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Doctor Who
S8.E7
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IMDbPro

Kill the Moon

  • Episode aired Oct 4, 2014
  • TV-PG
  • 45m
IMDb RATING
6.6/10
7.4K
YOUR RATING
Peter Capaldi in Doctor Who (2005)
AdventureDramaSci-Fi

In the near future, the Doctor and Clara find themselves on a space shuttle making a suicide mission to the Moon. Crash-landing on the lunar surface they find the most terrible things.In the near future, the Doctor and Clara find themselves on a space shuttle making a suicide mission to the Moon. Crash-landing on the lunar surface they find the most terrible things.In the near future, the Doctor and Clara find themselves on a space shuttle making a suicide mission to the Moon. Crash-landing on the lunar surface they find the most terrible things.

  • Director
    • Paul Wilmshurst
  • Writers
    • Peter Harness
    • Steven Moffat
    • Sydney Newman
  • Stars
    • Peter Capaldi
    • Jenna Coleman
    • Samuel Anderson
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • IMDb RATING
    6.6/10
    7.4K
    YOUR RATING
    • Director
      • Paul Wilmshurst
    • Writers
      • Peter Harness
      • Steven Moffat
      • Sydney Newman
    • Stars
      • Peter Capaldi
      • Jenna Coleman
      • Samuel Anderson
    • 49User reviews
    • 23Critic reviews
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • See production info at IMDbPro
  • Photos54

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    Top cast8

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    Peter Capaldi
    Peter Capaldi
    • The Doctor
    Jenna Coleman
    Jenna Coleman
    • Clara
    Samuel Anderson
    Samuel Anderson
    • Danny
    Ellis George
    • Courtney Woods
    Hermione Norris
    Hermione Norris
    • Lundvik
    Tony Osoba
    Tony Osoba
    • Duke
    Phil Nice
    • Henry
    Christopher Dane
    Christopher Dane
    • McKean
    • Director
      • Paul Wilmshurst
    • Writers
      • Peter Harness
      • Steven Moffat
      • Sydney Newman
    • All cast & crew
    • Production, box office & more at IMDbPro

    User reviews49

    6.67.3K
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    Featured reviews

    2dysamoria

    This one almost stopped me watching the show

    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.
    2flutesandroots

    Absolute tosh.

    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!
    9NineTenElevenTwelve

    Scientifically Flawed but Emotionally Excellent

    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!
    8Sleepin_Dragon

    Swearing in the TARDIS, it's a bloody brilliant episode.

    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
    4Xstal

    Eggstroidinary...

    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.

    Related interests

    Still frame
    Adventure
    Mahershala Ali and Alex R. Hibbert in Moonlight (2016)
    Drama
    James Earl Jones and David Prowse in Star Wars: Episode V - The Empire Strikes Back (1980)
    Sci-Fi

    Storyline

    Edit

    Did you know

    Edit
    • Trivia
      The DVDs that the Doctor says are in the bookcase that will bring the TARDIS to him, is a reference to Blink (2007). They are the 17 DVDs that he made for Sally Sparrow to take the TARDIS back to him in 1969.
    • Goofs
      It is stated that the moon is increasing in mass as the embryonic creature grows. But unless new material is being added to the moon, the mass will remain constant.
    • Quotes

      Clara Oswald: [Angrily] Tell me what you knew, Doctor, or I'll smack you so hard you'll regenerate.

    • Connections
      Featured in The Graham Norton Show: Denzel Washington/Gemma Arterton/Peter Capaldi/George Ezra (2014)
    • Soundtracks
      Doctor Who Theme
      Written by Ron Grainer

      Performed by BBC National Orchestra of Wales

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    Details

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    • Release date
      • October 4, 2014 (United States)
    • Country of origin
      • United Kingdom
    • Official sites
      • British Broadcasting Corporation (BBC) (United Kingdom)
      • Official Facebook
    • Language
      • English
    • Filming locations
      • Timanfaya, Lanzarote, Canary Islands, Spain(Moon surface)
    • Production company
      • BBC Cymru Wales
    • See more company credits at IMDbPro

    Tech specs

    Edit
    • Runtime
      • 45m
    • Color
      • Color

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