Doctor Who: 5 Best & 5 Worst 11th Doctor Episodes

2. Night Terrors

Doctor Who Night Terrors Ahhh Night Terrors, we€™ve all had them and they are something that truly terrifies us. The episode written by Mark Gattis, however, fails on every level to convey anything intriguing or new and can be seen as disappointing after the revelations of A Good Man Goes To War built up the momentum extremely well. While I was expecting to see the show push the boundaries of evening TV by providing figures, experiences and scenes that were horrifying, everything included felt flat and diluted. It€™s a real shame and I couldn€™t help but wonder did the producers hold back. The Weeping Angels have proved that fear can be conveyed brilliantly with Blink being the 'scariest' Nu-Who episode to date. My point is I feel a chance to really create a definitive atmosphere was possible, but sadly it never came to light. The episode also falls well short of a proper story line, merely threading through 10 minutes of potential story. It all feels dragged and agonizingly slow because of it. Unsurprisingly due to the content of the episode, it has been referred as being very close to previous Who episode €˜Fear Her€™, quite possibly one of the worst Nu-who episodes today. Night Terrors does fair slightly better but the lack of real content makes this a dull, dreary experience. I also found little niggly continuity issues such as Amy and Rory completely disregarding the apparently new information regarding their daughter slightly annoying. I wanted their reactions, their feelings of confusion, debating with one another about it. It seems this standalone episode was shifted from before GMGTW to after, which may explain this slight error. Night Terrors is ultimately an episode that tried to each out for substance but tired, over-used clichés failed to make the episode anything but forgettable.
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Currently in my 3rd year studying for a BA in English Literature & Film at Edinburgh Napier University. Twitter - @niallmcloughlin