The Doctor and Clara happen upon a haunted house where a ghostbusting professor and his assistant Emma are tapping into the Witch of the Well. It isn't long before portals are opening onto a seemingly otherworldly hell, and there's something quite creepy about the whole thing you can tell. It's the kind of one off episode when everything gels so well. If you were American you might suggest its swell and that it casts upon the viewer a kind of spell. I liked it, the acting, story and tension meld together brilliantly and excel.
16 Reviews
An unusual tale of love and spirits
Sleepin_Dragon9 September 2015
The Doctor and Clara travel to a 1970's English mansion house which is seemingly haunted by a ghost.
This starts out like a horror movie, albeit with higher production values, it sets off very quickly and very spooky. The second half reminds a bit of Shrooms, for anyone that's seen it, kind of trippy, lots of tress, shadowy figure etc.
I've been aware of writer Neil Cross since his work Luther which was fantastic, he's a great writer, despite the little slip that was 'The Rings of Akhaten.' I think 'Hide' shows a lot of very good elements.
I particularly enjoyed Jessica Raine's performance as Emma Grayling, she's a brilliant actress, she looked the part and was very convincing in the role too.
Clara is developing really well as a character, she is very likable and poses some interesting questions to the Doctor.
All of the elements needed for a good ghost story are here, candelabras, shadows, creeks, ghosts etc and that's why I feel the first half of the story works way better then the second half. The second half is very much more on the ordinary scale, the ending again is rather shoddily contrived and let's it down again. There was potential for this to have been a masterpiece, the flaws stop it being so. It is still unique, original and fun. 7/10
This starts out like a horror movie, albeit with higher production values, it sets off very quickly and very spooky. The second half reminds a bit of Shrooms, for anyone that's seen it, kind of trippy, lots of tress, shadowy figure etc.
I've been aware of writer Neil Cross since his work Luther which was fantastic, he's a great writer, despite the little slip that was 'The Rings of Akhaten.' I think 'Hide' shows a lot of very good elements.
I particularly enjoyed Jessica Raine's performance as Emma Grayling, she's a brilliant actress, she looked the part and was very convincing in the role too.
Clara is developing really well as a character, she is very likable and poses some interesting questions to the Doctor.
All of the elements needed for a good ghost story are here, candelabras, shadows, creeks, ghosts etc and that's why I feel the first half of the story works way better then the second half. The second half is very much more on the ordinary scale, the ending again is rather shoddily contrived and let's it down again. There was potential for this to have been a masterpiece, the flaws stop it being so. It is still unique, original and fun. 7/10
A well-rounded episode with chills-a-plenty, but a dodgy resolution once again...
flynnred20 April 2013
Continuing in the patter of Series 7 episodes, "Hide" is an enjoyable episode, blessed with the finest FX effects yet, lots of money, great musical scores, and well-regarded supporting actors. However, the truth is, it's just adequate. It's fine telly, great for one-off viewing, but nothing like the weightier, superior adventures from the RTD era of the show. Matt Smith is good, though there's no real development in terms of his doctor's character. The supporting cast are once again, excellent, but don't have all that much to do. Clara is the star, however, he relationship with the doctor is the finest we've had since Donna. It's a spooky episode, genuinely creepy at times, a testament to Neil Cross and the director, Jamie Payne. However, the resolution is all too rushed (a curse that has followed new Doctor Who since 2005), and it would have benefited greatly from more time to develop. In short, it's one of the more enjoyable episodes of Series 7, but it's really nothing special, and et down from yet another rushed resolution.
But I liked the creepy. Long live the creepy.
7/10
But I liked the creepy. Long live the creepy.
7/10
Ghosts, Time Travel & Love
timdalton0073 October 2015
Warning: Spoilers
It's been about two and a half years now since Hide first aired. The back half of New Who's seventh season received quite a mixed reaction on first broadcast with significant amounts of vitriol tossed in the direction of both Rings Of Akhaten and Nightmare In Silver in particular. The former was written by Neil Corss, the same writer as Hide which aired two weeks later despite having been written and produced first. Even if you have a more charitable disposition towards Ring, it seems safe to say that Hide is the better of the two.
For thing, it draws from a much different background for a start. Anyone familiar with British "telefantasy" (a term I've only recently come across), will recognize the very strong Nigel Kneale influence on the script. Should anyone out there not know who Kneale was he was the writer of the Quatermass serials of the 1950s, the spiritual precursors (no pun intended) to Doctor Who in many ways, and was also the writer behind the BBC's seminal 1972 ghost story The Stone Tape. The Stone Tape was Kneale's attempt to do a modern ghost story, taking the conventions of ghosts and the haunting associated with them and throwing the science of the early 1970s at it.
As that might suggest, The Stone Tape especially casts a long shadow over much of this episode. There's the scientific equipment set up in the old house, the lady being spotted throughout the house's history (right down to the American soldiers in World War II and their cans of spam which can also be found in The Stone Tape), the woman in the 1970s who can see the lady and indeed right down to the episode's science fiction take on the so-called residual haunting phenomenon, which is better known appropriately enough as the Stone Tape Theory by "investigators" of ghosts. After the episode aired, Cross revealed in DWM that he tried to bring Quatermass as a character into the story, bringing two of Kneale's greatest works together at last, but that the Kneale estate blocked the idea. Given that Kneale was never a fan of Doctor Who when he was alive, it's not surprising if a little sad. In it's fiftieth anniversary year though, Doctor Who found time to pay tribute to a man who never wrote for the series, disliked it but also gave it some of its strongest story ideas.
Yet Hide does what The Stone Tape did in its own way. It takes the convention of the supernatural genre and inverts them. It presents a scientific explanation for the "ghost", one that fits the series that Doctor Who and one that probably would have infuriated Kneale. And then, after all that set-up with its large amount of tension and spookiness, there's a left field change at the end. What had been a ghost story suddenly takes on an entirely unexpected romantic element as it turns out that the monster that we've glimpsed and that has threatened the Doctor isn't that at all. It is this left field change that gives the story that extra something original to this haunted house tale and gives it the ultimate inversion of the typical supernatural tale: it's actually a love story hidden underneath. Cross does what writers have done Doctor Who since 1963 by taking Kneale's ideas and putting his own spin on them.
There's also a strong cast here as well. Smith's Doctor continues to shine brightly throughout, especially in the forest scenes when he's alone as he acts as the audience's barometer for how scared we should be. Despite this episode being early days for Jenna Coleman, a wonderful chemistry is apparent between her and Smith them though there's moments (such as the scenes with the Doctor and Clara wandering the house) where she's finding her way as Clara. Which brings us to the supporting cast, starting with Jessica Raine as the physic Emma. Having not seen Call The Midwife and with An Adventure In Space And Time still months off from broadcast back in 2013, I wasn't quite sure what to expect from her performance but she hit this out of the ballpark, becoming the heart of the episode on her own. It also helps that her and Dougray Scott have an awkward, but oddly realistic chemistry together which sales their relationship rather nicely. Speaking of Scott, while he seems somewhat miscast physically as an academic type, he certainly gets the other aspects of the character down in his performance with his almost obsessive drive and awkwardness with Raine's Emma.
Back in 2013, I considered this to be one of the better episode of series seven. Two years later, I still think that to be the case and consider it to be one of the overlooked gems of the Smith era. It's got a neat Doctor Who take on an old premise, it's got nice performances and never outstays its welcome. More than though, it proves one thing: Only Doctor Who could turn a ghost story into a love story. If that's not what a sign of what this series can do, I'm not sure what is.
For thing, it draws from a much different background for a start. Anyone familiar with British "telefantasy" (a term I've only recently come across), will recognize the very strong Nigel Kneale influence on the script. Should anyone out there not know who Kneale was he was the writer of the Quatermass serials of the 1950s, the spiritual precursors (no pun intended) to Doctor Who in many ways, and was also the writer behind the BBC's seminal 1972 ghost story The Stone Tape. The Stone Tape was Kneale's attempt to do a modern ghost story, taking the conventions of ghosts and the haunting associated with them and throwing the science of the early 1970s at it.
As that might suggest, The Stone Tape especially casts a long shadow over much of this episode. There's the scientific equipment set up in the old house, the lady being spotted throughout the house's history (right down to the American soldiers in World War II and their cans of spam which can also be found in The Stone Tape), the woman in the 1970s who can see the lady and indeed right down to the episode's science fiction take on the so-called residual haunting phenomenon, which is better known appropriately enough as the Stone Tape Theory by "investigators" of ghosts. After the episode aired, Cross revealed in DWM that he tried to bring Quatermass as a character into the story, bringing two of Kneale's greatest works together at last, but that the Kneale estate blocked the idea. Given that Kneale was never a fan of Doctor Who when he was alive, it's not surprising if a little sad. In it's fiftieth anniversary year though, Doctor Who found time to pay tribute to a man who never wrote for the series, disliked it but also gave it some of its strongest story ideas.
Yet Hide does what The Stone Tape did in its own way. It takes the convention of the supernatural genre and inverts them. It presents a scientific explanation for the "ghost", one that fits the series that Doctor Who and one that probably would have infuriated Kneale. And then, after all that set-up with its large amount of tension and spookiness, there's a left field change at the end. What had been a ghost story suddenly takes on an entirely unexpected romantic element as it turns out that the monster that we've glimpsed and that has threatened the Doctor isn't that at all. It is this left field change that gives the story that extra something original to this haunted house tale and gives it the ultimate inversion of the typical supernatural tale: it's actually a love story hidden underneath. Cross does what writers have done Doctor Who since 1963 by taking Kneale's ideas and putting his own spin on them.
There's also a strong cast here as well. Smith's Doctor continues to shine brightly throughout, especially in the forest scenes when he's alone as he acts as the audience's barometer for how scared we should be. Despite this episode being early days for Jenna Coleman, a wonderful chemistry is apparent between her and Smith them though there's moments (such as the scenes with the Doctor and Clara wandering the house) where she's finding her way as Clara. Which brings us to the supporting cast, starting with Jessica Raine as the physic Emma. Having not seen Call The Midwife and with An Adventure In Space And Time still months off from broadcast back in 2013, I wasn't quite sure what to expect from her performance but she hit this out of the ballpark, becoming the heart of the episode on her own. It also helps that her and Dougray Scott have an awkward, but oddly realistic chemistry together which sales their relationship rather nicely. Speaking of Scott, while he seems somewhat miscast physically as an academic type, he certainly gets the other aspects of the character down in his performance with his almost obsessive drive and awkwardness with Raine's Emma.
Back in 2013, I considered this to be one of the better episode of series seven. Two years later, I still think that to be the case and consider it to be one of the overlooked gems of the Smith era. It's got a neat Doctor Who take on an old premise, it's got nice performances and never outstays its welcome. More than though, it proves one thing: Only Doctor Who could turn a ghost story into a love story. If that's not what a sign of what this series can do, I'm not sure what is.
A 1970s thriller that keeps you on the edge of your seat. Just brilliant!
alex-lyttle9720 April 2013
Warning: Spoilers
After being one of the Doctor Who fans who actually enjoyed Neil Cross's first episode in this series 'The Rings of Akhaten' I was looking forward to this as I wanted to see the other end of his writing spectrum. I certainly was not disappointed as this episode, 'Hide', kept me on the edge of my seat right the way through.
Set in the 1970s, the Doctor and Clara visit a ghost hunter and his assistant in a typical haunted house. We expect the Doctor to know what's going on but he appears to know as little as us. This makes the episode extra scary, not to mention the jump scares and especially the idea of a monster that hides The episode also touches on plenty of 'timey wimey' time travel paradoxes, problems and bits and bobs, not dissimilar to that of the fantastic episode 'Blink'. This episode also delves into the science of science fiction and how there's always and explanation however somehow this was just as scary as the idea of a haunted house. The twist at the ending was brilliantly 'Doctor Who' and totally worth it's time. There's plenty more I could say about this episode (character development etc.) but I'll leave that for the other reviews! Overall I have to give this episode 10/10 considering it made me sign up to IMDb and right a review. It has all the ingredients of a Doctor Who episode, plus unanswered questions which I'd love to see answered in the future!
Set in the 1970s, the Doctor and Clara visit a ghost hunter and his assistant in a typical haunted house. We expect the Doctor to know what's going on but he appears to know as little as us. This makes the episode extra scary, not to mention the jump scares and especially the idea of a monster that hides The episode also touches on plenty of 'timey wimey' time travel paradoxes, problems and bits and bobs, not dissimilar to that of the fantastic episode 'Blink'. This episode also delves into the science of science fiction and how there's always and explanation however somehow this was just as scary as the idea of a haunted house. The twist at the ending was brilliantly 'Doctor Who' and totally worth it's time. There's plenty more I could say about this episode (character development etc.) but I'll leave that for the other reviews! Overall I have to give this episode 10/10 considering it made me sign up to IMDb and right a review. It has all the ingredients of a Doctor Who episode, plus unanswered questions which I'd love to see answered in the future!
Ghosts: A Love Story
boblipton20 April 2013
A tweed jacketed investigator and his beautiful companion are investigating a haunted house when the Doctor and Clara arrive to help them.
The second half of the Seventh season of Doctor Who has seen re-explorations of of old themes and indeed of shows from earlier seasons. There have been revivals of the Great Intelligence, the Ice Warriors and, in this episode an updating of "The Ghost Light". That was the last story produced for the original series -- two others were broadcast later, but recorded earlier.
Neil Cross' script, his second for Doctor Who, is a lot solider than his earlier "Rings of Akhaten". His command of the symbolic themes and atmosphere is much more telling, even if, like far too many of the stories in the last couple of years, it seems that the plot points are set up in a leisurely fashion and there is a rush to resolve them towards the end. This is, I fear, a problem with the rather strict time limits of the show. Still, that arc of increasing rapidity is exciting. If it sometimes seems that speed is a substitute for logic, it also feels as if the story-telling is less about science than emotion. Perhaps that is the intended thrust. Doctor Who has been reinvented many times over the last fifty years. Time will tell, and unlike the Doctor, the audience must plod along its path and discover these things as they appear.
One thing that is apparent in this season is that we have been getting some great star turns by guest actors. Dougray Scott's film and TV career have been pushed along by his astonishing good looks, but in this episode his turn as Professor Alec Palmer is beautifully written and performed. It makes me wonder if this is actually an audition for the role of the Twelfth Doctor, Probably not, but it seems like he would be a fine choice.
The second half of the Seventh season of Doctor Who has seen re-explorations of of old themes and indeed of shows from earlier seasons. There have been revivals of the Great Intelligence, the Ice Warriors and, in this episode an updating of "The Ghost Light". That was the last story produced for the original series -- two others were broadcast later, but recorded earlier.
Neil Cross' script, his second for Doctor Who, is a lot solider than his earlier "Rings of Akhaten". His command of the symbolic themes and atmosphere is much more telling, even if, like far too many of the stories in the last couple of years, it seems that the plot points are set up in a leisurely fashion and there is a rush to resolve them towards the end. This is, I fear, a problem with the rather strict time limits of the show. Still, that arc of increasing rapidity is exciting. If it sometimes seems that speed is a substitute for logic, it also feels as if the story-telling is less about science than emotion. Perhaps that is the intended thrust. Doctor Who has been reinvented many times over the last fifty years. Time will tell, and unlike the Doctor, the audience must plod along its path and discover these things as they appear.
One thing that is apparent in this season is that we have been getting some great star turns by guest actors. Dougray Scott's film and TV career have been pushed along by his astonishing good looks, but in this episode his turn as Professor Alec Palmer is beautifully written and performed. It makes me wonder if this is actually an audition for the role of the Twelfth Doctor, Probably not, but it seems like he would be a fine choice.
Best Matt Smith Episode
bentaylor-369-55156821 April 2013
I thought this was the best episode Matt Smith had done, although this is only my humble opinion (Marginally better than 'The Impossible Astronaut/ Day of the Moon/ The Snowmen'). As I am a mayor fan of the RTD era I thought this episode felt like it could belong there, happily! It scared me a little at the beginning, it had tension, humor, introduced characters that you didn't know what would happen to them (if anything)- which were also interesting. The fear aspect of course will filter out the younger audience, which i think is a good thing; if a 7 year old can watch Doctor Who with being remotely scared something is being done very wrong! An all round brilliant episode, I just hope they carry on like this one! And I am rooting for the writer (Neil Cross) to take over when Moffat leaves!
Impressive First Half That Degenerates In To A Messy Second Half
Theo Robertson20 April 2013
The Tardis lands at an English country house in 1974 where Professor Alec Palmer and his assistant Emma Grayling are using experiments to trace ghosts
After last week's episode that lacked a little something that stopped it becoming an instant classic this week saw another potential classic that didn't entirely hit the spot . Hide may very well be the best story of season seven of NuWho but sometimes you feel it should be the best story from the entire Smith/Moffat era rather than merely the best story of the season . Indeed whatever story may be considered the best story of DOCTOR WHO 2012-13 will win that accolade by default rather than being good in its own right
The positives happen in the first half of Neil Cross's script where Alec and Emma are investigating ghostly activities . Truth be told there's something highly derivative about all this since it borrows elements from other fictional stories such as THE HAUNTING , THE STONE TAPE and THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE . There's also something inconsistent with the casting of Dougray Scott in the role of Alec in that he explains his military service during the war . Alec can't be older than his mid 40s and it's stated in the dialogue that the year is 1974 which means Alexc would have been a schoolboy during the second world war and yet Alec mentions U-Boats in the Atlantic and the frontlines of Europe where millions didn't return
That said Scott does give a very good understated performance as Alec . Lowly regarded as an actor who only became relatively famous because of his good looks there is a fear that he's only going to give a I'm slumming it in a kids TV show performance but to be fair to Scott he treats the role with the greatest of respect and gives a very understated , subtle and convincing performance with his co-star Jessica Raine and one can feel the unrequited love emanating from the two characters
The problem with the episode is that through necessity Clara and The Doctor become the focus of the episode and the more it concentrates on them instead of Alec and Emma the more you become aware how convincing they were and how unconvincing Clara and The Doctor are . Clara especially is becoming more annoying the more the audience see of her . She's supposed to be mysterious , an enigma but to see her continually state things she would have no knowledge of is very distracting and makes you aware that she's merely a character from a TV show that might or might not be building up to some sort of Moffat masterplan . Certainly like Amy she never comes across as a real character that Rose , Marth and Donna were during the RTD period of the show . Likewise despite not being written by Moffat the second half of the story does have the dark fairytale ethos that the whole series has suffered from since Moffat became showrunner . Same old same old that gives deja vu a bad name
In short this still remains one of the better episodes of the eleventh Doctor which sadly isn't saying a lot . It's an episode of two distinctive halves . One half that is good its build up and characterisation and its pace and a second half that feels the need to be be plot driven with lots of shouting , running around and incident . One wonders if after being in charge of the show Moffat can ever produce an episode that will truly satisfy the audience for a non stop 45 minutes ?
After last week's episode that lacked a little something that stopped it becoming an instant classic this week saw another potential classic that didn't entirely hit the spot . Hide may very well be the best story of season seven of NuWho but sometimes you feel it should be the best story from the entire Smith/Moffat era rather than merely the best story of the season . Indeed whatever story may be considered the best story of DOCTOR WHO 2012-13 will win that accolade by default rather than being good in its own right
The positives happen in the first half of Neil Cross's script where Alec and Emma are investigating ghostly activities . Truth be told there's something highly derivative about all this since it borrows elements from other fictional stories such as THE HAUNTING , THE STONE TAPE and THE LEGEND OF HELL HOUSE . There's also something inconsistent with the casting of Dougray Scott in the role of Alec in that he explains his military service during the war . Alec can't be older than his mid 40s and it's stated in the dialogue that the year is 1974 which means Alexc would have been a schoolboy during the second world war and yet Alec mentions U-Boats in the Atlantic and the frontlines of Europe where millions didn't return
That said Scott does give a very good understated performance as Alec . Lowly regarded as an actor who only became relatively famous because of his good looks there is a fear that he's only going to give a I'm slumming it in a kids TV show performance but to be fair to Scott he treats the role with the greatest of respect and gives a very understated , subtle and convincing performance with his co-star Jessica Raine and one can feel the unrequited love emanating from the two characters
The problem with the episode is that through necessity Clara and The Doctor become the focus of the episode and the more it concentrates on them instead of Alec and Emma the more you become aware how convincing they were and how unconvincing Clara and The Doctor are . Clara especially is becoming more annoying the more the audience see of her . She's supposed to be mysterious , an enigma but to see her continually state things she would have no knowledge of is very distracting and makes you aware that she's merely a character from a TV show that might or might not be building up to some sort of Moffat masterplan . Certainly like Amy she never comes across as a real character that Rose , Marth and Donna were during the RTD period of the show . Likewise despite not being written by Moffat the second half of the story does have the dark fairytale ethos that the whole series has suffered from since Moffat became showrunner . Same old same old that gives deja vu a bad name
In short this still remains one of the better episodes of the eleventh Doctor which sadly isn't saying a lot . It's an episode of two distinctive halves . One half that is good its build up and characterisation and its pace and a second half that feels the need to be be plot driven with lots of shouting , running around and incident . One wonders if after being in charge of the show Moffat can ever produce an episode that will truly satisfy the audience for a non stop 45 minutes ?
A chilling ghost story
Tweekums21 April 2013
Warning: Spoilers
This episode opens in a large country house in the nineteen seventies; here a scientist, Professor Alec Palmer, and his assistant, Emma Grayling, are investigating an apparent haunting. It soon becomes apparent that there is definitely something strange going on there. Not long afterwards The Doctor and Clara turn up to join in the investigation and we learn that the Professor Palmer isn't just a backroom boffin; he is a war hero and his assistant is am empath. In the course of their investigations several pictures have been taken and in each the apparition looks the same; as if frozen in time. This leads The Doctor to an interesting theory which, if he is to prove, he must travel through time at the same location from the earliest to the last days of Earth. With his theory proved he must travel somewhere where even he is afraid and if he is to survive Clara will have to take the Tardis into another universe! Away from the main story The Doctor continues to try to find out more about Clara and we learn that the Tardis isn't too keen on Clara.
This episode, written by Neil Cross, has a distinctly creepy feel to it; especial in the scenes where they explore the supposedly haunted house. Director Jamie Payne does a fine job maintaining this atmosphere without resorted to excessive jump-scares. Guest stars Jessica Raine and Dougray Scott put in fine performances; especially the latter who was so understated that I almost didn't recognise him. The story was solid and had some nice twists concerning the nature of the 'ghost'. For the most part the special effects were top notch although there was one notable exception; the link to another universe looks very dodgy although I'm not sure what such a thing should look like! Overall this was a good episode; strengthened by having a relatively small cast and some genuinely creepy moments.
This episode, written by Neil Cross, has a distinctly creepy feel to it; especial in the scenes where they explore the supposedly haunted house. Director Jamie Payne does a fine job maintaining this atmosphere without resorted to excessive jump-scares. Guest stars Jessica Raine and Dougray Scott put in fine performances; especially the latter who was so understated that I almost didn't recognise him. The story was solid and had some nice twists concerning the nature of the 'ghost'. For the most part the special effects were top notch although there was one notable exception; the link to another universe looks very dodgy although I'm not sure what such a thing should look like! Overall this was a good episode; strengthened by having a relatively small cast and some genuinely creepy moments.
A good episode is hidden in there somewhere
dkiliane6 April 2019
Warning: Spoilers
"Hide" puts Clara and the Doctor right smack in the middle of a ghost story. Or is it a love story? Or two love stories? That part is a bit of a mess to be honest.
Even so, the romantic tension between Alec Palmer (Dougray Scott) and his partner as The Doctor and Clara help them track a 'ghost' in a supposedly haunted mansion is palpable, and definitely the best aspect of this episode. The ghost hunt itself, while giving us some very creepy scenes, for the most part isn't all that scary or menacing, which makes sense, I suppose, given the ending.
The humor is done nicely and the episode does well in building tension, more so romantic than suspenseful, which would have been fine if the payoff was greater. However, the creatures, the only really scary aspect of the episode, are actually (grotesque) alien lovers separated by an inter dimensional portal and the resolution of the romantic tension between the ghost hunters feels a little shoe-horned in. Oh, and their is a lost astronaut mistaken for the ghost (whom the Doctor rescues of course). It all felt a little anti-climactic but at least everyone got a happily ever after ending :) 7.5/10
Even so, the romantic tension between Alec Palmer (Dougray Scott) and his partner as The Doctor and Clara help them track a 'ghost' in a supposedly haunted mansion is palpable, and definitely the best aspect of this episode. The ghost hunt itself, while giving us some very creepy scenes, for the most part isn't all that scary or menacing, which makes sense, I suppose, given the ending.
The humor is done nicely and the episode does well in building tension, more so romantic than suspenseful, which would have been fine if the payoff was greater. However, the creatures, the only really scary aspect of the episode, are actually (grotesque) alien lovers separated by an inter dimensional portal and the resolution of the romantic tension between the ghost hunters feels a little shoe-horned in. Oh, and their is a lost astronaut mistaken for the ghost (whom the Doctor rescues of course). It all felt a little anti-climactic but at least everyone got a happily ever after ending :) 7.5/10
Love and Monsters
A_Kind_Of_CineMagic19 February 2019
Warning: Spoilers
The great strengths of this episode are in the genuinely creepy ghost story set up which are effective and give the 'hide behind the sofa' feel I love. The majority of the episode is a strong thrilling adventure.
The two brilliant guest stars Dougray Scott and Jessica Raine are extremely high quality and add a lot to the overall enjoyment of the episode. Jenna and Matt are engaging and perform as well as usual too.
There is decent humour (like the nice reference to the classic era efforts to return companion Tegan to the airport), some smart dialogue and a nice 1970s time period as well as very good direction and effects which make this appear to be heading for a classic Doctor Who piece of horror.
The revelations that the 'ghost' is a pioneering time traveller from Earth, trapped in a 'pocket universe' and that the monster is a quite silly looking beast just looking for its mate are rather underwhelming and disappointingly anticlimactic for me. It doesn't ruin the episode, just detracts a bit from its potential.
Following on from Cold War which was a story where simplicity was its strength, in my opinion, this one slightly over complicates what could and should have been a brilliant scary horror episode. My issue is that the whole set up and tense build up of horror themes has its impact and quality reduced slightly by the shoehorning in of themes of time travel complications and the old chestnut of 'love conquers all' which Moffatt era stories over use. They aren't good enough ideas to nail the resolution in the way the build up deserved.
Fortunately there was enough quality in the episode that the mediocre ending does not spoil the whole thing. I still think I can rate it as a very high standard adventure for its many strengths.
My Rating: 8.5/10.
My Series 7 Episode Ranking: 4th out of 14.
The two brilliant guest stars Dougray Scott and Jessica Raine are extremely high quality and add a lot to the overall enjoyment of the episode. Jenna and Matt are engaging and perform as well as usual too.
There is decent humour (like the nice reference to the classic era efforts to return companion Tegan to the airport), some smart dialogue and a nice 1970s time period as well as very good direction and effects which make this appear to be heading for a classic Doctor Who piece of horror.
The revelations that the 'ghost' is a pioneering time traveller from Earth, trapped in a 'pocket universe' and that the monster is a quite silly looking beast just looking for its mate are rather underwhelming and disappointingly anticlimactic for me. It doesn't ruin the episode, just detracts a bit from its potential.
Following on from Cold War which was a story where simplicity was its strength, in my opinion, this one slightly over complicates what could and should have been a brilliant scary horror episode. My issue is that the whole set up and tense build up of horror themes has its impact and quality reduced slightly by the shoehorning in of themes of time travel complications and the old chestnut of 'love conquers all' which Moffatt era stories over use. They aren't good enough ideas to nail the resolution in the way the build up deserved.
Fortunately there was enough quality in the episode that the mediocre ending does not spoil the whole thing. I still think I can rate it as a very high standard adventure for its many strengths.
My Rating: 8.5/10.
My Series 7 Episode Ranking: 4th out of 14.
fine, but nothing special, and annoying inconsistency
kbenko10 February 2020
Warning: Spoilers
This was all right, scary enough and not boring.
But: All the photos of the ghost showed her in the exact same position, because time flows more slowly in the pocket universe and so from her perspective, all the photos--taken over the course of days or weeks in our universe--were taken in the same few seconds. So, when the Doctor went to the pocket universe, and spent several minutes there, why did many days or weeks not go by in our universe?
But: All the photos of the ghost showed her in the exact same position, because time flows more slowly in the pocket universe and so from her perspective, all the photos--taken over the course of days or weeks in our universe--were taken in the same few seconds. So, when the Doctor went to the pocket universe, and spent several minutes there, why did many days or weeks not go by in our universe?
One of the very best
warlordartos15 April 2021
Warning: Spoilers
The second part of season 7 is much improved from the first half. I would actually go as far as to say this is Matt Smith's best episode so far but I think i said that last week too, so i will say one of the best....top 3.
Not 10/10 worthy, only because of the pocket universe seeming to last far longer than The Doctor said it would. Also I really believe this would have been scarier if the monster stayed the monster and not two separated lovers.
While the monster was maintained as the monster it was truly scary, really creepy too. Those flicker moments on the screen and the absolutely terrifying laughter was just phenomenal, a true masterpiece of TV.
Not 10/10 worthy, only because of the pocket universe seeming to last far longer than The Doctor said it would. Also I really believe this would have been scarier if the monster stayed the monster and not two separated lovers.
While the monster was maintained as the monster it was truly scary, really creepy too. Those flicker moments on the screen and the absolutely terrifying laughter was just phenomenal, a true masterpiece of TV.
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MrFilmAndTelevisionShow12 April 2021
Warning: Spoilers
This episode for some reason I love more than perhaps I should, from it's IMDb ratings alone 7.7 you can tell people like it a little below average but I rate it consistently with the other great episodes of Doctor Who, there's something about it I just love, perhaps nostalgia for having seen the episode on multiple occassions previously a long while ago or perhaps it remind me of something I can't quite remember. Either way everything about it was in my opinion good, plot, acting, props etc. Funny, entertaining and classic Doctor Who.
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studioAT24 August 2023
This was better than the last episode, to be honest it couldn't have been much worse.
Can we have Jessica Raine as a companion one day? Her performance here was good.
All was going swimmingly with this episode until they tried to do one trick too many and for me ruined the whole thing. The whole third act of this episode then gets botched and it becomes a mess.
This isn't the first time I've said this, or about an episode from the seventh series.
This ends up being a bit of a mess, when it simply didn't need to be if the writer/creative team had just stuck to one idea and not gone helter skelter.
Can we have Jessica Raine as a companion one day? Her performance here was good.
All was going swimmingly with this episode until they tried to do one trick too many and for me ruined the whole thing. The whole third act of this episode then gets botched and it becomes a mess.
This isn't the first time I've said this, or about an episode from the seventh series.
This ends up being a bit of a mess, when it simply didn't need to be if the writer/creative team had just stuck to one idea and not gone helter skelter.
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