History Recap / DoctorWho2015CSTheHusbandsOfRiverSong

* ContinuitySnarl: The fact River has not yet been sent to her death by the Doctor causes issues with the 2013 Christmas special, ""[[Recap/DoctorWho2013CSTheTimeOfTheDoctor The Time of the Doctor]]", in which the Doctor prepares to die - and expects to die - at the end of his current incarnation, without having resolved River's timeline. It' difficult to Hand wave this away when one considers the "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E12HellBent episode immediately preceding this one]]" was built around the fact that preventing a fixed point in time - which could have happened had Clara not convinced the Time Lords to give the Doctor another life and he'd died without taking River to the Singing Towers - would have been catastrophic for the universe.

** We get to see River's [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E4TheTimeOfAngels "spotter's guide"]] for the Doctor which confirms that River has met all of the Doctor's incarnations by this point, including the War Doctor (who is supposed to be a secret from everyone). In retrospect, this means she only knew of the Doctors of his first regeneration cycle (plus Twelve), as there are no images of any future Doctors.

* ChristmasEpisode: It's a Christmas special! Though the fact it takes place at Christmas is pretty much waved off after the first five minutes.

The Doctor and River head for the TARDIS, parked in town. Hydroflax's robot body follows in pursuit, having taken Nardole's head hostage. At the TARDIS, River reveals she's "borrowed" the TARDIS without the Doctor's knowledge on many previous occasions, to his surprise. She also gives him the most unnecessary forewarning in the history of the show about the [[BiggerOnTheInside discrepancy]] between the inside and outside of the ship. The Doctor takes advantage of this, and River's continuing ignorance of his identity, to give the [[LargeHam hammiest]] ever "reaction" to the TARDIS' interior. He thinks that's how everyone ought to react. It also transpires that River installed a liquor cabinet in the console room without his knowledge.

* GenreSavvy: River's attempted to murder her husband and steal a diamond. This is probably going to get her killed. So, what's the best way to hide the crime? Do the sail on a spaceship you know is going to ''be destroyed in a meteor shower'' with no survivors.

** First of:

** In the Series 6 DVD special feature "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS32HVBSNightAndTheDoctor Last Night]]" a future River said that a future Eleven was taking her to the Singing Towers. River mentions this occasion [[ContinuityNod towards the end of the episode]], implying he found a way to wrangle himself out of it.

** She also married StephenFry, making him this as well.

* VictoriasSecretCompartment: At one point the diamond MacGuffin is falling through the air and River catches it in her dress.

* WretchedHive: The starship ''Harmony and Redemption'' is reserved exclusively for wealthy mass-murderers, and serves as a business destination for shady dealings. Even the staff members are required to have committed genocide.

* AnguishedDeclarationOfLove: River admits that she loves the Doctor but she honestly doesn't believe that he loves her back.

** We get to see River's [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E4TheTimeOfAngels "spotter's guide"]] for the Doctor which confirms that River has met all of the Doctor's incarnations by this point, including the War Doctor (who is supposed to be a secret from everyone) and even the Tenth Doctor, ''before'' she technically meets him for the first/last time in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E8SilenceInTheLibrary Silence in the Library]]"[[note]] It's worth noting that although River has images of all the Doctor's faces, at least from his first regeneration cycle, there's nothing to suggest she'd actually ''met'' all of them, so she may not have met Ten yet, just possessed a photo[[/note]]. In retrospect, this means she only knew of the Doctors of his first regeneration cycle (plus Twelve), as there are no images of any future Doctors.

** A sonic trowel was previously carried by the ''other'' AdventureArcheologist companion, in the novel ''Professor Franchise/BerniceSummerfield and the Tree of Life''.

[[quoteright:299:http://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/tumblr_nzvsdocapt1u1e3abo1_r1_1280.jpg]]
[[caption-width-right:299:Carol singers ''will'' be criticised.]]

->'''The Doctor:''' What do you think, by the way?\\
'''River Song:''' Of what?\\
'''The Doctor:''' My new body.\\
'''River Song:''' I'll let you know. I've only seen the face.

* ChristmasEpisode: It's a Christmas special!

** We get to see River's [[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E4TheTimeOfAngels "spotter's guide"]] for the Doctor.

* TheILoveYouStigma: In keeping with a tradition established in 2006 and most recently invoked in the Series 9 finale in which the Doctor does not say "I love you" but rather uses other phrases, euphemisms, or shows it by his actions, the Doctor never actually says these three words on screen, not even to his wife.

* TheGrinch: ''Carol singers will be criticised''. The Doctor is a temporary, downplayed example as the story begins. He usually loves the Christmas season, but in the wake of all the heartache he's been through since what turned out to really be his "[[Recap/DoctorWho2014CSLastChristmas Last Christmas]]" with Clara, he isn't up for the usual hijinks of AVeryBritishChristmas this year. It takes less time than it took Eleven to get over it in "[[Recap/DoctorWho2012CSTheSnowmen The Snowmen]]".

The one [[BookEnds that truly closes the book on the tale of River Song...]] [[WhereItAllBegan from where it all began.]]

The one [[BookEnds that closes the book on the tale of River Song.]]

The one [[BookEnds that finally closes the book on the tale of River Song.]]

''And they all lived happily ever after...''
''And they all lived happily''

* DramaticIrony: For the majority of the episode, River didn't know Twelve was the Doctor. This lead to poignant moments when she spoke about him in his own presence. It also lead to some amusing moments when she finally realized it.

* It is effectively the coda to the Twelfth Doctor's character arc in Series 9, airing less than three weeks after [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E12HellBent "Hell Bent"]] did.
* It is the debut story for Nardole, who by the time of the ''next'' episode [[Recap/DoctorWho2016CSTheReturnOfDoctorMysterio "The Return of Doctor Mysterio"]] has become a companion to the Twelfth Doctor (his first since Clara Oswald, not counting various ExpandedUniverse characters).

* TenMinuteRetirement: Just like [[Recap/DoctorWho2012CSTheSnowmen his last post-companion period]], the Doctor is in solitary mourning only to be yanked back into action.[[note]]''ComicBook/DoctorWhoTitan'' comics would seem to suggest that this story takes place quite some time after [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E12HellBent "Hell Bent"]], with him first travelling solo and later with original companions in the interim, but ExpandedUniverse comics are not regarded as hard canon.[[/note]]

** ''Story'': It turns out that River's heard stories about their night together on Darillium being the last one they'll have together. And where [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E7TheZygonInvasion "The Zygon Invasion"]] opened with the text "OnceUponATime", this one ends on the text "And they lived HappilyEverAfter".

* BelatedHappyEnding: River last appeared in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS33E13TheNameOfTheDoctor "The Name of the Doctor"]] (set after her death) two-plus years prior, and while it had been suggested that Eleven had made that date with her on Darillium, it was not depicted onscreen. Turns out that he didn't make the date with her after all, leaving Twelve to do the job in a way that finally grants her the precious, and ''long'', time with her sweetie she'd so long desired.

** River had at least two wives, one of them Cleopatra (who apparently married the Doctor as well). Not surprising, given that in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E8SilenceInTheLibrary "Silence in the Library"]] she told Strackman Lux to put his helmet back on because he was the only one in the group she didn't fancy, and the group in question included women as well as men.

* ButHeSoundsHandsome: Inverted. River shows the Doctor her diary (which is almost filled up by this point), and says that he was the sort of man who’d know exactly how long a diary you were going to need. The Doctor replies, [[HeelRealization "He sounds awful."]]

** The Doctor's actions in the climax and denouement of this story reflect how the events of the final stretch of Series 9 changed him. As a man who doesn't like endings, he was long unwilling to see through his final night with River Song; indeed, had Clara not intervened in the climax of [[Recap/DoctorWho2013CSTheTimeOfTheDoctor "The Time of the Doctor"]], his previous self would have ''died'' having never having seen it through and likely caused a RealityBreakingParadox! Eventually he came to love and depend upon Clara all too much, was DrivenToMadness in the wake of her unjust death, and attempted to fulfill a TragicDream of bringing her back to life and perhaps staying with her forever -- which threatened the universe much the way River choosing not to shoot the Doctor in Series 7 did. But [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E12HellBent "Hell Bent"]] ended with him understanding at last that the loss of loved ones can only be accepted; he even endured MindRape of his personal memories of Clara to be his best self again and regain his lost sanity. With this, upon realizing how much he's hurt River by never fully returning her love to the point that she doubts he's even capable of the emotion (and realizing that they're NotSoDifferent as he might have once thought) he finally makes an effort to do so. Instead of trying to flee or change fate, he faces it and creates the best final night possible for them. Thus he is finally able to [[EarnYourHappyEnding earn his happy ending]].

** The Doctor says he can't bow to an important figure because of the strain on his back, just as he did in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS1E4MarcoPolo "Marco Polo"]]. In this case, however, it's more of an excuse for him to segue into a TheReasonYouSuckSpeech.

* ADayInTheLimelight: For River Song. It's her first appearance in the series without another companion alongside her, the episode's plot is carried by her, not the Doctor, and the episode sets up some of the details that will [[ADeathInTheLimelight lead to her death]] in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E9ForestOfTheDead "Forest of the Dead"]], which occurs shortly after the events of this episode (for her). It also reveals more about what she's like, and what she does, when the Doctor isn't around -- to both him and the audience.
* DissonantSerenity: "The starship ''Harmony And Redemption'', minimum ticket price one billion credits, plus the provable murder of multiple innocent life forms. Suites are reserved for planet-burners . . . Even the staff are required to have a verifiable history of indiscriminate slaughter. This is where genocide comes to kick back and relax. Do try the fish."

* EarnYourHappyEnding: The ending of this story may be more bittersweet than outright happy, but it grants both River Song and the Twelfth Doctor a great measure of mutual happiness each of them has long, long needed given their individual journeys -- especially after the trope was denied for Twelve in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E12HellBent "Hell Bent"]]. Indeed, it's ''because'' he's learned so much about love and letting go through his unhappy experience trying to save Clara that he can finally become the sweetie River longed for.

* EvilIsHammy: The various villains of this episode each embody this trope in distinct ways: Hydroflax's constant shouting, his body's deep-voiced robotic menace, Flemming's sliminess, Scratch and his compatriots' hissing . . .

* TheGrinch: ''Carol singers will be criticised''. The Doctor is a temporary, downplayed example as the story begins. He usually loves the Christmas season, but in the wake of all the heartache he's been through since what turned out to really be his [[Recap/DoctorWho2014CSLastChristmas "Last Christmas"]] with Clara, he isn't up for the usual hijinks of AVeryBritishChristmas this year. It takes less time than it took Eleven to get over it in [[Recap/DoctorWho2012CSTheSnowmen "The Snowmen"]].

** So if the starship ''Harmony and Redemption'' is so exclusive and caters only to mass-murderers . . . how did River get a ticket and is so familiar with Flemming? Curiously, her "worse than Hitler" reputation from [[Recap/DoctorWhoS32E8LetsKillHitler "Let's Kill Hitler"]] is not mentioned.
* HappilyEverAfter: Discussed in the closing conversation between River and the Doctor. As a response to the Doctor gently explaining to her that nothing lasts forever and that this trope is a lie people tell themselves, River argues that it isn't about unending happiness, but rather making the most of the time one has. With the revelation that they will have twenty-four years together after so much suffering on their individual journeys, the episode ends on the text "And they both lived happily ever after . . ." -- which dissolves first to "And they both lived happily" and then to "happily".

** When River gives her big speech about how little the Doctor cares about her, the Doctor can be clearly seen in the background realising what he's done to her her whole life just by being himself -- unable to say "I love you", unable to accept endings . . .

** This is the ''sixth'' ChristmasEpisode that comes directly after an episode in which the Doctor parts ways with one or more companions, and the second (after [[Recap/DoctorWho2012CSTheSnowmen "The Snowmen"]]) that sees him in a broody "don't bother me" mood initially as a result.
** This is the ''third'' ChristmasEpisode involving the threat of a spaceship crashing, the others being [[Recap/DoctorWho2007CSVoyageOfTheDamned "Voyage of the Damned"]] and [[Recap/DoctorWho2010CSAChristmasCarol "A Christmas Carol"]] (Tenth and Eleventh Doctor adventures, respectively). In fact, the climax of this one is a reversal of the climaxes of the other two -- the Doctor and River give up on trying to save the ''Harmony and Redemption'' upon realizing that not only will they probably fail, its passengers aren't worth the trouble. As for Nardole and Ramone, the only characters even close to "good" amongst the other people on board (their presence being ''highly'' reluctant), they are apparently the only survivors of the crash after a fashion, whereas poor Astrid Peth was one of several good characters who perished in "Voyage of the Damned".

** River Song is ''sure'' that the Doctor has a plan to prevent their night on Darillium from being their last night together, because he ''always'' has a plan. In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E10FaceTheRaven "Face the Raven"]], Clara believed that too, and thus was certain he could save her from death by quantum shade if no one else could. Yet he had to admit that he couldn't in that case, and he sadly tells River that he can't change their situation either.

'''The Doctor:''' Yes . . . ''for a Doctor.''\\

* LoopholeAbuse: Played with. River expects the Doctor to have a way to prevent their inevitable separation. He doesn't, but he does give her the sonic screwdriver that will allow him to save her consciousness in the Library . . . and in the meantime, this last "night" will last ''twenty-four years''.

* MeaningfulEcho: One only the Doctor is aware of, because it's spoken by two different characters. In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E12HellBent "Hell Bent"]], Ashildr told the Doctor that Clara's death on the trap street was both sad and beautiful, "But that's not something you would understand, is it?" When River explains to him that "HappilyEverAfter doesn't mean forever. It just means time. A little time", she follows it up with "But that's not the sort of thing you could ever understand, is it?" Both women know by this point that the Doctor doesn't like, and ''refuses to accept'', endings. But his experiences in "Hell Bent" taught him that he must accept them, and he ''does'' understand what River means now. This is why he's finally seeing through that final night together, which will also be sad and beautiful...but in a much sweeter way.

* MustMakeAmends: The Doctor choosing to see through his final night with River Song after years upon years of avoiding it is clearly his way of making amends for not truly returning her love before once he's heard her AnguishedDeclarationOfLove. This is in line with his recent CharacterDevelopment; his parting advice to Clara (as he underwent the mind wipe) in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E12HellBent "Hell Bent"]] included "Never be cruel and never be cowardly. And if you ever are, always make amends."

** Doctor, or Damsel in Distress? Now [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=sJIDFsJE8GA why does this sound familiar]] . . .

* OhCrap: River is quite confident that her deal will go smoothly, despite the fact that the item she's trading is lodged inside a king's head . . . until she finds out that she is doing business with people ''working for that king'' and unaware she intended to kill him.

* {{Prequel}}: This special sets up the story of, and is set before [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E8SilenceInTheLibrary "Silence in the Library"]]/[[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E9ForestOfTheDead "Forest of the Dead"]] -- at least, from River's perspective.

* ReplacementLoveInterest: This is a tricky example. Although technically River Song predates Clara Oswald as a love interest of the Doctor, the timing of this story, coming off three seasons of the Doctor/Clara relationship and airing only three weeks after the events of [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E12HellBent "Hell Bent"]], casts River in this role, emphasized by the fact the Doctor has at this point lost his emotional memories of Clara.

** In the Series 6 DVD special feature [[Recap/DoctorWhoS32HVBSNightAndTheDoctor "Last Night"]] a future River said that a future Eleven was taking her to the Singing Towers. River mentions this occasion [[ContinuityNod towards the end of the episode]], implying he found a way to wrangle himself out of it.
** In [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E9ForestOfTheDead "Forest of the Dead"]] it was heavily implied, if not outright stated, that River's sonic screwdriver was a future version of the Doctor's own sonic screwdriver. Here, it is definitely a completely separate sonic that the Doctor gave her, though it's possibly still made from ([[Recap/DoctorWhoS31E1TheEleventhHour what's left of]]) the old 9/10 casing.

* SecondLove: Clara Oswald was the Twelfth Doctor's first love, carrying over from Eleven's burgeoning affection for her, but she died and even after rendering her OnlyMostlyDead he couldn't keep her without giving up everything that made him the Doctor. In this story, River Song becomes Twelve's second love. Yes, Eleven was the man who ''married'' River, and they had offscreen adventures together . . . but after all that, it turns out that River still never believed the Doctor truly ''loved'' her. As soon as Twelve first recognizes her, he's delighted to have crossed her path again, is subtly jealous of her other husbands, and at last returns her love in ways that Eleven could not, and both end up bittersweetly happy for it.

* SpecialEditionTitle: As with [[Recap/DoctorWho2014CSLastChristmas "Last Christmas"]], since it's a ChristmasEpisode the Twelfth Doctor title sequence is decorated accordingly with snow and Christmas ornaments flying through the time vortex.

* SurprisinglyHappyEnding: Prior to River asking how long a night on Darillium lasts, this looks to be another story in which the day is won for the forces of good, yet hope and/or happiness are snatched from the Twelfth Doctor in its denouement, in the tradition of [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E7KillTheMoon "Kill the Moon"]], [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E12DeathInHeaven "Death in Heaven"]], and [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E12HellBent "Hell Bent"]]. Sure, this episode is largely lighthearted, but so were [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E5TheGirlWhoDied "The Girl Who Died"]] and [[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E10FaceTheRaven "Face the Raven"]] before things took a turn for the tragic. But the final few lines of this episode reveal that in its way the last night River and the Doctor have together is really the new beginning of their relationship. As in [[Recap/DoctorWho2014CSLastChristmas "Last Christmas"]], which also teases a sadder ending before a final twist, he has been granted a second chance with someone he loves.

* ThrowTheDogABone: The Twelfth Doctor suffered horrifically in the final stretch of Series 9 and ended up alone, so now he has a BreatherEpisode escapade with River Song. Yes, it has a BittersweetEnding . . . but twenty-four years together is a juicy bone.

--> '''River:''' Hang on a minute. I recognize that planet.\\

* TheXOfY: '''The''' Husbands '''of''' River Song. The 126[[superscript:th]] episode of Doctor Who to bear this naming scheme overall, and the second involving River after [[Recap/DoctorWhoS32E13TheWeddingOfRiverSong "The Wedding of River Song"]], appropriately enough.

* And perhaps most importantly, it brings the story of River Song full circle, depicting the circumstances of her and the Doctor's last night together before his tenth self met her in a certain Library.

%%* FlyingSaucer:

** So if the starship ''Harmony and Redemption'' is so exclusive and caters only to mass-murderers . . . how did River get a ticket and is so familiar with Flemming? Curiously, her "worse than Hitler" reputation from ''Let's Kill Hitler'' is not mentioned.