My Thoughts on "Hide" · 6:33am Apr 21st, 2013

It's time to give my thoughts on the newest Doctor Who episode, Hide. If you have not seen Hide then read no further as spoilers will be discussed.

Hide was one of the episodes this season that I've really been looking forward to; and, while it wasn't exactly what I expected, I found Hide to be a great episode. The theme of ghosts has been seen in Doctor Who before in episodes such as Ghost Light and The Unquiet Dead, but Hide seemed to appear as a straightforward Doctor Who ghost story. In some elements, the episode succeeds in this. The atmosphere throughout the episode is spooky and intense. While I was never truly terrified during the episode, the pure atmosphere of Caliburn House and the pocket universe were enough to get my heart racing a bit. Matt Smith and Jenna-Louise Coleman were as fun as ever to watch and their friendship has really blossomed into a fun one throughout the four episodes that they've been together (as in the episodes that the Doctor's been with the current version of Clara). I also took a liking to the subplot about Emma and Professor Palmer's romance as it both didn't slow down the main plot and it fit in with the main plot quite nicely in the end.

The twist of the "Witch of the Well" actually being a pioneer time traveler trapped in a pocket universe I found to be interesting and somewhat unexpected. I also like how the connection between the time traveler and Emma and the Professor was made. The return of the 10th Doctor's spacesuit was a nice touch and Clara and the Doctor had some really great scenes both with each other and with Emma and the Professor respectively. Clara's banter with the TARDIS's holographic recreation of her was also a pretty funny scene.

I don't have that many problems with this episode but I shall mention the problems that I do have. The plot, while good, feels a bit disjointed with the Doctor and Clara leaving 1974 Caliburn House, the main setting of the episode, to take a trip through millions of years of time. Granted, these scenes were really good and handled really well but it still makes the overall tone and feel of the episode change swiftly and awkwardly at certain points. Also, the reveal of the monster's appearance at the end was a real bummer, in my opinion. The monster chasing after the time traveler was extremely creepy when we only saw glimpses of it in the mist and in the shadows of the pocket universe. Then it turned out that the monster was really just a lonely creature searching for its partner, which was trapped in 1974 Caliburn House, and it lost the edge that it had previously. I can admit that the "monster love story" acts as a fitting counterpart to the "Emma and Professor love subplot" to an extent but it still causes the monster to lose the creepy factor it had throughout a majority of the episode. However, I felt that the monster probably would have retained some of its creepiness if they hadn't gone and shown it full front and center at the end. The monster hardly looked scary. It looked like an inverted version of a stuffed skeleton toy that could be picked up at the dollar store. I felt it would have been better if they hadn't gone and shown the monster. But that's just how I feel.

Overall, I really enjoyed Hide. Despite a somewhat disjointed plot and a disappointing monster reveal at the end, the episode still gives great acting; a creepy and intense atmosphere; a couple interesting twists; an enjoyable romance subplot; and some interesting development with the Doctor, Clara, and...the TARDIS? Next week's episode is Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS, easily one of the most highly anticipated episodes of the season, which sees the Doctor and Clara venture deep into the heart of the TARDIS all while dealing with a trio of brothers wishing to sell the TARDIS for scrap. And, also, what are those strange creatures lurking deep within the depths of the blue box? This is definitely going to be an interesting episode.

You can find a promo for Journey to the Centre of the TARDIS below: