Mark Gatiss' Doctor Who efforts so far have been a mixed bag: last year's Victory of the Daleks was a brilliant World War Two romp infused with classic series elements, whereas The Unquiet Dead and The Idiot's Lantern were pretty forgettable historical adventures. Thankfully, Night Terrors manages to stay in the former categorty, a tense and for the majority compelling journey into the mind of an eight-year old. There were claims that this was going to be the 'horror episode' of the season, akin to Blink and Midnight, and while the soundtrack and script shift the story in a different direction from trying to scare us, there is undoubtedly a chilling air about the dolls that plague the Doctor, his companions and his new friends this week. Admittedly, many of the build-up moments bringing us towards the reveal of the antagonists have been used countless times before, not least in classic and modern Who (similar shots were found in the Silence's first appearances in the USA opener), but even so the direction of these fear factor scenes was excellent, predictably considering Gridlock and The Doctor's Wife's Richard Clark was at the helm. As ever, Matt Smith and co gave their all as the TARDIS crew, however the real credit this week must go to Danny Mays for a realistic and ultimately touching rendition of a modern-day father concerned for his seemingly mentally unstable son. It's no wonder this story was moved to later in the season, though, as its similarities with the 'house call' style of The Lodger were practically mentioned in the dialogue. Surprisingly, for everything this had in common with the great James Corden jaunt from Series 5, the tone and plot managed to make the episode feel distinct in its own right, darker and yet never so much that the show didn't feel like Doctor Who. With the likes of Day of the Moon, The Doctor's Wife, A Good Man Goes To War and Let's Kill Hitler under this series' belt, all crafted masterfully by timey-wimey showrunner Steven Moffat, Mark Gatiss was always going to have a tough time ranking in the most memorable episodes of Season Six. That said, Night Terrors is at least another good indication of the second half's high quality, and I won't be forgetting those dolls or the way the nursery rhymes built to a foreboding crescendo anytime soon!
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Saturday, 3 September 2011
Doctor Who: Night Terrors Review (4/5)
Mark Gatiss' Doctor Who efforts so far have been a mixed bag: last year's Victory of the Daleks was a brilliant World War Two romp infused with classic series elements, whereas The Unquiet Dead and The Idiot's Lantern were pretty forgettable historical adventures. Thankfully, Night Terrors manages to stay in the former categorty, a tense and for the majority compelling journey into the mind of an eight-year old. There were claims that this was going to be the 'horror episode' of the season, akin to Blink and Midnight, and while the soundtrack and script shift the story in a different direction from trying to scare us, there is undoubtedly a chilling air about the dolls that plague the Doctor, his companions and his new friends this week. Admittedly, many of the build-up moments bringing us towards the reveal of the antagonists have been used countless times before, not least in classic and modern Who (similar shots were found in the Silence's first appearances in the USA opener), but even so the direction of these fear factor scenes was excellent, predictably considering Gridlock and The Doctor's Wife's Richard Clark was at the helm. As ever, Matt Smith and co gave their all as the TARDIS crew, however the real credit this week must go to Danny Mays for a realistic and ultimately touching rendition of a modern-day father concerned for his seemingly mentally unstable son. It's no wonder this story was moved to later in the season, though, as its similarities with the 'house call' style of The Lodger were practically mentioned in the dialogue. Surprisingly, for everything this had in common with the great James Corden jaunt from Series 5, the tone and plot managed to make the episode feel distinct in its own right, darker and yet never so much that the show didn't feel like Doctor Who. With the likes of Day of the Moon, The Doctor's Wife, A Good Man Goes To War and Let's Kill Hitler under this series' belt, all crafted masterfully by timey-wimey showrunner Steven Moffat, Mark Gatiss was always going to have a tough time ranking in the most memorable episodes of Season Six. That said, Night Terrors is at least another good indication of the second half's high quality, and I won't be forgetting those dolls or the way the nursery rhymes built to a foreboding crescendo anytime soon!
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