Hello, everyone. It’s been quite a while since I last posted on the Bible in Pop Culture. Is that because we’re in the dead season of movies and I’m just gearing up for the official launch of summer with this week’s Captain America: Civil War? Not in the least. The Jungle Book brought back the idea that a PG-rated family movie can make Deadpool kind of money without giving us content that makes Quentin Tarantino blush. And in March, Batman v. Superman brought us . . . well, some decent theological dialogue to discuss. (I’m trying to stay positive here . . .)
On television right now there’s nothing I am enjoying more each week than The Blacklist, and season 2 of Daredevil may be one of the best Marvel cinematic depictions yet. The 13 episodes are certainly better than the 13 best episodes of Agents of S.H.I.E.L.D., Agent Carter, and Jessica Jones put together.
Despite the recent news that 2016 will not carry a single episode of Doctor Who until its Christmas special, there has been indeed plenty to write about in recent weeks. But other events have been going on in my family that have shifted my focus, at least temporarily, away from “putting on my God goggles” and writing about the ways that the gospel and biblical themes still show themselves in Hollywood today.
And just as builders build, teachers teach, and preachers preach, I as a writer can’t help but write my way through this latest journey in my family’s life. It’s how I best process, and it’s sometimes the only way I can communicate well what God is doing in my life.
Please click over to www.OrphanToOrphan.com to begin reading about this latest season of my life. Much like Moses, David, Mary, and multitudes of other biblical heroes, this new turn of events was not one that I saw coming, but we are trusting God and following Him to see where He takes us.
The first entry on the blog is dated April 26, and there are currently two more after that. As you can on most blogs, you can scroll down to the bottom and click to subscribe to the blog in order to get what will soon be single weekly updates, as well as connect with me on Twitter and Facebook. I hope to connect with you again at www.OrphanToOrphan.com, and also to hear back from you on any encouraging and helpful feedback you may have in relation to my family’s latest journey.
Yes, I am aware you know how the story ends. I also agree with you how expensive movies are today and that Red Box, Netflix, and all the other ways of watching movies at home are much friendlier on your wallet. But let me give you five quick reasons why Christians need to go see Risen at the movie theater this weekend.
If you don’t support it, who will? Why would someone who doesn’t believe in the resurrected Jesus go see a movie about the investigation of the empty tomb? He wouldn’t . . . unless you and millions of other believers go see it this weekend and begin creating some buzz and piquing their curiosity.
It’s not Deadpool or Zoolander 2. Last week the hardcore R-rated Deadpool brought in $132 million, and Zoolander 2 made audiences dumber nationwide. Do you want more of these types of movies or more faith-based ones? Then go show it with your wallet . . . this weekend. (It’s all about the opening weekend, if you haven’t caught on yet.)
Shakespeare and Draco Malfoy are in it. That is, the actors who played them, not actually the famous playwright and the Harry Potter nemesis—though that might’ve gotten more people to see it had that been the case. But even still, if there’s anything I’ve learned from watching BBC America, it’s that Britain has much better actors than the U.S., including those typically found in faith-based films these days. (Don’t look at me like that—you know it’s true!) So with Joseph Fiennes and Tom Felton we should get some solid acting.
At least one reviewer online who said he was not a Christian called it “non-preachy” and “it makes you think.” There you go. That’s all I needed to hear. It’s a faith-based movie that doesn’t just preach to the choir. Can I get an amen?
When you get out of the theater, you can buy another ticket for Star Wars. Certainly it’s almost out of the theater, right? See it on the big screen again before it’s gone forever!
Kevin Harvey is the author of two books, including the 2015 HarperCollins release All You Want to Know about the Bible in Pop Culture, available at Barnes and Noble, Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, and Amazon. You can also find him keeping up with the latest goings-on in pop culture on Twitter: @PopCultureKevin
That is the question from UFC superstar Ronda Rousey that she admitted this week to talk-show host Ellen DeGeneres asking herself in the hospital after her recent (and only) loss to fellow fighter Holly Holm, explaining that for a moment she contemplated suicide after everything she felt she had worked her whole life for had been taken away in just a few minutes.
“What am I anymore if I’m not this? . . . I’m nothing.”
Some may be tempted to tell Ronda to wipe her tears and get some perspective. After all, she is one of the most well-known and recognizable athletes in all the world today, and arguably the most popular UFC fighter ever. So you lost a fight, some might say. Get over it.
Others might hurt for Ronda but be screaming at their TVs for her to simply get back in the gym, train harder, and win back her title. Become the champion again, they tell her. Take back what was once yours!
But me, I don’t stand in either of those corners. I simply hurt for her and hate that she has become yet another victim of the “father of lies” (John 8:44) who was successful in convincing her that her identity rested in being an undefeated champion. And no doubt he’s prowling around her still, “like a roaring lion” (1 Peter 5:8) ready to devour her once again after she falls for another lie that her new identity rests in revenge.
“What am I anymore if I’m not this?”
Ronda, your undefeated champion status was taken away. And guess what? If you win back the title, it can be taken away from you just as quickly. Just like the movie roles you get offered every week will be taken away once Hollywood finds their “next big thing.” But that’s okay, because neither of those define who you are.
Tiger Woods was well on his way to breaking all the PGA records, and with some texts and a car crash it was all taken away.
Reggie Bush won a Heisman trophy after one of the most exciting offensive years ever by a college football player. You can’t take that away, right? Wrong. His trophy has been vacated.
Too many to count athletes, in their prime, were well on their way to Hall of Fame careers. But one hit or bad landing took it all away in an instant.
Before he could say “I’m going to Disney World,” Super Bowl champion Peyton Manning went from being one of the most well respected and squeaky clean football players of all time to having his name attached to a story involving his college days that could end up hurting his sponsorships or his chances at taking a TV job post-retirement.
Everything can be taken away in an instant, Ronda. Even the children you spoke of wanting to have with your boyfriend. But we are not defined as “champion” or “mother” or “teacher” or “doctor.” That is merely the lie the devil has been so successful at convincing people of. Instead, we are defined in relationship to Someone else.
Created uniquely by God, in his image, so that we may have fellowship with him in eternity.
That is who we are, and it cannot be ever taken away.
I truly hurt for Ronda and others who may not have had people in their lives while growing up speaking that truth in to them. Shame on parents, coaches, and other adult mentors who, whether advertently or inadvertently, convince a child that their success, titles, and money will define who they are and that nothing less than the “best” is acceptable. We cannot take lightly our responsibility to teach our children who they truly are, as well as Whose they are.
“What am I anymore if I’m not this?”
Who you are has never changed, Ronda. You were created uniquely by God, in his image, so that you could have fellowship with him in eternity.
You are not now and never have been “nothing.”
Kevin Harvey is the author of two books, including the 2015 HarperCollins release All You Want to Know about the Bible in Pop Culture, available at Barnes and Noble, Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, and Amazon. You can also find him keeping up with the latest goings-on in pop culture on Twitter: @PopCultureKevin
Last night’s episode of The Blacklist, entitled “The Vehm,” featured a religious cult who used medieval methods to torture men they believed to be pedophiles. There was also a high-ranking Catholic official as the mastermind behind these murders who did so for his own financial motives. And Raymond Reddington shot and killed a bound and unarmed man because he had attacked Raymond’s friend Elizabeth Keen.
Yet within this violent and disturbing episode was one of the more pro-life messages and dialogues found on network television today.
Elizabeth Keen is a convicted felon; the daughter of a KGB agent; a criminal informant for the same FBI team she once worked with before she went on the run with the FBI’s most wanted man; and in love with the man who was once hired to be her husband in order to spy on her.
And now she finds herself pregnant and forced with the dilemma of bringing a baby into this severely messed-up world she is in.
She ends up writing a pros and cons list concerning keeping the baby where the cons list far outweighs the pros list. It’s not determined by the end of the episode what exactly she will do, although she does appear to be leaning one way. But the refreshing part is that it turns out her decision is not between having the baby or aborting it, but in keeping the baby or putting it up for adoption.
Back in season 1, when Elizabeth was “happily married” to Tom, the man hired to spy on her, they were trying to adopt a child. So she knows firsthand what it’s like for parents to so badly want to adopt a child but find themselves waiting and waiting and waiting. So now with a baby of her own inside her womb, her character remembers that frustration felt of not finding a baby to adopt and wants to be able to bless other parents with the gift of the life inside her.
But I do not only believe it’s Elizabeth’s experience with adoption that has led her character to choose adoption over abortion, but perhaps a message about the sanctity and blessing of all life that, oddly, this show filled with violence seems to be expressing.
In one of the final scenes of the episode, Reddington shares with Liz that his concerns of her adding a baby to her life were not to be interpreted that the life inside of her was anything but a blessing. He then talks about her KGB mom, who he said cursed the life inside of her every single day of her pregnancy with Elizabeth. But from the moment Elizabeth was born, she was nothing but a beautiful gift to her mom.
Hopefully, most of us cannot relate much with the characters of The Blacklist, but certainly anyone who has lifted up a helpless, completely dependent, crying, beautiful baby that God used them to help create can agree with Elizabeth’s KGB mom that this child is only a blessing, just like Psalm 127:3 says: “Children are a blessing and a gift from the Lord.
I for one appreciate how The Blacklist affirmed that last night.
Kevin Harvey is the author of two books, including the 2015 HarperCollins release All You Want to Know about the Bible in Pop Culture, available at Barnes and Noble, Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, and Amazon. You can also find him keeping up with the latest goings-on in pop culture on Twitter: @PopCultureKevin
Let me begin by saying that I do not currently own a gun or even have a permit to do so, nor have I ever. And from what I understand about the actions you are taking or hope to take in the near future concerning gun laws, I do not expect that I would ever be kept from legally obtaining a permit and gun if I chose to do so in the future. I share this to explain that I am not writing this out of baseless fears of the government taking away my gun or keeping me from obtaining one under my Second Amendment right.
I do not envy you or any other respectable person who has held your position as president of the United States. There are great burdens thrown onto the office during your four to eight years that cannot be easy for anyone to deal with. And I admit, perhaps the greatest burden to arise during your two terms has been how to deal with the continuing tragedies involving shootings, both mass and individual instances. Even your political opponents cannot deny the steadily increasing episodes that are taking place and that something needs to be done.
And now during your last year in office, you are faced with the responsibility of looking at yourself in the mirror and knowing you did all that you could when given the opportunity to prevent future instances such as those in Newtown, Aurora, and San Bernardino. One can certainly not blame you for looking to gun control laws as a major place of emphasis on keeping the country safer from these senseless acts of violence.
But Mr. President, could I please use your own words and, according to you, your own beliefs, to propose the undisputed best way to lead our country in your last year of office as it pertains to the gun violence you’re trying to diminish?
In your memorable speech in December 2012 during the interfaith vigil at Newtown, Connecticut, after the shootings at Sandy Hook Elementary, you ended by sharing Matthew 19:14 from the Bible: “Let the little children come to me, and do not hinder them. For to such belongs the kingdom of heaven.” What I’d like to point out is not so much the words that you said, but the man you decided to quote at this extremely delicate time for the survivors and mourners of Newtown. You quoted Jesus, the man Christians believe to be the Son of God, the Savior of the world, and the only way to eternal life in heaven.
If I may borrow from the late great author C.S. Lewis, the man you quoted, Jesus, must either be a liar, lunatic, or Lord. Why is this important to bring up here? Because it matters greatly who you, Mr. President, believe you were quoting at this vigil. Did you purposely quote a man you believe to have been a liar? Though he claimed to be the Son of God and the way, the truth, and the life, do you believe he was lying? I would hope not, for that would not look good for yourself to be trying to comfort the grieving people of Newtown with the words of someone you believe to be the greatest liar the world has ever known.
The same goes for if Jesus was a lunatic. Is this what you believe? Do you think that he honestly believed the claims he made and that Christians believe still today, but that he had severe mental issues and was basically just a looney? If so, that would once again discredit you for quoting him when you did at the vigil. We don’t use the words of a lunatic or liar when we’re trying to bring comfort, do we?
Or do you believe, as I do, that Jesus is indeed the Lord, the Son of God, the sacrificial lamb who willingly gave up his life so that we may have the opportunity to have a relationship with the creator God and live beyond this sinful world in a perfect, holy heaven?
I hope that is your belief, and the reason you chose to quote Jesus at the time when you did in December 2012. And if so, then you must know that, though gun control laws may help a little bit and certainly should not be ignored completely, the absolute best way for you to lead our country at this time is to plead for its citizens to “come to Jesus,” like little children, and give their lives over to him.
Yes, not everyone in our country shares such a faith. Not everyone believes in Jesus as Lord, so I understand your possible balking at making such a request of America. But just because someone does not believe in something does not make it less true. And if you truly believe Jesus to be the Lord—not a liar or a lunatic—then you must share the same burden all Christians do: that Jesus is the only way to heaven and we have been charged with making that known.
Right now, Mr. President, your presidential legacy will most likely have to do with health care and possibly gun control laws, both of which have been highly controversial and will always be so. But out of the same love you obviously have for those in need that has driven you to work so hard to make an impact in those two areas, would you dare to make an eternal impact and a truly unique legacy by telling those in need about the love of Jesus, the man you believe to be Lord?
CONCLUDING NOTE: I do not expect our president to ever read this letter or even know about it. But the amazing thing here is that the impact of the gospel in our lives and the lives of everyone in the world is not dependent on the president, or any other single person. In the United States of America, we have the freedom to profess the gospel of Jesus every day to those in our lives. But even more important than having the freedom to do so, is our responsibility to do so, even if our president does not. And that is what will bring true reform to our country, no matter what happens with gun control laws.
Kevin Harvey is the author of two books, including the 2015 HarperCollins release All You Want to Know about the Bible in Pop Culture, available at Barnes and Noble, Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, and Amazon. You can also find him keeping up with the latest goings-on in pop culture on Twitter: @PopCultureKevin
Yesterday my publisher sent out a tweet advertising my book and a few others in an e-book deal they were offering. Included in their tweet were the Twitter handles of three different authors, each with books that were part of the sale. Max Lucado, author of about 100 books and 80 million copies sold; Dr. John Townsend, a noted psychologist and bestselling author, also with millions of books sold; and me, someone who is currently watching Jessica Jones during his lunches and writes about Doctor Who and Star Wars.
In a related note, later in the day I had to explain to my kids what the phrase “odd man out” means. Because that was indeed what I felt like.
I have to admit, at first I found it pretty cool to have been in the same breath as two bestselling authors who have written many books that I have copyedited. But then I had a moment of embarrassment. A moment when it struck me how juvenile my topics of writing are when it comes to the incredible gospel-impacting careers of those other two writers.
What am I doing, taking the limited time on earth God has given me and writing about Star Wars, The Blacklist, and Doctor Who? I thought. Is this the best way for me to redeem my time? Even when I’m not writing about pop culture, is the rest of my life making any kind of impact for God’s kingdom? Am I completely useless for my Savior?
How about you? Do you ever feel utterly useless for the kingdom of God as you direct phone calls to the correct lawyer at the firm you work reception for, or as you put just a dash too much salt in the cookies you bake at the grocery store, or as you close yet another way-too-big-of-a-house for the young couple who hired you to find them their first home, or . . . just fill in the blank with whatever it is that doesn’t seem to compare with writing books like In the Grip of Grace or Boundaries or speaking in front of hundreds of thousands of people?
I mean, I literally spent a month a couple of years ago watching Keeping Up with the Kardashians and Real Housewives of Beverly Hills in order to write a chapter on reality television in my book! I can’t compare with these other Christ-following heroes!
Or can I? Can you? Yes, and yes again.
***
This time of year, people write a lot of New Year’s–related stuff. Top 10 movies to look forward to in 2016. Best ways to lose weight this year, and keep it off. Speculating major events that will impact society the most. So consider this my “New Year’s article.” But it’s not going to be about movies, TV, or something else you might typically find on The Bible in Pop Culture. It’s about what I wish for every single person in 2016 . . . and 2017, 2018, and every New Year after.
What umbrella do you carry over your head when you wake up and start your day? What I mean is, what is the overarching “mission” of your day? For many this will relate to your job. Unfortunately, the 9-to-5 job doesn’t exist anymore. Most people spend 24/7 at least thinking about their current workload and projects, so their job becomes the umbrella that covers everything they do. So is your umbrella one of being a teacher? Lawyer? Salesman? Coach? Writer? Receptionist? What is the umbrella over your head as you breathe each new breath that tells the world who you are and where your impact is?
More than likely, none of you reading this are named Max Lucado or John Townsend or any other well-known disciple of the gospel who spends his or her day fighting for the kingdom with audiences in the thousands. You’re probably like me, feeling as though your day-to-day is a bit mundane. Pointless. Juvenile. Unnecessary.
But maybe that’s only because we need to change our umbrellas up.
I don’t mean getting new jobs or making some kind of major title change like that. What I mean is, the umbrellas over our heads each day as we walk this earth should not be that of our jobs or our positions. But instead, all of our umbrellas—for those who consider themselves saved by the grace of God—should be one and the same: Christ-following disciple.
I am not a pop culture writer who also tries to follow Jesus. I am a Christ-following disciple who writes about pop culture. You are not an IT guy who is also a believer. You are a Christ-following disciple whom God has given the know-how required to work with computers.
Do you see the difference?
Even more, can you see the difference this would make in our world this year if every single person who considers themselves Christians saved by the sacrifice of Jesus made this their umbrella that they carried over themselves as they walked through each day?
Suddenly Google has disciples walking its hallways looking to see how they can impact the kingdom of God through the popular search engine. Your local Olive Garden has a wait staff loving others by knowingly serving them the same way the ultimate Servant would. Banks would be overtaken with disciples who try to serve their clients with Bible-based principles on money and lending.
Professional sports teams would have star athletes who recognize the influence they have that can be used for the gospel. Politicians would still take on issues of gun control, health care, immigration, and terrorism, but it would be done with the mind-set of, How do I best love these people with the love of Jesus?, not, How do I get the most supporters?
And a guy who writes about superheroes and Lost can do so with the intention of making a gospel connection with the millions of fans who immerse themselves in pop culture like it’s a warm bubble bath.
Too many Christians have made their faith a “personal” belief. It’s private, they claim, something not to be pushed onto others. And so they sleep well at night telling themselves that they are simply a salesman/builder/accountant/fill-in-the-blank who is also a Christian (but in private). But Jesus never said to go and worship in private. He didn’t say to go and feel comfortable in your personal belief. He didn’t tell his disciples to “go and make better salesmen/athletes/teachers/builders/writers/and on and on.” He said to “go and make disciples.”
You are a Christ-following disciple who God has placed in a certain job, in a specific region, with special skills, and around extremely special people who need to know about Jesus. That is your umbrella.
And that is the umbrella we should all be carrying as we live out each day God gives us. Whether we are world-famous writers or not. God gave us each a niche to fill for his kingdom, and if pop culture is mine, I’m going to do it the best I can.
Imagine the impact the church could make in 2016 if everyone who typically carried umbrellas of “politician,” “teacher,” “salesman,” “housewife,” or the hundreds of others we see every day, traded them all in for the same umbrella—“Christ-following disciple.”
Our world would be unrecognizable by the end of the year. And in a good way for once.
Kevin Harvey is the author of two books, including the 2015 HarperCollins release All You Want to Know about the Bible in Pop Culture, available at Barnes and Noble, Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, and Amazon. You can also find him keeping up with the latest goings-on in pop culture on Twitter: @PopCultureKevin
Whether “The Husbands of River Song” is technically the last episode of season 9 or the first episode of season 10, the fact is we had another episode of Doctor Who to enjoy, perhaps my second-favorite thing about Christmas Day. All season long, fellow Whovian Aaron Earls over at the Wardrobe Door has been breaking down each episode with me, and we couldn’t have a proper ending to the season (or beginning?) without doing it one more time…
As an epilogue to season 9, what did you think of “The Husbands of River Song”?
Kevin: When we left the Doctor at the end of “Hell Bent,” he had been wiped of all memories of Clara, so how do we get back into his adventures and not pretend that the last three or so years didn’t happen? Will the companion who affected him more than perhaps any other still have a lasting effect, despite him not remembering her? We’ll probably have to wait until next season to really be able to answer that, but something very subtle at the beginning of this episode made me smile. When Nardole knocks on the TARDIS’s door asking for the surgeon, what does the Doctor do? He helps out this stranger immediately. The reason this made me smile was because Clara’s final message to the Doctor, written on his chalkboard, was “Run you clever boy, and be a Doctor.” So a Doctor he was going to be.
But if I may also rate it as a Christmas episode, this one is near the top for me. My favorite has always been “A Christmas Carol,” and I’m also quite fond of “The Doctor, the Widow, and the Wardrobe” (and I have no doubt you love that one too). “The Husbands of River Song” may fall after those two, mostly because of the wonderfully funny script. After the very dark and serious tone of season 9, this was a nice break, and probably just what everyone needed after the tearful goodbye(s) of Clara.
Aaron: That is a great catch about him being a Doctor and fulfilling Clara’s wish. I hadn’t thought about that. But I agree that this is the perfect epilogue to the season. I used that term intentionally because it almost serves like a Marvel post-credit scene. It’s connected to the season before it, but it often acts as a pallet cleanser. We have a reminder that the Doctor can be funny and the show can be fun, after such a heavy season and finale.
We haven’t had these types of adventures or straight-up romps with the Doctor since Matt Smith’s Eleventh Doctor. I’ve missed those. But even this one had some serious turns. That poignant last act, starting with River realizing the Doctor is standing beside her, turned on a dime, but did so seamlessly. (Thanks to Capaldi and Alex Kingston.)
I’m not sure where I would rank this among the Christmas specials. Outside of the Narnia allusions, “The Doctor, the Widow, and the Wardrobe” was a bit disappointing to me. “Voyage of the Damned” may have been my favorite. Ignoring episodes like “The End of Time” and “The Time of the Doctor” where we see regenerations and pivotal events, this was one of the best standalone stories. I would place this along with “A Christmas Carol.” It was a great, fun episode—definitely better than Capaldi’s previous one, “Last Christmas.”
How much did you miss River?
Aaron: I didn’t realize how much until this episode. She’s such a fun, unique character in one way, I mean, she’s married to the Doctor. I don’t think anyone else can say that. Not to mention, she actually knows his real name.
She knows more about the Doctor than almost anyone and that gives her an advantage over most, but (as we saw) he can still surprise her. That extended (and complex) history coupled with interesting new facets of their relationship make them great on the screen together.
But in another way she’s like a good version of Missy. Since we’re just a few days removed from Star Wars, I’ll say Missy is River Song on the Dark Side. River and the Doctor have a flirty, quip-filled, light on the surface, but very deep relationship, similar to the Doctor and Missy. In that way, I thought this episode and River provided a nice bookend to season 9 that began with Missy.
Kevin: I’ll always enjoy seeing River, because she was the central figure of my favorite season ever of Doctor Who, when we find out exactly who she is. The last time we saw her, though, was in “The Name of the Doctor,” which wasn’t a great episode for her. So I’m glad they gave her at least one more episode to be more of herself in. Much like Peter Capaldi, Alex Kingston has such great range and can turn on a dime from witty banter to making the audience a little emotional.
I love that they brought her back for this one episode, because River is exactly who the Doctor needed at this time. Though he doesn’t know that he is missing Clara, there is still a hole in his life that he probably can’t quite figure out, and having another adventure with his wife is just what he needed.
Do you think we’ll see her again in a future episode?
Kevin: My guess is no. I think the writers wanted to give her a better send-off than in “The Name of the Doctor,” and since we’ve already seen her die (oddly enough, in her first appearance on the show), I can’t imagine giving her character a better goodbye than she got in this episode. But then again, Kingston and Capaldi played off surprisingly well together, this being their first episode with each other, so maybe the show runners will try to make that work a little bit longer.
Aaron: I agree. I suppose, since nights are 24 years long on Darillium, we could see more interactions between the Doctor and River. But as much as I love River and the Doctor’s interplay with her, this serves as a brilliant end to her run on the show. It perfectly closes the circle of their timeline and relationship. Much like Clara, River could come back, but their conclusions this season were essentially pitch perfect.
This was a great week for one-liners and quips. What were your favorite quotes?
Aaron: There are so many, but I’ll focus on two funny moments and one serious.
When River reveals her plan to steal the TARDIS:
“He’ll never know it was gone.”
“He will.”
“How?”
“He’ll just know!”
“Well, he’s never noticed before.”
Then when the Doctor says, “Finally” and gets to offer the most over-the-top reaction to the TARDIS being “bigger on the inside,” Capaldi just nails it.
In an episode full of silliness, that poignant moment when River realizes it’s the Doctor and he says, “Hello Sweetie” … that gets me every time.
Kevin: Yes, Capaldi’s overreaction to “discovering” the inside of the TARDIS was perfect. But there are plenty of other funny moments too.
“How do you know me?” (River) “Well, it’s a tiny bit complicated. People usually need a flow chart.” (The Doctor)
“You’re probably gonna need a mop.” (The Doctor to the warrior monk just before he goes to begin surgery on King Hydroflax)
“Better avoid deck seven, then.” (The Doctor muttering to himself after River explains the function of a button on his own TARDIS that he probably shouldn’t have been pressing all the times he has)
What spiritual takeaways did you notice from the episode?
Kevin: For me, I really liked River’s big monologue in the final act when she was making the case for why the Doctor was not going to show up to rescue her, how he was not small enough to have fallen in love with her as she did him. Unfortunately, her feelings in that moment are probably very similar to how many feel about God and what they feel is an inability to count on him in the times when they need him the most. But the truth is, God did fall in love with us, long before we loved him, and that’s why he made himself “small”—his Son—to rescue us all. The fact that he does love us so personally is what, in fact, makes him so huge. Why would the Creator of the universe love us as he does, when we certainly don’t deserve it? That may be just what River finds herself asking about the Doctor at times.
Aaron: That was the first thing that came to my mind as well. How could you not connect with her saying, “You don’t expect a sunrise to admire you back”? But as a Christian, how could you not smile knowing what God has done for us? As the brilliant Creator behind the beautiful sunrise, in Ephesians 2:10 He still calls us His creation, handiwork, or masterpiece.
River comes to realize the Doctor does in fact love her and has come down to her when she needs him most. We share that with her, knowing that Christ loves us and descended to us in our time of greatest need.
That’s all for a while, Whovians. But don’t be sad that we’re through with another season of Doctor Who. Be thankful that we’re less than nine months away from the next one! In the meantime, you can find us at both BibleInPopCulture.com and TheWardrobeDoor.com. And follow Kevin on Twitter at@PopCultureKevin and Aaron at@WardrobeDoor.
Yes, I said it. Deal with it. For those of you too hipster to get caught up in the excitement of J.J. Abram’s Star Wars movie that is exploding everywhere right now, or too stubborn to ever think that a Star Wars movie could ever be better than The Empire Strikes Back, let me tell you just how wrong you are. I typically wait to make opinions like this until I have seen something on a 40-inch TV screen, rather than a 100-foot mega-screen with surround sound, and also to make sure I am not getting caught up in a prisoner-of-the-moment type situation. (Like when I was a kid and thought that each new Star Trek movie was better than the previous. Whoops.) But after a weekend of pondering, discussing, and reading others’ thoughts on The Force Awakens, I have concluded that the final blockbuster of 2015 (and first of 2016) deserves the top spot in the Star Wars collection.
But let’s be honest here. No one over the age of five would ever think one of the prequels is better than Episode VII. Maybe about 10 percent would argue for Return of the Jedi, followed by about 30-40 percent in favor of Star Wars being better. But an overwhelming number have already concluded that, like Floyd Mayweather, The Empire Strikes Back has remained the indisputable, undefeated champion of the world.
And here is why they would be wrong*…
*NOTE: We will only be dealing with Star Wars and The Empire Strikes Back. Those who believe Return of the Jedi is better have an unhealthy love for Ewoks that needs medical treatment, of which I am not legally allowed to prescribe.
The Director
J.J. Abrams versus Irvin Kershner (Empire) versus George Lucas (Star Wars).
To judge a director, one must look at their full body of work, not just the three Star Wars movies we are discussing. George Lucas has five other movies he directed, three of which are the prequels. ‘Nuff said. The other two, both before Star Wars, are THX 1138 and American Graffiti, which have IMDb scores of 6.8 and 7.5. I bring up the scores here because without doing an exhaustively long, opinionated comparison, fan reviews are the next best way to judge how a movie was received.
Irvin Kershner has directed a dozen or so movies, but I would simply like to take the IMDb scores of his last four (not including Empire). Why four? Because that is the number of movies to Abram’s directing resume. Kershner directed Robocop 2 (5.7), Never Say Never Again (6.2), Eyes of Laura Mars (6.1), and The Return of a Man Called Horse (6.1). How many of those are in your Blu-ray collection?
It’s crazy to realize, but J.J. has only directed four other movies: Mission: Impossible 3, the two latest Star Trek movies, and Super 8. Of those, MI3 received the lowest IMDb score (6.9), with the others receiving scores of 8.0, 7.8, and 7.1. In other words, before The Force Awakens, J.J. successfully resurrected the only other sci-fi series that can even come close to Star Wars, he breathed new life into a spy franchise that John Woo and his pigeons had previously crapped all over and almost ruined, and he made this generation’s E.T.
J.J. Abrams is far and away the best director of the three.
The Cast and Characters
We all know it to be true: Mark Hamill has never been a good actor. In fact, the funniest parts of Star Wars are when he’s whining to his uncle Owen like a little schoolgirl. Hamill is probably the only person alive who liked Hayden Christenson’s performance in the prequels, because he makes Hamill look like an Oscar winner. Even today, if you ask fans of his to talk about what else they have liked him in, they all point to his role as the Joker—that is, the voice of the Joker in an old Batman cartoon.
So between Hamill’s acting and George Lucas’s flat character development given to Luke, we never really care too much about Luke or become anxious to learn more of his backstory. His father fought in the Clone Wars? Okay, whatever that means. Luke has the Force in him? Cool. Let’s see more of this “Force.” But honestly, we don’t really care which of the protagonists uses it. Luke’s dad is Vader? No way! Can we learn more about Vader’s backstory? (That was our mistake to ask that of George Lucas.)
Similar things can be said about Han and Leia. They were certainly likeable characters, but we didn’t leave the theater dying to find out more about them. They made good sci-fi heroes to root for and fun action figures to play with, but not much else. Even the recent talk about doing a young Han Solo movie might be fun, but just because it’s Star Wars. Not because we need to know what a twentysomething Han Solo was doing when he was smuggling for Jabba the Hut. Remember, Han Solo was not the most likeable person when we first meet him, caring more for money than saving Leia.
But the two main heroes of The Force Awakens, Rey and Finn, were written with fantastic depth and played tremendously by Daisy Ridley and John Boyega. Every time Boyega is on screen, his presence demands your attention. He’s doing too much with his expressions to miss him. And Rey, the pseudo–Luke Skywalker character, clearly has a backstory that we are dying to know more of. In fact, I would say that is my only complaint of The Force Awakens, because I fear that all of our speculation for the next year and a half will only lead to disappointment when we (hopefully) learn more about her in Episode VIII. But we certainly care about her and fell in love with her quicker than she called for Luke’s blue lightsaber in her climactic battle with Kylo Ren.
Speaking of Kylo Ren… Anyone else now recognize how flat Darth Vader was as a villain? I absolutely loved seeing Kylo throw temper tantrums as he played the role of the “far from all-powerful” villain. And when Adam Driver took off his mask and reminded us of the human he really is, despite all the evil he was quick to dispense upon others, once again it added a depth to his character that we never saw in Vader, even when we discovered who he was. Kylo Ren is a human, a son, who showed us his internal struggle. For 99 percent of the original trilogy, Vader was more robot than anything else.
The Story
Okay, I understand. Many people are complaining about the similarities in the stories between Star Wars and The Force Awakens. I get it. I saw it right away too. But this was not like The Hangover 2 doing the exact same thing as The Hangover, because they didn’t know how else to pull off another good movie. Director J.J. Abrams, just like the rest of us, was simply a huge fan of the original Star Wars, and I believe he wanted to honor that movie by resurrecting the universe with many similarities to the 1977 movie that has affected multiple generations now in ways that no other movie has even come close to.
And if you do it better, as I have proposed here, then what is wrong with doing it similarly? Hidden plans in a droid? If that droid is the thumbs-up giving BB-8, then awesome! An orphan searching for purpose and meaning to her life? We’ve already concluded how great Daisy Ridley is as Rey, especially when compared to Mark Hamill’s Luke from Episode IV. Going into the next movie, I am more intrigued to learn more about her than about where Luke has been. A giant space station that can destroy planets? Okay, I can agree that the First Order should’ve come up with some other way to menace the galaxy. But it was pretty cool seeing how it took its power from the sun, at least.
But for those too stubborn to leave “Team Empire Strikes Back,” can you tell me what was so great about its story? It began with an incredible battle scene on Hoth, and then… not a heckuva lot else. Luke swings from trees with Yoda on his back. Han can’t ever get the Falcon’s lightspeed fixed. That’s pretty much it until the final act in Cloud City. And even there, we get a decent lightsaber battle but nothing else besides the good guys losing.
Give me the battles, humor, and intriguing characters of The Force Awakens any day.
***
The Force Awakens is certainly not perfect, but no movie is. In fact, that’s one of the things I love about those too stubborn to say something negative about The Empire Strikes Back. You have forgotten its imperfections! Bravo! That is a wonderful characteristic to have. It’s even quite godly, as the Bible tells us that God remembers our sins no more.
And right now, the “sins” of The Force Awakens are still fresh in your mind. But give it time. Go see it again. And again. And again. Watch it on Blu-ray in a few months, followed immediately by your other favorite Star Wars movies. You will see it as I already do.
Join me on the Dark Side, you will.
Kevin Harvey is the author of two books, including the 2015 HarperCollins release All You Want to Know about the Bible in Pop Culture, available at Barnes and Noble, Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, and Amazon. You can also find him keeping up with the latest goings-on in pop culture on Twitter: @PopCultureKevin
Not but a few minutes into Star Wars: The Force Awakens, a thought came to me. How did the galaxy get back to this point again, in only the span of a single generation? After the destruction of the Empire, as well as the Emperor himself, in Return of the Jedi, peace was supposed to stretch across the galaxy, causing humans, Wookies, droids, Ewoks, and creatures everywhere to hug it out and sing “Kum Ba Yah” to the slow beat of tapping Stormtrooper helmets with sticks.
But only a generation later, there is already an evil leader of the Dark Side killing people mercilessly with the Force, a gigantic army of Stormtroopers that would’ve rivaled the Clone Army at its peak, a battle station that eats Death Stars for breakfast, and people living in fear everywhere of the First Order who can fly in at any time and destroy or take anything they want.
So what did we actually accomplish in Return of the Jedi? What was it all for?
About the halfway point of The Force Awakens, director J.J. Abrams kind of answers this in an almost throwaway comment from newcomer Maz Kanata, a thousand-year-old pirate whom Han Solo takes Rey and Finn to see. In their conversation, Maz Kanata mentions “the war,” to which Rey asks, “Which war?” Maz responds, “The only war,” and then shares how she has seen the same evil take multiple faces, from the Sith to the Empire and now the First Order.
“The only war.” And it is never-ending. No matter what Han, Luke, Lando, and all the rest in Return of the Jedi did, the war would always be going on. Because evil will always find a face.
***
Perhaps without even realizing it, J.J. Abrams touches on an eternal truth that I believe we need to be reminded of. Turn on the news and choose your “war” to talk about. There is of course ISIS, Al Qaeda, and all things Middle East. There’s North Korea and Russia. Lone wolf terrorists in America.
Or perhaps you are thinking of wars closer to home and the family. Planned Parenthood and abortion. Homosexuality and traditional marriage. The transgender debate. Immigration. Gun control. Just pick your war. There are plenty to choose from.
But even more than wars to choose from, there are people’s countless solutions to try and end them. Every presidential candidate, plus the president himself, has their plans on how to put an end to mass shootings, or illegal immigration, or lone wolf terrorists, or nuclear missiles in the wrong hands, or evil dictatorships in the Middle East, or terrorist groups causing chaos and fear throughout the world. Politicians, leaders, voters, media—they all think they know how best to end their “war.”
But any solution they have would be just like in Return of the Jedi. You might think there’s peace in the world, but in less than a generation, we’re right back to where we started. Because the war is not about gun control or terrorism. The war is not about abortion or marriage. It’s not about immigration or education or health care.
“The only war” is sinful man versus a perfect God.
This does not mean actions should not be taken in the Middle East. This doesn’t mean laws shouldn’t be made or that the Supreme Court shouldn’t discuss social issues. And I certainly do not believe activists of any kind should drop whatever their cause is and not try to bring about change. But let’s be clear what the real problem is.
Though there is turmoil in the Middle East, we do not have a terrorist problem. Though there are lone wolf attacks in the U.S., we do not have an immigration problem. Though we have mass shootings becoming more frequent, we do not have a gun-control problem. Though the traditional views of marriage are being ridiculed and persecuted in our country, we do not have a homosexuality problem. And though doctors in our country kill over a million babies a year with support of our country’s laws, we do not have an abortion problem.
We could completely turn the tables on any of these situations, and “the only war” would still exist. For none of these are the real problems; we have a sin problem. And we always will on this earth. That is the problem to address. That is the problem to point others to. And the answer to our sin problem is not laws, wars, or bans. It is Jesus, who won “the only war” when he died on the cross.
***
The new evil faces of Star Wars such as Kylo Ren and Supreme Leader Snoke will probably die or turn from the Dark Side by the time this new trilogy is over with. But Disney will keep rolling Star Wars movies out and coming up with new stories and bad guys. Because “the only war” will keep on going, and evil will simply find a new face. This is simply a reflection of what it’s been like for mankind ever since the garden of Eden.
Kevin Harvey is the author of two books, including the 2015 HarperCollins release All You Want to Know about the Bible in Pop Culture, available at Barnes and Noble, Wal-Mart, Sam’s Club, and Amazon. You can also find him keeping up with the latest goings-on in pop culture on Twitter: @PopCultureKevin
Season 9 of Doctor Who is finally over with, save for the annual Christmas episode. All season long,fellow Whovian Aaron Earls over at the Wardrobe Door has joined with me to discuss our likes, dislikes, and absolute LOVES of the season that I will forever refer to has “Clara’s Eulogy.” Before the Christmas episode arrives, we wanted to spend some time reflecting on the season as a whole. Read ahead to see where we agree and disagree and the spiritual content we took most from this second-best season ever (according to one of us–the one who is right…).
What are your overall impressions of season 9?
Aaron: In trying to evaluate it, I want to place it among the Twelfth Doctor’s seasons, Clara’s seasons, and since the reboot in 2005. Season 9 is easily Capaldi’s best season. He finally found his version of the Doctor. He’s not playing a derivative of someone else’s version. He captured the role and secured his place as a great Doctor.
Season 9 is also Clara’s best season. I know we’ve had some fun bantering about your love and my disdain for Clara, but my main issue with her character was the poor storytelling and inconsistencies they had built into who Clara is—that all changed this season. We’ll get more into Clara later, but I felt this was the strongest season for her and strongest season as a whole since she began her run.
So where does 9 fall among the seasons since the reboot for me? Season 5, the first season for the Eleventh Doctor, Amy, Rory and Steven Moffat as head writer, is still my favorite season. Season 4, the Tenth Doctor’s final season, is extremely enjoyable (despite my not enjoying Donna Noble as much as others). Those two are in the top tier for me. I would place this season in the next tier with season 1 (yes, I know the special effects are bad, but the stories are great), season 2, and season 6.
Kevin: Clearly, your opinions on Capaldi’s best season, as well as Clara’s, are in my mind indisputable. Of course Season 9 was by far the best for both. Anyone who thinks differently probably also says that the fourth Indiana Jones movie is the best of the series. So let’s not waste time there.
But I will have to dispute your arguments on where season 9 falls all-time. I commend you for not falling into the prisoner-of-the-moment trap and instantly thinking this was the best season ever. And I don’t fall there either, but I definitely have to give it more props than you. For me, Season 6 is an absolute classic season from beginning to end. You have the best two-parter ever in “The Impossible Astronaut” and “Day of the Moon.” The TARDIS comes to life in “The Doctor’s Wife.” The jaw-dropping twist at the end of “The Almost People.” “A Good Man Goes to War.” “Let’s Kill Hitler.” And my favorite Christmas episode ever in “A Christmas Carol.”
So if the storylines of Season 6 is for me unrivaled by any other season, I would have to place Season 9 as a firm second place (with a fairly big margin between the two), due mainly to the job of Peter Capaldi. I was a bit worried last year when we got the oldest Doctor ever, and with good reason since Capaldi was just trying to be an older Matt Smith at times. But this year he took his differences and ran with it, making the Doctor into his own.
And then when you add the incredible improvement of Clara’s story, Missy, Ashildr (Me), and the best ten minutes of Doctor Who ever at the end of “The Zygon Inversion,” you have a season that will stand the test of time of being an all-time great.
Which story (not just episode since so many this season lasted multiple weeks) was your favorite?
Kevin: As much as I just gave this season so many props, when I go back to think of all the episodes, I give all of them a strong B+ or A- (other than “Sleep No More” of course), but none of them stand out as being an instant classic, on a level significantly higher than others. So it’s tough to pick out a favorite, but I would suppose I’d have to go with the two-parter about the Zygons.
As I shared a few weeks ago, the Zygons when in Zygon form are not my favorite villain. Easy to kill and not very scary looking. But that’s the beauty of how amazing Steven Moffat and his other talented writers are. Those two episodes were as strong as they were not because of effects or scary villains but because of the writing. First you have the paranoia of not knowing if someone is human or Zygon, including it turns out, Clara. The political parallels told in the story concerning war were strong no doubt, but definitely not over-the-top or way too Hollywood liberal, as we usually get here in the States. And then of course, there’s the Doctor’s speech in the end about forgiveness, which needs to find its way into pastors’ sermons everywhere. I can’t think of a better picture ever on TV of true biblical forgiveness.
Aaron: I agree that the Zygon episodes gave us the Doctor’s most memorable monologue of the season and of Capaldi’s run. That was a great story. I also really appreciated the two-part finale. But I think the season’s high point was it’s first story.
“The Magician’s Apprentice” and “The Witch’s Familiar” were absolute classics to me with the inclusion of Missy, Davros and the Daleks. Looking back now, it set the course for so much of this season with the Doctor’s relationship to Clara. She had a callback to her first appearance on the show in “Asylum of the Dalek” as she found herself trapped inside a Dalek shell.
The return of the Dalek’s planet mirrored the season-ending return of the Doctor’s planet. And I’ll never forget Missy poking Davros in his eye. That, my friend, is a classic moment.
Let’s ignore “Sleep No More” (for a host of reasons). Outside of it, what was the most disappointing story?
Aaron: There were some parts of most stories I found disappointing (even if I enjoyed them). Again, “Sleep No More” is the weakest (for a host of reasons), but if I’m thinking about disappointing, “Under the Lake” and “Before the Flood” did not capitalize on the amazing opening story as much as I thought the show would. But overall (and this may be a surprise), I found “The Girl Who Died” and “The Woman Who Lived” to be the most disappointing story.
“Disappointing” is the key word. I loved “The Girl Who Died.” It is definitely one of my favorite episodes from the season, but “The Woman Who Lived” missed as a follow-up. Leandro the lion was a bad villain. Unless they return to Sam Swift, we have another immortal that seems thrown in there for no reason. Eventually, we saw how important Ashildr aka “Me” was to the story, but her character often seems aimless or at least flighty. And this was the start of her character changing rapidly within the same story. The story wasn’t bad at all, but it was disappointing for me.
Kevin: Leandro the lion was indeed such a bad villain, that I had forgotten about him. “The Woman Who Lived” was a decent episode, though, with it showing us the consequences of someone (Ashildr) receiving an immortal life who was never meant to. And Sam Swift was an extremely likable character that I would love to see return some day.
So as far as “disappointing” I’d have to go with “Face the Raven.” Not because of Clara’s death, because we knew that was coming, but because of how sudden it seemed. Just like back in “The Angels Take Manhattan,” when you sat down to watch what you thought was going to be a normal hour of Doctor Who, and all of a sudden Amy and Rory were gone forever by the time the hour ended. But at least there we got a top-tier episode. In “Face the Raven,” we got what came across as a lazy way to kill Clara and get the Doctor to Gallifrey. And now that Clara is alive and Gallifrey ended up not playing as pivotal a role in the final episode as one might’ve thought, that makes “Face the Raven” that much more disappointing.
As she is done for the foreseeable future, what do you take away from Clara’s run as companion?
Kevin: Listen, I loved Jenna Coleman’s presence on the screen even when she was just known as “Souffle Girl.” There was just something about her screen presence that made you (well, at least me) want to see more of her. And then of course we did when she returned in “The Snowmen,” and I loved her there too. But I’ll admit, when we finally met the real Clara Oswald in Coleman’s third episode, “The Bells of Saint John,” it took some time for her to make her impact in the Doctor Whoverse. And by the time she was getting comfortable, she lost Matt Smith and was paired up with the oldest actor to play the Doctor ever. So I think she deserves a little slack from those tough on her at the beginning. After all, she basically played three different characters and then had to switch Doctors.
But Clara now leaves the Doctor a different person than he was when he first met her—a better person. I don’t know if that can be said about the impacts of the other companions. Sure, we love Rose and Amy, but did they affect the Doctor in ways that Clara did? Did they call him out and challenge him the way she did in “Kill the Moon”? She had the audacity to get truly angry at him when Danny Pink died, to the point of banishing themselves trapped inside a volcano. Her opposition at times to the Doctor made him a better man, in an iron-sharpening-iron kind of way. And I’m hoping that he doesn’t forget that impact, even though he has forgotten her.
Aaron: My issues with Clara were never with Jenna Coleman. They were always the muddled way they presented her. On a show built around the impossible, it seemed odd for the Doctor to find Clara to be so impossible. The only thing impossible was for her to be able to match the Eleventh Doctor’s relationship with Amy. Before Capaldi, she was shaping up to be another Martha Jones—a good character at the wrong time. This season she and the Twelfth Doctor connected and became best friends.
I often forget it, but she had the longest run as a companion since the reboot. Despite that, it felt like the audience would forget her, just like the Doctor did—until this season. She definitely made a huge impact on the Doctor and the show. Plus with her and Me spinning around time and space in a TARDIS disguised as an American diner, we never know when she might make some type of cameo or return.
What are you most looking forward to next season?
Aaron: When Clara started, I said I wanted to see her with her own Doctor because she was struggling as a follow-up to the Eleventh’s relationship with Amy and Rory. Now, I want to see Capaldi interact with a different companion. Those relationships are always able to bring new features out of the Doctors.
I can always hope for the creation of a new monster that rivals the Weeping Angels in terms of being a great new villain. But I definitely hope we see Capaldi interact with some classic monsters like the Cybermen and the Daleks again.
One of the bigger points of next season should be the Doctor’s new relationship with Gallifrey. How much influence will they exert on the show? How angry are they at him for breaking all the rules to save Clara? I’d be glad to see them as a mostly off-screen relationship that complicates adventures.
Kevin: I echo all that, especially how Capaldi will show a new side to the Doctor when he gets a new companion. But other than that, it’s tough to say what I’m “most looking forward to,” because I have no idea what directions they plan to take the show in. You never know with Moffat. He could made Gallifrey a central storyline, or he could go an entire season with barely a reference to it. Who knows? So how about some of the things I’d love to see in my dream season?
I’d love to see Capaldi with iconic characters and villains from seasons past, to see how they all interact together. I’m already loving the idea of seeing River Song for the Christmas episode—how about more of that? Maybe we don’t even need a full-time companion for a while. Let’s see Capaldi with River, with Jack Harkness, with Martha and Mickey. Even Capaldi with Craig (James Corden) would be a blast. As far as villains, I definitely want to see the Weeping Angels return.
Though I don’t expect much, if any, of that to happen, I will say I hope we get more Missy. Michelle Gomez was amazing in the role of the Master, and probably my biggest complaint about Season 9 was that we didn’t get more of her.
Favorite quotes from this season?
Kevin: Thinking back on twelve episodes of quotes, I find that the ones that remain memorable are the more serious ones, not the hilarious quips Capaldi has become so good at. Such as:
“The day you lose someone isn’t the worst…. It’s all the days they stay dead.” (from “Heaven Sent”)
“Here’s the unforeseeable. I forgive you. After all you’ve done, I forgive you.” (from “The Zygon Inversion”)
“How did you know I was here? Did you see me?” (Clara) “When do I not see you?” (the Doctor) (from “The Magician’s Apprentice”)
Aaron: Since you gave some of the serious lines, I’ll try to balance it with some of the quips.
“Go find Vikings on other planets. The universe is full of testosterone, trust me.” — Clara (from “The Girl Who Died”)
“I don’t know, but I’m pretty certain it’s not so they can all form a boy band.” — the Doctor explaining why ghosts want more people around (from “Under the Lake”)
“Bootstrap paradox. Google it.” — the Doctor breaking the fourth wall and giving the audience a homework assignment (from “Before the Flood”)
And to end this: basically, all of Missy’s lines in the opening story and every time the Doctor pulled out the human interaction cards.
What was your most impactful spiritual takeaway from the season as a whole?
Aaron: You cannot call your two-part finale “Heaven Sent” and “Hell Bent” and not invoke some sense of the afterlife in your show. That has always been an interesting point of Doctor Who—its unabashed embrace of something beyond this life. Just last season, we had Danny Pink communicating beyond the grave.
So often in science-fiction shows, the writers and creators are so wary of introducing any supernatural element that it avoids every possible instance—sometimes in the clunkiest of ways. But Doctor Who, and perhaps Battlestar Galactica, understands that involving things beyond the explanation of science can only enhance the show and make it more relatable to the vast majority of the audience who accepts the existence of the supernatural.
Another aspect of Doctor Who that makes it so impactful, is how it stresses the importance of the individual and our choices. The Doctor saving Ashildr has long-lasting repercussions. Clara’s life, which on the surface was just the life of a young, single English teacher, rippled far beyond her time And not just because she time-traveled, but because of her relationships: she mattered to people.
Much like C.S. Lewis argued, Doctor Who reminds us that individuals are vastly more important than cities or civilizations. Those will crumble and fade away, but the individual will remain and become “immortal horrors or everlasting splendors.”
Kevin: In “The Girl Who Died,” the writers came up with a fairly clever way to give a reason for Peter Capaldi playing the role of the Doctor, despite him already playing a minor character on a previous episode. And the takeaway from “the face reveal” was the Doctor’s realization that he still needed to “save the one.” In that particular episode, that “one” was Ashildr, but the “one” for the entire season was Clara.
Knowing the end for Clara was coming, the writers really strengthened the relationship between her and the Doctor, and showed us someone in the Doctor who would do absolutely anything for the one he loves. Of course, this was shown in no better way than in him spending 4.5 billion years inside his own personal hell, when he could’ve left at any time if he had only confessed the identity of the Hybrid. But more important to him was the chance to save Clara.
The Gospel writer John refers to himself multiple times as “the one Jesus loves,” because that was how he saw his identity. And after Clara learns of how long the Doctor spent trying to save her, how could she not identify herself as “the one the Doctor loves”? But it’s not just John. It’s not just Clara. It’s every single “one.” The one sheep, the one coin, the one son (see Luke 15). You and I are also “the one Jesus loves,” the one he saved.
Though I do not expect the writers to have the Doctor love his next companion in the same way that he clearly loved Clara, if he did, that would be an accurate picture of the way each of us are loved the same by Jesus, to the point of him going to hell and back for every single one of us too.
That’s all for this week, Whovians. But don’t worry, we’re not yet done for the season. Be sure to join us in a couple of weeks when we discuss our second-favorite thing about Christmas–the Doctor Who Christmas special. You can find us at both BibleInPopCulture.com and TheWardrobeDoor.com. And follow Kevin on Twitter at @PopCultureKevin and Aaron at@WardrobeDoor.
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