Not sure how much I should say here in case of spoiling things for those who haven't seen it yet. I guess if you don't want to be spoiled you wouldn't be in this thread though?

Anyway, I hated and loved Rory's on-screen end in equal measure. Hated because after all he's been through: POOF! and he's gone. Loved because it reminded me of Tara's from Buffy death back in the day; No chance to say goodbye is in many ways more emotional than the spoken goodbye's like Amy's. Cried like a baby during the whole scene, and I don't usually cry at tv shows.

In many ways I thought this was a more interesting episode for Eleven/River. The Doctor doing his last checks before seeing the Mrs was adorable, as was healing her and kissing her hand *swoon*. Also River trying to hide her broken wrist from him, and then her explanation why, was very sad. She is just a human now (I think). In love with an ageless, immortal god. With the face of a 12 year old. She is trying to protect him from that.

Seriously I really enjoyed this episode. I think it's my favourite for quite a while.

Aaaaahhhh this is too hard to handle! It was so sweet, and so sad. You see so much more of the Doctor's tender side, that he never shows, because he's gotten to love River so much. And let Amy know how much he loves her too. But you also get to see that he's so right when he said all those times before that he was selfish, and the people close to him get hurt, and that's why he kept his distance for so long. But Amy got in there before he could put his guard up, and Rory came along too, and he lost them, and Rory's dad will never know what happened to them. He will just grow old and never see his son or daughter in law again and grow to regret telling them to go with the Doctor.

In many ways I thought this was a more interesting episode for Eleven/River. The Doctor doing his last checks before seeing the Mrs was adorable, as was healing her and kissing her hand *swoon*. Also River trying to hide her broken wrist from him, and then her explanation why, was very sad. She is just a human now (I think). In love with an ageless, immortal god. With the face of a 12 year old. She is trying to protect him from that.

Seriously I really enjoyed this episode. I think it's my favourite for quite a while.

That was one of my favorite things about this episode too, the tenderness between 11 and River. I don't think I've ever seen a Doctor fess up to that kind of romantic love or show it so openly. I mean, WE all know that 10 loved Rose, but this was an episode of actually like, relationshipy stuff between 11 and River. I loved it.

It was enjoyable, but the plot holes really made it difficult to be totally invested in.

It was a well crafted episode, and decidedly NOT over the top as Moffat is so prone to doing for these sorts of episodes. The noir character being river was great. The communicating through the book was great. The yowza was great. The rapport in the park was also great.

Plot holes? River had a time vortex manipulator. She could have got free of the Angel without breaking her wrist. Perhaps she forgot about it? Where's our techno-babble reason for why she couldn't use it?

Amy and Rory going back in time became a fixed event, because he experienced it. As close as I can tell, these fixed events are like quantum probabilities collapsing. The device of reading ahead in the book in particular brings me to this view. And the Doctor can't go back and get them because time is so messed up in NY around 1930's. So why don't they just travel to another city and he could pick them up there? Why couldn't he get them in 1948?

I know I'm missing the point and am supposed to be feeling all "wah!!" about their leaving, and I will miss their characters immensely, but the inconsistencies are just bugging me.

Did you notice that Amy outlived Rory by a few years, according to the revised head stone? Did you also notice that the headstone changed, despite the whole premise that once something is known, it cannot be changed? That he was buried alone was known.

Gah! I'm going to stop thinking about it, because the more I do, the more holes I notice.

But the acting was fantastic.

Best saddest ending ever. The waterworks first came when her and Rory jumped off the building but when she sad goodbye raggity man" and then her name showed on the tombstone I LOST it. Great episode though and I will miss the Ponds very much.

She is just a human now (I think). In love with an ageless, immortal god.

She merely gave up her remaining regenerations. I doubt that caused her to become completely human -- but we won't know for sure without listening to her heart(s). She still has all of her Time Lord knowledge that was given to her, but I don't think the Gallifreyan biology (presence or lack of) has ever been touched upon yet. Of course it could be something similar to what happened in Shada where Time Lord knowledge was given temporarily to a human in order to fly a TARDIS without going through 65 years of training...

One of the biggest criticisms about Moffat taking over from Davies was that his supposed inability to write emotional stories.

Discuss.

I would say that's very false. From the beginning his stories were deeper, like The Girl in the Fireplace. It was one of my favorites before I even realized who Moffat was. Davies were so much... cheesier. Real drama as opposed to melodrama. And he basically invented the current doctor's heart, the arrogance and child-like wide-eyed-ness, and all the wibbly-wobbly-timey-wimeiness we now enjoy. Davies was safe.

I have to agree. "The Girl in the Fireplace" is likely my favourite Tennant Episode, for all of the obvious reasons.

Davies threw everything he had at DW, which included themes conducive to ratings, so that it would survive. He went with many "safe" themes because that improved the show's chances. In a way Moffat is reaping the reward of that groundwork, and can afford to be a bit more daring.

Still sad

it was nothing like rose/ten.

I agree, and good thing too!

I already saw Rose leave (twice). A third time would have been boring.

Also, there was no traditional love story between Amelia and the Doctor like there was with Rose. How could it be the same departure?