River Song

River Song is a recurring Doctor Who character. She is a fellow time-traveler and as a result is usually out of sync with the Doctor, meeting him at different points in their personal timelines. She is played by Alex Kingston.
==Canon Background==
River Song was introduced to the show in 2008, in the fourth-season two-parter "Silence in the Library"/"Forest of the Dead." In this story it is revealed that she knows the Doctor in her past and his future; his first meeting with her is the last time she sees him. In later episodes, they continue to meet out of order, and must refer to journals to determine where they are in one another's timelines. In the final episode of the sixth season of Doctor Who, "The Wedding of River Song," she and the Eleventh Doctor "get married". In the "Name of the Doctor", she makes a re-appearance after her "death" in "Forest of the Dead".
River's timeline continues to be complex and there is no single time-line she follows. 
In S6 it is revealed that River Song is Melody Pond, daughter of Amy Pond and Rory Williams. Because she was conceived in the Time Vortex while her parents traveled aboard the TARDIS, she has some Time Lord characteristics, including the ability to regenerate. Kidnapped at birth by Madame Kevorian and the Headless Monks, she is brainwashed from childhood to murder the Doctor, and sent to Leadworth to grow up with Amy and Rory as their friend Mels - whom Amy named her for. With them she meets the Eleventh Doctor for the first time (in her timeline) and, freshly regenerated. However, she then changes her mind and saves him by giving him all her remaining regenerations. She studies archaeology in order to find and track him through history.
Marital status:
In her S4 appearance it is strongly implied, that River is the Doctor's wife. In S5, 'The Time of Angels,' Amy guesses that they are married, which River declines to confirm, though she does not plainly deny it either. In addition, he does not tell her his name, as it has been implied he would do upon their marriage. Still, Amy goes on to refer to herself consistently as the Doctor's mother-in-law, though Steven Moffat confirmed that the Doctor and River Song were indeed not married.
==Fandom==
=== Relationships===
* River Song/The Doctor - Usually paired with either Eleven or Twelve, though other pairings, particularly with Ten and Thirteen, also exist.
* River Song/Missy
* Space Wives (River Song/Thirteenth Doctor)
===Fan Reaction===
*Is River a Mary Sue?
*The secret of her birth - reactions (and how this ties into Amy's loss of agency?) Ships sank (River/Amy, Doctor/River/Amy/Rory).
*River's loss of agency? Her entire life revolves around The Doctor. (It would also be great to be able to point to some posts from fans who adore her.)
Some fans feel that the character of River Song is not consistent across the four seasons in which she appears. When she first appears she is a professor of archaeology, a time traveler, and an adventurer. Later, she becomes a master criminal, a femme fatale, a brainwashed assassin, a helpless victim of fate. While it is possible for one person to be all of these things, some fans feel that her characterization stretches beyond the point of willing suspension of disbelief. The character as introduced in S4 is strong, vital, and believable, and her chemistry with the Tenth Doctor is explosive. In later appearances she becomes more extreme, more cartoonish, less real in spite of Alex Kingston's compelling performances. This isn't necessarily a detriment to the character, as many fans enjoy her swaggering, high-heel-wearing personality. Other fans, however, remain attached to the honest and forthright character they met in the Library, and have trouble reconciling that woman with her later incarnations.
Promethea Tenk writes:
=== Common Tropes & Themes===
*AUs - Various Human canon divergences with River and The Doctor are humans
*The Ponds - River having a familial relationship with her family, Amy and Rory along with the Doctor. 
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==Example Fanworks==
*Don't Tell Me Where You've Been (Just Show Me What You Know), a River/Eleven fanvid by Laura Shapiro
==Example Art Gallery==
File:River song by hyper aggie42.jpg|River Song by Hyper-Aggie42 (2011)
File:River song vortex by borisit0.jpg|River Song Vortex by Borisit0 (2013)
File:Check your records again by windykid.jpg|Check Your Records Again... (August 2010) by windykid, featuring a crossover with the character of Greedo from Star Wars.
==Fannish Resources ==
*River Song (Doctor Who Wiki)
*River Song fanworks tag at AO3
*A Teaspoon and an Open Mind (link) (a general DW fic archive)
*Spoiler_Song (general River Song community on LiveJournal)
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*Professor_Song (general River Song community on LiveJournal)
*Rivereffinsong (general River Song community on Dreamwidth)
==References==
Category:Whoniverse Characters