I would say the best continuity is something you wouldn't even notice. Big Ben is destroyed in aliens of London and in a later episode (Christmas Invasion I'm betting on) it's being repaired. That's more than story arcs, that's worldbuilding continuity.
Yeah that's more along the lines of what I think of as continuity wins. The little touches, even when they note that something is different than what they've experienced before.
omg...that was so rough. I always remembered the bird and the diamond speech as being roughest but that anguish as he learns of how impossible it is for him to escape... so haunting.
River Song's continuity in the series is literally the worst. They messed it up in Let's Kill Hitler. The LAST time The Doctor sees River is supposed to be River meeting The Doctor. Yet, they "met" in Let's Kill Hitler.
@@tommyturbo321 No, he's right. The last time River sees the doctor is the first time he sees her and vice versa. But then they remembered they forgot to explain how she got his screwdriver and the towers of derulium and retconned it with the 12th. Unfortunately all that does is suggest that their timelines aren't intertwinned and he (she now I guess) could still meet her
Point being, the video incorrectly refers to him as being “the supreme Dalek”. He’s neither their “supreme leader” nor a Dalek. But, ultimately as I said, it’s a small correction, and not relevant to the point the the video is making.
Greg Weatherup he did become Emperor of the Daleks at one point. Heck there was even an eighth Doctor audio in which he was slowly losing his mind and an emperor Dalek personality was slowly consuming him
the most remarkable example of continuity to me: in the 1985 story "revelation of the daleks", davros, who famously only has one working hand, gets that hand blown off by a laser weapon at the climax of the story. when he returns in 2008's "the stolen earth", he has a mechanical hand. if they had forgotten that scene and just given him his regular hand, nobody would have thought anything of it. but they made a point to acknowledge that continuity from 23 years prior
In the list of planets that went missing in the Shadow Proclamation, “Calufrax” was shown briefly. Calufrax was a planet that went missing in the 4th Doctor episode of “The Pirate Planet.”
emmm, what about the silence and the church? "silence will fall" spans across 3 whole seasons, from impossible astronaut all the way to the siege of trenzalore...
It even was in the vampire in venice episode at the end when the doctor asked rory do you hear that? and he said no i dont hear anything and everything suddenly turned silent
I watched that episode two days ago and while I didn’t quite get how we were meant to believe the ending actually happened that bit was very good at finally tiring up what the silence actually is
When 10 said *i just wanna mate* the whole scene with Donna. 11 says to Amy in a minisode when she asks who the Doctor travels with he says *chums, pals, mates. Not mates forget mates*
There is a further continuity thread that extends Clara and 11 meeting in 'The Bells of St John' - Clara contacted the Doctor via the phone on the Tardis after being giving the his number by a woman in a shop. We later find out, during Capaldi's time as the Doctor that it was Missy/The Master who had engineered the meeting.
I think a writer also confirmed it was Missy who hit Danny with a truck. I’m not certain on that but still, Missy is by far the best iteration of the Master.
I enjoyed the video but I think the River Song quote about "seeing armies turn and run away" fits more closely with "A Good Man Goes to War" rather than "The Pandorica Opens" because of him telling Colonel Manton aka Colonel Runaway to tell his armies to "run away". One little piece of continuity that I really like is the bit in "The Rings Of Akhaten" where the Doctor says he has been to the end of the universe and there was "No time, no space, just me", then in Hell Bent he travels to the end of the Universe, there is indeed no time and no space, just Me (as in Ashildr who had started referring to herself as Me) in a reality bubble.
I do think he meant more so me as in the proper use of the word, talking about himself, because he went to the very very end. He saw Ashildr towards the end of the universe but I feel that speech in Rings of A, he means the very end of the universe when literally nothing exists
When River kills a Dalek after ordering the Dalek to ask her for marcy and it does. Later we find out that it was the 12th Doctor who was resposible for the word "Mercy" being in the Dalek's vocabulary
DOCTOR: Now undoubtedly Davros has one of the finest scientific minds in existence, but he has a fanatical desire to perpetuate himself in his machine. He works without conscience, without soul, without pity, and his machines are equally devoid of these qualities. DAVROS: That outlines the chromosomal variations to be introduced into the embryo Daleks. It is to be implemented at once, Gharman. GHARMAN: Davros, this will create enormous mental defects. DAVROS: Not defects, improvements. GHARMAN: It'll mean creatures without conscience, no sense of right or wrong, no pity. They'll be without feeling or emotion. DAVROS: Correct. Now see that my orders are carried out. DALEK: All inferior creatures are to be considered the enemy of the Daleks and destroyed. DAVROS: No, wait! Those men are scientists. They can help you. Let them live. Have pity! DALEK: Pity? I have no understanding of the word. It is not registered in my vocabulary bank. Exterminate! DAVROS: For the last time, I am your creator! You must, you will obey me! DALEK: We obey no one. We are the superior beings. Exterminate! DALEK: You will be exterminated! RIVER: Not yet. Your systems are still restoring, which means your shield density is compromised. One Alpha Mezon burst through your eyestalk would kill you stone dead. DALEK: Records indicate you will show mercy. You are an associate of the Doctor's. RIVER: I'm River Song. Check your records again. DALEK: Mercy. RIVER: Say it again. DALEK: Mercy! RIVER: One more time. DALEK: Mercy! DAVROS: It took me so very long to realise it was you, standing at the gates of my beginning. And here you are at the end. But this time, I have you at my mercy. Exterminate. DOCTOR: Ooo. Nice. Vampiring off your own creations, just to eke out your days. I'm surprised the Daleks allow it. DAVROS: Oh, they have no choice. My Daleks are afflicted with a genetic defect. DOCTOR: What defect? DAVROS: Respect. Mercy for their father. Design flaws I was unable to eliminate. CLARA: No! Doctor, no! I'm not dead, I'm in here! Can you hear me? CLARA DALEK: I am a Dalek. I am alive. CLARA: I'm your friend. I'm your friend! CLARA DALEK: I am your enemy. Your enemy. CLARA: No, please, don't. CLARA DALEK: Mercy. Mercy. DOCTOR: You shouldn't be able to say that. CLARA DALEK: Mercy. DOCTOR: That word shouldn't exist in your vocabulary. How did Davros teach you to say that? CLARA DALEK: Mercy. DOCTOR: Why aren't you trying to kill me? CLARA DALEK: Mercy. CLARA: Because I would never kill you. You are the last person I would ever kill. CLARA DALEK: I show mercy. DOCTOR: It doesn't make sense. CLARA: What doesn't? DOCTOR: When you were in the Dalek, you made it say mercy.. It shouldn't have understood the concept, it shouldn't have been able to say it. How did a tiny piece of mercy get into the DNA of the Daleks? DOCTOR: Come on, I'll take you home. YOUNG DAVROS: Which side are you on? Are you the enemy? DOCTOR: I'm not sure that any of that matters, friends, enemies. So long as there's mercy. Always mercy.
I feel like that one revelation then plagued the following seasons of Moffat's run, fans were always expecting something clever like that again and it never really came. Lots of high highs in his run though, just damn there were some really low lows too.
Jacob Wigley time of angels / flesh and stone, there’s a moment where any has to close her eyes and Matt Smith has to leave her. He lost his jacket earlier in the episode. A couple seconds later, Matt Smith comes back but he has his jacket on, then he tells her to remember something then leaves again. People thought the jacket was a continuity error, but it was actually a future version of matt smith after resetting the universe at the end of the season.
I always remembered how the line and tone with the jacket didn't quite fit in with the rest of the story. After the Big Bang it all made sense. Season 5 had a lot of great moments in terms of continuity and making the arc all fit together.
@@julieeverett7442 Everything about it was perfect...except I've heard a number of fans say he should have regenerated at the end rather than go through season 4.5
I think in context that given all the episodes in the story arcs are written by different people and they manage to bring it all together with the actual production team, that is what he meant. The best story arcs though in my opinion are those which run through multiple seasons. The time war isn't just a device for matching up old and new who because there is very little inconsistency, to begin with. It was originally more an explanation of why the new Doctor is on edge and feeling irritated. Because he's the one following the time war. However, practically every season since, there has been a significant mention of the time war and we've learned bit by bit more about the war itself. We thought it was over with "The End of Time." Only for the 11th Doctor to end up being saved by the Time Lords returning after they saved Galifrey in "Day of The Doctor". When we think that's over Hell Bent and Heaven Sent takes the Doctor right back into his own issues with the Time Lords because of the Time War. And finally, the last real act of the Time War was The Master wiping out the Time Lords to make Cyber Time Lords. Whether Galifrey will ever be restored again? We can't say. But the downfall of Gallifrey took 14 years and when you think about it, that arc was bigger than most TV shows.
@@sykeassai Gallifrey's story in S12 has absolutely nothing to do with the Time War. It's part of Gallifrey's story, sure, but it's irrelevant to the Time War.
You missed the part where the master had to disguise himself in Series 10 as everyone would have realised he was Harold Saxon. That was great continuity
That’s not why he disguised himself. It was because the humans of that floor had overthrown him and he needed to hide. Also the colony ship was from Earth’s twin planet Mondas so they wouldn’t have even known about Harold Saxon
@@EditedAF987 "Do you still like disguises? Of course, they are rather necessary when you happen to be someone's former Prime Minister!" is the line said by the Master. Not specific to his being Saxon - he could have been Prime Minister of those on Mondas - but it's more than likely so that Bill didn't recognize him.
There's one minor continuity that I absolutely love that you glossed over, in the Harold Saxon 3 part finalie of season 3 the tv that the doctor looks at is a magpie electricals TV which is first seen (company) in season 2 "the idiots latern"
I have just rememberd another continuity theme in Doctor Who. After the events on Trenzalore, Clara returns to the Tardis and the external phone is off the hook and hanging free. Clara returns the phone to the hook and enteres the Tardis and is with the Doctor (11) as he regenerates. It is not until the first episode of season 8, with Capaldi as the Doctor that we find out why the phone was off the hook. 11 had called Clara in her future to remind her that the man she was with was him, the Doctor and needed here help and understanding.
You say first episode of series 8 but that was literally the very next episode from the Christmas special. I wouldn’t call that a continuity theme as it’s so blatantly a plot point.
@@obiwankenobi687 Well, it was the first episode of series 8 - which whilst being the next episode, it was part of a completely different production block. Time of the Doctor was first broadcast on 25th December 2013 and Deep Breath was first broadcast 23rd August 2014. So, they were quite separate. In addition, a continuity Easter egg can happen from one scene to another. In an early episode of Doctor Who, William Russell who played Ian Chesterton in the First Doctor's era, was taping his clenched fists on top of each other as he headed out of the Tardis. He continued this action as he exited the Tardis police box prop - eve though the scenes were filmed separately.
@@bob494949 They won't see each other ever again. River said herself that the last time she saw The Doctor was at the Singing Towers of Darillium. (When he gave her the sonic screw driver)
That doesn't mean we as the audience won't ever see River again. We can still see younger versions of herself on the aformentioned adventures that are in her diary, but just haven't been brought onto the screen yet. Considering Alex Kingston still hasn't had a wrap party, she's still on the list for returning at some point and is very open to do so.
I really liked the explanation as to why the Doctor chose to take the form of Peter Capaldi, who had appeared before in The Fires of Pompeii, and the reason being to hold him to the mark.
I disliked him using that as an excuse to make Ashildr... Immortal?? I thought that was a stretch. She should have lived a few hundred extra years maybe, but I can't imagine any healing patch would heal someone forever.
I don’t think it’s since series 1. Series 4 episode 1 yes but series 1 I don’t think that’s actually a thing. Atmos’s first appearance was in partners and crime. There was a Saxon reference in series 2 though on an unrelated note
When the 11th doctor was talking to the atraxi in the eleventh hour. The doctor was picking ties. Rory in the background was holding some cloths. The one on top was a velvet coat. The same that capaldi wears during his run. The fact that they made capaldi wear that after eleventh hour was crazy
One more thing regarding the missing planets. In the episode Midnight, the Doctor has a conversation with a woman who has been researching the Lost Moon of Poosh, which turns out to be one of the missing planets.
I loved all these arcs, with the single exception of the moment you mentioned with The Impossible Girl; specifically when she tells the Doctor which TARDIS to steal. This directly contradicts a very important moment from "The Doctor's Wfe" (season 6, episode 4), when the TARDIS (while stuck inside a human body) told the Doctor that she "stole a Time Lord" by being the only TARDIS that was unlocked.
Not really a contradiction, as TARDISes are still somewhat sentient (the Doctor's is sometimes fighting him, when he's doing something dangerous, like trying to land at his grave on Trenzalore or stuff), so maybe "the only TARDIS that was unlocked" meant her functions, not doors. This TARDIS wanted to see the universe and the Doctor could make that happen, so she "unlocked" for him. I mean sure, this is quite some mind gymnastics here, but it's still pretty believable as an explanation. All we have are the words of Idris (or the Doctor's TARDIS in the body of Idris) and then later some scenes with Clara and the first Doctor (William Hartnell), which might not go well together at the first sight, but then, when you try to find a reason for it to work, it will.
Yeah, too many of these are just continuity maintained within individual seasons. I wouldn't call that anything special. I was expecting something more along the lines of the Day of the Doctor paying off throwaway references from Tennant's episodes (Elizabeth I, Fall of Arcadia, etc.) or keeping the twelve regeneration limit intact in Time of the Doctor including the war doctor and Ten's none regeneration. And that's just off the top of my head. This video just feels too surface level.
My favorite episode is "The Doctor's Wife". It's fun that Idris/Sexy responds to some events before they happen. I wonder if 'the time they talked' will ever be referenced later.
My favorite small continuity moment was the early matt Smith episode with the angels. Amy has her eyes closed and Matt Smith talks to her, leaves, and immediately comes back but this time wearing his jacket. It then gets revealed in the pandorica episode that it was a different doctor at a different time in his life
For me, my absolute favorite is River Song. I would absolutely love a movie or a series about River's life, from her perspective going in the order she lived it, since we basically saw the opposite from the Doctor's perspective.
Actually, my favorite piece of continuity is the Doctors hand, which gets severed in "The Christmas Invasion", turns up in a couple episodes of season one of Torchwood, then Captain Jack uses it to let him know when the TARDIS returns in "Utopia". It shows up a couple more times, and then is used to create the regenerative crisis Doctor in "Journey's End".
Bad Wolf is a classic and will always be my favourite. There was also tiny little continuities that I loved like the Doctor not wearing his jacket in Flesh and Stone (kinda felt giddy to have noticed it the first time round!). River Song arc was horribly done.
In the Sontaran double episode in series 4, it's mentioned that the Doctor used to work for UNIT "in the 70s" - also referenced in the double Cyberman episode with Capaldi
Love the vid, but I gotta say I love how they justify River being younger on her death at silence in the library on the episode "let's kill Hitler" where she states: "I might take the age down a little, just gradually, to freak people out"
When talking about the great intelligence it would have also been nice to mention the Web of Fear where Troughton's doctor fails at destroying the Great Intelligence, leaving it roaming in space. Also Smith showing it a map of the 1966 London Underground that they used in the Web of Fear.
I'm glad someone appreciates the cracks in time. The plot was sort of derailed by Matt Smith leaving a series early but overall I think they salvaged it pretty well in the circumstances, though I do wish 11's last episode had been more clear on why different cracks have different powers based on what the story needs - Amy's leads to Prisoner Zero's cage, the Angels and Silurian crack erases things from time and the Christmas crack lets you talk to Time Lords
The Angel's and Silurian's cracks were the closest to the exploding TARDIS, so erasing everything from space, time and memory (from all of existence in general) makes sense. An exploding TARDIS is a raw uncontrollable and unbelievable power, exceeding time-space continuum. The other cracks were pretty far from the centre, so they had various effects, they were caused by the exploding TARDIS, but weren't directly in touch with the TARDIS herself, like ripples in a lake. Like in Doomsday, when the 10th Doctor explains the thing with the Torchwood experiment and that mysterious ball, with no mass. He sonics the glass, making cracks, that go from the centre to the edges, then shatters it by touching the centre (explaining that ball's effect). The cracks at the edges were smaller, than in the middle where the Doctor sonicked the glass.
Lol, everyone mocking Chibnall as though he wrecked Doctor Who lore, in reality he just brought more of it to the front, so far he's not torn anything down. Just positioned the show to expand on pre-Gallifreyan society events and even managed to tie in continuity like the Morbius Doctors.
a good one: in series three, episode two, the shakespeare code. in the end of the episode the queen calls him her nemesis or something like that. but in the day of the doctor, ten and her get married. he left her while they were married
My Favourite is River, the one that had most potential was Clara, but I think they (for a number of reasons) really did that storyline a disservice by making her an ordinary companion too soon, and never meeting another fragment version of Clara later. I think that his chance meetings with Clara should have been spread out and more frequent, then at the end of 11's run he would meet the original Clara, and become his regular companion which would then move into the 12th Doctor where she really shined. I think the reason her tenure as the 'impossible girl' was so short was because of the way they wanted to do the 50th anniversary special, they wanted to put the focus squarely on the Doctor and 1 companion to pay homage to older stories, and since they were planning on regenerating 11 right after the 50th and since the revelation of the 'impossible girl' was to happen before the 50th anniversary they had to fast track Clara to normal companionhood... I do suspect that there was a plan to have present day clara meet with one of her shard duplicates in "the crimson horror," it makes perfect narrative sense after "the Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS" nearly revealed the mystery about her to herself, but I think, again, the production of that series was throne off by the upcoming 50th Anniversary special, and all continuity drops went largely ignored until The Name/Night/Day/Time of the Doctor quadrilogy.
I think the most mind-blowing continuity piece is stuff to do with Torchwood, some examples. - Toshiko Sato, and a relative of Gwen Cooper, (and obviously Jack) all appeared in S1 of Doctor Who. The three named characters there would all later be lead characters in Torchwood. Even many fans miss Sato in Doctor Who S1. - Ianto Jones is also a lead character in Torchwood. He was recruited to Torchwood 2 after the destruction of Torchwood 1 and partial Cyberconversion of his partner there. These are events we see at the end of Doctor Who S2. - Martha Jones becomes the Doctor's companion in S3, her recently deceased cousin died where? In the Battle of Canary Warf (Torchwood 1). We actually see this character, she is played by the same actress as Martha (Freema Agyeman). Martha also becomes an occasional member of the Torchwood team later on. - At the end of Torchwood S1 Jack hears the noise of an odd engine, picks up a hand in a jar, and dashes out of the Torchwood base not to be seen again by the rest of the Torchwood team until the beginning of Torchwood S2. Where did he go in that time? Well, if we watch the S3 episode of Doctor Who "Utopia" we find out that he had caught a ride aboard the TARDIS. Unfortunately we don't get to see such tight-kept continuity between the shows when we get to S3 & S4 of Torchwood, partly as they had different lead writers at that point.
That was almost as dumb as bad wolf. I like the idea but it was executed so poorly. Instead of adding some clever things they literally have Jack refer to himself as the face of boe in a very unnaturally written conversation.
Although not actually stated in the show (as far as I remember: casual viewer!)- In 'The Day of the Doctor', all the Doctors incarnations up to that point, AND the 13th Doctor all appear and team up to save Gallifrey at the end of the time war..... but it was only 10, 11 and the War Doctor who met- his previous incarnations just 'showed up', no explanation! But then at the end of Peter Capaldi's run in 'Twice upon a time', his Doctor meets the first Doctor, & I like to think that somewhen during that meeting he told the first Doctor everything he needed to know about the plan to save Gallifrey, so all his incarnations turned up!
I noticed that too. My theory is: near the end of this episode, both War Doctor and 10 realise they won't remember their adventures with 11, due to some "time-streams returning to normal" hand-wavey stuff. Upon re-watching that scene, I thought "Hang on, won't that apply to 11 as well, since 12 made an appearance?". So, I'm theorising that 11 simply won't be able to remember 12 because of the same "time-stream" stuff. Indeed, that whole final scene is implied to be a dream of 11, and therefore from his perspective, not the audience, so the fact that *we've* seen 12 is irrelevant, since 11 doesn't remember him.
I've just realised the only problem with this theory is that *then*- in the same scene- we see The Curator come on, and it's implied (ambiguously) that this also might be a future incarnation of The Doctor. If that were the case, 11 *shouldn't* remember that, but it's shown he still does. Thankfully, it's ambiguous enough to resist coming to a definite conclusion. :)
Fun fact: They even keep the Bad Wolf thing going in the 9th Doctor novels! For example, one villain comments how the Doctor keeps turning up "like a bad wolf", and he corrects her use of the expression.
Extra point of continuity in the Torchwood season 1 episode "Captain Jack Harkness" a poster reading "VOTE SAXON" was on the door of a building Jack and Toshiko spend most of the episode in this series was set before doctor who season 3 meaning it lines up as a in world teaser in a different show
I think one important one you missed was the link between the classic episode "The Five Doctors", which was the 20th anniversary special, and Matt Smith's farewell episode, "The Time of the Doctor." There are two pieces of continuity here, the first being the reiteration that Time Lords only have twelve regenerations, but the High Council has the ability to grant another set if they deem it necessary. Second, the Doctor was able to contact the High Council on Gallifrey using the seal they gave to the Master, and was then taken by the Doctor, in that episode. I could also mention the various references to the Fourth Doctor episode "The Deadly Assassin" in the season 12 finale, but I thought the other more significant.
This was more or less a ‘My Top 8 Series Arcs’ ranking. To me, Doctor Who continuity is something that spans across several series, harking back to older stories - classic or new. It acknowledges previously established plot devices and wider history. For example: - The ‘Bad Wolf’ message from Series 1 reappearing in Series 4 - The establishment of Torchwood in Series 2, and having it even name dropped in Series 12. - The 13th Doctor remembering Bill in ‘The Haunting of Villa Diodati’ (Jodie mentions it herself in a behind the scenes)
The Bad Wolf plot was my favourite, subtle yet with awesome payoff. I think it all went wrong in the Moffat years when subtly when out the window and was replaced by a sledgehammer and yet at the same time plots became so complex that the payoff is lost because your still trying to work out that tangled knot. I may get some hate on that I know but does anyone else miss the subtleties of the Daversion era?
There is a really nice moment in Remembrance of the Daleks (7th Doctor). In the corner of a room there is a TV switched on, which no one seems to be paying attention to. The TV is tuned to the BBC and the announcer is introducing a new TV science fiction show - the scene cuts out before the name of the show is mentioned - which is the very first episode of Doctor Who.
Fantastic video, there is also a minor detail I thought I’d mention. In 9th doctor series there is a minor reference to torchwood, in 10th doctor series there is a minor reference to Harold Saxon too, just thought I’d throw those in there, but the Bad Wolf and Torchwood were my faves
I also loved how well they managed continuity between Dr Who, and series 1-2 of Torchwood, like the Vote Saxon posters appearing all over the place in Torchwood and the way Captain Jack jumped between the two series.
Bonus points for the Saxon arc in that his campaign posters appear in a couple of episodes of Torchwood that were set/ aired just before the Sound of Drums.
The Coal Hill School is another great example of new to old continuity. The first two companions were teachers there and Susan his Granddaughter was a student. It appears again in the 25th aniversary in 1988. Then Clara teaches there in series 8 and 9 beginning with the 50th anniversary special.
7:19 I think and argument could be made that when she mentions the "Bone Meadows" in her first episode, it could have been a precursor reference to Angels Take Manhattan where they frequently end up in a graveyard. Not a direct reference but a definite link.
Oh, and the novelization of "Shada" actually made Clare (actual spelling) an echo of Clara. Granted, she really doesn't look like her, but I personally apply the "Star Trek" theory to the older shows -- we're seeing the same people and tech, we're just seeing them differently when need be. (In this case, she really was a Clara echo, but because Jenna Coleman wasn't born yet, they used Victoria Burgoyne to fill in for her. :P)
I think the near-perfect execution of story arcs over multiple seasons was one of the reasons that the new guy Chin what's-his-face Ball what's-his-face didn't even try to reopen any links to all that winning content, and instead, cobbled together a bunch of history lessons and called it "Doctor Who."
When The Master as Harold Saxon lists some of The Dr's achievements he includes sealing the Medusa Cascade. Which is still in the Dr's future a whole season later...
Love this (although I think I'd describe it more as great story telling than continuity). Harold Saxon was actually mentioned even earlier. The order to shoot the Racnoss 'star' in the episode 'The Runaway Bride' came from... Harold Saxon! Also, Bad Wolf comes up in the 50th Anniversary addition when Billy Piper plays The Moment. I love these threads that run through Who.
Continuity in the golden age of doctor who between its spin-offs SJA, and Torchwood. Particularly, with Vote Saxon in Torchwood, the sound of the tardis leading to Utopia Season 3, and "no one will ever forget you" playing on Donna and the doctor in SJA.
Extra thing about the Donna ark, you didn't need to be a long running fan to know her as she was part of her own spin off show (and so was Jack but he was new anyway) SO double win as its also a cross over!
What about when the actress playing Martha also played a Torchwood employee who was killed by the Cybermen in Army of Ghosts, and the first time we meet Martha she mentions (by name) her cousin (played by her) who who was killed? I thought that was pretty cool and clever what they did with something so subtle.
Most of these on not so much successes of continuity but just the “Mystery Box” of its respective season (Series 1: Bad Wolf, Series 3: Vote Saxon, Series 4: Missing Planets/Bees Disappearing, Series 5: Cracks, Series 6: Window Woman, Series 7: Impossible Girl, Series 8: Heaven Woman, Series 9: Hybrid, Series 10: Vault).
Continuity isn't just about making current/future stories fit within the established ones, and not adding anything that contradicts them (*cough* Moffat), it's about inserting tiny little details like destroying Big Ben then having it being repaired later, Davros recognising Sarah Jane, the Carrionite orb appearing in The Unicorn and the Wasp, the Doctor and the Master mentioning the Sea Devils and Axons and watching the Teletubbies (a reference to the Clangers), and the number of times the Doctor mentions the Shadow Proclamation. RTD did it best.
The Bad Wolf thing is such a good continuity that near where i live there is a wall with a lot of graphity and a big "Bad Wolf" written on there How did the creators did that? Lol
I noticed one mistake, in that you said time travellers would remember the people who went through the crack but Amy completly forgot about Rory even though the Doctor tried to get her to remember him. She was a time traveller at the time so this negates that statement.
this is explained in the episode though. Rory was part of Amy's *personal* history, and that's why she lost all memory of him whilst The Doctor remembered.
i will never stop talking about season4 having this huge continuity with ‘there is something in your back’ or ‘she is returning’ or ‘the bees are disappearing’ or the pop ups of rose, nothing will ever top season4
a little bit of continuity that what almost certainly unintentional, but is absolutely beautiful in retrospect: HOST: Information. Now you will die. FOON: You're coming with me. DOCTOR: No! ...NO MORE. DAVROS: But you promised me, Dalek Caan. Why did you not foresee this? DOCTOR: Oh, I think he did. Something's been manipulating the timelines for ages, getting Donna Noble to the right place at the right time. CAAN: This would always have happened. I only helped, Doctor. DAVROS: You betrayed the Daleks. CAAN: I saw the Daleks. What we have done, throughout time and space, I saw the truth of us, Creator, and I decreed, NO MORE! DOCTOR: You see now? That's what they were planning in the final days of the War. I had to stop them. MASTER: Then, take me with you, Lord President. Let me ascend into glory. RASSILON: You are diseased, albeit a disease of our own making. NO MORE. WHISPER MEN: The man who lies will lie NO MORE when this man lies at Trenzalore. CLARA: Waste NO MORE time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one. Marcus Aurelius. WAR DOCTOR: Time Lords of Gallifrey, Daleks of Skaro, I serve notice on you all. Too long I have stayed my hand. No more. Today you leave me no choice. Today, this war will end. NO MORE.
@@MichaelJohnson-kq7qg then explain how river is able to regenerate when the explanation in the first place was that the time vortex gave timelords the ability to regenerate but now its that they injected themselves with the doctor's dna? or the fact rassilon asked "how many regenerations did we give you" or the fact the doctor's DNA is recognised as timelord meaning its recognised as galifrayon but he isn't part of their species it ruins continuity and cannon
@@kaicreech7336 i mean a tank is shielded but things still get through the time vortex would have to give off some sort of radiation to cause the mutation that gave them regeneration meaning that even tho the tardis is shielded unharmful amounts of the radiation would leak through plus its a reasonable plot whole that doesn't make someones existence impossible what could have caused river to be able to regenerate if not time vortex radiation
You left out the fact Torchwood was mentioned by the annedroid in Badwolf when asking the first set of questions then again in the Christmas invation followed by Tooth and Claw, rise of the cybermen (also foreshadowing the fact there was a Torchwood in petes world), impossible planet then obviously the two part finally
you should perhaps do a part two focusing on 8 Times Classic Doctor Who Nailed Continuity & a follow-up video or two where Doctor Who Failed Continuity
Ecclsons Series One is like a dream, the music and the mysteries , after watching it you wonder did it even happen, its that Haunting. Also Badwolf and Harold Saxon and the missing planets are some of the best story arcs and foreshadowing on TV
This is more story arcs than continuity. A good example of continuity would be in the episode The Fires of Pompeii when the 10th Doctor claims “that fire” had nothing to do with him. He’s referring to events in the First Doctor's adventure “The Romans,” in which he accidentally sets fire to a map, triggering the Great Fire of Rome in AD64.
I wouldn't say this list really constitutes as 'nailing continuity' - more like a list of the best 'set-ups and pay offs' Continuity detail is something a little more subtle - such as remembering where Sarah Jane was dropped off in the original series before picking her back up again, or (as someone else mentioned) the fact that big ben is destroyed, and an episode or so later, we see it in the background being repaired.
Harold Saxon also gets a namecheck in the Runaway Bride before Series 3 - the tank that shoots at the Racnoss' ship does so on the 'orders of Harold Saxon'. Missing Planets - the lost moon of Poosh gets a mention in Midnight, which is also revealed to be one of the missing planets.
I would say the best continuity is something you wouldn't even notice. Big Ben is destroyed in aliens of London and in a later episode (Christmas Invasion I'm betting on) it's being repaired. That's more than story arcs, that's worldbuilding continuity.
didn't even notice that. but thats good continuity
Didn’t notice that until I rewatched it for the 834728th time a few weeks ago, quality world building
The continuity is so good with Big Ben that it even has the scaffolding up in real life now ;)
Yeah that's more along the lines of what I think of as continuity wins. The little touches, even when they note that something is different than what they've experienced before.
llpalm08 😂😂 Must be what they put up to replace the Doctor Who Experience
"He will knock 4 times" prophecy, leading up to 10th Doctor's death with Wilfred always tops it for me.
omg...that was so rough. I always remembered the bird and the diamond speech as being roughest but that anguish as he learns of how impossible it is for him to escape... so haunting.
@@hainsay As he says "I'm still alive" and then the 4 knocks... his face... it's so saddening
ollierkul I thought it was going to be the Master. Totally surprised when it turned out to be Wilfred.
I almost cried on that scene, tennent just was so sad that he had to die
And it continues and is referenced well after
What Moffat did with River Song is by far the best bit of continuity, based on how bloody complicated it was and how brilliantly it played out ❤
River Song = Melody Pond was a what the flip?! moment for sure! Such a long game.
@@SquintsNZ yeah and it was so bloody powerful! Just that sharing of realisation with Amy and Rory, chills every time.
River Song's continuity in the series is literally the worst. They messed it up in Let's Kill Hitler. The LAST time The Doctor sees River is supposed to be River meeting The Doctor. Yet, they "met" in Let's Kill Hitler.
@@LampDoesVideogame No, the last time river sees the doctor is the first time the doctor meets river
@@tommyturbo321 No, he's right. The last time River sees the doctor is the first time he sees her and vice versa. But then they remembered they forgot to explain how she got his screwdriver and the towers of derulium and retconned it with the 12th. Unfortunately all that does is suggest that their timelines aren't intertwinned and he (she now I guess) could still meet her
One small mistake: Davros is the creator of the Daleks but he is not himself a Dalek, he’s a Kaled.
Point being, the video incorrectly refers to him as being “the supreme Dalek”. He’s neither their “supreme leader” nor a Dalek.
But, ultimately as I said, it’s a small correction, and not relevant to the point the the video is making.
Yh that rlly rattled me, good thing you corrected them first, I don't think I would've been that nice about it 🤣
@@gregweatherup9596 also, there is a character/class of Daleks tht is CALLED the 'Supreme Dalek". And it's not Davros.
Greg Weatherup he did become Emperor of the Daleks at one point. Heck there was even an eighth Doctor audio in which he was slowly losing his mind and an emperor Dalek personality was slowly consuming him
wanted to point out the same thing too, glad i am not the only one that got triggered by this error :)
the most remarkable example of continuity to me: in the 1985 story "revelation of the daleks", davros, who famously only has one working hand, gets that hand blown off by a laser weapon at the climax of the story.
when he returns in 2008's "the stolen earth", he has a mechanical hand.
if they had forgotten that scene and just given him his regular hand, nobody would have thought anything of it. but they made a point to acknowledge that continuity from 23 years prior
In the list of planets that went missing in the Shadow Proclamation, “Calufrax” was shown briefly. Calufrax was a planet that went missing in the 4th Doctor episode of “The Pirate Planet.”
emmm, what about the silence and the church? "silence will fall" spans across 3 whole seasons, from impossible astronaut all the way to the siege of trenzalore...
It even was in the vampire in venice episode at the end when the doctor asked rory do you hear that? and he said no i dont hear anything and everything suddenly turned silent
Aaron_454 Rory even says “just silence”
I watched that episode two days ago and while I didn’t quite get how we were meant to believe the ending actually happened that bit was very good at finally tiring up what the silence actually is
Actually no. It went as far back as the eleventh hour just before prisoner zero is captured he says “silence doctor. Silence will fall”
@@doctorwhouniverse9338 yes ofc, how could I forget, yet it just reinforces the flaw of this continuity missing from the list.
When 10 said *i just wanna mate* the whole scene with Donna. 11 says to Amy in a minisode when she asks who the Doctor travels with he says *chums, pals, mates. Not mates forget mates*
You're not mating with me sunshine!
There is a further continuity thread that extends Clara and 11 meeting in 'The Bells of St John' - Clara contacted the Doctor via the phone on the Tardis after being giving the his number by a woman in a shop. We later find out, during Capaldi's time as the Doctor that it was Missy/The Master who had engineered the meeting.
This one is by far my favorite, she's not even in the show yet but already affecting what happens!
Mind blown
I think a writer also confirmed it was Missy who hit Danny with a truck. I’m not certain on that but still, Missy is by far the best iteration of the Master.
@@DragonsDungeon "master car"
@@mateokunzer oh my god
I enjoyed the video but I think the River Song quote about "seeing armies turn and run away" fits more closely with "A Good Man Goes to War" rather than "The Pandorica Opens" because of him telling Colonel Manton aka Colonel Runaway to tell his armies to "run away".
One little piece of continuity that I really like is the bit in "The Rings Of Akhaten" where the Doctor says he has been to the end of the universe and there was "No time, no space, just me", then in Hell Bent he travels to the end of the Universe, there is indeed no time and no space, just Me (as in Ashildr who had started referring to herself as Me) in a reality bubble.
How is that continuity if it hadn’t happened to him yet?
Yeah thats interesting how did he know that he would meet me there?
I do think he meant more so me as in the proper use of the word, talking about himself, because he went to the very very end. He saw Ashildr towards the end of the universe but I feel that speech in Rings of A, he means the very end of the universe when literally nothing exists
She wasn’t there until the end of a good man goes to war at least not the adult version of her so she didn’t really see it.
He’s talking about Utopia or The Big Bang according to the wiki. Those happened before the speech. And he’s referring to “me”as in himself
When River kills a Dalek after ordering the Dalek to ask her for marcy and it does. Later we find out that it was the 12th Doctor who was resposible for the word "Mercy" being in the Dalek's vocabulary
somewhat contrasting the dalek in genesis saying it doesn't know the word "pity"
DOCTOR: Now undoubtedly Davros has one of the finest scientific minds in existence, but he has a fanatical desire to perpetuate himself in his machine. He works without conscience, without soul, without pity, and his machines are equally devoid of these qualities.
DAVROS: That outlines the chromosomal variations to be introduced into the embryo Daleks. It is to be implemented at once, Gharman.
GHARMAN: Davros, this will create enormous mental defects.
DAVROS: Not defects, improvements.
GHARMAN: It'll mean creatures without conscience, no sense of right or wrong, no pity. They'll be without feeling or emotion.
DAVROS: Correct. Now see that my orders are carried out.
DALEK: All inferior creatures are to be considered the enemy of the Daleks and destroyed.
DAVROS: No, wait! Those men are scientists. They can help you. Let them live. Have pity!
DALEK: Pity? I have no understanding of the word. It is not registered in my vocabulary bank. Exterminate!
DAVROS: For the last time, I am your creator! You must, you will obey me!
DALEK: We obey no one. We are the superior beings.
Exterminate!
DALEK: You will be exterminated!
RIVER: Not yet. Your systems are still restoring, which means your shield density is compromised. One Alpha Mezon burst through your eyestalk would kill you stone dead.
DALEK: Records indicate you will show mercy. You are an associate of the Doctor's.
RIVER: I'm River Song. Check your records again.
DALEK: Mercy.
RIVER: Say it again.
DALEK: Mercy!
RIVER: One more time.
DALEK: Mercy!
DAVROS: It took me so very long to realise it was you, standing at the gates of my beginning. And here you are at the end.
But this time, I have you at my mercy. Exterminate.
DOCTOR: Ooo. Nice. Vampiring off your own creations, just to eke out your days. I'm surprised the Daleks allow it.
DAVROS: Oh, they have no choice. My Daleks are afflicted with a genetic defect.
DOCTOR: What defect?
DAVROS: Respect. Mercy for their father. Design flaws I was unable to eliminate.
CLARA: No! Doctor, no! I'm not dead, I'm in here! Can you hear me?
CLARA DALEK: I am a Dalek. I am alive.
CLARA: I'm your friend. I'm your friend!
CLARA DALEK: I am your enemy. Your enemy.
CLARA: No, please, don't.
CLARA DALEK: Mercy. Mercy.
DOCTOR: You shouldn't be able to say that.
CLARA DALEK: Mercy.
DOCTOR: That word shouldn't exist in your vocabulary. How did Davros teach you to say that?
CLARA DALEK: Mercy.
DOCTOR: Why aren't you trying to kill me?
CLARA DALEK: Mercy.
CLARA: Because I would never kill you. You are the last person I would ever kill.
CLARA DALEK: I show mercy.
DOCTOR: It doesn't make sense.
CLARA: What doesn't?
DOCTOR: When you were in the Dalek, you made it say mercy.. It shouldn't have understood the concept, it shouldn't have been able to say it. How did a tiny piece of mercy get into the DNA of the Daleks?
DOCTOR: Come on, I'll take you home.
YOUNG DAVROS: Which side are you on? Are you the enemy?
DOCTOR: I'm not sure that any of that matters, friends, enemies. So long as there's mercy. Always mercy.
@@neomp5 the Dalek from ‘Dalek’ tells the doctor to ‘have pity’ whilst he’s electrocuting him. So the word pity is clearly in their vocal 🤔
You didn’t mention the continuity gaff that was later revealed to be a success. Matt Smiths reappearing jacket in Time of Angels / Flesh and Stone.
I feel like that one revelation then plagued the following seasons of Moffat's run, fans were always expecting something clever like that again and it never really came.
Lots of high highs in his run though, just damn there were some really low lows too.
the reappearing jacket? What's this about? I dont remember this
Jacob Wigley time of angels / flesh and stone, there’s a moment where any has to close her eyes and Matt Smith has to leave her. He lost his jacket earlier in the episode. A couple seconds later, Matt Smith comes back but he has his jacket on, then he tells her to remember something then leaves again. People thought the jacket was a continuity error, but it was actually a future version of matt smith after resetting the universe at the end of the season.
Went into this video expecting to see this above all else, I'm glad someone else remembered
I always remembered how the line and tone with the jacket didn't quite fit in with the rest of the story. After the Big Bang it all made sense. Season 5 had a lot of great moments in terms of continuity and making the arc all fit together.
Somewhere during peter capaldis doctor nardoil sais that river died a little while back in a library
That was return of doctor mysterio
@@doctorwhouniverse9338 Which was of course the very next episode after "The Husbands of River Song", the last time we see River.
@Deborah Shaw she technically did. Her body died, but her mind was uploaded into the cloud on The Library.
Basically just stating what the series arcs were and mention the time war and Sarah Jane.
Yeah, this is more so proof that they understand what set up and pay off are, more so than continuity.
Was wondering if anyone actually noticed that. Got to admit tho the Sarah Jane bit was pretty good continuity
Best has to be S-J and Davros. It's not often a TV series attempts a sequel to a story made 33 years earlier!
yes that was well done, as a long time fan, especially of 4th and Sarah Jane, that was perfect
@@julieeverett7442 Everything about it was perfect...except I've heard a number of fans say he should have regenerated at the end rather than go through season 4.5
Most of these aren’t really what you’d call continuity, they’re just that season’s arc and the foreshadowing of it
I think in context that given all the episodes in the story arcs are written by different people and they manage to bring it all together with the actual production team, that is what he meant. The best story arcs though in my opinion are those which run through multiple seasons. The time war isn't just a device for matching up old and new who because there is very little inconsistency, to begin with. It was originally more an explanation of why the new Doctor is on edge and feeling irritated. Because he's the one following the time war.
However, practically every season since, there has been a significant mention of the time war and we've learned bit by bit more about the war itself. We thought it was over with "The End of Time." Only for the 11th Doctor to end up being saved by the Time Lords returning after they saved Galifrey in "Day of The Doctor". When we think that's over Hell Bent and Heaven Sent takes the Doctor right back into his own issues with the Time Lords because of the Time War. And finally, the last real act of the Time War was The Master wiping out the Time Lords to make Cyber Time Lords. Whether Galifrey will ever be restored again? We can't say. But the downfall of Gallifrey took 14 years and when you think about it, that arc was bigger than most TV shows.
@@sykeassai Gallifrey's story in S12 has absolutely nothing to do with the Time War. It's part of Gallifrey's story, sure, but it's irrelevant to the Time War.
especially when Clara's story actively breaks the continuity of a lot of old Who eps and in turn is completely broken by Ruth's story
@@PuppetSquid Did it? What continuity did Clara's story break?
Puppetsquid Old Who actively breaks the continuity of a lot of old Who eps
You missed the part where the master had to disguise himself in Series 10 as everyone would have realised he was Harold Saxon. That was great continuity
That’s not why he disguised himself. It was because the humans of that floor had overthrown him and he needed to hide. Also the colony ship was from Earth’s twin planet Mondas so they wouldn’t have even known about Harold Saxon
@@EditedAF987 "Do you still like disguises? Of course, they are rather necessary when you happen to be someone's former Prime Minister!" is the line said by the Master. Not specific to his being Saxon - he could have been Prime Minister of those on Mondas - but it's more than likely so that Bill didn't recognize him.
let's face it, he basically repeated his whole saxon routine on the ship, so it's much the same thing
Especially since the Master loves his disguises even through Classic Who.
There's one minor continuity that I absolutely love that you glossed over, in the Harold Saxon 3 part finalie of season 3 the tv that the doctor looks at is a magpie electricals TV which is first seen (company) in season 2 "the idiots latern"
Every time Sarah Jane does anything, I get teary. I just do, I can't help it. Such an awesome character, so sorely missed.
Small thing. The crack in time, was a crack to where the doctors had hidden Gallifrey outside time and space.
No, just that one Crack in Christmas
E S We can’t assume that multiple cracks did/didn’t lead to the same locations on the other side
the crack in time was from the tardis it caused cracks through all of time so I reckon the timelords took advantage of the crack to contact the doctor
Face of boe is my favourite, the revelation was stunning and his "you are not alone" foreshadowing the master was brilliant
I have just rememberd another continuity theme in Doctor Who. After the events on Trenzalore, Clara returns to the Tardis and the external phone is off the hook and hanging free. Clara returns the phone to the hook and enteres the Tardis and is with the Doctor (11) as he regenerates. It is not until the first episode of season 8, with Capaldi as the Doctor that we find out why the phone was off the hook. 11 had called Clara in her future to remind her that the man she was with was him, the Doctor and needed here help and understanding.
You say first episode of series 8 but that was literally the very next episode from the Christmas special. I wouldn’t call that a continuity theme as it’s so blatantly a plot point.
@@obiwankenobi687 Well, it was the first episode of series 8 - which whilst being the next episode, it was part of a completely different production block. Time of the Doctor was first broadcast on 25th December 2013 and Deep Breath was first broadcast 23rd August 2014. So, they were quite separate. In addition, a continuity Easter egg can happen from one scene to another. In an early episode of Doctor Who, William Russell who played Ian Chesterton in the First Doctor's era, was taping his clenched fists on top of each other as he headed out of the Tardis. He continued this action as he exited the Tardis police box prop - eve though the scenes were filmed separately.
@@jeffwalker7185 yeh so that’s not a continuity theme. Like something interesting like bad wolf and riversong etc. that’s just simple continuity
But, they didn't cover everything in Rivers diary. Jim the Fish anyone?
i hope jim the fish is an anniversary episode somewhere down the line, i need matt smith back and i need to know what happens with jim the bloody fish
The Picnic at Asgard? The 1814 Frost Fair where Stevie Wonder sang under London Bridge? There are River/Doctor meetings we have yet to see!
@@bob494949 They won't see each other ever again. River said herself that the last time she saw The Doctor was at the Singing Towers of Darillium. (When he gave her the sonic screw driver)
That doesn't mean we as the audience won't ever see River again. We can still see younger versions of herself on the aformentioned adventures that are in her diary, but just haven't been brought onto the screen yet. Considering Alex Kingston still hasn't had a wrap party, she's still on the list for returning at some point and is very open to do so.
@@bob494949 asgards been done in a novel
I really liked the explanation as to why the Doctor chose to take the form of Peter Capaldi, who had appeared before in The Fires of Pompeii, and the reason being to hold him to the mark.
I disliked him using that as an excuse to make Ashildr... Immortal?? I thought that was a stretch. She should have lived a few hundred extra years maybe, but I can't imagine any healing patch would heal someone forever.
If you look at cars from as early as series one you can see Atmos stickers in the wind shields.
Fucking love doctor who man
I don’t think it’s since series 1. Series 4 episode 1 yes but series 1 I don’t think that’s actually a thing. Atmos’s first appearance was in partners and crime. There was a Saxon reference in series 2 though on an unrelated note
@@obiwankenobi687 You can see it in the corner of a car in Rose I think
@@thetruthof8949 I’m 99% sure it’s definitely only partners in crime. Even the doctor who wiki has it down as partners in crime
"8 Time Doctor Who Nailed Continuity"
Laughs in Timeless Child
Also
Laughs in Amy Pond’s age
You say that though and however messy and annoying it is, the continuity does still work timeless child or not. Everything still runs as normal
When the 11th doctor was talking to the atraxi in the eleventh hour. The doctor was picking ties. Rory in the background was holding some cloths. The one on top was a velvet coat. The same that capaldi wears during his run. The fact that they made capaldi wear that after eleventh hour was crazy
One more thing regarding the missing planets. In the episode Midnight, the Doctor has a conversation with a woman who has been researching the Lost Moon of Poosh, which turns out to be one of the missing planets.
You also see rose Tyler on a screen trying to warn the doctor and foreshadowing her return. 😁
I loved all these arcs, with the single exception of the moment you mentioned with The Impossible Girl; specifically when she tells the Doctor which TARDIS to steal.
This directly contradicts a very important moment from "The Doctor's Wfe" (season 6, episode 4), when the TARDIS (while stuck inside a human body) told the Doctor that she "stole a Time Lord" by being the only TARDIS that was unlocked.
Not really a contradiction, as TARDISes are still somewhat sentient (the Doctor's is sometimes fighting him, when he's doing something dangerous, like trying to land at his grave on Trenzalore or stuff), so maybe "the only TARDIS that was unlocked" meant her functions, not doors. This TARDIS wanted to see the universe and the Doctor could make that happen, so she "unlocked" for him. I mean sure, this is quite some mind gymnastics here, but it's still pretty believable as an explanation. All we have are the words of Idris (or the Doctor's TARDIS in the body of Idris) and then later some scenes with Clara and the first Doctor (William Hartnell), which might not go well together at the first sight, but then, when you try to find a reason for it to work, it will.
Maybe Clara unlocked her.....
Yeah, too many of these are just continuity maintained within individual seasons. I wouldn't call that anything special.
I was expecting something more along the lines of the Day of the Doctor paying off throwaway references from Tennant's episodes (Elizabeth I, Fall of Arcadia, etc.) or keeping the twelve regeneration limit intact in Time of the Doctor including the war doctor and Ten's none regeneration. And that's just off the top of my head.
This video just feels too surface level.
Even in Torchwood, you can see a Vote For Saxon poster in the background of some shots.
Rusty, you forgot Rusty (and his story arc spans 4 doctors): "You would make a good Dalek!"
is that the dalek who asked Rose to order him to kill himself?
@@grantryder352 no, but rusty said the same thing that dalek did. that the doctor is a good dalek
His story arc doesn’t span four doctors, he appears with 12 and 12 only
the whole Missy being the one to introduce Clara to the Doctor via the Helpline "Best helpline in the Universe"
My favorite episode is "The Doctor's Wife". It's fun that Idris/Sexy responds to some events before they happen. I wonder if 'the time they talked' will ever be referenced later.
My favorite small continuity moment was the early matt Smith episode with the angels. Amy has her eyes closed and Matt Smith talks to her, leaves, and immediately comes back but this time wearing his jacket. It then gets revealed in the pandorica episode that it was a different doctor at a different time in his life
For me, my absolute favorite is River Song. I would absolutely love a movie or a series about River's life, from her perspective going in the order she lived it, since we basically saw the opposite from the Doctor's perspective.
Actually, my favorite piece of continuity is the Doctors hand, which gets severed in "The Christmas Invasion", turns up in a couple episodes of season one of Torchwood, then Captain Jack uses it to let him know when the TARDIS returns in "Utopia". It shows up a couple more times, and then is used to create the regenerative crisis Doctor in "Journey's End".
Bad Wolf is a classic and will always be my favourite. There was also tiny little continuities that I loved like the Doctor not wearing his jacket in Flesh and Stone (kinda felt giddy to have noticed it the first time round!). River Song arc was horribly done.
Some of the story arcs in Doctor Who have been truly masterful!! :D Awesome video! :)
In the Sontaran double episode in series 4, it's mentioned that the Doctor used to work for UNIT "in the 70s" - also referenced in the double Cyberman episode with Capaldi
Love the vid, but I gotta say I love how they justify River being younger on her death at silence in the library on the episode "let's kill Hitler" where she states: "I might take the age down a little, just gradually, to freak people out"
My favorite continuity:
Eccelston: "Are you my mommy?"
Tennet: "Are you my mommmy?"
Smith and Capaldi too
When talking about the great intelligence it would have also been nice to mention the Web of Fear where Troughton's doctor fails at destroying the Great Intelligence, leaving it roaming in space. Also Smith showing it a map of the 1966 London Underground that they used in the Web of Fear.
I'm glad someone appreciates the cracks in time. The plot was sort of derailed by Matt Smith leaving a series early but overall I think they salvaged it pretty well in the circumstances, though I do wish 11's last episode had been more clear on why different cracks have different powers based on what the story needs - Amy's leads to Prisoner Zero's cage, the Angels and Silurian crack erases things from time and the Christmas crack lets you talk to Time Lords
The Angel's and Silurian's cracks were the closest to the exploding TARDIS, so erasing everything from space, time and memory (from all of existence in general) makes sense. An exploding TARDIS is a raw uncontrollable and unbelievable power, exceeding time-space continuum. The other cracks were pretty far from the centre, so they had various effects, they were caused by the exploding TARDIS, but weren't directly in touch with the TARDIS herself, like ripples in a lake. Like in Doomsday, when the 10th Doctor explains the thing with the Torchwood experiment and that mysterious ball, with no mass. He sonics the glass, making cracks, that go from the centre to the edges, then shatters it by touching the centre (explaining that ball's effect). The cracks at the edges were smaller, than in the middle where the Doctor sonicked the glass.
Video: *continuity in Doctor Who*
Chibnall: *nO*
Lol, everyone mocking Chibnall as though he wrecked Doctor Who lore, in reality he just brought more of it to the front, so far he's not torn anything down. Just positioned the show to expand on pre-Gallifreyan society events and even managed to tie in continuity like the Morbius Doctors.
a good one: in series three, episode two, the shakespeare code. in the end of the episode the queen calls him her nemesis or something like that. but in the day of the doctor, ten and her get married. he left her while they were married
My Favourite is River, the one that had most potential was Clara, but I think they (for a number of reasons) really did that storyline a disservice by making her an ordinary companion too soon, and never meeting another fragment version of Clara later. I think that his chance meetings with Clara should have been spread out and more frequent, then at the end of 11's run he would meet the original Clara, and become his regular companion which would then move into the 12th Doctor where she really shined.
I think the reason her tenure as the 'impossible girl' was so short was because of the way they wanted to do the 50th anniversary special, they wanted to put the focus squarely on the Doctor and 1 companion to pay homage to older stories, and since they were planning on regenerating 11 right after the 50th and since the revelation of the 'impossible girl' was to happen before the 50th anniversary they had to fast track Clara to normal companionhood... I do suspect that there was a plan to have present day clara meet with one of her shard duplicates in "the crimson horror," it makes perfect narrative sense after "the Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS" nearly revealed the mystery about her to herself, but I think, again, the production of that series was throne off by the upcoming 50th Anniversary special, and all continuity drops went largely ignored until The Name/Night/Day/Time of the Doctor quadrilogy.
I think the most mind-blowing continuity piece is stuff to do with Torchwood, some examples.
- Toshiko Sato, and a relative of Gwen Cooper, (and obviously Jack) all appeared in S1 of Doctor Who. The three named characters there would all later be lead characters in Torchwood. Even many fans miss Sato in Doctor Who S1.
- Ianto Jones is also a lead character in Torchwood. He was recruited to Torchwood 2 after the destruction of Torchwood 1 and partial Cyberconversion of his partner there. These are events we see at the end of Doctor Who S2.
- Martha Jones becomes the Doctor's companion in S3, her recently deceased cousin died where? In the Battle of Canary Warf (Torchwood 1). We actually see this character, she is played by the same actress as Martha (Freema Agyeman). Martha also becomes an occasional member of the Torchwood team later on.
- At the end of Torchwood S1 Jack hears the noise of an odd engine, picks up a hand in a jar, and dashes out of the Torchwood base not to be seen again by the rest of the Torchwood team until the beginning of Torchwood S2. Where did he go in that time? Well, if we watch the S3 episode of Doctor Who "Utopia" we find out that he had caught a ride aboard the TARDIS.
Unfortunately we don't get to see such tight-kept continuity between the shows when we get to S3 & S4 of Torchwood, partly as they had different lead writers at that point.
Continuity...Cpt Jack...face of Boe. (what did become of Rex - Bring back Torchwood!)
Yes! Brilliant.
That was almost as dumb as bad wolf. I like the idea but it was executed so poorly. Instead of adding some clever things they literally have Jack refer to himself as the face of boe in a very unnaturally written conversation.
Although not actually stated in the show (as far as I remember: casual viewer!)-
In 'The Day of the Doctor', all the Doctors incarnations up to that point, AND the 13th Doctor all appear and team up to save Gallifrey at the end of the time war..... but it was only 10, 11 and the War Doctor who met- his previous incarnations just 'showed up', no explanation!
But then at the end of Peter Capaldi's run in 'Twice upon a time', his Doctor meets the first Doctor, & I like to think that somewhen during that meeting he told the first Doctor everything he needed to know about the plan to save Gallifrey, so all his incarnations turned up!
I noticed that too. My theory is: near the end of this episode, both War Doctor and 10 realise they won't remember their adventures with 11, due to some "time-streams returning to normal" hand-wavey stuff. Upon re-watching that scene, I thought "Hang on, won't that apply to 11 as well, since 12 made an appearance?".
So, I'm theorising that 11 simply won't be able to remember 12 because of the same "time-stream" stuff. Indeed, that whole final scene is implied to be a dream of 11, and therefore from his perspective, not the audience, so the fact that *we've* seen 12 is irrelevant, since 11 doesn't remember him.
I've just realised the only problem with this theory is that *then*- in the same scene- we see The Curator come on, and it's implied (ambiguously) that this also might be a future incarnation of The Doctor. If that were the case, 11 *shouldn't* remember that, but it's shown he still does. Thankfully, it's ambiguous enough to resist coming to a definite conclusion. :)
Fun fact: They even keep the Bad Wolf thing going in the 9th Doctor novels! For example, one villain comments how the Doctor keeps turning up "like a bad wolf", and he corrects her use of the expression.
Just need to be one of the probably thousands of people to point out that Mister Saxon is an anagram of Master no. six.
Extra point of continuity
in the Torchwood season 1 episode "Captain Jack Harkness"
a poster reading "VOTE SAXON" was on the door of a building Jack and Toshiko spend most of the episode in
this series was set before doctor who season 3 meaning it lines up as a in world teaser in a different show
I think one important one you missed was the link between the classic episode "The Five Doctors", which was the 20th anniversary special, and Matt Smith's farewell episode, "The Time of the Doctor." There are two pieces of continuity here, the first being the reiteration that Time Lords only have twelve regenerations, but the High Council has the ability to grant another set if they deem it necessary. Second, the Doctor was able to contact the High Council on Gallifrey using the seal they gave to the Master, and was then taken by the Doctor, in that episode.
I could also mention the various references to the Fourth Doctor episode "The Deadly Assassin" in the season 12 finale, but I thought the other more significant.
I'd say your better than Watchmojo, they can't even pronounce 'Davros' correct
also just a nice voice to listen to
@@harlequin5664 ikr
Did you not hear this guy say 'Dav-rose' too?
@@SuperEpicNiceGuy that's how it has been pronounced since classic who. Both pronunciations are correct.
@@peterthirdandthebridges no... no, it's not. Just not.
This was more or less a ‘My Top 8 Series Arcs’ ranking.
To me, Doctor Who continuity is something that spans across several series, harking back to older stories - classic or new. It acknowledges previously established plot devices and wider history. For example:
- The ‘Bad Wolf’ message from Series 1 reappearing in Series 4
- The establishment of Torchwood in Series 2, and having it even name dropped in Series 12.
- The 13th Doctor remembering Bill in ‘The Haunting of Villa Diodati’ (Jodie mentions it herself in a behind the scenes)
The Bad Wolf plot was my favourite, subtle yet with awesome payoff. I think it all went wrong in the Moffat years when subtly when out the window and was replaced by a sledgehammer and yet at the same time plots became so complex that the payoff is lost because your still trying to work out that tangled knot. I may get some hate on that I know but does anyone else miss the subtleties of the Daversion era?
There is a really nice moment in Remembrance of the Daleks (7th Doctor). In the corner of a room there is a TV switched on, which no one seems to be paying attention to. The TV is tuned to the BBC and the announcer is introducing a new TV science fiction show - the scene cuts out before the name of the show is mentioned - which is the very first episode of Doctor Who.
Fantastic video, there is also a minor detail I thought I’d mention. In 9th doctor series there is a minor reference to torchwood, in 10th doctor series there is a minor reference to Harold Saxon too, just thought I’d throw those in there, but the Bad Wolf and Torchwood were my faves
Where are these mentions?
I also loved how well they managed continuity between Dr Who, and series 1-2 of Torchwood, like the Vote Saxon posters appearing all over the place in Torchwood and the way Captain Jack jumped between the two series.
And the hand in the jar jumping between shows as well all the way from the Christmas invasion
Bonus points for the Saxon arc in that his campaign posters appear in a couple of episodes of Torchwood that were set/ aired just before the Sound of Drums.
Are you afraid of the big bad wolf, Doctor?
The Coal Hill School is another great example of new to old continuity. The first two companions were teachers there and Susan his Granddaughter was a student. It appears again in the 25th aniversary in 1988. Then Clara teaches there in series 8 and 9 beginning with the 50th anniversary special.
The Torchwood continuity deserved a mention! Going as far back as the Bad Wolf Part 1 finale as an offhand mention in the Weakest Link segment.
7:19 I think and argument could be made that when she mentions the "Bone Meadows" in her first episode, it could have been a precursor reference to Angels Take Manhattan where they frequently end up in a graveyard. Not a direct reference but a definite link.
Oh, and the novelization of "Shada" actually made Clare (actual spelling) an echo of Clara. Granted, she really doesn't look like her, but I personally apply the "Star Trek" theory to the older shows -- we're seeing the same people and tech, we're just seeing them differently when need be. (In this case, she really was a Clara echo, but because Jenna Coleman wasn't born yet, they used Victoria Burgoyne to fill in for her. :P)
I think the near-perfect execution of story arcs over multiple seasons was one of the reasons that the new guy Chin what's-his-face Ball what's-his-face didn't even try to reopen any links to all that winning content, and instead, cobbled together a bunch of history lessons and called it "Doctor Who."
When The Master as Harold Saxon lists some of The Dr's achievements he includes sealing the Medusa Cascade. Which is still in the Dr's future a whole season later...
Love this (although I think I'd describe it more as great story telling than continuity). Harold Saxon was actually mentioned even earlier. The order to shoot the Racnoss 'star' in the episode 'The Runaway Bride' came from... Harold Saxon! Also, Bad Wolf comes up in the 50th Anniversary addition when Billy Piper plays The Moment. I love these threads that run through Who.
Continuity in the golden age of doctor who between its spin-offs SJA, and Torchwood. Particularly, with Vote Saxon in Torchwood, the sound of the tardis leading to Utopia Season 3, and "no one will ever forget you" playing on Donna and the doctor in SJA.
“the first incarnation of the Doctor ever”
*laughs in Timeless Child*
Extra thing about the Donna ark, you didn't need to be a long running fan to know her as she was part of her own spin off show (and so was Jack but he was new anyway) SO double win as its also a cross over!
What about when the actress playing Martha also played a Torchwood employee who was killed by the Cybermen in Army of Ghosts, and the first time we meet Martha she mentions (by name) her cousin (played by her) who who was killed? I thought that was pretty cool and clever what they did with something so subtle.
But the silence is the biggest arc because is spans from 11s first episode to the final episode of his run in "The Name of The Doctor"
Most of these on not so much successes of continuity but just the “Mystery Box” of its respective season (Series 1: Bad Wolf, Series 3: Vote Saxon, Series 4: Missing Planets/Bees Disappearing, Series 5: Cracks, Series 6: Window Woman, Series 7: Impossible Girl, Series 8: Heaven Woman, Series 9: Hybrid, Series 10: Vault).
"But you know what's even sexier?"
Proceeds to talk about the Subscribe button while Karen Gillan is onscreen.
Continuity isn't just about making current/future stories fit within the established ones, and not adding anything that contradicts them (*cough* Moffat), it's about inserting tiny little details like destroying Big Ben then having it being repaired later, Davros recognising Sarah Jane, the Carrionite orb appearing in The Unicorn and the Wasp, the Doctor and the Master mentioning the Sea Devils and Axons and watching the Teletubbies (a reference to the Clangers), and the number of times the Doctor mentions the Shadow Proclamation. RTD did it best.
The way you say ‘Daleks’ and ‘Davros’
My favorite was the start of the ESpace story arc when Romana was called back to Gallifrey and The Doctor was looking forward to seeing Leela again.
River song =Melody pond Love her character masterfully played
The Bad Wolf thing is such a good continuity that near where i live there is a wall with a lot of graphity and a big "Bad Wolf" written on there
How did the creators did that? Lol
5:41 wait, so your telling me the bees pulled a “So long, and thanks for all the fish!”?
How does "The Impossible Girl" get the top spot over "The Doctor Donna"??
Yes you really nailed it these are my favorite episodes of Doctor Who.
I noticed one mistake, in that you said time travellers would remember the people who went through the crack but Amy completly forgot about Rory even though the Doctor tried to get her to remember him. She was a time traveller at the time so this negates that statement.
this is explained in the episode though. Rory was part of Amy's *personal* history, and that's why she lost all memory of him whilst The Doctor remembered.
i will never stop talking about season4 having this huge continuity with ‘there is something in your back’ or ‘she is returning’ or ‘the bees are disappearing’ or the pop ups of rose, nothing will ever top season4
My personal favourite was the River Song - Melody Pond reveal.
a little bit of continuity that what almost certainly unintentional, but is absolutely beautiful in retrospect:
HOST: Information. Now you will die.
FOON: You're coming with me.
DOCTOR: No!
...NO MORE.
DAVROS: But you promised me, Dalek Caan. Why did you not foresee this?
DOCTOR: Oh, I think he did. Something's been manipulating the timelines for ages, getting Donna Noble to the right place at the right time.
CAAN: This would always have happened. I only helped, Doctor.
DAVROS: You betrayed the Daleks.
CAAN: I saw the Daleks. What we have done, throughout time and space, I saw the truth of us, Creator, and I decreed, NO MORE!
DOCTOR: You see now? That's what they were planning in the final days of the War. I had to stop them.
MASTER: Then, take me with you, Lord President. Let me ascend into glory.
RASSILON: You are diseased, albeit a disease of our own making. NO MORE.
WHISPER MEN: The man who lies will lie NO MORE when this man lies at Trenzalore.
CLARA: Waste NO MORE time arguing about what a good man should be. Be one. Marcus Aurelius.
WAR DOCTOR: Time Lords of Gallifrey, Daleks of Skaro, I serve notice on you all. Too long I have stayed my hand. No more. Today you leave me no choice. Today, this war will end. NO MORE.
and then continuity went out the window with the timeless child
Not really
@@MichaelJohnson-kq7qg then explain how river is able to regenerate when the explanation in the first place was that the time vortex gave timelords the ability to regenerate but now its that they injected themselves with the doctor's dna? or the fact rassilon asked "how many regenerations did we give you" or the fact the doctor's DNA is recognised as timelord meaning its recognised as galifrayon but he isn't part of their species it ruins continuity and cannon
ua-cam.com/video/oL2B-AAnsHo/v-deo.html
@@thedrifter5531 River Song couldn't have been exposed to the Time Vortex, because the TARDIS is shielded. It was already a plot hole.
@@kaicreech7336 i mean a tank is shielded but things still get through the time vortex would have to give off some sort of radiation to cause the mutation that gave them regeneration meaning that even tho the tardis is shielded unharmful amounts of the radiation would leak through plus its a reasonable plot whole that doesn't make someones existence impossible what could have caused river to be able to regenerate if not time vortex radiation
What River says about the Doctor leading away an army and that moment in season 5, she was never actually there to see that, she was in the Tardis
You left out the fact Torchwood was mentioned by the annedroid in Badwolf when asking the first set of questions then again in the Christmas invation followed by Tooth and Claw, rise of the cybermen (also foreshadowing the fact there was a Torchwood in petes world), impossible planet then obviously the two part finally
you should perhaps do a part two focusing on 8 Times Classic Doctor Who Nailed Continuity & a follow-up video or two where Doctor Who Failed Continuity
Time War is just not a 'world ending' it is a potentially 'Universe Ending' War.
the fact big finish series gallifrey send a cia agent who we see in genesis of the daleks give the doctor the mission
Ecclsons Series One is like a dream, the music and the mysteries , after watching it you wonder did it even happen, its that Haunting.
Also Badwolf and Harold Saxon and the missing planets are some of the best story arcs and foreshadowing on TV
do you know there was a character called clara in the episode of the 1st dr in 1966 called The Celestial Toymaker she wasclara / queen of hearts
Bad wolf and river song interactions was mind blowing,
This is more story arcs than continuity. A good example of continuity would be in the episode The Fires of Pompeii when the 10th Doctor claims “that fire” had nothing to do with him. He’s referring to events in the First Doctor's adventure “The Romans,” in which he accidentally sets fire to a map, triggering the Great Fire of Rome in AD64.
I wouldn't say this list really constitutes as 'nailing continuity' - more like a list of the best 'set-ups and pay offs'
Continuity detail is something a little more subtle - such as remembering where Sarah Jane was dropped off in the original series before picking her back up again, or (as someone else mentioned) the fact that big ben is destroyed, and an episode or so later, we see it in the background being repaired.
Harold Saxon also gets a namecheck in the Runaway Bride before Series 3 - the tank that shoots at the Racnoss' ship does so on the 'orders of Harold Saxon'.
Missing Planets - the lost moon of Poosh gets a mention in Midnight, which is also revealed to be one of the missing planets.