Doctor Who Series 5 Episode 7 - Amy's Choice - Review
Starring: Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, Arthur Darvill & Toby Jones
Written By: Simon Nye
Directed By: Catherine Morshead
With
a title like Amy's Choice,
as well as the premise we saw in the 'Next Time' trailer, I'd really
been looking forward to this episode. Up until now, Series 5 on the
whole has been pretty solid and consistent, but one of the biggest
things it's been struggling with, at least for me, is Amy Pond. A lot
of people seem to have really taken to her, but there's just
something about the character that I haven't been able to connect
with, despite Karen Gillan's great performance in the role. So was
Amy's Choice able
to fix this for me?
The
Doctor, Amy and Rory find themselves in a trap constructed by the
mysterious Dream Lord, and are constantly falling asleep and waking
up in another reality. The Dream Lord keeps switching them between
the two – one world with Amy and Rory happily married and expecting
their first child, but with the village where they now live under
siege from the alien Eknodines. In the other world, the Doctor, Amy
and Rory are stranded in the TARDIS and freezing to death as they
drift towards a star burning cold. In order to escape the trap, they
must learn which is the real world, and die in the dream to wake up
in reality.
Amy's
Choice
sets off with a strong foundation, giving us a marvellously simple
yet intriguing premise. The idea of choosing between two different
worlds, one real and one fake, offers a wealth of storytelling
possibilities and opportunities to present interesting ideas that may
not work alone in the real world. It also allows for a lot of
character development for the TARDIS crew, which as I've said
particularly in Amy's case, is most definitely needed. What writer
Simon Nye presents to us with the concept of having to choose between
two worlds, is basically one big extended metaphor for the
relationships between the Doctor, Amy and Rory. Amy is stuck between
the two – the Doctor's world of adventures, and Rory's less
eventful but safe family life. For both her and the audience, it's
time to figure out and get confirmation about who she really loves
the most.
This
is the first episode Series 5 has presented to us since The
Eleventh Hour
that actually gets me to feel anything towards Amy as a character.
Don't get me wrong, she's still far from reaching the same kind of
level as the likes of Martha or Donna, but this is a step in the
right direction. Karen Gillan's performance has consistently been the
best thing about Amy, and here she reaches a new height of
brilliance, especially as the episode comes to a close and she
finally makes her choice. Who Amy eventually chooses also makes for a
satisfying pay-off – it goes some way in making up for that
out-of-place final scene between her and the Doctor in Flesh
& Stone,
and she gets right what previous companions such as Rose got so
wrong. In fact, Rose once found herself in a similar position to Amy in this
episode, but while Amy did the right thing, Rose really
didn't
and ended up treating Mickey like crap. I don't blame Amy or Rose for
being conflicted between the Doctor and the person they love – I
think nearly anyone would end up in the same position. However, Amy's
ability to make the right choice, where Rose didn't, is what in this
case makes her the superior character.
Now
last week's The Vampires Of Venice
featured its biggest guest starring actor, Helen McCrory, in the role
of the main villain, and Amy's Choice does
the same this week with Toby Jones as the Dream Lord. He does such a
fantastic job in the role, giving a fun yet menacing performance that
really makes the Dream Lord stand out in terms of memorable Doctor
Who villains.
He knows when to reel things in, but you can tell he's having a blast
in the role, having fun and bringing some razor sharp wit to his
dialogue, which goes hand in hand with the idea of the Dream Lord
toying about with his victims. Underlying all of this though is a
sense of menace and malevolence in the way he's able to pull
everyone's strings, send them to different realities, or even split
them up and taunt them individually. And just to make sure that all
of this is got across, you've got that last shot of the episode, as
the Doctor sees the Dream Lord's reflection in the TARDIS console –
he's still out there, ready to toy with anyone.
Honestly
the only disappointing aspect to the Dream Lord is the reveal of who
and what he is. The Dream Lord is one of those villains that really
would've been a lot more effective if their identity and other details
were left untouched. How much scarier would it have been if the Dream
Lord was left a mystery, with the possibility that he may at any
point return, or if we never even learnt why he put the Doctor, Amy
and Rory through everything they endured in this episode? Instead,
the reveal that the Dream Lord is the result of “psychic pollen”
feels like a huge let-down, and is probably the weakest part about
this episode. While I'm on the subject of villains, this is also a
good time to discuss the Eknodines in the village dream. While I
thought the eye creeping out the pensioners' mouths was quite well
done, and I love the image of a zombie invasion of elderly people,
there's little more else to say about them. I doubt they were ever
intended to be particularly memorable, but it felt like there was
room for more development.
But
as I've said, the effects used on the Eknodines are pretty good, and
in fact this episode all round is pretty well made. On first glance,
Amy's Choice may
look like the low budget episode of the series, but a lot of the
effects are more understated and less flashy this week. Even small
details like the people being turned to dust in the gas attacks, or
the frost and ice that starts forming on everyone's faces in the
freezing TARDIS are really well-accomplished. Director Catherine
Morshead also does a great job, especially in the village sequences
where she uses some really nice wide shots to show off the scenery
and small details that we may not notice on first viewing. For
instance, we can often see the elderly people attacking bystanders in
the background, or even a moment where one of them is seen
approaching a group of school children before they get attacked.
Overall,
Amy's Choice is
a simple yet very effective and much-needed character piece for
Series 5. It's a story quite personal to our three main leads, and
knows how to use a character like the Dream Lord to bring out some of
the best in the Doctor, Amy and Rory. This is a crucial story for
Amy, and as I've said, this is the first time in a while that I've
been able to feel much towards her. Topped off with great
performances all round, particularly from Karen Gillan, and Amy's
Choice is the strongest
episode since The Eleventh Hour.
Amy's Choice
8/10