Despite
being a split ‘season’ on paper, this was without doubt a series opener. It had
all the spectacle one expects from the opening instalment, introducing all the
key plot points that will carry on through the next seven episodes (Clara’s
mysterious origins, the villain behind this story [spoiler alert – do not read
the final paragraph if you haven’t seen this episode yet]), and yet somehow
managed to tell a nice little story, feeding into people's fear of technology
and concern over the way the Internet has made the world so small.
In tone,
this episode felt more like a RTD adventure than a Moffat one, which for me was
a nice change of pace – being more of a fan of RTD’s era than Moffat’s.
Nonetheless, the usual Moffat flourishes are here – a new companion with a
convoluted back-story (although, even after only three appearances, the mystery
surrounding Clara [not‘Oswin’ – a name she hasn’t even heard of when the Doctor
first appears at her front door, but one she does come up with later after
scoring a win – an oswin] is much more intriguing than anything done
with Amy Pond), movie-inspired moments that are there more for spectacle than
plot (the plane crashing towards Clara’s house, and the Doctor subsequently
flying it away, and the Doctor riding his anti-grav bike up the Shard), and
some clever continuity references (most notably the book ‘Summer Falls’ written
by Amelia Williams [Clara’s favourite chapter being eleven], and the
appearance of UNIT, an ‘old friend’ of the Big Bad), not to mention some nice
nods to real-world events such as the London Riots of 2011 and the Police Box
in Earl’s Court.
It’s a good
idea – using the ubiquitous Wifi as a way of alien invasion, and it’s the kind
of idea Doctor Who does well, subverting something everyday into something
malevolent. This is not a new trope of Doctor Who – indeed, it’s been a
staple of the best kind of episodes since the ‘60s (and became an almost weekly
occurrence during Barry Letts era of 1970-75). Granted, this does lead to the
oh-so-exciting visual of two hackers going neck to neck via typing extremely
fast on a keyboard. Fortunately it’s not a major piece of the episode, so it’s
not overdone, but it was predictable and proves, once more, than it’s not much
of a dramatic visual.
No review
would be complete without a word or two about our lead man. This is now Matt
Smith’s fourth year in the role, and it’s most certainly going to prove to be
his most important year, since Doctor Who celebrates its fiftieth
anniversary in November – and for the most part Matt Smith will be carrying the
series through this milestone of television history. No pressure there. As the
recent announcement of David Tennant’s return suggests, Smith will not be the
only actor portraying the Doctor this anniversary year, so at least he’ll have
some support, but, in some respects, he’s going to have an awful lot to live up
to. If this episode proves anything, he’ll carry us through the year
magnificently. Without doubt, Smith is so comfortable in the role now – the
excesses of previous years have been toned down – he dominates the screen from
the moment he pulls down his monk’s hood right up to the final moment of him
running around the TARDIS console. And the chemistry between him and
Jenna-Louise Coleman is superb – it sparkles! There is much that can be said of
his on-screen chemistry with Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill in the previous
three years, but it pales in comparison to the way he and Coleman connects. We
saw much of the same in last year’s The Snowmen, but that was only the
tip of the iceberg. Whatever the mystery is surrounding Clara, I’m looking
forward to the journey. Watching these two is a pure joy.
SPOILER
ALERT!
It’s
impossible not to mention the reveal of the intelligence behind the invasion of
the Wifi. We saw the creation of it on Christmas Day – and no, it isn’t the
Saviour of Man. It is, in fact, the Great Intelligence, previously seen in two
Patrick Troughton stories (in 1967’s The Abominable Snowmen and 1968’s The
Web of Fear). It calls UNIT an old friend, a nice link to The Web of
Fear, since it was that story which lead to the formation of UNIT, but the
best thing about the return of the Great Intelligence in the anniversary year
is having Richard E Grant continue to voice it (as per The Snowmen). For
a short period, in 2003, Grant was the Doctor, in the webcast, Scream
of the Shalka, but his position as official Ninth Doctor was overwritten by
the series return in 2005 and the casting of Christopher Eccleston. So it’s a
nice touch that Grant makes such an important contribution this year – and yes,
as indicated by the end of this episode, we’ve clearly not seen the last of the
Great Intelligence.
Bottom
Line:This is quite possibly the
most assured episode of Doctor Who since Matt Smith took over the reins.
Andy
Frankham-Allen
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