A Critical Look At Forest Of The Night

A Very Literary Episode.

If this story title vaguely reminds you of your high school English literature classes then you're not mistaken. The title is actually a line from the poem Tyger, by William Blake.(1757-1827)

Tyger, Tyger burning bright,

In the forests of the night,

What immortal hand or eye,

Could carve thy fearful symmetry?

This isn't the episode's only literary reference, as Maeve, the main child protagonist, runs through the forest, she leaves behind items from her school bags as clues for others to find, a direct reference to Hansel and Gretel which even the Doctor acknowledges. As the reviewer from web site Stranger Views noted, it's a little hard to be terrified of a brightly lit forest and I'd also add that it looks like a place you'd walk your cocker spaniel.

Been There..Done That.

This story isn't a chiller, it's a standard mystery, where did the forest come from? How did it grow overnight? Is it actually an alien? Whilst it's interesting for the viewer to ponder these and other questions there is no tension or even fear of the forest itself. Two wolves and an escaped tiger from the zoo only momentarily lifted the tension (but it barely got my heart rate up). What really lets this episode down is the cliche of the misunderstood child who may or may not be responsible for the predicament they all face themselves in.
Does that seem a little familiar to you? It should do, the concept was explored in the David Tennant Doctor Who episode, Fear Her where a child could bring her drawings to life. In the case of this story, it is young Maeve, who is on medication because she hears voices ever since her elder sister disappeared, and is now on medication.
Maeve's ability to communicate with the 'spirits of nature' which have protected the Earth for millenia hardly comes as either a shock or major revelation, we simply knew she would lead us (and by us read that as the Doctor.) to the truth.

The Doctor Is A Tree Hugger.

There's no disguising that this episode had a very clear environmental message, i.e trees are good, we need trees. The Doctor himself even berates humanity for chopping them down and is not impressed when government services want to burn them down to create pathways for essential services.
  Whatever your environmental views are, I personally believe that both Whovians and casual fans are intelligent enough to understand the importance that trees play in our lives without the Doctor beating us over the head with the message.

Spotting The Diffrerences Between Danny And Clara.

One thing this episode did provide us with was a subtle, yet clear distinction between how Clara and Danny react to a threatening situation. In this story, Clara thinks that finding out all about the forest should be their main goal whilst Danny believes getting the children to safety should be their number one priority. Clara's time with the Doctor has given her a more analytical outlook whereas quietly macho Danny immediately falls back on his soldier survival training methods. My instincts tell me unless Clara does leave the Doctor or is killed off, this couple is doomed to failure.

To Sum Up.

In the forest of the night was a pleasant story, competently put together but it did seem that writer Frank Cottrell-Boyce wasn't entirely sure in which direction to take his story. On one hand it starts to become a children's adventure yarn, then seems to veer off to become a mildly interesting mystery. The writer adds a literary nod and an environmental message but the trouble is none of these elements are followed through with any conviction and so whatever Mr Cotrell-Boyce was trying to get across to us comes across as wishy washy.
A pleasant story with some interesting elements that just doesn't seem to make the grade as a Doctor Who story.