cheap get-rich-quick scheme. Also, Rose has proven herself to be more than a stupid ape by this point, so the Doctor’s forgiveness here feels reasonable. Adam immediately on his first trip selfishly undermines the Doctor’s authority for his own personal gain. Plus there’s culpability. Rose once faced with the scale of what’s she’s done takes responsibility and apologies. Adam, on the other hand, makes excuses and throws the blame on the Doctor.