TW Reviews Doctor Who Empire of Death S01E08

By Owen Quinn author of the Time Warriors and Zombie Blues

Ok, so I’ve held back from releasing this review just to see if my reaction is the same as other peoples’. Not that I have ever based my opinions on what others think; I’ve always been my own man and never a sheep but seeing the final episode of Ncuti Gatwa’s first season has left me kind of wrinkled.

The bottom line is that after the super first episode which climaxed in the reveal of God of Death Sutekh from the classic fourth Doctor story The Pyramids of Mars as the big bad, He Who Waits, was stunning. I have watched that cliffhanger over and over again all week so it was for me the midnight showing as usual.

And what we got was a lesson in the logistics of why bringing back such a powerful enemy is a bad idea unless you have an airtight story for his defeat. It’s also a lesson in how to completely kick an audience in the balls and leave them asking, “What was the point of that?” or “Is that it?”

I have been attacked as a hater of Doctor Who over the last while which is ridiculous. I have been a fan since 1971, been there through the wilderness years and suffered the Jodie Whittaker era unleashed on us by Chris Chibnall and am still here after all these years. One of my first memories is the Pertwee theme music coming on and me running upstairs to hide in my room I was so scared. I have two novel franchises, the Time Warriors (written as an alternative to Doctor Who because John Nathan Turner wouldn’t read my younger self’s handwritten script, books 9 and 10 coming soon) and Zombie Blues. I know how to write a story, I know what is exciting and story logic is paramount. So to bash views that dare to criticize the show and label genuine fans people haters is just indicative of fans that see no wrong in what they see and will just take anything that is shown. Don’t jump on a bandwagon, be brave enough to speak your mind. I’m here to keep the show alive and not let it drown under cliche and thoughtlessness.

Let’s get the good stuff out of the way.

Ncuti Gatwa is most definitely the Doctor. That gravitas I never saw in previous episodes was there finally when he first confronts Sutekh face to face. When he starts screaming in frustration as the universe falls, some have said that he seems to roar and scream a lot but in this instance as well as the ending of Dot and Bubble, it is justified.

The fact that Sutekh has always been with the Doctor ever since Pyramids of Mars is a fascinating one and every subsequent landing marked that world for death as the God of Death restored himself and evolved into what he has become now. That is a great concept. The Doctor is always racing towards things before they fade and die and living for those that they have lost along the way. Pure evil works best when it takes what is normal for us and precious to us and twists it to their own vile ends. The revelation that your travels and everything you stand for were in fact a prelude to total annihilation would break the Doctor. He celebrates the joy of the universe so to be its unwitting executioner tears at his soul. The Doctor began this journey healed and loving life even more than before but that pain is still very much alive under the laughter.

The acolytes of Sutekh were genuinely disturbing and that moment when Mel fell to Sutekh’s control was very well done. Bonnie Langford gave the performance of a lifetime as plucky Mel that urges the Doctor to run before falling to Sutekh’s will then dying. She is a tour de force. When she enters the memory Tardis and hugs the sixth Doctor’s coat is beautiful and made better with no dialogue. Her reaction alone sells it. It is nice to see the memory Tardis from Tales of the Tardis being used and got to notice even more relics from the past. The destruction of Earth as everyone is consumed by the dust of death is well done. dust of Death however is a dumb name. If Susan/Sutekh had said the breath of Sutekh then this worked better. Yes, it would have garnered some jokes about bad breath but the dust of death sounds like a crop dusting issue.

I loved the final UNIT attempt to destroy Sutekh before they were reduced to dust. Now that was a heroic fall but I really wanted Morris to be in the rest of the episode. We have to have him back asap. Indeed we need Donna, Ace, Tegan, Mel, Martha and whoever wants to come back under the UNIT banner now. Remember K9’s only down the road too along with the Sarah Jane gang.

Speaking of story logic and flow, the Empire of Death is sadly lacking leaving a poor end to all these weeks of questions and worries. Who is the boss the Meep spoke about that will come for the Doctor? Mrs Flood looking like an East 17 Christmas number one video? Come on! And her credibility is gone already. She told Cherry Sunday as Sutekh’s dust fell, that this was how her story ended but they all came back from the dead. She says the Doctor’s story will end in absolute terror; not believing it based on her performance so far.

Logic point 2: The Doctor still has many planets to visit so not all planets are dead. Mel points this out so how are they the last three people in the universe? The Doctor talks about the wake or web of his travels but if he hasn’t ben there then it can’t fall. If every planet has a Susan Triad on it, I’m sure she’s delighted to be on Gallifrey blowing dust for the craic with no one to kill. Pointless. Indeed when the planets come back, the Doctor mentions Spiridon which he visited in his third incarnation well before Pyramids of Mars so how was it destroyed and brought back? Similarly Peladon should be fine as again the third incarnation was pivotal to it.

Of course those clutching at straws will say he went back in an unseen adventure. Or he may have been everywhere but doesn’t know because all his past lives’ memories have been sealed inside the chameleon watch. Possibly but unlikely. If you go with that theory then it is just a lazy way to try and plug a plot hole that is as big as the moon. Even after the events of Logopolis and the Flux, the universe is still a big place with many unvisited places.

Logic 3: The Tardis has been blown up in the past and divided in The Giggle. In the fifth Doctor story Frontios the Tardis was ripped apart and put back together by the power of the Tractator Gravis. Where was Sutekh fitting into that? Did he jump to the 15th’s Tradis when it split in the Giggle? Why did he not save it and himself when it plunged into the Big bang in Castrovalva? The only thing that saved it then was jettisoning a quarter of the interior structure. I know this sounds like I am nit picking but when you present the idea that Sutekh has been part of the Tardis since his defeat then, no matter how cool an idea that is, it needs to make sense. In fact didn’t the Toymaker say that he had met the One Who Waits and didn’t tackle him? Did he see him stuck to the Tardis?

Logic 4: Sutekh is hung up on Ruby’s mother’s name? That’s why he won’t kill them? Piss off; he knows the Tardis inside out and every part of the Doctor’s life. Surely the chameleon watch hidden deep in the Tardis would be more of an allure for Sutekh? The Doctor is an infinite being thanks to the Timeless Children. His body and power gave rise to the Time Lord society. Isn’t he technically a god now? Finding that portal the child Doctor was first discovered at would be something that would prick a god’s curiosity? If Ruby’s mother was something special then we could go for that but she wasn’t. Far from it.

Logic 5: Sutekh was defeated by 740 of his fellow Osirans yet the Doctor uses a dog whistle and a leash? He was only beaten the first time by sheer luck, a two minute window that gave the Doctor time to send Sutekh forward to his death. That’s another thing; you can’t kill a God; trap them, fool them but death is not something they fear. I hear you cry the seventh Doctor blew up the Gods of Ragnarok but he didn’t. He blew up the circus they were operating from so they had no base here.

So to drag Sutekh through the vortex and bring the universe back to life was dumb. The ending of The Last of the Time Lords with everyone chanting the Doctor’s name made much more sense. Death plus death equals life? Okay.

Logic 6: The events of 73 Yards are the key to the identity of Ruby’s mother yet no one can remember it happening. How is that possible? Some will say the Tardis telepathic circuits but credulity is stretched here. Nicely tied in though to the distance of the Tardis perception filter. It is possible that Sutekh influenced those events so he could discover her identity. No, I don’t buy it either.

Logic 7: Ruby’s mother was pointing at the road sign to make sure her daughter was named Ruby? That could have been such a cool moment if done right. What if she had been pointing at Sutekh to warn the Doctor? That would have been better.

Logic 8: So the big Ruby mystery is that there is no mystery. What kind of slap to the audience is that? So Ruby making it snow is just something she can do. Wrong. In The Devil’s Chord, Maestro says that Ruby has a hidden song deep within her soul. It is a power that only the Oldest One has. Whatever is hidden in Ruby equals the Old One which also means that he was there the night she was born. it is enough to freak Maestro out. Inside Ruby is the power to fight Sutekh but apparently not. Given what we now know this makes no sense and comes across as a Poundshop Curse of Fenric reveal. That is how you do a god returning.

Logic 9: Ruby’s mother is just a human which means Ruby is a mutant that can make it snow. All she needs now is Storm and Professor Charles Xavier to turn up and recruit her. The power of belief was behind it all? Sorry but after investing eight weeks and a Christmas special all I can say is Fuck off. How lazy can you be and how quickly you will lose the few viewers you have who want good story telling.

Logic 10: Too twee an ending. Ruby gets her real mummy and daddy back and they all get on with Carla and Cherry happily ever after. Don’t get me wrong; I have seen this happen in real life and I am delighted when it does but this is too sugary to stomach. I love happy endings but ugh. All we need is Lassie.

Logic 11: Why does he keep telling people he’s the last of the Time Lords? He has number 14 living with the Nobles, daughter Jenny out there at least part Time Lord and unbeknownst to him the Master. Now if you say but he’s the Doctor so when he refers to himself as the last then he sees 14 and he as one being. Really? Then why did he refer to his fourth incarnation and Sarah Jane as just people who travelled in the Tardis. Sarah jane was never just a person to him.

Now Ruby leaves the Tardis and the Doctor is devastated. Some have said he literally throws her off the Tardis like she never mattered but look again. All through this season we have family mentioned. The Doctor believes that he has at last found his granddaughter Susan only to find it is part of Sutekh’s lie. He is devastated but just as he cannot be with Rose he cannot be part of this family reunion because it hurts too much. Once again the Doctor gets no reward for saving everyone again except loneliness. He can only watch happiness from the sidelines. He can never be truly happy. It hurts to say goodbye which is a nice throwback to when the fourth Doctor made Sarah Jane leave the Tardis when he was summoned home by the Time Lords. That was so underplayed to be magic. It’s also interesting to note that the Doctor tries to persuade Ruby not to go talk to her mother because he knows he will lose her if she does.

if only some of the rumours had been true and executed; Sean Pertwee would play the 3rd Doctor because of UNIT’s secret time window. That Ruby would have turned out to be the Doctor’s great great granddaughter because it was Susan that was the mysterious woman in the hooded cloak on Christmas Eve. Since this season was rechristened season one, it would have been poetic and a beautiful symmetry to 23rd of November 1963 to have the Doctor travel with a granddaughter once again. Given Carole Ann Ford is the last surviving member of the original cast this would have been the perfect opportunity to do this given we lost William Russell a couple of weeks back. A wasted opportunity that went down the happy family road lined with manure.