"The Girl Who Waited"

One of the themes that Steven Moffat loves to explore is the perception of time travel for the outsider, those who are left behind, a theme which is blatant in "The Girl in the Fireplace" and a clear subtext in "Blink". Time travel puts lives out of synch, which can be hard for both the time traveller and his wife. Since Moffat took the reins of Doctor Who, we have had Rory, waiting 2000 years for Amy and now it’s Amy’s turn. The story takes us to the planet Appleappacia, where a plague has meant that billions of lives have to be kept in quarantine in different time streams and pressing the wrong button in the lift can mean being separated from your loved one for decades. However, while this story and "The Big Bang" are about love, the aspects of love (damn that Lloyd-Webber!) explored are subtly different, resulting in a very different story. "The Big Bang" was about a love eternal, but "The Girl Who Waited" is about what makes that love eternal. Amy and Rory’s love is so simple, yet so profound, that it can survive a jump in the time tracks and means that the dilemma for Rory, when he has to choose between the fifty-something and twenty-something Amys seems real and the older Amy’s desire to cling onto that version of her life is also believable. This is Tom MacRae’s return to Doctor Who after 5 years and, to say that this story is more sophisticated than "Rise of the Cybermen"/"The Age of Steel" is something of an understatement. The ideas are strong enough to stand on their own, but it is the dialogue which truly sparkles. Amy’s description of loving Rory is utterly wonderful, one of the all-time great speeches in the history of the programme. It is another great example of a story with no real villain, but no less intriguing for that. The very power of the story means that we can forgive the few flaws- how can anyone not say 'press the green button'?!

Nick Hurran’s direction is utterly sublime, with slow cross-fades and seemingly random cutaways- he is known, mainly, for directing romantic comedies, funnily enough, but he is the absolute master of this story. The visuals are stunning, especially the Lewis Carroll-via-Tim Burtonesque Garden, and the inspired use of the magnifying glass screen. He manages to make the Handbots look both scary and funny, something which extends to his mastery of mood for the whole story. Great moments abound- Rory's vandalism of the galaxy's greatest treasures in order to save his wife, the older Amy's look at the Earth before she ceases to exist. This is a story where the regulars are the only real characters and all of them have great material to work with. Karen Gillen has great make-up for the older Amy, but it is the performance which absolutely sells it. Arthur Darvill is not to be overshadowed, however and, although our leading mad is placed more in the background, Matt’s stamp is very much felt, especially the expressiveness in his face, which speaks volumes.

"The Girl Who Waited" is another example of how Doctor Who can be bold, challenging, funny and touching- all in all, something of a triumph!

NEXT: "The God Complex"