WARNING: Random thoughts abound.
Oh, what an atrocious episode. And for so many reasons. But it all goes back to the comment I posted while I watching it:
Chibnall. Does. Not. Know. How. To. Write. Character.
This episode has three parts. One is the Yaz/Dan/Old Man subplot, the second is the DoctorTecteun confornation, and the third is a unique UNIT Origin story, complete with a bland Marvel-wannabe villain to boot. Lots of decent ideas in all three stories, but crucially none of them work.
Why did the previous episode work? And when? It worked because it was, in essence, a good Angels story that happened to be wrapped around the nonsense story of the Division. Good stuff.
But this is one mostly the Division stuff, with no room for the best part of the story (the 1904 globetrotting team subplot) with any room to breathe. Indeed, I despise the writing of this part the most. In the hands of an imaginative, interesting writer you could get oodles and masses of characterization from all three, like what they are, who they, what this travelling brings out of them and how they feel about the situation. Under Chibnall, we don't get
any of that. We get, again, Yaz and a
glimpse of her missing the Doctor, but what's insulting is that this is the second episode in a row where Dan basically has nothing to say beyond "are really going back home?". Three YEARS and their entire relationship is written as if its been three days. Indeed, the Old Man comments on Yaz's resourcefulness AFTER they'd been globetrotting for that period of time, which made my eyes bleed. Why introduce a dufous like Dan if you are not prepared to wove him into the dynamic meaningfuilly? Maybe make Yaz question her loyalty to the Doctor ("Is the Doctor work this devotion from you?" is a much better line than "Are we ever coming back?"). Seriously, if this guy hadn't written a fairly decent set of episodes in the RTD/Moffat years, I would potentially call him one of the worst NuWho writers, perhaps ever. As is, he's certainly the one showrunner who has a clear disdain for his companions, and most especially Yaz, who has been screwed for the entirety of his run, and he has no excuse for it.
The UNIT storyline is an interesting idea in and of itself - a timetravelling Immortal who can wait out UNIT's growth but also help the organization nurture to what we know why he develops his own plot. That was
exactly my idea of what the Minister of War from series 9 would've been, a mastermind Saxon-esque season-finale villain who would square off against Capaldii in a more idealized series 9 (or even 11!). Instead, this admittedly interesting idea is wasted in a horribly, akwardly, annoyingly and ineptly written set of sequences that all lack suspence, intrigue and even some basic believeability. The General who takes the Serpent in is the most comically OTT camp General the show's ever had, and its astonishing to think he's not just Brigadier's superior at some point, and not just a high-ranking General, BUT ALSO ONE WHO FIRST HEADED UNIT! Its just insulting to have this ludicrously written creation blindly trust this Serpent whom he knows nothing about and in such an open way, too. The rest of the sequences after this stupid character dies are slightly better though, and indeed the Kate Stewart scenes are, unsurprisingly, the best part of the episode. Jemma Redgrave anchors the subplot with some much-needed gravitas and tension, basically calling the Serpent to his face and enacting action against him before he ever did. She's a cool character, and I only wish they would stop reminding us she's the Brigadier's daughter all the time.
And the Doctor-Tecteun story... is kinda like
The Timeless Children again, only its actually a female character explaining things to the slow Doctor, so at least its not mansplaining anymore. But its not any better at the end, as its the Doctor stopping to receive loads and loads of infodump again, and this shows Chibnall's understanding of the Doctor VERSUS RTD and Moff's. Both of his predecessors wrote the Doctor as an exceedingly clever man, an impossibly intelligent guy who cought up in a conversation even to his own chagrin. And not only kept up, he did so while formuilating a plan and, best of all, verbally assaulted the speaker, joking around to bring some levity to the situation and also confuse the enemy. Not saying that's what he'd do in this case, but so far, Whittaker's Doctor has been on her to be that person again, a Doctor who had a million plan and only so little time to pick one and stick with it. BUT HERE, Chibnall fails to bring the intelligence back to the Doctor. For you see, at no point does the Doctor attempt to circumvent the Tecteun's plan to take out this universe, instead she becomes invested and loses focus of the situation until it's too late. I get that she wants to know more about her previous lives, but wouldn't she prioritize the entire universe she grew up in over her own squabbles? That's the essence of the Doctor, at least. But Chibnall
never writes her that way. She never writes her as the hero in the desperate hour of need, no.
And what about her actual confrontation with the Tecteun? Well, let's just say, despite two very accomplished performers being present, both of them basically fail to instigate any kind of chemistry, and without it the scene lacks gravity and depth. Indeed, Barbara Flynn is acting very flamboyantly in the part, despite clearly not being very invested in it, and Whittaker acts more annoyed than angry or even vilified, numb, petrified and violated (all of which she should be, by
all rights). Its like Chibnall actually doesn't know how his own version of the Doctor should react, and that's astonishing frankly. But it doesn't help that this scene lacks any actual impact because, quite frankly, this entire storyline IS NOT INTERESTING IN THE LEAST. I mean, the Doctor as a virus, really? Oh, and let's not forget the asinine line of Tecteun's eyes never changing with every regeneration (WTF). By the time she's done in, you certainly don't feel like the Doctor lost an important figure of her life, and indeed, again under the previous showrunners you would at least get a sense of bond and history between the two. Chibnall thinks exposition is substitute for characterization though, but this isn't a procedural. Constant infodump does not suddenly connect Tecteun and the Doctor in any meaningful way, certainly does not add a new color to the franchise, rather its an annoying blemish that fans will now have to aknowledge, and be reminded of by the most annoying of Chibnall fans.
And how interesting that all of the Doctor's previous lives are stored in that Chameleon Arch, btw. Oh, so much more MYSTERY!!!
Anyway, thanks, I hated it. All the goodwill of the previous episodes is coming down to this. Bummer.
)[all emphasis mine]
