Doctor Who Series 7: The Rings of Ahkaten Review

 

Full spoilers for the episode follow...

Hello everybody and welcome to my review of The Rings of Ahkaten. This is actually a difficult episode to review, evidenced by the fact that I took a whole week to get it done. It has a good start in terms of story. We see the origin of Clara Oswald in mere minutes, from the moment her parents met to the tragic death of her mother, all observed by the Doctor. These scenes were beautifully handled. I liked the explanation of the leaf in Clara's book and the fact that she lost her mum makes her all the more sympathetic. What also works is that this takes the focus away from the mystery surrounding Clara, so we can appreciate her as a character rather than an interesting plot device.

Since this is Clara's first trip in the TARDIS, she needs to be taken to a wondrous place, and the Rings of Ahkaten are the perfect location. The special effects are some of the best I've seen on the show, and the props and makeup matched them in quality. The scene with the Doctor and Clara in the alien market reminded me of the troll market scene from Hellboy II, not really in look, but in the general atmosphere. This was a truly immersive place...it's just a shame the plot didn't match it. Try as I may, I struggled to maintain an interest in the Old God plotline. It wasn't that it was bad, it just didn't interest me. The Old God wasn't a particularly original villain. The scene where the Doctor faces off with him reminded me a little too much of Satan's Pit. I would have liked the Old God to have a voice at least. Considering he's an alien sun, that would have gone a long way towards making him an actual being rather than a big force of nature (Galactus must surely sympathise). I did like the touch of Clara sacrificing the leaf to defeat the Old God, it was certainly an emotional scene.

The Doctor is given less to do in this episode due to most of the focus being on Clara, but he has some funny moment regardless and Matt Smith delivers them well, though I think he overplayed the scene with the Old God a bit. The direction from Farren Blackburn was also a highlight. This episode looked great. Even though this wasn't as good an episode as The Bells of Saint John, I still enjoyed it more than some the other Moffat-era episode's I've seen. Clara benefits very well from this episode and as her first trip in the TARDIS, this isn't that bad a start...

 Score: 3.5/5.0

Doctor Who: Series 7: The Bells of Saint John Review

Full Spoilers for the episode follow...

Hello everybody & welcome to my review of the mid-series premiere of Series 7 of Doctor Who. The Bells of Saint John. This episode marks a change for the series in more ways than one. Jenna-Louise Coleman's "official" debut as Clara Oswin Oswald brings with it a refocused tone to the series. In fact, the Doctor's outfit reflects this perfectly. The more goofy elements of the past two series are mostly gone, and the few that remain no longer feel obnoxious in their humour. This episode is more edgy and possesses a spirit of fun and adventure that Series 5 & 6 mostly lacked.

The chemistry between Jenna-Louise Coleman and Matt Smith is the best thing about this
episode. These two are hilarious together. Jenna won me over in Asylum of the Daleks and she's just as good here, if not better. Clara is a model companion to the Doctor, she's plucky and quick-witted, as well as being something of a genius herself. That particular trait is explained away by technobabble in this episode, but it makes sense and allows Stephen Moffat to use a hilarious joke about Twitter as a plot point. Moffat also makes Clara sympathetic by showcasing her sense of responsibility. I also appreciate that despite being held captive by the villains twice, Clara still manages to be instrumental in their defeat. I'm not saying that Jenna is a better actress than Karen Gillen, but Clara is certainly a more likable and compelling protagonist than Amy Pond.

The villains, the Spoonheads, while interesting, don't quite reach their full potential here. I do love that Moffat uses Wi-Fi as the main threat though. It makes this episode feel very modern and while it isn't nearly as scary as the Weeping Angels, it's still pretty unsettling since we all take Wi-Fi for granted. Celia Imrie does a good job as the woman in charge, Miss Kizlet, considering she is really just a lackey for Richard E. Grant's Great Intelligence. I was pleasantly surprised to see Grant again, and it's great to see him in a prominent role given how he only looked set for a guest appearance in The Snowmen. It's great that Moffat is making full use of Grants talents by making him the big bad of the series (unlike what Richard Curtis did with Bill Nighy in Vincent & the Doctor) and I'm looking forward to seeing him again.

 

Thanks to the more serious nature of the script, Matt Smith is able to portray the Doctor as an eccentric traveller instead of an insufferable man-child. Matt is just as capable of playing it straight as he is at being comical, and being able to do so allows him to give one of his best performances as the title character. The Doctor has grown up since losing Amy & Rory, he's no longer as goofy or overly alien. He's more enigmatic, more calculated, he has a better sense of style, and he owns an anti gravity motorbike! Now that is cool. I prefer his new outfit over the old one, it's dashing and perfectly mirrors the new tone of the series. I also need to comment on the new TARDIS interior design. It looks awesome, a lot more sci-fi as well as a throwback to the design of the classic console. 

The direction of this episode is stunning. Colm McCarthy does a fantastic job. I love that Moffat & co are trying to make Who look as cinematic as possible. The opening and the scene where the Doctor drives the anti-grav motorbike up the Shard are highlights of this visual fest. Moffat's script is sharper, wittier and creepy as ever. This is Moffat back to his best, and I hope it maintains. He also turns the creepy factor up to 11 (see what I did there) when The Great Intelligence orders Miss Kizlet to "reset" all the staff (including herself) and Kizlet is shown to have the mentality of a small child.

 

This is one of the best Moffat-era Doctor Who episodes I've seen, right up there with the Doctor's Wife. This is a brilliant opener to the second half of series 7 and I'm looking forward to the rest, not to mention the 50th anniversary special...

 Score: 4.5/5.0