Bob (The Time of Angels)


 * See also: Bob (disambiguation page).

Bob was a Cleric, and a member of Father Octavian's mission to track down the last Weeping Angel, which was on the Byzantium when it crashed. Like the rest of Octavian's clerics, he was given a sacred name in the service of the church. During the expedition in the "Maze of the Dead", he was scolded for showing fear and wasting ammunition on a seemingly harmless statue. The Doctor however encouraged him and told him that his fear would keep him alive.

Bob was killed by a Weeping Angel when it snapped his neck, after luring him in by using the voices of the other clergymen. However, the Doctor could still communicate with Bob through Father Octavian's communication device. He explained that the Angels lack a voice, so it callously stripped Bob of his cerebral cortex and copied his consciousness to use him has a mouthpiece to talk to the Doctor. Bob's consciousness confirmed that, while painful, at least his death "was quick and didn't hurt as much as he thought it would."

Bob's consciousness confirmed the Doctor's suspicion that the crash of the Byzantium was a rescue mission on the Angel's part. While its brethren were still feeding on the ship's temporal core to heal, it was coming for the Doctor and the others, and it would enjoy killing them.

The Angel tried to anger the Doctor by having Bob's consciousness also tell him how his words of encouragement ultimately failed the soldier: he died alone and in fear. The Doctor expressed sincere regret for Bob's death, and promised to what remained of him that he would make the Angels even more sorry for what they had done. (DW: The Time of Angels)

Bob, on the Angels' behalf, told the Doctor about their plans to use the ship's power to form an army and take over other worlds. When the Doctor was trapped in the control room of the Byzantium, he asked him what he was doing and amused him by making the Angel say "comfy chairs". When Bob informed the Doctor the Angels were making Amy count down just for fun, he threw away the communication device in anger.

When the Byzantium's power had almost been completely drained, "Angel Bob" came face to face with the Doctor. He told him to jump into the rift which had emerged from the crack in the control room, to save the Angels and his friends. However, as the last of the ship's power was drained, the gravity shield failed and the Angels fell into rift. What was left of Bob supposedly disappeared forever along with them. (DW: Flesh and Stone)

Angel Bob refers to The Doctor as "The Doctor in the TARDIS", as did Prisoner Zero. This may be one of the five recurring themes mentioned by Steven Moffat.

Although his cerebral cortex was likely erased from history, the rest of Bob's body is still presumably somewhere in the Maze of the Dead.


 * Bob explained that his, like all clerics' names, is a sacred one. This may be a reference to the real-life mock Church of the SubGenius.