The story of River Song truly is a masterpiece in both writing and acting.

I’m just so glad that River and the Doctor got to have their 24-year night on Darillium.

There was a ton here I had never considered. Great stuff!

I swear that River couldn't remember killing the doctor at Lake Silencio. There was some comment about how she's "serving time for a murder she doesn't remember" or something like that.

Great video. I'd never realised how tragic and cruel her story is...

I knew it would be interesting to view her story in this order.  Thanks for putting it together.

Makes you cry a River

Ellie, that was masterful! Actually brought me to tears!

What a wonderful recounting of River/Melody's story line. I know that, to a large extent, Moffatt left a lot of threads along the way open-ended to fill in later, so quite a bit of her story is, well, luck. But it's interesting to contrast the luck of putting that entire story line together with the utter tragedy that that story line reveals. And BTW, Alex Kingston is simply one of the most underrated actors of her generation. And I say that knowing that she is universally beloved and respected, and yet somehow, it's just not enough. Thanks for the tie-up.

Ellie doing a deepe-dive on River Song - it's what this whole channel has been leading up to :) Seriously, really good episode - I never realised how deep this storyline is.  As you said, very heart-breaking

The most detailed and so much depth in River’s journey and her character.  I fell in love with River as soon as she appeared on screen.  And it’s comforting to know there’s are people who absolutely love this character..and Alex Kingston for playing her with such passion.  Thank you for this.

River Song was always my favorite from the first episode to the last. Though she called herself a psychopath, I never believed it. She had to cut off her emotions to survive. Thank you for doing this episode as you did a brilliant job of explaining her suffering from her perspective.

Imagine being so skilled at writing as Steven Moffat is, to be able to come up with all of this story years in advance of it actually being seen, let alone if it was ever going to be completed. No rush, and no compromises. He planned this character and her journey so expertly well, and that's why he is and will always be the best writer on the show. Only Moffat could introduce a new character to both the Doctor and the audience and have her play such an important role in the future of the show, only to essentially kill her off during her first outing before any questions are even answered. He must've had a lot of faith in being able to continue/complete her story which would've weighed heavily on him. Alex Kingston really is so amazing, and her performance is superb in this show.

Incredible review loved this 👏

24:35 - this is SO IMPORTANT. She knew that by the time the Doctor was Twelve, he loved her, but she needed the assurance that the incarnation she married loved her. And he did 😭💙💙

Great analysis Ellie, so many layers and so much depth to River Song.

When Melody met Amy in the spacesuit, you've got to remember-that's not Amy! The Doctor tells us that the flesh avatar of Amy that she hadn't been there for a long time-he believed since just before America! And we know how volatile The Flesh could be! So it's not unusual for Amy to not act like Amy here-because it's NOT Amy!

Wonderful video! Brought tears to my eyes several times just going through her story ❤

20:44 incorrect actually. Husbands of river song is the LAST Moment of river and the Doctor in her timeline

Ellie, your deep, sincere empathy for River is remarkable and beautiful. Most of the emotional perspectives you gave had gone right past me when I watched those episodes years ago.  Maybe some of that is just that I'm male, but I think your insights into River go far beyond what most fans of any gender would have noticed.  If you ever meet Steven Moffat, I can just see you breaking down in tears, beating on his chest, and saying, "How could you be so mean to her?" ❤