The Pandorica Opens (TV story)


 * You may be looking for the painting of the same name.

The Pandorica Opens was the twelfth episode of series 5 of the BBC Wales version of Doctor Who. It was the first part of a two part series finale. Its narrative concluded in the following episode.

At the time of its release, it was unique amongst BBC Wales series finales for a number of reasons. It was the first series-ender that had significant principal photography outside of Wales. It was also the first to have been the Doctor Who debut of its director and cinematographer. It was the first finale to have used major guest actors — aside from companions —that had featured in previous single episodes of the series. Finally, it featured the largest number of individual alien species seen in a single episode of Doctor Who since the programme began in 1963.

Synopsis
A Van Gogh painting ferried across thousands of years, communicating a disturbing prophecy to the Doctor, a message on the oldest cliff-face in the universe and a love that lasts a thousand years. In 102 AD England, Romans receive a surprise visit from Cleopatra. Nearby, Stonehenge conceals the Pandorica, a prison-box of legend. As it slowly unlocks from the inside, terrible forces gather in the heavens above. The fates are drawing close around the TARDIS. The Pandorica, which contains the most dangerous threat in the Universe, is opening. Only one thing is certain: "The Pandorica will open... silence will fall".

Plot
France, 1890

Van Gogh lies in bed, screaming. His doctor, Gachet and Madame Vernet are at his side. The woman comments on one of his paintings, saying it's worse than the usual ones.

Cabinet War Rooms, 1941

Professor Edwin Bracewell carries a rolled-up sheet under his arm. With Winston Churchill looking, Bracewell confirms the canvas to be a Van Gogh original, and Churchill is advised to get a message to the Doctor about it. Churchill makes a phone call.

Stormcage Containment Facility, 5145

A phone call is received. A young prison guard, only on his first day, answers, and says that there is no Doctor at the facility. River Song is in the cell, and demands that she talk to the person on the end. Having received the phone she is informed by Churchill of van Gogh's painting and it's message, until the guard takes it away. River realises he is new, and kisses him, using a hallucinogen in her lipstick to make him delirious, and she escapes.

The Royal Collection, 5145

River Song walks among the paintings in the Royal Collection gallery and finds the one she is looking for. However, on her way out she trips an alarm, and is attended to personally by the Queen - Elizabeth the Tenth. River tells her that this is for the Doctor, and Liz recognizes the name. Song shows her the picture - it is an impression of an exploding TARDIS.

The Maldovarium, 5145

River talks to a salesman at a bar, asking for a vortex manipulator from a Time Agent in return for a device for deactivating micro-explosives from up to 20ft - micro-explosives similar to those she had planted in the salesman's drink.

The TARDIS

The Doctor and Amy are in the TARDIS, and the Doctor has decided to go to the oldest cliff faces in history, made of pure diamond, to decipher the writings on the face that up until now have not been translated. When the TARDIS lands, however, the writing simply says "HELLO SWEETIE" and a set of temporal coordinates are written underneath.

The TARDIS lands in Roman Britain in the 2nd century AD, to be greeted by a guard. Amy comments on how the Romans, given that they were her favourite history topic at school, are unlike what she had been expecting languagewise. The guard takes them to "Cleopatra" - who actually turns out to be River Song in disguise. River shows the Doctor the painting, which given that he had retrieved a fragment of the TARDIS from a Time Field in the Silurian city in 2020, concerns the Doctor. River's previous warning to the Doctor, from her future self, that the Pandorica would open, also concerns him, and the Doctor decides to look for it. He looks at the Roman maps, since if someone had built such a device, they would want to remember where they left it.

The trio arrive at Stonehenge to look for the Pandorica. The Doctor uses his sonic screwdriver to search, and River uses a device from the 52nd century. The Pandorica is tracked to the underground, and they find the opening by night - also, by which time, nobody had noticed the Cyber-head on the ground, which begins to reactivate.

The Doctor finds the Pandorica, much more than just a legend, a large cube-shaped device with mechanics on the sides. There are many levels of security to this machine, and they are being de-activated one by one from the inside out. The Doctor speculates on what it could have been designed to contain, and Amy says how similar it is to Pandora's box, her favourite childhood book. River detects a signal coming from the area - six pillars lining the entrance are transmitting outwards, and she detects at least ten thousand ships in orbit - she cannot detect any more since signals overlap and confuse her scanner - potentially there could be a million objects above the sky, among which are a Dalek saucer, a Cyber Ship, a Sontaran flagship, a Slitheen vessel, a Judoon Rocket and an Atraxi, all presumably after whatever the Pandorica contains.

The Doctor decides to call on the Romans to help, and River goes back to use her influence as "Cleopatra" to talk them into helping. However, the legion commander has arrived with news that Cleopatra is in Egypt - and dead. River attempts to talk the commander into helping, eventually resorting to using her disintegrator pistol to demonstrate her power. However, before the commander can react, a volunteer arrives.

Back at Stonehenge, a Cyber arm on the floor of the chamber has reactivated, sending bolts of energy from its gun around the room. The Doctor tries to pick it up, but the electronic grip function on the arm incapacitates the Doctor. By now, the head has also worked its way down using tentacle-like wires from the neck section and a sleeper dart from one of the pipes hits Amy. The head opens - it is a type-2 upgrade, with the parts grafted directly onto the body. The skull of the previous occupant is ejected, and the body attempts to assimilate Amy. Amy manages to shake off the head, which the body of the Cyberman - missing an arm - replaces the head. Amy takes cover in a side room, but before the Cyberman can get to her, it is killed by the volunteer Roman, who is actually Rory.

The Doctor wakes and notices Rory, hardly reacting, and begins his speculations again. However, after a few minutes, he notices and they go through an awkward phase. The Doctor decides to address the fleet of ships in orbit, while River goes to fetch the TARDIS for some technology. The Doctor gives a speech on how he had defeated most of those aliens at some point, and the fleet falls back, giving them about half an hour to think things through. Once River is in the TARDIS, she attempts to go back to Stonehenge, but instead is thrown to 26th June 2010 - the date of the explosion that caused the cracks, as the Doctor previously discovered. She leaves the TARDIS just before an ominous warning is broadcast on the speakers - "Silence will fall", and then the screen at the centre console cracks. There are scorch marks on the ground, and River enters the house nearby, which has been broken into. By some of the things she finds, she deduces that this is Amy Pond's house, and finds a book on Roman Britain and Pandora's Box - things are exactly the same as they were where the Doctor is working - even the soldiers look identical. She attempts to return, but is instead thrown uncontrollably around the Time Vortex. She phones the Doctor to get help, who tells her to shut off the engines once he learns the date she is at - 26th June 2010. She can't deactivate the engines, so he tells her to shut them off automatically by landing and leaving the TARDIS. She lands, but the doors are locked.

The Romans begin falling asleep, but remain standing. Even Rory, who is talking to Amy and is not being recognized, begins to fail, but he resists. The Romans suddenly look up, and their hands fall away to reveal guns - they are in fact Autons, under the control of the Nestene Consciousness. The Doctor is escorted to the Pandorica, where he is greeted by the Dalek Supreme, Eternal and a single Drone, who have teleported in, and they state that the Doctor is responsible for the end of the universe. The Cybermen arrive and their Cyber Leader states that all evidence correlates - the Doctor is to blame. Various other species - Silurians, Sontarans, Judoon and Sycorax included - arrive and the Doctor realises that they have formed an alliance to save the universe from him. The alliance had built a perfect trap, using Amy's memories as building blocks. They believe that the TARDIS exploding will cause the end of the universe.

The Auton Rory is still fighting, but inadvertently shoots Amy while trying to resist the Consciousness' control. She supposedly dies in his arms. The Pandorica finally opens and inside is a holding cell, designed for a humanoid. The Daleks say that it is for the Doctor. The Doctor tries to protest, saying that it is the TARDIS that is the threat, not him, but the Daleks state that he is the only person who can fly it - since they are unaware of River's presence - and have him strapped into the holding cell. With the Doctor held firmly in place, the Cyber Leader orders the Pandorica to be closed but before it does, the Daleks say he will be prevented, he yells "Total event collapse! Every sun will supernova, at every moment in history! THE WHOLE UNIVERSE will never have existed, PLEASE LISTEN TO ME!" River manages to open the TARDIS door, but in front of her is a wall of stone. She says that she is sorry, and the TARDIS console explodes. There are thousands of explosions across the sky, and Earth is left in the middle of a void. Silence falls.

Cast

 * The Doctor - Matt Smith
 * Amy Pond - Karen Gillan
 * River Song - Alex Kingston
 * Auton Rory - Arthur Darvill
 * Bracewell - Bill Paterson
 * Winston Churchill - Ian McNeice
 * Liz 10 - Sophie Okonedo
 * Vincent van Gogh - Tony Curran
 * Dr. Gachet - Howard Lee
 * Madame Vernet - Chrissie Cotterill
 * Guard - Joe Jacobs
 * Dorium - Simon Fisher Becker
 * Claudio - Marcus O'Donovan
 * Commander - Clive Wood
 * Marcellus - David Fynn
 * Dalek Operator - Barnaby Edwards
 * Cyber-Leader - Ruari Mears
 * Commander Stark - Christopher Ryan
 * Judoon - Paul Kasey
 * Daleks/Cybermen (voice) - Nicholas Briggs (Uncredited)

Crew
to be added

Individuals

 * Vincent van Gogh has nightmares/visions about the destruction of the Doctor's TARDIS.
 * Winston Churchill attempts to contact the Doctor after Edwin Bracewell shows him Van Gogh's painting.
 * River Song steals The Pandorica Opens from Elizabeth X's Royal Collection.

Locations

 * The Pandorica is located under Stonehenge on Earth. Which the Doctor called "Underhenge".
 * River Song is in prison in Stormcage Containment Facility in 5145.
 * The Doctor's TARDIS takes River to Amy Pond's house.

Planets

 * Planet One is the oldest planet in the universe, it has "Hello Sweetie" written into one of its cliff faces.

Races and species

 * The Alliance consists of:
 * Atraxi
 * Blowfish
 * Chelonians
 * Cybermen
 * Daleks
 * Draconians
 * Drahvins
 * Hoix
 * Judoon
 * Nestene Consciousness
 * Roboforms
 * Silurians
 * Slitheen family
 * Sontarans
 * Commander Stark
 * Sycorax
 * Terileptils
 * Uvodni
 * Weevils
 * Zygons

TARDIS

 * The Doctor's TARDIS can re-route calls to the vortex.

Technology

 * The individual who sells River a vortex manipulator says he got it off the wrist of a "handsome Time Agent".

Story notes

 * This episode was incorrectly entitled Silver Sentence.
 * Amy Pond appeared to die in this episode.
 * Almost every major enemy since the beginning of the new Doctor Who series are mentioned though not all appeared. The list of enemies include the Daleks, the Cybus Cybermen, The Slitheen, the Sontarans, the Judoon, the Hoix, the Weevils, the Uvodni, the Sycorax, the Silurians, the Autons, the Roboform, the Nestene, the Chelonians, the Drahvins, the Atraxi, the Zygons, the Terileptils, and the Draconians. They formed an alliance, but some of them were unseen. The Weevils, Roboform and Uvodni are very hard to spot, but can be seen amongst the others shortly before the Pandorica closes; it is thought that they will make a more notable appearance in the second part, as a promo picture shows two Weevils very clearly together. The Slitheen were mentioned but not seen. River also mentions the Haemogoths, who briefly appeared in NSA: The Forgotten Army.
 * This is the first episode to feature an in-narrative use of the time vortex seen in the series 5 title sequence.
 * The Weevils, Blowfish and Uvodni are the first aliens originally from a spin-off series to appear in the main show.
 * The Chelonians from the novels get their first mention in a TV episode.
 * When River starts mentioning the aliens that are approaching the Doctor you can hear the Cyber-Leader and the Supreme Dalek talking about their plan on the Doctor.
 * The writing on the cliffs reads "HELLO SWEETIE ΘΣ Φ ΓΥΔϟ". ΘΣ (Theta Sigma) is a nickname used by the Doctor in the Time Lord Academy. However, since the the script quite clearly indicates the Greek letters are actually the co-ordinates to River's location in 102 AD England, it is possibly more instructive to view this as a sequence of Greek numerals.

Translating them non-additively, the numbers would be: Θ (9) Σ (200) Φ (500) Γ (3) Υ (400) Δ (4) ϟ (90) An additive translation — the usual way Greek numerals work — would be: 9, 200, 503, 404, 90. This gives co-ordinates in five dimensions, which corresponds to the number of dimensions Susan Foreman once told Ian Chesterton were necessary to calculate locations. (DW: An Unearthly Child)
 * This episode deliberately evoked the feel of the Indiana Jones franchise. River's scene at The Maldovarium is a gag drawn directly from the teaser sequence of Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom. The use of flambeaux in the cavernous "under Henge" was directly inspired by the teaser to Raiders of the Lost Ark. Finally director Toby Haynes played back a cue from Raiders while filming the sequence of the Doctor, River and Amy entering the "under Henge" in order to give the sequence appropriate tempo. (CON: "Alien Abduction")
 * Similarly, the sequence with the disembodied Cyberman head contains elements of John Carpenter's The Thing, in which one character is revealed to secretly be an alien being which other characters call "The Thing", and after attempts to kill him it manifests legs and antenna in his head, detaches itself and crawls away. The head in "The Thing" is quickly dispatched in the film; however, the Cyber-Head also emulates the whipping tendrils and eerie sound manifested by "The Thing" in its other incarnations in the movie. Additionally, like "The Thing" the sentinel Cyberman is seeking a new host body to sustain it. Also in VG: Blood of the Cybermen when they reach the GSO base, Amy asks the Doctor if he has seen The Thing.
 * Additionally, the disembodied Cyberman head tells Amy "You will be assimilated." This is a line associated with the Borg from Star Trek: The Next Generation, a cybernetic species similar to Cybermen whose intent was to integrate other species into their collective and assimilate their technology and knowledge to improve their own.
 * Amy Pond describes her deep interest in Roman culture. Karen Gillan's original appearance on Doctor Who was that of a soothsayer from Pompeii in DW: The Fires of Pompeii.
 * The story is set at Stonehenge and the episode broadcast just a few days before the Summer Solstice.
 * When River begins having problems flying the TARDIS, the Doctor tells her she's not flying it right, to which she promptly quips, "I'm flying it PERFECTLY. You taught me!". In their previous meeting (from the Doctor's POV), River mocked the Doctor for not being able to properly fly the TARDIS, namely, always leaving the brakes on when it lands. She also implied that the Doctor might not have been the one who had taught her.
 * This story marks at least the fourth time in the series that the fate of every universe is at stake. (DW: Logopolis, Journey's End, The End of Time)
 * The conceit of a message on the cliff of Planet One is not unlike the concept in Douglas Adams' book, So Long And Thanks For All The Fish, which featured the last message of God to his creation lit in flames on a cliff face, but readable and made into a tourist site. This similarity was noted by some viewers and proposed as a reference to Adams, who previously wrote for the series and based the preceding book to So Long, entitled Life, The Universe And Everything, on a recycled script for a rejected Fourth Doctor episode.
 * Amy doesn't know who the Cybermen are, despite meeting them in (VG: Blood of the Cybermen).
 * It is interesting to note that to prevent an event in the year 2010 AD, the Alliance fabricates a series of events to trap the Doctor in the year 0102 AD.
 * The method River Song used to get the Time Vortex Manipulator was similar to what was used to get an artifact from Indiana Jones in Indiana Jones and the Temple of Doom (River Song used a device that disarms micro-explosives as the bargaining chip rather than the antidote to the poison, both involved the hazard being put in the intended victim's drink)

Ratings
7.57 million (according to TV magazine)

Rumours

 * Many fans believed Omega would return. He does not appear in the episode, though as The Big Bang did not reveal the identity of the mysterious voice, it is possible he did.
 * The Doctor himself is inside the Pandorica. At the climax of the episode, the Doctor is placed inside the Pandorica.
 * The Slitheen were among the villains mentioned by River approaching the Doctor. This was proven partially true. River says Slitheen whilst reading out the list, however one does not appear only a Slitheen Vessel appears.
 * It was rumoured that either the Timoreen, the Ha'rik, or the Skarkish would appear – primarily because these were all listed as "new aliens" to appear in Series 5 which had not already appeared. This was proven false.
 * According to the Radio Times, the Vincent van Gogh painting will be in Churchill's war bunker. This was proven true.
 * It was believed that the enemies would form an alliance; this was supported by the screen-shots depicting many of the Doctor's enemies together but not fighting. This was proven true.
 * Many fans believed Rory would reappear. This was proven partially true, however he was an Auton duplicate.

Filming locations

 * Stonehenge, England
 * Margam Park, Wales

Production errors

 * The 1890 scene is set after Van Gogh famously cut his left ear in 1888, but the actor's unharmed left ear is briefly visible.
 * The Cyber-Leader's mouth glows blue when it isn't speaking, twice.
 * The Supreme Dalek lights were flashing when it isn't speaking.
 * When the damaged Cyberman enters the room where the Pandorica is, the "missing" arm can be seen in a shadow.
 * When River says the words, "And it's got something to do with your TARDIS exploding," as the Doctor bends down to examine the painting, a brief view of River's face shows that her lips aren't moving.
 * When the Doctor, Amy and River enter Stonehenge, the Doctor's fringe is on the right of his face. During the close-up of him, it's on the left.
 * When Amy is pushing against the Pandorica and discussing the Cyberarm the Pandorica bends inwards slightly.

Continuity

 * Roman soldiers previously appeared on screen in DW: The War Games.
 * Vincent van Gogh was last seen in DW: Vincent and the Doctor.
 * Liz Ten previously was last seen in DW: The Beast Below.
 * Winston Churchill, Bracewell and the Daleks were last seen in DW: Victory of the Daleks.
 * River Song was last seen in DW: The Time of Angels/Flesh and Stone.
 * Rory and the Silurians were last seen in DW: The Hungry Earth/Cold Blood.
 * The Judoon, Sycorax, and Sontarans were last seen in DW: The End of Time.
 * Autons and the Hoix were last seen in DW: Love and Monsters.
 * Roboform were last seen in DW: The Runaway Bride.
 * Cybermen were last seen in DW: The Next Doctor. However, the presence of a spacefleet and the existence of a skeleton inside a Cyberman (the Pete's World versions normally only have brains) imply these could be the original, Mondas versions. The contemporary Blood of the Cybermen also had Cybus-looking Cybermen being treated like the Mondas Cybermen.
 * River Song wrote "Hello Sweetie" previously on a home box in DW: The Time of Angels, from the Doctor's perspective.
 * The Uvodni, Blowfish and Weevils were amongst the creatures at the end of the episode, but they were seen very briefly among the other aliens.
 * The Doctor says to Rory "Hello again.", just as he did when he re-encountered Jack Harkness in DW: Utopia.
 * While communicating to the alien fleet, the Doctor shouts "I AM TALKING!", similar to the Ninth Doctor and the Tenth Doctor addressing the Nestene Consciousness in DW: Rose and Eddie Connolly in DW: The Idiot's Lantern respectively. 
 * The idea that an event will happen on a specific day in time (in this case 26/06/10) is similar to DW: Silver Nemesis and DW: Doctor Who (1996).
 * Sentient Autons last appeared in BFA: Brave New Town.
 * The explosion of all the stars in the universe bears a resemblance to the night's sky as viewed by Vincent van Gogh (and, by extension, the painting "Starry, Starry Night") at the end of DW: Vincent and the Doctor.
 * When Amy questions River about her mentioning the Pandorica at the end of DW Flesh and Stone, River replies, "Maybe I did...but I haven't yet...but I will have." This is similar to a scene in in DW The Five Doctors when Sarah Jane Smith tells the Third Doctor she has already witnessed him regenerate. "Maybe I did...but I haven't yet."
 * One of the ships in the alliance fleet, although it was never identified as a Cyber-ship, resemble the Cyber-ships from DW: The Invasion.

Home video releases
BBC Video - Doctor Who Series Five - Volume Four features Vincent and the Doctor, The Lodger, The Pandorica Opens and The Big Bang. It was released on Monday 6th September 2010 (UK Only) on DVD and Blu-ray.