But let’s focus on Clara. No doubt the mystery behind The Great Intelligence and Clara are intertwined, but there was no obvious connection in the episode beyond the fact that Clara indirectly killed its snow form in “The Snowmen.” Beyond that though there were lots of interesting tidbits about her. Her book, “101 Places To See” was one of them, because for some reason ages 16 and 23 were not recorded in the book. Part of the mystery or unnecessary speculation? It should be noted that 23 is a significant number to both Clara and Doctor Who as they were both born on November 23.
Unfortunately, this time around, there was no mention of souffles. But Clara does dream of traveling and seeing the world, which creates the perfect opportunity for the Doctor to take her aboard the TARDIS and go on some adventures. Rather than saying yes right away though like all the previous companions, Clara asks him to come back the next day and ask her again. Because then she might say yes. Yep, this one is different.
A particular mystery that intrigued me in the episode was the mention of a woman, who gives Clara the Doctor’s number. I can’t imagine it being anyone other than River Song. Considering the Doctor promises to bring Clara back to the present after they travel (similar to what he promised Amy when he first took her away), the finale could take place in the present where both River Song and The Great Intelligence show up.
I must make special mention of Murray Gold too, who once again provides the best score needed for every moment. I love it when he plays around with ‘I Am The Doctor’ and this time it’s no different as he gets a more urban feel to fit the episode.
Overall the episode was a winner. With some fantastic cinematography (that only promises to get better each week), excellent acting, and sharp writing, “The Bells Of Saint John” may just be the best episode of the series so far. There are some truly fun scenes, such as when the Doctor and Clara fly the TARDIS into a plane, or when they have some playful banter atop a building.
The mystery surrounding Clara is carefully crafted, revealing little bits of information each episode but not enough to overwhelm it. At least, not till the finale I imagine. The Doctor and Clara also share incredible chemistry, I genuinely can’t wait to see more of them together. Simply put, I deem the return of Doctor Who to be a triumph; these next eight weeks are going to be fun.
Notable Moments:
- “The Bells of Saint John are ringing”. Wow, here I was trying to figure out how the title related to the episode and the answer was right under my nose, it was so simple, and so brilliant. Well done.
- “Imagine that. Human souls trapped like flies in the world wide web, stuck forever, crying out for help.” “Isn’t that basically Twitter?”
- “Doctor Who?” “I never realized how much I loved hearing that said out loud.” This reeks of foreshadowing, at least it was a better way to integrate the question than repeating it unnecessarily throughout the episode.
- I loved seeing the Doctor pick out his new costume and bow tie from below the new TARDIS. Purple is definitely his color.
- The book “Summer Falls” is written by one Amelia Williams. “[Chapter] 11 is the best, you’ll cry your eyes out.” Clever, Moffat. Clever.
- “Clara Oswald for the win. OSWIN.” So that’s how she gets the name?
- The girl Clara looks after goes over to Nina’s. The same one Clara mentions in Asylum of the Daleks, I assume.
- “That wasn’t a leaf, that was page 1.”
What did you think of the mid-series premiere of Doctor Who? Let us know in the comments.
