History Recap / DoctorWhoS32E3TheCurseOfTheBlackSpot

* HistoricalDomainCharacter: Captain Henry Avery. In reality, he did indeed serve with the Royal Navy, become a notorious pirate, before abruptly vanishing from the historical record in 1696.

** You're forgetting the fact that the Doctor apparently has let a bunch of notorious pirates have access to a space-ship to joyride around the universe willy-nilly! However, given how the Doctor later summons them to take part at the battle of "Demons Run", he's apparently been keeping an eye on them.

** However, it is both lampshaded and handwaved in dialogue. The Doctor explains that he's right about what those instruments ''are'', but it's not exactly what they ''do'';
--> '''Avery''': *''Shrugs'' A ship's a ship...

* HistoricalDomainCharacter: Captain Avery.

** He figured out what a few of the instruments do. That's nothing like knowing how to pilot something -- just because someone can spot and know what the wheel, compass, and gyroscope of a plane do doesn't make him a qualified pilot.

** [[spoiler:The Siren]] is a virtual doctor similar to the EMH in ''StarTrek: [[StarTrekVoyager Voyager]]''.

Back on the TARDIS, Schroedinger's Pregnancy still seems to be going on, and the Doctor is ''very'' worried. He keeps it a secret from the other. Amy and Rory continue to angst about [[spoiler:the Doctor's impending death]].

The TARDIS is marooned on-board a 17th-century pirate ship whose crew is being attacked by a mysterious and beautiful sea creature.

Becalmed and beset by cabin fever, the pirates have numerous superstitious explanations for the Siren's appearance. The Doctor has other ideas but, as his theories are disproved and every plan of escape is thwarted, he must work to win the trust of the implacable Captain Avery and uncover the truth behind the pirates' supernatural fears – and he must work quickly, for some of his friends have already fallen under the Siren's spell...

The night is clear, the sea is calm, and one very nervous pirate, after slipping in the bilge water and cutting his finger, has a very black spot on his hand. His state of mind is not at all helped by being told that he's a dead man by the captain himself - and then the singing starts. A certain someone is on her way.

Well, hell, [=McGrath's=] not going down without a fight! He grabs a pistol and charges out on deck to try and escape, and the others take the precaution of locking the door behind him, and yeah, there's really only one way this can end, isn't there?

Apparently so, because there's a scream and then silence, and when the others come out onto the deck there's no trace of [=McGrath=], just like all the others. This does nothing for the mental well-being of the remaining crew, though the captain holds hope that the wind will change and they'll be able to escape. And then there's a banging from below decks! It's the creature!

''Oooorrrr'' it could be the Doctor, Amy and Rory. And no, Doctor, no one actually says that.

Captain Avery is understandably skeptical that the TARDIS crew picked up a distress call from them, since the pirates sent no signal and none of them has the faintest idea what a 'sensor' is in any case. Avery quickly gets fed up of all the Doctor's technobabble in trying to explain how the three got there in a blue box, as is often the case, and pulls a gun on him - which, again, is often the case. He settles on the more simple solution - they're stowaways. What shall we do with them?

Come on, we're in an episode about pirates; ''someone's'' got to walk the plank at some point.

In this case that someone is the Doctor, with Rory getting a go next - although Amy, as the 'doxy', will be put to work below decks. A little help, Rory? He claims Amy isn't a doxy, which does nothing. Mind you, though, when she gets down to the hold she not only finds a stash of swords, she also espies a coat and hat. [[PirateGirl Time to play dress up again...]]

Back up top the Doctor comments on the size of the crew relative to the size of the ship, i.e. there should be a lot more of them. And Amy's back, complete with sword, hat, coat, the works! The pirates are rather reluctant to take her on, though it's not really clear why at first - while Amy certainly looks the part it's not like she knows how to sword fight properly. Still, she manages to buckle with enthusiastic swash, to say nothing of nicking one of them.

"You have killed me!" "Oh come on, I barely touched him!"

However, one cut is all that it appears to take, as the black spot appears on Amy's victim. Then Rory fumbles a sword catch and now he's got a spot too. And is apparently next on the menu for the demon that lurks in these waters. Poor guy just can't win, can he?

Still, at least it's nice that she drops you a note before she kills you, eh? Thank you, Doctor, you're a real ray of sunshine. A certain melodic voice pipes up again, which really doesn't help the situation. Avery says to stop their ears to block out the Siren's hypnotic song; before Rory can finish being dismissive of that last statement he appears to fall under her spell. And...starts acting like he's high. According to Avery this is normal. Well, fairly normal. You know what I mean.

And heeere's the Siren! Green and glowing and beautiful, she makes quick work of the enthralled pirate, who vanishes in a cloud of...something. Now it's Rory's turn, and he seems to be quite looking forward to it, actually. Amy is ''not'', though, and makes it clear that Rory is taken already. The Siren responds by ''ohgodredeyesandteethandaaaaa.''

''Run away! To the hold!''

...Come on, Rory, come ''on,'' no Siren for you tonight.

Once they're all 'safely' in the hold, Amy proceeds to ask just what the hell that was. Apparently the Siren's been preying on these waters for years, and she's been picking off the wounded crew one by one, attracted to blood. Like a green singing shark in an evening gown! Now that we've got that simile out of the way, what are we going to do? Once again the Doctor babbles, once again Avery pulls out the gun. Freud would have something to say about that, if he'd been born yet. One of the pirates gets bitten by a leech in the water, which causes a mass exodus to the drier bits. Still, we're definitely safe in here, I mean there's three layers of timber and-

Oh wait, the Siren gets into the hold anyway and snaffles the leech victim. But hey, at least the Doctor [[RunningGag gains a nice hat]]. ''Run away again, run away again!'' Come ''on'', Rory! Once they're safe(r), the Doctor surmises that she's using water like a portal. Question: where on a ship in the middle of the ocean can you find somewhere with no water?

Answer: the powder magazine! The Doctor tells Avery not to be threatened by the fact that he's [[NiceHat got a hat now]].

When they get there, the key to the door is missing from its ring, and the door is already unlocked. That's not ominous at all. Somebody else apparently had the same idea, and that somebody is currently hiding in a barrel.

"Gotcha - what are you doing here, boy?"

'Boy' is in fact Avery's son, Toby, whose mother had died, who's under the impression that Avery is a celebrated naval officer, who stowed away on the ship so he can join his fabled dad's crew (which Avery isn't too happy about, to say the least) and who also has a nasty cough and...the black spot. He doesn't have any cuts, though. Huh. Guess that theory about the Siren being attracted to blood is out the window; instead she focuses on the wounded and sick. Humans being as weak and fragile as they are, it's only a matter of time before they all damage themselves in some way and become the Siren's prey. All the more reason to get out of here. The Doctor and Avery have another little test of wills. The gun comes out again. Toby, meanwhile, feels thirsty, and since there's a barrel of water, he lifts the lid to get a drink and ''ohgodarmcomingoutofthebarrelaaaaaaa''. The Doctor forces the lid back down on it, though. Phew, safe for now. Now let's go and get that TARDIS, Captain.

Avery leaves Toby his good luck medallion, and Amy reminds the Doctor to be careful about getting scratched or something. Hey, we've all got to go sometime, eh? Awkward silence galore.

The Doctor and Avery, now on a mutual footing, get to the TARDIS without any mishaps, though it's a near thing. And it's bigger on the - yes, we know. Freud would have something to say about you too, Doctor. Though despite the technobabble, Avery still figures out how the controls work, because hey, a ship's a ship, no matter the type.

Back in the barricaded cabin, the remaining pirates aren't too keen on babysitting Toby, and make to leave with the ship's row boat. Toby isn't too happy about that, since they're disobeying their Captain. The pirates rain on his parade and inform him exactly what Avery really does for a living. Poor Toby. Still, he's not about to let them leave, and unwittingly condemns one of them when he slices his hand with a sword. His friend promptly takes the keys and makes off, and much as the afflicted man would like to shoot Toby, he really can't, since they're, you know, in a powder magazine and all. All they can do is re-barricade the door.

Back on the TARDIS there's some navigational problems, as the ship can't lock onto the plane they're currently in, for some reason. The ocean's involved in some way. And then the TARDIS apparently starts having a tantrum, everything's acting up, and she's about to demateralise. It would probably be good to get out, yes, otherwise who knows where we'll end up. "ABANDON SHIP!"

The TARDIS, she is gone. What now?

On their way back to the others, they're waylaid by Mulligan. Complete with guns. Why yes, this is mutiny. He's got the last of the supplies, but Avery's more concerned about his treasure. A chase ensues, ending with Mulligan locked in a little room, lighting a candle - and burning his fingers. The Siren's song starts, but she's not here for the two outside the room. The problem, is, since there's no water in there - how did she get in?

The answer is, quite literally, in Avery's hands - and yes, the Doctor was wrong again, by the way. Long story short, the water's not her gateway. Then what is?

Reflections - and where do you find lots of reflections but in the polished metal of a treasure horde - and a shiny medallion you left around your son's neck. Oops. Back to the cabin!

For a change, they get there in time and the Doctor fogs up the medallion with some heavy breathing. Now they've got to get rid of all the reflections - and that means dumping all this treasure in the sea, by the way. Avery ain't too happy about that, but for Toby's sake agrees. And now they play the waiting game, until the sea roughens up again.

The Doctor and Avery, though, can go up on deck, and they do so and have a chat about things like travelling and companions and how Avery doesn't think he's a good father and can't go back to what he was before. Cheerful stuff. The Doctor is a healthy proponent of the belief that everything can change. Think about it.

The night wears on, and the Doctor gets the distinct impression that someone's watching him. Not good. But then a thunderstorm starts. Time to man the sails and stuff, which is pretty hard considering how few of them there are. It turns out that Avery didn't throw out all of the treasure, though, since there is one crown left and thus a way for the Siren to get through. And get through she does, and takes Toby before the Doctor can chuck the thing overboard. Once he does, he's none too pleased with Avery. How much does that treasure mean to him, that he could let it destroy his life so? His rant gets cut off, though, when Rory falls overboard.

He's drowning. If they go in after him, they'll drown too. Damned if you do, damned if you don't; the Doctor takes a third option, and releases the Siren, thinking that maybe they can reason with it, since it's clearly intelligent and not just a ravenous hunter. They prick their fingers, the black spots emerge and so does the Siren...

They wake up on the bridge of an alien ship. Another technobabble sort of explains it, even if it is actually nothing like that at all - basically, the pirate ship and the alien ship exist on the same plane, but in two different universes, and all the reflective surfaces are where the barrier between the worlds is thin enough to slip through. And hey, look - [[EverybodyLives everyone that 'died' is lying in the sickbay!]] The Siren is a medical hologram left on autopilot, the black spots are tissue samples.

With the help of some [[spoiler:[[CPRCleanPrettyReliable CPR]], and instruction from her nurse-husband, Amy resuscitates Rory]]. Our heroes leave the alien ship in the hands of the pirates, and Avery is reunited with Toby.

Back on the TARDIS, Schroedinger's [[spoiler: Pregnancy]] still seems to be going on, and the Doctor is ''very'' worried, whilst Amy and Rory continue to angst about [[spoiler:the Doctor's impending death]].

* BreatherEpisode: After duo beginning the new series, and before the HighOctaneNightmareFuel that follows.

->'''Doctor:''' ''Yo-ho-ho!...Or does nobody actually say that?''

** [[spoiler: Flying pirates]] is reminiscent of Neil Gaiman's {{Stardust}}. Guess who's writing the next episode?

* ColourCodedForYourConvenience: The Siren. Green means good and "harmless", [[TurnsRed red means be very afraid.]]

-->'''Doctor:''' ''Yo-ho-ho!...Or does nobody actually say that?''

* HistoricalDomainCharacter: As shown in GeniusBonus above, Captain Avery.

** [[spoiler: PregnantBadass. [[OrIsIt Or is she?]]]]

* BlackSpot: Though not completely like the trope...the Siren leaves a black spot on the hands of those she 'curses'.

* BlackSpot: Though not completely like the trope...the mermaid leaves a black spot on the hands of those she 'curses'.

* TheyKilledKenny: [[spoiler:You know, for a nurse, Rory seems to die/[[HeGotBetter almost nearly die]]/[[DisneyDeath fake die]] quite a bit]].
** At this point it's a RunningGag. A couple of people have asked Moffat on Twitter to please stop [[spoiler:killing Rory]], and Moffat point blank said "NO."