31 Days, 31 Screams: Resurrection- Day 15 (Doctor Who: Listen)

The bedsheets are a metaphor. The bedsheets are anxiety.

Holy shit do I love this episode more and more every time I see it. Listen. No, I'm not just quoting the name of the episode, I'm like stating "please listen". This is actually the third time I'm writing about this Doctor Who episode. The first time was as it aired, when I had a little writing gig and got to cover the first Peter Capaldi series as it came out. The second was just before Series 9, when that little writing gig had evaporated and I was reposting the old content on my blog, with new thoughts as I rewatched in anticipation of the new show. Both of those were September viewings, as I recall, so there's no real sense of me covering (or watching) Listen in any spooky month sense. Until now. It's absolutely prime Halloween marathon material, with themes and images that resonate with the season... and it is, in all respects, absolutely what I needed to see at this time.



This is a story that is about fear. Its evocative and moody opening with Peter Capaldi giving a monologue about a hypothetical creature that can perfectly hide is a wonderful way to open things, and he nails it as always. (The Peter Capaldi monologue at the start was also the one good thing about Before The Flood, but at least the episode accompanying Listen's monologue is... you know. Good.) Doctor Who is finally going to examine the primal childhood fear of the monster under the bed. In a universe where monsters are real and run rampant through space and time, Capaldi's Doctor is determined and driven to understand where this shared universal experience of fear comes from. This, of course, reflects in the lengthy setpiece of the orphanage in the first half, and that amazing scene with the thing under the bedsheet. Capaldi's speech about fear being a superpower is beautiful, an inspiring bit of whimsy to help a scared child feel just a little better. It's of course contrasted by the scene where the Doctor himself is actually scared shitless of the thing under the bedsheet, and it's a great scene that makes you wonder just what in the fuck is going on. Clara also gets to do her part to help this kid, helping to guard his bed with toy soldiers and ease the worries of a scared little boy. Everyone in Listen is afraid, and while both little Rupert and the Doctor are dealing with the primal fear of the monster under the bed, Clara's fear is far more nuanced (and personally relevant at the moment): adult fears, and anxieties.


Here's how a reading can change over time. On first view, I didn't really like the date scenes between Clara and Danny. I called them "sour notes" and said that "while it does have its place, I didn't care for it that much". A year later, I changed my mind. I said that "Clara and Danny are experiencing adult fear; the fear of a date gone wrong. An anxiety cloud hanging over you, making you worry that you'll say the wrong thing.". Here and now, I believe that even more strongly than I did. That anxiety cloud hangs over me, too. The creeping sense of dread over having done or said the wrong thing, over hurting someone you kind of like with poorly-chosen words... it's a real fear. I should know. It happened to me again last night, and that's what led to me doing this here and now so early in the morning. Listen is, in a sense, exactly what I needed to see and hear right now. Hanging over the episode is a certain ambiguity, a Hill House-like level of "your own personal viewpoint determines what is happening right now." Is it all just little kids in bedsheets and hulls cooling and things settling, or are there actually unknowable monsters from your nightmares out there right now? The rational part of your mind says one thing, but the deep dark recesses of the anxiety cloud scream another. It's why I rankled a bit when a pal of mine, back when this first aired, expressed annoyance that the bedsheet thing was never explained. That's the point. But, I don't hold a grudge. In the end, once the anxiety cloud clears, you can realize it was all just paranoia. In the end, once Clara reaches her hand out, you can realize that the Doctor's obsession with this fear came from his own anxieties over a terrifying nightmare from childhood. Then, as Moffat is prone to do, we see the meaning of the title. Listen. It's not about listening for perfect hiding monsters who lurk just out of sight, watching and waiting. It's about listening to each other and gaining a new understanding of one's own viewpoint. Listen to the soothing voice of the woman telling you that it's okay to be scared. Listen to the man apologizing after the date went wrong. Listen to the critical analysis of a thing you didn't get on first watch, and find a new appreciation for it. Listen to the people who tell you that the anxiety cloud is full of shit and that you're a trusted friend.


Point is, it's a lovely episode... and I feel a lot better now for having watched it.