3. Homages To The Past
We all know that Steven Moffat is a diehard fanboy for Classic Who. The inherent danger of this is his occasional tendency to rely on nostalgia to carry a story forward and give it legs. Especially with the 50th Anniversary approaching, maintaining a balance between nostalgic nods and new, fresh stories is quite a challenge. Here, classic references and even a few more recent throwback references are used to enhance, rather than support entirely, a fresh and exciting story. Homages exist on multiple levels throughout The Rings of Akhaten. The most obvious allusion to Classic Who came with the Doctors reference to having been here before, a long time ago, with my Granddaughter. For those who dont know, hes referring here to the First Doctors companion, Susan an allusion which is sure to fuel the fires of speculation already raging around the identity of Clara. More subtle, and perhaps less intentional, were the similarities to Davies-era episode The End of the World (1.2), particularly in the look and setup of the world and its design. The outer chambers of the temple even bear striking resemblance to the chambers from which the 9th Doctor and Rose watched Earth burn. Similarly, the confrontation scene with 11 and the Slumbering God recalls viscerally the confrontation between Tennants 10th Doctor and the Beast in The Satan Pit (2.9). But more on that next