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‘The Hungry Earth’ was about as different from ‘Amy’s Choice’ as you can get. Last week’s episode was strange and unexpected. This week’s episode was expected and oddly old-fashioned, something that was heightened by coming straight after one of the most unusual episodes we’ve had in a long time. As it was the first episode of a two-part story, it’s difficult to judge it fairly, but I’ll give it a go. I’m a Doctor Who nerd. Judging things without all the facts is part of the job description.
The Doctor promises Amy and Rory a trip to Rio, but they end up in a small Welsh village in 2020 (it’s yet to be seen if the Rio element of the story is anything more than an excuse for Amy to wear another tiny outfit). The ground feels a bit funny, and patches of it have been sucking people under, so of course, the Doctor has to stay to investigate.
And so the stage is set for the return of another old Who monster. The big ones have been covered in the last four series, so now Steven Moffat has chosen to bring back the Silurians. They’ve had a substantial make-over, and it is lovely. I wasn’t always completely convinced when David Tennant’s Doctor told aliens that they were beautiful, but the look on Matt Smith’s remarkable face as he said it was utterly believable. It seems that the idea of the Silurians appealed to the creators of the series – they’re the original inhabitants of Earth, here long before us silly humans came along, and now they want their planet back. This tension, and the Doctor’s assertion that the Silurians aren’t any more evil than humanity, makes for an interesting set-up.
The supporting cast are perfectly fine, although most of them haven’t been given a great deal to do yet. Having Amy taken away was a good plot idea, but she was missed. It’ll also be interesting to see if the appearance of the older Amy and Rory from the start of the episode is as simple as the Doctor made out – it’ll almost certainly be significant later. Smith also dealt admirably with the “be the best you can be” speech, which can so easily be cheesy. The multiple element cliff-hanger was great, especially the Silurian telling the remaining humans that one of them will kill her.
Overall, this wasn’t the most exciting episode on its own, but a good set-up for what could be a very exciting second part. I guess we’ll have to wait and see if ‘Cold Blood’ delivers next week. Just don’t tell any of my fellow Whovians I said that – I may be banned from the message board for life.
Sorry to be pedantic, but it's set in 2020 - the Doctor says at the start that it's "ten years in your future".
Brb, shredding all sense of future legitimacy as a person.
Oh, goodness, yes! I honestly was thinking 2020 when I wrote it, but clearly my brain doesn't have any control over the rest of my body. I'm properly ashamed.
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