The Blink Review: The Beast Below

After a spectacular opening to the new era of Doctor Who, with Matt Smith making a fantastic debut as the eleventh Doctor, levels of expectation were raised to staggering new heights. Could the second episode of the series continue to show that Doctor Who is in safe hands, or would the programme come crashing down into the darkness below…

‘The Beast Below’ opens on an enormous spaceship hovering in space, with the union flag painted across the side of the vessel. The ship holds the future British empire, who are investigating the stars of countless other worlds. However, a sinister secret lurks in the shadows, and the truth behind this new world threatens to destroy their society.

Karen Gillan perfectly portrays her character of Amy Pond in this episode, who is experiencing her first trip in the TARDIS. Her enthusiasm in the role is clearly seen as she gazes onto the Starship UK below, and the funny dialogue between her and the Doctor establishes their quirky relationship, especially when he mimics her voice.

The main improvement in this episode was the quality of special effects, which were extremely convincing in the majority of the scenes, unlike the poorly computerised Prisoner Zero from the previous episode. The best example of the effects was the exterior shot of the ship at the start, which truly felt like it was gliding in space, with its beautifully detailed textures and lights.

Murray Gold’s music was also of its usual high standard, which was able to express so many varied emotions, including both the ominous atmosphere onboard the Starship UK, and the excitement of Amy Pond as she embarked on her first adventure. When listening to the spectacular score, especially the Doctor’s dramatic new theme, you get a really positive feeling, that only the best composers are able to achieve.

Like the previous episode of the series, ‘The Eleventh Hour’, this story featured many plot ideas from previous adventures, questioning the originality of ‘The Beast Below’. The idea of a society run by people voting on television broadcasts is identical to ‘Vengeance on Varos’, where the residents have to vote whether they allow their leaders to live or die, after watching them make a speech.

This story also showed some resemblance to the Torchwood episode ‘Meat’, which featured a similar alien creature known as the space whale, which humans abused for their own needs. Having fresh ideas for every episode is what makes Doctor Who such a great success, so having whole episodes which are heavily based on previous stories could ruin the uniqueness of the show.

Overall ‘The Beast Below’ was an enjoyable story, and ensures that the future of the programme is in the safe hands of Steven Moffat. The special effects were a vast improvement in this story, and complimented the fantastic action sequences, instead of making them seem unrealistic. The only factor that let down the episode was the use of too many previous plot ideas, where new and imaginative ideas should have been used.

Rating: 4/5 stars

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