There really isn't any point in discussing my opinion of "Kill the Moon" without spoilers, so here's your warning. Nothing but spoilers follows because I honestly believe the granddaddy of "taking the piss out of your boss" must be discussed with all the tools on the table. First-time Doctor Who writer Peter Harness didn't write an episode, he wrote a backhand.
Before I get to the spoilers, here's a few things I keep forgetting to mention I love about Series 8. The Tardis interior? Love it! For the first time in the revived series, it actually feels like a place you'd want to hang out. The new opening? Perfect, and I'm so glad the BBC took my advice. Peter Capaldi himself? Wonderful man, though I think he should apologize to the wardrobe department for whatever he said that made them put him in my mom's blouse this week.
Overall, I liked "Kill the Moon." I'm a fan of countdown stories, with "42" being one of my favorite episodes. The same shtick is used here, and it keeps the action tight. The monsters were completely terrifying, sort of like the second act of Cloverfield in space. Capaldi himself has some great Doctor moments; near the end he stands and narrates as he feels the course of time alter in front of him...it's the sort of ancient, godlike unknowableness that I haven't witnessed since Eight was first lost in the divergent universe in "Scherzo." It was chilling and terrifying to behold, and a grand reminder that The Doctor is far more than he ever appears to be.
Now, on to the spoilers.
"Kill the Moon" is essentially one long abortion story. I mean that literally. Earth's moon is actually an egg incubating life, and humanity has to decide whether to kill it and continue life on Earth unchanged or let it live and deal with the possibilities of that choice.
To be fair, I don't think Peter Harness was actively taking a pro-choice or pro-life stance with this. The metaphor is heavy-handed, but the actual result is largely unimportant. What matters is that abortion, whether to give birth or not, is primarily a women's issue.
Don't believe me? Well, let's look at it this way. Before the halfway mark on the episode is reached, the entire male cast has disappeared. Our non-Tardis crew cast is a four-person team led by Captain Lundvik, who is the only female. Her compatriots are all immediately eaten by moon germ-spiders, leaving her with only The Doctor, Clara and Courtney Woods for help.
Except The Doctor (Note the double entendre) dives into a black, gaping crack and then buggers off seconds after returning with the diagnosis that the moon is pregnant with a large, unknown organism. He says that the decision of what to do with it now rests with Courtney, Clara and Lundvik. I believe his exact words are, "in the hands of womankind."
Womankind...
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