Fear Her has become one of the most topical episodes lately, for reasons both good and bad. On the bright side of things, the Paris Olympics have currently been airing on the television, placing the sports event at the forefront of people's minds once again. On the bad, Huw Edwards has pleaded guilty of creating indecent images of underage children. Both the Olympics (albeit the London 2012 Olympics) and Huw Edwards feature in this episode, the latter prompting the BBC to remove Fear Her from iPlayer. It makes me glad for physical media, as whilst Huw Edward's actions are disgusting and unforgivable, I don't believe in censorship. I think it is important that every piece of media exists in its original form, to allow for people to learn from past mistakes, instead of pretending they never happened.

I've never understood the hate for Fear Her, and after rewatching it on the 3rd August, I still love the episode the same as before. It sees the Tenth Doctor and Rose discover that young Chloe Webber has been causing kids and cats to disappear from her neighbourhood with her drawings, thanks to a lonely alien called the Isolus. It's a very creative premise, that's similar to the Harold And The Purple Crayon book, which has recently received a big screen adaptation. The episode plays with the upset caused by being trapped inside a drawing well, with the kids in the drawings looking either sad or angry at Chloe's actions.

One of my favourite aspects of the story remains the scribble creature. I have seen some people within the fandom label this aspect as 'too silly', but I find it quite a novel concept. Only Doctor Who could make a literal scribble a viable threat for one of its protagonists. I like the idea that it's made from pure graphite too. It emphasises the idea that this is a kid's drawing brought to life. How often do you get to see the Doctor and their companion encounter a threat that isn't either a human, a computer, or an alien?

Fear Her may be seen largely as quite a light episode, but it does get surprisingly dark. There's a hint at Chloe's past featuring an abusive father, who was either physically or verbally aggressive towards herself and her mother, and the poor child still has nightmares about him. When her drawing of her awful Dad comes to life, it has to be one of the most unsettling scenes in Doctor Who. You feel the fear that Chloe holds towards this terrible figure in her life, who should have been someone full of love for his daughter but instead was a monster, and his constant threats that he's 'coming to get' Chloe are horrifying.

Huw Edwards' role in this episode is quite brief. He only has a VoiceOver, commenting on the 2012 Olympics torch coverage and Opening Ceremony. He's fine, if a bit wooden, especially in the scene where everyone in the stadium disappears and he has to act shocked and confused. His part is so small that it does make me think the BBC overreacted to not only remove Fear Her, but to go to the extent of recording a whole new VoiceOver, which is supposed to be present when it goes back up. I'll probably review the new VoiceOver as an addition to this review too once the new version is available.

Possibly the most iconic sequence from this episode is the Doctor running with the Olympic Torch. It's a fantastic moment, that captures the iconography of the Games, and one of those images that stays with you long after the episode has aired. This scene was echoed in real life, only for the actual 2012 Olympic Games, they opted for Matt Smith to carry the torch rather than David Tennant. Still, it's a shame they didn't double down on the meme and given the torch to David Tennant.

Overall, Fear Her is a vastly underrated episode. It's a highly creative adventure concerning a child who can bring drawings to life. Fear Her is also much darker than the fandom remembers, delivering an unnerving subplot regarding Chloe's deceased abusive father, and includes one of the most iconic Doctor Who scenes, in the Doctor carrying the Olympic Torch. It's an episode that should be reassessed by fans, as there is a lot to love in Fear Her.