He was ordered (forced really) into the events of Genesis, and D10 happens after all of this.
And in Remembrance of the Daleks, HE didn't blow up Skaro, he just set the Hand of Omega to do it. It's not HIS fault that Davros stole it and then used it.
Still and all, perhaps just a tad disingenuous to suggest that this conflict has nothing to do with him.
I had it spoiled that Paul McGann was in it without me being aware it was a spoiler
Me too. My thanks to McDohl for spoilertagging properly; the rest of you get a big frowny face. Even though we've suspected this was going to happen for months.
Anyhow, really quite good; my favorite part was the inversion of the usual formula. The Doctor swooping in to save somebody, giving the usual introductory "bigger on the inside" line, and [spoiler]having her respond with "Is that a TARDIS? GET AWAY FROM ME!" really hammered home that the Time War is not the Doctor's usual fun time dashing about the universe saving humans and righting wrongs. I also quite like that, while they twist the Doctor's arm to choose his regeneration and join the Time War, that's not what kills him; he dies trying to convince Cass to let him save her life, they just buy him a few extra minutes to make a decision about what happens next.[/spoiler]
Moffat's entire run has revolved around the premise that a good big bunch of the universe is terrified of the Doctor, sees him less as Doctor and more as Warrior, and has good reason to. This was some just-about-perfect payoff on that long-running theme.
The Macbeth Witches were largely superficial and felt an awful lot like one of those lore-building things that Davies liked to throw out there and then forget about. It could just as easily have been any group of mysterious figures. But the bit about [spoiler]regenerations being nonrandom[/spoiler] may yet have a payoff -- see my post from last month about
Moffat's thoughts on Capaldi's multiple appearances.
All in all, fucking wonderful to see McGann.
Also: "Will it Hurt?"
lol
[spoiler]And so #8 leaves the world the same way he entered it: with hamhanded wordplay about his name.[/spoiler]
Adding: [spoiler]Hurt sure looked young in that brief look we got at his reflection. I would have to say -- given that Smith has canonically been the Doctor for over 200 years and not aged visibly -- that this is intended to show that the Time War went on for a long fucking time. Or possibly just took a huge physical and mental toll and aged him prematurely.[/spoiler]
Also adding: when I said that acknowledging the eight prior Doctors in Brain of Morbius makes #4 the last of the original regenerations and explains the Watcher, I goofed; it's 12 regenerations, not 12 incarnations. Going by the Morbius Doctor theory, #5 would have been the last of the original 13 incarnations, not #4.
Though I suppose you could still use that to explain the Watcher, since he would then have appeared to shepherd the Doctor into his final incarnation. Doesn't explain how he kept going after that, though.
FURTHER ADDING: Another recurring element of Moffat's run has been the Doctor running away from confrontations until he's finally cornered and has no other choice. This isn't exactly a new idea for the series; it goes back at least as far as War Games and the first appearance of the Time Lords.
Which strikes me as significant.