Last night was the premiere of Asylum of the Daleks, the first episode of the new series of Doctor Who at the BFI Southbank in London. Ben Stephenson (controller of BBC One) took to the stage before the screening and informed the eagerly waiting audience of fans and reporters that Steven Moffat’s key word for this series was “BIG.”*SPOILERS*
Everything in series 7 is going to be bigger and better. The premise of this opening episode was just that. At its heart it has the idea of bringing The Doctor face to face not only with his greatest foe the Daleks but with multiple incarnations of the metal pepper pots. Whilst many fans are eagerly hoping for a multiple Doctor episode for the 50th anniversary, Asylum of the Daleks could be seen as a multiple Daleks episode.
The various Daleks models shown on screen consist of originals and replicas. As was revealed during the Q and A, one of the Daleks shown on screen belongs to former Doctor Who show runner Russell T Davis, making a brief cameo and thus earning the replica a place in the shows canon.
The Daleks have a problem concerning their asylum, a planet which is home to Daleks who are battle scared, insane and out of control, essentially the freaks of Daleks society. The reason why the Daleks have chosen to house these undesirables in an asylum rather than destroy them leads to an electrifying exchange between The Doctor and the head of the Daleks, revealing that just when you thought you knew all there was to know about them there is always a more unsettling and horrifying truth yet to emerge.
Without giving too much away (as Steven asked everyone in attendance nicely not to post spoilers) a mysterious signal is picked up from inside the asylum itself and The Doctor is given the unenviable task of finding out just who or what is broadcasting the signal and prevent any rogue Daleks from breeching security and escaping. While at the same time dealing with the Ponds impending marriage crisis as the pair are forced to tag along for the ride.
The Ponds are dragged into The Doctor’s latest adventure while trying to deal with the repercussions of travelling with him on their marriage. Of course once Amelia’s Raggedy man knows of their issues he can’t help but tug on his bow tie and set about finding away to get the pair back on track. The opening shot of Amy serves as both a tongue in cheek reference to Karen Gillian’s former career and shows a glimpse of Amy’s life after the Tardis. Something tells me if Amy Pond ever gets her own spin off series it will be less like The Sarah Jane Adventures and more akin to America’s Top Model.
As all die hard Whovian’s know, The Doctor and the Daleks have a past history so long that if it were ever to be written down it would rival War and Peace in length. The history between the two is both examined and reinvented in this opening episode and, like the time war, sets up a potential new canon for both The Oncoming Storm and the Daleks in future encounters. Moffat’s bold move has the potential to prove possibly more controversial amongst the die hard fans than RTD’s destruction of Gallifrey. It does however set up a scene at the end that will most likely become the defining image of the episode and possibly the series.
Rory Williams, who is a love him or hate him character, has some brilliant laugh out loud moments which serve to balance out the more darker aspects of this episode, but also shares a heartbreaking scene with Amy as the two are forced to confront the real reason why their marriage is on the rocks. Moffat has also included an exchange which picks up on the firmly held belief by some fans that Amy does not love Rory as much as he loves her, and dispels the notion with a heartbreaking moment of truth from Amy. Arthur and Karen’s acting in this episode reinforces how much they will be missed when the Ponds bow out after the five episodes of this half of the series. While Moffat would still not be drawn as to how the Ponds leave, this episode highlighted just how big a hole the new companion will have to fill at Christmas. Matt Smith succeeds yet again in showing how versatile an actor he really is in a chilling encounter with some of the asylum’s residents which will chill the blood of even the most ardent whovian.
Steven Moffat often has grand scale ideas that (which he himself admitted during the Q and A) don’t always work, and he cited “The Beast Below” as an example, feeling that his script did not translate well to the screen. However Asylum of the Daleks avoids such pitfalls and succeeds in making the new series kick off with a bang, with an opening episode which is grand in both scale and execution. It also has an ending few will see coming and proves that one rule will always be: Steven Moffat lies.
Doctor Who series 7 premieres September 1.
Editor’s note: Thanks to Stephanie who attended this screening and wrote the review for us!