Doctor Who - The Rings of Akhaten
Review by Ken Parker
This has got to be one of the oddest
Doctor Who episodes ever. At times I was thinking that this
was turning into a horrible idea but then something would change my
mind. First off, we don't have lots of characters running around
yelling at each other and flirting with one another. This is another
simple story which allows the characters of the Doctor and Clara to
bond even more. Their chemistry is really working and this is just
going to make every future episode better.
Some spoilers

Clara meets young Merry who is to
become the next singer for the god but Merry is frightened that she
will mess up. Things do go wrong and it would appear the god is
waking. The Doctor and Clara are now trapped inside the temple along
with Merry but the being that is waking is not the god. The god is
much larger actually. And he is not a god!
I feel that this story is going to take
heavy criticism for basically the idea is so odd. The idea is that
these people sing to their god and now that the god is waking up, it
will destroy everything. It is a hard concept and I think that is
what makes this story interesting. It is such an alien way of life
that we have not seen anything quite like it before. In the end the
Doctor attempts to feed the god his memories, thinking that it would
be too much for the god to handle. It is up to Clara who takes it a
step further and gives the god a symbol of things that could have
been, a much bigger dinner for the god who can't take it.
The story will also grow criticism
because the fighting against the god is basically a bunch of people
standing around thinking and singing. I think, and I hope I am
wrong, the general public would rather see weapons like missiles or
temporal cannons. This story is more like a play, basically
happening in one or two settings which also makes it different.
The writer has also tipped his hat at
the movie Blade Runner with a couple of references which fit in
nicely – well, at least one of them did.


Speaking of silliness, the Doctor had
some moments from time to time. The barking communication bordered
on bad, but for the most part this half of season has been relatively
serious with enough light comedy and eccentricity to make it one of
the better ones. Next week we have “Cold War” and is it possible
that this season's good episodes will continue? Oh yea!
The last time I ever watched a Doctor Who episode again after seeing it the first time was back in season 4. This season I have watched both The Bells or St. John and The Rings of Akhaten again. Both are as good if not better than the first time, especially Rings. The more I think about it the more I like this episode and the fact that many many fans who love all those epic messes of A Good Man Goes to War and The Wedding of River Song are not liking Rings makes me feel even stronger about how good it really was.
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