The eighth episode of Doctor Who had thrills, chills and high energy, but felt unfinished.
The episode begins with the Doctor (Matt Smith) accidentally landing in 2020 Wales and embroiled in a mystery involving graveyards with missing bodies, shadowy figures, holes that suck people in and a gigantic “drilly thing.” The new season is continuing a trend of reintroducing old villains of The Doctor to the series.
The relationship between Amy Pond (Karen Gillian) and Rory (Arthur Darvill) is settling into the comfort of a bickering old married couple. It had a cool opening and there was a level of creepiness that felt perfect with various zombie movie tropes. Graveyards, darkness, fog and a church are all staples of zombie cinema.
The reintroduction of the Silurians seemed anti-climactic since they were depending on the audience to recognize them, but they are a formidable enemy. The theme of immigration and land ownership was powerful as the noble Doctor tries to broker a peace treaty between the humans and the Silurians that feel they are the original owners of the Earth and see us as interlopers. More inconsistent use of the Sonic Screwdriver to open some doors, but not others led to the hilarious line “Oi! Don’t dis the sonic!”
Amy Pond has a great scene where she shows her trademark fiestiness. Rory shows he’s not just a hanger-on and the Doctor has some memorable scenes talking about his tortured past. that never gets old. My only complaint about the episode is that it ended too soon. I’m looking forward to the next episode.
4 out of 5 stars
