Doctor Who Mid-Week Review: Nightmare in Silver
Nightmare in Silver Poster
The 12th and penultimate episode of this season revives the tide and true villain of the Cybermen ( Nightmare in Silver get it?), yet again modified this time by the mind of Neil Gaiman. Neil set the expectations pretty high with his previous offering, The Doctor’s Wife, and this episode does not achieve at that level, but is still one of the standout episode of this season. Unfortunately that isn’t saying much. In any of the previous seasons, this would have been a decent offering, though Gaiman does manage to get Cybermen to be a relevant threat again. (I understand they may be a little to Borg-like for some, but I didn’t find it offensive)
GO, GO Sonic Screwdriver!
So this ep tails off the almost stingeresque end of the previous episode meaning we have a duo of extra companions. In that theme we are taken to what is supposed to be the best theme park ever, the Doctor complete with Golden Ticket, but of course we have arrived after it has been shut down. All that remains is the odd curator of a wax museum his pint sized companion, Porridge, and a garrison of misfit soldiers. While we do get a couple of events in the park going for our adventurers, it would have been much more sensible to simply hop back into the TARDIS, and go back to a point when it was still open, but the Doctor decided he needs to start a bug collection…because there are “weird bugs” here.
New Cyberman Design
So things go from bad to worse as the Cybermen attack showing off all kinds of new capabilities. The Doctor is sidelined early on, but in a way that allows Matt Smith to really shine in his performance. Clara continues to be “just what the Doctor needs” even when it flies in the face of all reason. The Doctor, due to his ordeal, seems to have taken a renewed interest in solving the mystery of Clara, but that probably has more to do with there only being one episode left in the season.
Visually this episode continues the excellent quality this season has had. The settings aren’t as spectacular, but the Cybermen effects were done well (if a bit similar to another Iron Man), the “bugs” were excellent and all of the sets worked very well. I would have liked them to use more of the setting of the theme park, but I am sure budgets wouldn’t allow for that. The acting was spot on even if many of the decisions were ridiculous, with the exception of our guest companions. I think part of it was the writing, and maybe editing, but seriously those were terrible characters/performances. The highlight of the episode was Warwick Davis. Dude rocked every scene he was in. Had just the right expression, tone everything for the role he played. Mega kudos to the former Ewok/Nelwyn/Rodian. 😉
Warwick Davis ROCKS!
So next week we head out to Trenzalore. This Trenzalor: “On the fields of Trenzalore, at the fall of the eleventh, when no living creature can speak falsely or fail to answer, a Question will be asked, a question that must never, ever be answered. The First Question, the oldest question in the Universe, that must never be answered, hidden in plain sight.” What will the question be? Will they REALLY do it? I think it would destroy the show to learn too much of the Doctor’s past. Is this setup for the 50th Anniversary special or are they unrelated? Has this all been a fever dream of the Doctor’s? All questions will likely NOT be answered in this Saturday’s “The Name of the Doctor”.
Now as always it’s time for SPOILERS SWEETIE!
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Cyber Doctor
So after endless centuries the Cybermen finally figure out they have to change and become more adaptive. If they were a threat before, now they are so far past a threat it isn’t even describable. I mean that first one we encounter is the freaking Flash for Pete’s sake.
Why did the Cyber Planner seem rife with emotions? Was it the incompatibility with Galifrean physiology? Or is that another adaptation, but utter elimination of emotion was a key tenant of Cyberman tech. Was the fact that the Cyberplanner could control half of the Doctor’s brain a callback to the 95 movie where the Doctor claimed he was in fact half human?
Doctor vs. Mr. Clever
Based on how it played out I imagine the Time Lords invented poker not chess.
Being connected to the cyberiad seems to have sparked ideas in the Doctor about Clara’s mystery again. Also the clue dropped that the Doctor’s past could be reconstructed from the hole that was left, mixed with the surviving cybermite probably means we haven’t seen the end of that.
The list of bad decisions in this episode are just astounding. I can’t even begin to imagine the lack of sense and logic at times. For the most part you can look past them, but it continues to point toward a pattern that tells me none of this is real. I am sure that isn’t what will end up happening, but still.
Did you just call me a Peck?
Lastly, the Emperor seemed to recognize there is something special about Clara….did he know more than he let on? And have I mentioned I hate this “going home between adventures” shite? I thought we had finally left that behind, but here we are again. Seriously, commit people!
Clara and the Big Gun
So on to next week: We will find out something, or maybe nothing. Moffet is a slippery devil so I don’t have a clue what we will be getting. I imagine there will be some resolution to Clara. We may find out a bit about the Doctor, but not too much. We may even learn his name, but it will be completely anti-climactic if we do. His name will be Bob, or John Smith lol. Fall of the Eleventh is a red herring. They can’t do too much without ruining the show. Though if this season is any indicator they may be trying to do that anyway. Confused as to why we see a River headstone in the promo. She “died” in the library, not Trenzalor. Why is the Doctor crossing his own Timeline? How does a Time Lord that has traveled as much as the Doctor not cross his own timeline on a regular basis? How is he doing it, it took the resources of the Time Lords to make it happen in the past. Is this connected to the 5oth somehow? If he is crossing his own line does that mean he has been there before or will be sometime in the future? More questions, will we get any answers?
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