Somehow Moffat managed to make 15/Ruby one of my favorite Doctor/companion dynamics over the course of a single scene. This whole story is ludicrously tense, but it peaks with Ruby passing The Doctor the “urn”.
Ncuti is amazing in this. I didn't feel totally sad after Ruby was shot as didn't know her character enough, like with some other companions in a similar situation. Definitely very tense.
Maybe mundy is the next companion, the doctor did say he will check up on them... And it will make a change to have a companion that isn't a young woman from modern day Britain.
This was such a step up It is gonna be hard going back to RTD unless he used this as a jump point to go darker and more serious for a couple of Eps (preview gives me hope) but can you imagine a world where space babies was the next ep instead lol Doctor Who is a delicate show and I wonder if they have a mathematical method to try and ballance out the wide tone shifts in a season.
At the end of the review now and it’s dawned on me (cos of Liam’s use of Metal Gear Rising music) that the algorithm was basically MGS4’s war economy. Now I’m imagining a Doctor Who special episode that was worked on by RTD, Moffat, and Hideo Kojima pooling their combined insane genius together. And regarding Susan Twist I almost want the season to end and have it be nothing and Russel just say “Guys I really liked the actor, why’d you have to read into it!?” lol
Moffat's very first episode mentioned the weapon factories of Villengard (now replaced with a banana grove) This was of course filmed many months before the companion decision was made. On unleashed for this episode they talked about that a bit and Russell suggested that bringing Varada back would link directly into the Doctor and Ruby's story this season
I loved that your first thought at the mention of a beach was 13 and Yaz, I had the exact same thought lol. Also your reaction to the Fish fingers and Custard line was adorable and very much the same as my own haha. :) Anyway, this was an absolutely brilliant episode! The only very slight criticism I have, is that I was really looking forward to seeing Ruby have more agency and get some character moments beyond her being a walking mystery.. I wanted to see her take charge, have ideas of her own etc. But instead, besides the couple of moments she had in the first few minutes (insisting on handing the Doctor the "urn", and then going to shoot the gun to draw the ambulance away), she mostly just does what the Doctor tells her, before getting shot and being taken out of the later half of the story altogether. I mean, yeah, she was brave, but she didn't really have much agency either. I guess maybe it's partially on me for expecting differently, it's just that so far I feel like we hadn't really gotten much from her in terms of a unique personality, and since the premise of the episode was that the Doctor couldn't move, I was expecting Ruby to be the main star of it, and have to make more tough decisions on her own which I would have loved to see. I also think that her moment of near-dying was only impactful due to the Doctor's reaction, not because I care about her as deeply as I did some past companions at similar points in their respective run, and that's kind of a shame. Yeah, I liked the snow and "next of kin" thing, but, it felt like just another mystery-box moment instead of an actual character beat, which I think shouldn't be the case when the companion is literally dying. Good news is, as far as I can tell next episode seems to be an actual Doctor-light episode and apparently one of RTD's finest, so, I'm really hoping Ruby will finally get some unique and interesting character traits/moments which will make me more attached for when she's next put in danger lol :) Also, I'm pretty sure you're right about the episode order shenanigans, cause yeah, this being Ruby's first alien planet made the whole 6 months time-jump even weirder. All that being said, I did enjoy all the moments we got with the Doctor, seeing him be so close to helpless, having to ask for help and unable to actively get involved or run, knowing that he's putting everyone at risk but seeing no way out for most of the episode, was seriously fantastic and very emotional. And in true Moffat fashion, the dialog was great and Ncuti executed it perfectly of course. Also, yes, the political messages about companies profiting off war and the dangers of blind-faith were great imo, and the multiple references to the past were a lot of fun, not only with literal mention of fish fingers and custard but also Villengard (9 destroyed the factories of Villengard in favour of a banana grove, Jack's and River's weapons are from there, and 12 and 1 also traveled there in Twice Upon a Time - tough, afaik this was our first time actually seeing their weapons used in an actual war). Oh, and I loved him continuing to build on the idea of a Military-Church as well, which of course made me think back to the Papal Mainframe (Church of the Silence) that we've seen in A Good Man Goes to War and Time of the Doctor. You're right that the ideas are a bit similar to some others we've seen from Moffat in the past (felt like a bit of a mix between Silence in the Library and Oxygen imo), but that didn't bother me at all tbh. The tension was amazing, I literally found myself holding my breath or actually gasping a couple of times, and near tears at a couple of points. And seeing Varada so early was a lovely surprise as well! I'm so curious about how they're going to explain away her return now lol.. I wonder if they'll pull off a "Martha situation" as you've said, or maybe a Gwen (aka her being a "descendent" that just happens to look very similar), or if there's going to be a deeper explanation, but we have a while yet until we get to find out. Thank you for another great review!
It was a great return for moffat the tension built up was well done the acting between Ncuti and millie was excellent. Are there any theories on the snow like reasons why it appears?
I'd need to check but I do believe back around the time of A Good Man Goes To War maybe? some minor character referred to themselves as an Anglican Marine, as part of the Church of the Papal Mainframe army. So in this future apparently the old Henry VIII schism has (somehow) been resolved :)
@@ciaranirvine The Gay Fat/Thin Anglican Marines? Yeah. Colonel Manton's people and (Bishop)Father Octavian's clerics are all Anglican Marines and are part of the Papal Mainframe according to the wiki.
@@Velociraptour Yeah I just went back to watch the start of AGMGTW to check, it's that scene - which I didn't remember has them talking to Christina Chong from Strange New Worlds too! I guess it only makes sense that after humans go to the stars and meet aliens that many of the various branches of Christianity would gradually come together again
@@ciaranirvine I guess it's an okay enough headcanon for something we rarely encounter in the show...or there's a reason why the Church's military is predominantly Anglican.
@@Velociraptour Well, it will always be a fundamentally British show, I suppose it's some sort of sly wink to the Empire and all that? Or it could just be something silly they made up for Time Of Angels/Flesh And Stone and are now just running with it, and it'll never be explained lol
@@ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΑ-ε1ωyes... But the motives are very similar, continuing/starting a war so people keep paying. That's straight from the vault tech playbook.
@@flowersrainbows9703 I am well aware what the show is about. I also didn't like The Beast Below, but that doesn't mean I didn't like the 11th Doctor. I just didn't like Space Babies, that isn't on me. No one will like everything they watch.
I think I’m more disappointed in this episode than Space Babies because I had high hopes for this one and it had so much potential. I have a long winded explanation on why which I probably should just keep to myself. lol: It felt a little familiar(Various aspects reminded me of Oxygen, The Empty Child, The Magician’s Apprentice, Flesh and Stone, Blink, Don’t Breath, and extremely loosely The Idiot’s Lantern), almost all of the new characters ranged from unlikable to extremely annoying(Splice) to the point I didn’t care if any of them died(Canto was sorta likable but we knew him for such a short time I didn’t even blink when he died.), and we knew Ruby & the Doctor wouldn’t die in this episode so I felt no tension from it. The evil/greedy weapons dealer & killer ambulances were interesting, but I wasn’t in love with the part about the army being too stupid to realize they were fighting a nonexistent enemy as that was a bit too stupid. I can probably let that plot point pass though. It’s a small nitpick yet the _“I’m a complex space-time event”_ speech loosely reminded me of Matt Smith in Flesh and Stone and made me roll my eyes. The part about the blast radius was necessary but the time lord exposition felt pointless especially as I doubt Mundy knew what he was talking about. Then there’s the inevitable question of why didn’t he use the sonic “screwdriver” on the landmine and/or the ambulances? I would have preferred an explanation on why he(or Ruby) didn’t try rather than it just being ignored. The last second save by the AI was also extremely predictable adding to the overall meh feeling of the episode. Oh, Splice seemingly being fine because her father isn’t gone he’s just dead is…. weird. Overall it was a meh episode, but what can you expect out of an episode where the Doctor spends 99.99% of it standing on a landmine while Ruby watches. 🤷🏻♂️
Me: _trying to avoid all spoilers_
Every single reaction: *That's the new companion!*
🤣
The moff is also writing the christmas special :o
Yupppp he is
Somehow Moffat managed to make 15/Ruby one of my favorite Doctor/companion dynamics over the course of a single scene.
This whole story is ludicrously tense, but it peaks with Ruby passing The Doctor the “urn”.
God , the tension and direction was INSANE
Whole episode was in just a small set , but Gatwa and Millie kept me on edge the whole way through
Kiss kiss
Ncuti is amazing in this. I didn't feel totally sad after Ruby was shot as didn't know her character enough, like with some other companions in a similar situation. Definitely very tense.
I just realised that Mundy's name is another Ruby Sunday coincidence. This mystery is so much more intricate than Bad Wolf, jeez.
Moffat overshadowing RTD in his own era once again. DW is truly back
Amazing episode. The king is back and this was a boomer of an episode.
Great reaction to a great episode! 💜💜➕🌈🟦
❤❤❤ loved the episode boom really enjoying the first season can’t wait for next week❤❤❤
Maybe mundy is the next companion, the doctor did say he will check up on them...
And it will make a change to have a companion that isn't a young woman from modern day Britain.
But then they cannot do the gender and other stuff :p
@@Philmaster07 what?
There's a legend that the Doctor stole the moon and the president's wife, and now we know that legend is disseminated as a poem.
I forgot that Villengard was a thing for a while, all the way back to Moffat’s first episode.
Moffat nailed it!
This was such a step up It is gonna be hard going back to RTD unless he used this as a jump point to go darker and more serious for a couple of Eps (preview gives me hope) but can you imagine a world where space babies was the next ep instead lol
Doctor Who is a delicate show and I wonder if they have a mathematical method to try and ballance out the wide tone shifts in a season.
At the end of the review now and it’s dawned on me (cos of Liam’s use of Metal Gear Rising music) that the algorithm was basically MGS4’s war economy.
Now I’m imagining a Doctor Who special episode that was worked on by RTD, Moffat, and Hideo Kojima pooling their combined insane genius together.
And regarding Susan Twist I almost want the season to end and have it be nothing and Russel just say “Guys I really liked the actor, why’d you have to read into it!?” lol
Ruby: " Who's my next of kin" Is this a question or a hidden statement?
I mean I imagine the former given she is on deaths door and she’s petrified and she’s curious about what happens next for her (and her next of kin)
@@LiamCattersonI think they mean metatextually
You mean like a “who’s on first” thing?
Moffat's very first episode mentioned the weapon factories of Villengard (now replaced with a banana grove)
This was of course filmed many months before the companion decision was made. On unleashed for this episode they talked about that a bit and Russell suggested that bringing Varada back would link directly into the Doctor and Ruby's story this season
Moffo's back!
I loved that your first thought at the mention of a beach was 13 and Yaz, I had the exact same thought lol. Also your reaction to the Fish fingers and Custard line was adorable and very much the same as my own haha. :)
Anyway, this was an absolutely brilliant episode! The only very slight criticism I have, is that I was really looking forward to seeing Ruby have more agency and get some character moments beyond her being a walking mystery.. I wanted to see her take charge, have ideas of her own etc. But instead, besides the couple of moments she had in the first few minutes (insisting on handing the Doctor the "urn", and then going to shoot the gun to draw the ambulance away), she mostly just does what the Doctor tells her, before getting shot and being taken out of the later half of the story altogether. I mean, yeah, she was brave, but she didn't really have much agency either. I guess maybe it's partially on me for expecting differently, it's just that so far I feel like we hadn't really gotten much from her in terms of a unique personality, and since the premise of the episode was that the Doctor couldn't move, I was expecting Ruby to be the main star of it, and have to make more tough decisions on her own which I would have loved to see.
I also think that her moment of near-dying was only impactful due to the Doctor's reaction, not because I care about her as deeply as I did some past companions at similar points in their respective run, and that's kind of a shame. Yeah, I liked the snow and "next of kin" thing, but, it felt like just another mystery-box moment instead of an actual character beat, which I think shouldn't be the case when the companion is literally dying. Good news is, as far as I can tell next episode seems to be an actual Doctor-light episode and apparently one of RTD's finest, so, I'm really hoping Ruby will finally get some unique and interesting character traits/moments which will make me more attached for when she's next put in danger lol :)
Also, I'm pretty sure you're right about the episode order shenanigans, cause yeah, this being Ruby's first alien planet made the whole 6 months time-jump even weirder.
All that being said, I did enjoy all the moments we got with the Doctor, seeing him be so close to helpless, having to ask for help and unable to actively get involved or run, knowing that he's putting everyone at risk but seeing no way out for most of the episode, was seriously fantastic and very emotional. And in true Moffat fashion, the dialog was great and Ncuti executed it perfectly of course.
Also, yes, the political messages about companies profiting off war and the dangers of blind-faith were great imo, and the multiple references to the past were a lot of fun, not only with literal mention of fish fingers and custard but also Villengard (9 destroyed the factories of Villengard in favour of a banana grove, Jack's and River's weapons are from there, and 12 and 1 also traveled there in Twice Upon a Time - tough, afaik this was our first time actually seeing their weapons used in an actual war). Oh, and I loved him continuing to build on the idea of a Military-Church as well, which of course made me think back to the Papal Mainframe (Church of the Silence) that we've seen in A Good Man Goes to War and Time of the Doctor.
You're right that the ideas are a bit similar to some others we've seen from Moffat in the past (felt like a bit of a mix between Silence in the Library and Oxygen imo), but that didn't bother me at all tbh. The tension was amazing, I literally found myself holding my breath or actually gasping a couple of times, and near tears at a couple of points. And seeing Varada so early was a lovely surprise as well! I'm so curious about how they're going to explain away her return now lol.. I wonder if they'll pull off a "Martha situation" as you've said, or maybe a Gwen (aka her being a "descendent" that just happens to look very similar), or if there's going to be a deeper explanation, but we have a while yet until we get to find out.
Thank you for another great review!
I feel like Moffat is so much better as a writer rather than a show runner this episode is peak doctor who
Kiss kiss
11:02 remember that this episode was written by Steven Moffat
It was a great return for moffat the tension built up was well done the acting between Ncuti and millie was excellent.
Are there any theories on the snow like reasons why it appears?
Does anyone know how they're Anglican Marines but part of the Church of the Papal Mainframe?
I'd need to check but I do believe back around the time of A Good Man Goes To War maybe? some minor character referred to themselves as an Anglican Marine, as part of the Church of the Papal Mainframe army. So in this future apparently the old Henry VIII schism has (somehow) been resolved :)
@@ciaranirvine The Gay Fat/Thin Anglican Marines? Yeah. Colonel Manton's people and (Bishop)Father Octavian's clerics are all Anglican Marines and are part of the Papal Mainframe according to the wiki.
@@Velociraptour Yeah I just went back to watch the start of AGMGTW to check, it's that scene - which I didn't remember has them talking to Christina Chong from Strange New Worlds too! I guess it only makes sense that after humans go to the stars and meet aliens that many of the various branches of Christianity would gradually come together again
@@ciaranirvine I guess it's an okay enough headcanon for something we rarely encounter in the show...or there's a reason why the Church's military is predominantly Anglican.
@@Velociraptour Well, it will always be a fundamentally British show, I suppose it's some sort of sly wink to the Empire and all that? Or it could just be something silly they made up for Time Of Angels/Flesh And Stone and are now just running with it, and it'll never be explained lol
Is Villengaard related to Vault-Tec?.....
Isn't Vault-tech
In fallout
@@ΑΛΕΞΑΝΔΡΑ-ε1ωyes... But the motives are very similar, continuing/starting a war so people keep paying.
That's straight from the vault tech playbook.
Much better episode than the first two.
All three were amazing and fun and a nice change, and Dr who is about whacky and crazy stuff so ..those episodes actually fit perfect
@@flowersrainbows9703 I am well aware what the show is about. I also didn't like The Beast Below, but that doesn't mean I didn't like the 11th Doctor. I just didn't like Space Babies, that isn't on me. No one will like everything they watch.
I think I’m more disappointed in this episode than Space Babies because I had high hopes for this one and it had so much potential. I have a long winded explanation on why which I probably should just keep to myself. lol:
It felt a little familiar(Various aspects reminded me of Oxygen, The Empty Child, The Magician’s Apprentice, Flesh and Stone, Blink, Don’t Breath, and extremely loosely The Idiot’s Lantern), almost all of the new characters ranged from unlikable to extremely annoying(Splice) to the point I didn’t care if any of them died(Canto was sorta likable but we knew him for such a short time I didn’t even blink when he died.), and we knew Ruby & the Doctor wouldn’t die in this episode so I felt no tension from it. The evil/greedy weapons dealer & killer ambulances were interesting, but I wasn’t in love with the part about the army being too stupid to realize they were fighting a nonexistent enemy as that was a bit too stupid. I can probably let that plot point pass though.
It’s a small nitpick yet the _“I’m a complex space-time event”_ speech loosely reminded me of Matt Smith in Flesh and Stone and made me roll my eyes. The part about the blast radius was necessary but the time lord exposition felt pointless especially as I doubt Mundy knew what he was talking about. Then there’s the inevitable question of why didn’t he use the sonic “screwdriver” on the landmine and/or the ambulances? I would have preferred an explanation on why he(or Ruby) didn’t try rather than it just being ignored. The last second save by the AI was also extremely predictable adding to the overall meh feeling of the episode. Oh, Splice seemingly being fine because her father isn’t gone he’s just dead is…. weird. Overall it was a meh episode, but what can you expect out of an episode where the Doctor spends 99.99% of it standing on a landmine while Ruby watches. 🤷🏻♂️
I can't ..the writing is so bad XD
I mean I beg to differ but okay
Can you please elaborate on what exactly was bad about it?