Doctor Who "Listen"

The Doctor loves a ghost story.

Of all the mysteries of the universe, the Doctor is possibly the most obsessed with the paranormal. In fact, he frequently tries to explain away and disprove monsters and ghosts with rational explanations, or at least as rational as they come in his world. And he's almost always right. Almost. But what if the Doctor encountered something even he couldn't explain? What if he encountered fear itself?

"Listen" is a packed episode filled with revelations not only about The Doctor himself, but also of current companion Clara and almost-companion Danny Pink. It starts innocently with The Doctor monologuing to himself about an unseen creature which frightens people everywhere, all around the universe and throughout time. It's the bump in the night, the rumble in the pipes, the hair on the back of your neck, the shadow at the corner of your eye, and the monster under your bed. What he's really talking about is fear. In our universe, these things are a product of the mind when we are at our most vulnerable in the dark. But in The Doctor's universe, could they perhaps be caused by some thing? The Doctor becomes so obsessed with this vision that he scoops up Clara to assist after a particularly bad first date with Mr. Pink. They attempt to visit her childhood using the TARDIS but instead end up at Pink's childhood, where he is plagued by nightmares of something under the bed. And he turns out to be right. Well, at least perhaps right. It's never explained if the thing under the blanket is something truly evil or another kid playing a prank. But it sure is creepy.

The Doctor and Clara next travel to the end of the universe where The Doctor picks up a lonely time traveler, who looks unmistakably like Pink and whose name is Orson. He appears to be a descendant of Danny but whether he is related to Clara is unknown. Orson is stranded for six months as the end of the world where no one is around and yet he is plagued by knocks on the door from outside. Like before, there is also no explanation for what it is. The Doctor attempts to face it but he is nearly killed by the windy atmosphere outside. While the Doctor is incapacitated, Clara makes one last stop. She ends up in Gallifrey of all places in a barn where The Doctor stayed because the other young Time Lords were cruel to him. She ends up being the "monster" under The Doctor's bed but instead of scaring him, she comforts him and tells him that fear is a strength which is the same advice The Doctor gives little Danny "Rupert" Pink many, many years later. Clara leaves and is returned to her date with Mr. Pink where both of them rekindle their attraction for each other and move past their anxiety.

This episode is actually a riff on the Frederic Brown short story "Knock" which is only about three lines: "The last man on Earth sat alone in a room. There was a knock on the door," It's thought to be a very effective horror story because it supposes that when we are supposed to be alone, we are not. But it also supposes that whatever is out there, isn't human and, in that regard, isn't necessarily friendly. What is so effective about this episode is that the "monster" or "thing" is never shown. So it's up to the viewer's imagination to rationalize what it is. It could also just as easily be something completely rational and there are justifications to explain it away. In Danny Pink's case, could it have been a ghost or was it just a creepy human child in the children's home? In Orson Pink's case, could it have been the wind making a solitary man go mad? The real solution is that fear can be our biggest enemy, but it also can be our greatest strength. In The Doctor's case, it made him the Time Lord he is today.

Afterthoughts

- Super cool reference to The War Doctor, and the barn where he talks to "Rose" in the 50th special

- I'm not sure how to feel about Clara being involved in TWO important details of The Doctor's life. Remember, she told him where to steal the TARDIS too when she was impossible girling

- Both Danny and Orson Pink are great. I wouldn't be surprised if we saw more descendants of Mr. Pink down the line. Speaking of which, we know Orson and Danny are related but is Orson also related to Clara?

- This season is really growing on me in terms of storytelling, and Capaldi is starting to fall into his own rhythm that is very satisfying. It's still a bit weird that Clara and Twelve bicker at each other though

- I seriously wondered if The Silence were going to show up but thankfully they didn't