To take the pulse of the smart critics, I always go to Mo, Alan, & the AV Club after the show; but, as I sit to write Mo doesn't have a review up yet, Alan's is scant, and the AV Club heard "moon racists," hilariously -- and incorrectly, of course -- where the line was "the races that live there will be livid," so I'm giving them demerits this week.
This was another highly entertaining, easily re-watchable adventure with ties to the classic series, a bit of randomness (a big game hunter and an Egyptian queen ... not to mention Rory's father), and some credulity-straining bits that (not bad enough to drag it down). Plenty of (robot) humor and playing it broad, which I enjoyed immensely, and which contrasted well with the the really vicious baddie. Poor Tricey, that was brutal. I suspected Solomon was going to be shown the door (perhaps in the same fashion he'd dealt with the Silurians) with that second display of cruelty to make a point.
Another thing I'm liking in the early going of this season, along with the willingness to go gonzo and employ a bit of the ol' sucker punch: we're not getting clobbered with Bad Wolf or a clearly untenable arc, but we are getting intimations ...
... conversations that are too awkward, and troubled glances (in a nice bit of blocking) -- poignant reminders the Ponds are not long for the show.
This season is off to a much better start than the last. Moffatt may be hitting his stride.
