My friends are already diving into Saw<\/a> 3 and Trick \u2018r Treat, taking in the most extreme of extremities that the world of horror has to offer.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n But not me. There\u2019s not a chance I\u2019m even dipping a toe into the genre, never mind diving in headfirst with an 18-rated fright fest<\/span>. <\/b>I\u2019m more than happy to stick to comedies and cartoons, taking every measure imaginable to avoid the horrors of horror.<\/span><\/p>\n That is, until an episode of Doctor Who<\/a> comes on the screen, featuring (or, rather, not really featuring<\/a>) my Converse-wearing, pinstripe suit-donning idol in David Tennant\u2019s 10th Time Lord<\/a>, alongside Carey Mulligan\u2019s Sally Sparrow, being hunted down<\/span> by a group of angel statues out for blood.<\/span><\/p>\n That\u2019s right, in the blink of an eye, Blink<\/a> arrived \u2013 and so did my appreciation of what horror could do. (Or, at least, what it could do in a pre-watershed sci-fi series on the BBC \u2013 perfect for a fearful primary schooler like myself.)<\/span><\/p> Sure, this is no kill-heavy<\/span> slasher in the form of Scream<\/a>, and no paranormal mind-bender in the shape of The Conjuring<\/a>, but Blink \u2013 perhaps the single most popular episode of the new Doctor Who era \u2013 demonstrates the genre\u2019s<\/span> ability to get under the skin and into the minds of the audience.<\/span><\/p>\n And, even with a PG rating and some questionable CGI, it does it masterfully well.<\/span><\/p>\n Blink\u2019s greatest strength is its ability to establish a sense of creeping dread, of consistent threat, that is properly unnerving.<\/span><\/p>\n The feeling of being watched is one of the most disturbing one can experience, and has been explored throughout horror history<\/span> \u2013 from Michael Myers taunting Laurie Strode from the shadows in 1978\u2019s Halloween<\/a> to Rory Kinnear\u2019s birthday suit-wearing stalker drifting into the edge of the frame in last year\u2019s Men, there\u2019s very little that unsettles more than being followed.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n There\u2019s something mentally exhausting about the idea of never being able to rest, of not being able to drop your guard for even a moment, which can drive you insane \u2013 and Steven Moffat<\/a>\u2019s concrete-looking creations provide the perfect example of this.<\/span><\/p>\n You see, with the Weeping Angels, turning your back, trying to run away, or even taking your eye off their haunting expressions for a split second could spell the end of the road<\/span> \u2013 just ask Amy Pond<\/a>.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n In the words of Tennant\u2019s frantic Doctor, \u201cBlink and you\u2019re dead\u201d.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n Is there any concept more terrifying than having the most basic human action rendered potentially life-threatening? This inescapable danger is<\/span> draining, debilitating.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\n As we viewers watch Sally and Finlay Robertson\u2019s Larry Nightingale navigate the nightmare they find themselves in, we grimace each time they turn their heads, and scream at the TV as we spot an angel moving ever closer.<\/span><\/p>\n It\u2019s the sort of pulse-racing tension that only the horror genre can provide, and it lingers long in the memory.<\/span><\/p>\n![\"Steven](\"https:\/\/images.immediate.co.uk\/production\/volatile\/sites\/3\/2023\/09\/2015-RT-Steven-Moffat-Weeping-Angel-b8f31ea.jpg?quality=90&resize=620%2C413\" "\\"2015")
\n<\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/source><\/picture>\n<\/div>