Nightmare in Silver
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It doesn’t compare well to “The Doctor’s Wife”,
and isn’t what fans hoped a Neil Gaiman Cybermen episode would be. In fact, I
don’t think it ended up being what Neil Gaiman hoped a Neil Gaiman Cybermen
episode would be. But I’ll be damned if I don’t end up having a ton of fun with
this episode every time I watch it.
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First, we need to address the Cybermen, who are not
what Gaiman was aiming for: his initial plans were for them to be silent killer
types, but they clank and stomp as much as the cybus cybermen. But this is a
problem with the script just as much as it is the production: there does seem
to be a contradiction in the premises Gaiman laid out. He wants them to be
silent, creepy assasins that need to be killed by a whole planet being blown
up. It’s something the episode cannot reconcile, and so the it fails to make
the cybermen scary again.
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Also problematic are Angie and Artie: there’s
very little purpose in the episode for them, beyond being captured and needing
rescue, and there is no discernible arc for either character. Gaiman was
clearly saddled with them when he didn’t want to be, which is a shame, as
having part of Clara’s home life around could have made for an interesting part
of the episode (Courtney Woods is used in a similar way next season, to a much
greater effect).
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Then there’s the Cyberplanner: it’s nice to see
that even in what is basically Matt Smith’s last business as usual story,
they’re finding new things to do with the Eleventh Doctor as a character, and
Matt Smith as an actor. But there are problems with this, as Smith never quite
sells Mr Clever: it’s probably his weakest performance in the role, with
“THEEY”RE HEEEERE!” being utterly excruciating. However, there are also nice
notes to the role: I like that the Cyberplanner’s downfall is that he takes on
the Doctor’s emotions even as he mocks the Doctor for caring, and as a result
is goaded into being beaten by the Doctor’s trick with the screwdriver and the
hand pulse.
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Still, in spite of these problems, there are
enough things that make me like the episode:
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There are some lovely Doctor/ Clara scenes: Matt
Smith and Jenna Coleman really do have great chemistry, even if she ultimately
flourishes as a companion alongside Capaldi’s Doctor.
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Fantastic dialogue: “Takings for the day: one
sandwich. Still, better than no sandwich”/ “Yes. But comical.”
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Clara in general – but then, unlike many, I
really enjoy Clara’s character in series seven – it lays the foundations for
everything that makes her a great companion as her arc develops. Here, she gets
to be in charge of the platoon, and we get to see how good she is at it,
demonstrating the positive side of her “Bossy Control Freak” nature: she is
confident and efficient in a leadership role.
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I also love the punishment platoon: the
“loveable misfits fighting impossible odds” trope is one that I always enjoy,
and gives a memorable texture to a base under siege story that I really
appreciate.
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Finally, there’s Porridge’s story: he’s a
charming character, excellently played by Warwick Davis, with some nice
parallels to the Doctor through the way he runs from the burden of being the
emperor after blowing up entire planets to defeat the Cybermen, thematically
relevant as we approach a storyline that explores the Doctor’s reaction to the
end of the Time War in depth.
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