This is the second episode in a row that manages to be a terrific 10/10 classic worthy of the great stories of the show's past for my taste. In fact this one is the one I rank best of the series, even slightly ahead of the other 10/10 Mummy on the Orient Express.
The concept of the TARDIS exterior shrinking with the Doctor trapped inside is fun and interesting and it is made both thrilling and funny. It harks back to the TARDIS shrinking in the classic era story Planet of Giants but with the twist that the interior and the occupant this time remain normal size.
The creatures from a 2-dimensional universe clashing with our 3-dimensional world is a fresh and exciting idea. The ingenuity of this concept and how it is used along with how the scenes are successfully made menacing and suspenseful makes this tremendously enjoyable and memorable. The antagonists, dubbed The Boneless by the Doctor, are a superb addition to the greatest adversaries the Doctor has faced.
Peter Capaldi is always brilliant and despite being trapped in the TARDIS he gets plenty of chance to show his talent, proving yet again how perfect he is for the role. He is dark yet funny, other worldly, charismatic and powerful. Sometimes he carries weak episodes with his great performance as the Doctor but when he gets terrific material like Mummy on the Orient Express and this it is wonderful to see.
The one and only thing I was not 100% keen on is that yet again the Doctor's 'dark' morals and questionable 'goodness' are brought into play. It is one of Moffatt's obsessions and is too repetitively pushed in his era in my view. Fortunately in this instance Jamie Mathieson is such a good writer that he weaves that theme cleverly into an awesome episode and does not allow it to detract from the overall story. The theme is used well with Clara taking on the difficult choices herself and the Doctor finding it uncomfortable to see his companion pushed into his role of making those tough calls. It is in other episodes that the theme of the Doctor's dark side is overstated and overused in my opinion whereas I can forgive the way it is mentioned in this story.
Clara is made central to this story and Jenna Coleman acts her part very well showing Clara's strength and bravery. The rest of the cast act their roles really well and the guest characters are all strong and well defined.
The direction by Douglas Mackinnon is perfect, the dialogue is sharp and intelligent, the effects are fantastic and the episode is just an instant classic. It is my favourite Capaldi era episode.
My Rating: 10/10.
Series 8 Episode Ranking: 1st out of 12.
The concept of the TARDIS exterior shrinking with the Doctor trapped inside is fun and interesting and it is made both thrilling and funny. It harks back to the TARDIS shrinking in the classic era story Planet of Giants but with the twist that the interior and the occupant this time remain normal size.
The creatures from a 2-dimensional universe clashing with our 3-dimensional world is a fresh and exciting idea. The ingenuity of this concept and how it is used along with how the scenes are successfully made menacing and suspenseful makes this tremendously enjoyable and memorable. The antagonists, dubbed The Boneless by the Doctor, are a superb addition to the greatest adversaries the Doctor has faced.
Peter Capaldi is always brilliant and despite being trapped in the TARDIS he gets plenty of chance to show his talent, proving yet again how perfect he is for the role. He is dark yet funny, other worldly, charismatic and powerful. Sometimes he carries weak episodes with his great performance as the Doctor but when he gets terrific material like Mummy on the Orient Express and this it is wonderful to see.
The one and only thing I was not 100% keen on is that yet again the Doctor's 'dark' morals and questionable 'goodness' are brought into play. It is one of Moffatt's obsessions and is too repetitively pushed in his era in my view. Fortunately in this instance Jamie Mathieson is such a good writer that he weaves that theme cleverly into an awesome episode and does not allow it to detract from the overall story. The theme is used well with Clara taking on the difficult choices herself and the Doctor finding it uncomfortable to see his companion pushed into his role of making those tough calls. It is in other episodes that the theme of the Doctor's dark side is overstated and overused in my opinion whereas I can forgive the way it is mentioned in this story.
Clara is made central to this story and Jenna Coleman acts her part very well showing Clara's strength and bravery. The rest of the cast act their roles really well and the guest characters are all strong and well defined.
The direction by Douglas Mackinnon is perfect, the dialogue is sharp and intelligent, the effects are fantastic and the episode is just an instant classic. It is my favourite Capaldi era episode.
My Rating: 10/10.
Series 8 Episode Ranking: 1st out of 12.