SOFT REBOOT - WHY?
Steven Moffat is attempting a soft reboot with this season. This strikes me as being a bit like the "Let's Make Everything a Blockbuster Movie" decision he made for the first half of Series Seven. A strange - if not, impractical - choice to make. I can't see anyone who's not viewing Doctor Who suddenly proclaiming: "Hey! This show that I haven't bothered to watch in the last decade is suddenly providing me with a slightly easy jump-on point. I think I'll finally become a fan!"
It might have been better to just make the show whatever way he wanted and not worry about trying to attract a new audience. Especially when you consider that Moff would have already known that both he and Capaldi were on their way out. The show tends to just naturally do a soft reboot when a new Head Writer and Doctor step in. So why do one only a year prior to it?
The season does still start off as a half-decent reboot. Firstly, of course, we're introduced to a brand new companion. This new lead character will always need some basic facts about the Doctor explained to them. Which, in turn, fills the audience in on all sorts of things, too. But we also have the Doctor in this weird situation where he appears to have stopped travelling in the TARDIS and has settled down to become a university prof. Doing this sort of thing with the protagonist makes it even easier to bring newcomers in line with the show's format. The TARDIS won't really get properly explained to the audience till we're a good way into the first episode. Giving them plenty of time to take in a bunch of information about other aspects of the premise before dropping the biggest one on them.
The next few episodes will continue to work well with this idea. Both Smile and Thin Ice explain a lot of the Doctor's morals. They also explore some of the basic rules of time travel. They even examine the darker consequences the Doctor must deal with in his travels. Moff really is doing a great job of paving the way for the new viewer. Even if the effort does feel somewhat irrelevant!
Oddly enough, this changes as the season progresses. To the point where the season finale and Christmas Special are some of the heaviest continuity-ladened episodes ever featured in New Who. We've got an origin story for the Cybermen that ties in a bit with The Tenth Planet. We've got multiple incarnations of the Master suddenly popping up. And then we do the same thing with a few of the Doctor's incarnations (with yet another tie-in to Tenth Planet). We even meet the Brig's Dad! Ultimately, all of this is digestible for someone new to the show, but it's still going to alienate them a bit! It's like joining a new crowd at a party and someone is halfway through sharing an anecdote. You're going to catch on to what their story's about, eventually. But it's going to be an awkward process. Ultimately, the soft reboot concept only seems to work so well.
And so ends the dissertation on my general opinion of Moff's main goal for the season. He does start off with a pretty decent soft reboot. But things do get pretty convoluted for you towards the end of the year if you really are a complete newbie. And, for the life of me, I'm not even sure why he's trying to do this!
With that out of the way, let's now look at the actual quality of the season. Regardless of whether or not they fulfill Moff's Reboot Agenda, how do the stories actually perform?
THE FIRST THREE
Not only do the first three stories of the season do a good job "soft rebooting", but they're all quite enjoyable. None of them achieve the lofty status of Classic, but they're definitely above-average.
I have one silly nitpick about The Pilot. The Doctor claims that the puddle that makes weird reflections is some super-advanced motor oil left behind by a spaceship that landed there briefly. I'm not sure that motor oil - no matter how super-advanced - would act that way. I'm more inclined to think that some alien scientist from an advanced society was trying to create a high-powered Venom-like symbiote on a nearby space station. The symbiote was getting too willful, though. So the scientist made a deal with it. They would leave it on an inhabited world where it could find a host if it left them alone. Earth ended up being the planet the symbiote was dumped on. I'm not sure why the super-advanced motor oil explanation bothers me so much but I desperately needed my own headcannon for it!
That's really the only problem I have with these first three stories (okay, Bill and the Doctor get out of that colony in Smile and back to the TARDIS a little too easily, that first time - the killer bugs should have gotten them!). They're all very solid and enjoyable. They do a lot of interesting things and, most significantly, vary greatly from each other. Having three such different tales shows a lot of different sides to both the Doctor and Bill.
I particularly like how Thin Ice causes Bill to face all the darker things the Doctor must deal with in his travels. It was a good idea to give her a specific adventure where she has to process this sort of thing. It seems to genuinely cloud her judgement regarding whether or not she wants to continue her journey with him. Fortunately, the Doctor makes a very inspiring speech about the value of urchin boys that seems to win her over!
THE COMPANIONS
While on the topic of Bill and her decisions, let's talk a bit about the companions of this season.
At this point, there'd been a trend with New Who companions that had been getting under my skin. It was the fact that it seems necessary to always have "a love fest" between the Doctor and whoever is travelling with him. Moments happen on a regular basis where things get big and sappy between them. I think of that sit-down the Doctor and Amy have in Power of Three, for instance. It's a very nice scene that even sheds an interesting insight into how the Doctor sees his travels. But there have been so many sequences like this with nearly every companion that it's all starting to feel just a bit formulaic. Not to mention that drama is always more compelling when we watch people show their love for each other rather than just talk endlessly about it!
I hate to, once more, sound like one of those grumpy Old School fans. But I prefer the way Classic Who handled relationships with companions. There were just some people that he formed stronger emotional attachments to than others. Or, he was more open about his feelings around them. Whatever the case, it just gave us some interesting variation with how he interacts with the other travelers in the TARDIS.
Look at how he loses Tegan and Turlough at the end of Season Twenty-One. With Tegan, he's a pretty big mess. To the point where he finds himself questioning if he's become the sort of hypocritical Time Lord that he left Gallifrey to get away from. But when Turlough leaves, it feels genuinely dignified. They're two good friends who had a lot of respect for each other that don't feel the need to get too oversentimental about it. Like they're going to see each other again someday so why get upset (even though, to the best of our knowledge, they never do!)? I love seeing that harsh contrast in just the span of a few episodes.
This doesn't seem to be the case in New Who. There's this general vibe that everyone kinda falls in love with the Doctor when they travel with him and there's a need to express it regularly. I don't even mind if things get really sappy in their farewell scene, but that doesn't tend to be what we get. Everyone has to turn to the Doctor every few episodes and have a big heartfelt moment about what travelling in the TARDIS represents to them.
Anyhow, I've done all this moaning to make a valuable point about the companions of Series Ten. At long last, Moff changes this dynamic. Much of what goes on between the Doctor and Bill remains beautifully understated. I even love how, in Knock Knock, she sets a legitimate boundary with him. She clearly states that there are parts of her life that she just doesn't want him in. Not the sort of behavior that we see from most New Who companions. Most just can't seem to get enough of the Doctor. Even with characters like Clara - who still wanted strong ties to her "normal" life as she journeyed with him. The Doctor seems to invade every aspect of her lifestyle and she just allows it. Because, in the end, the Doctor is just so great and she loves him so much. And has to tell him that on a fairly regular basis.
This great new type of bond (which is really more like the old type of bond) between Doctor and Bill continues as we move on to The Doctor Falls. Their final goodbye before they take on the Cybermen is beautifully short and succinct. Like Turlough, she does love and respect him. But there wasn't a need to go on about it, too much. Even the absolute last farewell in Twice Upon a Time, doesn't get too sloppy. It's just not how they interact.
This works even better with Nardole. Clearly, they have a strong bond, too. But not only does it not get talked about, but they actually take regular potshots at each other. So it's even more refreshing!
Let me also go on record by saying Nardole is my favorite companion of the Revived Series. Partly because of the dynamic I just described. But also because he's just so much more interesting and even useful than the average companion we've been getting during this version of the show. Matt Lucas also does a great job with making the role comedic but still grounded. So that Nardole feels like a real character and not just cheap comic relief.
As far as I'm concerned, he and the Doctor could have rolled together forever.
QUALITY GOES UP EVEN HIGHER
The season's off to a great start but I find it gets even better, now.
A man trying to keep his mother alive by feeding young people to alien wood lice is a great premise for any show, but it works especially well in Doctor Who! Not only is this a great core idea, but the plot built around it is also really good. Various important revelations drop in at just the right moment. Like when the Doctor and the one flat mate find the personal belongings of previous residents. Or the first time a dryad actually emerges from the wood. And, of course, the final discovery about the creepy guy's mother. The whole narrative propels along magnificently. Giving us a great little tale with just the slightest hint of a "Teen Slasher" vibe.
Aside from a great script, there's two other things that really make this story stand out. The first is the performance of David Suchet as the landlord. He seems just a bit "off" when we first meet him but not so much that he scares Bill and her friends away. Only once they move in and he's appearing out of nowhere at regular intervals does he really start to turn up the creep factor. The fact that he can make playing with a tuning fork seem ominous speaks wonders of his abilities! But then we get to those last few minutes of the episode where it's revealed that the father/daughter situation was a lie. Suchet is amazing at suddenly creating pathos for his character. He reverts to being that little boy, desperate to save his mother. And we feel genuine pity for him. It's one of those amazing performances by a supporting actor that should get talked about more.
The other thing I really love is the effect they created for the mother. Even in New Who, I don't tend to care too much about the visuals. The show still has a pretty limited budget compared to what Americans throw into their television (which is what I am, mostly, viewing - even though I'm Canadian. In truth, the bulk of the TV we get over here is from the US). She looked intensely eerie as a woman made of wood. It's great when Bill is trying to point out that she has something on her cheek! But they also got a good range of emotions from her. Which can be something difficult to achieve with this sort of effect. But, because of the quality of the visual, we feel just as sorry for her as we do her son as the dryads swamp the both of them. It really is a very touching ending.
While I deeply enjoy Knock Knock, Oxygen still blows it out of the water! As shameful as it is that more people don't talk about Suchet's performance in Knock Knock, it's even more terrible that fans don't go on endlessly about the strength of this story. I'm reminded of Flatline from a few seasons back. In that I thought both of these stories were incredible but no one really seems to say much about them. Besides me, of course!
I know I moan constantly about how I don't like single episode stories in New Who. But tales like Oxygen and Flatline use every single minute of their run-time to the absolute fullest. So that, even though everything is resolved in less than an hour, we really do feel like we've been told a complete adventure.
The pacing of Oxygen is a great example of this phenomenon. Like most single episode plots, it's pretty breakneck. Those zombies chasing the main and supporting cast around keep things moving at a pretty good speed. But the beats of the narration are masterfully arranged. There's just the right pauses in just the right places for the proper amount of character development to flesh out. Or, just as significantly, for exposition to be provided. How many times have I complained about 46-minute episodes rushing along too quickly and not explaining certain elements properly?! No such thing happens in Oxygen. We understand everything perfectly by the end. That is such a happy feeling for me when I watch a single episode story.
Truthfully, it should occur more often.
To say that Oxygen is nothing more than a "Chased by Zombies" story, however, would be a fallacy. There's very nice layers and nuances going on. Some subtle details that actually make aspects of the tale quite brutal. How horrible is it that the woman at the beginning of the adventure is telling her partner she wants to have a baby with him and he doesn't hear her because her communicator isn't working? She gets zombified moments later and we feel even more pity for her. But the real "kicker" is how she is the zombie that gives her still-surviving partner her air tank at the end. Even from beyond the grave, she's looking after her lover. She just doesn't actually know it! I love all these little "frilly bits" that were added to the plot. The ongoing gag about "Velma" is another great (and much lighter) example of this.
And then, of course, there's all the nice twists we get. The Doctor figures out that it's the Corporation, itself, that is eliminating the employees through oxygen starvation. Essentially, the Suits are shutting down the suits! His method of defending himself against the attack was a very clever solution. Again, if you're watching for subtleties, you'll notice on one of the display screens that there's one surviving person too many that now has their life signs being monitored by the space station computer. That extra one is Bill, of course. Who is still alive and gets revived shortly, thereafter.
We get the point of Oxygen, of course. Another sci fi writer is not fond of Capitalism and wants to tell us about it! As is often the case with messages in New Who yarns, I don't feel the point is getting pushed too hard. He's telling a good story first. If he wants to say that being rich is evil but isn't shouting in my face about it then I'm fine with that. Even if I know plenty of rich folks that are actually quite nice!
BUT WHAT ABOUT THE ARC, ROB?!
After giving us one of the worst season-long arcs in the history of the show during Series Nine, Moff seems to have learnt his lesson and goes back to creating something that seems to change or even evolve as the stories progress.
Clearly, for the first part of the season, the arc is: "What's in the Vault?" I remember watching these eps for the first time and thinking it was an interesting idea, but not something that I think can sustain itself for an entire season. Fortunately, Moff felt the same. After five enjoyable stories, he lets the cat out of the bag: Missy's inside the Vault. Which, quite honestly, was something most of us suspected. Some might have even been making that guess way back in The Pilot. Missy has been figuring prominently in the Twelfth Doctor Era, so it only made sense that she would be the answer to the mystery.
So the arc changes heavily for the rest of the season. Which works very well. It even ties in nicely with everything that's been going on with Missy over the last few years. We have seen her becoming more and more noble in her intent. So her trying to completely convert to someone "good" makes a lot of sense.
The second part of the arc also progresses quite nicely. Like The Great Vault Mystery, I don't think it could have filled a whole season, either. So putting the two together like this was very clever.
As Missy seems more and more sincere in her desire to change, she's granted greater freedom. We really do believe that the Doctor's arch-nemesis is turning over a new leaf (one that she won't use to make a gun!). It all feels very organic and legitimately realistic. Particularly the monologue Missy delivers in The Lie of the Land. She's becoming a better person, but she's going to be her version of good - not the Doctor's.
I really enjoyed this arc. In fact, I'd go so far to say that it's one of, if not, the best season-long arcs New Who has produced. It doesn't feel intrusive like some of them have. Really forced dialogue that, somehow, mentions Torchwood didn't get written. Nor do any of the episodes lean into it too hard like The Lazarus Experiment did. Where it felt like the story was more about the arc for that season rather than telling the tale of a man who was messing with powers he doesn't truly understand. Which should have been the real focus of the episode, of course. Not: "Oooh! Look how much they're mentioning this Saxon Guy! I wonder what's going on, here?!! Who's this Lazarus bloke, again?!"
In this season, the arc really enhances content that is already quite outstanding. It's a total Win/Win situation. Which is quite refreshing. Giving every season an arc was another thing that I found was starting to really wear me down. I wanted there to be some years where we just got a bunch of independent stories that didn't really relate to each other in any kind of way. But if I wasn't going to get that, I would, at least, want an arc that was interesting and engaging. The Series Ten arc definitely achieves that. Particularly as we move into Missy's Redemption. Many of the scenes that deal directly with her character growth work really well. Some, like the one at the end of The Eaters of Light, are even quite touching. Watching boundaries drop a bit between two such sworn rivals was actually quite beautiful.
THE MEDDLING MONKS!
The Monks are, without a doubt, one of my favorite aliens in New Who. Their method of invasion is very unique and interesting. In many ways, it's a breath of fresh air from most invasion stories that we've been served over the years in both Classic and Modern Who.
Sticking a nice three-parter in the middle of the season was a very pleasant surprise. All the single episode stories were faring quite well. But it's still nice to get a tale that's not gonna get done in just 46 minutes. The fact that it won't be done in 92 minutes is even more exciting! This is a plot that is being given all the time in the world to flesh out. A thing that always makes me happy as I digest New Who content. I'm even more pleased about where this is all being placed. Stories of this length have traditionally finished off a season. But we're getting the three-parter with still many episodes to go before the season concludes. Which means we're probably getting another multi-part adventure at the end. I'm already enjoying how all of this is developing.
Of course, you can stretch something out over all the episodes you want - it still needs to actually be good. Happily enough, the high-quality writing continues for both Extremis and Pyramid at the End of the World. Extremis is an excellent "Trapped in the Matrix" tale that keeps that whole revelation a secret from us for as long as possible. It also provides us with some really great WTF? Moments. The french guy at Cern showing Bill and Nardole how they suck at generating random numbers is a great scene. Everyone killing themselves after reading the Veritas document is very dark and mysterious. It's all fun weird stuff that will eventually have satisfying answers given for it. This isn't going to be another string of really convoluted reasons for why fish aliens appear as vampires.
The final twist of the Doctor sending a message to himself warning him what the Monks are up to is a great way to conclude the episode. And, of course, it does a fantastic job of setting us up for what's to come.
Extremis only shows us the first stage in the Monks' complex invasion strategy. Pyramid at the End of the World reveals quite a bit of the rest of their methods. There's an interesting philosophy behind why they act the way the do and it actually makes a sort of twisted sense. Ultimately, the Monks believe you cannot rule by fear - only love. Which leads to all the bizarre conventions that must be obeyed in order to properly submit to them. Again, I'm really loving how this whole episode is put together. This is turning into a magnificent three-parter. Thus far, at least.
There is a great little subplot running through the bulk of this story that first got its start in Oxygen. Like the quarrel that starts up between Clara and Twelve during Series Eight, we get another nice "mini arc" in the middle of this season. The Doctor loses his sight for a while. Which enables us to bring back the sonic shades. Not something that, necessarily, thrilled all the fans. But, if I'm being honest, I actually thought they were kinda fun!
There is the great debate over how the Doctor could've have still used a few other tricks to see the combination lock on the door. The fact that neither he nor Bill thinks to use them seems to ruin the ending for some people. But I just chalk it up to the stress of a ticking bomb making it difficult to think clearly. Bill went with the solution that came quickest to mind: Submit to the Monks to save her friend.
We should also bring up one more issue: the casting of the character of Erica. A greater and greater argument seems to be raging on about DEI in the BBC. Those that are against it seem like they're on fairly shaky ground, to me. Yes, there are times when diversity in casting is genuinely counter-intuitive. But those instances seem fairly rare. Most of the time, we're giving opportunities to people who have been denied them for far too long. I think of the fact that the Doctor pulls the bulk of his companions from modern-day London: one of the most culturally-diverse cities in the world. And yet, we don't see our first non-white companion until the 28th season! Something is seriously wrong with that and reparations need to be made...
I do like the fact, however, that most of the time that casting decisions are made that tick boxes they also end up properly serving the plot of the story. Making the captain of the underwater base in Under the Lake/Before the Flood deaf, for instance, became instrumental in sorting out what the ghosts were saying to the Living. In the next season, having Yaz as a companion would cause us to enjoy one of the best historicals (or "pseudo-historical" if you want to get super-technical) the show has ever produced. It always looks good when going out of your way to help a marginalized community also has a practical side to it.
Erica, however, is a person of short stature and it serves no purpose to the plot that she is. Her difference is not even brought up by anyone in the story. She's just treated like anyone else would be. Regardless of her height. And, you know what? Even if it doesn't really benefit the plot directly, it was still fine. I think this is another great way to use DEI and I have absolutely no problem with it. Every once in a while, we should just be throwing in a character like this. Because Real Life works this way too. I run into all sorts of people that play a significant role in my life that are not straight white males. And I don't particularly care about it. Nor do I think I need to even acknowledge it. I treat them the way I would anyone else.
Doctor Who should work that way too.
Finally, we get to the last episode. If I'm being honest, The Lie of the Land is a bit disappointing. It's not a bad episode. Even though it does make some really strange choices. One of the bigger ones being the Doctor's desire to smash a ship into a port rather than just docking normally. His maniacal laughter as he puts all sorts of lives in danger (including his own, for that matter) seems largely uncharacteristic. And this is the same guy who appears to have once thrown a cyborg onto a church spire!
What really lets me down about this story is how it feels like Hell Bent all over again. Still a decent story, but there's enough flaws to it that the first two episodes outshine it. If we're going to have a troubled part in something this long, it shouldn't be at the end. It causes the whole adventure to conclude on a sour note.
I will still say that creating a subplot throughout the season where Bill was always talking to her Mom was a very clever way to solve the whole conflict in this tale. It definitely helps to make up for some of the problems this episode has. Yes, Lie of the Land is a bit disappointing. Particularly as it's meant to wrap up a protracted adventure. But Bill's Mom saving the day is definitely a great twist.
All in all, though, the Great Monk Invasion is worthy of the run-time it gets. Each episode does end up telling a strong story. I'm not sure how you could ever bring the Monks back. We seem to know everything we need to know about them so a second invasion attempt would lack excitement. But still, these are great monsters. Worthy of becoming recurring foes.
THE QUALITY CONTINUES...
Lie of the Land may have been the weakest link of the season, but I'd hardly say it wrecked a winning streak. It wasn't like The Woman Who Lived or In the Forest of the Night from the previous two seasons. I still felt that, ultimately, Land was quite good. Just not as good as the episodes that preceded it. Whereas those other stories I just mentioned were legitimately poor in quality and ruined the chances of giving us a season that was totally amazing. Series Ten, however, might still achieve this.
The next two stories continue to keep that hope alive. Both Empress of Mars and Eaters of Light are outstanding.
While I was happy to see the Ice Warriors come back to Doctor Who in Series Seven, I was not entirely thrilled with Cold War, itself. Although I doubt I'll forget the comments I received from someone who read the Review of that season and felt the need to berate me for criticizing a story that he felt was great! Such are the consequences, I suppose, when you express your opinions on such a public level!
Anyhow, enough petty digressions. My real point is that, unlike Cold War, Empress of Mars was an adventure that showed us how cool the Ice Warriors are but also provided us with a well-structured plot. On this occasion, I was able to enjoy what I feel is one of the more interesting recurring alien races in Doctor Who Lore and be engaged by the story that's being told about them at the same time. That's a winning combination!
It was very cool to meet what seems to be the highest pinnacle of Martian leadership (although, I am still wondering what's become of the Ice Lords - we gonna see one soon, Mark?!). She was a very well-crafted character. Cold and harsh but still respectful of the various codes of honor she saw going on around her. While she may resemble one, the only real monster in the story was the second-in-command among the British soldiers. I like a story that arranges its characters in such a manner. Where we really have to look around a bit before we spot the real villain.
Bringing back Alpha Centauri for a cameo appearance at the end was also a gorgeous little gesture that had this fanboy grinning from ear-to-ear.
Eaters of Light is an equally gorgeous tale. What makes it so beautiful is just how different it is from the rest of the season. It's a bit of a folk tale with some fun sci-fi and historical trappings behind it. Which gives the whole adventure an incredibly unique flavor. Causing it to really stand out from anything else created in Series Ten (or most other seasons, for that matter). Its eccentricity truly makes it shine.
Much of this is down, of course, to bringing back Rona Munro. Survival had also been a very special beast when it was made. It felt very contemporary - even a bit gritty. I love just how different her second offering is from her first. Showing off even more the great chops she has as a writer. All I must say, really, is: why is she not getting more commissions?!
I even love how it should be completely ridiculous that crows can actually talk in Doctor Who Reality. I mean, really, that's just plain silly. And yet, it's totally brilliant.
Missy's Redemption Arc is also a crucial element in both of these stories. It's really starting to come to the forefront, now. The little coda added to the end of Eaters is a great scene that I've already gone on about quite a bit. But I'll add that it also does a great job of setting up those final two incredible episodes of the season.
THE SEASON FINALE TO END ALL SEASON FINALES
Let's just get this out of the way: World Enough in Time/The Doctor Falls is the best season finale we've seen so far on the show. A great Master story. A great Cybermen story. And a great regeneration story (sort of - as he doesn't truly regenerate, here). I have talked about these two episodes endlessly, already. I'll try to cover some new ground but there are things that need to be re-stated in any sort of review about this adventure.
I still remember my earliest days as a fan. Of hearing endlessly about Genesis of the Daleks and what an absolute masterpiece it was. And then finally watching it and thinking: "Oh my! This has nowhere near enough plot to fill six parts. We're going to get a crapload of captures-and-escapes and other padding of this nature, aren't we? That big speech Davros makes about releasing a deadly virus is meant to be very dramatic. But, really, it's just some filler!"
World Enough/Doctor Falls is the proper way do an origins story for a major monster (although it might not truly be the origins of the Cybermen - moreso, the beginning of an offshoot species. But that just makes it even cooler!). There's all sorts of compelling and interesting drama going as we watch the Cybermen being created. The whole plot is very nicely layered so that we don't have to bring things to a screeching halt to let mad scientists get way too excited about an imaginary virus! Instead we just get really great writing. With some awesome directing too. Much of the story looks like a genuine blockbuster movie. But it's actually only being made on a TV budget. Talalay has a great eye for these things. She knows how to get the shots to look like she's working on a budget of six gagillion dollars when she's really only making things at a fraction of that cost (which is more like two wagogoozillion dollars - considerably less than even a mere bazillion).
Having two incarnations of the Master in the same story is one of those things fans have wanted to see for years. But, oftentimes, I find fan-servicing on this level doesn't play out well. More times than not, we get something like the Series Two finale. Where the problems of the story shine all-the-brighter because fans had such high expectations about seeing the Daleks and Cybermen finally fight.
But this is not the case, this time. It is actually awesome to watch the two different versions of the Master playing off each other. It's particularly great that Missy does reach a final decision on where she stands with the Doctor. Only for her to be halted in her tracks by her own past. The whole "scorpion stinging itself with its own tail" conclusion to her arc was brilliant.
Also, John Simm was awesome in his disguise. A Portreeve-worthy performance!
We get one last great speech from Capaldi as he delivers his credo to the Master/Missy. And then we just punch the air endlessly as he blows up Cybermen all around him while recounting to them all the times he's beaten them. This is such a great way for the Doctor to go out. The twist with Starry-Eyed Alien Motor Oil Girl was also quite brilliant. Did not see it coming!
Some say this should have been where Twelve ends. That he should have just regenerated after the Logopolis-Style flashbacks and we should have moved on to Thirteen.
I might not be one of those people, however....
TWICE UPON A CHRISTMAS SPECIAL
Let's start this by addressing the Elephant in the Room: the First Doctor could be horrifically conservative, at times. So the way he's being depicted in Twice Upon a Time is not completely inaccurate. Moff having the Doctor re-use the "jolly smacked bottom" line that he said to Susan in Dalek Invasion of Earth is almost like his way of reminding us that he's not making this stuff up.
Where things fall apart a bit is just how much the First Doctor is conservative in this story. He seems to be almost constantly spewing out stuff that's completely embarrassing Twelve. And I don't ever recall him being that bad. In this sense, Moff did get One a bit wrong.
Aside from this, I really do enjoy Twice Upon a Time. Even though it comes perilously close to being a bad episode.
Its plot, for instance, is quite threadbare. The Doctor thinks someone might be evil but they're not. That's, pretty much, the whole story. And yet, somehow, it feels like just enough.
The story also relies heavily on nostalgia. So much nostalgia! The episode begins with some existing footage from Tenth Planet morphing into a modern-day re-creation. The First Doctor is back for an adventure with Twelve. There's Daleks - with a special appearance by "Rusty" from Into the Dalek. New Earth gets mentioned. We even go to Villengard - a weapon's grove originally mentioned in Moff's first script for Doctor Who! But that's still not all of it. Clara makes a cameo. We discover that Mark Gatiss' character is the Brig's Dad. It seems to never end!
All of these callbacks make it feel like, perhaps, Twice Upon a Time is trying to give a little too much fan service. Like we're getting all these old references to help gloss over the fact that the plot's a bit threadbare. Things could almost come across that way - but they don't!
The truth of the matter is: aside from One being a tad more conservative than he really was, it's a pretty good episode. Particularly since it's closing out the end of an era. It takes some of the extravagances that we saw The End of Time, but never goes too far with them.
Oh yeah, I do have one last minor complaint. Murray Gold also believes that this will be his last Doctor Who story. So he decides to give us a sort of Greatest Hits Compilation of some of his most famous signature tunes. Which doesn't really work for me. There should have been more original compositions that actually suited what was going on onscreen. Too often, an old theme comes that doesn't really suit the moment. But Murray uses it, nonetheless, because he's trying to give us all his favorite scores one last time.
So do I feel that it would have been better for the Doctor to regenerate at the end of The Doctor Falls?
Twice Upon a Time adds a nice extra layer to the First and Twelfth Doctors as they contemplate ending their lives. Fortunately, they both realize the Universe still needs them and embrace the change that awaits them. I think it had merit to make an extra episode to explore these ideas. Having Twelve reach the conclusion he did also made that final speech before regenerating all-the-more beautiful. I can't see it working as well if it had been tagged on to the end of Doctor Falls.
So, yes, there were a few problems with Twice Upon a Time. Whereas World Enough and Time/The Doctor Falls is, pretty much, flawless. But this was a story worth telling. It rounds out Twelve's character quite nicely and still ends his period on a good vibe.
UTLIMATE FINAL CONCLUSION
And... another era ends.
Of course, this isn't just a Doctor leaving. A whole production team departs with him. Which means this conclusion will probably go on a little bit longer than usual.
Let's start by just looking at the season. Series Ten is a great way for Capaldi to go out. The best of the three. There was no episode so weak that it ends up tarnishing the overall reputation of the run. Everything, at the very least, was really strong. Some of it, quite amazing. Like Oxygen, for instance. And that season finale was outstanding. As I said, the best one ever. I also really enjoyed Bill and Nardole as companions. The arc with Missy, this year, was excellent. There is so little I can legitimately complain about, here. This really is one of the better seasons of New Who.
If I could criticize anything it would be the fact that we really didn't see much of any kind of evolution in Twelve's character, this year. Series Eight and Nine showed him going through various stages of growth. He started as a mean-spirited anti-hero and softened considerably during his second season. I thought he might, somehow, change even more but he seems to be at about the same level of empathy as he was in his middle season. He can have some very gentle moments. Like the way he re-assures the little girl that she was being kind by giving Bill a mirror at the beginning of The Doctor Falls. But he can also still address a random stranger as "Atrocious Hair"! His moments of cruelty are considerably less frequent, nowadays. But they're still there. And this is the way he's been for the last two seasons. I wasn't expecting him to become totally nice in his last year. But I was interested in seeing more character development of some sort. He just, sort of, stagnates in Series Ten.
But, really, it's such a minor complaint. This is still the ultimate High Note for Twelve to go out on. A near flawless season packed with great stories. Who could ask for more?!
SUPER ULTIMATE FINAL CONCLUSION
Okay, the season is covered. What about the entire Moffat Era, in general?
Well, if you've been following these Reviews even semi-regularly, I think it's pretty obvious that I think he did a better job than RTD. But then, he did have the advantage of building from a foundation that was provided for him. He continued to emphasize the strengths of his predecessor while correcting some of his fundamental errors.
But I find myself particularly enjoying Moff's output as he brings in Capaldi. This is where it starts feeling like he's making his version of Doctor Who. Rather than a Moff/RTD hybrid. He finally comes into his own, here. From that point, onwards, he gives us a few years of the show in the way he truly wants to make it. And then he feels he's done enough. Which is fine, really. He hung in there for about twice as long as Russell did. So he more-than put in his time.
Do I think, then, that this is New Who at its best? I mean, clearly, I can't think the Chibnall Era is better, right? If I did, that would mean I feel Chibnall is the best Head Writer New Who has had, thus far. No one thinks that!
We'll have to wait and see, of course. But I should remind you that I am, sometimes, referred to as the Great Contrarion!
