The Passover Ood

Yeah, I know there’s something counter-intuitive about aliens who hold a bit of their brain in their hands.  Lots of clever people, who know more about biology than I do, have pointed out that if the Ood have hands, then they’ve gone through some sort of survival of the fittest evolutionary process.  And that doesn’t sit well with having a bit of your brain exposed to the elements.

But, for some reason, it didn’t bother me.  Possibly because I thought it was a bit ambitious to have an alien specie whose biology was genuinely different from anything we’ve seen before on the show.  (I know this is the Ood’s second appearance, but this is the first time we learn anything about them as a specie)  I also thought it was nice that Ood biology was integral to the theme of the episode.  For me, the best bit of the story was where Donna points out that because their brains are so exposed they have to trust people.  So, while I accept that it probably makes no scientific sense, I give it points for its value as metaphor.

Leading on from that, I liked that the episode had an important message.  Yeah, it was about subtle as Moses splitting the red sea, but that didn’t bother me at all.  I think it’s great that a story about slavery and the oppression is broadcast at 6:20 on a Saturday evening in the UK when they’re 1.5 million 6 to 12 year olds watching.  Now, maybe it’s because I’ve got Passover on the mind, and a whole lot of unleavened bread sitting in my stomach, but I’m sure seeing the captive Ood, singing their song will have had genuine resonance with the younger audience members.  And that’s a very good thing that shouldn’t be under-estimated.

I thought Graeme Harper’s direction was just great.  He really gives the episode a grim and gritty tone.  And considering this is episode 3 and not episode 8 or 9 (where the series normally gets a bit dark and violent), I was surprised at how many deaths on screen there were and how dark the whole thing was.

This time all the guest cast were great – especially Captain Darling, who stopped short of chewing the scenery in his role as main baddie.  Donna was fantastic, again.  And David has some wonderful moments.  I’ve been recently re-watching Season 2 and the improvement in David’s performance is astonishing.  For the most part, he’s so much more mellower and less over the top.  The writers seems to have figured out that David does the quiet moments really well, and David really nails them in this episode.  That said, the bit behind bars when he’s shouting at the baddies, is a further sign that David cannot do angry.

My only real problem with the episode was the giant brain.  Giant brains are an awful SF cliche and a bit silly as well.  Considering the build up the mysterious thing in warehouse 15 was given, I felt let down when it was revealed to be a large, but dull looking, brain.  I was hoping for something more visually interesting.

That said, I did like Captain Darling’s transformation scene into an Ood.  It was far better handled then the risible one in last years Dalek two-parter.  And, again, I like how it tied back into the theme of the episode.