DOCTOR WHO: SEASON-BY-SEASON - SERIES TWELVE

"Another Season with Chibnall at the helm. Another season of bad writing!"

"It's just more of the same awful stuff."

"How am I supposed to get excited about another season of crappy Doctor Who?!" 

"Don't tell me he's doing some more of these fake quotes voicing disapproval over the Whitaker/Chibnall Era! Does he think I don't realize that he's totally goofing on fans like me that complained incessantly about the show during this period?!" 

Okay, okay. I'll stop. I did have a lot of fun with this whole shtick during the last entry but I don't want to start beating a dead horse, here. I'll find some other way to be a smug-ass! 

While I'm quite fine with Series Eleven, I will also say that Twelve is definitely a much smoother ride. My only major criticism of Chibnall during his first season was that he tried to change things a little too much, too quickly. Suddenly adding nearly fifteen minutes to an episode was one of those bigger alterations to the format that needed a little more time and effort for the writers to adjust to. This did have a negative effect, sometimes, on the narrative flow of a story. Even some of the stuff Chibnall wrote, himself, went a little sideways in places. 

But the writers walk into Series Twelve properly prepared. All of the episodes this season seem to fit in just fine with the new run-time. Which means I have little or no problem with anything we get this year ("Oh my God!" I'm sure some of you are saying, "Is he actually going to say he liked Orphan 55?!"). Some episodes, quite naturally, are better than others. And a few of them are crazy-good! 

I even think that some of the fans that were being Negative Nancies during Series Eleven change their tune during this season. There certainly seemed to be less complaints. The thinly-veiled misogynists who were protesting too much right from the start certainly won't shut up. But others appear to have adjusted to the changes Chibnall made and are even enjoying a lot of what he's creating. 

Some of those fans, however, will lose their new-found enthusiasm as the season reaches its end. Chibbers does something that sends them into a wild rage. He commits the most deplorable of acts. He indulges in a sin so terrible, not even Satan will welcome him into Hell when he dies. 

That's right, he tampers a bit with the show's Lore. 

Other Head Writers and Producers from both New and Old Who have done the same thing, of course. It's almost a requirement for working on the show. But, suddenly, when Chibnall does it - he's committing the unthinkable! He's blaspheming! Take that guy out back and shoot him! Then retcon everything he wrote, immediately. Wipe out everything he ever achieved from human memory. 

I think, by my tone, you can already guess how I feel about the concept of the Timeless Child. I hope so, at least. If you don't see what I said in the last paragraph as sarcasm then you must think me a horrible person (or, at the very least, I'm a little too hardcore)! I am tempted to address the whole issue of the Doctor's previous life here and now so that we can get it out of the way. But I think it might be more fun to discuss some other matters first. 

LET'S START WITH JODIE

When I was reviewing Series Eleven, I really didn't get around to talking much about how I felt about the Thirteenth Doctor, herself. There were so many other things that needed to be addressed about the season that I, kind of, overlooked it (I have to admit: I feel a bit sexist, right now!). So, before we go any further, let's rectify this by immediately diving into my sentiments regarding Jodie's performance. 

Quite simply, I think her Doctor is magnificent. 

One of my ongoing grumbles about New Who is the lack of variation we get in the way most incarnations of the Doctor have been portrayed. Eccleston, admittedly, was really doin' his own thing and is, therefore, a very distinct character. But then we get to Tennant. The first of the "hyperactive chatterbox" Doctors. He's an overenthusiastic, socially-awkward fanboy who runs off at the mouth so much that he'll even just talk away to himself if there's no one around to listen. Matt Smith's Doctor does, pretty much, the same thing. But seems to have an even bigger caffeine problem! It does, for a while, look like we're going to get something different from Capaldi. But, ultimately, he just turns out to be the same overly-chatty character as the rest. He just gets grumpy here and there. 

I still remember the distinct moment where I realized Capaldi really wasn't going to be all-that-different from his two predecessors. It was near the end of Time Heist. Where Moff gives him dialogue that sounds like it could have totally come out of Ten or Eleven's mouth and we wouldn't have bat an eye. Sadly, a similar moment exists with Whitaker. When she's meeting Yaz's family in Arachnids in the UK, she sounds just like Tennant or Smith when their Doctor was failing miserably at blending in to an everyday normal situation for humans (she doesn't sound so much like Pete because she's not as moody!). 

"Oh no!" I grumble to myself, "Here we go again!" 

Here's the thing, though: while I'm not thrilled that we got another Hyperactive Chatterbox, no one's played the archetype better than Jodie has. Her timing, delivery and overall energy were perfect. She completely inhabited the role and was utterly convincing. I know people who are actually like the Thirteenth Doctor. Nervous, overtalkative, but still quite loveable. She soooo reminds me of them!    

Up until Jodie, I felt Matt Smith did the best job embodying this type of character. Which, ultimately, made him my favorite Doctor in the Revived Series. Even if I have been disappointed in the lack of variety we've been getting with the characterization of the protagonist, at least he was amazing with what he was given. But, because she does it even better, Jodie has now become my fave Doctor in New Who. 

Quite possibly, she's the best Doctor of them all. 

THE SPIES ARE FALLING!   

All righty, then. We got that review of Jodie out of the way. Let's start looking at the stories of Series Twelve. For this entry, we'll tackle things in chronological order. 

Spyfall - Part 1 and 2 is meant to be the first "proper" multi-parter of the Chibnall Era. I use quotation marks, however, because a debate could be made that The Woman Who Fell to Earth and The Ghost Monument could claim the title (a possible future POINT OF DEBATE essay, perhaps?). But whether or not Spyfall is truly the first two-part tale makes little or no difference. What's really important is that we are getting a two-parter that goes on for a glorious 120 minutes. There is sooo much time, here, for all the stuff I love in a Doctor Who adventure. Character development; exploration of themes; proper explanations for everything that's actually going on in the plot. All that great stuff.  Things will get even crazier at the end of the season when a story goes on for a whole three hours! 

One of Spyfall's greatest assets is that, though we're getting another returning foe from the past, the story is standing up just fine even before his Reveal. The schemes of the Kasaavin seem most fascinating. Though they look like a fairly simple effect, they're still quite terrifying. When "O" traps one in a box and the Doctor confronts it, it really is an intense scene. Everything is working great, here. The sudden reveal of who "the Spy Master" is at the end of the first episode is just icing on the cake. The story would probably be fine without him. 

This new incarnation of the Master, however, is quite excellent. Missy will probably always be my favorite. Mainly because she's the only one to ever get an actual character arc of any sort. But, even though he's back to just being a big nasty evil guy, this version of the Doctor's arch nemesis is brilliantly-written and magnificently-portrayed. I might like Missy better - but not by much! 

Spyfall really does start the season off strong. It highlights the fact that the writers have truly gotten used to the new run-time. There's none of that "clunkiness" that I spoke about last season that existed in certain episodes. Everything is very smooth and polished. Just like an actual James Bond film. 

Also: Graham taking down Barton's security agents with his laser shoes fills me with delight every time!  

"THE SUN'LL COME UP TOMORROW..." 

This is another one of those moments where I'm tempted to make up some more fake fan reviews - but I shall resist! 

Oh, the nasty things that have been said about Orphan 55 by certain fans. They seem to revile it as much as Arachnids in the UK or The Tsurango Conundrum from the previous season. The hate it gets is astounding! 

So, let's start by addressing the Elephant in the Room. There are two fan objections that I mildly agree with: 

1. Hyph3n does look just a bit too much like a female version of Barf from Spaceballs. This does make it a bit difficult to take her all-that-seriously. However, the character's main purpose is comic relief. So, this is only so bad of a thing. 

2. Ending the story on a speech about environmentalism does feel a tad preachy and awkward. 

Aside from those two issues (both of which I find fairly minor), I really quite like this tale. I enjoy how well it veers back and forth from comedy to creepiness. One minute, for instance, Ryan is dealing with a hopper virus. The next, he's trapped in a sauna with Bella about to get torn to pieces by a Dreg. I also love how, slowly but surely, the humor dissipates and the story just gets darker and darker. There's a very nice flow to it all. 

But, according to the Chib-bashers, that ending just ruins everything. It doesn't matter how well the plot was constructed for the other fifty-nine minutes and thirty seconds, the Doctor gives a brief lecture at the episode's conclusion. It's all just completely terrible, now. This sort of skewing will happen a few more times this season. It all strikes me as quite ridiculous.  

HEY ROB! YOU ALSO FORGOT ABOUT SEGUN! 

Dealing with all that Series Eleven controversy caused me to forget to give my feedback on another major change that Chibnall instituted that year. I never actually got around to talking about how he replaced Murray Gold with Segun Akinola (I have to admit: I feel a bit musicianist, right now!). 

The first time we received a taste of full symphonic scoring would have been during Doctor Who - The Movie. Dudley Simpson would give us the hint of something orchestral here and there back when he was doing most of the incidental music. But 1996 is when we really get the full "feels like the soundtrack was done by John Williams" effect. And it's really quite impressive. So I can totally see why RTD wanted to keep that ball rolling when he brought the show back in 2005. 

There is much to like about Murray Gold's work. The various themes he created were extremely memorable. I particularly enjoyed I am the Doctor during Matt Smith's reign. I was that much more sad when Matt chose to leave because I knew we wouldn't really hear it anymore (oddly enough, they still used it during "Next Time" Trailers throughout Series Eight). 

There were, however, certain fans that had complaints about Gold. And I agree with much of what they said. Gold's stuff could be wildly intrusive. It's like he was scared of ever allowing silence in the background of a scene. Everything had to have some kind of soundtrack behind it. Which I did find irritating, at times. I'm much more fond of how things were done in Classic Who. The score only came in to intensify certain moments. Dudley Simpson was particularly adept at this.  He knew when to keep quiet and when to come in with music blaring. But a lot of the electronic composers that came along when JNT switched things up were also quite good at this.

The other problem with Gold's work is a bit more difficult to explain. His scores tend to be too specific in their emotional tone. One fan described it best: "The music is always telling you how to feel."  

Here's a simple example: Let's say we're watching a David Tennant story with Daleks in it. There's a scene where a Dalek exterminates a supporting character that's befriended the Doctor. Tennant decides to react in a slightly ambiguous way. He seems both angry and saddened by what he's seen. Gold, however, makes a definite choice about it. Sad music is played in the background as the Doctor witnesses the death of his friend. Thus ruining the nuanced performance Tennant is trying to give. Rather than letting the Time Lord experience two emotions at once, the music makes us feel as though the scene is strictly sad. 

Admittedly, Gold does get a bit reigned in when Moff takes over. The composer seems to focus more on creating interesting themes rather than specifically defining the emotional template of every moment in the plot. Still, even a restrained Murray Gold was too intrusive, sometimes. I really felt that ten seasons with this style of incidental music was enough. We needed a change. 

While bringing in Segun does contribute to the problem of Chibnall altering too much too quickly, I still welcome the change. I didn't despise Gold. But I'd had enough of him. I loved hearing something totally different being played in the background. I especially enjoyed that Segun didn't need to score every damned second of an episode. The soundtrack was also frequently super-subtle. Keeping itself far in the background during many scenes. 

What makes Akinola's stuff even more appealing is how much he's willing to stay away from a symphonic sound and go for things more electronic. All of this lends itself to sounding more like Classic Who incidental music. 

Admittedly, it does feel like Akinola takes the better part of Series Eleven to really find his voice. The Thirteenth Doctor, for instance, doesn't really seem to get an actual theme of some sort until some time around Resolution (that heavy trumpet music that blasts away in the final seconds of the episode). Earlier in the season, he tends to err on the side of the caution. Only putting in music when it really felt it should be there. And keeping a lot of the tone very ambient. Given that I was getting tired of the in-your-face techniques that Gold used, I'm just fine with that!   

Akinola's scores in Series Twelve definitely have a stronger presence than the previous year. But it still never feels heavy-handed like his predecessor's work did. I applaud him whole-heartedly for that. Again, I don't hate Murray Gold. But I'm also sad that Akinola's reign was so short and that we've gone back to the old ways. 

BACK TO THE (HI)STORIES 

While the Doctor dips a bit into history during Spyfall, Nikola Tesla's Night of Terror is the first - and, sadly, only - "full-blown" historical of the season. While complaints about the writing during Chib's era can feel endless, his detractors seem to ignore certain undeniable facts. Firstly, thanks to Resolution and Spyfall, we see that he is doing the best at bringing back old foes into the New Series. On top of that, he also gives us the best historicals in New Who. 

Nikola Tesla's puts all of the strengths of a Chibnall Historical prominently on display. The greatest asset of these sort of stories is the amount of homework that goes into them. The point in time that the TARDIS has dropped into is at the forefront of the plot and very well fleshed-out. And if there is a "historical celebrity" in the adventure, we really get to know them. Prior to Chibnall, the inclusion of famous historical figures in a tale has often felt cosmetic. "I'm writing a story in the 18th Century that has gaseous aliens that look like ghosts." Gatiss almost seems to be saying to himself as he sits at his laptop, "Hey! Dickens lived back then and wrote about ghosts. Let's put him in!" And that's, pretty much, all we really get about Charles Dickens. 

Whereas we really do learn a lot about Tesla. Not only does the Doctor call him the architect of the 20th Century, but we really see it illustrated throughout the course of the episode. His many inventions get discussed or displayed. Showing us just how amazing of a genius he was. The guy was even working on Wi-Fi!   

I like how the story also gets into his rivalry with Edison and makes that an essential part of the plot. This is why historicals during this era get the appreciation they do. Because of the amount of detail that goes into them, we really do feel like we're in that time . 

I do have one major criticism against Night of Terror. It's a contention I barely ever allow myself to have against the show as it pertains to a visual issue. 

Yes, I understand how an insectoid species works. The Queen will, oftentimes, look very different from the drones. But I do feel it's a little too different, here. Throwing an artiste into a suit that looks like it got cannibalized from the Racnoss costume and then surrounding her with a bunch of CGI scorpions just didn't really work. The way her tail only suddenly appears when it has to shoot lasers at someone also looked really weird! 

Aside from that, though, this is a very strong story. Both Tesla and Edison are well-portrayed by the actors who were cast as them.  The Skithra are also a very interesting species. Even if they look a little bit weird!    

JUDOON WATCHING NATIONAL LAMPOON  

Fugitive of the Judoon resonates with me in a similar way to Spyfall. Even before the gigantic Reveal that it makes, it's a very engaging plot. If it hadn't introduced a new secret incarnation, I think I would have still been very happy with what we've got. Essentially, it's a very well-constructed episode. 

The Captain Jack cameo is completely delightful. Chibnall re-creates the character masterfully. He's made him completely "Captain Jackish" and is, therefore, great fun to watch. Barrowman, himself, is putting in a 250%  effort with the few minutes he's been given. He kids and has fun, but also knows when to bring on the drama. Causing him to do a great job of foreshadowing what's to come later in the season. It's a fantastic performance that requires a ridiculous amount of presence. But Barrowman brings the thunder. It's just a pity he sends the sort of text messages he does!    

Jo Martin, like John Barrowmen, also summons the presence required of her once she transforms into the Fugitive Doctor. And, again, does it with only a few minutes of screentime. Chibnall teases out the mystery of this incarnation brilliantly. Soooo much speculation ensues from this episode. I love how he even pre-emptively strikes by immediately dismissing the most popular theories we were coming up with (personally, I was certain she was from a parallel reality!). Putting this gigantic twist in during the middle episode made the rest of the season that much more fun. 

Fugitive of the Judoon isn't just another damn strong episode. I'd go so far as to call it a Classic. One of my favorite single episodes ever. 

FILLERS 

And then we have a little time to kill before that big season finale. So we're served Praxeus and Can You Hear Me? to keep us satisfied. 

Praxeus is very good. It has a great pace with a very unique vibe to it. I do like how Chibnall likes to mix things up a bit with companion dynamics. Even back during Moff's reign, he decides to give the Doctor a "gang" during Dinosaurs in a Spaceship. In this story, he really shows off just how great of a team the Fam has become. She can just drop them off at various points on Earth and have them investigate on her behalf. Yaz really demonstrates her skills at this by even insisting she goes back to conclude something she was looking into. I love when the Doctor sees her later and proclaims: "Look at you! Wandering off on your own and not getting killed!" 

I should be getting more annoyed by just how many stories during this era preach about saving the environment. And, admittedly, I am a bit. But it's really not bothering me as much as I thought it would. Aside from a hardcore lecture at the end of Orphan 55, the messages remain subtle enough that they don't feel intrusive. And, after this story, Chibnall stops. He sees that we've gotten the point and don't need to hear anymore. Having said that, though, I still think it's quite terrifying that our planet has plastic gyres in the ocean. So I do actually like that this has been brought to my attention. I have legitimately reduced my use of plastics since watching this story! 

Can You Hear Me? works so well on so many levels. First off, the villains are great. I do love it when the Doctor has to occasionally deal with some of the nastier Immortals that are out in the Universe. I also enjoy how Zellin namechecks all the various eternal beings that populate the cosmos (it now almost feels like he was foreshadowing the 60th anniversary by mentioning the Toymaker!). Showing us what everyone is fearing most by letting us see their nightmares was also really nicely done. Graham's dream was, easily, the most disturbing. It's brutal when Grace suddenly shifts from telling him he's got cancer again to making him feel bad for not saving her. I also absolutely love how Zellin and Rakaya's origins get told through animation. A great way to handle an info-dump! 

I did get a bit nervous, though, when I see how much run-time was still left after the Doctor defeated the Immortals. Is this going to be another End of Time - Part Two?! 

Fortunately, it wasn't. We start by getting a great message about mental health that, as usual, doesn't hit us too hard on the head and is even a bit touching. I do really enjoy the snippet we get of Tibo's first group meeting. Then we learn about a crucial moment in Yaz's life. Created, of course, to help quell the various complaints from last season (that I really didn't feel were all that valid) that Yaz wasn't given enough attention. This is another great moment. Particularly as Yaz settles the bet with the officer all those years later. Clearly, this is what sets her on her own quest to get into law enforcement. 

And then, of course, there's the scene that the Chib-bashers totally blew out of proportion. Graham tries to discuss his fears about a cancer relapse and the Doctor isn't particularly helpful. "What an absolute cold bitch!" the haters proclaimed, "She's such a horrible Doctor! Sixie murdering an Androgum and turning it into a cheap joke was a less of a crime than this!" 

Sorry. I'm making up fake Chib-basher quotes, again! I'll stop.    

The truth is: it's a fairly realistic scene depicting how someone with social awkwardness really functions. I did find it just a bit of a stretch, sometimes, when Ten or Eleven would suddenly be able to have all these big heartwarming moments with people but then still run around like idiots that were oblivious to most of the social cues around them. It's not really how things work with people who have these sorts of personalities. What we got in Can You Hear Me? is more in keeping with the truth. And the Doctor is not the terrible person some people say she is for doing that to Graham. She's just not the one who can really help him with the concerns he has. Twelve was actually way more abrasive during a lot of his moments that were meant to be more emotional. No one seems to complain about this, though. Could it be, perhaps, because it was a man doing this?! 

There's one other objection concerning these stories that struck me as quite odd. I specifically  remember the moment when I finished watching Praxeus. For some ridiculous reason, I thought that finding out what the feedback was by fandom on the episode would be a good idea. I figured some vloggers on Youtube would have  reviews up, already, so I viewed them. Everyone had the same thing to say: "Good episode. But it's just filler!" Which seemed a rather silly observation. The comments almost insinuate that New Who had never featured filler episodes up until this moment. That there weren't countless adventures like this during the RTD and Moff eras that made no real contribution to the season-long arc. That were just there to give us a nice side-story that week. But, suddenly, it was happening for the first time in Series Twelve and this nullified any quality the story had. The filler episodes from previous days never actually existed. Which meant those episodes were just fine. Only this one is bad because it's the only filler episode, ever. 

The truth of the matter is: both of these episode are quite strong. Even if they are fillers!    

THE SEASON FINALE THAT CHANGED IT ALL 

And then, at last, we get to the season finale. A nice, gorgeous three-parter. Dare I say it: the best three-parter New Who has ever done? All the others we've had, thus far, seem to have one episode that's a bit disappointing. But this one stays strong all the way through. 

Of course, some people are disappointed in one particular development that occurs during The Timeless Children. But, even if you don't agree with what Chibnall adds to the Doctor's past, it's still a well-put-together plot. As are the other two episodes. Which makes it a great three-parter and, at the same time, an awesome season finale. Provided, of course, that you're not upset about the Timeless Child Revelation! We'll get to how I feel about it, shortly.... 

But let's begin with The Haunting of Villa Diodati. Yes, we just had Hide a few seasons ago. But there was enough variation between the two adventures that another Haunted House Thriller was just fine. And, really, a good Haunted House Thriller is just something a show should bring back every once in a while! As long as they find fun new ways to tell the story. 

Diodati also follows the same code that Spyfall and Judoon Fugitive adhere to. A major pivot happens in the middle of the plot that takes things in a whole different direction. There's any number of Who stories (from both Old and New) that were only mediocre until they reached that turning point. They really do depend on revealing that the Master was secretly behind it all. Or that the Doctor has to suddenly return to Gallifrey midway through the tale to fix the plumbing. Or something to that effect. But, because we're getting an engaging spooky tale even before the Lone Cyberman shows up, the episode's quality is maintained throughout the run-time. 

Diodati also has something happen in it that fans have been wanting for a while. There had been complaints that Thirteen had been too "light" in her first season. That she didn't have any intensely serious moments during Series Eleven. Which I didn't agree with. There had been plenty of occasions like that. Probably the best example was her confrontation with King James while he had her bound in Witchfinders. She shows off her dramatic chops quite nicely in that scene. But, for some reason, fans didn't feel any of this is adequate. Apparently, she needed to show more rage or something like that. 

Her explosion during the latter part of the episode when she discusses how the team structure isn't always so flat was the scene many had been waiting for. And Jodie really nails it. She does a great job of tinging the diatribe with regret as she alludes to what happened to Bill at the end of Series Ten. It's always great when someone playing a new incarnation can still give off strong feelings for something that had happened prior to their presence on the show. She accomplishes that feat magnificently.   

The whole moment also becomes all-the-more poignant because it does have a bit of an "Earthshock effect". We had to wait quite some time in Season Nineteen before mild-mannered Five finally shows his character's harsher side as he confronts the Cyber-Leader late in the season. Because it took a while to finally happen, it has all-that-stronger of an impact. The same happens when Thirteen cuts loose, here. It took even longer to happen than it did for Five - so it hits that much harder. 

But that is not the only valuable asset to Diodati. The Lone Cyberman is properly introduced to us in this episode. And he's awesome. My favorite villain in New Who. One of the best baddies, ever, really. Patrick O'Kane plays him to absolute perfection. Filling the character with a sense of rage that he despises but can't control. I love the whole paradox of his character. His passion for his race makes him the perfect leader. But, at the same time, he should be devoid of such passion if he's meant to be a Cyberman. It's positively brilliant.  

His theme song also absolutely kicks ass! Even as an adult, I want to stomp around in a mechanical fashion whenever I hear it. I can't imagine what sort of effect it must have on a kid!  

With the first part of the story ending on a killer cliffhanger, we move on to Ascension of the Cybermen. Admittedly, it's a bit light on plot. But there's just enough there. This episode is more about taking us on a wild roller coaster ride. With danger and intrigue all over the place. It's actually a great formula for a middle episode. Which I think is what causes this three-parter to succeed when so many others have suffered problems. The final episode should be the one with the most happening in it. But, oftentimes, the first and second handle so much story development that there's not enough there for the last one. 

It reminds me, ever-so-slightly, of the original Star Wars trilogy. A New Hope lays a lot of foundations. Return of the Jedi wraps up all the plot threads. Empire Strikes Back is more about fighting AT-AT Walkers and flying through meteor fields, than anything. There are a few crucial developments. Like Vader revealing he's Luke's Pop. But, otherwise, it's about giving us a lot of action and fun. Chibnall actually follows a similar pattern with his own trilogy of episodes. 

Future writers of three parters: use the same model you saw, here. It worked for both Lucas and Chibnall! 

Just like Empire, we get another great cliffhanger. The Boundary seems to be leading to the ruins of Gallifrey. Suddenly, the Sacha Dhawan Master leaps out from the anomaly. We knew he'd escaped from the Kassavin! 

And we can't wait to see what happens next... 

DEALING WITH THE CONTROVERSY

And so, at last, we can face the Great Controversy of this season. I want, so badly, to make up more fake quotes from disgruntled fans. You cannot imagine how much the temptation is killing me, right now! 

Instead, I'll just state it outright: I completely love the concept of The Timeless Child. For me, it's exactly what the Doctor's character needed. The show, after all, is called: "Doctor Who". There should be a sense of mystery to the character. But that had died away a long time ago. So revealing that she had a whole secret life prior to her current one is exactly what the show needed to make it, once more, true to its title. 

A few Reviews back, I had complained about a certain type of retconning that had been going on in the New Series.  I didn't like the way certain arcs in Revived Who were meant to go all the way back to the show's early days but were just suddenly appearing out of nowhere without anything from Classic Who to actually support them. The Hybrid never getting any sort of mention until Series Nine or the Master hearing the drums in his head never being brought up til Series Three were a few of the stronger examples of this particular phenomenon.   

But that's not what's happening, here. There were certain things that we'd seen in the Classic Series that sets up The Timeless Child beautifully. And I'm not just talking about the mind-bending battle in Brain of Morbius. All the stuff in Seasons Twenty-Five and Twenty-Six that was meant to point the way to the Doctor being "The Other" can now be construed as references to the Timeless Child, instead. Which is one more thing that makes me so thankful Chibnall did this with the Lore. It means that all the teasing they did during those seasons legitimately went somewhere.  This is actually the exact opposite of the sort of retconning that had been annoying me. It's actually fixing problems that Classic Who was never able to solve. 

Still, I get it. If the Timeless Child upset you, then you're not going to enjoy this final episode of the season. 

But I loved it. As I mentioned previously, all the other plot elements built around this Ultimate Reveal are also quite enjoyable. The Cyber-Masters, for instance, are incredibly cool. I'm so glad that they escaped at the end of The Timeless Children and will be back, again, soon. If anything, I would love to see RTD dealing with them further. I'm also hoping that he sorts out the Master having the Cyberium in him, too. Meddling in the affairs of Cybermen was, perhaps, something that was starting to happen a bit too often with this particular Renegade Time Lord. But this is still a great storyline that I would love to see pursued to its bitter end. 

So, yeah, I'm very happy with this season finale. Messing with the show's Lore the way Chibnall did was exactly what the show needed.

MORE DALEKS IN THE NEW YEAR 

This time, I'm gonna tackle the New Year's Special before I reach my Final Conclusion. 

Just like Series Twelve, itself, Revolution of the Daleks eliminates a lot of the clumsiness we had in the plotting of the previous New Year's Special. My biggest complaint about Resolution was that the scene between Ryan and his Dad did go on a bit longer than it really needed to. Truthfully, I'm not sure what should have been cut, but it needed trimming of some sort. This year, the problem is avoided by having two nice character moments rather than one long one. We get the talk between Jack and Yaz about what it's like to travel with the Doctor and then we get Ryan actually giving the Doctor a bit of a pep talk while wearing his yellow beanie. Both scenes add some nice extra dimension to the adventure. Making it more than just an exciting runaround. But they don't do it at the expense of the story's pacing. 

Jack is back again. This time, he's in the whole story. Just like in Fugitive, he's great fun. Chibnall shows he doesn't just excel at bringing back old foes, but friends too! They were quite lucky to get Barrowman's scenes shot before the scandal broke out. I don't know if we'll ever see Jack again because of what's happened. But it this is his last appearance, he went out well. 

But I really do want another update on Jack Robertson some day. He was great in this story. Particularly as he changes allegiances and starts bargaining with the Daleks. He really should come back a third time. Things were left open so that he could. It would be especially interesting if he really does manage to re-ignite his political career. Imagine what he'd be like to deal with if he becomes president! 

Another great feature of Revolution was the departure of Ryan and Graham at the end. How delightful it was to finally get more companions that just leave the Doctor cause they're tired of travelling in the TARDIS. No need to get trapped in a parallel universe or be transported away by Weeping Angels. Ryan just decides it's time to stay in his own time, again. Graham, being the loving grand-dad that he is, chooses to stay with him. Yes, the final shot of Grace looking down on the two of them as they keep trying to get Ryan to ride a bike is, perhaps, a tad corny. But it doesn't stop me from welling up a bit every time I watch it!  

If I had any real complaint about Revolution, it's that I wish the Dalek civil war had gone on longer. It's always fascinating to watch two types of Dalek fight each other because one side is not "pure enough in its blobbiness". It would have been cool if the Recon Dalek faction had been able to flee the Earth in sufficient numbers so that they could live again to fight another day. 

Really, though, I don't even think my complaint is all that valid. The ending we get works just as well. Revolution of the Daleks does an excellent job with bridging itself to the previous New Year's Special and then moving forward with an excellent adventure of its own. Chibnall has created a great new holiday tradition: we now start off every new year with Daleks!    

FINAL CONCLUSION - BRACE YOURSELVES!  

Given that I am one of those "The Timeless Child Was Great!" fans, I have no real problem with Series Twelve. I will agree that Orphan 55 was the weakest story of the season, but I don't think it was ruined just because a bit of a preachy speech was tacked on at the end. So this does mean that I am very happy with this year of Doctor Who. It tends to move from strength-to-strength with few real flaws to speak of. It has a great variety of stories and some excellent performances from the leads and guest stars. Everything comes together quite nicely. 

Let's go back to that Tier System I first created in the last entry (have a look at the FINAL CONCLUSION of that Review if you didn't read it when I first posted it). Where does Series Twelve fit within this diabolical structure?! 

Top Tier, baby. 

This is an outstanding season of Doctor Who. Plain and simple. The one big problem Chibnall had been having during Eleven has been ironed out. So that means everything really is executed to perfection. Or, at the very least, near-perfection! No doubt, some of you will savagely disagree with this idea. For you, the Timeless Child ruined it all. And I'm fine with that. 

But, as far as I'm concerned, Series Twelve totally rocked. Some of the best stuff we've seen in New Who. 

I did do an entry a while back that fields most of the greater objections to the Timeless Child. Check it out if you'd like. It may even help some of you to re-shape your opinion a bit! 

https://robtymec.blogspot.com/2020/05/unadulterated-boorish-opinion-silliness.html