DW 09-10: Face the Raven (Part 1 of 3)

A Guide to Classic Who references in new Who.

Doctor Who series 9 episode 10 - The Doctor, Clara and Rigsy investigate a alley that isn't there.

References

[OLD] - Things that first appeared in the classic series (or the film.)  Episode List.

For context, the following are also covered:

[1ST] -  The first appearance of things in Doctor Who series.

[NEW] - Things that first appeared previously in the new series.

[TW] - Things that first appeared in Torchwood.

Ongoing References...

• [OLD]  The TARDIS - The Doctor's time and space travel vechicle.  TARDIS stands for Time And Relative Dimension(s) In Space.  Like a lot of Time Lord technology it is "bigger on the inside."  The Doctor stole his Tardis when fleeing Gallifrey.  It is an older model ("Type 40") and unreliable, often ending up in the wrong location and the chamleon circuit - designed to make the Tardis appear inconspicuous in any surroundings it appears has failed so it always appears as a police telephone box from 1960s England.   It is often implied to have a personality, which was given form in "The Doctor's Wife" and previously disliked Clara (who later entered the Doctor's time scar) and refused to visit Tranzelor (which had the Doctor's time scar and also had a future version of the TARDIS).  In Season 1's "An Unearthly Child" the Doctor's granddaughter Susan claimed to have invented the name, but later other Time Lords use it (although some call it a TT Capsule.)

• [OLD] The Doctor - The main character.  Real name: unknown; actual age: unclear.  Status as a Medical Doctor:  Undetermined.  He is a Time Lord from the Planet Gallifrey.

• [NEW] Sonic Sunglasses - A sonic device that replaced the Doctor's famed Sonic Screwdriver and first appeared in "The Magician's Apprentice.

• [OLD] UNIT - A paramilitary force, set up after the invasion of the London Underground by robot Yeti controlled by the Great Intelligence.  Called United Nations Intelligence Taskforce in the classic series and initially in the new series of Doctor Who until the real world UN complained.  It is now called the UNified Intelligence Taskforce.

• [OLD]  Daleks - Popular villains from the time they appear in the First Doctor's second story (Season 1) and throughout the original series (see Foes: Daleks).  Thought destroyed during the Time War but at least two survived: the Metalron from "Dalek" and the Dalek Emperor from "Bad Wolf"/"The Parting of the Ways" who recreated the Dalek race using human DNA.  Another group of Daleks who had been captured by the Timelords, imprisoned and cast into the Void managed to escape in "Army of Ghosts"/"Doomsday."  The Doctor returned to their home planet Skaro and faced thier creator Davros in "The Magician's Apprentice" and "The Witch's Familiar."

This episode...

• [NEW]  The Console Phone - When Clara called the Doctor in "Dark Water" he answered on the door phone (bringing the receiver inside to talk).  It seems he has finally routed the phone back to the console (again).

• [TW]  Retcon - A drug Torchwood 3 regularly uses on people in Torchwood.  It was first used in the first episode: "Everything Changes."

• [1ST]  Misdirection Circuit - First appearance of this and the worms that create it.  Similar to the Perception filter, first mentioned in Torchwood ("Everything Changes") but implied by the TARDIS going unnoticed prior to that.

• [1ST]  Unknown hairy alien species - First appearance of this race.

• [1ST]  Unknown fishy alien species - First appearance of this race.

• [NEW]  Mayor Me - Ashildr from "The Girl Who Died" and "The Woman Who Lived.'

• [1ST]  Quantum Shade - First appearance.

• [NEW]  Judoon - First appearance in "Smith and Jones" and have made cameo appearances since then.

• [OLD]  Sontaran - A foe who appeared in the classic series a number of times and reappeared in the new series a few.

• [OLD]  Silurian - A foe who appeared in the classic series a number of times and reappeared in the new series a few.

• [1ST]  Janus - First appearance of this species.

• [NEW]  Ood - A telepathic alien race, introduced in "The Impossible Planet" and have appeared a few times since.

• [OLD]  Cyberman - A foe who appeared in the classic series a number of times and reappeared in the new series a few.  [See Foes: Cybermen.]

• [NEW]  The Confession Dial - First appeared in "The Magician's Apprentice - Prologue" and first named in "The Magician's Apprentice."

• [OLD] The Zygons - A race of shape changers who appeared in "Terror of the Zygons" (Season 13) and "Day of the Doctor.  [See Foes: The Zygons.]

• [OLD]  Death of a companion - While characters in Doctor Who often die and return to life (Capt Jack Harkness, Rory Williams and Amy Pond, for example) it is rare for a companion to die while with the Doctor.  It is sometimes difficult to define who is and isn't a companion, the BBC often includes one-off assistants when the Doctor is traveling alone.  Some of those have died on-screen (Astrid Peth in "Voyage of the Damned" and Capt Adelaide Brooke in "Waters of Mars").   Some companions have been said to have died off-screen after they left the Doctor (The Brig, Rory & Amy).  The first death of a companion was Katarina (who was introduced in Season 3's "The Myth Makers" and killed in the very next serial "The Dalek's Master Plan - because, as a Trojan, the writer saw a difficulty writing a character that needed things like keys explained to her).  The next was Adric in Season 19's "Earthshock.'  Adric had been a longer term companion, appearing in 5 stories with the Fourth Doctor and 7 with the Fifth.  As a memorial to Adric, the closing credits were played without music for the first and only time.

• [OLD]  Clara memorial - The TARDIS is graffitied in Season 24's "Paradise Towers" and the Happiness Patrol paints the TARDIS pink (a happier colour than blue) in Season 25's "The Happiness Patrol."  In "Aliens of London" the words "Bad Wolf" are painted on the TARDIS.  Rigsy was a graffiti artist and doing community service for it when we first me him in "Flatline."  As a memorial to Clara, the a scene appeared after the closing credits for the first and only time.

~ DUG.

Other new Doctor Who episodes.

Clara  gains the ability to absorb ravens.

The Time Crash blog was created to help New Who fans understand Classic Who references - and to know if something isn't a reference but a new idea.  If there's a reference I missed or a subject that you feel needs more explaining, please comment.