Doctor Who: Thin Ice

That was alright.

This episode isn’t really anything special. It broadly re-uses premise from The beast Below, but flips it so the villain is actually evil instead of desperate.

Despite the claim that Smile would help solidify the Doctor and Bill’s dynamic, this episode does that task quite well.

Bill is shocked by the Doctor’s disregard for death and the casual way in which he moves on after watching someone die. The best part of the resulting exchange is that we as the audience are on the Doctor’s side; we expect to see someone die to show how serious the situation is. Like him, long-term viewers of the show are simply desensitized to it.

The Doctor’s reactions to Bill’s criticisms are also quite refreshing. He’s dismissive in typical Twelve fashion. He doesn’t attempt to avoid the issue or act out in childish way like his predecessors, but instead points out that if Bill doesn’t pull her head out of her own arse and stop being self-righteous, far more people will die. I really hope that we see more of this side of the Doctor’s personality.

There are some definite downsides to this episode. Sarah Dollard seems to favour the moustache-twiddling villain (this being the first time she’s created a villain rather than using an established one). I understand that it’s easier for children who are watching if the villain is obviously evil, but Lord Sutcliffe comes across as cartoonish. He’s taking pleasure in causing pain; as a general rule, villains work best when they either have a warped perspective of reality (like Missy/The Master) or believe that the people they’re harming are an acceptable sacrifice. Sutcliffe has one throw away line about moving the British Empire forwards, but beyond that doesn’t really justify his actions and further than “I’m the bad guy.”

We get the sting at the end, with the contents of vault knocking, seemingly aware that the Doctor isn’t paying them as much attention as he should. This tells us that whatever is in there is able to at least take on humanoid form and is innately aware of the Doctor’s actions. Is it possibly one of the Time Lords’ self-aware weapons (like the Moment) or could it be a future version of the Doctor himself (The Valyard, possibly having adopted one of the Master’s old faces). Who knows? I only hope it won’t be as disappointing as the River Song and Missy reveals.

Doctor Who: Face the Raven

That was awesome.

So this episode came from the mind of Sarah Dollard, most well known (in the BBC that is) for her contributions to Merlin and Being Human. It’s more the Being Human experience that’s used here, with supernatural elements, explained with “science.”

Dollard also has a talent for making the audience want to see the darker side of the characters. Where most writers would play it safe and shoehorn in the “we must  be better than them” message, Dollard has us begging for the Doctor to unleash The Valyard.

To give a brief overview, Maisie Williams returns as Lady Me (now Lady Mayor) who is preciding over a hidden street of alien refugees in London. Trouble arises when Rigsy (another returning character) falls foul of the residents of the street and calls the Doctor for help.

Spoilers to follow.

So it turns out that everything that happens is all part of some elaborate plan by Lady Mayor, operating under threat from some unknown enemy, to teleport the Doctor away for punishment. Oh and the big twist; Clara’s essentially caught in the crossfire of their maneuvering and dies. This is apparently Jenna Coleman’s exit to the series and comes as full on shock. Usually, the Doctor would pull out a way to save a companion in these circumstances, but no; she’s dead. I mean I hope she’s dead; I like Clara as a character, but after the whole Osgood thing, I cannot get behind some characters being invincible.

Clara’s exit is marked perfectly by Capaldi. The Twelfth Doctor does not cry (like the 10^th and 11^th) or make empty threats (like the 9^th). He tells Lady Mayor that he is going to destroy everything she has built and ruin the lives of everyone she has saved. I get the impression that his promise to Clara (that he wouldn’t seek revenge) is the only lie he told throughout the whole monologue. As soon as Clara’s gone, he essentially tells Lady Mayor that the next time they meet he’s going to kill her. None of the other Doctors (of the revived era) could have delivered that message the way Capaldi does. that performance does take focus slightly from Coleman, as she acts out Clara's final moments.

The episode’s not perfect; Clara’s adrenaline junky phase is just annoying and laid on far too thick.

But those are minor quibbles in terms of a fine episode.