River Song
Bi CharactersRiver Song is a character in Doctor Who created by Steven Moffat and played by Alex Kingston. She is the third and final regeneration of “Melody Pond”, daughter of the Eleventh Doctor’s companions, Amy and Rory Pond. Her intricate timeline and connection to the Doctor make her a standout figure in the reboot series.
Her birth and childhood years are first shrouded in mystery, due to her kidnapping by the religious order known as the Silence. She was raised and conditioned to be a weapon against the Doctor, and during the early years of her life, her mission is to end his existence, no matter the cost.
She was first introduced as a future companion of the Doctor. As she is also a time traveler, her adventures and encounters with the Doctor happen out of order. She first meets the Tenth Doctor, then the Eleventh’s regeneration, and finally ends with the Twelfth Doctor meeting her for the last time. Her first appearances as River are in season 4 “Silence in the Library” and “Forest of the Dead”, where she encounters the Tenth Doctor, introducing herself as someone who he will trust completely. She is seen carrying a TARDIS journal. At the end of “Forest of the Dead”, she sacrifices herself to save the Doctor and his companions. He is then able to upload a copy of her consciousness into the Library database, allowing her to live in a virtual world.
In season 5 episode 4 “Time of Angels”, she bumps into the Eleventh Doctor, and together they investigate the crash of the Byzantium spaceship, where it is revealed that she knows how to operate the TARDIS, and in the process reveals that she is in prison for killing “the best man she’s ever known.”
In season 6 episode 8 “Let’s Kill Hitler”, her backstory is finally explained to the audience, with River explaining how she was kidnapped by the Silence and trained to kill the Doctor; in this, she also reveals how she is actually the daughter of Amy and Rory, and due to Amy traveling while pregnant in the TARDIS, has held on to time-lord DNA, giving River the ability to regenerate.
The 2015 Christmas special “The Husbands of River Song” confirmed that River had married men and women during her various reincarnations.
Doctor: King Kydroflax?
River: Oh, how many times? I married the diamond.
Doctor.: So you say…
River: Elizabeth the First
Doctor: Ramone.
River: Marilyn Monroe.
Doctor: Stephen Fry
River: Cleopatra!
Doctor: Same thing.
River Song’s bisexuality is an integral part of her character, something Showrunner and executive producer Steven Moffat also has confirmed in various tweets:
