Doctor Who Sleep No More Review

Tags

Clara Oswald, Doctor Who, Doctor Who Series 9, Doctor Who Sleep No More, Doctor Who Sleep No More Review, Jenna Coleman, Justin Molotnikov, Mark Gatiss, Neptuen, Peter Capaldi, Reece Shearsmith, Steven Moffat, TARDIS, The Doctor, The Sandmen, Triton

Sleep No More

Review by Paul Bowler

[Contains Spoilers]

The Doctor and Clara must investigate strange events in the thirty-eighth century in recorded footage is gathered from a rescue mission in space. The footage reveals a disturbing account of inexplicably horrifying events. But there is something evil lurking in this recording, something that is a danger to us all. So, if you value your sanity, the future of your species, your life, and everything that you hold dear, whatever you do, do not watch it…

Sleep No More, the ninth story from Series 9, finds the Doctor and Clara faced with a dark mystery, where the events now unfold in the frightening footage discovered from the deep space rescue mission. This chilling adventure written by Mark Gatiss (The writer of many Doctor Who episodes, including The Unquiet Dead (2005), the Idiot’s Lantern (2006), Victory of the Daleks (2010), as well as two episodes from 2013’s seventh season, Cold War and The Crimson Horror, and Robot of Sherwood (2014) from series eight), brings us a suspenseful found-footage tale, directed by Justin Molotnikov (Da Vinci’s Demons / Atlantis / Merlin).

The recorded events from the Le Verrier Space Station orbiting Neptune holds details of a terrifying story after the data is assembled. But once it has been watched you can never unsee it! Its been about 24 hours since the station went silent, a team from Triton led by Nagata (Elaine Tan) has been sent to investigate, but when the Doctor (Peter Capaldi) and Clara (Jenna Coleman) also get caught up in events they must work together to figure out what happened to the crew on board the orbiting laboratory. After encountering frightening creatures made of sand they gets separated from Deep-Ando, the Doctor, Clara, and the rest of the team find shelter, where Clara becomes trapped briefly inside one of the Morpheus pods before the Doctor rescues her.

It seems the Morpheus machine invented by Professor Rassumussen (Reece Shearsmith), pod-like devices that concentrate nocturnal experiences to enable humanoids to go a whole month without sleep, has the potential to revolutionise the labour force of humanity – but with dire consequences! The Doctor confronts Rassumussen after he’s found hiding in one of the Morpheus pods, his machine might have conquered nature, but in doing so the Professor has also created nightmarish abominations, the Sandmen, and the creatures seem almost unstoppable!

Mark Gatiss exploit’s the “found footage” horror format to the full in Sleep No More, in an episode boasting shocks and scares around every shadowy corner, a sinister take on the 50’s pop song Mr Sandman, and the hideously misshapen Sandmen monsters, this is undoubtedly one of series nines darkest episodes so far. As well as strong performances from Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coelman, Sleep No More also breaks new ground by not having any conventional title sequence (Although some text and letters do flash across the screen early on that momentarily spell the words Doctor Who) whatsoever – a first for Doctor Who – and director Justin Molotnikov uses spooky camerawork and eerily unsettling sounds to great effect over the course of this fabulously tense, atmospheric, and creepy episode. The way the action in this episode is intercut with Rassumussen’s narration to camera is handled well, there are lots of creepy deaths when the Sandmen attack, the sequence where the gravity shields initially fail is also really exciting, and the scenes where the Doctor, Clara, and Commander Nagata hide in the cold store from the Sandmen are especially nerve wracking – especially when the Doctor realises the Sandmen are blind as he leads the escape from the freezer.

Rassumussen is played by Mark Gatiss’ League of Gentlemen pal, Reece Shearsmith, who is excellent in his role as the ambitiously foolish scientist, and there is far more to Rassmussen’s story than meets the eye… Although this is his first appearance in a Doctor Who episode, Reece Shearsmith did play the role of the 2^nd Doctor briefly for the 2013 drama about the programmes origins, An Adventure in Space and Time, which was also written by Mark Gatiss. Sleep No More features a great mix of characters, including Nagata (Elaine Tan), Chopra (Neet Mohan), the clone 477 (Bethany Black), Deep Ando (Paul Courtenary Hyu), the Morpheus Presenter (Zina Badran), and Natasha Patel, Elizabeth Chong, Nikkita Chadha, and Gracie La as the group of hologram singers. Having also played a Zygon in The Zygon Invasion & The Zygon Inversion in Series 9, Tom Wilton returns again, this time making an appearance as one of the Sandmen.

It is a time of great prosperity for the galaxy, the Morpheus machine has made sleep virtually obsolete, thus increasing productivity. Time is money after all! Rassumussen has effectively changed the nature of human existence, but the true cost of his experiments with the latest model of his Morpheus machines on the Le Verrier Space Station are quickly becoming apparent. With the help of the sonic specs the Doctor is eventually able to discern a frightening connection between the sleep dust in the atmosphere and the how the footage is being relayed, it makes what actually happened to the crew of the station seem even more horrible, as those using the Morpheus machines, even for a short time, become infected and consumed from the inside, but the Doctor is confident he can reverse the process in Clara and Nagata once they reach the TARDIS.

The creepy new monsters “The Sandmen” are great hulking creatures, terrifyingly powerful, and they seem virtually unstoppable. Essentially they are life forms created from the sentient acumination of human sleep dust, a side effect of using the Morpheus machines on the station. The Sandmen consumed their human hosts who were using the pods, before hunting down the rest of the crew, and then later the rescue team from Triton. The creatures are immensely strong, but they are also blind, and deactivating the stations gravity shielding can severely affect the cohesion of their bodies. Indeed, with their grotesque form and horrific nature, the Sandmen are a powerful reminder of the sleep that all humans need to save them from the monsters lurking inside.

Mark Gatiss has entwined a number of references from past Doctor Who stories into Sleep No More, Nagata mention of the Space Prates, in a clear not to the 1969 Doctor Who story The Space Pirates, the 12^th Doctor also speaks of the great catastrophe which loosely alludes to Frontios (1984), when Clara names the creatures in Sleep No More as Sandmen, which the Doctor initially contests, it alludes to a similar issue where the Doctor didn’t name the Earth-based reptile species in The Silurians (1970), and their name – presumably it was a human that named them as Silurians – turned out to be somewhat misleading and technically inaccurate. There are links to Greek mythology, specifically Morpheus god of dreams, and some key lines of dialogue from Shakespeare’s Macbeth.

In a frenetic showdown, the Doctor, Clara, and Nagata discover the Sandmen’s creator, Gagen Rassmussen, is actually assisting them! He intends to escape from the Le Verrier station, together with the Morpheus pod containing Patient Zero – the individual that’s been exposed to the Morpheus process the longest – and return to Triton to spread the spores of dust – thus infecting everyone on Triton and eventually all humanity… Fortunately the Doctor, Clara, and Nagata manage to evade the Sandman from the pod that Rassmussen locked them in with, Nagata shoots Rassmussen, and when the Doctor deactivates the gravity shields again they are finally able to reach the TARDIS and escape. However, it seems the story is not quite over, as the final piece of footage from the station holds a chilling message from Rassmussen that reveals the horrifying truth…

Sleep No More uses all the familiar tropes of the “found footage” genre, Mark Gatiss has crafted a highly disturbing concept for this story, and there are moments that genuinely scary. Peter Capaldi and Jenna Coleman are on excellent form, Reece Shearsmith is great as Rassmussen, and the supporting cast – especially Elaine Tan as Nagata, all get a good share of the spooky action. Director Justin Molotnikov builds the brooding menace throughout, and there are plenty of surprises to keep you guessing about what will happen next. While I’m not a big fan of found footage films, I found Sleep No More to be a bold experiment with the format of Doctor Who, and one that actually proved to be a lot more successful than I was expecting it to be.

Here’s a Doctor Who Series 9 Extra where Mark Gatiss, Steven Moffat and the cast discuss creepy new monsters, The Sandmen!

Follow @paul_bowler

Earth 2 Issue #7 Review

Tags

Alan Scott, Apokolips War, Colonel Dodds, Commander Khan, DC Comics, Earth 2, Green Lantern, Hawkgirl, James Robinson, Mr Terrfic, Terry Sloan, The Flash, The New 52, The Sandmen, Trevor Scott, Yildiray Cinar

Earth 2 Issue #7

Review by Paul Bowler

In the aftermath of Solomon Grundy’s defeat Alan Scott’s global media empire GBC is covering every aspect of recent events as news reports begin to emerge about the new wonders of Earth 2 and the heroic part they played in saving the world. Although the headlines state that Alan Scott was not one of the victims of the train crash in China, the claims that he is fine and well are far from the truth.

Alan Scott is consumed with grief over Sam’s death, smashing up his penthouse in a furious rage, before Hawkgirl arrives on the balcony with a renewed request for him to join with her and the Flash to work together as a team. When he refuses Kendra attacks him, forcing him to put on his power ring again, but before he can retaliate she vanishes.

This issue really throws the spotlight on Hawkgirl

While Alan Scott ponders his future, over in The World Army Central HQ in Tokyo, Commander Khan is summoned to a meeting before the members of The World Army Council. Khan is aghast when the Council appoint Terry Sloan to be the new Head of The World Army Science Directive. He may be forced to work with Terry Sloan for now, but having secretly uncovered one of Sloan’s secret bases in Paris, Khan has sent Colonel Dodds and his Sandmen to investigate the building where they find a lab guarded by Sloan’s brainwashed prisoner from Earth 1 – Mr Terrific. After subduing Mr Terrific and trashing the lab, Colonel Dodds reports back to Khan with his findings.

Although Khan and Dodd are uncertain why Terry Sloan captured Mr Terrific when he mysteriously appeared in Manhattan, they are sure he is the key to Sloan’s plan. Yet as they covertly decide to deprogram Mr Terrific it may already be too late, Terry Sloan has quickly gained the trust of The World Army Council, and soon all the secrets of The World Army and its facilities will be his to govern and implement as he sees fit.

James Robinson seamlessly shifts the tone of Earth 2 from the all-out-action against Solomon Grundy with a somewhat reflective 7^th issue that not only deals with the global recovery in the wake of recent events, but also sees the heroes of Earth 2 gradually coming to terms with the implications their new powers will have on their lives. Robinson addresses the reasons behind Green Lantern’s arrogant dismissal of The Flash’s idea of banding together to form a new team of wonders, revealing how a grief stricken Alan Scott cannot even bear to look at his power ring, let alone consider using it to help form a new team of superheroes. Having trashed his penthouse in a furious rage, Alan is surprised to get a visit from Hawkgirl who once again tries to persuade him to join her and Flash as part of a new team.

Kendra attacks Alan Scott, forcing him to put on the power ring again

This issue really throws the spotlight on Hawkgirl as she talks to Alan on the balcony of his penthouse: even going so far as to reveal her full name, Kendra Munoz-Saunders, one time Archaeologist turned Tomb Robber, whose skills brought her to the attention of The World Army where on a subsequent mission she acquired her wings. Feeling trapped and persecuted by society, Kendra tried to distance herself from The World Army, however, fighting alongside the new wonders in Washington against Grundy – as well as the prophecy that an even greater threat is coming – has made her realize that Earth 2 needs its heroes now more than ever. As if to illustrate her point, she forces him face up to his grief by demonstrating how vulnerable he is. Kendra fires her crossbow when Green Lantern turns his back on her, shattering a photograph of Sam which enrages Alan enough to instinctively draw the power ring to him, but as he turns to face her Hawkgirl is gone.

Confrontations come thick and fast this issue, the air positively crackles with tension as the scene shifts to Commander Khan and Terry Sloan at The World Army HQ in Japan where Sloan has been placed in charge of The World Army Science Directive. While Khan does little to hide his disgust of what he describes as the “obscenity” of Sloan’s placement, he agrees to work with him in principle – at least for now. Having dispatched Colonel Dodds and his elite squad of Sandmen to break into Sloan’s secret lab in Paris, Khan is intrigued when Dodds reports how they discovered a deranged prisoner from Earth 1- Mr Terrific – and brought him in for questioning. We still have no real clue about how Mr Terrific fits into Sloan’s schemes but it will be interesting to see how James Robinson develops the fearful symmetry between these two hyper-intellects.

As well as a welcome return of Colonel Dodds and the Sandmen Earth 2 #7 continues to entice us with snippets of dialogue that offer the promise of even more wonders to come. It is clear that The World Army has vast resources at its disposal. After the horrors of the Apokolips War the World Army Council has been working on a number of top secret programmes in a bid to research and replicate a new age of wonders. Khan realizes just how dangerous it is to allow Sloan access to this data, but is powerless to prevent the Council giving Sloan free reign to initiate his own interpretation of The Wonders Protocol and Project: Biohive. While we are teased with another mention of Captain Steel regular readers are rewarded by the appearance of The Red Tornado! Terry Sloan has decided to transfer the feminine robot still under construction to the Wonders Imitative Facility in Portland. Here’s hoping it won’t be long before we get to see this new Red Tornado in action.

Hawkgirl tries to persuade Alan to help form a new team of wonders

This issue features the debut of guest artist Yildiray Cinar (The Fury of Firestorm the Nuclear Men; Teen Titans) as he joins Earth 2 for issues #7-8. This will also be Cinar’s debut collaboration with James Robinson. Fan favourite Yildiray Cinar is a perfect choice to illustrate Earth 2, his dynamic flair leaps from every scene and is perfectly complemented by Trevor Scott’s inks. Although Earth 2 #7 is comparatively light on super powered action, Cinar and Scott lavishly depict the global recovery from The Rot, allowing the characters and their conflicts time to play out against the stunning backdrops of high tech military instillations and panoramic city skylines. The focus on quieter moments of reflection is tempered by the conspiracy and betrayal beginning to form at the very heart of The World Army. Earth 2 continues to astound and impress on all levels, with the imminent return of Steppenwolf and the introduction of this parallel worlds last Amazon, I have a feeling that we have only just begun to scratch the surface of all the wondrous characters and storylines Earth 2 has to offer.