Kill The Moon. Series 8-Episode 7

Kill The Moon

Written by Peter Harness

Director : Paul Wilmshurst

Producer : Peter Bennet

Executive Producers : Steven Moffat/Brain Minchin

Cast : Peter Capaldi, Jenna Coleman, Ellis George Hermione Norris

Length: 45 minutes

Originally Broadcast: 4th October 2014

Synopsis 

(Like my mother) The Moon is putting on weight. In fact 1.3 billion tons worth of weight. But unlike mother, it's not because it claims to be 'big-boned', it's because the Moon is actually an egg. And it's about to hatch.

Summary

In the year 2049, The Doctor, Clara and Courtney (the schoolgirl from last week's episode) find themselves on a space shuttle loaded with nuclear bombs and headed straight for the Moon. 

On-board, the three astronauts's suicide mission, led by Captain Lundvik (Hermione Norris) is to blow up the huge ball of rock and to stop it from destroying earth.

In recent years, earth had been devastated. Huge tidal waves had already caused a significant amount of the population to perish. Satellites were destroyed and advancement in science had been halted as man sought to survive.

Previously, a Mexican colony had been established on the Moon and having reported changes to the Moon, then lost contact with Earth. 

Heading to the long abandoned colony, the group discover that it is covered in cobwebs. As they set about priming the bombs, they soon come across the bodies of the previous colonists entombed within yet more webs. Two of the astronaut are killed while the surviving member Lundvick, along with the Doctor, Clara and Courtney, find themselves under attack from what seems to be a giant spider, which Courtney destroys with disinfectant.

This effective use of a household cleaner brings the Doctor to the conclusion that the spider is really a germ, a Prokaryotic organism.

Courtney becomes frightened and asks to be sent back to the TARDIS, whilst the others venture on to investigate the cracks in the Moon's surface. More Prokaryotic organisms are discovered and the Doctor comes a pool of  amniotic fluid and promptly dives into it saying that he will be back, leaving Clara and Lundvick to return to the shuttle.

On reappearing, the Time-Lord tells his companions that the Moon is in fact a  100 million year old egg which is about to hatch and that the Prokaryotic organisms are parallel to microbes.

He then leaves it up to an astronaut a schoolgirl and a teacher, to make the big decision on whether the egg should be destroyed, killing the creature inside to prevent more harm to humanity, or letting it hatch.

Review

Kill The Moon has faced some harsh slating by the critics, citing bad dialogue and a poor script, as well as being scientifically illiterate. (It's not real people) I don't think that this is fair.

The parallels made with the 1974 Planet Of The Spiders, is idiocy. The two do not resemble each other in anyway. The only comparison is the inclusion of Spiders and in Planet Of The Spiders, these were actual talking arachnids with intelligence and not a form of bacteria.

I really liked this episode. The atmosphere was full of tension and the concept of the Moon being an egg, was an original one. Many have argued about the Doctor leaving Clara, Lundvick and Courtney alone to make such a momentous decision about the fate of humanity. But the Doctor is not a God. I just think that Clara expects far too much of him and see him in a God-like way.