The Essay about Time Loops continues to wait....
It seems my decision to watch and review every season of Doctor Who during the 60th anniversary year was a good one. A lot of people responded to it well and it reflected nicely in my readership numbers, too (just so you know, by the way, I have refused to monetize this blog as I did not want to flood it with annoying ads. I do this all out of sheer fan love!).
As someone who enjoys patterns and structure, my intention with my Season Reviews was to wait until the next ten year anniversary and start doing them again. But I, very quickly, realized what a silly plan that was. Would I be still writing this blog in a decade's time? Would blogs even exist that far into the future?! Would Doctor Who still be on the air for its 70th anniversary? There are a lot uncertainties going on, here. At the same time as I pondered all this, I made an important realization: Folks really love these Season Reviews. Why make them wait so long to get some more?!
So, from now on, I will do a Review at the end of every season. That seems the best way.
STORY-BY-STORY
Just like when I was reviewing those 14-part seasons from the late 80s, this series is short enough to just go through it episode-by-episode. Which is ever-so-slightly alarming, of course. Those 14-parters were the beginning of the end for Classic Who. I can't help but wonder if New Who is on the same course.
Anyhow, if you read my Review of the 60th Anniversary Specials, you'll notice I did not include The Church on Ruby Road in it. It didn't really feel like it belonged there. While we do get a fair amount of Ncuti in The Giggle, it's still not his first "proper" story. Church on Ruby Road, on the other hand, definitely feels like the start of something new. Personally, I feel it belongs in his first season rather than part of the 60th Anniversary. Even though the episode actually came out in 2023.
On the other end of the spectrum, we do have Joy to the World coming up as the 2024 Christmas Special. Something that I suspect will probably fit in better with the Season Two (or Series Fifteen or Season Forty-One) Review. Some major arcs came to a conclusion at the end of Empire of Death. More than likely, this year's Christmas Special will embark upon some new storylines.
Which means, of course, that this season runs from Church on Ruby Road to Empire of Death (in my opinion, at least).
Now that we've made that clear, let's get on with picking the eps apart!
HELLO RUBY SUNDAY (WHO COULD HANG A NAME ON YOU?)
I will just say it: this new era is off to a very shaky start. RTD wanted the Christmas Special to have a one-hour run-time but forgot to bring enough plot along to fill it!
For a considerable amount of time, absolutely nothing happens in this story. It's just an endless array of spindly arms suddenly popping into a shot and secretly arranging for nasty things to happen (sometimes under impossible conditions - how exactly does a goblin sneak up to Ruby in the middle of an open street and pierce a hole in the bottom of her grocery bag without anyone noticing?!). This sort of thing goes on for about the first twenty minutes of the story. Even on my very first viewing - where I'm still very excited to be watching a new episode - I found myself saying: "Yup. We get it. Goblins are up to some mischief. Can we move on to something else, now, please?!"
The Goblin Mischief does settle down a bit for us to meet Ruby's family. While a bit heartwarming (how can we not adore the grandma that just wants a damn tea?!), this whole sequence feels like it's dragging too. The episode really would have worked sooo much better within a 46-minute format. We would have gotten to the good stuff faster and not have to go through an endless amount of stalling.
And there is some good stuff in Church on Ruby Road. When they do finally climb aboard the Goblin Ship, things get quite interesting. It's especially fun watching the Doctor trying to figure out a whole new science. And, while the musical sequence had the potential to fall flat on its ass and feel really dumb, it actually works quite well. Especially when the Doctor realizes he can draw things out long enough to come up with a solution by keeping the song going.
The alternative reality where Ruby got eaten as a baby is the other really good bit in this story. The gigantic tonal shift was very well-executed. Particularly the performance we get from Michelle Greenidge - the actress playing Ruby's Mom. She is such a changed woman in this scene and we truly get swept up in the despair of a life without her adopted daughter.
That's the good stuff. But there's still a substantial bit of story left after it's over. And quite a lot of it really only goes so well. The Doctor suddenly producing a gadget we've never seen before that ends up saving the day frequently feels like a weak plot device. His mass-canceling gloves definitely have that effect. They become, pretty much, the fix for everything. And the fact that they can do so much with only 3% power left becomes just a bit too much of a stretch on credulity. I wish my phone worked that well when the charge was that low!
While Church on Ruby Road is largely disappointing, it does have one more saving grace that is worth mentioning: I am already in love with Ncuti's Doctor. Not only does he bring something new and interesting to the role, but RTD even appears to be writing him differently. Gone are the days of the mile-a-minute hyperactive chatterbox fanboy/girl that we've been getting throughout most of New Who's Reign. The Doctor feels truly different in this new incarnation. And I'm so happy to see that!
CONFESSIONS OF A CURMUDGEONLY OLD FAN
While it is sad that RTD2 is only going so well up to this point, there is a certain amount of pettiness that is being satisfied in me as his new episodes are rolling out.
Fandom, as usual, has been frustrating me. For quite some time, folks have been going on endlessly about the greatness of RTD's first run as Headwriter. How amazing the whole era was and how they wish the rest of New Who was as enjoyable as this period.
"You were Twelve when you were watching it." I want to say back, "Lots of stuff seemed awesome at that age. Brush away the Nostalgia and I think you'll find that RTD's first four seasons were largely uneven."
My frustrations grow as we hit Chibnall's Time in the Showrunner's Seat. Certain fans become impossible to satisfy. Hypercriticizing every aspect of the show and tearing it down for elements that were actually celebrated when other Headwriters were running things.
"What we need," these annoying fans are proclaiming, "is for RTD to come back and save the day. He knew how to make spectacular episodes (even though I haven't re-watched any of them since I was Twelve)!"
And then these fans got what they wanted. And I was annoyed even more as they danced with joy and took their last few potshots at poor Chibbers as he made his way to the door.
"Phooey on youey!" they spat at him as he exited (they really said that, I swear), "You were so bad and RTD is so awesome! He's going to make Who Great Again. Hey. Isn't that a Trump slogan?! Oh well!!"
At this point, I've had it with this very vocal segment of Fandom. So much of what they're saying feels so "off" to me. Their vison seems very clouded. Admittedly, I don't consider Chibnall or RTD to be absolutely perfect writers (there's really no such thing - as much as I'd like to believe I am one!). But I found the stuff we got from Chibs to be far more consistent in quality. Whereas much of what Russell gave us was peaks and valleys. Brilliance one week and absolute trash, the next. I can even forgive him a bit for this kind of problem. He was trying to get a show with an extended history to fit into the Twenty-First Century TV landscape. Missteps were inevitable. But I couldn't believe other fans weren't seeing this. There was just so much: Chibnall sucks! RTD is the man! going on. I, for one, was getting sick of it.
As much as I always want my favorite show to succeed, I was experiencing just a glimmer of smug satisfaction as 2023 was wrapping up. The four Specials RTD had produced were only so good. I wasn't the only one who felt this way. A lot of fans were let down by what they had watched and expressed it. Quite a few were even admitting that Power of the Doctor was a far better anniversary celebration than what we ended up getting from Chibnall's successor.
I couldn't help but feel just a little bit vindicated!
But I was also concerned. Would these problems persist into the new season that was waiting for us in 2024? I mean, I liked getting a little satisfaction from RTD's failings, but I didn't want this to go on forever. Having been proved ever-so-slightly right, I was now hoping that things would radically improve.
After a largely-disappointing Anniversary Year, I desperately wanted Doctor Who to get really good again.
SPACE: THE BABY FRONTIER
Watching Space Babies for the first time was just a bit excruciating for me, in places. But probably not for the reasons you're thinking.
I was seeing some pretty stark tonal shifts during the 2023 Specials. Which became all-the-more alarming when you consider what was going on behind the scenes. As was widely publicized, Disney was now sinking some serious cash into the show. "It's just a distribution deal!" the BBC was swearing, "We still retain creative control. Don't worry!"
But none of us were being fooled. A company like Disney doesn't dip into its coffers to help fund something and not be allowed some measure of influence in the story-telling. Some of the input they had given was actually quite useful. The suggestion of bringing the Doctor into the narrative sooner during Church on Ruby Road was exactly what the story needed. The scene with the falling snowman decoration perked up the episode considerably.
On the other hand, though, we were suddenly seeing a lot more "cutesiness" in various stories. Which is just the sort of thing that Disney goes in for. Not only did we have goblins prancing about in the Christmas Special, but Beep the Meep was quite adorable too. Even after the Meep reveals their dark side, we still want to give them a big cuddle!
And now we're getting talking babies running a space station. Once some introductory stuff between Fifteen and Ruby is out of the way (that, at the same time, establishes the show's premise to all these new fans RTD is anticipating), this is the plot we start settling into. Admittedly, I'm getting very nervous. Is there going to be no real reason for why there's toddlers with the power of speech running the bridge of a satellite? Is this just the way the show is doing things, now? Making fun Disneyesque adventures that have little or no internal logic to them?
"This could be it." I shudder, "This could be the moment where Doctor Who actually becomes really stupid!"
Fortunately, we do get a half-decent explanation for all the preposterous cuteness (one that is to my satisfaction, at least). Space Babies ends up being a fun little ride that doesn't go too far with consciously-Disneyesque tropes. I knew it would bother some people, of course. In many ways, this is the Slitheen all over again. There's some fairly juvenile humor at play in parts of the plot. Particularly when the entire space station seems to be getting propelled by what is, essentially, a giant fart. Such antics are bound to upset the sensibilities of a certain type of fan. But I'm not one of them. In fact, I can even applaud RTD a bit for giving us something else Slitheenesque. I admire his courage.
What I like the most about this episode, however, are the lengths the Doctor goes to in order to save the Bogeyman. This is the Doctor I love. Risking his life to save an intentionally-nasty creature made up of snot. The strong moral compass that we saw in Thirteen seems to have persisted into this incarnation. Which I'm very happy about. Personally, I was getting very tired of all the cyborg-killing and Solomon- slaughtering and watching-Lady-Cassandra-dry-up-to-death-without-helping-her that we'd been getting prior to Jodie. It had been an interesting "edge" to the character for a little while. But it was starting to feel distinctly undoctorish. Saving the bogeyman, to me, represented a signal from RTD that he wanted to preserve yet another direction Chibnall had taken the show in. I'm very grateful for the gesture.
All in all, I'm quite happy with Space Babies. Its adorableness is fun rather than unbearable. I do feel the season is off to a half-decent start. Doctor Who has not become stupid!
THE DEVIL IS IN THE CHORDS (AND THE DETAILS, TOO!)
From this point onward, we get a slew of amazing Doctor Who stories. Quite honestly, I am madly in love with these next few episodes.
And it starts with The Devil's Chord. With Neil Patrick Harris' performance still fresh in my memory, I'm astounded to see another larger-than-life actor giving us just as fun of a villain only a short while later. Jinkx Monsoon chews up the scenery in an entirely different way than their terrible father did, but it's equally-fun to watch. This is one of the strongest points of the whole yarn. Its villain is an absolute delight. Every second that they're onscreen is played to perfection. Incredibly OTT, yes. But never too big. Just right.
However, there's a lot of other great stuff to enjoy, here. The Beatles are wonderful and end up being used brilliantly within the plot. The cinematic quality of the whole episode is also quite breath-taking. It really feels like we're watching a movie rather than a TV show. And then there's just the overall social commentary that's being made about the power of song. When the Doctor shows Ruby what will become of London in 2024 - we believe it. Without music, the world will crumble
There's also some nice fan nods. The Doctor pointing out that he's, more-or-less, aligned with the events of An Unearthly Child is sweet. Even more obscurely, the story also does the subtlest of imitations of Pyramids of Mars by having the Doctor take Ruby to 2024 and letting her see the havoc the Maestro will wreak. Only as we reach the end of the season do we see that this could actually be construed as a hint of foreshadowing.
And then, of course, there's the divisive moment: The musical number at the end. I don't hate it as some fans do. But I will admit that I'm not all that impressed by it, either. It does, at least, make a sort of sense. After starving the world of music for a while, a sort of backwash happens. Reality becomes more musical for just a little bit. Which causes the song and dance number to occur. We also see this effect turn a cross-walk into piano keys mere moments after the sequence is done. I can accept the surrealness of it all. I don't feel that throwing a musical number into a Doctor Who story is a bad thing to do. As long as we're provided with a solid enough reason for why the Fourth Wall is being broken a bit. The same sort of thing had just been done a short while ago during the Christmas Special. The goblins sing a merry tune as they offer a sacrifice to their King. An internal logic had also been created to justify that moment. So - in this sense, at least - I didn't mind either of these sequences.
What bothered me more about There's Always a Twist at the End was that the whole thing just felt largely superfluous. It doesn't really do anything to enhance or advance the plot. Nor was it all that tremendously entertaining. I'll even be mean enough to say that the lyrics were quite awful. I think that was done slightly intentionally. Almost as if RTD is trying to do a parody of a musical number rather than a proper one. But the whole thing does come across more as a bit of pointless distraction. It just wasn't needed. In fact, the Doctor and Ruby using the cross-walk as a piano would have been a suitably-whimsical way to conclude the episode. But, because of the song and dance that precedes it, the moment becomes less effective. It feels more like one pointless embellishment added on top of another. Because of this, the whole ending is weakened.
I will admit that I am someone who greatly detests musicals. So you are taking the hugest of chances when you do this sort of thing with my favorite TV show. Still, I don't feel like Twist at the End ruins the whole story. But it does mar it a bit. Ultimately, I do really love this adventure. But I would have enjoyed it more if it had ended on a different note ("ended on a different note" - see what I did, there?!).
ANOTHER DOCTOR WHO TITLE USING ONOMATOPEIA
I was quite happy to hear that Steven Moffat was coming back. I was in love with this man's writing even before he came to Doctor Who. Coupling is one of my all-time fave sitcoms. I still introduce it occasionally to friends who enjoy British comedy but aren't familiar with it. Even though quite a bit of it looks dated now, they're always impressed with it. Moff just really knows how to write. I'd actually go so far as to say that my respect for Moff ranks almost as highly as it does for the Great Robert Holmes, himself.
Having said all that, I do agree with the sentiment that Moff's scripts do tend go better when someone else is the Headwriter. There was still some absolutely brilliant material that he wrote when he was in charge, but there were some other times when it definitely felt like he was stretching himself a bit too thin (Doctor, Widow and Wardrobe would probably be one of the best examples of this. On the best of days, it's still a difficult one to sit through!). Whereas, when someone else is in charge, he can really just concentrate on the one task in front of him and not worry about the whole shape of the season. Which often causes him to create the Shining Jewel of the Year.
Boom just-about achieves this status. It's definitely a Classic - but I wouldn't say it's quite the best episode of the season. Of course, if you're doing the math, you now realize that I will be claiming that there are two Classics this season!
I love that New Who still has minimalist stories like Boom. It's another way in which it pays homage to its roots. Classic Who would, sometimes, try to restrain itself to just one principal set. More times than not, however, it was for budgetary reasons ("Let's put it all in a lighthouse! Think of the money we'll save!"). In the New Series, it's a more a case of a writer flexing for us a bit.
"Look at me!" the author seems to be saying, "I can have my whole plot take place in a weird puzzle-castle with a really tall old lady in a veil! And, even though that's all there is to it, you're still going to love it!"
Boom produces the usual results that a tale like this creates. We fall absolutely in love with it for its utter simplicity. The very straightforward premise of the Doctor trying to find a way off a landmine becomes absolutely riveting. The layers of complexity that, somehow, manages to build around that singleness of purpose is always amazing to watch. In this sense, the episode is an absolute masterpiece.
I do still distinctly remember my first watching of it and thinking to myself after a good dozen minutes: "Wow! This could actually become really boring soon!" The Doctor being stuck on a landmine for, more or less, the entire run-time has the potential to stagnate. I wondered if Moff would actually pull this off.
But plot complication after plot complication starts to build up. Various narrative threads become entangled and the tension reaches a legitimately overwhelming level. It's hard to believe so much drama could be accomplished without allowing the Doctor to ever move! By the time Ruby is lying on the ground dying, any doubt I had at the beginning of the tale about its ability to engage has been quashed. This is the sort of stuff that makes you proud to be a Who fan.
I have a few of the most minor of issues. My first would be that the whole denouement does feel a tad too long. I don't expect the Doctor and Ruby to just jump in the TARDIS seconds after he's off the mine, but I do think that they linger on the planet, perhaps, a bit longer than they need to. I also find that Moff is getting a bit weird with the repetition of some of the dialogue. To the point where it cheapens the effectiveness of some of what's being said. Yes, Steven, "Everywhere eventually becomes a beach" (or words to that effect) is a great line - but did we really need to hear it twice?! Its second mention doesn't really suit the situation and feels more like the author is just trying to remind us that he can write really good stuff for his characters to say!
These objections are nearly not worth mentioning - but they're also there and can't be ignored. Boom is utterly fantastic. I love how much Lore that was specifically created by Moffat influences the story-telling. I love the commentary it makes against those who profit from humanity's need to make war. I love how it shows both the beauty and stupidity of devout faith.
I love all of it.
THE CLASSICER CLASSIC
Convinced Boom would be the best ep of the season, I was completely blown away by what 73 Yards brought us only a week later. Moff may have delivered us another Classic, but this tale still manages to beat it.
"Another Ghostlight!" I squeal as the closing credits roll, "An excellently-written story that decides not to give us all the answers. Instead, it relies on us to come up with certain solutions on our own. I was certain New Who would never have the guts to do this sort of thing!"
The ambiguity of it all is, of course, 73 Yards strongest point. Like Ruby, we don't fully understand what's happening to her. We can only watch and try to draw our own conclusions. Never being given a proper answer to it all actually works, though. We get the distinct impression that the author of the tale has worked it all out in his head - he's just keeping some of it from us because he knows we'll have fun speculating. By no means is this lazy writing. The premise is fully-formed. It's just not completely-explained. Which actually makes it intensely realistic. Rarely in life do we get the full story on anything. We have to fill in the blank spaces, ourselves.
But there's more to 73 Yards than just a fun guessing game. This is a ridiculously-tight script. Every instant is used in some way to help advance the plot. Even the quieter moments like Ruby looking out her window as she drinks wine and stares at the old woman on the sidewalk below serve a purpose in the Greater Scheme of Things.
One would think that such an effect would cause the plot to move at a breakneck pace. That's not the case, here. There are plenty of situations where the story is given the chance to breathe. But there's never a sag. We're constantly engaged. Things are always moving at just the right pace.
One must also give high praise to Millie Gibson, herself. She's carrying this whole thing on her shoulders and she accomplishes that magnificently. She does a great job of bringing us along on the gigantic journey Ruby must take in this episode. If we weren't in love with her character, already - we are now. The fact that this is the first shooting she ever did for the season makes her all-the-more impressive. Ruby had to be a fully-formed character for something like this to work. Normally that's done by giving her some episodes where she's sharing some space with another lead. Which makes things much easier since the focus is split between her and the Doctor. That's not the case, here, though. But she steps up to plate beautifully and shows us that she has some real chops. Particularly since she does feel like she's getting legitimately older in the story even though all she's really given to designate her aging is longer hair and a pair of glasses!
Like Boom, any complaints I have are pretty minor. Ruby criticizing her bf's performance in bed as she dumps him didn't really work for me. One of the main points of the narrative is for us to be on her side as much as possible so that we're really rooting for her as she faces the various challenges that confront her throughout the episode. To have her end a relationship in a fairly tasteless manner takes away from that. Yes, the moment is a bit funny, too. But it seems more mean-spirited, than anything.
My only other issue might be that Ruby covers those last remaining yards on the green at a ridiculously fast rate for someone walking backwards. Might have been good to have her briefly turn around and sprint for a bit.
Other than that, 73 Yards is sheer perfection. At this point, I'm ridiculously impressed with this season. But there's still quite a bit more to love...
TWO-IN-ONE
My word-count is really starting to get up there. Which has made me realize that my original strategy to analyze the season one episode at a time might not be so sound, after all.
So I'll tackle two episodes quickly in one section. Both stories do hit me in the same way so it makes sense to cover them in such a manner.
Dot and Bubble and Rogue continue the trend of excellence that we've been seeing since The Devil's Chord. But, as much as I adore both of them, I can't quite call either tale a Classic. There's a lot to love about these stories. But each has a sort of "fatal flaw" that prevents them from being the incredibly amazing works of art that Boom and 73 Yards are.
With Dot and Bubble, I think it's the plain and simple fact that "secret invasion" storylines have been done just a little too much on Doctor Who. There are some great twists that get added to the trope. The biggest one being that the protagonist of the story is a downright horrible person. Even though we don't like her in the slightest, she never gets her just desserts. She still makes it to the end and survives the catastrophe. It's not something we've really seen much of on the show before (the rich guy in Voyage of the Damned is the only thing that's all that comparable). Which makes it a different kind of story. In this sense, I greatly enjoy its morbidity.
There's lots of other things that make Dot and Bubble great. It's a clever way to do another "Doctor lite" story that still gives him a strong presence in the episode. There's a great homage to Black Mirror. The "they were racists the whole time" Reveal at the end is brilliantly-executed. Particularly as the Doctor actually realizes why the spoilt rich kids won't allow him to rescue them in the TARDIS. This is all very good. But the fact that it's all built on a premise that has become just a little bit tired causes it to fall slightly short of Classic Status.
The big problem with Rogue is that it does that thing that I really hate New Who for. Doctor Who is always about solving the main conflict first. Stopping the alien baddies or defeating the terrible menace or something of that nature should be the main focus. If the Doctor is also falling in love with someone or if there's some kind of drama going on with a companion or anything else like that, then that is the B Plot. Some writers seem to forget this and make the soap opera storyline the priority. It always drives me up the wall when they do!
Admittedly, Rogue doesn't do this too bad. The Chuldur come perilously close to getting the attention they deserve in the tale. So it's not bothering me too much. It also helps that the romantic subplot with the Doctor and Rogue is done excellently. Ncuti and Jonathan Groff have amazing chemistry. This is all quite similar Girl in the Fireplace, of course. The Doctor is falling in love with someone in just one episode. It even all takes place in relatively the same time period. But I think the relationship between Fifteen and Rogue plays out better than it did with Ten and Pompadour. Overall, I prefer Fireplace. But Rogue is still awesome. And I'm desperately hoping that there will be future adventures where the Doctor is trying to find Rogue
ISN'T IT IRONIC?
So I just lumped two separate episodes together for the sake of saving a bit of space. Now I'm going to be a bit ironic and give the one two-parter of the season a section for each episode.
I'm being even more ridiculous when you consider that I could've, easily, placed Legend of Ruby Sunday in the same category as Dot and Bubble and Rogue. All three of them, for me, have the same impact. They're very strong episodes - but I wouldn't label them Classics.
Like the two stories before it, Legend of Ruby Sunday has that one fatal flaw that prevents it from being elevated to Classic status. In this instance, it's the fact that the whole episode is meant to be a build-up to a massive cliffhanger. The plot accomplishes this very well. We really do feel enormous amounts of tension building as we get closer and closer to discovering who "The One Who Waits" is. The problem, however, is that this is all that's really happening for the whole episode. Beyond feeling ominous, there's really not much else going on in the narrative.
Back in the Classic Days, you could get away with an episode like this more easily. Part One of Enlightenment, for instance, is mainly a bunch of stalling until we get to the Reveal of Sailboats in Space. We don't mind that, however, since we only had to wait about twenty minutes to get there. It took double that time in Legend of Ruby Sunday for us to finally find out it was Sutehk the whole time. That's a bit much to sit through when very little is genuinely happening in the plot. I'm vaguely reminded of Stolen Earth. Where it's mainly about a bunch of people saying: "Holy crap! That's a lot of Daleks!" and all the real story development happens in the second part.
Since we're mentioning Sutehk, I should probably put forward my second extremely minor objection. Making the evil Osirian the One Who Waits felt just a little too much like fan-service. I, like many viewers, thought he was a magnificent villain in Pyramids of Mars. But, unlike others, I really felt he was meant to be a one-time-only baddie. I wanted to be fair, though. I wasn't going to pass too harsh of a judgement on the decision to bring him back until I saw the second part. My initial gut-reaction, however, to his Reveal at the cliffhanger was that I didn't want The One Who Waits to be Sutehk. I'd go so far to say that I would have preferred anyone but him.
Having spent a paragraph or two voicing objections, I still want to clarify that Legend of Ruby Sunday was, for the most part, an awesome episode. The high standard of quality that we've been seeing since The Devil's Chord continues. This really is shaping up to be an incredible season. I'm very happy with everything, thus far.
THE EMPIRE STRIKING BACK
Empire of Death seems to have an interesting blanket effect on those who watch it. When making a statement of this nature, I should be clear that there are, technically, two types of responses that I've seen to this story. As usual, there's a certain percentage of so-called "fans" who are just completely hating on it. But then, they've been saying this about any new episode for quite some time, now. So let's not even really count them, anymore. I've gotten pretty tired of the same drum they keep beating and can no longer care about them!
Fans that I consider better-balanced, however, do seem to be having a specific type of reaction to this story. Overall, we like it (interesting that I use the term "we" - almost as if I consider myself a well-balanced fan!). But there's also some element to the plot that doesn't sit well with us. Basically, we enjoy most of the episode - but an aspect of the tale stops it from being something we can truly consider excellent. It's not always the same thing that makes us respond this way. But it's still how we all seem to feel.
For me, it has to do with the fact that Sutekh is sparing the Doctor and Ruby's life just because he wants to know who Ruby's Mom is. This near-omnipotent being that is hell-bent on wiping out all life in the universe is not killing two individuals just so he can learn a bit of gossip?! I mean, really, if he's that curious about the whole thing - I'm pretty sure he can just go find out for himself! But, even if he's feeling a bit lazy and doesn't want to do the research, I'm not sure why he's not eliminating someone who's defeated him once, already. No amount of curiosity is worth allowing such an effective enemy to continue to exist. This whole idea does seem just a bit too far-fetched for me to buy into.
Now, I know Doctor Who has a history of doing this sort of thing with god-like beings. They put some kind of weird limitation on them that almost seems a bit silly. Sometimes, it still ends up being quite cool (Fenric losing to the Doctor in a game of chess and being sealed in a flask). Other times, it's just odd and clunky (Azal the Daemon self-destructing cause he doesn't understand why Jo wants to sacrifice herself in the Doctor's place). The Destroyer of the Universe halting his ultimate objective just to learn the identity of Ruby's mother, for me, falls into the category of just a bit too damned ridiculous. RTD makes a noble effort in the denouement to explain why this became important to the Osirian, but it still doesn't really fly. It feels just a bit too much like an ill-conceived narrative contrivance that allows the Doctor to, ultimately, score a sort of cheap victory.
In short, he doesn't truly manage to outwit Sutekh. A bad plot-hole does it for him.
Aside from this, however, there's still much to like, here. The scene with the woman who gives the Doctor a spoon is utterly gorgeous. Especially since it is there more as a bit of filler than anything. But it's beautifully-crafted and we don't care that it barely does anything to genuinely advance the story.
It's great to see the Memory (or Remembered) TARDIS being given an actual backstory that now allows it to make a degree of sense. I also like all the great stuff that we see in it. Mel clutching to different costume pieces that belonged to Six and Seven was, oddly enough, one of my favorite moments in the whole episode!
The Doctor dragging Sutekh into the Vortex with some bits and bobs from the Memory TARDIS is another moment of sheer brilliance. This particular Re-Set Button works nicely for me (and, like most fans, I'm not usually too fond of these things!). Killing death to create life has a weird sort of logic to it that I enjoy. Sutekh tearing away at the walls of the Vortex was a great visual. The Doctor admitting to Sutekh that the Osirian is still, ultimately, the victor was an excellent little speech too. Everything about Sutekh's final defeat was awesome. Quite properly, the high point of the season.
There is a bit of a protracted denouement in Empire of Death. But, by no means, is this another End of Time - Part Two. I don't find it drags at all. It's just tying up some loose ends that can't really be rushed. I'm actually quite glad that RTD took his time with this.
Making Ruby's biological mother just a normal human being who had a difficult choice to make was, perhaps, the twist that no one was expecting. I quite liked that things ended up going that way. It actually led to a very emotionally-charged scene when Ruby does find her. This creates a huge pivot in her life that causes her desire to stop travelling with the Doctor to make absolute sense.
As a weird sidenote: I'm so glad that we got a fourth companion in a row that just chooses to leave the TARDIS rather than being forced apart from the Doctor. A simple goodbye feels so much better than the convoluted "stuck in a parallel universe" or "trapped in a time paradox" storylines that have often been used in New Who when a member of the TARDIS crew has to go. I still remember the Good 'Ole Days when this was how must companions departed.
FINAL VERDICT
And so, the latest soft reboot has been implemented. While Old Doctor Who is enjoying a blissful retirement, a slightly newer version has been fluttering through the cosmos and getting into all sorts of trouble.
Was it all worth it, though? Did the show need such a big make-over? Should we have brought RTD back to do it? Maybe it was time for Chibnall to go (I, quite honestly, wanted more of him!), but should his replacement have been a Blast From the Past?
I never thought I'd hear myself saying this: But I am actually quite happy with what RTD has done with the show. Had he just tried to re-create what he'd given us during Series One to Four, I would have been largely dissatisfied. I might have even stopped watching. But he is definitely going for something new and different with his second run. Which is the way it should be with Doctor Who. It always needs to be exploring new territory.
I'm also very pleased with how different this Doctor is from most New Who incarnations. He's still a bit of an overexcited chatterbox, sometimes. But there are a lot of new sides to the character that are prominently on display. I completely love this. Not just because it's something different from what we've been getting for the last dozen seasons. But it's also just a very interesting interpretation of the role. I'm happy to see more of it. I even like how much the Doctor cries, now!
There are some problems, though. If we're counting Church on Ruby Road, then the season starts and ends on a bit of a weak note. RTD definitely needs to devote more attention to how he establishes and finishes his season. First and last impressions are pretty important!
He's also walking a very tricky path with how he constructs a story. It really does feel like he's going for a bit more of a Seasons Twenty-Five and Twenty-Six vibe, now. Rather than giving us all the answers, he's letting us reach our own conclusions about certain things. This is a very difficult style of story-telling. Cartmel seemed to nail it perfectly. He knew exactly when to let things stay ambiguous and when to sidle us with a big old info-dump. RTD doesn't always match his abilities. There are some things that needed better explanation. I can, for instance, deduce that Ruby creating snow when she thinks too hard about the day of her birth was probably a side effect of the Time Window displaying the actual event. But it might have been a good idea to slip a bit of dialogue in that mentions that.
Keeping expository dialogue to a bare minimum continues to be a huge trend in modern-day TV writing. Which is not an entirely bad thing. But it's something an author needs to be cautious about. If they're not careful, they just end up giving us a story that doesn't really make any sense!
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Another Season Review in the can. I went on for a bit longer than I'd planned to. Apparently, I had a lot to say!
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