3. The Big Bang
The Big Bang was utter madness and stupendous madness at that. Coming after the first part of this two part epic The Pandorica Opens, Moffat somehow manages to confuse, amaze and brilliant end a mind boggling series of plot twists, timey wimey chaos and a little bit of emotion too. Splendid. Everything about the episode seemed to crackle, the show almost knowing of its confidence. The dialogue was sharp and witty, the direction by Toby Haynes stupendously good and with everyone involved seemingly aware of how significant this episode was, they were all on fire. Particularly Smith, providing a performance he may not have matched since with speeches galore, sharp zingers and a rather fetching Fez. When Smith departs, he may just look back at this episode and be really rather proud of what he achieved. His suggestion of wearing this Fez to differentiate between Doctors was rather ingenious, allowing a visual representation to instantly determine where we are, instead of adding lengthy disposition that would weigh down an already hefty episode. Audacious in scope and never lacking in purpose, the perplexity and mind bending complication merely served to provide smoke and mirrors to what was ultimately a reset episode. While the whole reset thing may have been one step too far and an easy one at that, I believe the sheer magnitude of the episode should be applauded, the risks taken to ensure a wonderful spectacle with substance, rather than an artificially cheesy one that previous leader Davies gave us all too often. The Big Bang shouldnt have worked, it really shouldnt have, its easily the most ambitious Moffat script yet and one he should be incredibly proud of. It came together in the end. Oh and knowing the title was a dirty joke by Moffat foretelling an event to happen in the TARDIS later that evening has all but ensured its legendary status.