History Recap / DoctorWhoS34E4Listen

* FearIsNormal: The Aesop of the episode. The episode delves into how the Doctor learned his creed of "never cruel or cowardly." One scene in-particular sees the Doctor and Clara arrive in a little boy's room, where he's found a monster hiding under the covers of his bed. The Doctor comforts the boy (unbeknownst to them, a young [[spoiler: Danny Pink]]) by [[NegativesAsAPositive applauding his caution and spinning it as a good thing]]; encouraging everyone to turn their back on the creature, which ends up leaving without an audience. This is later revealed to have been a philosophy he [[spoiler: learned from Clara as a child while he was crying in the barn]].

-->'''[[spoiler: Clara]]''': ''(to the [[spoiler: Doctor as a child]])'' I know you're afraid. But being afraid is alright. Fear is a superpower...If you're very wise and very strong, fear doesn't have to make you cruel or cowardly. Fear can make you kind.

* KidFromTheFuture: Orson has some implied family link with Clara and Danny, and mentions stories of a great-grandparent who travelled in time, even having Dan the Soldier Man as a family heirloom. [[spoiler:WordOfGod is that he is related to Danny distantly, and that Clara gave these distance relatives the toy soldier after his death.]]

* {{Bowdlerization}}: The Doctor's theory that everyone has a "monster under the bed" dream is a bowdlerized version of the real-life "[[http://watarts.uwaterloo.ca/~acheyne/intruder.html bedroom invader]]" phenomenon (usually blamed on sleep paralysis), which would probably be too scary for even Moffat to depict before the watershed.

** It is never confirmed whether the Doctor's barn is part of a children's home, but the male authority figures is at least a jerkass who wants to force children to join the army.

** Similarly, who wrote the TitleDrop on the Doctor's blackboard? Was there actually some perfect hider answering his question, or did he just realise the answer himself, write it down and then forget about it because he is, well, [[CloudCuckoolander a little unhinged]]?

Clara has a date, and it's not going well. [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E2IntoTheDalek She's finally managed to get Danny Pink out for some drinks]], but an inadvertent comment triggers his war guilt, there's an argument, and, before you know it, she's stormed off. Perfect time for an adventure, then! The Doctor agrees, and, after propositioning her in her bedroom (not like that), they're off on another trip. The destination? Well, through the power of the TARDIS' telepathic controls and Clara's subconscious, the source of the nightmare that's been haunting the human race since time immemorial.

** Another huge one happens near the end when she realizes just exactly [[JustForPun who's]] bed she's hiding under. And then another a few seconds later when she grabs the kid's ankle and realizes the implications of what she's just done.

--->'''Clara:''' "Fear doesn't have to make you cruel or cowardly."

-->'''The Doctor''': "What's wrong with scared? Scared is a superpower!"
-->'''[[spoiler: Clara]]''' ''(to the [[spoiler: Doctor as a child]])'': "I know you're afraid. But being afraid is alright. Fear is a superpower...If you're very wise and very strong, fear doesn't have to make you cruel or cowardly. Fear can make you kind."

-->'''The Doctor:''' "No-no not the hugging, [[NoHuggingNoKissing I'm against the hugging, please!]]"

-->'''Clara:''' "Did we come here for a nursery rhyme?"

-->'''The Doctor:''' "Question: why do we talk out loud even when we know we're alone? Conjecture: because we know we're not."

-->'''Barbara:''' "You're trying to help me."\\
'''The Doctor:''' "Fear makes companions of all of us."

-->'''Clara:''' "Is that what I look like from the back?"
-->'''The Doctor:''' "It's fine."
-->'''Clara:''' "I was thinking it was ''good.''"

-->'''Caretaker:''' "How did you get in?"\\
'''The Doctor:''' "Your door must be faulty."

* KidFromTheFuture: Orson has some implied family link with Clara and Danny, and mentions stories of a great-grandparent who travelled in time, even having Dan the Solider Man as a family heirloom. [[spoiler:WordOfGod is that he is related to Danny distantly, and that Clara gave these distance relatives the toy soldier after his death.]]

JustForFun/TheOneWhere the Doctor gets worked up over nothing. [[AmbiguousSituation Maybe]]?

JustForFun/TheOneWith a [[DoubleMeaning young]] [[StealthPun one]]. [[ExactWords Seriously]]. Also the one where the Doctor gets worked up over nothing. [[AmbiguousSituation Maybe]]?

* BadassPacifist: Clara gives a group of toy soldiers to a young Danny Pink, and then to the Doctor as a child, lead by Dan the soldier man. When the young Danny notes that the Dan figure has no gun, Clara explains that why he's the leader; he is so powerful that he does not need a weapon.
* BadDate: Clara's first date with Danny goes rapidly downhill for each of them because of their respective emotional issues. Then it goes badly again after she time-travels back to it and mentions Danny's childhood name, "Rupert".

** As a child, Rupert Pink hated his name. "Rupert" is just terrible. That's why he goes by "Danny" instead.
** The publicity for this episodes mentions "a little boy who doesn't want to join the army". Logically, this would seem like it's referring to Rupert/Danny. It's actually the Doctor.
* BeAllMySinsRemembered: Danny hasn't yet come to terms with his feelings of guilt and shame over killing people as a soldier. Clara makes an off-the-cuff joke about it on their date, sending him into a downward spiral.
* BerserkButton: Danny has some... issues with people implying that all he did when he was a soldier was kill people. When Clara makes a poor taste joke about how him thinking about killing Courtney actually means something, he goes on a lengthy rant about how he protected villagers, including digging twenty-three wells.

* BigBad: If the Doctor's right, then the mysterious listeners fill this role. If Clara's right and the Doctor is simply trying to find a way to process his childhood fears, then the episode has NoAntagonist.
* BigDamnKiss: Clara and Danny finally kiss.
* {{Bookends}}: Assuming the Curator from "[[Recap/DoctorWho50thASTheDayOfTheDoctor The Day of the Doctor]]" is an elderly version of the Doctor as he's hinted to be, this episode plus that one makes Clara a bookend for his roster of companions: he encounters her as a little child here ''and'' (briefly) long after his retirement in the earlier episode.

* ButterflyOfDoom: Clara becomes one through time travel, accidentally drastically changing the lives of the Doctor and Danny Pink.

** A ''very'' long one in the lurch. We are given hints of the black day that the Third Doctor told Jo about all the way back in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS9E5TheTimeMonster The Time Monster]]". Apparently, who we now know as the First Doctor was going to be forced to join the army, so he ran away to a mountain top (probably due more to shame of not being able to make it into the Academy than to any fear or dislike of the army), too sad for even tears, and happened to discover a hermit there who taught him about the beauty of life that could be found by giving anything a deeper look.
** Eight incarnations later, [[Recap/DoctorWho50thASTheDayOfTheDoctor the War Doctor went back to that barn on Gallifrey]] because it's where the Doctor always went to hide when there was trouble. And with the ultimate trouble about to descend when he used the Moment, that was the most logical place for him to be.
** The Fourth Doctor once mentioned that he used to be "frightened in childhood by a mythological horror..." Turns out said horror is short, dark-haired, and has a very wide face.

--->'''Clara:''' Fear doesn't have to make you cruel or cowardly.

* ChaosArchitecture: The barn from "[[Recap/DoctorWho50thASTheDayOfTheDoctor The Day of the Doctor]]" returns, chronologically earlier... so why's it got a loft?

** [[Recap/DoctorWhoS28E4TheGirlInTheFireplace Another episode]] penned by Steven Moffat where monsters hide under the bed. The Clockwork Droids, the monsters of that previous story, [[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E1DeepBreath reappeared only three episodes ago]].

** "Sontarans! Perverting the course of human history!" is very similar to the [[Recap/DoctorWhoS12E1Robot opening words]] of the Fourth Doctor. Which was in itself a nod to "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS11E1TheTimeWarrior The Time Warrior]]".

** The Doctor telling young Rupert/Danny to not turn around is the same instruction the Beast gave to the unfortunate Toby in [[Recap/DoctorWhoS28E8TheImpossiblePlanet The Impossible Planet]]".

* DinnerAndAShow: Even the hazards of war couldn't prepare Danny for a date with the world's most over-qualified schoolteacher.
* DramaticIrony: "Well, he's not going to the Academy, is he, that boy? He'll never make a '''Time Lord'''." Mmhmm, really? Yeah, ''guess who made Time Lord!?''

* EyeTake: Clara's signature PuppyDogEyes deliver a massive one when she sees Orson Pink's face for the first time. Even the Doctor notices and comments.
** Another huge one happens near the end when she realizes just exactly [[JustForPun Who's]] bed she's hiding under.
** Then ''another'' a few seconds later when she grabs the kid's ankle and realizes the implications of what she's just done. Seriously, Coleman's eyes should have gotten billing for this episode.
* FearIsNormal: The Aesop of the episode. The episode delves into how The Doctor learned his creed of "never cruel or cowardly." One scene in-particular sees The Doctor and Clara arrive in a little boy's room, where he's found a monster hiding under the covers of his bed. The Doctor comforts the boy (unbeknownst to them, a young [[spoiler: Danny Pink]]) by [[NegativesAsAPositive applauding his caution and spinning it as a good thing]]; encouraging everyone to turn their back on the creature, which ends up leaving without an audience. This is later revealed to have been a philosophy he [[spoiler: learned from Clara as a child while he was crying in the barn]].
-->'''The Doctor''': What's wrong with scared? Scared is a superpower!
-->'''[[spoiler: Clara]]''' ''(to the [[spoiler: Doctor as a child]])'': I know you're afraid. But being afraid is alright. Fear is a superpower...If you're very wise and very strong, fear doesn't have to make you cruel or cowardly. Fear can make you kind.

* ForgottenFirstMeeting: Clara meets a young Danny Pink, but he will just remember the encounter as a dream. The Doctor has evidently forgotten ''his'' boyhood encounter with Clara, as there's no indication he recognizes her voice as the one that told him to "listen". On this occasion, the young Doctor also gets to hear the sound of his TARDIS departing, making it such a meeting for him and "Sexy" as well.

%% * GettingCrapPastThe Radar: Due to overwhelming and persistent misuse, GCPTR is on-page examples only until 01 June 2021. If you are reading this in the future, please check the trope page to make sure your example fits the current definition.

-->'''The Doctor:''' No-no not the hugging, [[NoHuggingNoKissing I'm against the hugging, please!]]

** Clara briefly wonders if the Doctor's gone and done this (again), asking how long he's been travelling on his own. He doesn't answer her question.

* INeverToldYouMyName: Clara accidentally calls Danny "Rupert" when she returns to her date.

** "Do as you're told!"

-->'''Clara:''' ...Did we come here for a nursery rhyme?
* KidFromTheFuture: Orson has some implied family link with Clara and Danny, and mentions stories of a great-grandparent who travelled in time.
* TheLastManHeardAKnock:
** The Doctor travels to the end of the universe to see if there is indeed a knock.
*** Aside from the above lampshade, the other variation is also invoked: The last man in the world has locked his door.
*** [[OhCrap And then we DO hear a knock.]]

-->'''The Doctor:''' Question: why do we talk out loud even when we know we're alone? Conjecture: because we know we're not.
** And a meta-example: the Doctor really is never alone. We are always watching.

** Played for laughs when the Doctor is talking to the caretaker at the boys' home, pointing out that his coffee occasionally goes missing and the TV shuts itself off. The Doctor is the one that shut the TV off, and he steals the coffee while the caretaker is distracted.

-->'''Barbara:''' You're trying to help me.\\
'''The Doctor:''' Fear makes companions of all of us.

* NaturalEndOfTime: Orson Pink time-travelled by mistake all the way to the end of the universe. The planet he landed on is all that's left. Everything else has long since fallen to the ravages of time.

** Clara gets another when she realizes she and the Doctor inadvertently gave Danny the subconscious idea to become a soldier, causing him significant issues in the present day.

** It's made abundantly clear that Orson Pink is an incredibly brave man journeying and surviving where no others could. He's terrified to tears of what might be outside his ship.

** It is never confirmed whether the Doctor-to-Be's barn is part of a children's home, but one of the authority figures is a jerkass who wants to force children to join the army.

-->'''Clara:''' Is that what I look like from the back?
-->'''The Doctor:''' It's fine.
-->'''Clara:''' I was thinking it was ''good.''

* ShipTease: Although this episode purports to mark the official start of Clara's relationship with Danny, with ShipSinking between Clara and the Doctor assumed to have taken place per the events of "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS34E1DeepBreath Deep Breath]]", this episode is the first of several to include hints that attraction still exists between Clara and the Doctor (which increases throughout the season). In this episode, Clara makes the Doctor do a double-take when she compares his accent to mood lighting. And of course, there's TheGlomp hug she gives him later on.

** The Doctor gives Rupert Pink a dream about being a soldier named Dan, who then ''becomes'' a soldier named Dan.
** The whole episode, if you go with the mundane explanation: the Doctor's theory/obsession stems from a childhood nightmare he once had about something under the bed that grabbed his ankle... which was Clara, who accidentally landed on Gallifrey because of his theory/obsession.

* SuddenlyShouting: The Doctor outright bellows at Clara, virtually driving her to tears.

* ThatCameOutWrong: Clara and Danny run through a number of phrases that surely didn't sound so naughty when they thought of them.

* TimeshiftedActor: Remi Gooding plays Young Danny Pink, and an uncredited stand-in plays the young Doctor (who's almost certainly not taken the name "Doctor" yet, but we'll call him that for want of anything better).

** The Doctor noticing the word written on the chalkboard before the opening titles.
** Again as the Doctor wants Clara to take a moment and let it sink in that they really are at the end of the universe.

** What was that under the bedsheet?

* WakingNonSequitur: "Sontarans! Perverting the course of human history!"

* YearInsideHourOutside: The Doctor returns Clara to the restaurant just after she left. Except Clara left her coat at home when she first entered the TARDIS, and Danny notices its sudden disappearance... which tips him off that something weird has just happened and yanks the date back off the rails.

-->'''Caretaker:''' How did you get in?\\
'''The Doctor:''' Your door must be faulty.

%% Doesn't explain what the reaction is. Please do not unhide until further context has been added.* BerserkButton: Danny has some... issues with people implying that all he did when he was a soldier was kill people.

%% {{Bookends}}: Assuming the Curator from "[[Recap/DoctorWho50thASTheDayOfTheDoctor The Day of the Doctor]]" is who he's hinted to be, this episode plus that one makes Clara a bookend for his roster of companions: he encounters her as a little child ''and'' (briefly) long after his retirement.

->''"What's that, in the mirror and the corner of your eye?''
->''What's that footstep following but never passing by?''
->''Perhaps they're all just waiting. Perhaps when we're all dead''
->''Out they'll come a-slithering, from underneath the bed!"''

The one with a [[DoubleMeaning young]] [[StealthPun one.]] [[ExactWords Seriously]]. Also the one where the Doctor gets worked up over nothing. [[AmbiguousSituation Maybe]]?

The one with a [[DoubleMeaning young]] [[StealthPun one.]] [[ExactWords Seriously.]]

*** [[spoiler:And then we watched "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E12HellBent Hell Bent]]" and [[EpilepticTrees figured it's just Me]].]]

* NaturalEndOfTime: Orson Pink time-travelled by mistake all the way to the end of the universe. The planet he landed on is all that's left. Everything else has long since fallen to the ravages of time. [[spoiler:[[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E12HellBent Well, almost everyone.]]]]

** And finally, what was the source of the knocking sound at Orson Pink's door? [[spoiler:Further down the line, we may have gotten an answer in "[[Recap/DoctorWhoS35E12HellBent Hell Bent]]" in the form of Me [[TheSlowPath living all the way there]].]]

%% Doesn't explain what the reaction is. Please do not unhide until further context has been added.* Berserk Button: Danny has some... issues with people implying that all he did when he was a soldier was kill people.

* BerserkButton: Danny has some... issues with people implying that all he did when he was a soldier was kill people.

** Aside from the above lampshade, the other variation is also invoked: The last man in the world has locked his door.

* NaturalEndOfTime: Orson Pink time-travelled by mistake all the way to the end of the universe. The planet he landed on is all that's left. Everything else has long since fallen to the ravages of time.

* {{Mondegreen}}: More than a few fans (particularly Americans) misheard Orson's name as "[[AwesomeMcCoolname Awesome Pink]]".

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: It is ''strongly'' implied that Clara and Danny spend the night together at one point during the closing montage in a brief sequence that is as close to a love scene as ''Doctor Who'' has ever been allowed to get.

** Danny gives an {{adorkable}} little wave when he sees Clara in the restaurant. The wave allows Clara to recognize him as a child.

* BadasPacifist: Clara gives to a young Danny Pink, and then to the Doctor as a child, toy soldiers, lead by Dan the soldier man. When the young Danny notes that the Dan figure has no gun, Clara explains that why he's the leader; he is so powerful that he does not need a weapon.

* {{Bookends}}: Assuming the Curator from "[[Recap/DoctorWho50thASTheDayOfTheDoctor The Day of the Doctor]]" is who he's hinted to be, this episode plus that one makes Clara a bookend for his roster of companions: he encounters her as a little child ''and'' (briefly) long after his retirement.

* ApocalypseHow: Orson Pink time-travelled by mistake all the way to the end of the universe. The planet he landed on is all that's left. Everything else has long since fallen to the ravages of time.

* GettingCrapPastTheRadar: It is ''strongly'' implied that Clara and Danny spend the night together at one point during the closing montage in a brief sequence that is as close to a love scene as ''Doctor Who'' has ever been allowed to get. Remember that earlier in the episode it is implied that Orson is her descendant, so they have to start somewhere. Any other show but ''Doctor Who'' and this would barely be worthy of mention.

* IdenticalGrandson: Danny's great-grandson looks exactly like him, just with a different haircut.

* KidFromTheFuture: Great-grandkid, in this case, of Danny and -- strongly implied -- Clara.

*** Hopefully he's talking to the TARDIS and hasn't forgotten it is self-aware and listening...

* EveryoneHasStandards: Apparently, The TARDIS ''could'' have gone back to Gallifrey ''whenever the hell she wanted.'' The TARDIS finds the Timelords '''''so goddamn disgusting herself''''' (and is probably so annoyed at constantly being called old and obsolete!) that she just can't be arsed to go back there ''by choice.'' She only goes there when she's ''absolutely'' forced too by Clara.

** The Twelfth Doctor uses the psychic paper for the first time.
** The Doctor is looking for creatures who can hide in plain sight as a perfect defence... which the Silence can do to some degree. You can catch them in the act, though, unlike the ones the Doctor is trying to find.
** The premise of this episode is a giant continuity nod to the ''AudioPlay/BigFinishDoctorWho'' story "[[Recap/BigFinishDoctorWho050Zagreus Zagreus]]". Zagreus is an old Gallifreyan nursery rhyme used to scare little kids. The first verse? "Zagreus sits inside your head. / Zagreus lives among the dead. / Zagreus sees you in your bed / And eats you when you're sleeping..." No wonder the Doctor's afraid of something at night.
** The Doctor talks about "what resides in the mirror" and "what you can see only in the corner of your eye", recalling the fate of a [[Recap/DoctorWhoS29E9TheFamilyOfBlood girl]] that wound up on the Doctor's bad side.
** This isn't the first time the Doctor discusses the reasons for everyone being [[PrimalFear afraid of the dark]]. Except this time, the cause isn't [[Recap/DoctorWhoS30E8SilenceInTheLibrary tiny piranha-like creatures]].