It was 2011. Most of us were just getting used to Matt Smith’s chin and his frantic, "mad man with a box" energy. Then Steven Moffat dropped a two-parter that basically broke the brains of every Whovian watching. We remember the astronaut in the lake. We remember the Oval Office. But honestly, Doctor Who Day of the Moon is the episode that really cemented the Silence as the most terrifying villains the show ever produced.
Think about it.
You see them. You scream. You look away. And then? Poof. Nothing. You don’t even know you’re scared anymore. That concept is objectively more unsettling than a Dalek screaming about extermination because at least you can see a Dalek coming. With the Silence, you’re just standing in a room wondering why your hand has fifty sharpie marks on it. It’s psychological horror disguised as a family sci-fi romp.
The Moon Landing and the Perfect Narrative Trap
Setting this story against the backdrop of the 1969 Apollo 11 moon landing was a stroke of genius. It wasn’t just a cool aesthetic choice or a way to get the Doctor into a fancy suit. It was a functional plot device. By tying the defeat of the Silence to the most-watched television event in human history, Moffat turned our own technological milestones against the monsters.
The Doctor, being the cheeky cosmic entity he is, used the lunar module's broadcast to distribute a "subliminal" command. Every human watching Neil Armstrong take that giant leap was also being programmed to kill the Silence on sight. It’s dark. Like, really dark for a show that sells lunchboxes to seven-year-olds.
You’ve got Canton Everett Delaware III—played with incredible dry wit by Mark Sheppard—helping the TARDIS crew navigate a 1960s America that feels both nostalgic and deeply paranoid. The chemistry between Sheppard and Smith is top-tier. Honestly, it’s a shame Canton didn't become a recurring companion because his "I’m too old for this alien nonsense" vibe balanced out the Doctor’s manic episodes perfectly.
Why the Silence Actually Worked
A lot of Doctor Who monsters rely on "The Rule of Three" or some weird physical gimmick. The Weeping Angels had the "don't blink" thing. The Silence had something much worse: post-hypnotic amnesia.
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In Doctor Who Day of the Moon, we see the horror of this played out in the orphanage scenes. Renfrew, the caretaker, is losing his mind. He’s living in a building filled with creatures he can’t remember, surrounded by notes he wrote to himself but doesn't recognize. It’s a metaphor for dementia or gaslighting, and it hits a lot harder than a rubber mask should.
The design of the Silence—inspired by Edvard Munch’s The Scream—is genuinely haunting. They don't have mouths in the traditional sense. They have these deep, sunken eye sockets. They're tall, spindly, and wear suits. Why suits? Because they’ve been running Earth from the shadows for centuries. They are the ultimate middle managers of the apocalypse.
Amy Pond and the Girl in the Spacesuit
This episode wasn't just about the moon landing, though. It was the heavy lifting for the "Season 6 arc." We had the mystery of the little girl in the astronaut suit.
Remember the scene where Amy finds the picture of herself holding a baby in the orphanage? That shot lived rent-free in the fandom's head for months. It sparked a billion theories on Reddit and Tumblr. Was Amy a Time Lord? Was the baby River Song? (Spoiler: yes, but we didn't know that yet).
The emotional stakes in this episode are surprisingly high. We see Rory’s insecurity about the Doctor and Amy’s bond. We see River Song being... well, River. Her shootout in the Graystark Hall orphanage is peak badassery. She’s counting her shots, flirting with the Doctor, and dropping hints about their "backwards" timeline that still feel poignant on a rewatch.
The Logistics of a Revolution
The Doctor spends about three months "on the run" during this episode. Well, he’s actually in a high-security prison cell built by Canton, but it’s all part of the ruse. The way the team uses the nano-recorders—those glowing chips implanted in their hands—is a brilliant way to solve the "I forgot the monster" problem.
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- Step 1: See a Silent.
- Step 2: Record a message saying "There's an alien right there."
- Step 3: Look away and wonder why your hand is beeping.
It’s a simple, effective piece of sci-fi tech. It also allows for some of the best jump-scares in the series. When Amy is exploring the orphanage and realizes the ceiling is literally covered in dormant Silence... that’s a core memory for an entire generation of kids who grew up in the 2010s.
Production Value and the American Dream
This was the first time the show really felt "big" in a global sense. Filming in Utah’s Monument Valley gave the episode a cinematic scale that Cardiff just couldn't replicate. The wide shots of the Doctor standing against the desert horizon felt like a Western. It felt like The Searchers but with more bowties.
Director Toby Haynes managed to capture the grit of the 60s without it feeling like a caricature. The lighting in the Oval Office scenes is moody and atmospheric. The contrast between the bright, dusty desert and the dark, damp orphanage creates a sense of unease that persists throughout the entire hour.
People often complain that Moffat’s era was too complicated. They aren't entirely wrong. But in Doctor Who Day of the Moon, the complexity serves the mystery. It’s a puzzle box. You have to pay attention to every line of dialogue, or you’ll miss the clue about the Doctor’s "death" at Lake Silencio.
What People Often Get Wrong
A common criticism is that the Doctor's solution—inciting humanity to commit mass genocide against the Silence—is "un-Doctor-like."
Is it, though?
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The Doctor has always been a "lonely god" with a dark streak. In this specific case, the Silence had been parasitic. They weren't just living on Earth; they were harvesting us. They forced us to build technology specifically to suit their needs (like the moon landing itself). The Doctor didn't pull the trigger; he just gave humanity the ability to see the burglar in their own home. It’s a nuanced ethical line, and the show doesn't shy away from the fact that it's a brutal move.
Real-World Impact and Legacy
Even now, years later, the Silence remain a top-tier villain. They appeared in "The Time of the Doctor," but they never quite regained the chilling presence they had in this two-parter.
The episode also solidified the "River Song" mystery as the driving force of the era. It forced us to look at the Doctor through the eyes of people who don't just worship him, but who also fear what he represents. Canton Everett Delaware III represents the "normal" person caught in the crossfire, and his acceptance of the Doctor’s madness is our way into the story.
If you’re going back to watch it today, look for the small details. Look at the way the Silence stand in the background of shots before they're officially "revealed." Look at the terror in the eyes of the actors. It’s a masterclass in tension.
How to Appreciate Day of the Moon Today
If you want to get the most out of a rewatch, don't just binge-watch it as part of a marathon. Treat it like a standalone film.
- Watch the "Prequel" first: There’s a short digital prequel released by the BBC that sets up Nixon’s phone calls. It adds a lot of flavor.
- Focus on the sound design: The clicking noise the Silence make is layered and incredibly creepy if you're wearing headphones.
- Track the Sharpie marks: See if you can spot the marks on the characters' arms before they even realize they've seen a monster.
The ending of the episode, with the young girl regenerating in a New York alleyway, remains one of the greatest cliffhangers in television history. It changed the rules of what we thought we knew about Time Lords and humans. It’s messy, it’s loud, it’s frightening, and it’s exactly what Doctor Who should be.
Next time you look at a photo of the 1969 moon landing, just remember: you might have seen something else on that screen. You just don't remember it.
To really dive back into this era, your next move should be revisiting the Season 6 premiere, "The Impossible Astronaut," immediately before this episode. It provides the essential context for the Lake Silencio paradox. After that, look for the "Doctor Who Confidential" behind-the-scenes footage for this specific filming block in Utah to see how they actually pulled off those massive desert shots on a BBC budget.