After a year of specials that were more forgettable than not, it was nice to get a regular season of Doctor Who back. Like the producers that came before him, Steven Moffat has started the 11th Doctor off with a fairly clean slate. New Doctor, new TARDIS, new companion and new adventure, “Eleventh Hour”.
This first episode played out much like a typical regeneration story, with the Doctor off kilter for most of it, as he gets his bearings on himself and then the situation. I have to say I had some mixed feelings about this episode. I miss the old orchestrated opening. The new one isn’t bad, it’s just that 3rd-4th series opening was better. I do like the new TARDIS interior. The two story effect is nice, and new companion Amy Pond does get my approval. More on her in my next review. I particularly enjoyed the beginning with Amy as a child. Her interactions with the Doctor were great! She didn’t seem surpirsed by his odd ways, and just took them in stride. A very practical child, much like Amy is, for the most part. I’m not to sure about the “Doctor’s Perspective” they presented with the near stop-motion cam. It was interesting for the reboot, but I’m glad they haven’t used it since.
Also introduced in this episode is the overarching theme for the season. There is a crack in Amy Pond’s bedroom wall. One that should not be there. While the crack is what Prisoner Zero used to escape his prison, the attention it got at the end of the episode gives some indication that this isn’t the last time we’ll be seeing it. Overarching themes that often touch every single episode has become the norm since Davies rebooted the series in 2005. Then it was “Bad Wolf”, and then in series 2 it was “Torchwood”. I believe we are seeing Moffat’s overarching theme for this season.
There is one scene though, that not only made this episode, but cemented Matt Smith’s position as the Doctor was a the end, as he was choosing his new costume. It wasn’t from the TARDIS’ wardrobe this time, which is where he usually gets his new costume. This time, reminiscent to the 3rd Doctor, he rummages through lockers at the hospital to find the perfect look. And the look he creates does suit him quite nicely. A lot of people had doubts about Matt Smith, since he’s the youngest actor to play the Doctor yet. But a lot of people had doubts about Peter Davison, and he turned out to be many people’s favorite, so I wasn’t worried. Steven Moffat chose him, and he hadn’t steered me wrong yet, so “In Moffat I Trusted”. And my trust was proven well placed. In the scene on top the hospital’s roof near the end, as the Doctor explains why the Atraxi should leave earth, there is a projection of the last 10 Doctors with Matt Smith walking through the 10th Doctor’s face to reveal this new look complete. It was his declaration that HE is the Doctor now. It was a fantastic moment! And after a year of doom and gloom with the David Tennant’s 10th Doctor, it was great to have a triumphant moment like that again.
