S04E08: 'Silence In The Library'

A Steven Moffat script now comes with the huge burden of expectation, given the calibre of his previous contributions to Doctor Who. But does he deliver the goods this timey wimey? "Oh yes!" to quote Tennant's Time Lord.

There's a feast of wonderfully inventive concepts at work throughout the story, particularly the Data Ghosts and the Nodes. Both are used to pack a powerful dramatic punch, with Evangelista's 'ghosting' scene a perfect example of emotive writing and effective performances being allowed to breathe and flow by non-intrusive direction from the impressive Euros Lyn.

Guest stars Alex Kingston and Colin Salmon simply ooze with class in their roles. It's easy to see why The Doctor may fall for River Song one day, as Kingston flirtatiously charms the pants off the 'pretty boy' while establishing a commanding, authoritative presence.

As for the perfectly-cast Salmon, his voice alone is enough to generate traumatic nightmares. Eve Newton, as the young girl, also deserves plenty of acclaim for holding her own in the towering presence of Salmon and remaining thoroughly believable throughout.

The only slight criticism, within the broader context of the Whoniverse, is that too many of the story's elements are over-familiar from previous Moffat scripts. There's the 'ghosting' remains of Proper Dave stalking the library calmly repeating 'who turned out the lights?', in a similar vein to the infected gas mask wearers from 'The Empty Child', complete with their 'are you my mummy?' question. The treatment of time in a non-linear manner, with events seemingly taking place concurrently in different temporal periods harks back to both 'The Girl In The Fireplace' and 'Blink'.

Yet, conversely, these can also be viewed as prime evidence that Moffat is a true auteur whose work is truly individual and easy to identify. Frankly, when a family show is so deliciously dark and involving, without ever losing its sense of fun and adventure, any moments of deja-Who can be easily overlooked.

Just what this uneven fourth series of Doctor Who needed, 'Silence In The Library' deserves to have viewers screaming in fear and shouting in joy.

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