Review: ‘Doctor Who’ - Forest Of The Dead

“I’m the Doctor, and you are in the biggest library in the universe. Look me up.”

In a library so big that it does not need a name, The Doctor (David Tennant) and the mysterious River Song (Alex Kingston) must uncover the secret of 4055 saved in order to stop the spreading Vashta Nerada.

. “Forest Of The Dead” is wonderfully crafted and brimming with giddying levels of excitement, thrills and your typical “Doctor Who” humor ... not to mention the terrifying nature of the Vashta Nerada themselves that constantly gives an edge to the episodes events.

One of the key reasons for “Doctor Who’s” success (including the original series) is the remarkable way in which it takes typical everyday things and transforms them into something to be feared. And nothing is more natural than a fear of the dark and the fear of one’s own shadow. But where this episode excels is by taking a library, something so innocent and bursting with knowledge, and turning it into a graveyard. Writer Steve Moffat certainly is a master of his trade.

There were some great special effects (notably the Doctor and his new intrepid crew descending through a pillar of light at the centre of the library, a wonderful act of Human kindness at the episodes end as the true meaning of “4055 saved” comes to light.

What Worked

All the computerized hints from the library have more earthly meanings, such as the river nearby the hospital, CAL, and the enigmatic Dr. Moon. From the onset though, it is clear that Moon has some kind of ulterior motive and that the life tailored for Donna isn’t quite a reality. The real fun in her world isn’t seeing what kind of life Donna could live without The Doctor, but instead her slow realization that something isn’t quite right. And even though Miss Evangelista’s (Talulah Riley) deformities in Donna-land were all computer-generated, there was something shockingly disturbing about her appearance.

What was most interesting about her time in Donna-land is that Dr. Moon, the man charged with keeping here there, was not in any way a villain or sinister presence. It was a welcome change to have everyone in the fantasy realm as much a victim as Donna and for the Vashta Nerada to be nothing more than beings trying to find their home. The Doctor’s escape from the two human-suited Vashta Nerada was a little cartoony (was his sonic screwdriver manufactured by ACME?), but his following exploits as he dangles from the city seemed like a small homage to “The Empire Strikes Back.”

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