Kill the Moon

Doctor Who was my childhood best TV series. I grew up with it and kept it close to my heart after it was canceled in 1989. I was cautiously optimistic about the new series (if fearful), but it eventually won me over.

That noted, this story almost stopped me watching it any further. That would be an extreme position for me, since I've forgiven numerous cases of bad writing and anti-science in the series as a whole, but "Kill the Moon" went beyond any prior foolishness/writer ignorance the series has ever demonstrated. Had I not been watching from an already purchased DVD set, I don't know how long it would've taken me to come back for more.

If you don't know what I'm referencing, just read the other low rating reviews. Suspension of disbelief for techno-fantasy is one thing. Expecting your audience to be utterly uneducated is another entirely, and is a prime way to anger them.

I'm happy that Moffet is moving on from his show-runner position. He has some really neat and fun ideas, but someone else needs to wrangle him. Keep him as a contributor. That's fine.

I have loved The Doctor since I was a boy, a looong time ago. I have loved Peter Capaldi since the first episode of The Thick Of It. I think he makes a superb Doctor, reminiscent of Jon Pertwee's rendition in many ways, but I feel he is being served very badly by grindingly mediocre scripts in this series. Kill The Moon is a culmination of everything that is poor about the show at present. Hopefully it will turn the corner soon, but I am not holding my breath. There have always been certain episodes that veer into silliness, but this one is just breathtaking in the sheer scope of its utter inanity. To review it is not so much a matter of singling out the bad parts as trying desperately to find any redeeming qualities at all. I will not even bother to describe the plot, as others before me have done so very capably already. I will just say that even children should feel insulted by its total stupidity. What I will say is that I feel there are casting issues looming alongside the poor writing issues. Jenna Coleman was an excellent foil for Matt Smith, but I just don't see the chemistry with Capaldi. I think the sooner she moves on, the better it will be for the show. This is not a dig at Coleman; I think she is a very talented young actor. I just don't think the pairing works. As for Ellis George, who plays Courteney Woods, it's like they held a competition to choose the least talented young actress for the part as some kind of twisted joke. She is beyond awful. I know she is young and inexperienced, but I am certain that there must be far better choices out there than her. Her appalling delivery and wooden acting were the final nail in the coffin of an episode that was already DOA. Samuel Anderson is not a great deal better either. Wake up Steven Moffat and co., or this incarnation of The Doctor could well suffer the same fate as Sylvester McCoy's and drown in a puddle of its own mediocrity. Don't take your audience for granted!

This episode has gained quite a polarizing reaction from the look of things. While I can understand why others don't like it, I personally found it to be an excellent episode.

This was a very serious episode with lots of emotion. Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman really got to shine and their final scene together in this episode actually got me a bit choked up due to the raw emotions that the two characters were showing. The small supporting cast was quite good. Ellis George portrays a realistically likable teenager in Courtney Woods and Hermione Norris gives a good performance as Lundvik.

The monsters in this episode had a great design and the curveballs this episode threw (more specifically the ones involving the Moon and the Doctor) were wonderfully unpredictable. Some of the twists and plot points do require quite a suspension of disbelief; but, in a show about an alien who travels around time and space in an old English phone box and changes his face and personality every so often, it wasn't that difficult for me to buy some of the stretches in scientific fact.

Overall, I found "Kill the Moon" to be a splendid episode with fantastic performances, lots of emotion, interesting twists, great cinematography, and excellent sound design. I'm definitely looking forward to seeing how Series 8 continues from here!

Having upset pupil Courtney Woods, the Doctor takes her and Clara on a trip to the Moon. They land on board ship that lands on the surface, the crew demand answers and are trying to discover why the Moon has gained mass and has lost its gravity. They discover a previous moonbase had been wiped out, and worse...giant cobwebs.

The last time we had an outing with the kids we had Nightmare in Silver and that didn't work. Courtney is actually good fun, she's a good character.

I am a little terrified of spiders, not the small ones but the biggies, and this is possibly the first episode of nu Who that had me looking away, so it gets the thumbs up for the scare factor.

In terms of effects it works hugely well, it feels like a film. The orange suits looks so effective against the greyness of the moon's surface. Not sure why when I first watched it I wasn't hugely impressed, but after a re-watch it gets a big thumbs up (must have been in a moody.) It gets so interesting when the Doctor refuses to make the decision himself, instead he hands control to Clara, it's so interesting. I stand by my opinion of the ending, the solution was a little hit and miss, but the fall out between Clara and the Doctor is a pretty monumental moment, brilliant. Huge accolades for Jenna's performance, must have been a first for a companion to give the Doctor both barrels. 8/10

Ziggy made it from Mars to the Moon. Brought some spiders to spin a cocoon. He told a few jokes. Must have had a few smokes. It was quite an outrageous lampoon.