Review – DOCTOR WHO: ASYLUM OF THE DALEKS

The worldwide broadcast premiere of Doctor Who: Asylum of the Daleks, the Series Seven season opener, is finally upon us. I have been posting quite a lot of Who material this week, having attended the U.S. screening at the Ziegfeld Theatre a week ago today.

I am still quite taken aback as a fan regarding that day’s worth of events, from interviewing Matt Smith, Karen Gillan, and Who Executive Producer Caroline Skinner, to chatting with the eager fans waiting in line outside the theater, to seeing the episode projected on the grand big screen of the Ziegfeld. Then top it all off with the post show Q&A hosted by Chris Hardwick. It was quite a day, and just as important, I’m happy to report that the premiere episode delivers.

I will offer some quick thoughts on what will air tonight, with no spoilers. This will just encourage you to tune in tonight, whether you be a Whovian or not.

First it must be noted how well the episode looked presented in cinematic proportions in New York City’s last remaining grand single screen theater. The production value of the show has reached the level that I would be more than happy to watch in geek bliss each 40-odd minute episode in a cinematic setting on a weekly basis. At no point did the directing, cinematography, or special effects scream ‘TV show in a movie theater!’ It also goes without saying there is something special about watching it with a capacity crowd of enthusiastic Whovians ooh’ing, ahh’ing and laughing in all the right places.

The Steven Moffat-penned episode is a rock solid start as the first of the five new adventures set to air in September before wrapping up 2012 with the Doctor Who Christmas Special.

It’s no secret that the fifth episode, The Angels Take Manhattan, will be the last appearance of Karen Gillan and Arthur Darvill as the Doctor’s popular companions, and tonight’s premiere lays firm groundwork to what fans will slowly see unfold in the coming weeks. There is an edgy dark dynamic set here, and it will be interesting to see how it progresses until Jenna Louise-Coleman is set as the new companion by year’s end.

The relentless robotic Daleks, perhaps the greatest villains in the Doctor’s rogue’s gallery, return tonight with appropriate cause and force the Time Lord’s hand into an unholy alliance. The episode doesn’t quite pick up straight from the Series 6 finale. Time has passed, the Doctor has perhaps been laying low, relationships have changed, and it starts the year off on a cleaner slate with solid work all around from the cast.

Smith has grown well into mixing heroics, humor, and dead-on bravado when called for as the Eleventh Doctor, who shows a noticeable darker side here. Karen Gillan’s Amy Pond has toughened up and grown into a true sci-fi heroine who manages to vamp up her look a notch or two as well. Arthur Darvill remains the emotional anchor as the heart and soul for the time traveling trio, as we wait to see what the Ponds fate ultimately is.

Much of the complex arc from last year is not played upon, making this an accessible episode for newcomers, but will make them only want to go back and see what has preceded it. With a feel of an old school Doctor Who adventure, it hits all the right marks for adventure, wit, and emotional curveball plot twists that fans have come to expect from the show.

OFFICIAL SYNOPSIS:

“Kidnapped by his oldest foe, the Doctor is forced on an impossible mission – to a place even the Daleks are too terrified to enter… the Asylum. A planetary prison confining the most terrifying and insane of their kind, the Doctor and the Ponds must find an escape route. But with Amy and Rory’s relationship in meltdown, and an army of mad Daleks closing in, it is up to the Doctor to save their lives, as well as the Pond’s marriage.”