Hide

Dear Gary—

“This isn’t a ghost story; it’s a love story.”

As a ghost story Hide is pretty good. As a love story it is OK. In between it is decent sci fi; all in all a solid entry. Where Hide really excels, though, is in bringing these varying genres together to reveal the Doctor. It does this subtly and it doesn’t sacrifice the narrative to do so.

“Boo! Hello, I’m looking for a ghost.” It’s an amusing way for the Doctor to introduce himself into the spooky mansion owned by Professor Alec Palmer (I’m going to ignore Clara’s rather lame “Ghostbusters” reference); and like many things in Hide, it’s a lie. The Doctor’s real motive for arriving in this 1970’s haunted house is to seek out the Professor’s assistant Emma Grayling. The Doctor is hoping that the empath Emma can discern the secret of Clara. However it is not Clara who Emma exposes (“she’s a perfectly ordinary girl”) but rather the Doctor: “There’s a sliver of ice in his heart.”

Emma’s cooperation with the Doctor is guarded as they work to uncover the mystery of “the Wraith of the Lady; the Maiden in the Dark; the Witch of the Well.” Emma genuinely wants to help this Caliburn Ghast. The Professor is more intent on exorcising his own ghosts, the Doctor is excited by the phenomenon, and Clara is going along for the ride. It is Emma who takes a personal interest. “I can feel her calling out to me,” she explains. She therefore goes along with the Doctor’s schemes despite her wariness of him.

Emma senses the danger and deceit in the Doctor, keeping the audience in touch with his edginess despite the very childlike persona the Doctor puts on in this episode. Matt Smith is delightful to watch as he dives head on into the fun, finding joy in the simplest things. (“You know, I do love a toggle switch. Actually, I like the word toggle.”)But the darkness is ever lurking, as evidenced by the very different reactions of Clara and the Doctor to viewing the entire life cycle of the Earth, birth to death.

Clara, too, follows the Doctor against her better judgment. “Dare me,” she tells him when he is coaxing her to go ghost hunting with him. Making a game of it, she denies her fears to play along. There is that devilish charm that the Doctor has been accused of, leading his companions into jeopardy while they try to impress. (This is hinted at again during the Doctor’s discussion with Professor Palmer regarding survivor guilt.)

 Together Clara and the Doctor make a great team as they explore the spooky house, candlelight, flickering shadows, unexpected cold spots and all. What they do not find is a ghost.

What they do find is a time traveler named Hila Tukurian stuck in a pocket universe and crying out for help. With the aid of Emma and a blue crystal from Metebelis Three (never mind the pronunciation) the Doctor pops over into the collapsing echo of a universe and frees Hila. There are of course the usual complications and Clara has to do some heroics of her own in the TARDIS (which still seems to have an aversion towards her) to save the Doctor. It’s a thrilling bit of adventure as the Doctor runs from the creature in the misty forest, Clara argues with the TARDIS, and the trio in the mansion call forth the spirits.

Underlying it all is the love story the Doctor speaks of. The tacked on star crossed creatures feature is rather tepid (and if the he and she creatures are trapped in different universes with different time lapses, wouldn’t the she creature have died out long ago?) but the Professor/Emma relationship is beautifully told, mainly through stolen looks and gestures. The Doctor’s revelation that Hila is actually a distant ancestor of the pair is highly contrived, but on a par with most New Who coincidences.

Again, though, it is the subtext of the Doctor that really shines. Simple things, like the Doctor pulling his arm from around Clara’s shoulders as though she has girl cooties. I both love and hate this. Love it for the statement that the Doctor is not falling into the familiar Rose trap of late; hate it that it is necessary to make this statement. Wish there was no statement to make. Worry that the show is flirting with the statement and hinting at possibilities. Oh if it could have only been a cute moment without any reminiscent undertones.

You well know, Gary, that one of my main complaints against New Who is that it sacrifices adventure for the arc. If only Hide was more of the norm. Hide skillfully leads us through a thrilling ghost of a sci fi romance with subtle hints at the Clara of a mystery arc. “To you, I’m a ghost,” she tells the Doctor at one point, meaning one thing but with some powerful subtext. Or how about the Doctor telling Clara, “You are the only mystery worth solving.”Hide can be viewed as a standalone; it can also be viewed in the context of the season.  I could use more of this.

I suppose, Gary, that to you I am a ghost; I guess we are ghosts to each other; there is no mystery to solve, though. We travel on as ever in our own pocket universes . . .