The Family of Blood
Encyclopedia
"The Family of Blood" is the ninth episode of Series 3 of the British
science fiction television series Doctor Who
. Preceded by "Human Nature
", it is the second episode of a two-part story written by Paul Cornell
adapted from his 1995 Doctor Who novel Human Nature (co-plotted with Kate Orman
). The episode was first broadcast on BBC One
on 2 June 2007.
It is 1913 in England and war has come a year in advance as the terrifying Family hunts for the Doctor
. But when John Smith refuses to accept his destiny as a Time Lord
, the women in his life — Martha
and Joan — have to help him decide.
In a Doctor Who Magazine
interview, Executive Producer Russell T Davies characterised the "Human Nature"/"Family of Blood" two-parter as perhaps being too dark for the program's audience. In 2008, both "Human Nature" and "The Family of Blood" were nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form.
and Joan Redfern captive at the village dance and are forcing the Doctor
, hiding as "John Smith, human", to choose one of them to sacrifice. As John struggles with the dilemma, Timothy Latimer — in possession of the Doctor's fob watch containing his Time Lord "essence" — opens it briefly, which momentarily distracts the Family, enabling Martha to grab Mother's gun and escape with John, Joan, and the others back to the school, where John helps to organise the school's defenses while Martha and Joan search for the watch.
The Family assault the school with an army of scarecrow
s, but the schoolboys defend against the first wave. When the Family shows John that they have discovered his TARDIS
, Joan accepts the truth — John really is the Doctor. As the Family continues their assault, John, Joan and Martha escape to the home of the family of the little girl whom the Family had taken, where they are found by Tim Latimer, with the watch.
Discovering that the Doctor has escaped, the Family begins an aerial bombardment of the village. Sheltered in the Cartwright home, Martha and Joan implore John to use the watch to become the Doctor and save everyone. John is very reluctant; he loves the life he has, but Joan understands that the Doctor is needed now.
John boards the Family's ship, surrendering the watch and pleading for the bombardment to stop. When the Family open the watch, it's empty — John has already changed back into the Doctor. After a warning, the Doctor then wreaks calm, merciless retribution: he gives them a hellish form of what they sought — immortality. He pushes Mother of Mine out of the TARDIS into the event horizon
of a collapsing galaxy, wraps Father in unbreakable chains forged in the heart of a dwarf star
, traps Sister in every mirror
in existence, and suspends Son of Mine as a scarecrow. The Doctor returns to Joan, offering her a chance to join him aboard the TARDIS, but she declines. The Doctor leaves his journal with her.
Timothy bids goodbye; the Doctor gives him the now-ordinary fob watch to keep. Years later, a World War I
battle rages. While helping Hutchinson, Timothy recognises the moment from an earlier vision, thus avoiding a shell strike; both survive the war. In Timothy's old age, he spots the Doctor and Martha from afar, both wearing remembrance poppies. Timothy and the Doctor quietly acknowledge each other.
memorial scene, took place at Llandaff Cathedral
;
The female vicar at the service is a recurring element in Cornell's writing. The building used as the school is a private house, the Grade I-listed Treberfydd
in Bwlch
a few miles south of Brecon
Other scenes, including the cricket ball stunt and scenes at Cartwrights' cottage were filmed at St Fagans National History Museum
, Cardiff.
and Bernice Summerfield
, with their roles replaced on television by the Tenth Doctor
and Martha Jones. Key changes from the novel include the fate of the villains, who in the novel are shapeshifter
s called Aubertides. In the book, the explosion traps them for eternity in their own "temporal shields", although the irony of them now living forever is not commented on. Another alteration to the ending is that the Aubertides have captured Joan, and are holding her hostage for the biodata module. When the Doctor arrives, pretending to be Smith, the module is not empty, but contains the John Smith persona. One of the Aubertides therefore becomes Smith, and betrays the others, sacrificing himself to save Joan.
The scenes with the restored Doctor and Joan are also different; in the novel, the Seventh Doctor admits he cannot love Joan the way John did. The Tenth Doctor believes he is capable of everything John was capable of, although there is a clear difference in his demeanor after he has been restored to a Time Lord. Joan can sense the difference and this is just as distressing for her.
The last scenes of the episode are based on the novel's epilogue, although, in the novel, Tim does not join the army, but saves the life of a character who was destined to die in the War (not Hutchinson, who does) as a member of the Red Cross, and at the memorial service he wears a white poppy. This contrasts sharply with the episode, where Tim's reaction to being told "You don't have to fight" is "I think I do".
Martha's blog for the episode starts "Long ago in an English winter". This was the last sentence of Cornell's first New Adventures novel Timewyrm: Revelation
. The last sentence of Human Nature is "Long ago in an English spring", concluding a pattern that continued through Love and War
and No Future
.
Reviews
United Kingdom
The United Kingdom of Great Britain and Northern IrelandIn the United Kingdom and Dependencies, other languages have been officially recognised as legitimate autochthonous languages under the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages...
science fiction television series Doctor Who
Doctor Who
Doctor Who is a British science fiction television programme produced by the BBC. The programme depicts the adventures of a time-travelling humanoid alien known as the Doctor who explores the universe in a sentient time machine called the TARDIS that flies through time and space, whose exterior...
. Preceded by "Human Nature
Human Nature (Doctor Who episode)
"Human Nature" is the eighth episode of the third series of the revived British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It is the first episode of a two-part story written by Paul Cornell adapted from his 1995 Doctor Who novel Human Nature...
", it is the second episode of a two-part story written by Paul Cornell
Paul Cornell
Paul Cornell is a British writer best known for his work in television drama as well as Doctor Who fiction, and as the creator of one of the Doctor's spin-off companions, Bernice Summerfield....
adapted from his 1995 Doctor Who novel Human Nature (co-plotted with Kate Orman
Kate Orman
Kate Orman is an Australian author, best known for her books connected to the British science-fiction television series Doctor Who.-Biography:...
). The episode was first broadcast on BBC One
BBC One
BBC One is the flagship television channel of the British Broadcasting Corporation in the United Kingdom. It was launched on 2 November 1936 as the BBC Television Service, and was the world's first regular television service with a high level of image resolution...
on 2 June 2007.
It is 1913 in England and war has come a year in advance as the terrifying Family hunts for the Doctor
Doctor (Doctor Who)
The Doctor is the central character in the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who, and has also featured in two cinema feature films, a vast range of spin-off novels, audio dramas and comic strips connected to the series....
. But when John Smith refuses to accept his destiny as a Time Lord
Time Lord
The Time Lords are an ancient extraterrestrial race and civilization of humanoids in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, of which the series' eponymous protagonist, the Doctor, is a member...
, the women in his life — Martha
Martha Jones
Martha Jones is a fictional character played by Freema Agyeman in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. She is a companion of the Tenth Doctor in Doctor Who, replacing Rose Tyler...
and Joan — have to help him decide.
In a Doctor Who Magazine
Doctor Who Magazine
Doctor Who Magazine is a magazine devoted to the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who...
interview, Executive Producer Russell T Davies characterised the "Human Nature"/"Family of Blood" two-parter as perhaps being too dark for the program's audience. In 2008, both "Human Nature" and "The Family of Blood" were nominated for the Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form.
Plot
The Family of Blood hold MarthaMartha Jones
Martha Jones is a fictional character played by Freema Agyeman in the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who and its spin-off series, Torchwood. She is a companion of the Tenth Doctor in Doctor Who, replacing Rose Tyler...
and Joan Redfern captive at the village dance and are forcing the Doctor
Doctor (Doctor Who)
The Doctor is the central character in the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who, and has also featured in two cinema feature films, a vast range of spin-off novels, audio dramas and comic strips connected to the series....
, hiding as "John Smith, human", to choose one of them to sacrifice. As John struggles with the dilemma, Timothy Latimer — in possession of the Doctor's fob watch containing his Time Lord "essence" — opens it briefly, which momentarily distracts the Family, enabling Martha to grab Mother's gun and escape with John, Joan, and the others back to the school, where John helps to organise the school's defenses while Martha and Joan search for the watch.
The Family assault the school with an army of scarecrow
Scarecrow
A scarecrow is, essentially, a decoy, though traditionally, a human figure dressed in old clothes and placed in fields by farmers to discourage birds such as crows or sparrows from disturbing and feeding on recently cast seed and growing crops.-History:In Kojiki, the oldest surviving book in Japan...
s, but the schoolboys defend against the first wave. When the Family shows John that they have discovered his TARDIS
TARDIS
The TARDISGenerally, TARDIS is written in all upper case letters—this convention was popularised by the Target novelisations of the 1970s...
, Joan accepts the truth — John really is the Doctor. As the Family continues their assault, John, Joan and Martha escape to the home of the family of the little girl whom the Family had taken, where they are found by Tim Latimer, with the watch.
Discovering that the Doctor has escaped, the Family begins an aerial bombardment of the village. Sheltered in the Cartwright home, Martha and Joan implore John to use the watch to become the Doctor and save everyone. John is very reluctant; he loves the life he has, but Joan understands that the Doctor is needed now.
John boards the Family's ship, surrendering the watch and pleading for the bombardment to stop. When the Family open the watch, it's empty — John has already changed back into the Doctor. After a warning, the Doctor then wreaks calm, merciless retribution: he gives them a hellish form of what they sought — immortality. He pushes Mother of Mine out of the TARDIS into the event horizon
Event horizon
In general relativity, an event horizon is a boundary in spacetime beyond which events cannot affect an outside observer. In layman's terms it is defined as "the point of no return" i.e. the point at which the gravitational pull becomes so great as to make escape impossible. The most common case...
of a collapsing galaxy, wraps Father in unbreakable chains forged in the heart of a dwarf star
Dwarf star
The term dwarf star refers to a variety of distinct classes of stars.* Dwarf star alone generally refers to any main sequence star, a star of luminosity class V.** Red dwarfs are low-mass main sequence stars....
, traps Sister in every mirror
Bloody Mary (folklore)
Bloody Mary is a ghost or witch featured in English folklore. She is said to appear in a mirror when her name is called three times or sometimes more while in a dark room, depending upon the version of the story, often as part of a game or dare.-Overview:...
in existence, and suspends Son of Mine as a scarecrow. The Doctor returns to Joan, offering her a chance to join him aboard the TARDIS, but she declines. The Doctor leaves his journal with her.
Timothy bids goodbye; the Doctor gives him the now-ordinary fob watch to keep. Years later, a World War I
World War I
World War I , which was predominantly called the World War or the Great War from its occurrence until 1939, and the First World War or World War I thereafter, was a major war centred in Europe that began on 28 July 1914 and lasted until 11 November 1918...
battle rages. While helping Hutchinson, Timothy recognises the moment from an earlier vision, thus avoiding a shell strike; both survive the war. In Timothy's old age, he spots the Doctor and Martha from afar, both wearing remembrance poppies. Timothy and the Doctor quietly acknowledge each other.
Production
John Smiths wedding and the Remembrance DayRemembrance Day
Remembrance Day is a memorial day observed in Commonwealth countries since the end of World War I to remember the members of their armed forces who have died in the line of duty. This day, or alternative dates, are also recognized as special days for war remembrances in many non-Commonwealth...
memorial scene, took place at Llandaff Cathedral
Llandaff Cathedral
Llandaff Cathedral is the seat of the Bishop of Llandaff, head of the Church in Wales Diocese of Llandaff. It is situated in the district of Llandaff in the city of Cardiff, the capital of Wales. The current building was constructed in the 12th century over the site of an earlier church...
;
The female vicar at the service is a recurring element in Cornell's writing. The building used as the school is a private house, the Grade I-listed Treberfydd
Treberfydd
Treberfydd is a Victorian country house built in Gothic Revival style in 1847-50, just south of Llangorse Lake in the Brecon Beacons National Park in Wales.It is surrounded by of landscaped gardens and is open to the public during August....
in Bwlch
Bwlch
Bwlch is a small village on a col between two hills, where the present day A40 road now runs, between Brecon and Crickhowell in Powys, southern Wales...
a few miles south of Brecon
Other scenes, including the cricket ball stunt and scenes at Cartwrights' cottage were filmed at St Fagans National History Museum
St Fagans National History Museum
St Fagans National History Museum , commonly referred to as St Fagans after the village where it is located, is an open-air museum in Cardiff chronicling the historical lifestyle, culture and architecture of the Welsh people...
, Cardiff.
Continuity
- A clip from "The Runaway BrideThe Runaway Bride (Doctor Who)"The Runaway Bride" is a special episode of the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who, starring David Tennant as the Tenth Doctor...
" is used as a mental projection when Latimer terrifies the Sister with an image of the Doctor at his most cruel and merciless, drowning the children of the Empress of the Racnoss. - The Master is seen to have used the same "Chameleon Arch" technology in "UtopiaUtopia (Doctor Who)"Utopia" is an episode of the British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It was broadcast on BBC One on 16 June 2007 and is the eleventh episode of series three of the revived Doctor Who series...
", having rewritten his DNA in order to assume the human identity of Professor Yana. His Time Lord consciousness is also stored in a fob watch. - The Doctor, in the Guise of Mr Smith, is convinced that his parents were called Sydney and Verity, the writer's reference to the programme's original creators Verity Lambert and Sydney Newman.
- In The End of TimeThe End of TimeThe End of Time: The Next Revolution in Our Understanding of the Universe, also sold with the alternate subtitle The Next Revolution in Physics, is a 1999 science book in which the author Julian Barbour argues that time exists merely as an illusion.-Auto-biography:The book begins by describing how...
, the Doctor has a book, Journal of Impossible Things, signed by the great-granddaughter of Joan, Verity Newman, who authored the book based on Joan's diary. - When Hutchinson accuses Latimer of being a coward he responds "Oh, yes, sir! Every time!". The ninth doctor responds to the question posed by the dalek emperor if he is a killer or coward in the episode The Parting of the WaysThe Parting of the Ways"The Parting of the Ways" is an episode in the British science fiction television series Doctor Who, which was first broadcast on 18 June 2005. It was the second episode of the two-part story that featured Christopher Eccleston making his last appearance as the Ninth Doctor...
with "Coward. Any day."
Comparison with the novel
The novel featured the Seventh DoctorSeventh Doctor
The Seventh Doctor is the seventh incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He was portrayed by the actor Sylvester McCoy....
and Bernice Summerfield
Bernice Summerfield
Bernice Surprise Summerfield is a fictional character created by author Paul Cornell as a new companion of the Seventh Doctor in Virgin Publishing's range of original full-length Doctor Who novels, the New Adventures...
, with their roles replaced on television by the Tenth Doctor
Tenth Doctor
The Tenth Doctor is the tenth incarnation of the protagonist of the long-running BBC television science-fiction series Doctor Who. He is played by David Tennant, who appears in three series, as well as eight specials...
and Martha Jones. Key changes from the novel include the fate of the villains, who in the novel are shapeshifter
ShapeShifter
ShapeShifter is an Application Enhancer plugin for Mac OS X developed by Unsanity that allows the user to make system-wide modifications to the appearance of the operating system's graphical interface by applying GUI skins through “injection” into running code and without modifying system files,...
s called Aubertides. In the book, the explosion traps them for eternity in their own "temporal shields", although the irony of them now living forever is not commented on. Another alteration to the ending is that the Aubertides have captured Joan, and are holding her hostage for the biodata module. When the Doctor arrives, pretending to be Smith, the module is not empty, but contains the John Smith persona. One of the Aubertides therefore becomes Smith, and betrays the others, sacrificing himself to save Joan.
The scenes with the restored Doctor and Joan are also different; in the novel, the Seventh Doctor admits he cannot love Joan the way John did. The Tenth Doctor believes he is capable of everything John was capable of, although there is a clear difference in his demeanor after he has been restored to a Time Lord. Joan can sense the difference and this is just as distressing for her.
The last scenes of the episode are based on the novel's epilogue, although, in the novel, Tim does not join the army, but saves the life of a character who was destined to die in the War (not Hutchinson, who does) as a member of the Red Cross, and at the memorial service he wears a white poppy. This contrasts sharply with the episode, where Tim's reaction to being told "You don't have to fight" is "I think I do".
Martha's blog for the episode starts "Long ago in an English winter". This was the last sentence of Cornell's first New Adventures novel Timewyrm: Revelation
Timewyrm: Revelation
Timewyrm: Revelation is an original Doctor Who novel, published by Virgin Publishing in their New Adventures range of Doctor Who novels...
. The last sentence of Human Nature is "Long ago in an English spring", concluding a pattern that continued through Love and War
Love and War (Doctor Who)
Love and War is an original novel written by Paul Cornell and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Seventh Doctor, Ace and introduces a new companion, Bernice Summerfield...
and No Future
No Future
No Future is an original novel written by Paul Cornell and based on the long-running British science fiction television series Doctor Who. It features the Seventh Doctor, Ace and Bernice. A prelude to the novel, also penned by Cornell, appeared in Doctor Who Magazine #209...
.
Reception
Along with "Human Nature", "The Family of Blood" was nominated for the 2008 Hugo Award for Best Dramatic Presentation, Short Form. David Tennant won the Constellation Award for Best Male Performance in a 2007 Science Fiction Television Episode for his dual role as John Smith and the Doctor in this two-part story.External links
- "We are the Family of Blood": episode trailer
Reviews