Sunday 2 May 2010

Flesh and Stone ( concludes two-part story with The Time of Angels)

The Weeping Angels continue to menace the Eleventh Doctor, Amy and River Song, while that crack in the wall comes back.

Its surreal to watch Aliens with the Xenomorph monsters replaced by stone angels. This is the sort of thing Doctor Who is always good at.

This fast-paced story is pretty good. It does have a few weaknesses however. One problem is that it is so busy, with so many teasers and references to possible story arcs being thrown in. We really are in need of a script editor's input.

The angels maintain their creepiness, which is enhanced by their communicating with the voice of a dead man. The fact that we do not see them move makes them more effective than traditional clumsy monsters. Unfortunately this precedent was broken in this story, with one scene showing the angels move their heads. The credibility of the angels is also weakened by the revelation that they do not move if they are fooled into thinking that they can be seen.

There is some excellent acting from the whole cast. The dialogue is great too. One complaint I have is the Eleventh Doctor's talkativeness. He sometimes says just too much. Silence can be effective too. While Matt Smith's performance is very Troughtonish, it seems to be forgotten that Patrick Troughton's Doctor could be quiet at times. He had a wonderful habit of playing his flute when he did not want to answer questions.

Amy's attempted seduction of the Doctor at the end is both clumsily done and inappropriate for a childrens' show. At least he rejected her advances though.

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