Our Doctor Who series coverage continues with Episode 2: The Beast Below. So, does episode 2 keep the momentum going?

WARNING: THIS REVIEW CONTAINS A FULL PLOT SUMMARY AND IS SPOILER-HEAVY.  READ ON AT YOUR OWN RISK!

SPOILERS AHEAD…SPOILERS AHEAD…SPOILERS AHEAD…SPOILERS AHEAD…SPOILERS AHEAD

Amy and the Doctor are off on their first proper adventure. Here we go.

In the 29th century, the Doctor and Amy encounter Starship UK, a colony spaceship containing all of the United Kingdom except Scotland, who wanted their own ship, that evacuated Earth following devastating solar flares. On board, the Doctor attempts to comfort 12-year-old Mandy, whose silent tears are unacknowledged by the other passengers because, as the Doctor surmises, they already know what is wrong.

Amy follows Mandy and encounters a hole guarded by a “keep out” sign. Entering, she finds a tentacle-like creature and retreats to be confronted by four hooded figures, another of whom had previously reported the Doctor’s presence to a masked woman. As the Doctor explores the engine room, the same masked woman appears to him. Introducing herself as Liz 10, she confirms his suspicion that the ship is flying without engines.

Amy regains consciousness in a voting booth. Here, as all adult travelers on the ship experience every five years, she is shown the truth behind Starship UK and then has to choose whether to “protest” or “forget” what she has seen. Amy chooses to forget, but not before recording a message to herself to get the Doctor back to the TARDIS and away from the ship. Amy does not inform the Doctor of this, and, as he is unable to view the message due to not being human, he simply presses the “protest” button. This causes himself and Amy to be sent down a chute to the lower regions of the ship.

The Doctor and Amy land in the mouth of a large beast, which the Doctor causes to vomit and expel them to an overflow chute. Refusing to press a “forget” button and open the door to the main ship, they are attacked by two Smilers, the robotic creatures who keep watch over the ship. They are rescued by Liz 10, who reveals herself to be Queen Elizabeth the Tenth. She explains that she has been investigating the creature’s infestation of the ship for her entire reign, working undercover against her own government.

The Doctor, Amy, Liz 10 and Mandy are then taken to the Tower of London, which is situated in the bowels of the ship, to investigate the beast. They find that the ship is powered by the last Star Whale, goaded by a ray penetrating its brain. The Doctor and Liz 10 are outraged at the cruelty being unleashed on the Star Whale, the latter demanding it to be set free. Hawthorne, who had been guarding the creature in the Tower, reveals that Liz 10 ordered the situation in the first place.

In a video message, Liz 10 explains how the British people faced destruction when Earth was devastated by solar flares. The Star Whale appeared as a miracle, and they captured it and used it to power their space ship. Liz 10 has to decide whether to forget, as she has unknowingly done every ten years for centuries, or abdicate, freeing the Star Whale and destroying the ship.

The Doctor realises that Amy chose to forget about the Star Whale so he would not face the choice between humanity and the alien. He then decides to render the Star Whale brain-dead, ending its suffering but still saving the humans on-board. Amy, however, sees the Star Whale’s fondness for children and realizes that its torture was unnecessary; it volunteered to help the UK’s citizens. She forces Liz 10 to press her “abdicate” button, and, after a brief period of turbulence, the Star Whale begins to transport the ship without torture.

Amy explains to the Doctor that she recognised the Star Whale’s kindness as the last of its race as comparable to his own as the last Time Lord. About to tell the Doctor of her impending wedding, she is interrupted by a call to the TARDIS from Winston Churchill, who is face-to-face with a Dalek.

The plot is a bit less straightforward than the first episode’s, with much of it not coming together until the very end. That being said, however, the story is brilliant. I personally think it is fantastic that Amy, not the Doctor, sees the way out of the predicament. The scene in the monster’s belly is truly gross and the “Smilers” are truly terrifying. You’ll never look at a fortune teller machine the same way.  Sophie Okonedo is fantastic as Liz 10. Also, the Star Whale is a terrific and gorgeous new creature. And the last scene with Churchill is priceless, showing just the silhouette of a Dalek.

Continuing the thread from Episode 1, as the exterior of the Starship UK is shown at the end of the Episode, you can see a crack in time similar to the one in Amy’s wall in Episode 1.

This was a good episode. I personally think Episode 1 was better, but it was not bad by any stretch. It was a little slow in parts, but more than made up for it in the end.

The Beast Below gets a 4 out of 5.

Next week, THE DALEKS RETURN!!! IN WORLD WAR II!!!! WITH WINSTON CHURCHILL!!!!!!

For more information visit www.bbc.co.uk/doctorwho or www.bbcamerica.com/doctorwho

Here are some images from the episode

[nggallery id=123]