I'm enjoying this series more than I expected to.
Granted, I went in with minimal expectations. I plan to revisit it at some point but on first viewing the Capaldi era left me pretty cold and while I like the Moffat era in general, it did rather disappear up its own mythos and keeping track of the details became a bit wearing (particularly after Smith's departure). Clearing the decks and effectively starting over was probably a wise move and it gave Chibnall the scope to do something different.
Thus far, IMO, it's succeeding. After the over-the-top bombast and the beyond irritating turn-the-Doctor-into-a-Gallifrey-destroying-arsehole excesses of the RTD era and the Moffat-era issues I mentioned, this series feels like a breath of fresh air. The Doctor is still recognisably the Doctor but there's none of the baggage that weighed the character down for so much of new Who. This regeneration seems like a genuine new beginning - while, critically, remaining the same character - and I'm finding it quite refreshing. I like that there isn't an enemy of the week every week (speaking of enemies, I so wish the Nation estate had denied access to the Daleks, and the new Who Borg-like Cybermen should never appear again IMO). I like that, just for a while, it's the Doctor and her companions getting to know each other and seeing something of what's out there.
That isn't to say there aren't some issues. Whether it's Whittaker's choice or Chibnall's or the writing or whatever, the Tennant vibe she occasionally displays has to go. While it's the same character and echoes of past incarnations make sense, I detested Tennant's portrayal to the point where reminders are...most unwelcome. Otherwise I like her, and I like the companions. I still want them to become better-realised characters, but six episodes in I suppose there's only so much character development that can happen. It does need to happen, though. Some actual plots in these episodes wouldn't go astray, either, and while I'm not averse to social commentary in my SF a bit more subtlety would be good ("Arachnids in the UK" was the main offender there).
So there are a few problems, but this Doctor and her companions are genuinely likeable and the series is off to a promising start. I'm still watching and I want to keep watching, so it's already well ahead of the Capaldi era for mine. There's only been one episode I haven't been impressed with and even it had its moments. More, please.
[...] in the end she winds up doing the same thing she does in Rosa, turning her back on the situation and letting history take its course.
I really don't understand this particular criticism of this series. History happened (so to speak). What was the Doctor supposed to do during the events of "Rosa" other than let history take its course? Was she supposed to somehow save Prem and rewrite Yaz's existence? Reshape Partition so that it worked better? I don't see what else she could do, and I don't think it's necessary for the Doctor to determine history / events in every episode. Time traveller or not, sometimes things ought to be able to unfold as they should - especially (as in "Rosa") when they actually
did happen.
(Apologies for the essay.
)
