In the first episode of the new series, the Doctor meets a new companion in contemporary London. He and his companion proceed to stop a takeover plan by an alien that is using a famous London landmark as its base of operations. This description could cover several Doctor Who episodes from the past seven years of the new series, starting with Rose. Even the enemy, the Great Intelligence, is an old one and the new companion is someone the audience has met twice before. It should all feel tired and dated, but due to the work of the people behind and in front of the camera, it manages to seem fresh and exciting.
One thing that has definitely made the episode feel fresh is the chemistry between Matt Smith and Jenna Louise Coleman. I don't think it would matter who the companion was, Jenna would be great at playing anyone. She has already played two different incarnations of Clara with great success and the third one is shaping up to be just as memorable. This contemporary version already has the nanny aspect of the Governess Clara and eventually gains the computer hacking skills of the others. She is also slightly less flamboyant than the others and is more down to earth. She is witty in her chat with the Doctor and vulnerable when facing the robot 'spoonheads'. One new key factor is that she wants to travel, and has kept a journal for places to visit. However, she does not leave people behind. I like the fact that she did not immediately follow the Doctor into the Tardis and asked him to come back the next day. It demonstrates that she's an intelligent woman who thinks before she leaps.
Matt Smith's Doctor has a new burst of energy. He has always been brilliant and is wonderfully strange and alien when he licks the leaf from Clara's journal and also very funny when he tries to take a bite out of a cake in the cafe which he hasn't paid for yet. He is also pulls quite creepy expressions as the Spoonhead disguised as the Doctor. Praise also has to go towards the new costume, with the new purple tweed coat looking so fantastic. I'm never sure about the Doctor having retro clothing, but this costume looks perfect. I hope that the Eleventh Doctor and Clara stay together for a while. Not since the Tenth Doctor and Donna have I been convinced of a Doctor and companion team.
Doctor Who is a show that has always been brilliant at mixing the fantastic with the mundane and The Bells of St John continues this trend with the crazy idea of an alien presence, the Great Intelligence, living in the Wi-Fi. In The Web of Fear, the Intelligence tried to absorb the Doctor's mind. Now it is uploading many more minds in order to absorb them as part of its consciousness. After being slightly disappointed at the use of Richard E Grant in the The Snowmen, it is good to know that we will be seeing more of him in the upcoming episodes. I can't wait for the inevitable rematch with the Doctor.
The intermediary villain, Miss Kizlet, was well played by Celia Imrie. She displays dark sense of humour when ordering the death of an underling and chatting with the Doctor. Her best moment is when the Intelligence leaves her, causing her regress to a state of childhood. It is a scene that Imrie plays well.
The least effective enemies were the Spoonheads, the walking base stations for the Intelligence. Their best moment comes when they are in disguise and are creepy when they twist their heads to reveal a blank metallic cavity at the back of the head. On the other hand, they don't demonstrate much offensive capability. Once a Spoonhead has uploaded Clara's mind, it makes no attempt to stop the Doctor when he starts reversing the download. Their only other function in the episode is to provide a climax, when the Doctor cleverly uses one of them to trick Miss Kizlet. I somehow don't think these will be remembered as the best Who monsters of all time.
New director Colm McCarthy makes this whole episode feel like a celebration of modern London, getting lots of good shots of the Doctor and his new companion, Clara, riding around London locations and landmarks, such as the South Bank Westminster bridge, and the Shard. He also includes a brilliant sequence where Clara walks from the street, into the Tardis and out into a plane continuously.
Murray Gold also seems to have a new wave of energy. The music for the Doctor and Clara riding the motorcycle was new and unusual. His theme for Clara is pretty good as well.
The plot may be simple, but Steven Moffat has left several unanswered questions How did Clara end up existing in different time periods and what is the significance of the leaf in her journal? There is also the question of identity of the shop girl who gave Clara the phone number for the Tardis. There are several possible suspects, and certain casting information for the 50th anniversary special has generated some interesting theories.
On its own merits, The Bells of St John will never stand out as a classic, but it is still a pretty good episode and makes the rest of the series look very promising. All in all it's a good start for Doctor Who's 50th anniversary year.
9/10
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